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Terry Young, WCAU-FM Philadelphia, August 1984 (scoped) (0:16:13)

Scoped
… I had a good weekend. I got all the lint out of my navel …
Top 40 was making a comeback in 1984 under the guise of Mike Joseph‘s “Hot Hits” CHR formula. One of the earliest exemplars of this FM take on the old AM format, the Joseph-consulted WCAU-FM boasted the talented Paul Barsky in the morning and an update of the teen-oriented motor-mouth “screamer” Terry Young in the nighttime.

Young was like Jackson Armstrong and Dick Biondi rolled into one big new radio star for the FM age. The format was fast-moving, if a little too efficient to feel like a companion. But it did attract a lot of young adults who were hearing too much “personality” on AM adult-contemporary-leaning pop stations. It also reeled in the teens which Joseph actively sought to woo back to top 40. Young shows his skills with the few seconds he is afforded to establish a funnyman personality.

For fun with spots, check out the Michael Jackson – “Billy Jean“ Pepsi commercial jingle and also a Dan Ingram read in a donut for Bambergers.

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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. 

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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”.

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Carl Davis
Trustee
North Carolina Broadcast History Museum