Chuck Knapp ― Original WRKO Jock ― 3-13-1967 to 3-1969
Chuck Knapp's Timeline
Chuck "Chuckles" Knapp traveled a long way to arrive at the Big 68; he was imported
all the way from KQWB in Fargo, North Dakota. KQWB used the same jingle pack
as the then-famous KFWB/Los Angeles: "KQWB, channel 98!"
At WRKO, Chuck flexed the muscles of the word "work-a-holic." He told me that
until WRKO hired Gary Martin to do weekends, Chuck worked 7 nights a week, for
7 months straight, without even one day off! How do you sound "up", happy, and
exciting to your audience without even a day off during all that time? Hire
a pro like Chuck Knapp! Only please...give him some time off, at least for good
behavior.
Chuck loved Boston, but he also loved the city of Cleveland. So in 1969, Chuck
left WRKO and moved to (as he called it) "the mistake by the lake", where he
went on the air at then-WIXY/1260. After he left WIXY, he made his mark at WLS,
WCFL, and KSTP, where as Morning Man, he helped bring KSTP from one of the last
stations in the market to the number two slot, all in just 100 days.
During the union strike at WRKO in 1967, Chuck took a flight to visit friend
Chuck Dann of WKYC in Cleveland. After the strike, Chuck returned to Boston,
and on the plane, asked the stewardess for a pillow. She THREW it at him! Always
up for a challenge, Chuck threw the pillow back at her, and to make a long story
short, Jan, the stewardess, and Chuck fell in love, got married, and, as Chuck
says it best, "we've been sharing that pillow ever since!" Today, Chuck and
Jan have two daughters, and reside in Minneapolis. (Note: Chuck was divorced
in 2004)
Between 1994 and 1998, Chuck worked for the Promise Keepers Men's Ministry of
Denver, Colorado.
May, 2008 Update: "Country is my 6th genre of format I've done in my 44
years on the air. Very fun."
If you can help fill in the blanks, please
let me know!
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| At WRKO in 1967 |
On WNCI/Cleveland
at 1989 WIXY Reunion |
In 1999 |
Airchecks