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Man From Mars Productions

Reeth & King
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A: I've attached a Peters, Griffin, Woodward (WDRC's New York rep) flyer on Seymour Skin, the skindiver. Eddie and I did a thing at the boat show with Eddie as Seymour. A rogue bull clam was spritzing people by the Connecticut river and Seymour battled him at the show. Seymour lost and the clam was released.

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Q: So why did Reeth and King end?

Seymour Skin  
 

A: In retrospect, the hiring of Reeth and King at WDRC was like dropping a number 16 bowling ball into a peaceful game of marbles. Eddie and I were, first and foremost, night club entertainers, accustomed to a world of late hours, smokey dives and the imbibing of much booze. They never put the clause in our contract forbidding us from doing night club shows, as Buck Forker suggested in his letter, so we continued to do them. We would often roll into the station late at night, straight from some night club, half-loaded, and interrupt poor Jim Raynor's show. I'm sure he cringed whenever he saw us coming. Then we'd sleep on Buck Forker's sofa or Charlie Parker's floor until the engineer woke us for showtime at five AM.

One morning, after our show, Buck called us into his office. His eyes filled with tears when he told us it was over and they had different plans for the WDRC morning show. He gave us our audition tape and the note he sent to John Jaeger telling him about us. Then, he reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a half empty bottle of bourbon in a paper bag and handed it to me. I realized that Buck, a genuine nice guy, needed a few drinks before giving us the news, the drinks were, no doubt, the reason for his tears. We shook hands, then Eddie and I left his office.

We locked ourselves in the production studio and emptied the bottle, while planning our next move. Then we went out to say goodbye to the gang. Everything went well, until we walked into the music library. Dizzy Gillespie had dropped in to visit and Bertha introduced us. By then, the booze had taken hold and when we shook hands with Dizzy and tried to say hello, Eddie and I started to bawl and rushed out the door. Later, Bertha told us she had no idea we were fired. Both she and Dizzy thought we were nuts.

Q: You indicated a friend hired you and Eddie for a new endeavor at WZUM. Were your sorry to leave Hartford?

A: A friend from WHOL was going to manage WZUM in Pittsburgh and had been trying to get us to leave WDRC and join him, so we quickly took advantage of our sudden unemployment and took the job. Before leaving for Pittsburgh, I quit drinking and married my fiancee of four years. Charlie continued his lifestyle and had a late night brawl with the new GM at WZUM. He left for a station in Hagerstown, Maryland and I stayed.

Later, I also left WZUM and became Vice President of Dynamic Broadcasting, programming WAMO AM and FM in Pittsburgh, WUFO in Buffalo, WILD in Boston and WOAH in Miami. In the late 60's as a hippie character named Brother Love, I introduced Psychedelic/Rock music to Pittsburgh on WAMO FM. Later, I moved to Miami and managed WOAH. When Dynamic was sold in 1973, the National Sales Manager and I bought KKAR, a country station in Pomona.

My air name was Romeo Jones. At that time, I spent two years on the board of directors of the Academy of Country Music. Three years later we sold KKAR and I accepted a position as Vice President of Parker Broadcasting in San Diego, owner of KYXY. For twelve years, as Ken Richards, I worked mid-days and programmed the station.

I retired, to pursue a writing career. My first novel, "Dreamland", has been e-published by Mystic ink and a second, "Sudden Discomfort", about a dysfunctional radio comedy team, (Guess who) is due soon.

Q: And what happened to Eddie?

A: Eddie King and I remained close friends over the years. He stayed in Hagerstown, but left radio to pursue a career in social services, working with kids. He also did an occasional weekend show. Still dreaming in vain about re-forming the night club comedy team, Eddie passed away in 1988. I was with him when he died. He is buried in Allentown.

 
Ken Reeth passed away May 9, 2005.
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