NEW: RI Radio Hall of Fame Announces 2016 Class
Thursday, March 24, 2016
The Rhode Island Radio Hall of Fame has announced it's class of 2016.
The 2016 Hall of Fame class includes Boston Celtics television play-by-play man Mike Gorman, WPRO evening DJ Holland Cooke, WICE 1290 AM's Bob DeCarlo, WXIN DJ Bill George, WWBB and WPRV's Bruce Palmer and WRIU's Debbie Rich.
The induction banquet will take place at the Twin River Event Center in Lincoln on Thursday, May 12 at 7 p.m. The night begins with a meet and greet cocktail hour at 5:30 p.m.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTMike Gorman
Mike Gorman is a television play-by-play commentator for the Boston Celtics basketball team, currently broadcasting on the Comcast Sportsnet New England. A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Gorman began his broadcasting career at WNBH in New Bedford, Massachusetts and WPRO radio in Providence, Rhode Island where he delivered sports on the Salty Brine Morning Show. Gorman served as sports director at WPRI-TV in Providence; as the voice of the University of Rhode Island on WPRO; and as television play-by-play man for the Providence College Friars.
Gorman has been with the Celtics for over thirty years where he and color commentator Tom Heinsohn have formed one of the longest-tenured broadcast tandems in professional sports – broadcasting Boston Celtics basketball games.
Debbie Rich
Debbie Rich is an award-winning broadcast journalist. A Providence native, Rich attended the University of Rhode Island where she anchored WRIU’s first live election night coverage in 1972. Rich's professional radio career began at WALE in Fall River and continued in the RI and Massachusetts markets over the next 14 years at WNBH/WMYS, WSAR, WLKW, WHJJ/94HJY, Lite-105, WPRO, 1110-CNN and WCTK. She covered high profile court cases and politics including the Democratic and Republican National Conventions.
A love of the political process lead her to a successful career as a press secretary/communications director at Warwick City Hall, US Senate, RI State House and on the 2016 presidential campaign trail.
Bruce Palmer
Bruce Palmer grew up in suburban Philadelphia and came to Rhode Island radio in the late 1980s for a tenure which would last almost 20 years on WWBB (B101) and WPRV (the since-defunct True Oldies 790). At B101 he hosted afternoons and the iconic “All-Request Saturday Night.” And while he now hosts weekday mornings with Classic Hits in Worcester, Palmer remains active in the Ocean State, hosting car shows & charitable events each summer all across the state.
Palmer can still be heard in the northern half of RI on the Bruce Palmer Show every morning on 100 FM “the Pike.” He can also be heard on the Westwood One Radio network’s “Goodtime Oldies” channel on nearly 100 stations nationwide.
Bill George
Bill George is a native Rhode Islander who started in radio at the Rhode Island College station WXIN, serving as a DJ, Program Director and General Manager. He began his professional radio career at Lite 105 (WWLI) in 1988 and later became the Director of Programming and Operations for Providence’s first newly expanded radio group of WWLI, WLKW-AM, WPRO-AM and PRO-FM. George moved on to programming positions in Boston (WSSH, WSJZ), Honolulu (KUCD, KKLV) and Long Island, NY (WKJY, WHLI, WBZO and WMJC).
He returned to Providence in 2004 as PD/News Director at NewsRadio 920 WHJJ, also adding programming responsibilities at B101 (WWBB) where he currently serves as the afternoon drive DJ.
Bob DeCarlo
Bob DeCarlo was born in New York City, raised in Northeast Pennsylvania and, after graduating from Penn State in 1962, began his 46-year professional broadcasting career at WICE 1290 AM in Providence. While there he was named Rhode Island DJ of the Year in 1967 and he started the Junior Achievement Radio Company – the first of its kind in the country. DeCarlo was always at or near the top of the ratings - regardless of his time slot.
After seven years at WICE, the final two as Program Director, Bob moved on to large radio markets throughout the United States. His warm and friendly voice was heard all over America in radio and TV commercials. DeCarlo and his wife Linda live in Panama City Beach, FL and own McDonald's restaurants.
Holland Cooke
Holland Cooke began his radio career at WPRO-AM as the evening DJ from 1974 to 1980. Two jobs later, he returned to Rhode Island radio as Program Director at WSNE. In 1984, he was promoted to Operations Manager at WTOP in Washington where he held the position for seven years. In 1991, Cooke and three partners founded a tech start-up company that became the first-ever live in-flight audio channels – a system that pioneered the technology that evolved into today’s satellite radio.
For the past 20 years, Holland has worked as a media consultant specializing in News/Talk/Sports radio. He is a familiar face on MSNBC and guest-host of The Jim Bohannon Show, which can be heard on WHJJ in Providence.
Other Awards
The Rhode Island Radio Hall of Fame will also award the Shepard Award to Karen Kutniewski, the Distinguished Service Award to Denise Laprise and will remember JB 105 as the Legacy Station of the Year.
RI Radio Hall of Fame
The Rhode Island Radio Hall of Fame was established in 2008 by local radio professionals.
Related Slideshow: Infamous Talk Radio Controversies
Related Articles
- PODCAST: NewsRadio 920 + GoLocalProv - Year in Review 2013
- Pat Ford: Mr. Gobeil- Talk Radio is Alive and Well in RI
- NEW: PawSox Name Josh Maurer as New Radio Voice for 2014
- NEW: Former Radio Host Helen Glover Endorses Block for Governor
- Discrimination Suit: Female Reporter Files Against RI Public Radio
- PODCAST: Talk Radio Controversy Sparks First Amendment Debate
- The State of Talk Radio in New England
- YWCA Rhode Island Launches ‘She Shines’ Radio Program
- Andrew Gobeil: Can AM Radio Be Saved?
- PODCAST: The State of Talk Radio in New England
- Infamous Talk Radio Controversies
- RI Public Radio Reporter Says Station Blocking Her Unemployment
- Tufts Health Plan and Radio Disney Brought Magic of Healthy Living to Pawtucket
- WPRO’s Yorke, DePetro Make “Heavy Hundred” Radio List
- Rhode Island Radio Hall of Fame Announces 2015 Inductees
- RI Public Radio Hires Controversial New Boss
- Guest MINDSETTER™ John Tassoni Jr: Recovery Radio Brings Help to Those Struggling With Addiction
- New England Media Changes - Globe, Cumulus, Sports Radio and Projo
- PawSox Name Flemming New Radio Play-by-Play Man
- 94 HJY Radio Personality Kevin Mulhern Writes Children’s Book
- Buddy Cianci Returns to Radio - Will Elorza be His First Guest?
- O’Connor To Exit RI Public Radio At End Of January: Moore News
- RI Public Radio at the Crossroads: Leadership Void and Budgetary Challenges
- Big Radio Companies Facing Bankruptcy - WPRO and WHJY’s Parent Co’s in Financial Turmoil
