Wilde Man

I became aware of Kirk Wilde in Feb. 1966 when I was 13 years old and walking down the sidewalk in downtown Bellingham. I heard loud music from the J.J. Newberry store. What I heard was “California Dreamin'” by the Mamas and Papas. Gawking in the storefront window, I saw a guy with horn rim glasses sitting behind a radio console. That guy was Kirk Wilde and he was running a live KPUG remote broadcast from the annual March of Dimes radio campaign.

I watched Wilde for probably 20 minutes. He was joined by a man I later learned was KPUG’s program director Bob O’Neil. I was interested in what I saw so I walked home and turned on the radio. That was the day I began paying attention to KPUG and rock and roll music.

I listened to KPUG most of the time, at least when I wasn’t in the classroom at Whatcom Junior High School. My favorite announcers were Kirk and Gary Shannon. For a small market station, the jock lineup was excellent. The Bellingham Herald ad below from 1966 highlighted that five person “live guy” staff — Bob O’Neil, Kirk Wilde, Gary Shannon, Harvey (later Charlie) Brown and Johnny Jaye.

That newspaper clipping promoted KPUG’s 1966 boost in power to 5000 watts.  To celebrate the station was giving away a trip to Acapulco. The “It’s What’s Happening” promotion was simple. Listeners sent their names and phone numbers to KPUG. The jocks would pick a name and call a contestant. When the call was answered, live on the air, the jock would ask “What’s Happening”? The correct answer was “KPUG.” That correct answer earned the listener a free 45 rpm record and a chance at the trip to Acapulco. (This editor won a single from Gary Shannon.) The KPUG “live five” deejays drove Chevy Corvairs painted like billboards. They meandered all over the region. The listener with the best estimate of the total miles driven by the deejays in a week won prizes valued at $100. In the summer of 1966, Kirk Wilde was bopping around Seattle and that recording, and a picture of Kirk in his green Corvair, is below.

Kirk Wilde on KPUG, broadcasting from Seattle, 1966. Run time :47

A Kid’s Radio Adventure Begins

On a Saturday afternoon in ’66, my friend Tom and I walked out E. Sunset Drive to the KPUG studio. It was a long hike, down a busy road, but it was worth it. That was the day I decided to become a radio disc jockey.

Gary Shannon & Kirk Wilde

The first person we saw at KPUG was Gary Shannon. He answered the door and invited us in for a quick tour. Wilde was in the control room counting down the top 50 hits of the week. He did that every Saturday. Kirk was the music director, so he tabulated the Sound Hit Survey.

Gary showed us the production room and he asked our opinions of two new records — “Hooray for Hazel” by Tommy Roe and “Just Like a Woman” by Bob Dylan. Our opinions were important to a top 40 deejay. Being authentic bubblegum age teens, we liked the “Hazel” song best. It was a worthy follow-up to Roe’s timeless classic “Sweet Pea” (won’t you dance with me?)

Wilde dropped by to say hi. Then he went back into the control room to continue on with his top 50 records. I never saw Kirk Wilde in person again.

Things changed at KPUG in 1966. Gary Shannon was the first to leave, called up by Uncle Sam. Not long after, Kirk left KPUG. His first stop was KOL in Seattle. Then it was north to KRKO in Everett. Then back to Seattle and oldie’s station KSND in 1968. At KOL and KSND, Kirk worked with his old friend Danny Holiday, another ex-KPUG jock. Kirk moved to 50,000 watt KING in the early 1970s. Then it was off to Colorado in 1972, where he settled in at KDKO in Denver. KDKO was a soul station with a predominantly African American staff and listening audience. Kirk did morning drive and he was always proud that he had been fully accepted by KDKO’s listeners.

I have written articles about Kirk before, but I never had airchecks to flesh out the details. Kirk had his old tapes in storage for more than 50 years. He was reluctant to release them. That changed. Prior to his passing in June 2022, Kirk sent me a big box of airchecks. A few months later, Kirk’s brother Scott sent me more recordings. This was the motherload of Wilde airchecks, several hours of Kirk on the air in Bellingham, Corvallis, Seattle, Everett and Denver.

I have scoped (edited down) several hours of recordings spanning 1964 to 1975. In some instances, Kirk’s style, funny bits (Magic Twanger and sidekick Julius Funkley), and his sense of humor are on full display. The airchecks also give insight into the pace, feel and flow of his show. In radio jargon, he ran a tight board.

There are a great number of airchecks included with this article. Some readers will want to listen to all of them, others will only listen to a few. They all contain vintage spots, songs and nostalgic moments, so pick and choose to your heart’s content.

That Northwest Sound

Those of us who grew up in the Pacific NW back in the day will remember some of the great regional bands that played the teen dance circuit. The most prominent being the Wailers, Merrilee and the Turnabouts, and the Sonics. It just so happens that Kirk cut spots for all of those bands and more. These spots you can listen to below were from spring and summer 1966.

Swinging Medallions and the Sonics, the Wailers, Merrilee & the Turnabouts (2x), Liverpool Five, Don & the Goodtimes. Run time 4:04

In late 1964 or early ’65, Kirk wanted a full length thematic jingle for his “Wilde Man” show at KPUG. The station had a standard jingle package and management wasn’t going to spring for a custom jingle for one jock. Instead, Kirk produced his own jingle (voice of jingle singer unidentified, but probably another KPUG jock). That recording is next, followed by Kirk himself (with overdubbing of his own chorus) blasting out “Twist and Shout.”  In ’65, all of the KPUG jocks covered popular rock songs and they were played on the radio. Danny Holiday, who later became a fixture in Seattle radio, sang “The Last Time” (the hit by the Stones). Listeners voted for their fave deejay’s single and Wilde’s “Twist and Shout” won big time!

“Wilde Man” and Kirk’s “Twist and Shout.” Run time 3:44

In summer of ’65, Wilde left KPUG briefly to deejay at KFLY in Corvallis, Oregon. He was back at KPUG in the fall of ’65.  The recording below is Kirk at KFLY. “Satisfaction” by the Rolling Stones was #1 on the KFLY chart. Wilde always loved James Brown and soul music. That is quite apparent in his airchecks of the era.

KFLY– July 21, 1965, Wilde plays his Magic Twanger at 3:39. Run time 9:34

The next two airchecks are comprised of Kirk’s shows on KPUG in spring and summer 1966. Many early KPUG announcers, who later became well-known in the Pacific NW, appeared in these recordings — Bob O’Neil, Gary Shannon, Steve West, Norm Gregory, Dave Hall, Johnny Jaye and Dick Stark. The timeline for potentially familiar voices or interesting moments are noted in the captions below.

KPUG #1–1966, with jingles and image liners. Johnny Jaye :35, Gary Shannon :43, Dave Hall 2:25, Steve West 3:29, Julius Funkley (Wilde sidekick) 3:50, Gary Shannon 4:34, Sonics dance ad 5:57, Dick Stark 10:37, Wilde (Robin) & Dick Stark (Batman) ad 11:46. Run time 12:35

KPUG #2–1966, with jingles and image liners. Merrilee Rush dance ad 2:42, Norm Gregory 3:43 and 5:10, Vietnam War news bulletin 5:40, Bob O’Neil 9:03, Johnny Jaye 10:08 & 12:39. Run time 13:39

 

Kirk Wilde and Gary Shannon, were big parts of what inspired me to become a radio announcer. My first job came along in 1970, KOQT radio, when I was graduating Bellingham High School. In 1972, I went over to KBFW, the country station.

I moved over to KPUG in spring 1974. I remember my surprise one night when, after pulling a stack of oldies, I found a 45 marked with the official “Wilde Stamp of Approval.” The record with the stamp was “Gloria’s Dream” by the Belfast Gypsies. I had heard Kirk talk about his stamp of approval when I was a kid listening to his show, but geez it really did exist! It was a poignant remnant of Wilde’s past — his presence was still on display in the KPUG studio eight years after he’d left the building.

I departed KPUG near the end of the year 1974. Moving back to KBFW, I worked my way up the ladder, ending up the general manager and then, in the mid-’80s, an owner. After 15 years of ownership, we sold to a group of stations out of Michigan. The deal closed in 1999 and just like that I was out of broadcasting after nearly 30 years in the business.

A few years after retiring from radio, I tried to track down some of the jocks I had listened to on KPUG. Norm Gregory had stayed in Seattle, so he was easy to find. And Gary Shannon was easy enough to locate through Norm. Gary was in Nashville. Steve West and Harvey Brown were still around Seattle. Wilde was a tough one. The only remnant of Kirk I found was a caricature of him [that he hated] on a 1970s survey from KDKO Soul Radio in Denver.

Wilde From Another Perspective

One day a friend forwarded to me an article about 1960s KPUG and Wilde, Shannon and others.  The author was Bruce Scholten, a former Whatcom County resident who has been living in the UK for many years.  That article was “Milk and Motorcycles” (read it HERE).  I contacted Scholten. He put me in contact with Wilde, real name John Kirkland Peffers. I got an Email from Kirk, the first one, in 2011. He was 68 years old and I was 58.

Bruce Scholten (PhD 2007) is a geographer at prestigious Durham University in the UK. An expert on dairy farming, Scholten was raised in Lynden, WA. A published author I’ve included a link to a description of Bruce’s recent book (click HERE).

Bruce knew Kirk a lot longer than I did. Yet his thoughts of Wilde largely parallel my own. Some of Bruce’s fondest memories are of Kirk playing soul music on KPUG. I thought it appropriate to include several of Bruce’s comments made at the time of Kirk Wilde’s passing.

“From his first KPUG Bellingham show in 1964, John Kirkland ‘Wilde’ Peffers led with his perfect voice, and musical roots from Solomon Burke to Tina Turner, the Ronettes and the Beatles. I pestered the KPUG Live Guys — Dave Hall (accosted by me when he was drumming up advertising revenue on the streets of Lynden, WA), ‘Telstar’-loving T. Michael Forney (as a stunt he played Telstar continuously one night in ’62), Danny Holiday, Gary ‘Shannon’ Burleigh, Harvey ‘Charlie’ Brown, et al — with music requests & fan letters. My reedy Lynden voice did not portend a Top 40 career (1999-2002 in the English institution of Durham Hospital Radio was my heyday: Kirk said my ‘Oh Canada!’ special was funny and my Pacific NW Rock shows were ‘OK’ listening). 

“Kirk was foremost a musical influence. Though I questioned, wrongly his passion for Electronica, and his quest to put Abba in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, we could talk music for hours. He could be sharp, curtly lampooning my interest in British songster Duffy, and questioning my allegiance to BBC Radio 2: ‘Guess you don’t hear much Indie music, huh?’ But we agreed on a lot.

“For a serious person, Kirk’s radio humor could be wacky. He had audio assistance via a Jew’s harp (his Magic Twanger). And his imaginary assistant, Julius T. Funkley, was once elected President of the Bellingham High School associated student body. Wilde was very creative and funny. Thank goodness Steven L. Smith is organizing Kirk’s collection of radio airchecks! “

Bits, Pieces and Examples

Kirk’s airchecks included examples of some of the bits Bruce referenced above. The first cut in the montage that follows is Wilde’s sidekick Julius Funkley. Julius’ vocabulary was restricted to screeching the words “that’s Right!” when Kirk dissed a bubblegum record. And occasionally he chimed-in to concur with one of Wilde’s profound statements. Next there’s a mini-concerto featuring Kirk on the Magic Twanger, followed by an example of the Twanger as an on-air prop (Kirk told me he often covered verbal stumbles by humorously “boinging” them away with the Twanger). After the Twanger, there is a memorable spot I heard live 50 years ago — a Pepsi commercial by Martha & the Vandellas with Kirk hollering “one more time Martha” [a shout-out to Martha Reeves]. Then there’s Wilde — who was an early proponent of jocks sometimes whispering on the air — doing exactly that. This collection ends with a birthday salute to a local teen that highlights the immense talent of that mid-60s singing sensation Mrs. Miller.

Herman with Funkley, Magic Twanger demo, Twanger in use, Pepsi spot with Martha, Whispering Kirk, Happy Birthday with Mrs. Miller. Runtime 2:39

“Ideas man was Kirk,” Scholten continued. “Religion. Politics. Philosophy. In 1966, this 15-year-old spent an afternoon at KPUG. When Kirk drove his 1958 Chevrolet sedan to the studio for his night shift, he was a Goldwater Republican & I was a fighter-jock-wannabe. Becoming firm friends around Seattle and Snohomish County in 1967, the Vietnam War radicalized us into anti-imperialist social democrats or some such. I recall tedious Labor Committee meetings with Lyndon Larouche folks at University of Washington. But Kirk waxed more lyrical, when discussing how elements of Buddhism and Christianity intersected, talk inspired by our Protestant heritages.

“We found time to meet new friends. Kirk became a friend of my brother John, too. When the draft ended, I dropped out of UW and went to work on S, P & S Railroad. Back in Seattle, we set out in my 1963 MG 1100 to visit Kirk’s friend and colleague Danny Holiday in tiny Conway, WA. En route, the left front wheel fell off my car. Hate when that happens! But intrepid Bruce & Kirk reattached the U-joint with baling wire. True story.

“Kirk was a hot rock jock around Puget Sound – KOL, KRKO, KSND, KING, etc. His upper floor apartment near the 42nd Street exit from the I-5 freeway express lanes is still prominent. After rock concerts, he’d let me into the studio for his KING early morning show, later to breakfast. If I was lucky, he’d share vignettes, like how dazzling Grace Slick looked backstage at the Seattle Trips Festival.”

The Seattle Airchecks

The following scoped airchecks, represent Kirk’s time in the Seattle radio market and they augment Bruce’s remarks.

KOL–Dec. 1966. Run time 6:52

KRKO–Dec. 1967. Run time 7:46

KSND–Sept. 1968. Run time 6:32

KING–Dec. 1970. Run time 8:31

“Kirk disappeared to play R & B on Soul Radio KDKO in Denver in 1972,” Bruce recalled. “I didn’t hear him at the time in Denver, but from the recordings now available he did not disappoint. In Denver/Littleton, the African-American listening audience fully accepted Wilde as one of their favorite radio personalities. Most of the time there he was the morning drive jock.” When we visited him 25 years ago, my wife Martha and I will never forget Kirk blasting Ronettes records, in his earlier Denver garage digs, with the same authority with which he played soul records on KPUG. 

“Martha and I lost contact with Kirk for several years and finally reconnected in 1981, after I returned from carpentering in Germany, marrying Martha and moving to Edmonds, WA. Martha visited Kirk in Denver about 1983 on her way to a conference in Wyoming. Then we moved to Germany, then England, finishing our postgraduate degrees. We visited Kirk in Denver 1998ish, where he drove us around the mile high city and treated us to a B & B, instead of offering us space in that garage digs of his– stuffed with 1950s rock & roll bits and his furniture. His record & CD collection was incredible; later he offered it to me, but that was impossible, my living in NE England: Thank goodness he found proper repositories to house it.

“In 2013 Kirk helped me research a book I authored on US Organic Dairy Politics, taking photos of Aurora ‘Organic’ Dairy’s processing plant in Aurora, and corporate offices in Boulder. (His next book is “Dairy Farming in the 21st Century.” One of the last times I spoke with Kirk, he asked how I felt about getting older. Said I wasn’t much bothered, and he replied, ‘You should try it single.’

“After 1988-2022 in Germany and the UK, we are moving back to Seattle. For years we’ve planned driving itineraries including Denver — and seeing Kirk. I know how committed John Kirkland Peffers was to his friends. He was the coolest person I ever met, and he deepened my life with fabulous music. I think he knew how fantastic he was on the radio. I think he should’ve tried harder at stand-up comedy. It could’ve worked. Wherever he is now, wish him happiness.”

Denver Kirk

As Bruce said, in 1972 Kirk moved to Denver and Soul Radio KDKO. Kirk was proud of his work at KDKO. He told me that professionally he reached his 1000 hours (pilot jargon) in Denver/Littleton. Wilde’s audio collection had airchecks from KDKO (and KDKO airchecks are rarely found). The first one is a scoped version of his show in 1973. And the second recording includes spots Kirk produced for two major concerts, Roberta Flack and Ray Charles, when the two stars played in Denver.

KDKO jingles and image liners, April 1973. Run time 5:14

Roberta Flack and Ray Charles concert spots. Run time 2:09

Endings

Kirk’s time in radio ended in 1975. He determined that the pay and benefits that accompanied being a jock were not conducive to a secure and stable future. Wilde took a job driving a school bus and he did that for 27 years. For several years, after I connected with Wilde in 2011, I was part of an email group Kirk organized with friends and family that discussed music and sometimes sports and politics. I only saw Kirk in person twice, both times when I was a kid in the 1960s. We emailed a lot, he wrote some blog posts for this website, and I talked with him on the phone once and we did Zoom meetings twice. The last time we Zoomed was in 2021, at a KPUG staff reunion. Dick Stark, Gary Bruno, Mike Forney, Gary Shannon, Steve West and Kirk (some of KPUG’s earliest top 40 jocks) were all there.

Kirk Wilde passed away in June 2022. He will be missed.

Click on the names below to learn the history of these other popular Pacific NW broadcasters:

Danny Holiday (KPUG & KOL)
Dick Stark (KENY & KPUG) 
Kirk Wilde (KPUG)
Gary Shannon (KPUG &KJR)
Mike Forney (KPUG)
Jay Hamilton (KPUG & KBFW)
Bob O’Neil & Marc Taylor (KPUG)
John Christopher Kowsky (KPUG & KING)
Haines Faye & Rogan Jones (KVOS & KGMI)
Tom Haveman (KENY & KVOS)
Red Robinson (Vancouver B.C.)
Don Hedman (KJR & KAYO Seattle)
Pat O’Day (KJR & KYYX Seattle)
Gary “Taylor” Bruno (KPUG & KJR)