By Rick Abercrombie
St. Andrews Optimists welcome a variety of speakers over the course of a typical year, and many of those guests address topics that relate to interaction with the youth of the community.
Jerry Dean Pate, who for many years was a Columbia radio and television personality, recounted his days in broadcasting October 17, along with several humorous anecdotes that he experienced along the way. His presentation was a morph, of sorts, of a resume’, which follows:
1959-61: As a junior and senior in high school, Pate was an announcer on Radio Station WCRE in his native Cheraw. At an even earlier age, Pate had “caught the radio bug” and was given a chance to begin what became a 40-plus year career in broadcasting.
1961: Began his Columbia television activity as a combination announcer/director at WCCA-TV. This station eventually became WOLO and was housed originally in a Quonset hut. That station, with a local cast of costumed hosts, broadcast “Shock Theater,” a weekly horror show format in the 11 pm time slot. It usually aired movies starring old-time horror stars such as Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney, and Boris Karloff, with skits mixed in during commercial breaks.
Mid-1960s: Pate was a deejay on WQXL Radio.
1966-70: WIS-TV news anchor.
1970-77: News Director at WIS Radio.
Also, during that same period, Pate hosted “Time to Talk” at WIS Radio, one of Columbia’s first-ever radio talk shows, which aired in the 9 am – noon time slot. It began as a two-hour show ending at 11 am, but grew to the three hour format because of its popularity.
Pate has also served as the President and CEO of several trade associations, among which are American’s Electric Co-ops and South Carolina Telecommunications and Broadcast Association.
Now retired, Pate meets up monthly with a collection of his former colleagues for meals and fellowship. The group adopted the acronym S.L.O.B.S, or “Slightly Legendary Old Broadcasters.”
Also an author, Pate wrote a book titled “Plagued by Bad Beliefs,” which weaves a story of conditions in South Carolina textile mills during the early to mid-1900s. Pate concentrates on the efforts either to unionize those mills or on the tactics of management/ownership to prevent unionization. While fictional, the research for the book came from Pate’s own experiences and from interviews with local people who had gone through the process. He is available for speaking engagements.
Pictured are Optimist Club President David Kafitz, Jerry Dean Pate, and speaker host Rick Abercrombie.
