Sept. 27, 2009
Fourteen Inducted into West Virginia Broadcast Hall of Fame
Hustead Hosted one of First Daily Call In Talk Shows; Walters Played First Record by Loretta Lynn
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Huntington WV (HNN) – The evening began with a bluegrass tune by a featured “Friendly Radio Show” band. Since the event honored exceptional talent and dedication in West Virginia Broadcasting,
Wallace Horn, 88, has since 1967 hosted and produced the WVOW (Logan, WV) program. What began as a 15 minute advertisement for his radio repair business grew into an institution. Saturday, Horn became one of the Fourth class of inductees during a two-hour ceremony at the Museum of Radio and Technology, Huntington.
Hosted by Hoppy Kercheval, the voice of MetroNews “Talkline,” one of the Huntington area broadcasters honored, the man responsible for one of the first (if not the first) daily call-in seriously controversial “talk show” broadcasting from the penthouse of the beautiful Hotel Frederick. Richard (“Dick”) Hustead , according to his son, Kurt, prompted changes in Cabell County Board of Education policy. Schools would not shut for terribly frigid and otherwise inclement weather. Hustead pressured the Board to close schools.
Although the station was involved in live radio-casting of city Sunday closing (“Blue Law”) confrontations with police , such as at the Bazaar Discount Department Store, Kurt told HNN Saturday evening that he felt his greatest accomplishment was the cable television system built from scratch in Huntington, the first CATV system for a major city in the state.
EDDIE WALTERS
Known mainly as an engineer always ready to help and on the way in an old blue truck, Eddie Walters spent 37 years at WTCR Radio. His widow, Jean, offered a glimpse into his career which like many of those honored in the room began, too, as a disc jockey.
The Connie B. Gay station had its transmitter located in a remote section of Ashland, Ky. on U.S. Route 60. According to Mrs. Walters, one a Saturday afternoon during his air shift, a man stopped by begging him to pay a record by the teenager standing outside. Eddie consented, and, in doing so, WTCR played the first song recorded by Loretta Lynn. (Lynn’s biography and the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” movie has scenes in which she and her husband went around to stations in the South pushing to get “I’m a Honky Tonk Girl” played. The song became a minor hit and opened the Nashville door for her to cut demos for Teddy and Doyle Wilburn. The rest… it’s history.)
Although the man I knew as “Uncle Eddie,” retired from WTCR, as his widow stated he could not sit still. He worked at and built radio stations around the region until the Man Upstairs retired him to Heaven.
BOB MILLER
A winner of Billboard Magazine’s “Air Personality of the Year,” Miller, the older brother of J.B. Miller, started his career at WKEE and WGNT Radio (formerly WSAZ AM and now WRVC AM). Bob brought originality to Huntington radio with Radio (his pet parrot ) and sidekick Ernie Krumptnus. Known for making outrageous phone calls , Miller called Ugandan dictator Idia Amin and put him on the air live.
No one still knows what the general manager said to Bob concerning the phone bill.
After winning the small market broadcaster award, Miller took a job in Portland, Oregon.
Speaking briefly at the ceremony, Bob Miller offered insight into achieving radio popularity (through higher ratings), “If you take care of the listener, that crap takes care of itself. Radio is such an intimate medium it invites you to become a part of what people are doing and it invites them to become a part of are about and what you are trying to accomplish.”
On Friday night, Bob visited a local shopping mall with J.B. “People kept stopping us. We like to never got out of there. J.B. has accomplished what we set out to do --- make the listener feel like they are part of us,” Miller stated. “The most important thing you can hear from anyone who listens to your show is, ‘we feel like you’re part of our family’ and ‘I heard you say something today I did not know.’
He named a litany of former household radio broadcasters for their mentoring and working with him along his career, including inspirations “from professional people who came here and stayed here” (like Jule ‘Mr. Cartoon’ Huffman and Dean Sturm) , as well as Mike Buxer, Jack O’Shea, Jim “the Flying Dutchman” Schneider , Dick Martin, Roger Evans, and Dr. Don Reese.
For a parting one liner, Bob Miller thanked Shirley, his wife of 25 years, who “continues to keep me grounded. She good at [saying] ‘great show today, take out the trash.’
Then, he turned serious and added, “I have been away for years, but this will always be home. And no honor exceeds one you receive at home.”
JIM SLADE
Crediting the State of West Virginia for his education, Jim Slade (a.k.a. Jim Snyder) grew up in Morgantown and he had two interests--- flying airplanes and radio. He covered NASA launches from the early 60s, reported on the X-15, FR 71, Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Space Shuttle and International Space Station.
Having worked for Westinghouse Broadcasting, NBC Radio, ABC Radio and TV, he was named by his peers to be the first journalist in space, prior to the Challenger crash.
“Every time I hear that resume, I get tired all over again,” Slade told the audience. “As much as I’ve traveled around the world, West Virginia is home and the place where West Virginians come back to. I found West Virginians everywhere. Everything I accomplished, everything I did, all the place I went… I broadcast from the Kremlin, Manila, Japan, all the countries of the Middle East … but what I did and what I accomplished was based on the foundation of what I learned here in West Virginia.”
DAVE MCCLAIN
Rising from a part timer at WTCR to program director, he helped take WTCR to a 36 market share in the fall of 1991 and eventually small market Country Music Station of the Year. At the age of 39, McClain suffered a hemorrhage but miraculously recovered. He wrote a book, “One in a Million,” however in August 2006 he died from a cerebral hemorrhage.
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Hustead Hosted one of First Daily Call In Talk Shows; Walters Played First Record by Loretta Lynn
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Huntington WV (HNN) – The evening began with a bluegrass tune by a featured “Friendly Radio Show” band. Since the event honored exceptional talent and dedication in West Virginia Broadcasting,
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Hosted by Hoppy Kercheval, the voice of MetroNews “Talkline,” one of the Huntington area broadcasters honored, the man responsible for one of the first (if not the first) daily call-in seriously controversial “talk show” broadcasting from the penthouse of the beautiful Hotel Frederick. Richard (“Dick”) Hustead , according to his son, Kurt, prompted changes in Cabell County Board of Education policy. Schools would not shut for terribly frigid and otherwise inclement weather. Hustead pressured the Board to close schools.
Although the station was involved in live radio-casting of city Sunday closing (“Blue Law”) confrontations with police , such as at the Bazaar Discount Department Store, Kurt told HNN Saturday evening that he felt his greatest accomplishment was the cable television system built from scratch in Huntington, the first CATV system for a major city in the state.
EDDIE WALTERS
Known mainly as an engineer always ready to help and on the way in an old blue truck, Eddie Walters spent 37 years at WTCR Radio. His widow, Jean, offered a glimpse into his career which like many of those honored in the room began, too, as a disc jockey.
The Connie B. Gay station had its transmitter located in a remote section of Ashland, Ky. on U.S. Route 60. According to Mrs. Walters, one a Saturday afternoon during his air shift, a man stopped by begging him to pay a record by the teenager standing outside. Eddie consented, and, in doing so, WTCR played the first song recorded by Loretta Lynn. (Lynn’s biography and the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” movie has scenes in which she and her husband went around to stations in the South pushing to get “I’m a Honky Tonk Girl” played. The song became a minor hit and opened the Nashville door for her to cut demos for Teddy and Doyle Wilburn. The rest… it’s history.)
Although the man I knew as “Uncle Eddie,” retired from WTCR, as his widow stated he could not sit still. He worked at and built radio stations around the region until the Man Upstairs retired him to Heaven.
BOB MILLER
A winner of Billboard Magazine’s “Air Personality of the Year,” Miller, the older brother of J.B. Miller, started his career at WKEE and WGNT Radio (formerly WSAZ AM and now WRVC AM). Bob brought originality to Huntington radio with Radio (his pet parrot ) and sidekick Ernie Krumptnus. Known for making outrageous phone calls , Miller called Ugandan dictator Idia Amin and put him on the air live.
No one still knows what the general manager said to Bob concerning the phone bill.
After winning the small market broadcaster award, Miller took a job in Portland, Oregon.
Speaking briefly at the ceremony, Bob Miller offered insight into achieving radio popularity (through higher ratings), “If you take care of the listener, that crap takes care of itself. Radio is such an intimate medium it invites you to become a part of what people are doing and it invites them to become a part of are about and what you are trying to accomplish.”
On Friday night, Bob visited a local shopping mall with J.B. “People kept stopping us. We like to never got out of there. J.B. has accomplished what we set out to do --- make the listener feel like they are part of us,” Miller stated. “The most important thing you can hear from anyone who listens to your show is, ‘we feel like you’re part of our family’ and ‘I heard you say something today I did not know.’
He named a litany of former household radio broadcasters for their mentoring and working with him along his career, including inspirations “from professional people who came here and stayed here” (like Jule ‘Mr. Cartoon’ Huffman and Dean Sturm) , as well as Mike Buxer, Jack O’Shea, Jim “the Flying Dutchman” Schneider , Dick Martin, Roger Evans, and Dr. Don Reese.
For a parting one liner, Bob Miller thanked Shirley, his wife of 25 years, who “continues to keep me grounded. She good at [saying] ‘great show today, take out the trash.’
Then, he turned serious and added, “I have been away for years, but this will always be home. And no honor exceeds one you receive at home.”
JIM SLADE
Crediting the State of West Virginia for his education, Jim Slade (a.k.a. Jim Snyder) grew up in Morgantown and he had two interests--- flying airplanes and radio. He covered NASA launches from the early 60s, reported on the X-15, FR 71, Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Space Shuttle and International Space Station.
Having worked for Westinghouse Broadcasting, NBC Radio, ABC Radio and TV, he was named by his peers to be the first journalist in space, prior to the Challenger crash.
“Every time I hear that resume, I get tired all over again,” Slade told the audience. “As much as I’ve traveled around the world, West Virginia is home and the place where West Virginians come back to. I found West Virginians everywhere. Everything I accomplished, everything I did, all the place I went… I broadcast from the Kremlin, Manila, Japan, all the countries of the Middle East … but what I did and what I accomplished was based on the foundation of what I learned here in West Virginia.”
DAVE MCCLAIN
Rising from a part timer at WTCR to program director, he helped take WTCR to a 36 market share in the fall of 1991 and eventually small market Country Music Station of the Year. At the age of 39, McClain suffered a hemorrhage but miraculously recovered. He wrote a book, “One in a Million,” however in August 2006 he died from a cerebral hemorrhage.
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