October 6 Radio History

Reginald Fessenden

In 1866...Radio pioneer Reginald Aubrey Fessenden was born at Milton [East Bolton] Quebec; he died in Hamilton, Bermuda July 22, 1932 at age 65.

After studies at Bishop University, Fessenden went to work for Thomas Edison, then the Westinghouse labs and the US Weather Service. In 1902, he started his own company to develop his superheterodyne discoveries, and in 1906 accomplished the first two-way radio voice transmission between Scotland and his shore station at Brant Rock Massachusetts.

That Christmas he broadcast the world’s first public program of music and voice transmitted over long distances, from Brant Rock to the ships at sea. He had over 300 patents, and was awarded $2.5 million by the US Radio Trust for his inventions, many of which were used by the US in World War I without his permission.


In 1949...Japanese-American broadcaster, Iva Toguri D'Aquino (Tokyo Rose), was sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined $10,000 for treason.

D'Aquino broadcast as "Orphan Ann" during the 15-20 minute D.J. segment of the 75-minute program The Zero Hour on Radio Tokyo (NHK). The program consisted of propaganda-tinged skits and slanted news reports as well as of popular American music.

After World War II ended in 1945, the U.S. military detained Toguri for a year before releasing her for lack of evidence. Department of Justice officials agreed that her broadcasts were "innocuous". But when Toguri tried to return to the US, a popular uproar ensued because Walter Winchell (a powerful broadcasting personality) and the American Legion lobbied relentlessly for a trial, prompting the Federal Bureau of Investigation to renew its investigation of Toguri's wartime activities. Her 1949 trial resulted in a conviction on one of eight counts of treason. In 1974, investigative journalists found that key witnesses claimed they were forced to lie during testimony. U.S. President Gerald Ford pardoned Toguri in 1977.

In 1953...at a low point in his recording & movie career, Frank Sinatra debuted as star of the new radio adventure series, ‘Rocky Fortune’ on NBC.  25 episodes later, and still without a sponsor, the series reached its end.

In 1973...The hot 100..Cher had the #1 song with "Half Breed".  Paul Simon moved to #2 with "Loves Me Like A Rock", Marvin Gaye's former #1 (Let's Get It On") was third followed by the previous #1 "We're An American Band" by Grand Funk.

The rest of the Top 10:  "Higher Ground" from Stevie Wonder, "That Lady" by the Isley Brothers, the Allman Brothers Band had their biggest hit with "Ramblin' Man", the Rolling Stones collected their 30th career hit and 15th Top 10 when "Angie" reached #8, Helen Reddy slipped with "Delta Dawn" and former Temptations member Eddie Kendricks said "Keep On Truckin'".

In 1976...“Disco Duck” by deejay Rick Dees and His Cast of Idiots was certified to be a Gold Record. The novelty number eventually went platinum, becoming only the 4th single to do so.

In 1984...The Album Charts..The count reached 10 for weeks at #1 for Prince's excellent Purple Rain album.  The previous #1 from Bruce Springsteen, Born in the U.S.A., however, had been in the Top Three every week since being dethroned and was not going away.  Sports by Huey Lewis & the News, itself a #1 album, was now moving back up after 53 weeks of release!  Private Dancer from Tina Turner was now at 4 and the Cars held steady with Heartbeat City.
So great were these five albums that they had made up the Top Five in various order for the past seven weeks.  Another note:  the debut album from Madonna reached the Top 10 for the first time--in its 58th week of release.


In 1985....bandleader/arranger Nelson Riddle died at age 64 of liver ailments and heart failure.  He had worked frequently (on their Capitol Records) with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald and Linda Ronstadt.

In 2004...Howard Stern announced he would move his show to SIRIUS Satellite Radio beginning January, 2006.

In 2012...“Sheriff” John Rovick, the beloved Los Angeles children’s TV host whose gentle, fatherly persona made him a welcome guest in homes throughout the 1950s and ’60s, died in his sleep at age 93. Beginning in radio, Rovick was a newly hired announcer at KTTV-TV when the station went on the air in 1949.  His popular late afternoon “Cartoon Time” began in 1952.


In 2014...longtime Philadelphia sportscaster Bill Campbell, who once called games for the Eagles, Phillies, Sixers and Warriors, and whose on-air career extended to age 90, died of complications from a fall at age 91.