In this exhibit we present an aircheck of Courtney Roberts holding down the morning show on “Oldies 95.3” WISL-FM in March of 2000. This is one of the few airchecks that exists from the period of time just before the station was sold to Clear Channel and became Bill 95.
WISL-FM “Oldies 95.3” Courtney Roberts – March 3rd, 2000 – 5:26am-6:15am
Let’s go back in time for another classic WISL aircheck. In this recording we check in with Mikey D who was holding down the Saturday morning shift on 95.3 WISL-FM. At this time WISL had recently shifted from a format of mostly Classic Rock to Oldies and was being branded as “Whistle FM.”
This is a great example of what a full-service Saturday morning at WISL-FM sounded like, complete with weather forecasts, sports updates and even a horoscope rundown.
WISL-FM Aircheck – Mikey D. Saturday, March 18th, 1994
Since the mid 2000’s WISL Radio has broadcast live from Shamokin’s Anthracite Heritage Festival of the Arts on Memorial Day weekend. Each year is a little different, however one thing that remains consistent is WISL Morning Mayor, Tom Kutza is the host of the program.
Every year we have been able to provide some WISL history mixed in with other interviews including political figures, local entertainers and WISL listeners. This year, we decided to take a slightly different approach. In 2021, we unveiled our WISL Studio Museum in the Shamokin Museum located at Bamse Coffee at 150 East Lincoln Street. With this focus on the history of WISL, we felt it would be appropriate to focus our broadcast as a WISL Reunion Show.
The response was incredible and we were able to bring quite a few WISL alums together to reminisce about their time at Shamokin’s hometown station. In this exhibit, we present the entire WISL Reunion Show. Listen as Tom Kutza chats with Bernie Flynn, Courtney Roberts, Al Jeffries, Dave Leonard, Chris Roberts, Bob Woodley, James Wagner, Edward Washuta, Joe Anthony and Mikey D in this incredible reunion.
WISL Reunion Show – Hour 1
WISL Reunion Show – Hour 2
WISL Reunion Show – Hour 3
WISL Reunion Show – Hour 4
In this exhibit we present an unscoped aircheck of WISL-FM “Oldies 95.3” from February 1999. At this time, WISL-FM was utilizing a mostly automated format delivered via satellite from The Westwood One radio network. This recording features disc jockey Robert M. Chenault holding down the overnight shift on WISL-FM.
For those that lived in Shamokin from the 1960s through the 1990s it was impossible to thinnk that there would be a world where Tom Kutza would no longer be on the radio. However, that day came on May 22nd, 1998. After thirty-seven and a half years of being on WISL Tom Kutza said his final farewell to his WISL family.
So, Why would Tom Kutza leave WISL after so many years? Times were changing and WISL found itself in a tough position. Shamokin’s economy was not what it once was and owner Mick Haggerty was unable to provide the income and benefits that Kutza needed to continue in his role at the station. It was time to move on.
After leaving WISL, Tom would begin a new chapter in his life as the Tourism Director of Northumberland County. This new role would allow Tom to travel the county sharing the rich history of the area meeting face to face with the the community that he broadcast to for so many years.
For WISL, the post-Kutza years wouldn’t be as happy. After Kutza’s departure, WISL would continue on with a series of syndicated programs. By the fall of 2001, Mick Haggerty’s MJR Media would sell both WISL AM & FM to Clear Channel Communications for $800,000. WISL-AM would be taken dark shortly thereafter and WISL-FM would become WBLJ-FM as a simulcast of WBYL “Bill 95” in Williamsport.
This was not the end of the line for WISL. In 2010, WISL1480.com began broadcasting Tom once again found himself back on the radio, but this time, internet radio. Tom now enjoys his retirement, doing his weekly polka show, Letter’s To Santa, live broadcasts from the annual Anthracite Heritage Festival of the Arts and doing what he loves, connecting to people.
Now, lets go back to 1998 as Tom Kutza says his final goodbye on WISL.
WISL (Shamokin) Tom Kutza Says Goodbye May 22nd, 1998
In this post we are privileged to share some historic audio recorded by the WISL microphone way back in 1952, only four years after WISL began broadcasting. This clip takes us to the crowning ceremony of the Coal Township Football Queen of 1952.
Before we get to the main exhibit, let’s begin with some background information. In 1950, The Coal Township Boosters Association hosted the first Football Queen competition. The program was created to help raise money for the Boosters Association and their various activities throughout the year.
A total of ten girls would be selected from the Freshman, Sophomore, Junior and Senior classes of the West End High School and the Pulaski School. These girls would then compete, through a voting process, for the title of Coal Township Football Queen. Voting boxes would be placed at each one of the schools as well as at local businesses throughout Coal Township. For a nominal fee, five cents in the earliest years, a person could cast their ballot for queen.
Over the years, the fundraising event would grow and each girl would hold various fundraising events such as bake sales, to increase the amount of money raised.
The final year a Coal Township Football Queen would be crowned would be in 1964. The merger of the Shamokin School District and the Coal Township School District resulted in the dissolution of the Coal Township Boosters Association. Although the Coal Township program would come to an end, by the 1960s many other local schools would begin holding annual Football Queen competitions of their own.
Now, back to 1952. The Coal Township Football Queen was Mary Anne Apple who received a total of 8,606 votes. She was a junior at West End High.
The following clip features an unidentified WISL Radio announcer introducing the crowing ceremony. This program was recorded during the half-time program of the Coal Township vs. Mount Carmel Catholic football game and features remarks from third runner up Miss Rose Marie Krupa, Lady In Waiting (second runner up) Miss Betty Moore, Coal Township Boosters Association President Elmer Shuey as well as a few words from the queen.
So, let’s go back in time and give a listen to the official crowning of the 1952 Coal Township Football Queen.
WISL – Coal Township Football Queen Crowning: Mary Anne Apple October 17th 1952
In 1932 the Dime Trust and Safe Deposit Company merged with the Shamokin National Bank to become the National-Dime Bank of Shamokin. National-Dime was one of the largest financial institutions in Shamokin serving customers with personal and commercial loans, Christmas clubs, and savings and checking accounts. The bank’s corporate offices and main branch were located at the corner of Market and Independence Streets in downtown Shamokin, the current location of M&T Bank. In March of 1968 the National-Dime Bank merged with The Pennsylvania National Bank and Trust Company of Pottsville.
In 1958, The National-Dime Bank of Shamokin was in expansion mode. A merger with the First National Bank of Trevorton was completed on May 28th 1958 with the Trevorton Branch of The National-Dime Bank opening on June 2nd. Around the same time, renovations were underway at the corner of Independence and Shamokin Streets for what would become the East End branch of National-Dime and their third location.
The official grand opening of the East End branch commenced on July 15th 1958 with an open house celebration. The open house was attended by directors of the National-Dime Bank, local leaders and featured a live broadcast by WISL Radio.
It’s not surprising that WISL Radio would be on-hand to help promote the opening of the new, modern banking facility considering Henry W. Lark, owner of WISL Radio, was also the president of The National-Dime Bank of Shamokin.
The WISL Broadcast took place from 4pm to 10pm and featured interviews with a number of people of interest who were in attendance. The audio clip that we have to share includes one of those notable persons, Mary Roebling.
Mary Roebling was a pioneer for women in banking, becoming the President of Trenton Trust in 1937 and also the first woman ever to become president of a banking institution. When Roebling took control of Trenton Trust, the country was in the throws of The Great Depression and the bank was facing $4 million dollars in debt with only $11 million dollars in assets. By 1951, she not only was able to pull her bank through the financial crisis but also increased the banks assets to $70 million dollars. That same year she also scored the bank’s biggest client to date by securing the business of U.S. Steel.
Roebling lent her success to the cause of women’s rights and constantly promoted women in business and spoke out against sexism in the boardroom. In addition to becoming the first woman to serve as a bank president she was also the first woman governor on the American Stock Exchange, was the founder of the first female-owned bank, the Woman’s Bank of Denver in 1978 and first woman member of Union League Club in Philadelphia.
Roebling was a friend and colleague of Henry Lark and made the trip from Trenton to Shamokin for the open house event. In the following audio exhibit, we have a rare recording of Roebling as she congratulates Henry Lark on his expansion of National-Dime. This recording was likely made on premise at the new East End branch and broadcast during the 4pm to 10pm broadcast.
Mary Roebling at the Grand Opening of The National-Dime Bank East End Branch, July 15th, 1958
The Badlees were perhaps one of the most successful rock bands to come from Central Pennsylvania in the early to mid 1990′s. The band officially formed in 1990. Their debut EP “It Ain’t For You” had received critical acclaim in Billboard Magazine and The Album Network. The positive response to their initial commercial offering awarded them a chance to open for the Band Firehouse at an appearance in Harrisburg. In 1992 the bands first full length album was released entitled “Diamonds in the Coal.” Their commercial peak came in 1995 when the band signed with A&M Record’s Polydor/Atlas label. Their album “River Songs” produced two singles that climbed the charts, “Fear of Falling” a song tapped by NBC a year later for use in their coverage of the 1996 Olympics and “Angeline Is Coming Home” which broke the top-30 that same year.
The band was set to release a follow-up LP in 1997, however a delay by the record label put the tentative release date to sometime in 1998. In May of that year, A&M records was sold and the release was put on hold indefinitely, pushing the band to pursue the independent route once again. While they never hit the Top-40 after this, the band still continued to produce and tour. Their most recent release was in the Fall of 2013, a 21 song, double-album entitled “Epiphones and Empty Rooms.” To learn more about The Badlees visit their official website HERE.
Back to 1994. The Badlees were local favorites, packing every bar and club they played and quickly gaining attention on the national scene. A tour was in the works through a sponsorship from Budweiser and lead signer Pete Palladino was on the new 95.3 WISL-FM promoting the band.
This was a transitional time for the 95.3 FM frequency. The station originally came online at WISL-FM in the late 1960′s and mainly served as a simulcast of WISL-AM throughout the 1970′s. When Radio Anthracite, WISL’s parent company was sold in the early 1980’s, WISL-FM was split off and became WSPI, branded as “Spy 95.3.” The station’s format was Top-40 with a heavy helping of current rock. Many local acts found exposure on this station, and through the 80′s bands such as Hybrid Ice, Harpo and Youth In Asia became local legends. Sometime between 1993 and 1994 the station was again sold, and reunited with it’s former sister station WISL. The rock continued for a little while before being dumped for Oldies by the mid 1990′s.
Here is a rare glimpse into that transitional period of WISL-FM. From May 4th 1994 here is “Spy 95.3″ veteran Courtney Roberts interviewing Pete Palladino of The Badlees.
Courtney Roberts Interviews Pete Palladino of The Badlees on WISL-FM (May 4th 1994)
Tom Kutza has always loved the Christmas season, and being on the air at WISL he had the opportunity to share with his listeners the sentimental side of the holiday. Each year you would be guaranteed to hear songs such as Johnny Cash’s “The Christmas Guest”, Kate Smith’s “Happy Birthday, Dear Christ Child” and many others. There were also spoken word pieces such as John Facenda’s reading of “The Nativity” and “The Story of Small One” but the Christmas tradition that was most dear to Kutza, came from his own heart; his own reading of “Annie and Willie’s Prayer.”
This poem was written by Sophia P. Snow and was first published in 1884. It’s the story of two young children on Christmas Eve whose stern father had sent them to bed early after telling them that Santa Claus did not exist. Their mother had passed away and since then their father had lost Christmas in his heart. Annie and Willie knelt at their bed and said a prayer. As the story goes, their father overheard their prayer. Their wishes touched him so that he set out to make sure their Christmas prayer came true.
Kutza began reading this poem on the air at WISL Radio in the 1960’s and continued presenting it at Christmas time until his departure from the station in the late 1990’s. Presented here are two readings of this poem by Kutza. The first was recorded in 1969 in the parlor of his home on Race Street in Shamokin, and was the voice-over cut that was played on the air at WISL for many years. The second cut was recorded and produced in 2005 for the “Christmas Eve with Tom Kutza” radio program.
Please take a listen and enjoy a very special WISL Christmas tradition, “Annie and Willie’s Prayer.”
Tom Kutza reads “Annie and Willie’s Prayer” on WISL in 1969
The “Christmas Eve with Tom Kutza” edition of “Annie and Willie’s Prayer” recorded in 2005
Annie and Willie’s Prayer
By Sophia P. Snow
‘Twas the eve before Christmas. “Good night,” had been said,
And Annie and Willie had crept into bed;
There were tears on their pillows and tears in their eyes,
And each little bosom was heaving with sighs,
For tonight their stern father’s command had been given
That they should retire precisely at seven
Instead of at eight – for they troubled him more
With questions unheard of than ever before:
He had told them he thought this delusion a sin,
No such creature as “Santa Claus” ever had been.
And he hoped after this, he should never more hear
How he scrambled down chimneys with presents each year.
And this was the reason the two little heads
So restlessly tossed on their soft, downy beds.
Eight, nine, and the clock on the steeple tolled ten,
Not a word has been spoken by either till then,
When Willie’s sad face from the blanket did peep,
And whispered, “Dear Annie, is ‘ou fast as’eep?”
“Why, no, brother Willie,” A sweet voice replies,
“I’ve long tried in vain, but I can’t shut my eyes,
For somehow it makes me so sorry because
Dear papa has said there is no ‘Santa Claus.’
Now we know there is, and it can’t be denied,
For he came every year before mamma died;
But, then, I’ve been thinking that she used to pray,
And God would hear everything mamma would say,
And maybe she asked him to send Santa Claus here
With that sackful of presents he brought every year.”
“Well, why can’t we p’ay dest as mamma did den,
And ask God to send him with p’esents aden?”
Four little bare feet bounded out on the floor,
And four little knees the soft carpet pressed,
And two tiny hands were clasped close to each breast.
“Now, Willie, you know we must firmly believe
That the presents we ask for we’re sure to receive;
You must wait very still till I say the “Amen,”
And by that you will know that your turn has come then.”
“Dear Jesus, look down on my brother and me,
And grant us the favor we are asking of thee.
I want a wax dolly, a teaset, and ring,
And an ebony workbox that shuts with a spring.
Bless papa, dear Jesus, and cause him to see
That Santa Claus loves us as much as does he;
Don’t let him get fretful and angry again
At dear brother Willie and Annie. Amen.”
“Please, Desus, ‘et Santa Taus tum down tonight,
And b’ing us some p’esents before it is light;
I want he should div’ me a nice ‘ittle s’ed,
With bright shinin’ ‘unners, and all painted red;
A box full of tandy, a book, and a toy.
Amen, and then, Desus, I’ll be a dood boy.”
Their prayers being ended, they raised up their heads,
With hearts light and cheerful, again sought their beds.
They were lost soon in slumber, both peaceful and deep,
And with fairies in dreamland were roaming in sleep.
Eight, nine, and the little French clock had struck ten,
Ere the father had thought of his children again:
He seems now to hear Annie’s half-suppressed sighs,
And to see the big tears stand in Willie’s blue eyes.
“I was harsh with my darlings,” he mentally said,
“And should not have sent them so early to bed;
But then I was troubled, my feelings found vent,
For bankstock today has gone down ten percent.
But of course they’ve forgotten their troubles ere this,
And that I denied then their thrice-asked-for kiss:
But, just to make sure, I’ll go up to their door,
For I never spoke harsh to my darlings before.”
So saying, he softly ascended the stairs,
And arrived at the door to hear both of their prayers;
His Annie’s “Bless papa” drew forth the big tears,
And Willie’s grave promise fell sweet on his ears.
“Strange – strange – I’d forgotten,” said he with a sigh,
“How I longed when a child to have Christmas draw nigh.”
“I’ll atone for my harshness,” he inwardly said,
“By answering their prayers ere I sleep in my bed.”
Then he turned to the stairs and softly went down,
Threw off velvet slippers and silk dressing gown,
Donned hat, coat, and boots, and was out in the street,
A millionaire facing the cold, driving sleet!
Nor stopped he until he had bought everything
From the box full of candy to the tiny gold ring;
Indeed, he kept adding so much to his store,
That the various presents outnumbered a score.
Then homeward he turned. With his holiday load,
With Aunt Mary’s help, in the nursery was stowed.
Miss Dolly was seated beneath a pine tree,
By the side of a table spread out for her tea;
A workbox well fitted in the center was laid,
And on it the ring for which Annie had prayed,
A soldier in uniform stood by a sled,
“With bright shining runners, and all painted red.”
There were balls, dogs, and horses, books pleasing to see,
And birds of all colors were perched in the tree!
While Santa Claus, laughing, stood up in the top,
As if getting ready more presents to drop.
And as the fond father the picture surveyed,
He thought for his trouble he had amply been paid,
And he said to himself, as he brushed off a tear,
“I’m happier tonight than I’ve been for a year;
I’ve enjoyed more pure pleasure than every before;
What care I if bank stock falls ten percent more!
Hereafter I’ll make it a rule, I believe,
To have Santa Claus visit us each Christmas Eve.”
So thinking, he gently extinguished the light,
And, tripping down stairs, retired for the night.
As soon as the beams of the bright morning sun
put the darkness to flight, and the stars one by one,
Four little blue eyes out of sleep opened wide,
And at the same moment the presents espied;
Then out of their beds they sprang with a bound,
And the very gifts prayed for were all of them found.
They laughed and they cried, in their innocent glee,
And shouted for papa to come quickly see
What presents old Santa Claus brought in the night
(Just the things that they wanted,) and left before light:
“And now,” added Annie, in a voice soft and low,
“You’ll believe there’s a ‘Santa Claus’, papa, I know”;
While dear little Willie climbed up on his knee,
Determined no secret between them should be,
And told him in soft whispers how Annie had said
That their dear, blessed mamma, so long ago dead,
Used to kneel down by the side of her chair,
And that God up in heaven had answered her prayer.
“Den we dot up and prayed dust as well as we tould,
And Dod answered our prayers: now wasn’t He dood?”
“I should say that He was, if He sent you all these,
And knew just what presents my children would please.
(Well, well, let him think so, the dear little elf,
‘Twould be cruel to tell him I did it myself.”)
Blind father! Who caused your stern heart to relent,
And the hasty words spoken so soon to repent?
‘Twas the Being who bade you steal softly upstairs,
And made you his agent to answer their prayers.
Growing up in the Shamokin and Mount Carmel area, it’s likely that when you hear someone say “Letters To Santa” it brings a warm feeling to your heart. It may bring back memories of preparing your letter for Santa, probably with the help of your Mother or Father, and then either mailing it to WISL Radio (a.k.a. The North Pole) or going with Mom or Dad to drop it off at a local business, who would make sure it would get to Santa, then racing home from school, or maybe waking up extra early to hear Santa Clause read your letter live on WISL Radio.
The program was “Letters To Santa” and was arguably the longest running program on WISL Radio. While it’s difficult to track down the exact details of the show’s origins, we do know that it dates back as far as 1949, one year after WISL Radio signed on. According to an article written in the December 19th, 1949 edition of Broadcasting Magazine, the program drew “thousands of pieces of mail from every community, both urban and rural, in the area” and featured two announcers who would alternate reading the letters live on the air. The program ran 15 minutes in length and was usually sponsored by one local business.
The program continued throughout the 1950’s, airing at various times during the day, sometimes at 11am other times at 4pm. The popularity of “Letters To Santa” grew and by the early 1960’s was being hosted by WISL News Director Jim Riley. The format was fairly the same, letters would come to the station and would be simply read on the air by Riley. However, in 1961, that format would change and WISL’s “Letter’s To Santa” would take on a whole new meaning to children in the area.
Tom Kutza has always loved the Christmas season and has even considered himself to be one of Santa’s helpers. When he joined WISL in 1961, he said to himself, if he had anything to do with the “Letters To Santa” program, he would arrange to have Santa read the letters to the children. It wouldn’t be long before Tom got his wish. Jim Riley accepted a job with WHLM-AM radio in Bloomsburg, PA, and upon his departure Tom took over the “Letters To Santa Program.”
From this point on, not only would children get to hear their letters read on the air, but WISL Radio would “fire up their connection to the North Pole” so that Santa himself could read the letters live on the radio.
Over the years there were many sponsors of the “Letters To Santa” program. In the 1950’s there was W.C. Hack & Sons and Guinan’s Department Store, both of which showed their support in newspaper ads in the Shamokin News Dispatch. Kutza said that during the 1960’s Reed’s Dairy was one of the major sponsors, and that kids could give their letter to the Reed’s delivery man to be read by Santa. Burger King was also a sponsor over the years, and kids could take their letters to the restaurant to get them to the big guy.
Kutza said that it has been interesting to see how toys have changed through the years. When he took over the program the children would “write for dolls and tinker-toys, but today it’s all computers and high tech gadgets.” The program has brought it’s share of heart breakers to the air as well, Kutza said that there were many letters asking Santa to “please get Daddy a job for Christmas” or “bring Daddy back from the war.” He shared with us a couple of the memorable happy stories from over the years:
Father Herbert Skurski from St. Stephen’s Church was loved by the children. Known as “The Magician” it saddened many when he was sent by the Archdiocese to a church in Nova Scotia. The Father was well known in the Shamokin area, so it wasn’t surprising when one youngster wrote a letter to Santa asking if he would please pick up Father Skurski in Nova Scotia on his way to Shamokin and bring him back for Christmas. Well, as luck would have it, Father Skurski was headed back to Shamokin for the season. Can you imagine how happy that youngster was to find that Santa had honored the wish and delivered Father Skurski to Shamokin, just in time for Christmas Mass?
Another story takes us back to the days of the Vietnam War. A young boy wrote to Santa “if it’s possible, could you bring daddy home for Christmas?” Kutza said that these letters were always the saddest, knowing that all this little guy wanted was his daddy home for Christmas, and that nothing could be done to make sure his wish came true. However in this case there was a little Christmas magic in the air. Christmas morning came and the little boy came downstairs from his room, hoping to see his daddy standing there. He looked and looked and there was no sign of his daddy. Sad and disappointed that his daddy was not there on Christmas morning, he looked at his mother and said “I guess Santa couldn’t bring daddy home.” What the boy didn’t know was that in the early morning hours, while he was sleeping his father did come home and was asleep upstairs. The boy’s mother said he should go look upstairs, maybe Santa had left him up there. Needless to say, Santa delivered, and their family was reunited for Christmas.
In 1998, Kutza left WISL and “Letters to Santa” came to an end, at least in it’s original form. Five years later, in 2003 the News-Item approached Kutza, who at the time was the Tourism Director of Northumberland County, about bringing the program back, this time through the magic of the world wide web. Kutza agreed and now children from anywhere in the world can send their letters directly to Santa and hear them read by him nightly through the News-Item’s website.
The tradition also continues on the WISL internet stream weekday night at 7pm through the month of December. Kutza said he is so thankful that the News-Item saw the value in this wonderful program and brought it back to life.
We were able to locate a couple vintage “Letters To Santa” programs from the 1990’s, they are presented here for your enjoyment. We are always looking to add to the archives, so if you or anyone you know may have recorded a “Letters To Santa” program on WISL feel free to email us at [email protected]. We will be happy to pick up cassettes or reel to reel tapes, transfer them to a digital format, return the originals and provide a digital copy in return. We would love to be able to share more Christmas Magic from “Letters To Santa.”
Letters To Santa program from the early 1990’s
Letters To Santa program from 1995
