FM 108 Gold 'N Great:

Timeline

1975 - CRTC grants FM license to Burlington Broadcasting Co.

September 23, 1976 - CING-FM goes on the air at 107.9 Mh. The first song played is "Sing" by the Carpenters. The format is beautiful music.

September, 1978 - FM 108 plays oldies on the all-night show for the first time. One of the first hosts - if not THE first host - is Dave Terryberry.

Fall, 1978 - Glen Darling begins late evening oldies show, the Golden Great Revival, 10:30 p.m. to midnight.

Fall, 1978 - Rockin' Robin hosts first show

Fall, 1978 - Jay Brown (J.B.) arrives at FM 108 in weekends.

March, 1979 - Norman B. arrives at FM 108 and does show on Tuesday and Thursday evenings beginning at 10:30 p.m.

Spring, 1979 - Wes Atkinson arrives at FM 108 and does the evening show at first. The first song he plays on his first show is "Silence Is Golden" by The Tremeloes.

Dec. 25, 1979 - Wes and Carol Atkinson do their first Christmas morning show, an event that became an FM 108 tradition.

1980 - FM 108 is playing oldies 19 hours a day, the only gap being between 1-6 p.m. A partial lineup:

6-10 a.m. - THE MORNING SHOW

10-11:30 a.m. - CLINT TRUEMAN

11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. - ROCKIN' ROBIN

1-3 p.m. - THE JAZZ SHOW (Jack Cole)

3-6 p.m. - GERMAN SHOW

6-8 p.m. - NORMAN B.

8-10 p.m. - OLDIES

10 p.m.-12 midnight - ROCKIN' ROBIN

12 midnight-6 a.m. - ALL-NIGHT OLDIES

Weekends - JAY BROWN (J.B.)

Fall, 1980: Ralf and Dave show begins on Friday night, midnight-6 a.m.

1981 - Norman B. named program director.

1981 - FM 108 begins Music of Your Life format in the daytime (9 a.m. to 7 p.m.) with oldies the rest of the time.

1981 - Dave Whatmough debuts with his rarities show 3-6 a.m. Saturdays.

The lineup:

6-9 a.m. - THE MORNING SHOW

9 a.m.-12 noon - EARL WARREN

12 noon-3 p.m. - ELWOOD GLOVER

3-7 p.m. - GIL CHRISTIE

7-10 p.m. - OLDIES

10 p.m.-12 midnight - ROCKIN' ROBIN

12 midnight-6 a.m. - THE SHADOW (Larry Bunda)

Weekends - JAY BROWN (J.B.)

1982 - Wes Atkinson returns to FM 108 after a stint at CHRE-FM St. Catharines and does the morning show. He is assisted on AM drive by his wife Carol.

1983 - Dave Jourdain begins Saturday afternoon (4-6 p.m.) folk show.

November 22, 1983 - Mark Panopolous does first on-air shift (midnight).

Fall, 1984 - The lineup is as follows:

6-10 a.m. - JIM PAULSON

10 a.m.-2 p.m. - PAT MURRAY

2 p.m.-6 p.m. - EARL WARREN

6-10 p.m. - PETE JAYCOCK

10 p.m.-11:30 p.m. - ROCKIN' ROBIN

11:30 p.m.-12 midnight - THE WAX MUSEUM (with Norman B.)

12 midnight-6 a.m. - RUSS HORTON

Weekends - JAY BROWN (J.B)., MARK EUSTACE

April, 1985 - Russ Horton leaves the all-night show. J.B. takes over temporarily and is assigned to train the hordes of replacements that would follow.

June 8, 1985 - Scott Regan, real name Dale Patterson, hosts first edition of the Gold Mine. The show ran Wednesday nights, midnight to 6 a.m.

June, 1985 - John Mitter replaces Jim Paulson as morning man.

July, 1985 - Mike Spicer and Cliff Mason hired to do all night show, Monday and Tuesday nights respectively. Spicer would eventually take over Thursday night as well.

Fall, 1985 - The weekday lineup:

6-10 a.m. - JOHN MITTER

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - JIM PAULSON

3-6 p.m. - EARL WARREN

6-10 p.m. - PETE JAYCOCK

10 p.m.-12 midnight - ROCKIN' ROBIN

12 midnight-6 a.m. - Sun: Skip Sirman; Mon: Mike Spicer; Tues: Cliff Mason; Wed: Scott Regan; Thurs: Mike Spicer; Fri: Jay Brown/Dave Whatmough; Sat: Mark Eustace

March, 1986 - The Great Purge of '86! J.B. and Dave Whatmough lose their Friday overnight spots and Cliff Mason disappears from Tuesday night. Scott Regan moves from Wednesday to Sunday nights. Mike Spicer does Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday all-night show and Catharine Jay Thursday-Friday. Mark Eustis stays on Saturday overnight.

Fall, 1986 - The next great purge! Al McKay's syndicated programming, with Mark Panopolous at the controls, takes over the Monday-Saturday overnight period. The Top Ten Hits of All Time, Wolfman Jack, Gary Owens, Dick Clark and Dick Bartley will fill the overnight airwaves until early 1988. Scott Regan's Gold Mine remains on Sunday night.

Fall, 1986 - The weekday lineup:

6-10 a.m. - WES ATKINSON

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - JIM PAULSON

3-7 p.m. - EARL WARREN

7:00-7:30 p.m. - THE WAX MUSEUM (with Norman B.)

7:30-11:30 p.m. - ROCKIN' ROBIN

11:30 p.m.-12 midnight - THE LATE SHOW (with Norman B.)

12 midnight-6 a.m. - THE ALL-NIGHT SHOW (syndicated programming)

1987: Dave Jourdain does last 4-6 p.m. folk show on Saturday afternoons. He is replaced by Russ Horton with a new 4-7 p.m. oldies show. Bert Thoms adds Saturday 8 p.m.-midnight to his 1-3 duties on Saturday. He also hosts a real-estate show from 7-8 p.m. Don Biefer is still the 8 a.m.-1 p.m. host on Saturday.

March, 1988 - Syndicated programming on the all-night show ends, except on Saturday night. Mark Panopolous takes over all-night show duties, including Sunday nights, as Scott Regan finally leaves.

March, 1988 - The lineup:

6-10 a.m. - WES ATKINSON

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - JIM PAULSON

3-7 p.m. - EARL WARREN

7-8:30 p.m. - FEATURE PROGRAMMING

8:30-11 p.m. - ROCKIN' ROBIN

11 p.m.-12 midnight - FEATURE PROGRAMMING

12 midnight-6 a.m. - MARK PANOPOULOS

1988: Saturday lineup is changed to include Junior Chung's reggae show 4-6 p.m. Taped programming runs from 6-8 followed by Bert Thombs 8 p.m.-midnight. Bert is also on Saturday afternoons 1-3, preceded by Don Biefer.

Fall, 1988 - Mark Panopoulos begins Friday Night at the Fifties.

February, 1989 - Rockin' Robin leaves after 10 years as evening jock. He then became the morning man (4-9 a.m.) at the new Canadian Radio Network (CRN). Ironically, FM 108 picked up the part of his satellite broadcast from 4-5:30 a.m. Robin is replaced as FM 108's evening jock by Russ Horton.

February, 1989 - Bert Thombs hosts last Saturday night show.

February 25, 1989, 6:00 a.m. - Mark Panopoulos finishes his last "Friday Night at the Fifties" show.

March 3, 1989 - FM 108 begins carrying the Canadian Radio Network from 12 midnight to 6 a.m.

March, 1989 - Mark Panopoulos becomes full-time daytime operator.

March, 1989 - The lineup:

6-10 a.m. - WES ATKINSON

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - JIM PAULSON

3-6 p.m. - EARL WARREN

6-7 p.m. - PERSONALITY PROFILES

7-11 p.m. - RUSS HORTON

11 p.m.-4 a.m. - PAT PORTER (Canadian Radio Network)

4-5:30 a.m. - ROCKIN' ROBIN (Canadian Radio Network)

April, 1989 - Russ Horton leaves and is replaced as evening jock by Mike Spicer.

September, 1989 - The beginning of the end for oldies at FM 108 as Rhythm Radio debuts. Dance music would run Monday-Saturday from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. The new slogan was "Daytime Lite and Rhythm at Nite"

April, 1990 - Wes Atkinson leaves after four years as morning man for the all-night show at CKLH Hamilton. He is replaced by Dave Smith, former PM drive personality at CKOC.

April, 1990 - The lineup:

6-10 a.m. - DAVE SMITH

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - JIM PAULSON

3-6 p.m. - EARL WARREN

6-7 p.m. - PERSONALITY PROFILES

7 p.m.-6 a.m. - RHYTHM RADIO

April, 1990 - Dale Patterson, the former Scott Regan, takes over as host of the Gold Mine Sunday afternoons noon-3 p.m. Saturday morning show hosting duties alternate between Dave Smith, Jay McPhail and Pat Porter.

September 29, 1990, 2:57 p.m. - Dale Patterson signs off his Saturday afternoon show as usual and plays the song "Stompede" by the Marketts. It was the last song played in FM 108's oldies era. The Saturday oldies programming is replaced by "Daytime Lite" and the old FM 108 is for all intents and purposes, dead. Sadly, the end of this great era is never acknowledged on the air as Patterson is not informed it is the end.

August 30, 1991, 6:57 p.m. - Mark Panopolous plays the Tommy James song "She" and the "Daytime Lite" format ends. Dance 108 begins at 7 p.m. with Wayne Williams the host.

August, 1991 - The final lineup:

6-10 a.m. - DAVE SMITH

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - EARL WARREN

3-6 p.m. - JIM PAULSON

6-7 p.m. - PERSONALITY PROFILES

7 p.m.-6 a.m. - RHYTHM RADIO

September 1, 1991 - The first full day of Dance 108 (later Energy 108). Jay McPhail takes over the morning show and Dave Smith begins a brief run at middays. Jim Paulson, Earl Warren and Mark Panopolous all lose their weekday spots, although Panopolous is retained part-time. Warren actually hangs on for another month on Saturdays. But soon all of the old FM 108 personalities disappear, replaced by a new breed.

March, 1996 (Noon) - German show host Siggy Leopold signs off the air for the final time (on tape, oddly) with Mark Panopoulos on the board. So ended the last vestige of the pre-dance programming. This is technically the end of FM 108, as Leopold had continued to use that designation rather than Energy 108.

Friday, January 17, 1997 (11 a.m.-Noon) - The Old School Hour, the only time anything approaching "oldies" was heard regularily on the new Energy 108, aired for the final time. Some old school sounds are still played live-to-air on Sunday nights from the Phoenix night club.

Sunday, January 19, 1997, 4:30 a.m. - Norman B. dies of a heart attack, one month after his 53rd birthday.

Wednesday, January 22, 1997 - At Norman B's funeral, his friend Bill Nagy delivers a heartfelt eulogy. He ends his contribution to the service by playing an aircheck of Norman B.'s sign-off song, "So Long" by Fats Domino. This day also marked the 32nd anniversary of the passing of Alan Freed.

Sunday, March 23, 1997 - Energy 108 suspends its regular programming to air a one-hour tribute to Norman B., hosted by Mark Panopoulos and Bill Nagy. It was the last time Norm's voice and the music he loved would ever be heard on CING-FM.

RETURN TO FM 108 GOLD 'N GREAT

RETURN TO ROCK RADIO SCRAPBOOK