The New WCOL-AM 1230 History Site

THE NEW WCOL HISTORY
WCOL, Columbus Ohio "The Hits Just Kept on Coming" This WCOL Web site has received over 100,000 page visits since June 2003. WCOL News? Send it to me ColumbusMusicHistory \| Mike's Photo Archive \| Mike on KGO \| Big C Past Pix \| Mike's Current Photo Archive

This just in - Former WCOL DJ Jerry Dean, AKA Dean Schleenbaker died after a several year battle with lung cancer. He was 70. Jerry was a good friend, a great colleague, truly beloved by all, and he was one of the original "All-Americans." Said his wife Joyce: "Jerry fought a magnificent battle of lung cancer to the end, however so many complications occurred that he was unable to recover.

From Mike Perkins: Dear Mrs. Schleenbaker: You don't know me but you have no doubt heard what I'm about to say from many others.
Dean was a solid and important friend to me in my earliest years in radio. As an ignorant kid still starstruck to be seeing and shaking hands with a WCOL superstar on a daily basis, I was always struck by his ease and approachability with all of us, regardless of experience or rank. And it goes without saying that he was simply a production genius. Back in the days of razor blades and tape splices he was a wizard that took disparate sound effects, music from wildly improbable sources, and his own raw instinct to create works which made many people rich and made all of us envious. jerry

As a program director, Dean was a gentle but reliably strong teacher, who imparted many rules of the road to me that I was guided by in my own programming career. Our era was a wild one, perhaps the last golden age of creative explosion and street-wise guts that the medium will ever see, and Dean was one of its shining stars. We made better radio for having known him. My prayers and those of all my friends present and past go with you. God bless you in this time and please take comfort in celebrating a life well lived. Mike Perkins Formerly of WCOL/WXGT (1969-1979)

Former WCOL DJ David Carter Reinhart, 67, died in March 2010 at The Villages, Fla., where he and his wife, Joan, had lived since 2006. He had multiple system atrophy, a degenerative neurological disorder that leads to symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

"Good guy" was a fine description of the
Mount Healthy OH native after he moved into radio
management roles, including a stint as WLW-AM
(700) program director in the late 1980s.

"Everybody liked Dave. He had a great style, and
was a good businessman. You combine the two
of those and you've got a super package," said
Hamilton County auditor Dusty Rhodes, who was
WSAI program director in 1965 when he hired him.

Dave was my (Mike Adams) roommate at Ohio University in 1960. We worked together at WOUB, WATH and WCOL. Dave was a fine person.

Get Rick Minerd's new version of the definitive book on Columbus Radio History during the "WCOL" era

Says former WCOL DJ Rick: "a 'Deputy in Disguise' contains many radio stories, lots of WCOL memories, WTVN, WNCI, WRFD, WMNI and WBBY. It also contains many cop stories from the Franklin County Sheriff's Office and a finale that wraps up my law enforcement career in Obetz, Ohio.

I have completely scrapped "Life is a Jukebx" and this is the rewrite. Many of the stories have been completely rewritten, and many pages have been added to include those that my former publisher either left out, or failed to copy-edit.

As for a link, this one has its own website; www.rickminerd.com, there you can get a complete review of it as well as the page to order it."

Remember the Rebounds?

If you remember, most of the WCOL DJs of my era, the 1960s, traveled to "record hops" and other events with a local band. Mine was the Rebounds, pictured here (as my memory serves me) clockwise: Brady Wagner, singer; Will Finch, organ; David Day, drums; Thom Williams, lead guitar; Bob Bishop, bass. Thom reached out to me, he still performs, he has a Website: www.widowsson.net and a friend of his writes "he came across your WCOL history site. Thomie now lives in Columbus and picks up gigs in the area traveling around with his guitar and magic. We were wondering if there is any plan for another WCOL Reunion or get together."

And Remember the Northland Shopping Center "Battle of the Bands"? 1967?

My name is Marc Moriva. I'm a musician and grew up in Columbus during the 60's, listened to "The New WCOL", played guitar and sax in two local bands that worked many R&R shows during that era, and have recently become involved in a really fun Facebook group called Central Ohio's Rock & Roll Scrapbook. I thought you might enjoy this photo that showed up on the site the other day. It's a shot of your former self presenting a check for $250 to the winners of The Northland Battle of the Bands, Wayne James Sheppard and Hazel Ann Wiget (Sheppard) of "The Four O'clock Balloon" circa 1967.

From the 1950s through the 1970s, the New WCOL, AM 1230 & FM 92.3, was a special place.

On this site are many photos, E-mail lists, station history, old hitline surveys and more. Return often.

Right, "Close Cover Before Striking," well, duh, of course, and this warning was well before the proliferation of lawyers. These matches were from the late 1940s or early 1950s, and I trust that WCOL listeners followed the advice and that "no listeners were hurt using these matches." The accompaning cancer - another story.

The August 2003 Reunion was hosted by Clear Channel Columbus

The New WCOL Geritol and Clearasil Awards

We didn't give a prize for the oldest and youngest WCOL alums. But if we did, Donald Kirk, a WCOL announcer in the early 50s, and Dana Tyler, an intern while in high school in the late 70s would win our prizes.

On accompanying pages, more participant photos

What a difference a decade makes! Above, a few of the 1950s on-air personalities. At the right, a group from the late 1960s, DJs and News

Above, Chris Joos interviews Bob Harrington on the Sunday retrospective on WODB-FM

Chris with early "Stereo Rock 92" WCOL FM DJs: Neal Martin, Ginger, Don Gorman, Ken Stone (Ken deceased August 2005)

Newswatch Team Promo Picture, 1970

Sharon and Wes record, Jerry engineers, 1968

Wes Hopkins Died March 8th, 2008

This email message from Lou Henry: "Wes's daughter called me today. Wes died this afternoon. He wasn't feeling well and took a cab to the hospital. They checked him out and released him. While he was waiting for the cab he collapsed and fell, hitting his head and suffering a skull fracture. They took him off the respirator and he died shortly thereafter. I didn't ask about a memorial, but he'll be cremated. He was 81."

Read Rick Minerd's Story about Wes Hopkins | Rick's "Waking Up Alone"

Mike Adams, WCOL Historian and Webmaster

Let's talk about me:

I have spent the past 30 years as a university professor in California, the past 8 as the Chair of the Department of Television, Radio, Film, and Theatre at San Jose State University. I have also for the past 20 years been the faculty advisor to my department's KSJS-FM 90.5. I had planned to retire and teach half time.

My retirement will be delayed: for the next year I will serve as the Associate Dean of the College of Humanities and Arts at San Jose State. This is certainly a promotion, and it proves that there is life beyond the New WCOL, and shows how far a tenured AM DJ can go in this world. Watch Mike's retirement biography, "The Life of Mike" | Mike's Research in the News | Mike's YOUTUBE Channel

Meanwhile, I am always happy to share your WCOL stories and post your photos.

My radio station, KSJS-FM, has been student-run and licensed to my university since 1963. If you have never been to a college radio station, check out the KSJS YouTube video page: