WBVP celebrates 70
May 27, 2018
Photo Credit: Joel Peterson
On Friday, May 25, a gala was held at the ballroom of the General Brodhead Hotel (now Brodhead Apartments) to celebrate WBVPs (1230 Beaver Falls) 70th anniversary. The event was attended by 230 guests, 70 of whom were current and former station employees. The most notable former employee in attendance was Alan Boal who is the last surviving member of the original WBVP staff who put the station on the air May 25, 1948. Jimmy Ross and The Jaggerz performed and Jim Roddey gave the keynote address.
All guests received a copy of the newly published book, Behind The Microphone, The History of Radio in Beaver County, written by station owner Mark Peterson, Kenneth Britten, and David Felts. Other gifts were given too.
In a creative touch, the centerpieces, made up of fresh greenery and flowers, each featured a classic microphone.
Ten years after WBVP signed on, cross-county competitor WMBA (1460 Ambridge) signed on and the two battled in a healthy rival for decades. In 2000, WMBA was sold to WBVP’s then-owner, Iorio Broadcasting. The two have been a near 100% simulcast ever since. They are now owned by Peterson’s Sound Ideas Media, LLC.
Having grown up in the Beaver Valley area, I have fond memories of listening to WBVP in the morning while getting ready to go to school. I wish the station continued success.
I wonder why they simulcast, when their coverage areas are close to the same?
I\’m in Pittsburgh and get WBVP better, and I think it\’s one of the stations that my mom listened to her polkas on. I remember interesting weekend DJs on BVP too, like Frank Greenlee was there before he went to WAMO, and there was a disco show that mainly played sections from a K-Tel two record set of disco hits. That was cool because it was weird to hear disco on AM.
Frank Greenlee gave me my first job in radio at WMBA in February 1975. A week earlier after I called at WAMO to ask if I could stop by for a visit. We became friends at the time and a week later I was reading news in the 10:00 and 11:00 hour each Saturday morning. I landed at WAMO in radio sales in 1977 then on-air as a part-timer then full and part-time from 1981 until January 1986. In the Pittsburgh area, I used john Leven as my on-air name. I spent time at WKPA-New Kensington, WJPA-FM-Washington,PA as well as WFFM-Braddoock before the days of Y-97 and whatever followed. Orlando was next from 1986 to 1989, Baltimore’s WQSR was next until 1991. I finished at ABC’s WJZW-Washington, DC in 1997 or 98. Frank Greenlee gave me a shot and we are friends nearly 44 years later. Radio was red hot back in the day because of the Big G. Don Vohar was the WMBA engineer as I recall. After radio, I had a number of assignments on Capitol Hill, these days, I shoot and edit mostly corporate video.
Thanks for that history John! As a WAMO listener from 1979 to the mid 80s, I remember John Leven, though most of my listening was afternoons and evenings with Jackie Johnson and Del King at night. In the mornings it was ‘The master, the Big G’ (Frank Greenlee) as the morning show, with the other staff saying Frank was breaking the studio chairs because he was so big. He played a lot from Stevens and Grdnic comedy bits too.
I’m glad to hear more about WMBA and the story behind your work there, and I hope that station’s history can be preserved, and your radio history as well.
Boomer
Hi Boomer,
Thanks for the kind words and I will pass them along to Frank, whom I am in contact with most. I saw Del about 4 years ago and none of has heard from Jackie in more than 30 years. I get the itch to be back on the air sometimes, hung up the headphones for the most part in 1998, 20 years ago in August. Thanks again Boomer.
Frank might remember me, we’ve had hellos at jazz before, Space Upstairs, Point Breeze, where he was there with his trusty camera and circle of friends, probably 4 years ago. The last I knew of Del King was when he was running 1550, I guess as WCXJ at the time, only chatted with him one time when 1550 went down to 4 watts at night, and I could still hear it in Greentree, so I called to let him know, in my excitement at picking up that tiny signal. That might have been the 1990s I’m thinking.
Jackie was a great personality, with her Attitude Adjustment Hour, and sayings like, ‘I like that record.’ She must have cared about what she played, and maybe had her personal picks on the air, like the time I heard her play Funkadelic’s Cosmic Slop at 4 pm, that just has to break all kinds of rules, it’s something that just wouldn’t be done anymore, but I think that happened in 1980.
I remember that, WAMO had a ‘regime change’ and let Jackie go, and it made the news. Someone else offered her a position, a public broadcaster, ‘DUQ maybe? She didn’t want to take less pay, so I’ve always thought she went to another city.
I hope radio changes so its doors can open to local DJs and personalities again. I want local radio, and if it comes back, I could start listening once again, not just tuning in as a hobby just to see what’s on.
Boomer