The WRKL Station Collection

WRKL's format consisted of news, call-in shows and some music. "Hotline", a 1 ½ hour call-in show whose purpose was to give a voice to WRKL's listeners and serve as a forum for Rockland County opinion, featured controversial guests and often sparked lively debate. Betty Ramey once described "Hotline" as a, "town hall for the community". As a local radio station, WRKL relied upon the local community and interaction with its citizens for its development. Not only did 12,000 people attend WRKL's first birthday party in 1965 but WRKL captured over 90% of the local audience by that same year.

On July 22, 1967 Al Spiro invited a member of the Rockland County Congress of Racial Equality onto "Hotline" to discuss racial tensions. The station received several threatening phone calls after the broadcast and two days later the station was firebombed. The fire destroyed both trailers that housed the radio station, the record collection and the station's equipment. The presence of two gasoline containers alerted officials to the suspicious nature of the fire that was later ruled an act of arson. The perpetrators were never identified.

The fire received media coverage and as word of the fire spread, WRKL was deluged with offers of assistance from citizens of Rockland County, radio employees and other radio stations. These offers ranged from volunteer labor and monetary contributions from individuals to donations of radio equipment from both local and out-of-town radio stations. As a result of this outpouring, WRKL was back on the air within 4 ½ days after the fire. The first program broadcast after the re-opening was "Hotline".

Not long after the firebombing, in 1968, Al Spiro suffered a heart attack and died. Upon the death of her husband, Betty Ramey, a former art teacher, took control of the management and operation of WRKL. In addition to running the station, Ms. Ramey also took over hosting duties of "Hotline". In 1969, WRKL won the prestigious DuPont-Columbia award for outstanding political coverage and subsequently won numerous awards over the next several years. Some of these include: the Edward R. Murrow Award (for Northeast U.S.) for Courage, Enterprise, Social Awareness of Significant Community Problems in 1977, the N.Y. Associated Press Broadcasters Association's Grand Prize in 1971-1973, and the New York State Broadcasters Association's Outstanding Public Affairs Program and Outstanding Public Affairs Series in 1978.

Ms. Ramey continued to run a very successful, local radio station until 1985, serving as host of "Hotline" until November of that year. Under the ownership and management of Betty Ramey, WRKL continued to offer its audience an opportunity to not only keep current with local, national and international news but also to air their grievances and debate controversial topics. In 1985 Ms. Ramey sold the station to Rockland Communications and resumed her pre-WRKL career in the arts. She currently lives in New York with her husband Dr. James W. Ramey. As of 1997, WRKL was owned by Odyssey Communications and aired a news/talk format.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTES

The WRKL Station Collection spans the years 1953-1989 with the bulk of the material dating from 1964-1977. The collection contains business records, photographs, awards, audio materials, architectural plans and newspaper clippings. Ten books belonging to this collection have been integrated into the Library of American Broadcasting's book collection. Architectural plans and promotional posters are housed in the Library's map case. The collection is arranged into the following series:

Series I: Business and Financial Records
Series II: Publicity and Promotion

Subseries 1: Scrapbooks
Subseries 2: Awards
Subseries 3: Newspaper Articles

Series III: Photographs
Series IV: Audiotapes

PROVENANCE

The WRKL Station Collection was donated to the Library of American Broadcasting by Ms. Betty Ramey in June of 1998.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I: Business & Financial Records, 1953-1985,(.5 lin. ft.)

This series contains the business and financial records of WRKL. Included are numerous FCC license renewals, financial records relating to the sale of WRKL, architectural blue prints and specifications and property records.

The following architectural plans are housed in the Library of American Broadcasting's map case; Site Plan; Sewage Disposal System (1964); Survey of Property (1982); Foundation Plan; Finish Schedule, Plumbing and Door Schedule; First Floor Plan; Elevations; and Wall Sections.

Series II: Publicity and Promotion, 1964-1986, (.5 lin ft.)

This series contains the contents of three scrapbooks from 1964-1977; numerous awards granted to WRKL, Betty Ramey and Al Spiro; and newspaper articles covering the radio stations. This series is divided into the following subseries:

Subseries 1: Scrapbooks, 1964-1986, (.25 lin. ft.)
This subseries contains the contents of three scrapbooks that document WRKL and its owners from 1964-1986. Two scrapbooks date from 1964-1976 and one documents a luncheon honoring Betty Ramey, in 1977.

Subseries 2: Awards, 1971-1986, (.10 lin. ft.)
This subseries contains numerous plaques, trophies and certificates won by WRKL, Betty Ramey and Al Spiro between the years 1971-1986. These awards are housed in box number four of this collection.

Subseries 3: Newspaper Articles, 1967-1980, (.15 lin. ft.) This subseries contains articles written about WRKL from 1967-1980.

Series III: Series III: Photographs, 1963-1968, (.25 lin. ft.)

This series contains numerous photographs of the WRKL radio station, WRKL civic and social functions, the damage to the radio station as a result of the 1967 fire and the efforts to rebuild the station. The pictures date from 1963-1968.

Series IV: Audio Tapes, 1968-1989, (32 tapes)

This series contains both reel-to-reel and audiocassette recordings dating from 1968-1989. Included are recordings of Hotline programs and Betty Ramey's meeting with Indira Ghandi. The tape from 1989 is a recording of "Hotline" celebrating the 25th anniversary of WRKL and features Betty Ramey as a guest.
This series contains one reel-to-reel tape with restricted access.

For further information, contact the Library of American Broadcasting.