39 Years of Talking

Today is the 39th anniversary of my first broadcast, a "graveyard" Disc Jockey shift on WBAB Radio in Babylon, New York. The only reason I remember it is a log that I started, and quickly abandoned, to keep track of my on-air hours. It was one of the few times in my career that I was a DJ, and it was decidedly a part-time gig. My full-time job was selling advertising for the the AM Station on Long Island. The selling part was a chore, one I hated. But being on the staff gave me an excuse to be on-air, which I loved. The station signal was so limited that my best friends 30 miles or so the West in Queens had to drive to a parking lot closer to the station and then hold a portable radio up in the air to even hear me. Needless to say that only happened once or twice. I still thank Steve Maietta, Ed Nubel and Paul Hudson for their support! I was 18, about to turn 19, and quickly got hooked on the business that has, to varying degrees, kept me fed and sheltered all of this time.