CKLW - The Big 8 Honor Roll
Announcers appearing on CK
from 1967 to 1984

This list was compiled by Charlie O'Brien, with many thanks to former CKLW producer Tommy Ryan for his help with the compilation. Steve Hunter also helped fill in a few names and dates.

(Numbers in parentheses are the era or first CKLW chart appearance noted - some approximate)

Rick Allen (72)

Jack Anthony (most recently Ted Anthony on WLTI around 1995)

Darryl B (71)

Neale Blase (last name pronounced "blaze") (71)

Frank Brodie (68 - mid 70's)

Gary Burbank (75-76)

Bob Clarke

Al Dylan (late 70's)

"Big" Jim Edwards (67-70)

Fred Ennis ("Earle Fredericks" 1969)

Joe Evans (79-85)

Charlie Fox (Dec. 71)

Bill Gable (70's)

Gary Hart

Lou Henry 20/20 News (filled in on air as "Mike McCord") (75-80)

Dick Hildebrand 20/20 News

Chuck Hobart ("Chip" Hobart - came to CKLW from WRKO, Boston) (71)

Pat Holiday (two tours - short trip to New York) (early 70's to 85)

Steve Hunter (late Jan. 69 to early Sept. 71)

J.J. Jackson (77)

Jim Jackson (70-72)

Mike Kelly (started in 73 but did mostly fill in and vacations till late 76 and 77, when he did the all night show)

Super Max Kinkel (70's)

Walt "Baby" Love (a few months in 70)

Jack London (Spring 79-Late Summer 82?)

Bob Losure 20/20 News evenings (with CNN Headline News since mid 80's)

Billy Mack (also known as Kris Erik Stevens on KIIS/KQV/WQXI/WLS/WCFL, and Johnny Mitchell on KOIL)(June-August? 1967)

Hal Martin (real name: Michael Spears (71-72)

Chuck McKay (also appeared as Chuck Williams Feb. 75)

Ed Mitchell (70)

Gary Mitchell (70)

"Cosmic" Bob Moody (Oct. 73-June 76)

Chuck Morgan (Jan. 68, also in 69 or 70?)

Jerry Morgan (Sept. 70)

Johnny Morgan (May 67)

Charlie O'Brien (first chart Feb. 3, 76)

Hank O'Neill (70)

Dick Purtan (Nov. 1/78-83) (WKNR 65-68) (WXYZ 68-78)

Scott Regan (Apr. 68 - came from WKNR)

Dusty Rhodes (mornings Aug. 66-May 67)

Mark Richards (68)

Ted Richards (also appeared as Teddy Bear Richards and Ted the Bear Richards, or just "Ted the Bear" March 72-Jan. 85)

Mike Rivers (Sept. 67-late in '68)

Tom Rivers (71)

Duke Roberts

Len Robinson (two tours - 60's first as Tom Shannon's board op / later in 70's on air)

Eddie Rogers (72-74)

Doug Rollins (late 70's-84)

Tom Ryan (Purtan sidekick - later hosted AM Drive)

Pat St. John (69-70 - D.J. and 20/20 newscaster to start, became full-time D.J. in 1970)

Bob Savage (Sept. 73)

John Scott (Mar 71)

Dave Shafer (3 tours- 60's, 70's,80's)

Tom Shannon (3 tours 60's, 70's, 89-93)

Bob Todd (Sept. 67)

Charlie Van Dyke (late 60's)

Todd Wallace (Sept. 69-70)

Johnny Williams (early 70's-85)

Bill Winters

Regarding the Big 8 music survey shown above: The jocks shown are (front to back): Eddie Russell ("Fast Eddie Russell" - we had earlier incorrectly identified him as Pat St. John, but Pat wrote in to say it wasn't so!), Gary Hart, Daryl B., Steve Hunter (the one sporting the white tie and tie-dyed jeans), Frank Brodie, Duke Roberts, and the jock at the back of the line is Big Jim Edwards. Thanks to Steve Hunter, Pat St. John, and Gary Russell (a.k.a. "Fast Eddie Russell") for helping identify the jocks shown.

A few additional notes on former Big 8 D.J.'s, mostly based on information and comments provided by Steve Hunter:

One of the main evening newsmen on CKLW, Bob Losure, has been doing weekends, nights, and "swing duty" on CNN Headline News since shortly after it came on the air in the mid-1980's. You can see 'im most any weekend, and there's not a lot of visible change (except a few extra pounds) since his days at CK.

Chuck Hobart ("Chip" Hobart) was at CKLW in 1971, after a stint at WRKO in Boston. He left CK to join Steve Hunter at WIXY (Hunter as afternoon drive, Hobart as nights), then, later, worked as evening jock for Hunter when he was PD at WEZE in Boston.

Pat Holiday has moved on to GM of two stations in Calgary, Alberta, Canada--an AOR FM (CJAY) and a MOR AM (CKMX)--so, exuent Montreal; the email address is still valid.

Jim Jackson was at CKLW in 1970-72, mostly in the late-evening shift.

Mike Kelly passed away in August of 2005 in California; his funeral was held in Philadelphia.

Jack London (a.k.a. Peter Thompson, a.k.a. Red Knight) is now Operations Manager at Quinte Broadcasting Co., Belleville, Ontario. His e-mail address is [email protected].

Hal Martin left CKLW to become a long-time "star" at RKO-owned KFRC in San Francisco. After a long and courageous battle with cancer, he passed away in Dallas, Texas in October, 2005. See Larry Shannon's tribute entitled "We Were Invincible".

"Cosmic" Bob Moody is now VP/Programming for Regent Communications, Inc., based in Mt. Juliet, TN, near Nashville. (October, 2005)

Charlie O'Brien is currently doing the Morning Show 5am to 10am weekdays on 580 Memories CKWW Detroit/Windsor, and also is playing the great Oldies mid-days 9am to 2pm on Oldies 990 Montreal. Charlie has his own web site, which (among other things) features some airchecks not found here, so be sure to visit him at http://members.tripod.com/charlieo/. Charlie's also been on in the mornings on 1050 CHUM in Toronto (which recently became an all-sports station, but is still playing oldies via streaming audio on the Internet).

Dave Shafer died on Sunday, May 7, 2006 in Florida of complications from outpatient sinus surgery. There is a great remembrance of Dave on the Detroit News site.

Todd Wallace did all-nites in 1970, and later became one of the best-known rock radio consultants in the U.S. (and Australia!) as head of "Radio Index." He gives much credit to CKLW and the Drake Format for helping form his programming philosophies. He's now GM of the top news-talk station in Phoenix, KTAR, and still a consultant to many stations.

Ted Richards ("Ted the Bear" or "Teddy Bear Richards") left the Big 8 in January of 1985 when they went to big band music. Currently he does the morning show for the Jones Radio Network out of Colorado. Ted says that it's Oldies and they're in 150 markets across America. He also notes that "Jim Jackson was doing afternoon drive when I arrived at CK in March of 72, I was the guy who replaced Tom Rivers who headed for Toronto. Two weeks after I arrived Hal Martin quit to become a movie star...don't know if that worked or not, I can't remember seeing Hal in any films. Not long after, Jim Jackson left and Eddie Rogers was hired to do afternoons. Brother Bill came along later and filled the Hal Martin shift following me at 9pm. It was Eddie 3-6pm, Ted the Bear 6-9pm and Bro Bill 9pm-1am." About the way he was ID'd on the air, Ted (whose real name is Robert Richardson) further notes that "On the air I was Teddy Bear Richards, Ted the bear Richards, under one PD who was there only 18 months, I went back to being Ted Richards, but over the long haul, it was Ted the Bear Richards, with jocks shouts that said Ted the Bear, or just Ted Richards."

Back to The Classic CKLW Page