Remembering Bob Green

• Detroit has always been a bastion of great radio talent, and one of the best to come out of the Motor City was Bob Green, one of the original “Key Men of Music” at the legendary WKNR (Keener 13), alongside legends like Gary Stevens, Robin Seymour, Mort Crowley and Jerry Goodwin. Green passed away on January 1 at the age of 88.

Born Robert Alan Greenstone in 1937 in upstate New York, Green got his start at WSAY/Rochester and WGVA/Geneva, but he set his sights on Detroit and a “suburban” Dearborn station, WKMH. However, frustrated by what he saw as market stagnation, Green instead detoured to Miami powerhouse WQAM-AM.

Soon a change was brewing back in The Motor City, as 1310 WKMH was about to morph into WKNR (Keener 13), the lure was too tempting, and with Green’s phenomenal production skills and imaging talents helped the station rise to meteoric ratings practically overnight! The secret was a philosophy Green termed as “Intelligent Flexibility.” In an industry increasingly dominated by rigid formatting, he and program director Frank Maruca encouraged their fellow “Keymen” to take risks. “The format was there to serve us,” Green said. “We weren’t there to serve the format.”

In 1971 Green and his wife Sandi moved to Houston and 790 KULF, which opened a door for his home-based studio, Bob Green Productions, a successful business until the passing of his wife. Green then moved closer to family in Austin, TX and succumbed to health issues on January 1. He was 88 years old.  Bob Green was an American radio original and will be missed.

For a more in-depth look at Bob Green’s life and career, please read Scott Westerman‘s excellent piece, Remembering Bob Green, posted HERE.

[Special thanks, as always, to our pal Art Vuolo for his invaluable assistance in the assembly of these tributes to industry icons].