Philly Radio: Angelo Cataldi's Final WIP Show Is Friday

Angelo Cataldi's final WIP Show is Friday

With the Philadelphia Eagles losing Super Bowl 57 to the Kansas City Chiefs in heartbreaking fashion Sunday evening, Angelo Cataldi’s last day as host of SportsRadio 94 WIP-FM’s highly successful morning drive program is now known.

The Philly Business Journal reports Cataldi’s swan song after 31 years will be on Friday and WIP Brand Manager Rod Lakin said the station and Philadelphia-based parent company Audacy plan to honor the man who has been a ratings king for decades.

The day preceding his final broadcast, Lakin said WIP will hold a celebration show to honor Cataldi, including a retrospective on his career that includes visits from old friends discussing his legacy.

WIP will hand the reins of its morning show over to current midday hosts Joe DeCamara and Jon Ritchie, who will be joined by their producer, James Seltzer, Cataldi holdovers Rhea Hughes and producer Joe Weachter and newcomer Devan Kaney.

Nighttime host Joe Giglio and Eagles Hall of Famer Hugh Douglas will slide into the midday show next Monday. Douglas has been in Philadelphia for the past month, attending planning meetings with Giglio and other station officials while finishing up his co-hosting responsibilities for the morning drive show at Atlanta’s 92.9 The Game — another Audacy-owned sports talk station.

No producer has been named for the new midday show and Lakin said he is still going through the process to find Giglio’s replacement at night, though he admits getting the two new daytime shows ready and focusing on the Eagles Super Bowl run have taken priority. The job has been posted and Lakin said he is looking at internal and external options.

DeCamara and Ritchie are ready to move to morning drive, Lakin said, noting that the Eagles extended playoff run has given the station more time to prepare for what will be a massive change.

With the Eagles playing in the Super Bowl on Sunday and the defending National League champion Phillies starting spring training on Thursday, there couldn’t be a better time to launch two new shows with fan interest at a fever pitch. WIP has the broadcast rights for both teams.

David Scopinich, vice president of sales for Audacy in Philadelphia, said the combination of the Eagles Super Bowl run and Cataldi’s last shows has been a boon for advertising.

“I don't think even someone as creative as Angelo could have scripted a better finish than the Eagles facing Andy Reid in the Super Bowl during his final chapter at WIP,” Scopinich said.

WIP's New Morning Show includes: Joe Weachter, Joe DeCamara, Jon Ritchie, James Seltzer and Rhea Hughes.

DeCamara and Ritchie will have big shoes to fill in replacing Cataldi, the station’s longtime ratings powerhouse who is responsible, directly and indirectly, for bringing in a large chunk of its advertising and sponsorship dollars. Cataldi is a prolific pitch man for sponsors ranging from forklift rental companies to auto dealers, and the higher the ratings for that show, the more WIP can charge for ad spots.

WIP might be banking on being able to institutionalize many of the sponsors that have long been connected to Cataldi. It does have the cachet of being the radio home of Eagles and Phillies games while rival 97.5 The Fanatic (WPEN-FM) has the lower-rated Flyers and 76ers.

The Fanatic, owned by Beasley Broadcasting Group, hired John Kincade in early 2021 to challenge Cataldi. He has not been able to dent much of Catalidi’s ratings lead. But with DeCamara and Ritchie soon replacing Cataldi, industry insiders will be watching to see if the needle moves some in The Fanatic’s direction.