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RIP Rick Buckley

Northeast Radio Watch just reported on Twitter that Buckley Broadcasting's CEO "has died after suffering a brain embolism."

Buckley owns WOR, along with a few regional stations such as WDRC-AM/FM in Hartford.
 
Condolences to the Buckley family.

DToTheJ said:
Buckley owns WOR, along with a few regional stations such as WDRC-AM/FM in Hartford.

Really? I had NO idea! Thanks for the schoolin'. ::)
 
I worked in Seattle for Rick's father Dick, and for Rick, about 40 years ago, as Rick was just taking the reigns. He developed into a great broadcaster. He will be missed in the radio community.
 
I worked for him in Syracuse @ WSEN. He did care about his stations and the people who worked for him. I much preferred working for Buckley than any Mega Corp. He was a great broadcaster and will be missed.
 
radioman148 said:
Amazing that he held out and never sold to a mega corp.
Maybe now...Just so he doesn't dissapoint you.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!
 
I don't want to be one to proverbially dance on Mr. Buckley's grave, but now that the subject has come up...

What does the future hold for WOR (and the rest of the Buckley-owned stations) in the wake of his passing?
 
radioman148 said:
badjef said:
radioman148 said:
Amazing that he held out and never sold to a mega corp.
Maybe now...Just so he doesn't dissapoint you.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

Who said I was disappointed?
Your observation was one of disappointment. Unlike DToTheJ who was more generalized as to the curious of the future of the company.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!
 
Rick Buckley turned down some very generous offers for WOR back in the 90s because of estate tax issues.

These no longer apply, at least until the expiration of the Bush tax cuts at the end of next year (and their extension is unlikely given the government's ongoing fiscal woes in the wake of the Great Recession and its aftermath). So by the end of next year the Buckley family will have to consider seriously whether to put WOR on the block, while they can still cash out without an estate tax bite. And will they, or any succeeding owner, keep it a local, and New York-flavored, talk station, while giving it the programming modernization it so desperately needs?

You would hate to see 710 become another 24/7 outpost for satellite talk, satellite sports or for mail-order religion, as so many heritage AMs have done...
 
Bob1370 said:
You would hate to see 710 become another 24/7 outpost for satellite talk, satellite sports or for mail-order religion, as so many heritage AMs have done...

If ESPN were to buy 710 it wouldn't be 24/7 satellite sports talk, since ESPN's current outlet 1050 AM has some local sports talk programming on it. Then they can either sell 1050 or run ESPN Deportes aka ESPN Radio en Espanol on it. And with the stronger 710 signal they would no longer have to LMA AM 1040 in New Jersey. The only thing is if ESPN were to sell 1050 they won't get back close to what they paid for it. If ESPN ended up with 710 they would have ESPN 710 in LA and NYC.
 
I'd say the future is going to be business as usual at Buckley Broadcasting. The Buckley family is a broadcasting family. The stations are owned by a trust for the benefit of Rick and his sister. Connie Buckley is head of human resources, sister Martha is on the board, daughter Jennifer is the general sales manager for WOR, and nephew Eric is the GM for the Connecticut stations.

This is a family that loves radio, has done great things in radio, and wouldn't want to see their stations absorbed into something bigger. I'd put my money on nothing changing, the family will carry on Rick Buckley's legacy.
 
Reelyreal you are so correct. The Buckley Family is Radio and will always be. I had the extreme pleasure of working for Rick Buckley and can say that he was the most wonderful person to work for and with. When Radio was great in the 80's and 90's where you would work hard Monday through Thursday and have a long lunch and a cocktail on Friday. Rick was a broadcaster and he loved Radio. He never became "corporate" and "untouchable" like today's owners. And he treated everyone with kindness and appreciated your commitment to his family of Radio Stations. I was in San Francisco with Rick Buckley and friends celebrating an empoyee's Birthday. On a boat going under the Golden Gate Bridge. It was amazing.
"I was a Buckley Girl" and was so honored to be part of Rick's Family. The Buckley legacy will go on with dear friend Joe B. and the entire Buckley Family. I am so bleassed to have known Rick and so saddened by the loss. Thanks for believing in me Rick I will never forget you.
 
MarcB said:
Bob1370 said:
You would hate to see 710 become another 24/7 outpost for satellite talk, satellite sports or for mail-order religion, as so many heritage AMs have done...

If ESPN were to buy 710 it wouldn't be 24/7 satellite sports talk, since ESPN's current outlet 1050 AM has some local sports talk programming on it. Then they can either sell 1050 or run ESPN Deportes aka ESPN Radio en Espanol on it. And with the stronger 710 signal they would no longer have to LMA AM 1040 in New Jersey. The only thing is if ESPN were to sell 1050 they won't get back close to what they paid for it. If ESPN ended up with 710 they would have ESPN 710 in LA and NYC.

710 may not be as good as 660, 770 and 880 but it's a quantum leap from 1050! WEPN can't compete for the Mets or Yankees rights on 1050 even if they overpay. If ESPN gets 710, they've got a chance!

WCBS' deal with the Yankees expires this year, but could be extended through 2012 to coincide with the end of the Mets' deal with WFAN. :)
 
You know how Giants games are bumped from WFAN to what used to be on 92.3 FM (K-Rock, Free-FM) and these days, to WCBS-FM, due to conflicts from Mets games? Suppose CBS Radio lets the Mets go ("Let's go Mets, go" - hey! :p ) and retains the Yankees rights, eventually moving them over to WFAN. Since the Yankees deal would be new, and the Giants contract had already been in existence, would the Giants then have precedence over Yankee games, bumping John & Suzyn (or whomever) to, oh, I don't know, WCBS-AM?
 
I know this is a month late, but I just heard "Carry On" by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and
it reminded me of meeting Rick Buckley.

It was 1970 and I was a 17 year old high school kid in Mount Holly, NJ. My favorite
radio station was WIBG, 99 Philadelpia. I had a school project to do for a journalism
class, so I decided to do a video tour of WIBG. I made the arrangements with the
program director, Jack Reynolds to come to the station and do it. My electronics
teacher came along to help. When we got there, Jack met us but had to do an
airshift because someone called out. So he introduced us to John Records Landecker,
then 24 years old, and John did the tour. We recorded a fake newscast with
Peter Jackson in the newsroom, the air studio with Jack Reynolds, then went and
interviewed Rick Buckley (then 33 years old) He thought it would be funny if we
did a "skit" ... so we enter the room, and his hot secretary jumps up from his lap
and runs away. We had a nice interview, I wish I still had the tape. It was on now
defunct black and white reel to reel.

Oh ... why "Carry On" ? Rick's office had a big picture window that overlooked
the 5 towers of the 50,000 watt station. The RF got into the equipment and
that song was so loud on the recording it was like a soundtrack.
 
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