Re: WSME/1220, Sanford, ME

["Dan C." <dcole@ici.net>]

PETER GEORGE, N1GGP wrote:
> 
>      Based upon the market conditions in the York County (ME), Sanford
> area it it not surprising that WSME has failed technically and failing in
> the program area, as well.  


 .............lots of snipping......
  
What has happened to 'SME is, unfortunately,
> common to small shadow markets nationwide.  The FM gets the effort, the AM
> gets the shaft.  What a shame.
> 
> -Pete-
> 
> ********************************************************************************
> Peter Q. George, N1GGP                  *  "Scanning the bands since 1967 !"
> 33 Stetson St., Apt. 2                  *                  +
> Whitman, Massachusetts  02382           *                  |
> USA                                     *      73         +|+    de N1GGP
> PGEORGE@wellesley.edu                   *                +\|/+
> XERB@bigfoot.com                        *               + \|/ +
> W221AG@hotmail.com (my FM translator)   *               + \|/ +
> ********************************************************************************



You have touched a memory.  My second "real job" in radio was at WSME,
in 1969.  I was fresh out of the infamous Northeast Broadcasting School,
home of Vin Rafferty and company.  Actually, I started at WTSL in
Lebanon, NH....only to find out the first day on the job that Knight was
in the process of selling them.  So, I quickly decided to move on.
Anyway, I landed at WSME a month later.  At that time it was little more
than a shack on the shore of the Mousam River.  The GM was Bob Canty,
who came from Rhode Island with Natale Urso, who had bought the place a
short time earlier.  I did everything from writing logs to production to
an air shift and play-by-play.  I even painted the tower!  It wasn't
unusual to work for the entire broadcast day, especially during the
winter months.
It was Bob Canty who noticed that I enjoyed doing news, and it was he
who encouraged me to go on to college and study journalism.  To this day
he is the best GM I ever worked under.
I was at WSME for about 10 months...and it was glorious.
We were a Sanford station, and we had a very large, local listenership.  
The original station site and tower are gone, replaced by a Legion or
VFW parking lot.  
It was a great training ground.  Too bad most of today's new
broadcasters won't have the opportunity to experience it.
Stepping off my soapbox...

Dan Cole
WTSN / WBYY
Dover, NH

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