Talk Radio

July 1967 was a major turning point in my career. It actually ended up being the beginning of the end of my career as a Disc Jockey. My ratings at KONO were not up to my previous standards. So, management decided to replace me with a hot new prospect. Fortunately, WOAI, with a middle of the road music/news/talk format, needed an all-purpose announcer. I was hired, but the nickname “Skinny” went away.

Guy Harris slotted me to follow “talker” Alan Dale and spin records in the afternoon. However, the plan quickly went in another direction when Alan Dale was rushed to the hospital for major surgery.

Harris was in a bind with no one to replace Dale except ME! I wasn’t too sure how things would work out, because my only previous “talk” experience was years earlier, in my capacity as an Air Force Staff Sergeant at KENS on weekends hosting a weekly Lackland Air Force Base interview program with military personnel.

Even though Bill Traphagen was the Program Director, Harris decided to replace Alan Dale with Don Green. That way he would have some time to think and plan for the immediate future of “talk” on WOAI.

All of us were very nervous about what was about to happen. On the first day of the experiment, a few minutes after I opened the Alan Dale Show, Harris showed up at the control room glass sporting a grin from ear to ear. Then he gave me a “thumbs up” and I knew immediately that my life would never be the same.

Dale spent weeks recuperating and I talked on and on waiting for his return. In the meantime, Harris and Traphagen started preparing for Alan’s return.

Their plan was for me to have a talk show of my own following Alan’s morning talk show. This was a “first” in the San Antonio market and a unique situation in broadcasting in those early days of developing “talk” formats. My program was called “Town Meeting with Don Green.” They must have believed in me because they spared no expense in promoting both the show and me.

Later, I left WOAI for an out-of-state management/ownership opportunity, which was a disappointment to Harris. But…I can tell you it was a huge relief for me. That experience convinced me that I didn’t have the stomach for a continuing career in “talk” radio.

Don Green

“Talker” Don Green

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