
(Above) “Superjock” Larry Lujack (left in photo) broadcasts an afternoon radio show from the main on-air studio of WCFL, a 50,000 watt AM radio station located on the top floor of the office building (now Hotel Chicago) at Marina City. Newly-installed reel-to-reel tape decks at far left indicate this photo was taken after WCFL switched from Top 40 to an automated “beautiful music” format on March 15, 1976, but before Lujack went back to rival station WLS. At the controls at right is Lujack’s longtime engineer, “Spacey Dave” Schuessler.
WCFL, “Chicago’s Voice of Labor,” was a radio station owned by the Chicago Federation of Labor. At 1000 on the AM dial, the 50,000-watt station transmitted from a tower west of Chicago in Downer’s Grove. But in the fall of 1964, the station moved its offices and studios from American Furniture Mart on Lake Shore Drive to Marina City.
The station took up the entire top floor of the 16-story office building, what is now Hotel Chicago, along with a “VIP Room” on the fifth floor where air talents hosted events such as record parties.
Bob Dearborn, who worked at WCFL from 1970 to 1976, recalled that the station moved into the Marina City office building shortly after it opened in 1964. “That is when several top Cleveland DJs – Jerry G. Bishop, the late Jim Stagg, and my pal Ron Britain included – were brought in to engage in a more serious Top 40 battle with WLS.”
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(Left) WCFL air talents in 1968. Top row: Clark Weber, Joel Sebastian (program director), Barney Pip, Ron Britain. Bottom row: Dick Biondi, Jimmy P. Stagg (music director and later program director), Ron Riley, Paul Christy. |
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(Left) WCFL photo from early 1970s of Bob Dearborn, who was on the air from 10:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. Said Dearborn, “Each of the air personalities had stacks of their photos to hand out at appearances or mail to people who requested them.” |
In 1966, WCFL switched to a Top 40 format and in 1967, “Big 10 WCFL” was the top-rated contemporary music radio station in Chicago. During an intense ratings war with WLS in 1972, WCFL hired away from the rival station “Superjock” Larry Lujack.
Ken Draper, general manager of WCFL from 1965 to 1968, brought employees with him from the Cleveland rock stations he had managed previously. They included engineers Mike King and Jim Loupas.
The WCFL news department included Jeff Kamen, who while reporting on a voter registration protest in Mississippi was beaten by members of the KKK, images of which ended up on network TV shows and newspaper front pages.
(Right) WCFL News vehicle, a 1967 Oldsmobile Cutlass, parked in front of the west tower at Marina City. | ![]() |
Wolfman Jack was another famous WCFL air talent. The syndicated comedy feature Chickenman, a parody of the TV series Batman, was created by WCFL’s Dick Orkin in 1966.
WCFL air talents over the years included Dick Biondi, Yvonne Daniels, Sid McCoy, Howard Miller, Barney Pip, Ron Riley, Jim Runyon, Joel Sebastian, Clark Weber, and Dick Williamson.
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(Left) Engineer Al Urbanski at an RCA mixing console in a control room for the main on-air studio at WCFL. This was where music, jingles, etc., were played during a live show. Photo by Tom Knauss. |
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(Left) Another angle on engineer Al Urbanski in a WCFL control room. |
Ratings dropped in the mid-1970s and in 1976, WCFL switched to an automated “beautiful music” format. Sold to Mutual Broadcasting System in 1979, the station went to a talk/news format, then to adult contemporary in 1980. WCFL found religion as a format in 1983 when it was sold to Statewide Broadcasting.
In 1987, it was sold once more to WLUP “The Loop” to simulcast the FM station’s morning show. Around that time, the station moved out of Marina City. It is now WMVP, “ESPN Sports Talk” radio, and owned by Disney/ABC Radio.