John DeBella | |
|---|---|
 WMGK DJ John DeBella in 2005 | |
| Born | Queens, New York City, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Hofstra University |
| Spouse(s) | Annette Gammon Lisa Sabol |
| Career | |
| Show | The John DeBella Show |
| Station | 102.9 WMGK |
| Time slot | 6:00–9:00 am |
| Style | Disc jockey |
| Previous shows |
|
John DeBella (born 1949 or 1950) [1] is an American former DJ who played a major role in developing the morning zoo format. Until his retirement in June 2023, he hosted the morning John DeBella Show on 102.9 WMGK-FM in Philadelphia.
DeBella was born in the Astoria section of Queens, New York City, the son of a sanitation worker. He was a hippie and played in a psychedelic rock band called Human Rice. [1] He earned a degree in theater at Hofstra University, [2] where he became a DJ at the college radio station and created skits inspired by Firesign Theater. [1] He wrote for The National Lampoon Radio Hour . [2]
He began his professional radio career as a weekend overnight DJ at WLIR on Long Island.
After being fired for deviating from the station format, [1] in 1979 he became a morning DJ at WPEZ, now WWSW, in Pittsburgh, [3] where he used the line "Pittsburgh—where the sky is yellow and brown and the plants are as smart as the people. It's not the end of the universe. But you can see it from there." He also adopted his trademark handlebar mustache. After eight months, WLIR rehired him as a morning DJ; the Pittsburgh station manager had been planning to change formats and lay him off, but nevertheless bid up the salary he was offered. [1] With an increasingly outrageous on-air style, he helped to introduce WLIR's Dare to be Different new wave format. He befriended singer Joan Jett and promoted her hit "I Love Rock and Roll", [1] for which he received a gold record.[ citation needed ]
From 1982 to 1993, DeBella was a morning host on WMMR-FM in Philadelphia, one of the nation's preeminent rock music stations, where his The DeBella Travesty with a team including former WLIR co-alumnus Mark "The Shark" Drucker, helped develop the morning zoo format. [1] [3] [4] Regular guests included Clay Heery, proprietor of the Comedy Factory in Philadelphia, who appeared on-air as Captain Cranky, and Pat Godwin, a non-student living in a frat house at University of Pennsylvania who parodied hit songs; numerous stand-up comedians, including Jerry Seinfeld, made guest appearances. At the suggestion of George Harris, who became station manager in 1983, the show was renamed Morning Zoo, corresponding to the name originated by Scott Shannon in Florida. [1] He hosted an annual DeBella DeBall, which attracted thousands. [1]
By 1987, DeBella's show was number one in the morning ratings, after overtaking first Harvey in the Morning on WIOQ and then the all-news AM station KYW. [1] [4] In 1990, he lost the number one position to Howard Stern's syndicated morning show, The Howard Stern Show , after a ratings battle lasting more than three years; Stern dubbed DeBella "Baldy" and when he bested him, visited Philadelphia and staged a mock funeral for him in Rittenhouse Square. [1] [5]
In fall 1992, WMMR paired DeBella with sports commentator Howard Eskin in a "sports rock" morning format, which backfired, causing a ratings plunge. In spring 1993 DeBella was moved to afternoons at a reduced salary. He left the station in September 1993, signing off with "Have a great day, Philadelphia. Don't take any crap from anybody." [1]
From 1994 to 2001, he had an afternoon show on WYSP, now WIP, the Philadelphia home of The Howard Stern Show. [3] Before starting the job, he went on Stern's show. Station management discouraged him from extensive on-air talk. [1]
In June 2002, he returned to morning radio on WMGK, [1] [3] [4] where he hosted the morning John DeBella Show with cohosts Dave Gibson and Steve Vassalotti. The show usually closed with "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" by Eric Idle, which had also been a staple ending of his WMMR show. [1]
DeBella retired from broadcasting at the end of June 2023. In the run-up to his announced retirement, WMGK ran a retrospective of his Philadelphia career titled 41 & Done!. [4]
Every spring through 2023, DeBella sponsored an annual dog walk at Green Lane Park in the Montgomery County suburbs. He also headed the annual pre-Thanksgiving "MGK Turkey Drop", with CityTeam Philadelphia; listeners are encouraged to dropoff turkeys or cash donations. [6] In 2020, the event collected over 12,000 turkeys.
Beginning in 2007, he hosted an annual Veterans Radiothon to benefit the Philadelphia Veterans Multi-Service Center; [7] raising $157,726 in 2021, and more than $2 million up to that point. [8]
DeBella was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame in 2014 [9] and the Philadelphia Music Alliance Walk of Fame in April 2023. [4] In June 2023, he was a finalist for the National Radio Hall of Fame. [4] He has won local Emmy awards as a presenter and producer. [4]
In September 1986, DeBella married Annette Gammon. The marriage ended in divorce; Howard Stern took advantage of the fact, staging a "divorce party" for DeBella and paying Annette DeBella to appear on his show. [1] [5] She died in October 1992 of carbon monoxide poisoning in the garage of their mansion. [1] He remarried to Lisa Sabol, a real estate agent and the former wife of Steve Sabol of NFL Films. [1]
The Howard Stern Show is an American radio show hosted by Howard Stern that gained wide recognition when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from WXRK in New York City, between 1986 and 2005. The show has aired on Howard 100 and Howard 101, Stern's two uncensored channels on the subscription-based satellite radio service SiriusXM, since 2006. Other prominent staff members include co-host and news anchor Robin Quivers, writer Fred Norris and executive producer Gary Dell'Abate, along with former members Jackie Martling, Billy West, John Melendez, and Artie Lange.
WMMR is a commercial radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group through licensee Beasley Media Group, LLC and broadcasts an active rock radio format. The station's studios and offices are located in Bala Cynwyd and the transmitter is atop One Liberty Place at in Center City Philadelphia.
Preston & Steve is a morning radio, comedy, and variety broadcast on Philadelphia's active rock station 93.3 FM WMMR. The show features DJs Preston Elliot and Steve Morrison. The show originated at WDRE and then on Y100, both in Philadelphia, and features daily telephone interviews, in-studio guests, celebrity impersonations, unusual news stories, and numerous sound clips and running gags. It broadcasts live on the radio as well as streaming audio via the station website from 6 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. ET Monday through Friday, and is a featured podcast in the comedy section of the iTunes Store.
WIP-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and broadcasts a sports radio format. The WIP-FM offices and studios are co-located in Audacy's corporate headquarters in Center City, Philadelphia, and the broadcast tower used by the station is located in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia.
KNX-FM is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California, United States. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs an all-news radio format in a full-time simulcast with KNX. The station has studios at the intersection of Wilshire and Hauser Boulevards in the Miracle Mile district of Los Angeles, and the transmitter on Mount Wilson.
William Pierre Robert is a radio disc jockey is a highly popular on-air personality for 93.3FM WMMR in Philadelphia, one of the nation's most prominent rock music stations. He has been with WMMR since 1981.
WUSL is a commercial radio station licensed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It carries a mainstream urban radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia The studios and offices are on Presidential Boulevard in Bala Cynwyd.
WPHI-FM is a commercial radio radio station licensed to Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, and serving the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc., simulcasting an all-news radio format with co-owned KYW. Its studios are located in Audacy's corporate headquarters in Center City, Philadelphia.
WMGK is a commercial FM radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by Beasley Broadcast Group and broadcasts a classic rock radio format. The broadcast tower used by the station is located in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia. The station's studios are in Bala Cynywd. The station features Philadelphia radio personalities Andre Gardner, Matt Cord, Eric Johnson, and Tony Harris.
Beasley Broadcast Group, Inc., based in Naples, Florida, is an owner/operator of radio stations in the United States. As of May 2024, the company owned 59 stations under the Beasley Media Group name.
WTEL — branded "Philadelphia's BIN 610" — is a commercial all-news AM radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group, the station is currently operated by iHeartMedia, Inc. as part of their Philadelphia cluster under a long-term local marketing agreement. The station services the Greater Philadelphia and Delaware Valley area as the market affiliate of the Black Information Network.
WMMS is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio, commonly identified as "The Buzzard". Widely regarded as one of the most influential rock stations in America throughout its history, the station has also drawn controversy for unusually aggressive tactics both on and off the air. Owned by iHeartMedia, and broadcasting a mix of active rock and hot talk, WMMS is currently the flagship station for Rover's Morning Glory, the FM flagship for the Cavaliers AudioVerse and Cleveland Guardians Radio Network, the Cleveland affiliate for The House of Hair with Dee Snider and the home of radio personality Alan Cox.
WXPK, branded as 107.1 The Peak, is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Briarcliff Manor, New York, and serving the northern suburbs of the New York metropolitan area. It is owned by Pamal Broadcasting and broadcasts an Adult Album Alternative (AAA) radio format. The radio studios are in White Plains and the transmitter tower is off the Sprain Brook Parkway at the Westchester County Correctional Facility in Valhalla.
John Kincade is an American sports radio personality for 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia. He currently serves as a host on Kincade and Salciunas, the morning drive show for the station. Kincade previously worked at 610 WIP, 790 The Zone and 680 The Fan in Atlanta, and hosted a show on ESPN Radio and CBS Sports Radio.
Christopher Derek Foley, commonly known as KiddChris. is an American radio host. He has hosted radio shows in several cities since 1998.
WLIR was a radio station that played a new music/modern rock format on the frequencies 92.7 FM, 98.5 FM, and 107.1 FM from the 1980s into the 2000s. Bob Wilson, longtime WLIR employee and historian, created the website WDAREFM.COM, which maintains the spirit of the original WLIR. He also programs the music playlist. The website broadcasts a mix of alternative rock from the past and present day, along with former WLIR/WDRE personalities, such as Larry The Duck, Drew Kenyon, Andre, and Rob Rush.
WAIO is a commercial radio station licensed to Honeoye Falls, New York, and serving the Rochester metropolitan area. The station airs a hybrid hot talk and active rock radio format and is owned and operated by iHeartMedia. Its studios and offices are located at the Five Star Bank Plaza building in downtown Rochester. The station features one of the longest running morning comedy shows in the region, hosted by Brother Wease. It also carries Rover's Morning Glory from WMMS Cleveland.
Meg Griffin is an American radio disc jockey, currently heard on the Sirius XM Satellite Radio channels The Loft, Classic Vinyl, and The Beatles Channel. She retired from the Deep Tracks station on Sunday, November 12, 2023.
Michael Tearson is an American pioneer underground DJ, concert and special appearance host, author, recording artist and actor. Inducted into the Hall of Fame, 2016, awarded by the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia.
Dave Herman was an American disc jockey, popular in the New York metropolitan area from 1972 to 1998. Herman was born in Huntington, New York and was the son of an Orthodox rabbi.