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> > > Russ Butler's Bio
Russ Butler's Bio
Growing up in Boston in the late-1940's, Russ built a pirate radio station in his bedroom using a 78rpm turntable, some records and a small, phono oscillator just to entertain his neighbors listening in Jamaica Plain. One Saturday afternoon the FCC inspectors arrived and put an end to his illegal hobby! But, this experience initiated what would be a 40+ year career in broadcasting.
Russ volunteered after high school classes in 1952 when WGBH-FM, Boston first began on the air with studios in Symphony Hall. Then off to a Summer announcing job at Radio Vermont, WDEV in Waterbury until his military service and Armed Forces Radio. In 1955, Russ had a live, variety television show on Sunday nights for a year on WTAO-TV 56, the first UHF television station in Boston. It was just black and white TV back then and done with only one camera from the studio's transmitter building on top of Mt. Zion.
While attending Northwestern University, he was an NBC Page at the Merchandise Mart studios in Chicago, then he joined several stations; WNMP and WEAW in Evanston, WEBH in the Edgewater Beach Hotel, and he was with an investor group who put a new Chicago FM station, WFMQ on the air.
He moved to do West Coast sales, marketing and promotion with Crowell-Collier's KEWB in San Francisco and KGY in Olympia, WA in the 1960's. He relocated back East in the 1970's for sales and marketing positions with WEZF in Burlington, VT and hosted Ella, Frank and Friends on Vermont Public Radio for ten years. He was also the Development Director for Vermont Public Television. While with The Knight Quality Stations, he represented a network of New England radio stations for four years. He designed multi-media marketing concepts promoting Quebec tourism while living in Montreal as their Canadian Marketing Director.
In 1991, Russ moved to Newport, RI where he had a jazz show on WOTB-FM "Cool FM" and a Home Shopping radio show on WADK. In 1994, he relocated to Southern California and entertained thousands of retired seniors by presenting a program he created of reminiscing therapy with old time radio, interactive trivia and nostalgia music.
Please contact him via e-mail if you would like to know more about his broadcasting career, the reminiscing therapy programs he presents to the active and less cognitive seniors, or to make a request for a future program of SONGBOOK AMERICA on BostonPete.com. > > > Russ Butler's Bio
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