Wed 6/22 @ 7PM
In the late 60s and early 70s, WIXY ruled Cleveland radio. The lively AM top 40 station, which went on air in 1965, was the go-to place for all the hits and happenings. It sponsored almost every youth-related event in town: teen fairs at Public Hall, days-out at Geauga Lake, free concerts at Edgewater Park. Its jocks, such as Larry Morrow and Billy Bass, were local stars. So fondly is it recalled by some baby boomers that there’s even a website devoted to WIXY memories & music for those who can still hear its jingle “WIXY Twelve Sixty WIXY RADIO!” ringing in their heads.
In a sense, Bass helped engineer WIXY’s demise. He went on to be program director and air personality at WMMS-FM where he laid the groundwork for that station’s later domination of WIXY, once FM had achieved the necessary saturation for the new, more progressive sound to reach a wider audience.
Plain Dealer writer Troy Smith will devote his monthly podcast taping at the Music Box Supper Club to this influential station. Morrow and Bass will be his guests along with author Mike Olszewski, who is a chronicler of northeast Ohio pop culture and broadcasting & has written a book about WIXY.
It’s free to attend; you can also come early for dinner. Doors open at 5pm.
https://musicboxcle.com/event/cle-rocks-wixy/