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She worked in radio in Los Angeles from 1973-76 at KLOS and KMET. [56], MetroMedia found major success with progressive rock at KMET Los Angeles, KSAN San Francisco, WMMR Philadelphia and WNEW-FM New York, but a lack of commitment from MetroMedia led the company to drop the format at WMMS by May 1969. She was among the first DJs to put the group's seven-minute opus, "Working Man," into regular rotation. On May 4, 1970 four students were killed by gunfire from the Ohio National Guard at Kent State University. "[32] "De-emphasized" in the fall of 2007, the scavenger was revived the following spring to coincide with the station's 40th anniversary and with the arrival of morning personality Rover. [133] "Chris Tyler" Merluzzo, former program director for Providence's WHJY, took over for Bo Matthews as WMMS program director on February 17, 2014. He worked the afternoon-drive shift until 1997 when he headed to Los Angeles. 20 Country Women We Are Celebrating During International Women's Day Mar 01, 2021. The Buzzard became synonymous with WMMS, Cleveland radio and the city itself, spawning a series of T-shirts so numerous that they are now impossible to catalog, many with slogans like "Where Music Means Something" and "Ruler of the Airwaves.". But after a few years, he wanted to concentrate on being a DJ, so he reached out to an old friend, John Gorman, to come Cleveland as the station's music director. (Plain Dealer file photo), Matt Lapczinski, better known as "Matt The Cat," started at WMMS-FM/100.7 in 1974, fresh out of Cleveland State University. The call letters WMMS stand for "MetroMedia Stereo". Denny Sanders Denny Sanders 1972 - 1986 Denny Sanders came to WMMS in 1971 from Boston where he'd been working as a DJ from the time he was just 16 years old. He became a part of the heyday of WMMS, which included on-air personalities like Kid Leo, Denny Sanders, Matt the Cat, Betty Korvan, Len Goldberg and the BLF Bash. [39][40] Noted filmmakers, including Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous) and Paul Schrader (Light of Day), have called on both TheBuzzard and its personnel while preparing for various rock-themed productions. The Cleveland Free Clinic staffed aid stations in the stadium with physicians, nurses and other volunteers, and through 1977, made its treatment statistics public. (Plain Dealer file photo), One of Cleveland radio's most popular -- and enduring -- morning teams, Jeff Kinzbach and Ed "Flash" Ferenc were a cornerstone of WMMS-FM/100.7 during its Buzzard heyday. Since retiring from WDVE last year, he's been roaming the country by car. 100.7 WMMS Podcasts See All Playlists from 100.7 WMMS Latest News Late Friday we received an email from Cleveland radio legend John Gorman, the former longtime PD of the equally legendary WMMS, who shared the sad news of the passing of former longtime WMMS late-night personality Betty Korvan, who died at the age of 67. The stations involved are WMMS (FM), WTAM (AM/FM), WMJI (FM), WGAR (FM), WHLK (FM), WAKS (FM), WKAS (HD2) and WARF (AM). His was the booming voice on the station's hourly IDs, music segues, sweepers, and commercials. The announcement came less than two weeks before the show. Signing on in 1946 as the FM adjunct to WHK, the WMMS call letters were affixed in 1968 under Metromedia ownership, having stood for "MetroMedia Stereo" and meant as a compliment to the newly established progressive rock format, but have since taken on a variety of other meanings. Joining the Chicago native are Cleveland area comedians Bill Squire and Mary Santora, and former intern-turned-phone-screener Cody (Poundcake) Brown. MLB At Bat", "Play-By-Play Streaming Rights: 'The Goal Posts Are Moving. Buzzard-Palooza was the first of these: held in July 1994 at the Nautica Stage, the all-day concert included sets from Collective Soul, Junkhouse and Fury in the Slaughterhouse,[111] but was cut short after turning into a "rock-and-bottle-throwing melee." "[33] By April 2008, the station had reverted to branding as The Buzzard but using a road sign-style logo similar to a U.S. Route shield in an allusion to the mascot. After leaving WMMS, he moved to WMJI-FM/105.7, as program and operations director. (Plain Dealer file photo), Halper worked as a DJ and music director for WMMS-FM/100.7 from 1973-75 and was instrumental in helping the band Rush land a record deal. Condolences: Betty Korvan. Contrary to what many believe, the choice of the second Malrite logo had nothing to do with Buzzard Day, the annual "folksy event" held in Hinckley Township, Ohio. There's proof! WMMS (100.7 FM) - branded 100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard - is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. The top 40 format also failed to make any major ratings impact. [141] Maxwell was known for having feuds with other radio personalities during the show's time at WMMS, including Rover of Rover's Morning Glory and fellow WTAM afternoon host Mike Trivisonno; by 2009, Maxwell had become the number one afternoon program in several key demographics. While both Rover and Alan Cox are primarily "hot talk" programs, rock music airs during regular middays, nights, overnights, weekends and online during Cavaliers and Guardians play-by-play. WMMS was directly influenced by then and current sister station WHTZ/New York (Z100), which rose to the top of the ratings books immediately after installing a contemporary hit radio (CHR) format. Buzzard Morning Zoo video featuring Mr. Leonard. "[83] Negative reaction was swift and widespread;[44][45] some called the scheme a mere "lack of judgement,"[44] while a reporter for the Akron Beacon Journal compared the station's response to that of discredited former Vice-president Spiro Agnew.[84]. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Throughout the 1970s and '80s, the station played home to some of Cleveland's most recognizable personalities: Matt the Cat, Denny Sanders, Murray Saul, Betty "Crash" Korvan, Ruby Cheeks, BLF. The Buzzard made its first appearance in a print ad in a magazine called Zeppelin. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WMMS broadcasts over two HD Radio channels and is available online via iHeartRadio. 'MMS listener favorites like Green Day, Letters to Cleo, Everclear, Better Than Ezra, Alice in Chains, Garbage and Silverchair were just a few of the bands featured in Buzzard Bone. [128] WMMS again served as the FM flagship to the Cleveland Browns Radio Network from 2002 to 2012, with Jim Donovan and Doug Dieken as announcers. [129][130] Radio & Records twice named WMMS "Rock Station of the Year: Markets 1-25" (200506) as part of the now defunct publication's annual Industry Achievement Awards. Among the more significant moves taken by WMMS was the formatting of the morning zoo concept created by Z100's Scott Shannon onto the show Jeff & Flash (Jeff Kinzbach and Ed Ferenc) were already hosting. Sanders was instrumental in WMMS' rise. WMMS does not air additional network programming, and the station only airs select games during spring training. Kid Leo interviews David Lee Roth, Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony before their show at the Richfield Colesium. [136], From the 1994 exit of Jeff Kinzbach and Ed Ferenc until the arrival of Rover's Morning Glory in 2008, WMMS gained notoriety for airing 13 distinct shows in morning drive. Denny Sanders came to WMMS in 1971 from Boston where hed been working as a DJ from the time he was just 16 years old. [147], Described by The Plain Dealer as "testosterone-fueled", the show dominates younger demographics, particularly male listeners ages 1834. Saul kicked off the weekend every Friday at 6:00pm with his Get Down rants helping Clevelanders get ready for the weekend. [142], Radio personality Rover (Shane French), host of Rover's Morning Glory, took over weekday mornings at WMMS on April 1, 2008, following a contract dispute with WKRK-FM owner CBS Radio; John Gorman compared signing the popular morning personality to a "coup". [103] Despite signs of success, the stations were sold again in 1996: WMMS went to Nationwide Communications,[105] while WHK went to Salem Communications. At the same time, the music communicates frustration and a constant longing to escape. (Plain Dealer file photo), First woman on radio in Cleveland as a morning-drive time DJ at WNCR-FM/99.5 and WMMS-FM/100.7. 1," released in 1999. He stayed at WMMS until 1992, moving then to WNCX-FM/98.5 and WDOK-FM/102.1. (Plain Dealer file photo), A DJ at WMMS-FM/100.7 in the 1980s, Stein went on to work in programming at Westwood One and Launch Radio Networks. Cleveland's Rock Station, home of Rover's Morning Glory, The Alan Cox Show, and FM Home of Cleveland Guardians Baseball. In studio, WTAM sports director Mike Snyder hosts The Tip-Off Show, The Halftime Report, and The Nightcap Recap the network pregame, halftime, and postgame shows, respectively. Gorman returned to the Buzzard for a second brief run from 1994-96, but has spent most of the past 20 years as a radio consultant. Rolling Stone named WMMS "Radio Station of the Year" nine straight years (197987) as part of its annual Readers' Poll, but a February 1988 front-page story in The Plain Dealer revealed station employees had stuffed the annual survey's ballot box for the 1987 poll to allow for the possibility of a tenth straight win the following year. Cleveland Police briefly detained Ky-Mani Marley after the singer threatened Rover for comments made during an April 20, 2010 in-studio interview. [87] Unable to service its growing debt, Malrite chose to leave radio and sold off all its remaining properties in 1993:[37] WMMS went to Shamrock Broadcasting, the Roy Disney broadcasting firm. The station was known as "The Home of the Buzzard" at first. Thousands of entries were received, but only 375 lucky listeners received two tickets to the concert. Perlich is second from right in the photo above, kickin' it with the WHK crew, circa 1968. Later, he worked as Senior Marketing and Sales Strategist for Telos Alliance, a local technology firm that designs and manufactures audio equipment. His iconic rants have been preserved for posterity on the CD "Murray Saul: The Get Downs, Vol. The Alan Cox Show is rated #1 in several key demographics, and readers of Cleveland Scene named Alan Cox the best Cleveland radio personality four straight years (201013). WMMS did remote interviews at KSU all morning which included an interview from 1972 presidential candidate, Senator George McGovern, KSU student and gunshot survivor, Dean Kahler, other May 4th wounded who survived, Governor Dick Celeste, current students and others. "[66][67] Although never used on the air, listeners alternately knew the callsign as an acronym for "Weed Makes Me Smile" and "Magic MushroomS," the latter referencing the somewhat controversial logo used before the Buzzard. (Photo courtesy Lou Santini), Saul is best known the "Get Down Man," whose Friday afternoon riffs and rants on WMMS-FM/100.7 made him a local celebrity in the 1970s. [143] Born in Chicago but raised in Las Vegas, Rover worked for rock stations KISW in Seattle and KXPK in Denver prior to arriving in Cleveland. Arriving from Boston in Cleveland in September 1976, BLF was highly opinionated. He came to Cleveland as both a DJ and the Buzzard's program director. February 11, 2020 Sean Collier, Photos by Becky Thurner Braddock Sean McDowell With time and freedom, longtime DJ Sean McDowell can't get off the road. (Plain Dealer file photo), Korvan was one of the notable rock jocks from the 1970s heyday of WMMS-FM/100.7. Share this Story: UPDATE: Erika Lauren announced on Twitter Dec. 7 that she would not return to the Alan Cox Show in 2020. She left in 1989 to work for Top 40 station WPHR-FM/107. Hes heard introducing Bruce Springsteens fabled WMMS tenth anniversary show at the Cleveland Agora which is thought to have been the most bootlegged radio concert ever before its official release. She was on-air from 1993-1997, and had a popular 7-midnight show. [139], Bo Matthews (Alex Gutierrez), who became the station's program director in early 2004, hired Ohio native Benjamin "Maxwell" Bornstein that April for a more "personality-driven" afternoon show following the departure of Tim "Slats" Guinane for WXTM. wmms radio personalities. Goldfinger, The Refreshments, Triple Fast Action and others played the second stage at the top of the hill. Following the prank announcement, station management placed Maxwell on probation for 90 days. In other words, the carrion-eating bird represented "death and dying" a darkly comic reflection of the city's decline. Denny was also instrumental in convincing former WMMS owner Milton Maltz to continue the stations rock format in the mid-1970s. Tony Tilford, WMMS program director (19992003), WMMS shifted format to active rock on February 17, 1997, under the direction of Bob Neumann, who had previously programmed WNCX and WENZ. On October 26, 2010, Rover hired a witch doctor to curse LeBron James after the NBA star left the Cleveland Cavaliers. By the late 1980s, most of the original staff members had departed: John Gorman and Denny Sanders left in 1986 to launch upstart station WNCX, and Columbia Records hired Kid Leo in 1988. (Additional reporting by cleveland.com staff. He was 64 years old. He was best known as the voice for the station's hourly IDs, music segues, sweepers, and commercials, and was also a member of The Buzzard Morning Zoo in the mid-80s. [152][156][157][158], Comedian Chad Zumock was a co-host until his dismissal on December 3, 2012, after being arrested for driving while intoxicated;[159] Zumock was acquitted of the charge on May 3, 2013. (Plain Dealer file photo), "Spaceman Scott" - Scott Hughes, better known as Spaceman Scott, was a member of WMMS-FM/100.7's top-rated "Buzzard Morning Zoo" in the 1980s, along with Jeff Kinzbach, Ed "Flash" Ferenc, and others. WMMS News anchor, Mike Olszewski paints a picture of the scene on that dreadful day. He would read some commercial copy and then "throw them in the bash bucket where they belong" and openly criticize music he didn't care for. 54,419 people like this 52,406 people follow this http://www.wmms.com/ (216) 578-1007 In 2014, Springsteen finally released the Agora concert officially on CD and download. There were other really good rock stations around, but those other stations opted in to carry the live broadcast of the MMS birthday show (in 1978). In addition to Boom's deep pipes being used every hour in the Top of the hour ID's, station sweepers and commercials, he held two on-air shifts on the weekends which he coined the Boom 'till noon. In honor of the station's milestone birthday, we've compiled a list of some of the Buzzard's most memorable DJs and behind-scenes personalities, spanning the full 50-year history of the station. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Here's a look at some of the most iconic radio personalities to appear on the. [148][146][152][153][154][155], A devoted fan of heavy metal, Cox considers himself more of a comedian than a disc jockey. She later worked in radio promotion and sales in Chicago and New York. Goldfinger, The Refreshments, Triple Fast Action and others played the second stage at the top of the hill. The ritual lasted through his entire career at the Buzzard. "Betty was one of the original . Get Started Channel Hosts In Your Vehicle Streaming HOWARD STERN Howard 100 Hoda Kotb Today Show Radio Peter Mansbridge Canada Talks Sandra Bernhard Radio Andy Erin Burnett CNN Billy Idol 1st Wave Mad Dog Russo Mad Dog Sports Radio She stayed on when the station switched. The concert series continued on well into the 1990s and early 2000s, albeit much less frequently.[64][65]. Mr. Leonard, the self proclaimed assistant public service director made appearances on the Buzzard Morning Zoo for many years. He gave many new up and coming artists exposure and put them on the map to their road to stardom. Maria Farina landed at WMMS in 1986 fresh out of Ohio University and quickly gained popularity. (Billy Bass is at far left in the photo, kickin' it with the WHK crew, circa 1968. Brian Chalmers, Rock 'N' Roll Artist", "Film; Paul Schrader Plumbs Grassroots Rock", "iHeartMedia Cleveland To Move To New Facility As Company Begins Cloud Based Tech Rollout", "Downtown TV station group may move to the suburbs", "Cleveland Broadcast Radio Archives WMMS timeline", "Rock in Akron: The Music Of Greater Akron", "The Second WMMS Music Marathon Station TV Spot", "Recalling a couple of wacky radio guys", http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1994/RR-1994-11-04.pdf, http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1994/RR-1994-12-02.pdf, "Billboard/Airplay Monitor Radio Awards Bestowed", "Kevin Metheny, a.k.a. The company will move its regional office, including nine stations, downtown from the suburbs. [83][89] Lisa Dillon, Ric Bennett and Tom Renzy also would depart the station that same day. Morning Show, Promotions Director KGGI. Mama, come get your baby boy! One day a co-worker overheard him ranting in the halls of the radio station and got the idea to feature him on the air with a salute to the weekend. Being one of the highest-rated radio stations in the country, he became the afternoon drive DJ in 1974, all the way until December of 1988 - which he then decided to part pays with Cleveland. Goldberg started at WMMS-FM/100.7 in 1972 and remained there until 2004, longer than any other personality employed there during the Buzzard's heyday. EC horror comics, Fritz the Cat, Rocky and Bullwinkle, and Looney Tunes all served as inspirations for the "bird of prey with attitude" concept. Seth "the Barbarian" Williams took the overnight shift when Pennington moved to evenings in 2001. All we're doing is shifting an image. [72] Rather, WMMS adopted a buzzard as its mascot in April 1974 because of the then tenuous economic state of Cleveland less than five years away from becoming the first major American city to enter into default since the Great Depression[73] and the winged-creature's classification as a scavenger. [51] In order to firmly establish a separate identity, and to reflect the station's ownership,[55] the WHK-FM callsign was changed to WMMS on September 28, 1968. Win tickets to see Adam Sandler at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Win tickets to see Weezer at Blossom Music Center, Win tickets to see Disturbed at Blossom Music Center. Springsteen's music had become an important cornerstone of the Buzzard playlist and his profile had risen nationally, thanks to the release of the Born to Run album, with the title track quickly becoming an 'MMS staple that would endure for decades.