I was sad to learn that a former co-worker of mine passed away over the weekend – Ed Wallison. I met Ed back in 1987 when I got a job at the former WARD-AM in Pittston, PA. Ed was doing afternoon talk, something he loved, at the first talk radio station in the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton market. Talk was different back then, there was no Rush Limbaugh, Howard Stern or Glen Beck. Conversation centered around what was going on in your neighborhood, the latest gossip around town and how good or bad of a job Ronald Reagan was doing as President of the United States.
Ed was a unique character. He had the driest sense of humor I ever encountered, was a stickler for using proper English, was as patriotic as apple pie and kept a diary of the nightly Daily Number which he played every day, but only occasionally won. He had some health issues through the years that limited his mobility, but that never slowed him down.
In addition to his weekday talk show, Ed often spent a Saturday doing a shift playing polkas. WARD was well known for its Polka Weekend program that started bright and early Saturday morning and ran straight through midnight on Sunday. Myself, along with Sam Liguori, Rob Neyhard, Dale Michaels (aka Rusty Fender / Shadoe Steele), Brunon Kryger and Ed would take live calls from listeners wanting to send a song out for someone celebrating a birthday or anniversary.
Polka Weekend was a ratings winner and had a long list of advertisers, but Ed would rather read a book than spin “Apple Peaches Pumpkin Pie” one more time. I’d sit in the studio with him before the start of my shift and he’d play the records (yes, we had records back then) with the studio monitor turned down, a copy of the newspaper on the console or the paperback version of “Lake Wobegon Days” by his side. We’d talk about how I was doing in school, the ball game last night or he’d tell me the latest joke he heard at the Avenue News in West Wyoming earlier that day. If he was really into the conversation, listeners got an unintentional “twin spin.”
As an English teacher, Ed expected everyone he interacted with to speak with proper diction. He taught me when to use “who” or “whom,” would cringe when a caller said “youse guys” or used the dreaded word “heyna” in conversation. He wasn’t afraid to correct callers or others for that matter. I’ll never forget when I returned to the station after doing a remote broadcast from the Luzerne County Fair. For the three hours I was there I mistakenly referred to the fair’s vendors as “exhibitionists” instead of “exhibitors.” When I walked in the studio he asked me if I knew what an exhibitionist was then started laughing as he went on to explain.
Every summer we broadcast New York Yankees baseball. If Ed was running the board for the game, the minute the National Anthem started playing, he got up off his chair, silenced anyone in the studio with him, put his hand over his heart and showed respect by singing along. After all, Ed was a member of the Air Force and served during the Korean War and wore his patriotism and love for America with pride.
One of the things I remember Ed for was his “Christmas in July” program he did every year. He’d pick a day in July where instead of talking politics, he’d use this three hour talk show to play Christmas music. All the ads that ran during those three hours were sold by Ed, written by Ed and ad-libbed by Ed. He’d play a song by Nat King Cole, tell a story about a Christmas past then jump into a live commercial for a local carpet shop before playing the next song. It was a hit every year and he had a blast putting it all together.
Ed eventually retired from broadcasting and while I didn’t see him at the station anymore, I would see him around town delivering prescriptions for Cook’s Pharmacy part time. Every now and then when I was working, the phone in the studio would ring and on the other end was Ed checking to see how I was doing and what was new in my life. He was a genuine friend.
With Ed’s passing, we lost a great broadcaster, educator, humorist and patriot. I’m sure that when Ed walked up to St. Peter he greeted him with a big smile, hearty laugh and of course, a joke.
Rest in peace Ed.