Tripp became one of the nation’s best known Top-40 countdown radio personalities beginning in 1954 at Todd Storz’ WHB in Kansas City, and at Loew’s Theatres’ WMGM in New York City from 1955 through 1960 with his “Your Hits Of The Week” program.
Billing himself as “The curly-headed kid in the third row”, Tripp is best remembered for the WMGM promotion where he remained awake for 201 hours during a sleep deprivation stunt benefitting the March Of Dimes.
Tripp’s no-sleep marathon became a studied event. According to his son, Peter Tripp Jr., “What started out as a stunt has become required reading in the behavioral sciences at colleges and universities from coast-to-coast.”
Tripp became entangled in the “payola” (record play for pay) scandals of the late 1950s and early 1960s. According to Richard Fatherley, Tripp said he “never took a dime from anyone” (in the record business).
He was forced to leave WMGM and took assignments at KYA in San Francisco, KGFJ in Los Angeles, and WOHO in Toledo, Ohio. A career change lead him to the physical fitness sales and marketing industry.
Peter Tripp was born in Port Chester, New York, on June 11, 1926.
This is not an aircheck, it is a composite that includes promotional announcements and jingles, and two news reports by WMGM Minute Man John Connalee regarding the record-setting conclusion of the Peter Tripp Wake-A-Thon (1-28-1959). The introduction is a WMGM news promo; there is also a WMGM Promo featuring The Redhead, Ted Brown, Jerry Marshall (Record Room), Norm Stevens (Record Bandwagon), Peter Tripp (Your Hits of the Week) and Dean Hunter.