jlp@inmet.UUCP (06/13/84)
#R:uw-june:-157800:inmet:6600171:000:2440
inmet!jlp Jun 12 15:30:00 1984
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Dan Murphy was one of the strong announcers from a program called NightOwl,
which was regular weekend fare on WTBS, then the flagship station of the
Technology Broadcasting System. He went on to work for DEC, and was instrumental
in the development of TOPS-20 from Dec's point of view. He took his stock
options and parlayed them into the purchase of another Cambridge radio
station, WCAS ( 740 AM ). Its original format was somewhat AOR, but it couldn't
hang in the market place against BCN. At one point , it may have gone country,
but then came WDLW. In the early 80's they switched to R&B, going head-to-head
against former Sheridan affiliate WILD. While they had some success there,
there was yet another format change. My understanding is that it was at the
behest of the principal owner ( I think Dan has second most ownership ). Anyway,
they played gospel music for about a year, going up against family radio WEZE.
All this format switching, and the inability to establish a permanent identity
with the listening audience, led to bankruptcy proceedings, which I believe are
still in progress. At the beginning of this year, the format switched back to
R&B, with heavy jazz and gospel programmming intermixed. I haven't seen the
most recent book.
Apple Gunkies was the prime product of a series of spoofs done by WTBS during
their creative period ( 1962-1972 ). Other gems from that era include X Rates
the Spot, a movie presentation replete with "commercials" (WTBS was non-comm-
ercial FM, commercial carrier current AM), and TBTGSETSF,PT I: The Bible,
the Greatest Story Ever Told So Far, Part I. Apple Gunkies commercials
spilled over into both these productions. Some of this material can be heard
still on WMBR-FM ( The name changed when Ted Turner "donated" $50,000 to
WTBS for a new transmitter, for which the station deemed it a pleasant gesture
to try a new name. WTBS is now the call for the superstation Channel 17, and
is the flagship of the Turner Broadcasting System ). Annually, a spoof of
the Nightowl program, called "NightFowl", makes use of a lot of the archive
material.
If you mail to me we may be able to expedite acquisition of Apple Gunkies
tapes.
Nocturnal Aviations also had a subsidiary, Nocturnal Procurement. I think
it was related to the fact that the studios of WTBS/WMBR have no windows,
so to us it's always night :-).
The Organ Keyboard of
Jerryl Payne
{ihnp4,esquire,harpo}!inmet!jlp