Sox network still way late with legal ID break

[Mark Watson]

Matt Stevens wrote:

>  Then there's the story of how at another Merrimack valley >station the 
> owner refused to pay for the phone line from >WPLM and they would pick the 
> games up on a FM boom >box perched on top of an equipment rack. The signal 
> would >fade during hot summer nights when tropo interference >would 
> clobber the 99.1 signal.  Mark..chime in here and tell >us more 
> stories...LOL.

  As requested, I will chime in. Yes it's true, WHAV in Haverhill would use 
a boom box perched atop the equipment rack just outside the studio tuned to 
99.1 to pick up Red Sox & Bruins games. The radio stayed on 24/7, and was 
always patched in to the board so one could listen to WPLM in cue. IIRC 
weeknights around 6:30 back in that time, right before the Sox pre-game, 
WPLM would air a nightly poetry reading by Ken Coleman. I also listened in 
cue one early morning while wrapping up an overnight shift (5:30ish) and 
heard the reciting of the Daily Rosary. Yes it is also true that the signal 
would drift and flutter when a plane would fly over the building and on one 
warm Summer night during my watch the sounds of Ken Coleman were overtaken 
by the sounds of rock from co-channel  WPLR New Haven. I called WPLM to get 
the game feed via the phone at that point.

  And I can also confirm that WPLM didn't follow the log sent to the 
affiliates. They would play local spots or promos in slots the log indicated 
would be a network spot. Can't recall how many times I had to quickly pot 
down the feed so WHAV listeners wouldn't hear a promo for "Dixieland In The 
Morning" or a WPLM jingle.

Mark Watson