First started working in radio with WCSJ-AM in Morris in the spring of 1965, while I was still in high school. Didn’t leave much time for work back then, as WCSJ had to sign off at local sunset. Those were the FCC rules then. Had to rush in from high school to make it in time to prepare the late afternoon news, do the news, play a little music and then sign off, with the National Anthem. That was standard operating procedure in those days. After graduating from high school I went to work full time, moving into the sign on slot at sunrise. The U. S. military employed the draft system then (geezer talk here), kids today probably have no idea what that was like - but - guess it could be said I was one of the lucky winner’s in that lotto system.
After finishing my commitment to my country. I went back to work in radio, this time working for WRCO-AM/FM in Richland Center, Wisconsin. Suffice it to say that Richland Center was approximately 60 miles northwest of Madison. From there I decided it was time to go back to school so I went to Southern Illinois University, which purportedly had a very good School of Communications, concentrating on broadcasting. Worked for the campus radio/TV station, and Learning Resources Center for SIU.
Got my BA degree and spent some time working for WKKD-FM in Aurora, Illinois. Worked my way back to WCSJ, by now they had added an FM transmitter to their AM signal. Later an opportunity came up with a petrochemical company east of Morris, then known as Northern Petro Chemical. They paid a lot more than working in radio did, so, it was not rocket science to leave radio to work in the chemical industry for a while. After several name changes and different owners, I accepted an early retirement offer from the chemical business. Finding myself with excess time and boredom on my hands, I was happy to find a part time position once again with WCSJ-AM/FM, and WJDK-FM now owned by Nelson Multimedia. Nearly full circle, I find broadcasting a very different business than it was in the 1960s. Still, it’s fun, and challenging, working both WCSJ's and WJDK’s different music and programing formats, and filling in for either Kevin Schramm or Mike Williams when they elect to take vacations. You never know where I might pop-up on the airwaves!
