In an industry getting a reputation for discarding on-air personalities like old shoes, there's one couple in Chicago that continues to buck that trend year after year. It was over 25 years ago when John Gehron, running WLS in Chicago at the time, heard Don and Roma doing a little back-and-forth on the air when he stuck his head in the studio during a break and told the pair he liked how that sounded. 25 years later, the married couple, is still going strong in one of radio's toughest markets and in radio's most competitive formats.
WLS-AM Market Manager Michael Damsky says, "Don and Roma have literally been at WLS since it went on the air as a talk station, and have anchored it ever since. The fact that they have enjoyed their greatest success in the most recent years is a testimony to the influence they have over the Chicago radio audience. They are great radio and great people- which pleases me as both a listener and a boss."
WLS-AM Operations Manager Drew Hayes says, "Don and Roma anchored mornings when we flipped WLS
from music to talk in 1989, and have been the leaders in the rise of WLS back to prominence in the market. They are tireless workers, innovators, opinion shapers and two of the kindest people in or out of the radio business. Don and Roma have earned a spot among the legendary morning shows in a city that has a reputation for being a great, rough-and-tumble radio market."
Listen to our interview with Don and Roma on their 30-year success in Chicago, their advice for others starting out in the business, what they think of the industry layoffs and how they are able to live together and work together every day.
Reach out to congratulate Don and Roma on their stellar career in Chicago HERE
(2/7/2012 5:37:05 AM)
Great story, Charlie Beaver airs a talk show 6a to 9a m-f April will be his 30th year. WPTM fm 102.3 Roanoke Rapids, N.C. www.firstmediaradio.com
Al Haskins
GM
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