BOB BURNHAM
Chief Engineer
I can't remember a time in my life when I was ever interested in anything that was not electronic, music or radio-related. When I was only 12 years old, I had built a 2-story shack in my parents' backyard complete with an intercom, lights and of course, a radio and sound system -- all assembled from scraps. There, I spent many hours listening to people like Dave Prince, Warren Pierce and Dick Purtan. I do remember listening to Specs Howard himself, before that!
Flashing forward several years, my first real job in commercial radio where I actually got paid was at a small AM station in Mt. Clemens that no longer exists. I was their mid-day air talent, and the youngest full-time staff member … perhaps the "Doogie Howser" of full-service-AM-radio jocks. The General Manager noticed my interest in technical things and allowed me the task of rewiring the station's remote trailer. He later offered me the position of Chief Engineer, except I left instead to take another radio job in Ann Arbor, where in 1979, I wound up as Production Director.
From a 1980 sales package... Above left to right: "Fat Bob" Taylor, Jeff Ryder, Fred Heller, Hank Moorehouse (station magician), Dave Dugan (Kosh), Art Versnick. Below: Bob Marshall.
Although today, I am best known for my technical work, at least for a couple years, I somehow managed to be a nighttime on-air fixture in Ann Arbor radio. This period is filled with some of my fondest career memories. I worked with and trained many Specs grads at that time (and later) -- some whose names you'd recognize. I always wondered what the mystique was that surrounded the people who came from the school. One of my oldest friends has been on the air full-time at WOMC for over 15 years, and still recalls how much he took with him from the school as Dick Kernen's student a long, long time ago. (We can also tell some stories about each other when we shared discothèque duties in the midst of the disco era. Those stories are best left untold and DID NOT come from Dick's classes!)
In my world, after the first stop in Ann Arbor, I arrived for another on-air stint in Jackson, MI and also ended up doing some extensive technical work at a different Jackson station that also no longer exists. Eventually, I ended up back in the Detroit area at WCAR. There, I was Chief Engineer and hosted my own program for about 10 years. During that time, I also began doing technical work at several other stations -- at one point up to seven. I even designed and built a couple stations from scratch, while also developing a broadcast syndication business that actually employed a few Specs grads.
I returned to Ann Arbor again as Chief Engineer for the (then) Cumulus stations. Following that period (about five years ago) I finally found out what the "mystique" was about at Specs Howard School when I joined the staff.
ABOVE: Scott Greenberg, Kevin Starks, Jason Mobley, Tom Eurich & Bob Burnham (taken the evening the last locally produced show aired prior to launching the "Radio Aahs" satellite-fed format). The computer, typewriter and even the desk in this photo no longer exists.
By the way, throughout my radio career, I also marketed a catalog of old-time radio shows and videos and developed a web site, which is still going strong today.
From my lifetime of work and personal observations, the school has placed some of the finest people in the industry I've ever worked with. This is in part because of the caliber of the instructors. In a very positive sense, the instructors are at the very core of the "mystique" I wondered about for so many years. They inspire the students who want to be inspired, and encourage those who may lack self-confidence. They are as passionate about their fields as I am. I've never seen so much "passion" for radio and video production under one roof!
If students follow their example, take their advice and put in their best effort, they will go as far as their imagination will allow them. The key is to find their niche, and being able to accept the fact that the search will take them down many paths they weren't expecting. If ever asked, I tell them never to be afraid to explore something new and never EVER pass up an opportunity even if it's not exactly what they had it mind. That contact or that job may be the one that will lead to a lifetime career.
Recent news:
This past summer (2007) I have managed to finish off the upgrading the last of our 21 practice audio studios at the school. Each studio now has a digital console with all the "extras" needed to provide a real world experience for students to learn what they need to know, all on industry standard gear. Each studio was custom upgraded or built one at a time to industry standards completely in-house by yours truly.
I will also be attending the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) convention again to keep my brain on the cutting edge of technology. Also in Charlotte, NC, I am managing construction of a new FM transmitter site, complete with a brand new 500 foot tower arriving in six truck loads. WRML-FM is the newest jewel of the Norsan broadcast group, one of the fastest growing and most successful Hispanic broadcast groups in the country. This knowledge and experience is just one of many nuggets I'm happy to share with students interested in the real nitty gritty of how broadcast stations work and how they are constructed today.
In other unrelated matters, occassionally, I sit in with Specs Howard Radio Instructor, Mark Pasman's Supersession band at Memphis Smoke. Other instructors and students have been known to hit the dance floor as well. Those nights are always highlights.
I have a new Blog about broadcasting and my musical exploits as well.
The trade publication I write for:
www.radio-guide.com
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Some of us have been doing this radio thing a long time.
The "Full Service" format on the AM band is an extinct style of radio that I had a lot of fun with back in the 1970s and '80s. It is always fun to look back on an era that will never return that was a big part of my broadcast career.
On some of my old air checks, several of the spots were left intact and longer segments of news left intact to give a feel of what the programming was like, which is remarkably decent sound for its age. No cleanup or
enhancement was done other than some editing courtesy of Adobe Audition!
If you listen to a typical show, it sounds like all the fast food places in town sponsored me. Actually they did! It also wasn't unusual for us to do remotes from the various Ann Arbor McDonalds, or Fridays from Kroger, and be shocked when someone asked for an autograph. We were mini-celebrities. That would've also been me who set up the equipment back then too, over 25 years
ago. Some things don't change.
I should've been playing guitar more back then, but then but I would've missed out!
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