ReelRadio Lives! In North Carolina
• A treasure trove of over 3,500 historically significant airchecks and web content from some of radio’s most legendary personalities, like Casey Kasem, Rick Dees, Gary Owens, Wolfman Jack, The Real Don Steele, and other icons, a collection known as “ReelRadio,” has now been restored and made publicly available, thanks to the preservation efforts of the North Carolina Broadcast History Museum (NCBHM) and the expertise of Beasley Media Group’s digital division. The conversion, which was funded by the museum, took place over the last 12 months.
“We’re proud to support the incredible work of the North Carolina Broadcasters’ Museum in bringing the ReelRadio website back to life,” said Caroline Beasley, CEO of Beasley Media Group. “This project is a powerful celebration of the state’s rich broadcasting legacy for future generations to discover and enjoy.”
Carl Davis, a NCBH Museum trustee who spearheaded the museum’s custodianship of ReelRadio, was a personal friend of the collection’s late curator, Richard Irwin, a.k.a. “Uncle Ricky,” a radio and computer programmer who collected much of this priceless audio and became friends with fellow collectors who shared the same passion. That’s Irwin pictured in 1969.
Kip Wahlers, an attorney and radio enthusiast who served as President of the ReelRadio board, recalls when Davis first contacted him about the NC Broadcast History Museum assuming custodianship of the site. “This was our goal — to find a permanent home for this collection so that it can be preserved into the indefinite future,” said, Wahlers, adding, “This is a Herculean effort.”
With the unveiling of the newly hosted site, NC Broadcast History Museum President Mike Weeks said, “The ReelRadio project is directly aligned with the Museum’s goals to celebrate pioneers of radio and television while preserving the rich and significant history of the broadcasting industry to be universally accessible and useful. We couldn’t be more pleased that this valuable resource is now publicly available.”
To learn more about this valuable collection, contact Mike Weeks at 252-721-0470 or ncbhmuseum@gmail.com.
