I  grew up in a radio household.  Even more than TV, the radio was always on in either the kitchen or living room, or bedroom and always the car.  

A few months before my father passed away he bought a Philco stereo for the front room.  The big furniture type of radio/record player that was all  wood, lower to the ground and wide. 

While living in Toronto from 1958 to 1965 the radios were on either CFRB, CHUM or CKEY.  When the stereo landed in the spring of 1965 CHFI and CKFM were added to the list.  Oddly enough, as a kid I never disliked CFRB.  Not my type of music but even then I knew that a lot of people weren't listening to the station for the music.  It was personality, information, news and a bit of gossip.  CFRB was Toronto. 

When we moved from Toronto summer 1966 and all through school the radio at home was CFRB in the morning until after the 9am news.  Then FM took over with CKFM, CHFI, or CFCA.  CHUM FM and CKLA in Guelph came later.  In highschool I heard the great Carl Banas on CKFM almost every night in the front room while doing homework. 

In my mom's car I had the radio presets to CFRB, CHUM, CKOC, CHAM, CFTR, sometimes CHYM in Kitchener or CJOY in Guelph.  No FM in our vehicles until the early 80's.   

My first car was a 1980 AMC Spirit.  No FM or cassette until I upgraded a few years later , but that original radio could  pull in AM stations from all over the place even during the day.  Good full sound and at night I could pull in many US stations.  

Last edited by paterson1 (April 29, 2024 2:41 pm)

Like Paterson1 I too grew up in households that relied on radio for everything from news to my father's favourite operas from the Met in New York (on CBC).
My parents were divorced when I was about 8 and I moved into an apartment in the west end of Vancouver with my mother and she remarried.
in that home the radio was tuned all day to CKNW or CJOR.
These stations were home to Vancouver's legends of talk radio, Jack Webster and Pat Burns.
(little did I know I would one day be working on the other side of the glass from Burns, who I would have to occasionally help down the stairs to the basement radio station, when he was on another bender.)
On CKNW listening to Webster, the feisty Glaswegian, was required.
It sparked a lifelong interest in reading and talking about news and other issues.
My step father later entered civic politics where radio listening became even more pronounced.
I also grew up on a lot of British programming which was carried on CHQM... a lot of BBC humour shows and middle of the road music.
When I reached university on pretty well the first day I walked though the Student Union Building I ran across the information table for CITR UBC Radio where I thrived for the next four years.
.


 

Last edited by newsguy1 (April 29, 2024 12:01 pm)

@ paterson1. I still have my parents Philco wood stereo . I use it as a stand for my big screen tv now. The old thing still lights up, but just has a hum on radio, the needle for the record player is long gone. 

I agree Gordon Sinclair "owned" the market.  I ssuspect that most of the other "operators" who recorded GS's early evening broadcasts, have passed away - that would include I believe Jackie (Jaqueline) Near, David Spencer and others.  I probably hold the distinction of being one of the "last surviving" operators.  (late 1960s to mid-1970's)I cannot recall any other station with as many distinctive on-air personalities.  No two announcers sounded the same or had a similar style.  It was to say the least, a very interesting place It was also impressed on me (as an operator), that you did not misfire or fail to log a spot.  Even 50+ years ago, the rate per spot was high and make-goods were never supposed to happen.  

I once had a very good friend who told me he had met a really nice girl and he was hoping things would work out.
I don't know why but I thought he said she was Jewish, so I asked again... so she's Jewish?
No, he replied, "she's white."
I could not think of my friend quit the same way again.


 

Didn't Bill McVean do The Owl's Nest?

mace wrote:

Didn't Bill McVean do The Owl's Nest?

"The Owl's Nest"  was hosted by Wayne Van Exan...   not that I was ever awake to hear the show, but I certainly heard promos for his show.





 

Glen Warren wrote:

mace wrote:

Didn't Bill McVean do The Owl's Nest?

"The Owl's Nest"  was hosted by Wayne Van Exan...   not that I was ever awake to hear the show, but I certainly heard promos for his show.
According to Rock Radio Scrapbook, Bill McVean hosted the Owl's Nest from 11:30pm-Midnight. Wayne Van Exan hosted "Music 'Til Dawn" from Midnight-5AM. Could the show have been renamed the Owl's Nest in later years?




 

The 1992 line-up: (This was a lot easier to read when my eyes were younger!)

Check out #48 - I didn't realize Larry Solway ever worked for 1010. 

Glen Warren wrote:

Centerline wrote:

Growing up in Burlington, everything in our household was Westinghouse in the 60's and 70's and the kitchen table radio would be tuned to 900 CHML. My father would get riled up every night by call-in show host Tom Cherrington,

My father would regularly listen to Tom Cherrington's evening show on on CHML...  but generally when we were out in the car going somewhere with dad...   I remember my dad always had a chuckle listening to Tom

Was the Cherrington radio show called "Action Line"  or am I thinking of something else? 

Yes, it was Action Line with Tom Cherington.