From the MCRFB news archive: 1984
Rogers New Morning Drive; Replaces Bob Christie As PD
DETROIT — Eddie Rogers has taken over program director and morning drive duties at AC-formatted WCLS (“Class FM,” formerly WABX) here. He replaces Bob Christie, who departed six weeks ago to open his own consultancy firm in Bend, Oregon, and who remains as group consultant to WCLS owner Liggett Broadcasting.
According to WCLS general manager John Piccirillo, who took over that position three and a half months ago, after predecessor Grant Sentimore suffered a heart attack, acting PD Gary King will remain at WCLS on the 7 p.m. to midnight shift and may be named assistant program director. Also new to the WCLS staff is former WMJC production manager Steve Cassidy, who takes over mid-mornings from 9 a.m. to noon.
Piccirillo, who who had worked with program director Rogers at adult-contemporary WYYS (now WLLT) Cincinnati in 1980, says he’s looking forward to teaming up with him once again. “He’s a great morning man, and he’s never been given the opportunity to be the dominant morning man, which I think he’ll be in the next two years,” predicts Picirrillo.
The WCLS GM took up his new position after a year in Cincinnati with Warner Amex as vice president of ad sales. Prior to that, his twenty years in radio included VP/GM stints at with the aforementioned WYYS, top 40 WIKS (now WZPL) Indianapolis in 1979, and WNDE/WFBQ Indianapolis.
Rogers, who most recently served as afternoon drive personality on rival Detroit AC WMJC (Greater Media’s “MAGIC”), is a well-known name in Detroit radio. A native of North Carolina, where he earned early notoriety in the ’60s as “The Royal Flying Doctor” at WLOS (now Kiss 99.9), Rogers put in time as morning man and assistant PD at top 40 WEAM Washington before signing on the FM drive shift at CKLW Windsor during its heyday.
After two years at Heftel’s 13Q (WKTO) Pittsburgh, Rogers returned to Detroit to join ABC affiliate WXYZ. He has served for the last two years at Magic.
“Greater Media is a great place to work for, but I had a better offer,” comments Rogers. Greater Media, he adds, unsuccessfully sought an injunction a month ago to keep Rogers from working anywhere else in the city. With the injunction denied by Wayne County Circuit Court, Rogers says, “There are no hard feeling on either side.”
Rogers and Piccirillo say they intend to sharpen up the AC format instituted earlier this year at WCLS. Liggett’s prior experiment with top 40 after purchasing AOR-formatted WABX from Century Broadcasting 18 months ago was not successful.
Since the AC format has been in place, Piccirillo notes, WCLS has gone from a 1.6 to a 2.6 in the summer ratings. “This is a scrappy market, and everybody’s trying to get a leg up,” comments Piccirillo. “It’s clean competition.”
“Detroit’s one of the most competitive markets in the country,” agrees Rogers, “especially in AC.” WCLS opponents in the AC race include, in order of prominence, WNIC (historically the AC leader), WOMC, and WMJC, with WCLS currently pulling up from the bottom.
“We’re the new kids on the block,” says Rogers, “so we plan to program the most precise music for the audience we are trying to reach.” END
(Information and news source: Billboard; December 1, 1984).
