What to say about WLS that hasn’t been said. I first started to listen to the Big 89 back in 1980 or so. I have very vivid memories of listening to the Show that they would broadcast from Ed Debevic’s (at the corner of Ontario and Wells, in Chicago) – I remember listening to Uncle Lar when he hung up his headphones for the last time, and him completely breaking down on the air after expressing his
complete bewilderment about the outpouring of support over the loss of his son. I remember when my mom and I were driving up to Chicago, and Catherine Johns announced that they were going to “Juice the Spruce.” Names such as John Records Landecker, Jeff Hendrix, Fred Winston (my favorite), Don and Roma, Uncle Lar and his sidekick Little Tommy, Chuck Britton, and the list goes on and on.

I still listen to the Big 89; 25+ years later. My dad turned me on to WLS back in 80, hopefully I’ll have a kid soon to pass on the Big 89.

-Douglas Snow

I grew up in a small town in Northern Ontario up here in Canada and there was no such thing as a local radio station. As a young lad of 12, my parents bought me this cool radio that introduced me to WLS. One night I was just kinda “cruisin the dial” and there you were, and I never left.

I can still remember listening to John Records Landecker at night and thinking, man, that’s what I want to do. Well, I’m doing it and I have WLS Radio to thank for it. Thanks for being there!

-Wade Blair

Scott,

Like lots of kids who grew up in the Chicago area in the 60’s, some of my fondest memories have WLS playing in the background. One of my favorites though was when I went into the service and while stationed in Texas and Oklahoma, before being shipped off to Vietnam, I was able to listen to WLS at night when the signal was the clearest.

It brought a little bit of home to me and lots of other “kids” who were in the military and away from home for the first time. I thank WLS for that and you for preserving a lot of those great memories with this website.

-Dan Roche