FROM THE CRATES
Like a Boss from the crates Kelly McCoy is a veteran Atlanta broadcaster who writes about the days popular music only came on vinyl records, which often were stored in crates. I recently attended the funeral of my dear friend Dr. Hugh Harris West. A retired microbiology college professor, or “professuh,” as he would say in his suthun drawl. He could very easily been the most brilliant man I’ve ever known. Eloquent, sharp, smart, witty, charming, and naughty all
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Gary Mack meets Rolling Stones
combined. His command of the English language intrigued this radio guy because we like to enunciate and pronounce things clearly and correctly. What’s a radio guy doing hanging out with a college
APRIL 2022 | AtlantaSeniorLife.com
professor? I have, or have had, friends on all levels of the game. Multimillionaires, dirt poor folks, people who live in anything from mansions to mobile homes. Some were highly educated; some, I’ve
wondered if they finished the third grade. People are people. I love them for who they are, not what they have or had, or what they do or have done. I even had a friend named Kelly McCoy who was Air Boss on the U.S.S. Nimitz. In previous columns, I’ve mentioned how great it is to tell the wonderful story of friends who are still alive. I’m a senior citizen writing a column for senior citizens to hopefully enjoy. The death of Dr. West triggered me to tell you about another living senior friend who was legendary in the world of radio. If you lived in L.A., Boston, New York, or Atlanta, you may recognize the name Gary Mack, the on-air name for Gary McDowell. His final stop in the business was his smallest market: Atlanta. In the 60s, AM radio was king. We heard the hits and the fast-talking Cisc jockeys through a speaker maybe the size of a silver dollar. Disc jockeys used terms like “groovy,” the 45-rpm records were “stacks of wax,” and other clever clichés rolled from the faceless voice coming out of the speaker. Radio humor: All radio guys claim to have a face for radio and a voice for newspaper. Top 40 radio was our main source for music in those days, and the Los Angeles market had Boss Radio KHJ and the Boss Jocks. “Boss” was to mean something hip and new and first-class exciting radio. Two legendary pioneers in radio programming, Bill Drake and Gene Chenault, came up with the package. Gary McDowell became Bill Drake’s right arm and was involved from West Coast to East Coast in the top markets. Being on the ground floor of what would be a radio station that people still talk about today was his sweetest gig. He was mid-day Boss Jock on 93 KHJ in Los Angeles. Let me assure you this was big-time radio with big-time talent and something special.
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