Confirmed attendees at WHAV’s Reunion of the Radio Stars include, alphabetically, Paul Bellefeuille, Bob Clinkscale, Joanne Doody, Patricia Johnson, Marc Lemay, Dave “Mack” Macaulay, Bill “Maxwell” Macek, Eric Scott and Mark Watson. Also confirmed, but not shown, is Joe Clementi.
WCVB Anchor and WHAV Alumnus Bob Clinkscale in a 1979 advertisement.
The last time WHAV began program testing on FM, listeners heard announcer “Bob Douglas” in a series of perfunctory announcements alerting listeners to the presence of the new station.
That was 1959, and Bob Douglas went on to an esteemed broadcasting career—including as one of the pioneer news anchors at WCVB Channel 5—using his real name, Bob Clinkscale. He is one of Boston’s broadcasting celebrities making his way back to Haverhill for an historic “Reunion of the Radio Stars,” Wednesday, June 8, at 6 p.m., at Maria’s Galleria Banquet Room.
“This is WHAV-FM in Haverhill, Massachusetts. We are program testing our new transmitter on 92.5 megacycles with an effective radiated power of 20,000 watts. We would appreciate a card from you, telling where you live, the strength of the signal you hear, the quality of the broadcast and the time of the day you heard us,” Clinkscale announced. His appearance is especially fitting as the WHAV call letters prepare to return to FM at 97.9.
Clinkscale, who served as WHAV program director at the time, joins, alphabetically, Paul Bellefeuille, Joe Clementi, Joanne Doody, Patricia Johnson, Marc Lemay, Dave “Mack” Macaulay, Bill “Maxwell” Macek, Eric Scott and Mark Watson. Tentative attendees include former WBZ News Anchor Gary LaPierre and James Simmons, former WHAV program director who preceded Clinkscale. Other celebrities are expected.
Clinkscale began his broadcasting career in 1955 at WTSA Brattleboro, Vt., and moved shortly thereafter to WBTN, Bennington, Vt., before joining WHAV. He later worked as news director at WKOX, Framingham; news writer at WBZ; news editor at WHDH-TV; news reporter at WKBG Channel 56; and finally became one of the inaugural news anchors at WCVB, beginning in 1972. He later served as a journalism professor at Emerson College for 35 years.
Bellefeuille was WHAV’s morning show host from 1981 to 1984 and has also worked for WLYT, WKBR, WZID, WFEA, WQLL/WMLL and WUMB. He is currently an actor, voice over artist and writer and was recently the principle actor in “Hypnagogic,” an independent film.
Clementi began at WHAV in 1959, and later was also promoted to program director. He left in 1963 to join WORL. He went on to become a long-time news reporter for WHDH radio.
Doody began her career at WHAV during the early 1980s and went om to WFNX, WXRV, WHOB and WBOS. She now works for Seahorse Bioscience, a part of Agilent Technologies.
Johnson, then known under her maiden last name of Sprague, went to work in WHAV’s traffic department in 1952. She and her future husband, Edwin V. Johnson, hosted the “Friday Night Shoppers” program. The broadcasting pair went on to marry April 23, 1954, and the wedding played over on the air in installments. After the wedding, they co-hosted “The Newlyweds” on WHAV. She left WHAV for WCCM in 1961.
Lemay entered radio as a 13-year-old intern at WALE AM 1400, Fall River. When the station was sold in 1989, he was there to sign off WALE one night and sign on again as WHTB the next morning. In 1990, Lemay moved to WHAV as news director. After three years at WHAV, Lemay went to work in other areas of communications including Yellow Pages, newspaper publishing, graphic design, public access television and Internet. In 2004, Lemay returned to radio when he joined WCCM, where he served as afternoon drive host, production director, IT manager, morning show news anchor/co-host and finally morning show host. He is now communications manager for Greater Lawrence Family Health Center.
Macaulay began at WHAV/WLYT in the late 1980s. He has been heard on a wide range of stations including WVBF, WMEX-1150, WNTN, WESX, WNSH, WORC and WSPR. He is currently heard on WNBP.
Macek started at WNBP and moved on to WLLH-WSSH, WFEA, WHAV, WHOB and WLYT. He has variously been known on air as “Bill Maxwell” and “Rick Adams.” He most recently owned WEIM/WPKZ and previously owned WINQ (Q-FM) and WMOO.
Scott began at WHAV in 1983, returning in 1992, and also worked WUNR/WBOS. He is currently production director and afternoon drive host at Mix 94.1 FM in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region. Scott is also the owner of Shelcom Media, providing voice work and tracking, and consulting.
Watson worked for WHAV between 1984 and 1987 and later was employed by WCAP. He is currently employed at Enterprise Bank, Lowell, Mass.
The public is invited to enjoy the reunion, featuring wine and food pairing. Tickets are $45 each or $425 for a table of 10 and may be purchased online at https://whav.net/reunion-of-the-radio-stars/.
WHAV, owned by non-profit Public Media of New England Inc., was previously granted a construction permit from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
The WHAV call letters have been associated with local broadcasting since 1947. WHAV is today operated by Public Media of New England Inc., a not-for-profit corporation. Since 2004, the call has served the Merrimack Valley’s pioneer Internet radio station at WHAV.net and a number of public access cable television stations in Andover, Haverhill and Methuen, Mass., and Plaistow and Sandown, N.H.