Wendy Williams Hunter is an American former broadcaster, media personality, and writer. From 2008 to 2021, she hosted the nationally syndicated television talk show The Wendy Williams Show.
Thomas Randolph Bell was an American record producer, arranger, and songwriter known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. Hailed as one of the most prolific R&B songwriters and producers ever, Bell found success crafting songs for Delfonics, Stylistics, and Spinners. In June 2006, Bell was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2016, Bell was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.
Kenneth Gamble and Leon A. Huff are an American songwriting and production duo credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre of the 1970s. In addition to forming their own label, Philadelphia International Records, Gamble and Huff have written and produced 175 gold and platinum records, earning them an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the non-performer category in March 2008.
WUSL is a commercial radio station licensed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It carries a mainstream urban radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia The studios and offices are on Presidential Boulevard in Bala Cynwyd.
WTEL, branded "Philadelphia's BIN 610", is a commercial all-news AM radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group, the station is currently operated by iHeartMedia, Inc. as part of their Philadelphia cluster under a long-term local marketing agreement. The station services the Greater Philadelphia and Delaware Valley area as the market affiliate of the Black Information Network.
WDAS is an AM radio station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Owned and operated by iHeartMedia, the station airs a sports format as an affiliate of Fox Sports Radio. WDAS's studios and offices are located in Bala Cynwyd.
Rhythmic oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, R&B, disco, or dance genres of music. Playlists can span from the 1960s through the 2000s and, depending on market conditions, may be designed for African-American or Hispanic audiences. It is also referred to as "Jammin' Oldies" or "Music From Back in the Day" by various radio stations. Since the late 2000s, much of the library in the "rhythmic oldies" format has been adopted by the classic hits format. A variation on the format is urban oldies.
Alleen Mae Beller, also known as Sally Starr, was a prominent 1950s and 1960s celebrity television personality. Using a cowgirl persona, she appealed to local TV audiences of several generations of children through American radio, Broadway stage, movies and as a recording artist for more than sixty years. Fans remained loyal in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, and embraced her cowgirl personality as part of their own family identity, and sometimes referred to her as "Aunt Sally" or "Our Gal Sal."
Marilyn Marshall was an American singer of jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. She toured throughout the United States, Canada and the Bahamas. Marshall was a veteran of stage and television and received “Entertainer of The Year” honors three years in a row in her home county of Burlington County, New Jersey.
Sheila Fortson, is an American television journalist, radio host, and media/communications specialist. Fortson worked as an entertainment and community affairs reporter for The Lehigh Valley's Service Electric Cable TV 2 News, located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. She hosted the radio show The Ladies Room with Sheila & Shay, on WIFI 1460 AM in Burlington, New Jersey. She currently works in public relations and as a freelance television host. To date, she is noted as the only African American on-air reporter to have worked at SECTV in the station's history.
Marian Benton Tasco is an American politician who served on the Philadelphia City Council. A member of the Democratic Party, Tasco represented Philadelphia's ninth district for twenty-eight years.
Black Music Appreciation Month is an annual celebration of African-American music in the United States. It was initiated as Black Music Month by President Jimmy Carter who, on June 7, 1979, decreed that June would be the month of Black music.After the announcement by Carter, the bill never passed until 2000 when activist Dyana Williams' 10 years of effort persuaded Congress. Williams played an essential role in the creation and solidification of Black Music Month, along with Kenneth Gamble and Ed Wright.
Gertrude Haynes was an American news reporter. She became the nation's first African American TV weather reporter when she was hired by WXYZ-TV in Detroit in 1963. In 1965, she became the first African American TV news reporter for KYW-TV, in Philadelphia, where she continued until her retirement in 1999. Haynes, who received an Emmy Award as well as two Lifetime Achievement Awards during her 33-year tenure at KYW-TV, was hosting an online show called the "Trudy Haynes Show" at the time of her death.
People of Irish descent form the largest ethnic group in the city of Philadelphia and its surrounding counties. The Irish have lived in Philadelphia since the pre-American Revolution period. Irishmen had participated in pro-Revolutionary activities in Philadelphia during the Revolutionary War. Like many American cities in the 19th century, Philadelphia, which was once a Quaker stronghold, changed dramatically with the influx of European immigrants. The first major influx of Irish came in 1844 from rural areas, spurred by the Irish Famine. Because of the Quaker belief and pledge of religious tolerance, Irish Catholics and Protestants, among others, made the city incredibly diverse. Philadelphia at the time had a need for industrial labor, and at the time Philadelphia was becoming a major industrial center in the United States. Irish took industrial positions. In the 1840s and 1850s, anti-Catholic sentiment grew against the Irish, and eventually led up to riots, such as the Philadelphia nativist riots and the Lombard Street riot. Eventually the Irish gained financial and social status in the latter half of the 19th century and founded institutions during the period. Many Irish Philadelphians would later move on to other major Americans cities, such as Detroit, Milwaukee, Seattle, and St. Louis.
Lydia Nicole is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer based out of Los Angeles, California. Her career in the entertainment industry began in 1972 with the Inner City Broadcasting Corporation at New York City R&B station, WBLS-FM. In 1981, she made her debut as an actress guest starring on The Greatest American Hero. Nicole is best known for her role as Rafaela in Stand and Deliver, and her current project, web series Common Sense Mamita.
Profiles of African-American Success is an American documentary web series produced by Frances Presley-Rice and filmmaker Bayer Mack for their production company Block Starz Music Television. The documentary series features short biographies of African-American businesses and entrepreneurs.
Florence "Flo" Anthony is a gossip columnist, syndicated radio host, TV contributor and author. She is an African-American reporter who writes for the gossip page of the Philadelphia Sun. Anthony resides in the East Harlem section of New York City.
Mary Dudley, known as Mary Dee, was an American disc jockey who is widely considered the first African-American woman disc jockey in the United States. She grew up in Homestead, Pennsylvania, and then studied at Howard University for two years. After having her family, she attended Si Mann School of Radio in Pittsburgh, and on August 1, 1948, went on the air at WHOD radio. Gaining national attention, Dee broadcast from a storefront, "Studio Dee", in the Hill District of Pittsburgh from 1951 to 1956. She moved her show, Movin' Around with Mary Dee, to Baltimore and broadcast from station WSID from 1956 to 1958. In 1958, she moved to Philadelphia and hosted Songs of Faith on WHAT until her death in 1964.
