The End of an Era in DBQ

Today marks the last day of work for DBQ radio legend Paul Hemmer. He began working on WDBQ-AM 50 years ago this month. In 1994 with his wife Jan, & son Steve, he left WDBQ to start KGRR-FM 97.3 FM. I came to DBQ in 1973. So Paul has always been a part of the DBQ radio scene. Until today. Paul is also an accomplished musician with his own band.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Paul Hemmer. I can honestly say that he has done a lot to make DBQ a much better place than it would have been without him. & that goes way beyond radio. & even though I am sure he will still keep active, he will be sorely missed as a part of DBQ radio.

Here is what he posted on the KGRR website for his last day on the air today:

Well, this is it. My last day in radio after 50 years.
My earliest memories of radio are sitting in our little family room at 1264 Mt. Loretta listening to programs like Abbott & Costello, Ozzie & Harriet and Bergen & McCarthy. Late afternoon always brought The Lone Ranger, Sgt. Preston, and other adventure shows to my imagination. And Saturday morning was time for No School Today with Big Jon and Sparky and Space Patrol I liked the stories, but, what impressed me most were the exciting introductions provided by the announcers. "High adventure in the wild vast reaches of space. Missions of daring in the name of interplanetary justice. Travel into the future with Buzz Corey, Commander in Chief of the "Space Patrol." Wow! That was exciting stuff.
I was about 10 years old when the music programs hosted by announcers like Bill Thomas and others started to interest me. I had a little phonograph and some 78rpm records that I would announce and play on an imaginary radio station. I'd even cut advertisements out of the TH and read them. Dad noticed my fascination, and one day presented me with a microphone that he had built from part of a broomstick mounted on a round board with a Ball fruit jar lid covered by a piece of window screen.
I had a little kit-built crystal radio in my bedroom and would spend many late night evenings listening to programs that would come miraculously into the little headset. Every evening was a different experience. Sometimes it was KDTH's "Stairway to the Stars." Other times KAAY in Little Rock would come blaring in with the pop tunes of the day. WGN came in regularly with big band broadcasts from Chicago hotels and ballrooms.
A job carrying the Dubuque Buyers Guide and later, the Telegraph Herald and delivering Fuller Brush catalogues through most of the north end of Dubuque helped me save for my ultimate goal: a tape recorder and real microphone. I finally had enough when I was about 12 years old. That's when the real practice for my radio career began.
Hours of recording, listening and self critiquing followed. With one of my school buddies, Denny Oeth, a wired radio station (KHOS - The Hemmer-Oeth System) was created using heavy electrical wire stretched between our homes. I suppose it was the original cable radio station. Denny was the engineer. I did the programming, which included my disk jockey show, some original comedy routines, and live piano music played on our old Cable upright. Eventually we added another neighbor to our network of listeners. It was great fun.
During those same years, me and a few of my friends discovered that we could visit the local radio stations during the daytime hours to watch the announcers from observation rooms. We spent many hours observing Bob Gribben, Bill Thomas, and others from the KDTH studios. WDBQ had a large observation room above the old First National Bank at 5th & Main. And, when we visited on weekends, the college age part time djs would invite us into the studio to watch them.
That was it. My fascination with the radio business was incurable.
I was 15 and determined to get a real radio job. So, I sent a sample tape to Phil Kelly, General Manager of WDBQ. Much to my surprise, he called me for an interview and offered a part time job. Because I was tall and looked older, he didn't ask my age. Within a few weeks I was operating a real radio control board during the stations broadcast of White Sox baseball. My duties included sweeping the floor, emptying the wastebaskets, answering the phone, and reading the local news when the game ended. And, in the event of a rain-out, I became a deejay. I prayed for rainouts.
Soon I was given a Sunday evening 6pm-12midnight shift of my own. In those days there wasn't a playlist of tunes, so I could program whatever I wanted. Consequently listeners heard everything from pop tunes of the day to big bands, and comedy routines. It was great fun. The tough part of the job was reading the sponsored 10pm newscast. Management was never too thrilled about my newscaster abilities, but it was late Sunday night, so I got by.
The next few years became a learning experience with guidance from mentors like Kevin Doran (Kevin O'Keefe), Terry Dorsey, Vaughn Gayman, Pat Fleming, Bill and Betty Thomas and many others.
During my college years I continued working vacation shifts on WDBQ and began recording some late night music programs for the new WDBQ-FM. Program Director Terry Dorsey liked what I did and worked me more than 40 hours a week all summer. As I recall the pay was $1.25 per hour. I supplemented that with Fri-Sun evenings playing organ with the Timmerman Club Trio at that popular East Dubuque restaurant.
After college graduation I chose to stay another year to get my Masters in Music Education and continued part time work in radio. In mid-summer of 1967, Bill Mason, the morning personality at WDBQ announced his intention to retire from announcing to devote fulltime to radio sales. I was offered the job and accepted. I sincerely appreciate Phil Kelly's faith in me and the job he provided for the next 34 years.
I'll never forget that first morning show on August 15, 1967. I had to be at the station by 5am to turn on the transmitter and be ready to go by 5:30.
The day always began with our National Anthem followed by a hymn (usually something from a Tennessee Ernie Ford album of religious favorites), a march (mostly Sousa) and the weather forecast. The newsman would take over for 15 minutes at 5:45 and then it was into "adult" popular music - no rock and roll. There were many live commercials, a few jokes, music, etc. And, slowly I began to try to emulate the style of my idol at the time - Wally Phillips of WGN-Chicago.
The years rolled on and I enjoyed the company of so many wonderful individuals including Dave Lange, Al Sampson, Bill Alfredo, Larry Cramer, Tom (Mack) McDonough, Jack & Jolene Kilcoyne, Tom Brenner, Tom Christensen (T.C.), Denny Schreefer, Mike Kenneally, Bob Bateman, Bill Zwack, Bob Welch, Paul Kemp, Bob Anthony (Rob Kundert),Tim Mathews, Julie "East of Midnight", Jim Hauber, Nadine Marchesi, Ron McCarthy, Mike Ferrin, Johnny Rhodes, Tim Russell, Tom Berryman, the incomparable Henry Marcotte, my pal Bob Collins and countless others including my contemporary friends at KDTH, KAT-FM, and WVRE-FM.
My children grew up observing the broadcast business and both entered it while still in high school. Michelle spent 15 years in the corporate programming office of Saga Communications, one of America's most successful broadcast chains. Steve became an integral part of the creation of KGRR as both Program and Music Director. His creative mind and communication skills should have taken him on to major markets, but, like me, he chose to stay in the hometown that he loves.
And my wonderful wife Jan has not only endured 42 years of my early morning routine, but became the practical, financial and business mind that made KGRR a success from the start. Without her skills we wouldn't have made it happen.
For 12 years I've been blessed each morning with a wonderful broadcast companion. Lisa Bennett Pearce has added immeasurably to the KGRR morning show. The stories of her young family - her quick wit and sense of humor - and her genuine warmth are obvious to everyone who listens. I'm sorry that I've hooked her on caffeine, but it's an essential ingredient in surviving a relentless 4:30a alarm clock. I'll miss our daily conversations and the fun we've had in the studio when the music was playing and the microphone was off.
The business has changed a great deal since my first experiences in 1960. Gone are the 16" transcriptions, reel-to-reel tape recorders, cartridge tape players, 45 and 33 1/3 turntables, AP teletype machines, hourly transmitter readings, printed program logs, and "play what you want" programming.
The computer does most of the physical labor now. The job of announcers today is to provide a human element that communicates with the listener and provides something that cd players, Ipods or satellite radio doesn't do. And, most important of all, being of service to our community
And, I'll miss the loyal listeners who've tuned in for any of the past 50 years. Words can't express my appreciation for the years we've spent together. I'm honored that you've considered me a friend and I will miss the time we've spent together over this incredible medium called radio.
I've never thought of this as a job. The guys who work construction in 90 degree heat or single digit temperatures - the men and women who work retail and stand on their feet 8 hours a day - the people in the factory who go through the same routine for hours on end - that's work. What we do is fun. And, I've loved almost every minute of it.