Bill Baker
His Story
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/24/00)....I found the RTI site during a search. Who knows why it took so long.
I was a communications major, graduated in 1959, and did some staff
announcing plus hosting a Saturday afternoon jazz show during the 1958-1959 school year. I'd been on station managements' case about that for a long time and still suspect the show was to get me out of their hair. I remember Dick Smith asking me to script it. Yeah. Right! I did get a slight laff when RTI went to the all-jazz format.
Neatest thing so far about the site is e-mailing with Norm Childs. I remember him well and it's been a genuine blast from the past. Bernie "Allen" as well....
Then there's the list of missing persons. I assume the alumni folks have provided access to addresses? Or is the right to privacy stuff still in effect?
Tom Stanwood and Dick Smith were Sigma Pis. Sig Pi is still at Temple and
perhaps they have an alumni directory. I didn't see Ken Peters' name, another Sig Pi. He graduated in 1957 and had a successful ad agency career in Pittsburgh. Last I heard he was living in Allison Park, a northern suburb.
Nor did I see Van Jacobs, Coleman Cohen, Marc Kramer, Bill Walker, Bill Iles, or Glenn Duff. Glenn announced at a Chester radio station and Dick
Smith always said "There goes that famous radio announcer."
I saw Marty Kreiner and Barbara Nalven under the missing category. Barbara and I dated for a while and Marty used to come by the Alpha Chi Rho house Friday evenings where he played piano and hoisted a few with us Crows.
Around 12 or 13 years ago Bill Iles told me he saw both at a jewelry-type
trade show in New York City. Marty and Barbara were in that business and I believe Bill told me Barbara's daughter was going to Temple.
The photo of Lou Klein reminded of classes at the old FIL studio on West Market, now identified by a Bandstand historical marker. Lou was executive producer of Bandstand....
I assume the roster listing is open to anyone who did RTI time? What I'd have to do is scan in my yearbook photo. The most current one has been scanned, but it's a family shot although I suppose a computer guru can crop
in my my face, such as it is....
As for a quickie bio, try this...........The majority of Bill's professional career has been in the industrial ad agency business, principally as a copywriter. Since 1987 he's been with a Pittsburgh ad agency writing primarily on the Cutler-Hammer account. Cutler-Hammer is a global manufacturer of low and medium voltage electrical distribution equipment and components. After Temple, Bill went to Penn State where he survived football weekends and received an M. A. in Journalism. He did some Army time as well, first at the Signal Corps School Headquarters where he handled PR, then at the Southern Euorepean NATO Headquarters in Italy where he did more communications work.
That's it.
Peace. Live long and prosper. Drink beer. Bill Baker
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/27/00)....Two of the instructors that influenced me were Si Roosin, a grad student with tons of broadcasting experience, who taught TV writing and Sam Singer, Inquirer music critic. I really got a lot out of his critical writing and reviewing classes. Teachers with real-world experience can't be beat.... The following is a second e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/24/00)....
As an aside, while I'm sure what WHYY did for Philadelphia is outstanding, the concept was innovated in Pittsburgh by Rick Sebak of WQED.
If you're looking for old photos.... The Alpha Chi Rho house was at 1903 N. Park Avenue. I believe it had been obtained in 1953 or 1954 when the chapter was a local, Sigma Chi Alpha. The local went national in Spring of 1955, I pledged in the Fall of that year. One side of us was classrooms, a
private home on the other with the political science department next to that. Directly across the street was the history department.
We moved to 1928 N. Broad for the fall semester of 1958 and the 1903 N. Park structure was pulled down later that year. I have a photo of that house, already scanned in. Want it? (Yes)
And I sure remember the cemetery being dug up. Great entertainment, disgusting in retrospect.
Another aside. History Professor Dr. Lawrence Ealy, an Alpha Chi Rho, had gotten the house for us through an arrangement with the university. Sometime in the late 80s or early 90s, the university used the arrangement to get the Crows out. I'm told nobody could locate a copy of the agreement.
The university claimed the house was needed for dorm space. Scuttlebutt had Liacouras or at least the administration as anti-Greek.Cheers, Bill Baker
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/27/00)....Two of the instructors that influenced me were Si Roosin, a grad student with tons of broadcasting experience, who taught TV writing and Sam Singer, Inquirer music critic. I really got a lot out of his critical writing and reviewing classes. Teachers with real-world experience can't be beat....
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/28/00).... seem to discerne some grumblings about the Liacouras approach to running a
university.
Understanding that things do change over time, I've been aware that the
university has altered direction from the Conwell approach. Temple sure
provided me with an opportunity since my high school record wasn't the
greatest.
The Temple years were, for me, a synergy: academics, extracurricular
activities, living 300 miles from home, fraternity life, and the variety of
students.
I use variety since "inclusive" wasn't the buzz word at the time. The
Liacouras administration made a big deal of that, like it was just invented.
But when I was at Temple all one needed was to meet admission requirements
and have the money.
One of my children spent five semesters at Tyler. She made a special trip
to Philadelphia for the Tyler Dog 'n Pony Show and came back impressed.
What she wasn't told was that the emphasis would be on abstract art,
something she doesn't like. Temple lost a customer.
Another of my kids wanted to apply. After making a phone call and going
through the press this number, press that number routine, the response was
three photocopied pages in the mail. Professional, eh? Temple lost a
potential customer....
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/30/00)....Many folks had been buried in old-fashioned wooden coffins (at the cemetery across from Mitten Hall). Graves were
opened on a row-by-row basis with a backhoe. Workers, using what appeared
to be meathooks, pried open the lids and pulled out the remains. The high
water table and possible lack of embalming didn't leave too much.
This may be not an accurate recollection, but I believe those remains were
reburied in common graves and the coffins left in situ.
Headstones were smashed, Some people (not me and I don't know who) made a night
trip and brought back two: Emily and Mable, young girls from the late 1800s.
The smaller one was used by (a Greek) house macho man…, later a career
military person, to show how strong he was. He'd carry the stone up and down the
stairs, from floor to floor, often leaving it blocking a door. (Even that
small stone was heavy.)
On one trip (he)…had left the stone in the third floor front room…. (He)…lived directly below.
People heaved the stone on…(a)…bed, but upon returning and failing to discerne
any humor, rolled the stone onto the floor, where it landed with a thud,
followed immediately by a shout from below. Turns out plaster was knocked
from the ceiling where it landed…(on his)…face. He'd been reading in bed.
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/31/00)....
Robbie Spector may be remembered by WRTI folks from the fifties. He ran a
mom 'n' pop grocery and deli at the corner of 13th and Norris. A popular
spot during the lunch hour.
Robbie manned the cash register, just to the left as you walked in. The
deli counter was to the rear, handled by an older gentleman named Morris. He
was consistently spiffy with slicked black hair, white shirt and knotted tie,
and a clean white apron. Thick glasses too. We usually found him seated,
reading the newspaper in Hebrew.
Our "What's happening, Morris?" would be answered with the rapid fire "Vatch
yew vant t'day, boyss?"
I don't recall sandwich prices, but Tasty Cakes and Tasty Pies were a dime.
Add to that a bottle of Puerto Rico soda… "Hey Chico, make mine Puerto
Rico." Imaging using that slogan today!
Robbie had two neighborhood kids working for him, Chester and Junior.
Chester had a sparkling personality with a smile as big as all outdoors.
Junior always looked nervous, perhaps expecting a cop to show up.
The store was pulled down for redevelopment circa 1960. A couple of years later I was in Center City (who knows why) when I bumped
into Robbie. He was selling newspaper space. Morris, recollected Robbie,
managed the store but opted for retirement in Flordia. He died six months
after making the move.
Redevelopment strikes again.
The following is an e-mail from Bill Baker to Gerry Wilkinson (5/31/00).......I'd forgotten about a class taught by Dr. D.
It came to mind after a series of e-mails with a provost at a state
university where one of my children hangs out. I was grousing about teacher
no shows and the provost e-mailed me that it was "impossible" to determine
when teachers don't show up for classes.
The class was radio production and direction, or something like that, and
included script writing. Dr. D went alphabetically and I was first out of
the chute.
I thought my effort was pretty good but Dr. D. set me straight with a
diplomatic critique that said, basically, "you stink."
However, since my transgressions were aired in front of the class, providing
other students with direction about what not to do, Dr. D. said I could have
another go.
I did, and remember it being pretty good. Dr. D. did some real-world
teaching, i. e., instead of just giving a grade and moving on, he pointed
out what could be done better and gave me the opportunity...