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Cartersville AM

Let's see..It was August 6, 1970, 6:15PM when I hit the air for the very first time.
I was so afraid, my hands were shaking when I tried to put the carts in the machines.
But looking back.. There was Herschel on the air with his call in show, Lee Burger was on the air and selling time, Wayne Fry "Tell and Sell" was on the air and keeping eveyone mellow, Ray Strickland was entertaining us with the females he brought to the station after hours (just ask Herschel) Bob Brighton who talked me into coming to the station back on June 22, 1970 to watch him and get into radio and myself.
We were in competion with Don Kordecki and Don Ruff "13 B's" over at WKRW.
After leaving Cartersville to take a job at WDOL in Athens, GA I returned to work for WKRW.
I learned alot during those days from Herschel, Lee and both Dons.
Bob Brighton, Ray Strickland, myself, Jim Vann and Bob Owen were all hanging around with each other as we were all Graduates of Cherokee High School over in Canton. We all were just getting started in radio and we would stay up until 6 or 7 o'clock in the morning, practicing, practicing, practicing, trying to get better at the craft. Yes, back then, we looked at it as a craft. The things I learned back then, I still implore as the building blocks of any successful radio station. It's all cyclimatic.
Jim was working at WCHK for Byron Dobbs and Bob Owen was working at WFOM. Bob later helped me get a job at WFOM where I had the opportunity to work with Red Jones, Pete Owen, Garry Kinsey and "Country" Jack Jackson.
I was impressed the day Barry Chase dropped by WBHF for a visit. What a great guy.
And I never will forget Horace and our confrontation.
By the way, what is Ludlow doing now days?
 
WBHF debuted on July 17, 1946, and was owned by William Ryan Frier.

Frier, a Douglas native, was the first editor of The Bartow Herald, founded in 1929. He became sole owner of The Herald in 1931. He sold The Herald in 1969, when it merged with the Tribune News, becoming The Herald Tribune.

Frier also co-owned WEAB/Greer, SC (and The Greer Citizen) with Ed Burch. That station was built in 1949. Frier sold his interest in the station and newspaper to Burch in 1969.

Ryan Frier died in 1972, and ownership of WBHF passed to his widow, Alma. She died in 1978, and ownership of Frier Broadcasting was transferred to Trust Company Bank, executors of her estate.

Herschel Wisebram acquired Frier Broadcasting from the estate in late 1979 (not sure whether he bought it or it was willed to him, but I suspect it was the former). He sold WBHF to Prestige Cable in 1999.

Along the way, Herschel branched out, building WRED (Big Red Radio) in Monroe in 1978. This was a restart of WMRE/Monroe, which had its license revoked sometime in the mid-70s. Interestingly, Jon Oscher was a minority partner with Herschel in the Monroe venture (and may have had an ownership interest in WBHF with Herschel, but I’m not sure). They sold the station in 1980, which changed hands several times after that. The facility on 1490 (by then WMLS), went silent again in the mid/late-80s. WKUN/Monroe, formerly on 1580, took over the 1490 dial position in 2001.

Jon Oscher’s Prestige Cable built the Cartersville cable system in 1968...about the same period that most smaller communities saw the cable come to town.

Prestige Cable and its holdings were sold in 2000 - with WBHF going to Anverse, Inc., a non-profit corporation owned by Jon Oscher, Dorothy Oscher, Lorraine McClain, Forrest McClain, Earline Burke and David Aiken. Lorraine is the daughter of Jon and Dorothy Oscher...Forrest McClain is Lorraine’s husband.

WKRW/Cartersville (500w-D @ 1270) was built in 1961 by Don Kordecki, Don Ruff and Jim Wilder. Wilder built WBIE/Marietta in 1955. I think Kordecki was the sole owner when the station was sold to John and Julia Frew in April, 1981.
 
jovialjay said:
WKRW/Cartersville (500w-D @ 1270) was built in 1961 by Don Kordecki, Don Ruff and Jim Wilder. Wilder built WBIE/Marietta in 1955. I think Kordecki was the sole owner when the station was sold to John and Julia Frew in April, 1981.
Click to expand...

Seriously Jay, you should consider writing a book.
 
That WAS a fantastic history!

The weather today is a perfect time to add that I wasn't at WBHF during the big ice storm of `92 or `94 or whenever it was. That was Seth Hopkins and Charles Brachell. Charles was legendary for sleeping with a police scanner in his bedroom and pretty much living at the radio station. Seth Hopkins still works for John Osher in some capacity, the last I knew.
 
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