HAPPY BIRTHDAY JERRY SIMS!

Jerry would have been 69 years young today. But he's celebrating something greater today! I am thankful that I can call Jerry my friend. When we were unexpectedly put together by a chance e-mail a couple of years ago, it was a great blessing, an act of fate, karma or whatever you want to call it- but I am richer for it!

I contacted nine other KAAY enthusiasts and asked for help getting this blog together; Jerry was right there. Although not having the technical computer-wise know-how (and I personally still don't!), he practically gushed any and all information and materials he had to me for additions to the blog. I must admit, I was frantic as I searched and uncovered more material and, as I searched, Jerry helped, too, as well as several others. Our "gang of ten", due to work constraints, etc., dwindled down fast, but Jerry was steadfast.  Others too, have come alongside, in our day-to-day building of this blog and have remained steadfast, as well.

Even after I met Jerry when he came to Mobile, AL on a business trip, he showed me more materials and pictures; when he got back to Little Rock, he had them scanned in and sent to me. To see him lovingly touch the mementos really tugged at my heartstrings...you could tell this man loved what he did, not only at KAAY, but the other radio and TV stations at which he worked. Did I say "work"? To hear Jerry, he had some great times and those at KAAY seemed to be his most cherished! None of it was really work, he loved what he did!

Jerry volunteered for all kinds of things; flying saucer and elephant rides, sailboat sittings at the Arkansas State Fair, all kinds of remotes...he had so many memories, I was glad he shared some of them with us! Some, I'm sure, were humdrum, but others were exciting. And to hear him tell me over and over, in his humble way, of how he was a lucky kid, being in the right place at the right time, broadcasting over literally most of this hemisphere, was awesome! By the way, when I was a kid, I heard that kid on KAAY at night, too!

My time with Jerry in Little Rock was too short, but it was like trying to drink from an inch-and-a-half firehose at 90 p.s.i.! No wonder we both were so tired at the end of the days we spent together, touring Little Rock, visiting and sight-seeing. Jerry, as when he helped with this blog, poured himself into me, as The Kung Fu Master taught The Grasshopper. I felt small in this man's shadow, but his level of acceptance of me made me feel large, as well.

Jerry lived life; he was a successful businessman and loved playing softball. As I'd played and coached over two decades myself, I marvelled at this man, his devotion to the sport and his zest for travel to tournaments all over the U.S.A. His devotion to the blog showed, too...he'd e-mail or call me, telling me that he would be on another trip and unable to really communicate, but he'd check in on me and the blog when he got back.

That made me feel as if I were important to him! And he told me so, in so many words, in how he was appreciative of someone picking up the reins where A. J. Lindsey left them when his own blog ended. In fact, all The Greats and many fans of KAAY have said the same thing...very humbling, indeed, to this listener and fan of the station. Its employees, the standards they and KAAY set, are hardly paralleled today. My thanks to all of you in my work on this blog.

And so, today, October 23, will always be the day Jerry Sims enriched the world upon entering it...and for those times his now eternal voice was launched into the great ether of the sky, over most of this hemisphere, alongside that of Those Other Greats. Today is Jerry's day and I will remember it...because it is the day after my birthday, as well. Jerry, thank you for being one of the greatest presents the Maker ever gave me! Your friendship will always be remembered!

Please, everyone who visits today, and the days to come, put "Jerry Sims" in the upper left-hand search box and read all the entries from Jerry...he was a motherlode of information and stories!  I promise, you'll smile, laugh, chortle and belly-laugh over some of the antics he got into....

Happy Birthday Jerry Sims!!!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

My Trip To Little Rock: Tuesday, Touring With Jerry Sims

And what a day!  This post will be in several parts, due to the large amount of pictures snapped and experiences.....

Jerry Sims ("Sonny Martin", 1963-1967) picked me up at the motel and we immediately went to the current KAAY (and sister stations) address, at 700 Wellington Hills Rd.  We'd tried to rush there so that I could try and meet Bob Steel ("Michael O'Sullivan", 1972-1973), but we'd just missed him after his shift, as he had to immediately leave the KARN studio for another engagement.  I never had another opportunity to try and meet him.  But, I got Jerry at the entrance of the studios:

And, although I couldn't snap a picture of the studio (they seemed a bit sensitive to pictures) I did get a picture of the latest KAAY logo and one of the vans outside:

After leaving the studios, Jerry took me by the Fairgrounds, where he was perched up in a sailboat during one of the state fairs and in front of Barton Collesium:

Many may remember several posts awhile back regarding Jerry's almost perilous stay in the sailboat- it nearly flipped over, due to the large sail catching a lot of wind!  Well, here's Jerry with a photo of himself from about 1963, against the building; the current facade over his left shoulder is where he was in the sailboat so many years ago (the roof used to be totally flat):

For the original stories of Jerry in the boat, here is a link to the earlier posts:

http://mighty1090kaay.blogspot.com/search?q=sailboat

Oh, there is SO much more!  Please stay tuned!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Jerry Sims, "Sonny Martin" At The Arkansas State Fair!

There is a new museum at the Arkansas State Fair, and Arkansas' all time favorite radio station is included. Here we are at the new exhibit, right there beside Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, some great looking girls, and Chuck Conners. What a thrill.

I have written about that really fun week on A.J.'s blog, but now we have some new recognition, for those old enough to remember it........ It was in 1966, and as I look back at the pictures of my little skinny self, it is no wonder I could not project a Tom Perryman voice out of that 14 1/2 in neck. Come to think of it, here 44 years later the neck has filled out nicely, thank you, and I still can't do that "K A A Y........Little Rock, Arkansas", like Tom. He was KAAY's identity.

The week was a great promotion, and caused lots of attention. So much in fact, that the fair officials said "never again". The boat was atop the entrance to the fair, and fans kept the entrance area blocked most of the time. I did my Sonny Martin Program from there, and did cut-ins on all the other programs around the clock. Because of the KAAY fans wanting to talk (or send up a stuffed animal or candy apple), fair officials moved our participation way back near the Hall of Industry in a concrete block "Fall Out Shelter" (remember those?) the next year. Tommy Riggs (Rock Robbins) got that assignment, camper toilet and all. Speaking of toilet, there lies an interesting "insider" story......The sailboat was equipped with a portable toilet large enough to handle long term occupancy. The monster was about 4 feet high. When a person (and there was only me) sat on the thing, head and shoulders would stick out the top opening of the boat. Folks along the midway would never know what was going on inside the boat, just a waving DJ sticking out the top.

Len Carl was the manager at the time. As others have written before, he was the boss, but also one of the guys. I never knew anyone at the station who was not having fun and willing to do whatever it took to promote the station.

The fair is over for 2010, and may even be in a new location by next year. The museum folks tell me that the new museum was well attended, and want to add video for next year. The sailboat adventure with an interview. I'm more than willing.

JerrySims....Sonny Martin 2

Jerry Sims, a.k.a. Sonny Martin At The 1963 Arkansas Fair!

Bud....The Arkansas State Fair begins this weekend in Little Rock. I am sending a picture of me from the Fair in about 1963.

(Click on the above for a bigger picture of a handsome young man! bs)

KAAY, always in the middle of any kind of promotion, wanted to be very visible at the Fair. A.J. Lindsey, Doc Holiday/Program Director (I am going to have a problem referring to him as the "Late" A.J. Lindsey for a while) , wanted me the spend the fair duration in a KAAY Sailboat on top of the entrance to the fair. The promise was that the boat was brand new, and all finished out inside to make it very comfortable. Well, it wasn't. Very unfinished, with just a plywood bed and an electric blanket. I had a menu from a nice restaurant up the street, and used it to order any food delivered, whenever I wanted. We also had a telephone and a microphone for me to do my show, and cut-ins with other jocks, whenever I was available. If I was awake in the middle of the night (candy apple hits side of USS Emperor Holiday), I called in for a while.

The appearance was a big hit and lots of fun. As always, we had our set of unforeseen problems. Hurriedly put together as it was, we did not have a sail. Some local ladies sewed together enough sheets to make a sail, and we painted the big KAAY on it. The sail helped cause our biggest problem. Ya see, the boat had to be built up on a wooden frame. I had a ladder to climb up into it in the rear. Then when the north wind came, the sail caught it enough to nearly blow boat and skinny D.J. into an anxious crowd. Engineers quickly came out to cut holes in the sail. I later took down the sail when the wind blew so hard that the whole frame lifted in the rear. The whole promotion was a great success, so much so, that the Fair said "Never again". We kept the entire entrance stacked up. I had a rope/basket contraption rigged up to allow people to send me up "stuff". I had stuffed animals all lined up along the edge, and so much food that I had a hidden garbage bag for it.

I never thought about being unsafe, even after the fair had closed for the night. For those familiar with the fair location on Roosevelt Road, you would guess... that I would not want to spend even daylight hours there today.

One of the attractions that year was Sonny James, who had a decent career with "Young Love" and others. I got word that he listened to us and wanted to visit me. He wouldn't fit in the "Teddy Bear Sling", but did come by and sent up autographed pictures, etc. Come to think of it, Sonny Martin may have been a bigger hit than Sonny James on that trip.

Because of the major entrance clog, the fair officials moved us next year to a "Fall Out Shelter" between the Hall of Industry and Barton Coliseum. The late Tommy Riggs (Rock Robbins) got that call. No one but us ever knew if he was in there for sure. There were no windows. His bath did not look like Soji Tabuchi's either. He had a camper toilet with plastic bags. I will not repeat his comments to me over that one. Fall Out Shelters, it seemed, were very tight. Kept nuclear stuff out....odors in.

Speaking of toilet facilities: My sailboat had a portable toilet, about 5 feet high, with enough chemicals to last for the week. Because it was so tall, the only place to put it was right under the entrance to the boat. Sitting on this monster, my head had to stick out the top of the boat. Midway fans would see me waving to them, and have no idea what the bottom half of my body was up to.

None of us got extra pay, or even thought about asking for it, for such adventures. It was just a very exciting part of our job. We all considered ourselves very lucky to have been part of this great radio station adventure.

Jerry Sims.....aka Sonny Martin....1962-1967