December 15 In Radio History

In 1921...Radio DJ Alan Freed, who coined the term "rock 'n' roll" and was implicated in the payola scandals of the 1950s, was born. He died Jan. 20, 1965 at 43.  For more of The Alan Freed Story: Click Here.

In 1961...John Battison calls for Institute of Broadcast Engineers in Broadcast Engineering editorial

In 1955…Johnny Cash released the Sun Records single "Folsom Prison Blues," which peaked at #4 on the Country chart but did not break into the Billboard top pop list. Cash included the song in his repertoire for decades.


He performed it at Folsom Prison on January 13, 1968 and that "live" version was eventually released by Columbia on the "At Folsom Prison" album the same year, and as a single that reached #32 on the pop chart.

In 1956…Elvis Presley gave his final performance on the "Louisiana Hayride" after 50 appearances on the radio show, a weekly broadcast from KWKH in Shreveport, Louisiana.

In 1957…Columbia Records executive Mitch Miller and entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. disparaged rock 'n' roll as "the comic books of music" during a radio talk show hosted by Davis. Another guest on the radio show, Arnold Maxim, president of the MGM record label, disagreed with them saying he saw no end to the fad in the near future.


In 1988..."The Godfather of Soul," James Brown, was sentenced to six years in prison for failing to stop for police during a two-state car chase. He was released in 1990 on probation.

In 1999...Country music superstar Garth Brooks said that he planned to keep an "extremely low" profile in 2000 and that he would "probably" announce his retirement at the end of the year.