R.I.P: Longtime WBAL Baltimore Host Allan Prell

Allan Prell

Allan Prell, the popular, folksy WBAL 1090 AM morning talk-show host recalled for his vivid imagination and gentle way of making fools of certain listeners, died Saturday at his Oakton, Va., home.

He was 79, according to The Baltimore Sun.

His wife, Sally Bryan-Prell, said he had undergone abdominal surgery in January. She said that a cause of death had not been determined.

Mr. Prell hosted a talk show from 1982 to 1999 at WBAL Radio. He later joined KIRO 1000 AM in Seattle.

"Allan could be the silliest person in the world and the smartest person in the world, all on the same day," said Malarie Pinkard, WBAL-Radio news director. "He knew precisely when he had to be intelligent, and he knew when it was time to take a break."

"From the standpoint of a radio guy, he was uniquely a Baltimore talent. He was really attuned to Baltimore and understood its audience. He related to them, and they took to him," said Ron Matz, a veteran Baltimore radio personality who is now a WJZ-TV reporter.

"He really was a legend and totally unpredictable, and that's why people enjoyed him. You never knew what he was going to do," he said. "He was a very creative guy and had a unique way of delivering his message. He had all of these characters and was himself a Baltimore character."


Born in Shelby, Neb., Mr. Prell was the son of Philo Prell, a carpenter, and Ruth Ransom. He spent time during World War II in Middle River while his parents were defense workers. He spent a year at Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Neb., and he got a job at radio station KFTG. In a 1989 Baltimore Sun article, he said he worked at 27 radio stations — and was fired from most of them — before joining WBAL.

As a boy, Mr. Prell spent his time listening to radio and dreaming of a career as an announcer. One day, his mother took him to the local station announcer, who liked the enthusiastic boy and offered him a job playing a few records at night.