Punxsutawney AM Radio: The Erhard Era

from #272 JUNE 2013 GRADUATION

My Dad’s Many Loves

By S. Thomas Curry of Hometown magazine

In the recent April issue of Punxsutawney Hometown magazine, readers were invited to share memories about the “golden years” of the AM frequency of Punxsutawney’s first commercial radio station. Those shared memories were appreciated because they give color and flavor to the facts of local history. WPME went on the air in March 1953. It all started when young Charles Erhard came to Punxsutawney on February 1, 1953, from Bluefield, West Virginia, where he was commercial manager of a radio station. The call letters for the Punxsutawney station would remind us of his place in local history when he came to the town of Punxsutawney, already well-known nationally for its association with Groundhog Day on February 2 each year.

Charles “Charlie” Erhard, founder of WPME in 1953, was owner of Punxsutawney’s pioneer radio station for nearly 30 years. Shortly after his arrival, he became a member of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, and its president in 1976. With his connection to radio and TV stations he was responsible for sending news about Punxsutawney’s Groundhog Day to hundreds of radio and TV stations around the country. (photocopy from January 24,1973, Punxsutawney Spirit) the summer months.

In 1953, Punxsutawney radio WPME went on the air as a locally owned, community AM radio station with area programs of news, music, and sports from dawn to dusk. In 1973, the radio station added an FM frequency to become WPME-AM and WPME-FM. (photo by S. Thomas Curry)

When the news was announced in the local newspaper about the formal opening of WPME, it was stated that Charles Erhard was “the youngest general manager in broadcasting history in the United States.” But radio listeners in the Punxsutawney area were not unfamiliar with AM radio, as popular programs on national radio networks of NBC, ABC, and CBS were transmitted from stations in big cities. Pittsburgh had its powerful KDKA and WJAS, Philadelphia with KYW, and WBZ was Boston’s AM station.

In the Punxsutawney area 1940s AM community-based radio was already established in DuBois, Clearfield, Indiana, and Kittanning, with appropriate call letters. The first air date for WCED was in 1941, founded by the CourierExpress newspaper group in DuBois. WCPA in Clearfield went on the air in 1947. Kittanning’s WACB went on the air in 1949 with its call letters that reflected Armstrong County Broadcasting. As with other daytime radio stations in each community, the goal was to program local news, area sports, and music.

In the first years of WPME’s daytime schedule, programming began at 6:30 a.m. with its “Wake Up” program, followed by news, with news on the hour. The day ended with news and the “Sign-Off” at sundown around 8:30 p.m. in

Research from older copies of the Punxsutawney Spirit was the source of information about its activities and programs that relate to the radio’s purpose. Particularly, as a “community radio.” One event in the first month of its air time was noteworthy. On an afternoon day in late April 1953, it cooperated with the Civil Defense Corps for what was claimed as “Punxsutawney’s first full-fledged air alert since World War II.” For the state-wide alert, WPME and WCED in DuBois were on the air to announce the start of sirens that began the alert and to announce the “all clear” signal that ended the six-minute drill. Another similar drill was held in October 1953.

Such activity of the WPME involvement in the community is not among the memories that have been offered by Hometown readers. The daily programs that informed, entertained, and created local pride in the community were shared by several folk who listened as young adults in the 1960s. Their memories of Punxsutawney radio began when they were school students and when television (TV) had become popular as a visual/audio form of communication and entertainment in the 1950s. When radio began locally, area youth were regularly watching TV shows on WJAC-TV (Johnstown) or Pittsburgh’s WDTV. Among those favorites were “Howdy Doody,” “Captain Video,” “The Lone Ranger,” or “Kukla, Fran and Ollie.” Radio and television stores were established. (Remember the big Joe Beatty’s Radio & Television Store on Pine Street?)

Local radio personalities with their unique “radio voices” were among the memories recalled from listeners to WPME. In addition to the strong “radio voice” of Charles Erhard, the voices of Gil Lainey, Bob Curry, Bill Sisk, Larry McGuire, Lou Jordan, and Josh Widdowson were remembered.

Among area residents who offered interesting notes from memory was Ruth (Manners) Soliday, who began her experience with WPME in 1963 when the radio station was celebrating its 10th anniversary on the air. She remembers when she was hired. A business student in the Punxsutawney High School with Terry Daly as her teacher, WPME station manager Charles Erhard, requested a recommendation of a student for

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With particular detail she remembered the dawn to dusk programming that included local news at 9 a.m., followed by Hospital News at 9:05, which also included accident news. She recalled that “it took a lot of time for the accident report.” At 9:15 a.m., Devotion Time was scheduled with a brief inspirational message from area ministers. (Sundays would include a live worship service broadcast from a local church.) Also, among the morning programs was the Women’s Show hosted by Virginia Bailey or Anne Mumper at 9:30. Also, a Trading Post program invited area residents to offer items for sale or trade.

The Noon News Hour was at 12:00 p.m. when staff members of the Punxsutawney Spirit read local and area news. The afternoon was filled with music, offered from vinyl records on a studio turntable. Ruth’s memories were that vinyl records were provided by record companies to promote music by vocalists, or from Dan Benson’s Record Shop, in exchange for the cost of an advertisement. Ruth recalled the afternoon music included Polka Party at 3 o’clock and Rock ’n’ Roll at 3:30 when students were home from school. (Older readers might remember the afterschool programs of Hit Parade or Bandstand.) After local and state news at 6 p.m., the music was appropriate “easy listening” music for adults, such as Sammy Kaye, until sign-off time as the sun set. When necessary, the evening music was substituted with live broadcast of a seasonal sports event of baseball, football, or basketball.

With WPME on the air for a decade, since 1953, those particular memories were in the 1960s. Soon, years of change came to the lone “community” radio station of WPME that was owned and managed by Charles Erhard. With growth and outreach in mind for the area, it was in 1973 that a major change occurred in location for the office and studios. In the spring of 1973, construction began for new studios for the office and studios along PA Route 36, a mile north from downtown Punxsutawney and North Gilpin Street where studios were in the old hospital building when it began on the air broadcasts. The new location was near where a Jamesway Store was constructed in 1972. WPME went on the air in its new modern “Broadcast House” studios in December 1973. with a simulcast of programming as WPMEFM. After years of working through piles of paperwork required by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), Charles Erhard was able to add an FM station to the “dawn-to-dusk AM station in order to serve the area better. A powerful “sister station,” WPMEFM, began transmitting broadcasts at 3,000 watts from the new studios and was on the air for 24-hours,

For radio broadcasting, AM (Amplified Modulation) had its limitations. FM (Frequency Modulation) offered a difference in sound quality and range and was considered better than

Many memories about WPME radio can be shared among older residents. A program log for WPME, printed in the Punxsutawney Spirit in 1953, indicates the variety of local programs on the air of Punxsutawney’s pioneer radio station. (photocopy of April 28, 1953, Punxsutawney Spirit)

AM stations. (Research informs that FM radio was invented before World War II but didn’t become widely used until the mid-1970s.) The cost of establishing an AM station was low, requiring a simple transmitter and receiver. Its primary limitations for broadcasting were static noises, interference in radio lines from machinery, and electric storms. AM was considered more useful for talk radio and news. For comparison, FM broadcasting reduced static noise, offered a higher quality of sound more suitable for music. Though its signal served a wider area the FM signal was blocked by mountainous areas, tall buildings, and trees between the transmitter towers and receivers.

WPME AM/FM was the call letter for Punxsutawney’s local commercial radio programming until late 1981.WPME as an AM station continued its function with FCC to provide Emergency Calls as they were needed. Through the 1970s, listening to WPME and WPME-FM offered a different radio experience for radio fans. Radios, including car radios, had to be adapted to provide FM stations for listeners.

With the experienced “Charlie” Erhard at WPME, the radio station became an asset to promoting Punxsutawney and its activities. With radio, and his “radio voice,” Erhard was a town booster and was dubbed the unofficial “cheerleader” for Punxsutawney. In the 1970s listeners were introduced to the Rotary Radio Auction when Erhard was the radio auctioneer as listeners called in with bids for hundreds of donated items. In 1974 nearly 200 were auctioned to raise money for the Rotary Clubs Charity Fund. Also in 1974, to support its charitable activities, the Kiwanis Club aired its “Harvest of Talent Radiothon” on WPME. Local talent, vocal or instrumental, was showcased as individuals, duets, or groups were given the opportunity to perform