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A very sad passing...

R

RayThomas

40-plus-year midstate air personality, broadcast engineer and TV Cable engineer Curt Cleland passed away over the weekend of an apparent heart attack. Curt's career began at WHYL while still in high school in the late 60s. He did middays as Curt Allan, one of the "W-100 Action Men" throughout the 70s until QV-93's debut in '78, where he then did middays until George Gardner sold the station in the early 80's. Curt then stayed on with Gardner as an
engineer for Carlisle TV Cable, through its sale to Comcast, where he continued his career as a Cable engineer. He also was Chief Engineer at WHYL from 1982 through its sale to Citadel in 1998. He then returned to WIOO as Chief Engineer, part-time air personality and voiceover talent. Curt had a great voice and was Carlisle's "liner guy" for many years. His voice was a big part of the launch of Country Gold 1000 in 1999. He also did Saturday nights for many years at the former B-104 in Baltimore, where he sounded great. Its such a shock to lose someone who was a co-worker for most of 36 years. What a talented guy...very sad...
 
I didn't know Curt personally but remember him well as one of the "Action Men" during W-100's Top 40 glory years. I also heard him on Baltimore's legendary B-104 once or twice, and he really did sound good. Sorry to hear that another voice has been silenced.
 
:'( wow sad to hear. i really liked curt...he was such a nice and genuine person. just a great guy and what nice smooth pipes he had. he was not only a talented engineer...and a great air personality too.
 
So sad, Curt was a real great guy and knew his business well. I frist met him in 1967. He would allow me to make tapes at the old WIOO studios. Haven't seen him for quite a while. Always wondered-was that his voice doing the local weather on the cable weather channel? While in Hawaii last month, that same voice did their local weather on the weather channel. He was an easy going guy and never had a bad word for anyone.

God bless
 
Curt also used the air name "Kris Kelly" on both QV93 and B104. Here's how he came by that name: While working full-time at WIOO, Curt also worked on-and-off part-time at WKBO during the "Rock Of Hbg" and Musicradio" days. His last stint at KBO was in the summer/fall of 1978. Because he was already working in the market , Dan Steele wanted him to use a different airname. In that era, all the WKBO jocks, both full and part-time, had name shout jingles. So one was created for Curt .. "Kris Kelly". It was a splice together using the "Kris" from Chris Andree, who remains Clear Channel Harrisburg's primary production voice. The "Kelly" part came from Tim Kelly aka Tim Drayer, who also later worked at WIOO and died prematurely in the 1980s. When Mike Patrick hired Curt for QV93, he liked the idea of stealing a jock from WKBO, so "Kris Kelly" stuck. He later used that name at B104.
 
I seem to recall Curt working part-time at WKBO around '75 using the airname "Corey Wells". Around '76 or '77 he also did part-time at WSBA using the name "Bobby Lewis". When WSBA transitioned to AC, he became Robert Lewis" As I recall, Curt and Fred Adams both worked at 'SBA part-time around that period.
 
This is very sad. Me, Ken Merson, et. al. worked with Kris at B104. He was a real trouper; always made the drive from Harrisburg. Nice guy. I don't know if he had a family; I tend to remember he was quite single. Sad, nevertheless.

sean hall
 
Losing Curt Cleland aka Kris Kelly is a major blow to the extended B104 Baltimore family as well as his loved ones. Picking up where my longtime friend and B104 co-worker Sean Hall left off, Curt was a rock solid, dependable and exceptional on-air talent. However, he was at his funniest off mic. Curt had us all rolling on the floor in tears laughing with his one-liners, personal observations and dead-on impressions of his B104 co-workers - all in good fun mind you. Conversely, Curt was one of the most thoughtful, affirming and supportive guys I ever worked with. Sharing time on/air air with Curt was a pleasure because he always helped me feel better just being around. Smart, funny, skilled and always ready to help anyone in anyway he could. Safe travels on the way to your next adventure, Curt! You're already missed.

Ken Merson
94-7 FRESH-FM
Washington, DC
 
Rock, you have the story right, Kris Kelly came from Chris Andree's jingle open and the Kelly close...but I have to tell you I was happy when Kris got the job at QV 93. I don't believe anyone "steal's" part timers, I had a terrific full time staff and no openings for a part time guy to move up. I don't believe I had anyone named Corey Wells in the 4 years I was PD at WKBO (1975-1979). May Curt rest in peace.

Dan Steele
 
Dan...I might have gotton the timeline wrong. It may have been before your arrival. Maybe '74? It could have been someone else....but I remember the name...and remember wondering if they got the name from a "Three Dog Night" member. None the less...Curt had one of the smoothest deliveries in the business.
 
Dan,
I think QV93 PD Mike Patrick wanted to make it "sound" like he took someone from KBO, rather than WIOO, where Curt was working full-time at the time. Curt used Corey Wells under Bob Alexander.
 
To hopefully settle this question, I distinctly remember hearing him on WSBA one Saturday evening, using the name Corey Wells. This was before the fall of 1979, when I started there, so we must have just missed each other.
 
Curt worked full-time at QV93 from it's sign-on December 4, 1978 until January, 1981. I don't know if working for WSBA would've been allowed as QV93 would've considered WSBA competition at that time, (I doubt WSBA would've considered QV93 competition). It probably would've been before that era.
 
Curty worked for Mike Patrick, Ray St. James, and me at QV-93. He was mid-day, I was mornings... and at 4;00 p.m. most weekdays, we would meet at my house to watch Soupy Sales. His White Fang and Black Tooth were priceless. I think I did the better Pookie. A thousand times, I would be doing a live spot, or the weather and he would walk up and do White Fang ... just to highlight something in the forcast. It is funny to think.... you can't do the voice without doing the hand movement. We did "bits" on each others show... and had great affection for each other... as we had for other guys on the staff. I think we were at a special time in our lives. We stayed together as friends (most of the air staff) for 30 some years. The same is not true for WFIL or WPEN down here in Philly.
At WPEN and WFIL, a Ground Hog Day never went by without Curty coming on the air as Henry Hoganbaum, owner of Fritzy, the Ground Hog from Tuna, PA. He had sunglasses riveted to his head... but was very good at predicting the next six weeks of weather.

Curt was very talented... very funny, and truly loyal to friends... and the world was full of his friends. Steve Harris, Gary Maxwell and I were lucky enough to be pallbearers... the fact that the minister was german, had a sever accent, did not seem to know how to smile, and had only seen Curty a few times since she arrived from Germany months ago... made for a perfect day. Curty would have loved it!
 
Ten days after Curt's untimely death, his mother Joan Cleland has died at 86. It is my understanding that she was never told of Curt's death because of advanced Alzheimer's.
 
Shame that Curt's gone,he was a funny guy.I would've liked to have been there to see all the old QV93 peeps like Steve Harris...I used to live across the alley from QV,and actually used to do survey calls for a while there in 1979,Steve and I were running buds back then,I sure miss those days. :mad:
 
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