WSBA MYTHS AND LEGENDS

[bossjock 56]

I do remember Ron Beach.  When did WLAN go fulltime top 40?  The first line-up I remember had Ron Beach in mornings, Ken Allen (Slotnick) in Middays.  Bouncin' Bob Harrington in PM drive and Tony Montgomery at night.  This was in the early '60s.  They still had alot of clutter from ABC and other sources.  Don McNeil's Breakfast Club in mid-morning, an hour of news in the evening,  and a late night talk show called "Extension 39" at 11pm.  Other names I remember frpom that era were Jim Hazeltine and Del Fletcher.  Bob Dettrey and Chuck Raymond later joined the line-up around '63, I believe.  Does anyone know who the original PD was?  I think Dettrey took over around '66 and I believe Hazeltine was PD and in mornings right before that.  A guy named Bob Reynolds took over mornings around 1966, with Dusty Rees taking over a couple of years later.  Lots of memories from high above the State Store at 252 N. Queen St.

[GuyFry]

WLAN's greatest contribution to Americn radio may be the amazing Dick Orkin. You know...the fabulously-funny "CHICKEN MAN" who began begawking his way into our collective consciousness back in the 60's & 70's.  And he's still regaling us today with commercial skits produced at his Hollywood chicken ranch.

I remember hearing Dick Orkin during his very first week on WLAN in the late '50.  He sounded so nervous!  But, eventually, that rich, smooth voice
settled down and the rest is history.  The story (back then) was that Dick's brother , Bob got him in touch with the Altdoerfers. Bob was directing the Ephrata Star Playhouse.  Some of the big name talent who came in to play summer stock quickly recognized Dick Orkin's stellar talent...(the man behind the velvety, compelling voice).

Another interesting voice at late 1950's WLAN  was one Jim Forney.  He and Orkin gave a patina of quality in the classic announcer style of yesteryear when "reading spots" was still de rigeur.  Forney moved on to WSBA-TV and then one of the new stations that went on the air in Lebanon.  I doubt that Art Greiner drove him out of the business..but, by the 70's Jim Forney seemed to drop off the radio radar. Did he start using another name? Anybody know what further fate or fortune befell Jim Forney?

[bossjock 56]

I think WLAN was one of the first stations to air "Chickenman" in the mid 60's.  I remember Jim Forney appearing briefly around '81 or '82 doing afternoon drive on 1270 WLBR.  He seemed to be over qualified for the position and didn't stay long.  Did he ever work for WHP?

[Seltzer]

How long was Dick Orkin at LAN? Because, there was a story that floated around for years that old man Altdoefer fired him saying he had no talent after he had been there for a week.

Or was the fired talent Wee Willie Webber of WIP and WPEN fame?

[loeper]

If Dick Orken isn't already in the Radio Hall of Fame then those people need to get on the ball. 

[vetguy]

Stories also have it that Orkin worked for a short time at then WGAL-AM, now WLPA (AM).

[GuyFry]

You may be right about Jim Forney doing a stint at WHP radio before, after or between stints in Lebanon.  And, yes, he  was cerebral and not using all his talents doing afternons at WLBR in the 80's.
I did hear something once about Jim going to WHP. It may have been just as the teime of  longtime utility men like Ed Gundaker were retiring.  His voice would have fit right in with the still-classic announcer style prevailing at that prestige station
Remember the deep voices of early WHP-TV anchor Joe Harper..and his cross-town rival Don Wear at WTPA-TV?  Remember good guys Jim English and Sandy Fouts at WHP radio and television in the 50's and 60's?  And Mac Mc Cauley and Don Ross over at Channel 71.

[GuyFry]

Back when their AM and FM transmitters were on top of the Harold's Furniture and Lancaster Newspapers buildings...WGAL Radio (1490 AM and 101.3 FM ) was Lancaster's powerhouse in a certain sense.  For more than two decades, GM Ken Kreider, PD By Kintzer, on air chatter Gladys Mummaw were household words.
Community goings-on were heralded by a clanging bell and "The Town Crier" yelling, "hear ye, hear ye".
Duke Kneipp did an hour of jazz in the afternoon and Jim Rees did 2 hours of classics late at night.
Ed Wickenheiser, Paul Heil and Pete Van Buren were
in there when stations were starting to make their news product more than just "rip and read".

Fred Klein (aka Fred King in other incarnations elsewhere over the next 20 years) started out at WGAL AM1490.  His sister was Joan Klein of early WGAL-TV, fame when they were on Channel FOUR.
Some of you may remember Jim Cox, John Mc Alarney, Paul Rodenhauser, Ann Herr, Marijane Landis, Ann Herr, Dave Brandt, Nelson Sears, Kay  Cuskey,  Leo Kelly, Frank Whelan, Chuck  Zink (as "Uncle Josh"), Bill Saylor  and weatherman Bill Kuster who got fired for saying a certain snowstorm was a "pain in the ass". The next week he was hired by Channel 3 in Philadelphia. Channel 4 also did a local, live nighttime quiz show called "Stump Your Neighbor" with questions posed to a panel of local lumianries. But, mediocrity and amateurism were still written all over a generally-hokey on air product until Steinman finally sold the station in 1979.  Subsequent owners have made Channel 8 finally look pretty darned good.

If WGAL-TV had not been so "Dutchy" and ridiculous  in its early years, low power Channel 71 (seventy one) WTPA-TV and then Channel 55 WHP-TV might not have survived.  Newhouse might have pulled the plug if they didn't finally get Ch. 27, where their signal went much farther. Even with a 50 ft. mast on top of a 3 story house, WTPA was snowy in northwest Lancaster.

If WLAN's Altdoerfers had not stalled putting it on their air...(finally giving up their construction permit for Ch. 21, WHP-TV might still be on Ch. 55.

Too bad WCMB-TV failed shortly after the DuMont network shut down in 1955 or '56.  Not enough people had UHF converters and not alot of syndicated programming was available then. To wit, WDEL-TV (later WPFH and then WVUE-TV failed to make it as an independent station on channel TWELVE out of Wilmington.

In an earlier post, someone mentioned Wee Willie Webber in a post about the elder Mr Altdoerfer's ability to judge talent. He signed on WEEU-TV, Ch. 33 in Reading in 1953..and then signed it off less than  years later.  Over at ill fateed WHUM-TV, Channel 61, Paul Barclay (later radio's "Night Mayor") was the principal on camera personality..hile Jack  Gounder was the most visible personality on WEEU-TV.  Both of these men lasted for decades on the Reading station's  radio affiliates.

South  Central Pennsylvania has had no shortage of people who thought they had talent and foisted themselves on a long-suffering public...to the frequent embarrassment of station management..and I use the term "management" loosely.

[bossjock 56]

Percy Platypus was on of my earliest memories of WGAL-TV.  Marijane Landis was host.  What was that phrase they used to intoduce cartoons......"letter flicker"?  As long as we're having "geaser moments" and remembering stuff from way back, there was a 580 WHP nightime staff announcer who hosted "Nightwatch" around 1960-61, who used the air name Mayfe Nutter.  I doubt it was his real name.  It was one of those crazy air names that didn't really fit the personality type.  I later heard this name again used by a recording artist of some type.  Perhaps a country artist in the 60's?  Probably not the same guy.  All this was well before the late Olin Harris hosted that shift.

[sprtschick]

I remember listening to Gladys Mummaw on WGAL-AM with my mom when I was little and waking up listening to Pete Van Buren for years. 

When I first got into this business after college I remember bragging to my parents that I had met Bob Dettrey (another name from my childhood) and By Kintzer (who everyone in Lancaster knew)

Do you think that 10-15 years from now there will be kids graduating college and getting excited to meet those of us who are in the business today?