Justin Clark, Goodbye WRKO Boston, 1981 (0:02:28)

… . . . Living in the past is no challenge . . . We’re not discarding the legacy of the past, merely putting it aside, to remember – to cherish . . . …

Justin Clark was told his job would remain at WRKO in some form, but shortly after his PD and friend Charlie Van Dyke left and the station turned to talk, Justin was canned as well. This aircheck made me cry.

Justin told me he wrote the entire script by himself, totally unprompted or censored. Listening to this swan song, you feel as if a long-time friend suddenly became disloyal, and went away for good. Today, Justin works at his family’s liquor store in the Boston area (McCarthy’s Liquors), now three family generations old. Oh, how he needs and wants to be back in radio, where he truly belongs!

WRKO could have survived today, if only the station had taken advantage of its FM way back when.

Welcome to the new ReelRadio!

This site is now operated by the North Carolina Broadcast History Museum. 

We want to thank the board of ReelRadio, Inc. for their stewardship since the passing of the founder Richard Irwin in 2018.  It has not been easy and they have maintained the exhibits for future generations to enjoy.

I met Richard Irwin, aka Uncle Ricky, when we were freshmen at East Carolina University.  We both had worked at local stations in our hometowns.  No one was more passionate about radio, especially Top 40 radio, than my friend Richard. 

Our goals with this site are to preserve the exhibits and make them available free of charge for people to enjoy.  Over time, we hope to add some airchecks to the site.  This will not happen immediately.  Time and resources will determine the future of new exhibits. 

Many thanks to the web folks at the Beasley Media Group for countless hours of work.  Again thanks to the board members of ReelRadio, Inc. for their faith in us. 

Richard Irwin’s hope was that his site would live on long after his passing. He said, “I hope REELRADIO will survive as my contribution to the ‘radio business’. The business is allowed to forget me, but the business should never forget the great era of radio that we celebrate here”.

We remember Richard and we thank him. If you enjoy this new site, we would appreciate a contribution. We hope you enjoy the new ReelRadio!

Board of NCBHP
North Carolina Broadcast History Project