People We Loved - Wolfman Jack
January 21st 2011 07:14
Robert Weston Smith - better known to the world as Wolfman Jack was born on this day in Brooklyn, NY in 1938.
With his trade mark wolf howl and gravelly voice the Wolfmanworked as a disc jockey from 1958 to 1966 for the (then) 250,000 watt radio station XERF (1570 AM) in Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila, Mexico, just across the river from Del Rio, Texas though it is widely acknowledged that his career began in earnest in 1960 at WYOU in Newport News, Virginia, later moving to KCIJ in Shreveport, Louisiana, where he first came up with the idea of the Wolfman Jack character.
A fan of disc jockey Alan Freed, the Wolfman's adaptation of Freed's famous Moondog theme was to call himself Wolfman Jack and add his own sound effects.
The character was based in part on the manner and style of bluesman Howling Wolf.
He kept the name Wolfman Jack and attempted to mask his true identity to create public interest in his radio character.
While his radio exploits were known throughout the US - the Wolfman's notriety first came the attention of an unsuspecting world-wide audience when he played himself in the 1973 hit - American Graffiti.
In fact, the movie afforded the larger than life character new horizons with bit parts in television programs such as Emergency, Police Story, Happy Days and Wonder Woman while also earning a hosting role of his own series - the Wolfman Jack Show.
The reverence he started to build for himself was even echoed in popular music at the time with reference to the bearded one in songs "Clap For the Wolfman" by The Guess Who, and "Wolfman Jack" by Todd Rundgren.
Is referred to in the song "Ramble on Rose" by The Grateful Dead.
For the last two years of his life, Wolfman Jack did a live weekly show from WXTR-FM in Washington, DC, which was carried on 50 affiliate stations around the United States.
It was on 1 July 1995 that the world lost one of its lesser celebrated pop culture icons - when the Wolfman died of sudden massive heart attack.
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Comment by James Rickard
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Angling Fish
Check this out...
Comment by Mr Nice Guy
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As an aside - you should tune into 89.9FM on Tuesday night's (Sydney time) between 7pm and 10pm,
Rather than blurt it out - go to www.themusicguy.com.au - and catch the program via the net - just follow the link to Hawkesbury radio.
Cheers