This issue:   Induction Banquet Recap    -    Big Donation Received  -   Elections Soon!  -  Real Radio Lives in Smithville 

June 2014

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ENTER THE TENNESSEE RADIO HALL OF FAME WEBSITE
 
 INDUCTION BANQUET PHOTOS
 
Inductees and their Families
 
TRHOF's Sharon Kay, WSMV's Demetria Kalodimos, WBBJ's Tom Britt

Skip Woolwine and Nick Archer   ---   Jimmy Carter, Inductee Mike Bohan
 
Inductee Doris Freeman & Paul Tinkle -Dave Brown and Jack Parnell
 
Carlos Clemente & George DeVault  ---  Peggy Boatman & Cindy Arnold
 
Con Hunley & Gary Beaty   ---    Artemus Pyle, Becky & Carl P. Mayfield
 

                                
Editor's Note 
BANQUET SIDEBAR

     It was exciting to see old friends and make new friends at the TRHOF 2014 Induction Banquet. Among those I’d never met, but admired, is award-winning sportscaster Mike Keith. He came up to me at the end of the ceremony and introduced himself (as if I didn’t know!) and this humble “Voice of the Titans” announcer is as much a fan of his radio peers as they are of him! 
     He got his start in radio as a high school junior and later jumped at the chance to work at WUTK, the student-run radio station at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, where his daughter now goes to school. As it always happens when “it gets in your blood” Mike parlayed his love of radio into jobs with WIVK and the Vol Network when he got the attention of the new Titans franchise. Since then, he’s never missed a game and has become entrenched in NFL history with catchphrases like “TOUCHDOWN TITANS” and “SACKED” with just the right inflections to set him apart from anybody else who calls the game. 
     His description of the play now called THE MUSIC CITY MIRACLE, in the 2000 playoff game against Buffalo, garnered Mike a spot as one of the 30 greatest radio calls in American sports history by Sports Illustrated.
     Potentially, a Hall-of-Famer himself, it was great to see Mike supporting his fellow broadcasters at this years induction ceremony. 
   In DeKalb County,
 REAL RADIO IS ALIVE AND WELL 
     So, you thought theater of the mind was gone with the days of "The Lone Ranger" and "The Green Hornet"?  
It's not gone: It's simply moved to Smithville.
     The "Old Time Country Community Radio Show" airs every Friday from 8:00 to 8:30am on WJLE AM1480 and FM 101.7 and on the Internet at WJLE.com.The Old Time Country Community Radio Show started in the early 1980's created by Ben Herman and began as a live-recorded show featuring local bluegrass musical talent, on location from the Smithville Kentucky Fried Chicken.
     Mr. Herman has owned and produced the show for over 30 years, but health issues forced him to hand the production and hosting reins to a couple of new "talents"...who had never done radio before this past November 2013. 
    "I was coming out of the local Wal-Mart when I ran into Mr. Herman. I had gone inside to buy dog food, and I came away with a radio show," says Chris Tramel, the Sports Editor for the local newspaper The Smithville Review. Not wanting to go it alone, Tramel teamed up with his co-worker, news editor Reed Vanderpool. Neither had any direct on-air radio experience, but both had previous experience in related areas. 
     Chris Tramel grew up in Chattanooga and was an electronics aficionado specializing in audio systems at the Sound Post music store before moving to Smithville. 
 
Chris Tramel, Reed Vanderpool
Steve Quick

     Reed Vanderpool is a native of Smithville where prior to being News Editor, he held jobs as diverse as being an auto mechanic and a road manager for a biker band. As a youth from 1964 to the early 90s, Vanderpool helped edit his pastor grandfather's Sunday school radio shows. "I remember that classic Wollensak tape recorder and that Shure 55 microphone. I was good with a razor blade and splicing tape." 
     Every Wednesday is recording day. Thursday is mixdown day. There is no script. They make it up on the fly. It's a combination of classic country, CDs from local artists, and zany radio skits complete with Hanna-Barbera sound effects and other random sound bytes. In their skits, they try to involve prominent locals. In a recent "Scooby-Doo" parody, the villain is unmasked as local senior citizen Faye Fuqua, a gentle lady who leads Smithville's Community Chorus. She then gets into an "audio fist fight" with the hosts. In another episode, it becomes "Chris and Reed's Great Adventure" where they discover a time machine that takes them back to WJLE Radio of 1985, when (Tennessee Radio Hall Of Fame President) Ralph Vaughn is doing his daily air shift. Vaughn came back to the studio especially to record his lines for that production. The production process is old school, with a touch of high tech: They pass one microphone back and forth, editing and mixing on a laptop computer using WavePad software.
     "Before November 2013, we had never used a computer audio editing package. We knew what we wanted to do, we just had to figure it out." says Tramel. Their MC/Announcer and man-on-the-street is Steve Quick, who brings back interviews from local events to add relevant content to The Old Time Country Community Radio Show. Quick recently attended the Tennessee Radio Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony and Banquet and was pleased to capture some one-on-one Q&A with Lynyrd Skynyrd's Artemus Pyle and inductee Carl P. Mayfield. Everyone involved with the show is responsible for securing sponsorships to pay for the airtime. Listen and you'll hear spots for The White Possum Grill, Granny's Gold Mine, and others. 
     "We don't really make any money, just enough to pay for the time and our equipment," says Vanderpool. "We just love what we do."  
     You can check out the posted archives, or listen live, to The Old Time Country Community Radio Show on WJLE.com
 Newsletter staff:

Editor:Cathy Martindale cathymartindale@comcast.net
Buddy Sadler sbuddy@bellsouth.net
Melissa McDonald starmagic@comcast.net
Skip Woolwine  woolwine@comcast.net
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The Tennessee Radio Hall Of Fame.   
All rights reserved.


You told us how we did at the Induction Banquet
SURVEY SAYS...


 More than 88% of respondents to a survey about the 2014 induction banquet call it either excellent or very good. That’s one finding from the poll to determine how the event was received by those who attended. The abundance of glowing comments indicates most people had a great time.
     The survey asked what attendees liked and disliked about the banquet. “First Class event” and “well done” were among the repeated positive comments. Many people also cited the quality of the video production and event emcees, the venue and food, the organization and ease with which the event flowed -- and several mentioned the warmth of the atmosphere. “Everything went smoothly,” one person said. “The way the line-up was done for those being inducted went really well. Loved the videos and stories told. It was an honor to be part of this event!” Another mentioned, “…the feeling of brotherhood within a special fraternity,” while another wrote, “…a chance to honor those who have contributed so much to our industry.”
     
  On the negative side, some attendees thought the sound was either too loud or too soft, depending where they sat. Some felt check-in took too long, and there were comments about the length of some speeches. But even those who expressed negative comments also included positive observations.
     “The board welcomes both positive and negative comments, because they provide insight into what can be done better next time,” said TRHOF President Ralph Vaughn. "Discussions are already underway on making improvements in these areas."
     The survey was sent to everyone who purchased tickets and provided the organization with an email address. Sixty-nine people responded. For 50%, it was their first banquet. Ten percent had attended one other induction banquet, while 40% of respondents have attended all three events. Most importantly, more than 72% said they would be likely to return for next year’s celebration of Tennessee radio.


  What's in YOUR storeroom?
  BIG DONATION FROM WAMB TO TRHOF

     For over forty years, Bill Barry's WAMB-Nashville put the Big Band sound over the Nashville airwaves. With personalities like Tennessee Radio Hall of Famer Snooky Lanson, Bill Baird and Ken Bramming, WAMB had a loyal, if dwindling, fan base. 
     Upon Mr. Barry's passing, his daughter Susie James (owner of WCOR-AM and WANT-FM) faced some tough business realities.  As a result, the station's 50,000-watt, 1200kHz frequency (with LPFM 99.3) has been leased to longtime Nashville Spanish broadcasters Martin and Wendy Silva, who changed to a "Spanglish" variety of Latino programming.  James also ended the lease of the station's home of 43 years in the (now quite musty) basement level of the Roundtree Apartments on Lebanon Road.  WAMB donated the station's substantial, historic collection of vinyl LP records to the Alexander Heard Library at Vanderbilt University, Mr. Barry's alma mater. 
     The good news is Big Band music won't be entirely gone as a Nashville radio format, as WAMB engineer Gary Brown commandeered a large collection of 10-inch custom-made-in-house reel-to-reel automation music tapes full of hours upon hours of big band music, which he plans to transfer to digital and air over the HD2 channel of Middle Tennessee State University's WMOT-89.5FM, where he is also the engineer. 
     The rest was donated to the Tennessee Radio Hall Of Fame. Reps from the Hall Of Fame (Brian Craig, Nick Archer, Richard White, Gary and Marte Beaty, and Skip Woolwine) made several trips to the station to catalog and pick up artifacts of WAMB's history. A radio geek's treasure trove of tape decks, cart machines, turntables, vintage broadcast gear, banners, stationery, radio shows, and taped music libraries were collected. Items are in storage now, but will make an appearance online soon, and in person once the Hall Of Fame has a permanent display space.
 

 

 
L-R, Susie James, Nick Archer,
Brian Craig, Gary Brown
     

REMINDER: All donations to the Tennessee Radio Hall Of Fame are tax-deductible. If you have some items you want to donate to keep your memory of Tennessee radio alive, contact Skip Woolwine or Nick Archer.  Vintage broadcast gear is welcome, regardless of age or functionality.
   
                            
                 
  Membership Renewals are coming up.
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS 
     Soon, you will receive reminder emails to RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP. Please don't procrastinate. Go online and take care of it as soon as possible.  If you haven't actually joined yet, we've got a deal for you. Our membership year runs July 1st to June 30th, and we do not pro-rate membership fees for partial years. But, as an incentive to join now (in the last month of our year), we are BONUSING this last month June, 2014, PLUS giving you the FULL 12-month calendar year July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015!  So join now, and get a bonus month!  Full Members can nominate and vote on inductees, officers and board members.
We welcome these New Members in May: 
 
Peggy Boatman - WIVK Cumulus-Knoxville
Chris Tramel - WJLE-AM/FM Smithville, TN

  TO ALL TN BROADCASTERS
     Yes, it is the "TENNESSEE" Radio Hall of Fame. And YES, there are a lot of Middle Tennessee broadcasters in the Hall. Remember, the idea and beginning of the HOF was in Middle Tennessee.  Cookeville, Knoxville, Jackson, and smaller markets...we need ALL to join the Hall and to nominate and vote for nominees from your city, county or area.  Help us grow the Hall to include the whole state. We did not and do not want to become the Nashville Hall of Fame. Urge your fellow broadcasters and peers from your part of Tennessee to become a part of this organization. We’d like a large, statewide group to include inductees from your station. Nominations will be taken in July and August and I’d like to urge you to get with the nominee you want to make …get their information and pictures…and send in your nomination for that person during nomination season.
Only you can nominate a broadcaster who deserves it.

Buddy Sadler 
2014 TRHOF Inductee 
and newsletter staff member 
            

THEY SAY IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY...


JUNE
Ken Mabry
Mike Medley
Genma Holmes
Marty Theurer
Dan Bell
Robert McKay,III
Max Templeton
Chuck Chellman
Leon Griffin
Harry Forrester Chapman
Robert Robison
David Tower
Kevin Lee
Dave Nichols
Jerry Minshall

                            

 NEXT MEETING  
     The next upcoming joint meeting of the Board of Directors and the Advisory Council will be Saturday, June 7th, 10am to noon, at the TAB headquarters in Nashville. Our primary topic will be the election of a new Board of Directors to a two-year term, followed by the election of our next set of officers. Check "Events" on our website.   
                    

 WHAT'S NEWS?


Please send any news, promotions, stories, trivia…maybe you have an old radio story you’d like to share with us….anything that may be of interest to our membership.  Please email it any of the newsletter staff listed below.  Our newsletter is published the first of every month and back issues may be viewed on our official website at tennradiohalloffame.org   Please keep your email address current so you don’t miss an issue!
           
--- A committee has been formed to collect and purchase Tennessee radio memorabilia, including old microphones, on-air signage, transmitter parts, and anything related to TN radio stations. If you have items you'd like to donate (or purchase on Ebay, Craigslist, etc.) please contact Nick Archer.  Nick also oversees the TRHOF Facebook page which now boasts over 929 members, and also our YouTube Page with over 131 airchecks and other audio/video memories
--- Looking for a gig or have a spot to fill?  Post it HERE next month!   

Contact email: TennRHOF@gmail.com
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