101 posted about WATO yesterday, so let's enjoy a "101 Reload"~
It's been a fun ride looking back at WATO 1290 Oak Ridge...
"Enjoyed Lindsey Brooks' comments and the pic of WATO with the turntables underneath the board. I've worked for a lot of radio stations (my goodness I've worked for a lot of radio stations!), and the only place I've used a similar arrangement was at WKY in Oklahoma City in my early 20s. Trust me it was a long time ago. WKY's control board was massive compared to WATO's -stations with only 3 call letters always have massive equipment. It was a great setup to run a fast board and I never understood why everyone didn't have a similar board-turntable arrangement." - Bill Miller (I Am Still Suitcase Simpson)
"Thanks for the WATO memories. That was my first official gig -- hired to empty out trash cans (which were always filling up with AP wire machine paper. Remember those rolls of paper?) Then it was on to board op for Atlanta Braves baseball on the FM (WUUU) and eventually reading newscasts in the morning before I went to school. (Great gig for a high school student!) This was in the mid-late 70s and among the stand-out people there for me was a guy named Roy McClendon who did mornings. I was shocked when he suddenly passed away in 1977 (or 78?) James Freeman was there, too -- and was the one who hired me to come over to WBIR-FM when he landed the PD gig there. I pretty much owe my career to James. Others I remember there were Hugh Newsom, Mike Earl, Mike Moore (not the filmmaker!) Randy Miller, Jeff Caylor, Larry Solomon -- and who can forget the engineer Dave Brown! (Anyone know whatever happened to Leslie Self? She was at WATO after working at W-149.) And does anyone have any more old PICS? I’ll try to dig up some! Thanks!" (Carson Cooper Radio Margaritaville SiriusXM and NPR (WUSF-FM) in Tampa)