I was sorry to hear about Paul Christy's passing. I did not know Rhonda Hart, but always heard good things about her.
I know that WABX's rock fans will wince at this (and is not meant to detract from the greatness of the AOR format), but Paul's Top-40 format in the early 80s at 'ABX was very innovative, maybe the first mainstream format in the country to feature the "new wave" artists of that era like Duran Duran, Psychedelic Furs, etc. The playlist borrowed heavily from "rock of the 80s" stations like KROQ.