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WADV FM Stereo - New website

C

Clesniak

Dear friends and fans of WADV FM Stereo radio,

I would just like to let you all know that there is a new (official) website live at www.wadv-fm.org that has photos, listener memories, a forum, a podcast of original WADV programming and some other tidbits. If you remember the station, my grandmother (Nancy Lesniak) and I would love to hear from you!

You can also find updates on our facebook page (updated more regularly) at www.facebook.com/wadvfm

Happy listening!

Caroline Lesniak
 
Clesniak said:
Dear friends and fans of WADV FM Stereo radio,

I would just like to let you all know that there is a new (official) website live at www.wadv-fm.org that has photos, listener memories, a forum, a podcast of original WADV programming and some other tidbits. If you remember the station, my grandmother (Nancy Lesniak) and I would love to hear from you!
Click to expand...

I enjoyed the Saturday evening programming...even though I should have been immersed in rock n roll, I enjoyed plenty of Big Band sounds...I specifically remember Fred Klestine and Ken Ruof as on-air personalities.

This was back in the early 1970s...when we listened to FM primarily on the "hi fi" in the living room...

"double-yew-a-dee-vee, the sound of stair-ee-oo, one-oh-six-point-five"!

Richard in Allentown, PA (ex-East Aurora)
 
I have zero memories of this station. None.

My time in WNY...actually Niagara Falls, ONT...was 1969-70.

Parents listened to WWOL ("The Country Giant" and IIRC a CBS affiliate). That was on in the car. EVERY time I hear "Stand By Your Man"...or play Johnny Cash (and we still play a few Johnny Cash titles, M-Score is a beautiful thing!) I remember WWOL.

Mornings were CJRN but I also remember Dad having 'KB on in the bathroom for the news.

The hi-fi in the living room was set to CHSC. I still remember Dad bitching about Joan Baez's rendition of "Turn! Turn! Turn!" on that station, that it promoted Communism. Mom laughingly reminded him the lyrics were from the Bible (Ecclesiastes 3)

I won't rehash me and 'KB...if you've read this board any length of time you already know. :)

But all that said, I'm curious how WADV became WYRK. I see they "signed off" in 1981.

And did Fred Klestine go to 'ADV directly from 'KB?

Fascinating stuff.
 
Indeed, Fred Klestine did go from KB to WADV. Not sure if it was a matter of weeks or a few months. But some of the readers of this board will remember that Jeff Kaye wanted to stick it to that pesky little competitor, WYSL, by hiring its morning man, Jack Sheridan. Jeff put Jack in Fred's 9 to noon shift, and Fred was put out to pasture. I was astounded that Fred was going from my favorite station to my father's radio station. I listened to Fred's first show on WADV. I remember he started out with a Chicago tune, probably scaring some WADV listeners until he abruptly stopped it and continued on with a tune fitting the format. Who knew that Fred would become such an institution on WADV. As my tastes evolved, I started to enjoy WADV in its later years.

In answer to your other question, Chas, a company by the name of Stoner made an offer for WADV that the Lesniaks couldn't refuse. Once the sale was completed, the format was immediately changed to country. Fred didn't want anything to do with country and left, eventually landing at WFXZ-WBUF. Dan Lesniak kept his weekend Polka show on the new WYRK. But about a month after the sale, Dan died of a heart attack and never got to enjoy his retirement.
 
It's great to see people still interested in the story of WADV.

I wasn't personally involved so I cannot say for certain, but from what I understand from my grandmother, they sold the station in the understanding that the format would not change. I'm not sure what happened after that.

-Caroline
 
I always liked Fred Klestine on WKBW. I never had a chance to hear him on WADV but from the recordings that have surfaced here on the internet he sounds like a perfect match for what WADV was doing.
 
Dan Neaverth has often said that Fred was the funniest guy at KB. That's quite a tribute. As the inside baseball story goes, Fred gracefully left KB thanks in large measure to Jeff Kaye. Word is CapCities corporate PD Joe Somerset wanted Fred out, but Jeff refused to put Fred on the all night show, which is how corporate forced high profile talent to quit without having to pay the severance required by NABET (and personal) contracts back in the day. As a result, Fred was straight-out terminated and received a comfortable settlement from the company. He went to WADV where he excelled and later held down middays at WBUF when (in large measure because of Fred's midday ratings) it owned the market and was one of the top AC stations in the United States. Sometimes overlooked, he's no doubt one of the legends of Buffalo broadcasting.
 
Even as an 11 year old, I perceived Fred as different from the other guys on KB. He just seemed older and more conventional, quite different from the crazier, fun young Danny and Joey.

Fred Klestine was perfect for WADV. That big, polished voice intro-ing Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and Peggy Lee - wow! He could've had a whole second career at WNEW AM. But he was Buffalo to the bone!

Nick Seneca
 
The first time I ever heard WADV was, and I hate this cliche, in a dentist's chair. As a "radio-aware" kid sans an FM receiver, I knew the station existed and my ears perked up when I finally heard it. And I remember very clearly that the personality on the air was none other than Gary Deeb - long before he was the Buffalo Evening News radio-tv columnist.

When my family finally bought a Zenith FM stereo radio in the mid-60s, WADV was frequently on in the home. This was the first time I heard the rich smooth voice of Wally Wasik booming through those cloth-covered FM speakers. Wally, of course, was later better known as David R. Snow.

Other voices I remember were Lee Zimmerman, Jack West (10P - 1A), Ken Ruof, Rick Bennett (formerly of beautiful music WYSL), Bernie Sandler....and I believe Bob Kobernuss and Dick Spaulding were also on the station.

Drifting from high school to college, my FM listening shifted to JJ Jordan's WGRQ and of course, WPHD (Buffalo's original Stoner station) with only occasional hits of 106.5. I wish, though, I'd listened more to WADV in the 1970s. I'm sure they were making great radio, in a format I came to appreciate 35 years later!

I really enjoy the new website - especially hearing those wonderful, evocative WADV jingles. That was class radio.

Nick Seneca
 
JustPastBuffalo said:
Dan Neaverth has often said that Fred was the funniest guy at KB. That's quite a tribute. As the inside baseball story goes, Fred gracefully left KB thanks in large measure to Jeff Kaye. Word is CapCities corporate PD Joe Somerset wanted Fred out, but Jeff refused to put Fred on the all night show, which is how corporate forced high profile talent to quit without having to pay the severance required by NABET (and personal) contracts back in the day. As a result, Fred was straight-out terminated and received a comfortable settlement from the company. He went to WADV where he excelled and later held down middays at WBUF when (in large measure because of Fred's midday ratings) it owned the market and was one of the top AC stations in the United States. Sometimes overlooked, he's no doubt one of the legends of Buffalo broadcasting.
Click to expand...

Fascinating anecdote, JPB...I enjoy getting the "inside baseball" context behind what came thru the speaker.

This is one area where I don't believe a lot has changed...how local fortunes can rise/fall on the whims of corporate suits. I'm seeing it happen right now with a friend.
 
JustPastBuffalo said:
Dan Neaverth has often said that Fred was the funniest guy at KB. That's quite a tribute. As the inside baseball story goes, Fred gracefully left KB thanks in large measure to Jeff Kaye. Word is CapCities corporate PD Joe Somerset wanted Fred out, but Jeff refused to put Fred on the all night show, which is how corporate forced high profile talent to quit without having to pay the severance required by NABET (and personal) contracts back in the day. As a result, Fred was straight-out terminated and received a comfortable settlement from the company. He went to WADV where he excelled and later held down middays at WBUF when (in large measure because of Fred's midday ratings) it owned the market and was one of the top AC stations in the United States. Sometimes overlooked, he's no doubt one of the legends of Buffalo broadcasting.
Click to expand...

Thanks for clarifying my earlier post JPB. I was a 16-year-old KB listener when Fred was fired. I must have read the "Jeff Kaye hiring Jack Sheridan to spite WYSL" story in the radio-TV column at the time. In any event, I had no idea that a Cap City exec was responsible for Fred's exit from KB. Next time, I'll leave the insider information to those, like you, who were in the biz at the time. Speaking of the overnight exile practice at KB, I remember wondering why a talent like Rod Roddy was doing overnights when I started listening to the station in 1967. Years later, I learned, probably from you JPB, why. :eek:
 
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