Cards and letters

For a few glorious months, back in 1974, the man you know as Wandering Dave remained in one place long enough to become slightly famous.

He was in Colorado, where country was king – in the great San Luis Valley and on the air at radio station KGIW. It was “Dave Burke’s KGIW Country Fan Club” and from 6 to 11 p.m. I ruled the air waves.

Now, during evening hours, the audience count was low – but that’s not to say non-existent. Advertisers preferred daytime hours when radios were left on all day in kitchens, vehicles and businesses all over the valley – so I had very few “spots” during my show. Competing with prime-time television, I had few illusions that I could do much to grow an audience; so I decided to make the best of the one I had.

I correctly suspected that on-air personalities at KGIW rarely received what could be termed “fan mail.” Their names were known around the valley, but they didn’t attract autograph hounds or groupies.

So, I decided to employ a strategy that might generate some attention. Since my talent, knowledge of music, skill as a broadcaster and other measures of “star quality” were rather low, I employed the only avenue to fame that remained available to me: I sought my audiences’ pity.

Surprisingly, it worked!

The second night I was on the air I announced that I had arrived at the studio a half hour early so I could read and respond to my fan mail.

“I guess the mailman skipped the station today,” I whimpered into the microphone. “Because I didn’t get a single letter.”

Each succeeding night I explained my strategy for managing what I predicted would be a flood of mail – once problems with the post office were cleared up. I described in detail how the poor mail carrier would have to bring several of those huge mail sacks into the studio.

After a few days of this, I allowed a hint of foreboding into the mix. I added a tone of anxiety to my discussion of the fan mail situation. I repeated the station’s mailing address often enough that I must have sounded desperate.

I was on the air six days a week. When I showed up for work after my first Sunday off, I was handed THREE letters. That’s right THREE.

They were addressed to me: Dave Burke’s KGIW Country Fan Club. And though I could tell that others in the station were very curious, the letters had not been opened.

Thank goodness.

The messages – largely from children, it seemed – continued to come in for several days. They typically included language resembling the following:

• Here is your fan letter…
• Don’t worry, it probably took a while before the other KGIW
announcers began receiving letters…
• I am your fan…
• You sound so sad…
• You are my favorite radio star…

OK, many of you are probably thinking, “how pathetic.”

But I’ll take it. For a week or so back in 1974 I was the only radio personality in the San Luis Valley receiving fan mail every day.

I was slightly famous.