Rick Minerd - Life Is A Jukebox

Sky Lucy?  That's how Fred Beckman knew  Casper the Camel and Spook is what we called Fred. it get's confusing.

Changing names in the broadcasting business kept many personalities from needing to have unlisted phone numbers. As host of my first radio show on WBUK-FM-96  I was known simply as  R. Dean.  I took that cue from a few of my favorites from that era over at WNCI,  E. Karl and   John L.

Mike O'Malley couldn't be found in the phone book But Mike Alerdice might have been there. Who would've guessed that WTVN's Dave Logan would really be David Grueser?  Beamon J. Black from WCOL  added  "color" to his name by making his last name his middle name.  Johnson. How about Joe Ucker who was better known as Joe Gallagher.

Mike Adams came to WCOL from Norwalk, Ohio where he was born Mike Hackney.  Fellow  'COL staffer Neal Shapiro preferred to be known as Neal Martin.  Although I think there was  probaby more to  92X's  "Baltazar" and  "Geronimo"  I never knew for sure.

One of my favorites was  Steve Beekman from WCOL-WMNI-WBBY and probably a hundred other's on the countryr's radio logs. Steve changed names every time he changed employment. Among his best was Stoney Roberts at WMNI. 

 WCOL's Johnny Lane was Johnny Lankenau and Dave Bishop is Dave Daugherty.  WCOL's  "Godfather"  Doctor Bop was Hoyt Locke.

 But many did throw caution to the wind and brave the open world of radio by sticking to what their parents gave them.

Although some liked to think that Suzy Waud was a tounge-in-cheek moniker, Waud was her name.

Here are some pretty cool names that went on as is.  Pam Easterday from WMNI.  Joe Carfagna from WTVN. Vance Dillard also from '610.

Carl Wendelken from WMNI.   In the mid 1960's WCOL had a guy named Jim Hazeltine, in the '70s  I worked with Paul Fertig at WBUK

And then there were those guys with natural show biz names like Wes Hopkins and Brian McIntyre from WCOL.  Bob Connors, Dave Paar, John Fraim, Steve Stratton and Bill Smith all from 610-WTVN.  Jack Evans and Dick Zipf from WBNS-Yeh Boy! 

These are just a few examples of who was really who on the Columbus air waves.  I could probably list many more and I may be a little off on the spelling of a few.  And if anyone can share more I'd be happy to  "reveal"  them here.

Just e-mail me at my  "new"  name,  Imjustrick@aol.com.           R. Dean

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