Ron O'Brien, WNBC Music Magazine, November 7, 1982 (1:04:41)

Unscoped
… trying to ruin his reputation for being laid back …

WNBC Music Magazine was apparently a new name for an old idea — the weekly Top 30 — with the addition of music-oriented features, hosted by Big Ron O’Brien. Ron’s presentation here was a precursor to his successful run of syndicated countdown shows, On The Radio.

This was originally a studio recording of the first hour of the show for November 7, 1982. It sounds as though the tape itself suffered some damage, accounting for the infrequent drop-outs. And even though WNBC was broadcasting in stereo, this exhibit was recorded as monaural.

The Music Magazine feature in this hour includes Rock ‘n’ Roll Revival promoter Richard Nader (d. December 1, 2009) and singer Johnny Maestro (d. March 24, 2010).

Robin Quivers, later best known as news anchor and co-host for Howard Stern, is heard with a 66-second News Update.

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!

Carl Davis
Trustee
North Carolina Broadcast History Museum