The radio top 25 !!!!!!!

[yonkstur]

Thanks, Yonk; the RHV starts its 33rd year on Sept 2.

Hope you have many more to come.

Yonkstur

 

[travist102]

Happy 33, Father Tom... had one of the more important jobs for RHV... getting in on time and running the cassettes from 10a-noon in summer 95.

One of these days, I'll make it up for a taping.

All the best!
Travis

 

[yonkstur]

There are three technological generations of the RHV. Travis had to turn over a cassette, when it first started, during a 60 second spot, my group had to switch the tape on a reel to reel machine. (People actually gathered around to watch me do it, kind of like the way they used to watch Marv Throneberry or Dick Stuart field first base!) That was the first generation, the second was of course the cassette and the third generation are these little mini discs. I think. Father Tom, can you enlighten us on the new technology you're using or is that a trade secret?

Yonkstur

 

[Vepster]

Meet me at the Archbald Pothole 12noon, Wednesday. No checks please, a bag full of quarters and two Krispy Kreme donuts.
Yonkstur

I'll meet you anywhere but the Archbald Pothole.

 

[ThomasCarten]

Ah, the RHV technology changes. From an old Gates Studioette (actually a Yard, cut down) which occasionally smoked (it was old enough) to some RadioShack stuff to a Mackie 10-channel mixer. Inserts via MiniDisc, as nobody is actually in the studio when I record it; they are all pre-records; once in a while someone might be with me, but that's unusual. Features are all on CD's.

I'm a stickler for timing (just for myself, not for fill-in directors). One day, when we were on reel and taking ABC-I net, some "done ten shows" freshman was there when we were on the take-out and said, "You're going to run over." Dumb sh*t. I waited for the 10-second warning tone, turned up the net pot, then stood back at the door. "...community service of King's College. BEEP. (sounder)." To the kid: "I don't run over."

During the latter cassette days, the late Sherwood Baker and I used to have a contest to see who could switch the cassette the fastest. Stop tape, eject, insert, hit play. I think the record was something like 2.5 or 3 seconds.

We're on MiniDisc now and life is much better. However, these little squirts have a tendency to start a new track if there is more than a second of dead air, so the challenge now is to do a 60-minute program in one track. It makes absolutely no difference on playback, but it louses up the disc timer, as I like my 60-minute program to be 60:00 minutes long and I'm rarely off by as much as a second. Have gone months without running under or over by that much. Just a personal quirk.

btw: When I was on network affils, I never once upcut the net, nor was there dead air ahead of it.

 

[ColorRadio]

btw: When I was on network affils, I never once upcut the net, nor was there dead air ahead of it.

In other words, your show was as tight as a rat's a$$hole...so tight it squeeked! Been there; squeeked it , too. I was always proud of my timing and board work. That goes back to the old Gates Dualux days. There's a clue as to where I worked. Ask Mike Moran. He will know who I am.

 

[ThomasCarten]

That is a very neat way of putting it! I worked at a station with a Dualux; the only time we split the board was when we did talk or took phone calls for contests. I wanted to have a cart to run during the seven seconds of dead air, but the "could care less" management didn't go for anything that suspicious and obviously communists. So, as I went into delay, I'd say, "The next seven seconds of dead air are brought to you by the American Library Association, which says, "Shhhhhh." Then I'd go into delay, start speaking right away and wait for the audio to come out of the tunnel, so to speak.

 

[ColorRadio]

When I worked the graveyard, I would use the second channel to record an hour's worth of show while I did a live show on the main channel. Then, about 4 AM, I would play back the recorded segment while I went to Hadvance Hoagies on South Main Street. I really thought I was pulling a fast one on management, until one night I left my station key at work. Then, I had to call the station manager to let me back in. That was before the days of cell phones. I said I went outside to the parking lot for a smoke, and forgot my key. The tough part was explaining the taped segment. That was voice tracking to the N-th degree. The next trip for a hoagie, I left the side door unlocked.

Before I came up with the idea of a pre-recording an hour, I would just track one side of an LP (record). That was cool until I decided to play a Beach Boys album. The problem there was that they recorded mostly two minute songs. So, one album side only played about 12-14 minutes. One morning (4 AM), I exited the hoagie shop, got in my car, and was shocked by what I heard on air. It sounded like the tone arm was playing the record label. In fact, it was. I had run out of music.

So, I had learned my lesson the hard way. I would now rely on long songs on cart (i.e. the long In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida on a 31 minute ATC), and set the mini-mation to loop from the last one to the first one in a 5 cart sequence if I wasn't back in time. Leaving the door unlocked was also mandatory. God Bless radio the way it was. It will never again be so much FUN!

 

[ThomasCarten]

We ran this half-hour vinyl called "Heartbeat Theater" from the Salvation Army at 7pm. I was on from 4-midnight, so it was pretty much suppertime. I'd cue it up, put the control room penny (alas, they are no more) on the tone arm and go down the street for a take-out. I have the WRKC penny in my RHV studio as a memento of those days when every station had one or two hanging around the board.

 

[masterg]

That goes back to the old Gates Dualux days.

Wow, I spent three years staring at a Dualux. Not in Scr/W-B, but not all that far away in Williamsport. Great board, could do most anything, used both channels a lot to cut carts and other assorted things. Also very useful for monitoring network and listening for beeps. This might be an odd question, but does anyone hear remember Kelly Watts? Kelly was an institution in radio in the Williamsport area for years, and he and I were just swapping e-mails about, among other things, the Gates Dualux days.

 

[masterg]

Yeah, I know, bad job on spelling; I really do know the difference between "here" and "hear."

 

[Kelly Watts]

Nice to be remembered, but an institution? That's funny. I am sure most of the Managers and P.D.'s I worked for in Williamport would remember me as an S.O.B. They are probably right, but I always felt that my job was to do the best I could for the advertisers, listeners, and keep it legal at the same time. I resented being lied to, or some boss trying to B.S. me, so I got a reputation as a hard a--. Ok, but still after over 3 decades since I left the Williamsport Market the first time I am remembered. In the 60's and 70's the Williamsport market was a great place to work in radio, lots of exciting things fun, such as battling the likes of Kerby Confer and Paul Rotfuss, and (the silver fox) George Gilbert.

 

[cowboy72]

alot of great talent mentioned. im telling my age now, but how about little bill phillps,(the valley with a heart), jones evans, johnny margis, dick whitaker,who started talk radio in this area with speakup at wbax.. tommy woods, joe talman. just like all the the great names in sports from our area. northeast pa. has produced alot of talent in broadcasting. i probalbly forgot others, but this is a great topic. keep em coming..