I was more than a little nervous when I got the call to come to WROV/Roanoke. You have to remember, this was the radio station my family listened to when we traveled from Martinsville to Roanoke for a big day out. One of my fondest memories is all of us piling into my dad’s 1955 Ford, driving to Roanoke for lunch at Lendy’s and then on to Woodrum Field to watch the planes take off and land, and maybe up to Mill Mountain for the zoo and to look out over the Roanoke Valley with the Mill Mountain Star to our backs. The personalities at WROV were top notch! They could have gone anywhere, but chose to stay in the Roanoke Valley. It was my first Arbitron rated market, and to me, this was the big time! Burt Levine, owner, possessed one of the most brilliant ‘radio minds’ I’ve ever come across. EVERYONE there had one goal in mind-to make that little one thousand watt station sound as if it were blasting out of New York. And for those of us who sat behind the mike, and for those of you who heard it, you know it sounded every bit as good as radio in the big cities. I swear, there might have been a touch of talent here, but it makes me wonder how they ever let me in the door. Here I am from April 1980-
Star Struck..
Trying to get through an interview with Nancy Wilson of Heart and drummer Michael Derosier. I’m sure I stumbled and stammered my way through my time with her..
No More Junk Food!
I went through quite a transformation while at WROV. I was smoking two packs of cigarettes a day, and I weighed close to three hundred pounds. I began to have pains in my arms, and I knew I had to do somethings. And, I did. I wasn’t ready to quit smoking yet, but I cut down a bit, plus I finally dropped the weight and wound up at one hundred twenty pounds, as this pic will attest.
And here’s the pic with the rock group KISS that helped convince me I needed to drop some pounds..
Love This Logo..
And it hangs on my wall at home. This jingle was a little before my time at WROV, but it will give you a sense of how professional this station was, and how if something was needed to make the station more successful, no money was spared. This jingle was nothing less that smooth..
Goals..
While at WROV, I quickly figured out what my goal was. You gotta focus on one thing, do it the best you can, and pray you’ll realize your dream. Yeah, I was already on the radio, but I wanted to do more, I wanted to become a morning man! Hell, Dad had always gotten me up early anyway. He was a milk man (among other jobs), and I’m one of those idiots that enjoys getting up at three a.m. It was a natural. One problem though. WROV had a much loved morning man, Rob O’Brady, and I knew I couldn’t move to that time slot in Roanoke. So, resumes are out again, along with my usual one to WLS (they are getting ready to call me, I just know it!) and I get this call from a Program Director in Charleston,S.C.It was for a helluva lot more money. I had three boys by that time so I bade WROV farewell!. During my first week at the station,WBJW-FM Orlando, Fl. calls because I had sent them a tape too. It was for even more money and a bigger city, so I go into the Program Director’s office, say that I’m sorry, but I want to go to Orlando. I told him I’d even give back the moving money! He gets upset, locks me out of my hotel room (some stations will pay for that until you find a place of your own), and I spend the remaining week in the back of my 1973 Volkswagen! Boy am I glad for everyone around me that the station had a shower! (Are you still mad at me, Scott?) Next up, my first radio trip to Florida and how a listener’s husband wants to gun me down!