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PAUL ELLIS - Middays 10 AM - 2 PM
E-mail: pellis@softrock941.com
I'm Paul Ellis, ace radio announcer and all-around nice guy and host of
the Soft Rock 94.1 midday show. It's my job to play Soft Rock favorites
for you every weekday; after 35 plus years behind the microphone,
I'm very tired and hoping for a day off.
A little bit about myself. I grew up on a farm near Wapakoneta, Ohio. I
have three brothers and two sisters. After my high school graduation, I
attended Ohio State University. I took medicine for four years. I feel
much better now.
I first dreamed of being a radio announcer (don't call me a disc jockey)
back in 1967. I was listening to Bob Seivers, a popular announcer on my
favorite radio station: WOWO, Fort Wayne, Indiana. I distinctly remember
thinking what a fun job that would be. So, from that day forth, I dedicated
my life to becoming a radio announcer, by drinking coffee in large
quantities and ceasing to lift anything heavier than a small stack of albums.
My dream of radio fortune was derailed for a time by a three year hitch in
the Army (ours). Through a series of odd circumstances and quirks of fate,
I ended up in Military Intelligence. I spent 13 months in South Korea help-
ing keep the North Korean Commie hordes at bay, then I was transferred to
the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. I think they transferred me there to keep
an eye on me after the infamous noodle incident. (By the way, they were
never able to prove that.)
My military career over, I started my first radio job at a small station in
Celina, Ohio at a whopping $75.00 per week. The Porsche would have to
wait. More radio jobs followed in Columbus, Ohio and Lexington,
Kentucky. Then in 1982, my dream came true. I was hired at WOWO, Fort
Wayne and worked with the announcer who inspired me to become an
announcer. (See paragraph 3.) Well, what does one do after their dream
comes true? Get another dream, of course. After all, aren't dreams just
unfulfilled wishes. (Did I just quote Cinderella?) Anyway, my dream now
is to wake up every morning. If I can do that, the day is off to a great start.
After six wonderful years at WOWO, there were two not so wonderful
years in Toledo, then on to Dayton, Ohio in 1990. It was there that my
wife Deborah and I decided to stay while our three kids were in school.
Speaking of my kids, they are the greatest. Ben lives in Chicago and is
an important cog in the telecommunications industry (well, he sells
phones for AT&T.) Erin is a registered dietitian at a hospital in
Kissimmee (I encouraged her to move there so I would have a free place
to stay when I visit Disney World) and Andrew is in college in Ohio
pursuing his dream. (He hasn't told us what that dream is yet, but we hope
it doesn't have anything to do with moving back in after he graduates.) Our move south is something Deborah and I have planned for a long time.
We both hate those cold midwest winters. I will be at Soft Rock 94.1
playing music for you for a long time, or until I win the Lottery.
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