CONNECTICUT BROADCASTERS ASSOCIATION
www.ctba.org ● 860-305-2038
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT: Laura Soll, Communications 860-688-4499 or Cell 860-833-4466
FIRST GROUP OF INDUCTEES ANNOUNCED FOR
NEW “CONNECTICUT BROADCASTERS ASSOCIATION HALL OF FAME”
Installation Ceremony Set for October 20 at Association’s’ 60th Convention
HARTFORD, CONN., April 6, 2015 – The Connecticut Broadcasters Association (CBA) today announced the organization’s establishment of a “Connecticut Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame” to complement its established program of lifetime achievement awards, and has revealed the names of the Hall of Fame's first 12 inductees.
The Class of 2015 will be officially honored at a “Connecticut Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame” Induction Luncheon Ceremony on Tuesday, October 20,, 2015 at the Hartford Hilton in Downtown Hartford. The ceremony will be part of that day’s Connecticut Broadcasters Association 60th Annual Convention.
“The Connecticut Broadcasters Association has served the common interests of radio and television broadcasters in our state since 1955 and, ultimately, the Connecticut community statewide,” explains Klarn DePalma, Chair of the Connecticut Broadcasters Association, who also is Vice President and General Manager of WFSB-TV 3 Hartford, Conn. and WSHM-TV 3 and WGGB-TV 40 in Springfield, Mass. “We have created this ‘Connecticut Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame’ to honor remarkable individuals for their long and particularly distinguished service to the broadcasting industry and to the people of Connecticut."
The first 12 members of the new Connecticut Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame are (in alphabetical order): Boyd E. Arnold (posthumously); Gerry Brooks; Pablo de Jesus Colon Jr.; Denise D'Ascenzo; Brad Davis; Arnold Dean (posthumously); Joe Dimaggio; Richard Ferguson; Bill Glynn; Ed Henry; Al Terzi; and John Ramsey.
• (Posthumous honor) Boyd E. Arnold of Canton was one of the founders of the Hartford Radio Association and a longtime Board member of that organization. During his lengthy career as a broadcaster, he was a partner and Vice President & General Manager of Beck-Ross Communications (WHCN) and, later, for Marlin Broadcasting (WCCC). A mentor for numerous radio professionals in our state, Boyd was involved with the Connecticut Broadcasters Association for many years as a Board member, Treasurer, and President.
• Gerry Brooks of Glastonbury has had a hand in covering virtually every major news, weather, and sports story in Connecticut since 1974. The two-time Emmy Award winner has been a News Anchor at NBC Connecticut since 1993. Previously, he was a News Anchor and Reporter at WFSB-TV 3 for 14 years. Gerry began his career as News Director for WAVZ radio in New Haven, and as a reporter for WMAS radio in Springfield. He then worked as Sports Director at WPOP Newsradio in Hartford while also serving as Weekend Sports Anchor for WVIT-TV 30 (now NBC Connecticut), and provided color commentary for University of Connecticut basketball games on the Connecticut Radio Network.
-MORE-
FIRST INDUCTEES OF NEW “CONN. BROADCASTERS ASSN. HALL OF FAME”…Page 2
• Pablo de Jesus Colon Jr. of Bridgeport is a pioneer of Hispanic radio in Connecticut. He began his career as an on air personality in 1955 in the Dominican Republic, emigrated to Puerto Rico in 1961 and was an on air personality at WABA (Aguadilla) & WPRA (Mayaguez), and came to Hartford eight years later. Pablo spent two decades at WLVH 93.7 FM in the roles of Radio Announcer, Program Director, Sales Manager and Executive Vice President. In 1989, he co-founded Radio Cumbre Broadcasting, WCUM 1450-AM in Bridgeport, and today is its President & CEO.
• Denise D'Ascenzo of Guilford is a nine-time Emmy Award and seven-time Associated Press-winning broadcast journalist who also has earned distinction as the longest serving news anchor at a single TV station. Denise came to WFSB-TV in 1986 and has covered all of the major local and national news stories of the day, and interviewed political leaders and celebrities. Denise also has a passion for health and medical reporting and is Host of the Emmy Award-winning prime time program, "Advancing Medicine.”
• Brad Davis of Bloomfield began working at a radio station in Chicopee, Mass. in 1956, after service in the U.S. Marines. He was hired by WTIC-TV (now WFSB) to host a new show that became Connecticut's answer to Dick Clark's American Bandstand. That popular Brad Davis Show premiered in 1958 and ran for 11 years. Prior to joining WDRC, he also did radio work at WTIC-AM. And, since 1977, he has continuously hosted his own early morning talk show on WDRC-AM that now also is heard on WMMW-AM, WWCO-AM and WSNG.
• (Posthumous honor) Arnold Dean of Rocky Hill, known as “The Dean of Sports”, joined WTIC-AM in 1965, was its Sports Director and the originator of the station’s Sports Talk, and did play-by-play for a wide range of live sports broadcasts. He also hosted many music shows on the station.
• Joe Dimaggio of Wethersfield began his career at WVIT in 1968 and, for 47 years has been its most dedicated employee. When he started in the industry he worked on 16mm and black & white film as a Camera Operator. He has done everything from lighting shows to operating master control, and then to his long career in engineering management, taking the station through the decades into today’s HD technology.
• Richard Ferguson of Westport retired in May 2006 after more than 40 years in radio. He served as Chief Operating Officer and later as Executive Vice President of Cox Radio starting in April 1997 when Cox acquired NewCity Communications, a radio group he co-founded and led as President/Chief Executive Officer. Dick was a member of the Cox Radio Board from 1997 through 2006, and continues to consult Cox Radio on acquisitions and strategic planning. During these years, he has also served multiple terms as Chairman of the National Association of Broadcasters. Prior to founding NewCity Communications, he was president of the Katz Broadcasting Company.
• Bill Glynn of Wethersfield is the “voice” of high school sports and professional Minor League Baseball in Connecticut, having done play-by-play for more than 60 years. He began his broadcasting career with WMRD in Middletown (then WCNX) when the station went on the air in 1948 and worked fulltime for more than 30 years. While no longer fulltime, he continues to be an active broadcaster there.
• Ed Henry of Middletown, whose "Polish Melodies Show" has aired every Sunday on the same station WMRD (then WCNX, and now WMRD in Middletown and WLIS in Old Saybrook) for 65 consecutive years, may be the longest continually serving host in Connecticut broadcast history – still going strong with an adoring audience in four states and worldwide (via the Internet).
• John Ramsey of West Hartford entered the industry as a part-time announcer at West Hartford's WWUH in 1970, and became a Broadcast Engineer in 1978. He currently is General Manager of WWUH/University of Hartford, is Secretary of Chapter 14 of the Society of Broadcast Engineers, is President of the Torrington Community Radio Foundation (licensee of WAPJ in Torrington), and is the Webmaster of HartfordRadioHistory.com.
-MORE-
FIRST INDUCTEES OF NEW “CONN. BROADCASTERS ASSN. HALL OF FAME”…Page 3
• Al Terzi of Middletown has news anchored at three of Connecticut’s TV network affiliates over the past 47 years. He began his career at WTIC/WTIC-FM/WTIC-TV as a Staff Announcer in 1968. When the Washington Post bought the stations in 1973, Al remained as Newscaster and Talk Show Host at the new WFSB-TV 3 (CBS). In 1980, he became a prime anchor at WTNH-TV 8 (ABC) until January 1994, when he returned to Channel 3. In July 2012, he joined FOXCT as the newest member of its anchor team. And, while he stepped down as a daily anchor last year, he remains a Co-Host of the station’s weekly political show, The Real Story.
Over the last decade, the Connecticut Broadcasters Association has presented Lifetime Achievement Awards to Bud Finch, Dr. Mel Goldstein, and Bob Steele – all legendary on-air talent – and Paul Taff, a multi-decade broadcast executive who concluded his career in the state as the beloved President of the CBA.
Established in 1955, the Connecticut Broadcasters Association is celebrating its 60th year as a respected industry leader in legal, governmental, education and community issues on both the State and National levels. Members include broadcast TV stations, radio stations, vendors and companies with a business interest in broadcasting, educational facilities, and individuals with involvement in the broadcasting industry. Member radio and TV stations also participate in Connecticut Broadcasters Association public service campaigns supporting the work of the Connecticut National Guard, U.S. Coast Guard, and the Connecticut Department of Public Safety’s Office of Statewide Emergency Telecommunications – Emergency Alert System (EAS) and AMBER Alert programs, among other efforts. For more information about the Connecticut Broadcasters Association and the October 20, 2015 “Connecticut Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame” Induction Ceremony, visit www.ctba.org or call 860-305-2038.
-END-