WLUV 1520-AM

[P-R]

Hopefully I will find the rest of the photos this weekend (doing a major cleaning project and tossing things out as I get ready to do some remodelling).

If you listen to the 2007 airchecks...you will notice that Joe is still playing things off of cart and appears off of turntable (unless someone carted the 45s and Lps for him).

The board in the photo is a Sparta A-15 and checking with an Engineer friend who swapped that same model out of the WFRL-AM newsroom for me a lifetime ago told me it was from the mid-70s. I would have guessed earlier...like late '60s....but, I trust his call on it.

Here is something from Sparta about the board:

http://www.geocities.com/patrickriley407/SpartaA15.jpg

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

Re: WLUV 1520-AM/WHOW 1520-AM Clinton

A good friend of mine was working part-time at WHOW in 2000. I was on my way to Decatur to attend a station event another friend was hosting for WEJT...I stopped by WHOW for a "tour". I had a video camera with me and taped the place...it was as rustic as WLUV (although WLUV might have them beat at the time with the dog Joe kept chained in the AM on-air studio). WHOW had a hole in the roof over the transmitters...with a blue tarp suspended above them...unbelievable mess. You are correct Tim about the phones...they didn't have any service. The FM was operating off the exciter at the time of my visit.

This weekend I found an aircheck someone mailed me of WLUV-AM (Joe Salvi) from last fall...I haven't listened to it yet...once I do I will add it with the others.

Thanks for the additional WLUV airchecks from last November.

Anyway, after posting my last reply regarding the AM 1520 jinx in northern and central Illinois (regarding the situation at WLUV and the pre-2003 status of WHOW in Clinton) I came across this WHOW website created by a Clinton native and former station staffer and thought this might also be of interest:

http://www.peorianetwork.com/whow/

Pay particular attention to the "Last Days of Cornbelt Broadcasting" section to get an idea about the situation facing the station (which was reflected in their on-air product) before suddenly being forced off the air on Halloween 2002 after a station employee nearly electrocuted himself while trying to shut off the AM transmitter at sign-off.

In addition, I came across the online Nov. 8, 2002 issue of "Main Street Tattlers" which contains a paragraph on the shutdown of WHOW (which doesn't begin to tell the half of what went on at the station):

http://www.main-st.net/tattlers/021108.pdf

I also found a November 6, 2002 article in the Decatur Herald and Review on the shutdown of WHOW:

http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=print

 

[P-R]

Excellent links Tim! Thank you for providing those. I just emailed them to a friend of mine in Norfolk, VA who worked in the barn years ago. Below is a link to a web site I found a few years ago about WHOW. The site was created by a former employee of WHOW.

http://www.geocities.com/clintonblues/WHOW.html

 

[eatsbreathesradio]

Sorry that I haven't gotten a chance to post this until now, but "Papa Joe" is holding an open house in celebration of WLUV's 46th anniversary at the studios this Sunday(8/31) from 1-5PM.......he's promoting this pretty hard on-air. Music, free food, and your chance to perform on the air if you sing or play an instrument.
This just happens to fall on the last day of "On The Waterfront" - how ironic.

Here's your chance to see the "Love Shack" for real!!