Radio

We probably already felt it, but from radio stations we knew that teenagers were a big thing.

Teenagers were almost adults (independent; tall), but not serious. They had money, from allowances or jobs, but didn't have to spend it on food or housing, or give it to school or church; therefore they could have fun with it. This is where the radio came in.

There were radio stations for adults, of course, and for news, and sports, but the loudest and liveliest were for teenagers. WINS, WABC, and WMCA were the big ones.

Teen radio was full of commercials: for cola, clothes, Clearasil, concerts, batteries, cameras, the Navy, the Daily News, Palisades Amusement Park, Thunderbird, and much more. One learned from Thunderbird's ad that it was The Word, and that the price was thirty twice. Lots of ads had good jingles, which could blur the line between ads and songs.

That reinforced the point that everything was for sale. Of course, the songs themselves were for sale, at record stores. The Hot List changed every week, so it kept listeners spending money to keep current and cool.

Everything was a brand. Every station had a swingin' name for its announcements for time and temperature. The DJs had nicknames or names that sounded like nicknames. They even had team names. WMCA was the Good Guys. WABC was the All-Americans.

And you were branded, too. You were a Cousin of Cousin Bruce Morrow. You were Kimosabe to Danny Dan Daniels, the Tall Talented Texan.

As a kid, I didn't care too much about the reasons why. I didn't have money to buy anything. I didn't covet anything. I just enjoyed the tumult of it all. It was a sonic Mad Magazine, something entertaining that your parents didn't like, which of course lent appeal. And even though it seemed to be a lot about spending money and getting things, itself it was free, and fun, all day.