WRVR 5th Anniversary Greetings

This is John Chancellor speaking from the Washington Studios of the Voice of America. It's a pleasure for me to send greetings to WRVR on its fifth anniversary. When I lived in New York during your first years on the air, I enjoyed your programs. They were entertaining, informative, and audacious. In our society, the broadcasting spectrum means more than the distance from one end of the dial to the other. It means that broadcasters have a responsibility to serve the needs of different kinds of listeners. To do this, under present circumstances, it seems to me, requires a collaboration between the commercial networks and the independent non-commercial stations.

The networks can take us to the scene of major events and bring us a wide and often thoughtful range of opinion and analysis. But this output, however worthwhile, must be balanced by intelligent programming for intelligent listeners who need more specific information. WRVR has served this purpose well and with a high regard for quality. It has concerned itself with the central issues of our time, in programs that reflect the gravity of the issues and the good sense of the audience. At this point in history, communication is both more difficult and more important than it has ever been. WRVR has acknowledged that fact and merits, congratulations. It is my great pleasure to be among the well-wishes on the occasion of the 5th anniversary since WRVR went on the air to spread the gospel of good music.

It is so important to all music, to performance, to composers, to listeners first of all, to have these wonderful stations of which WRVR is one of the best. We find that our entire concert life has taken on a new dimension since the days when FM stations began to really saturate the great cities of this country with the best of music. I recall that when I was still a resident of this area before going to Boston, discovering this new station at Riverside Church through Q Magazine where I read always the FM programs to select my listening.

Then I was intrigued by the original and fine program making which this station invariably boasted and thus I am today congratulating them and wishing them many happy returns, not really as an outsider or guest but one of probably the earliest listeners when they first went on the air. May they broadcast for a good long time and always very fine music. Warm greetings and felicitations to our distinguished neighbour across the Hudson from station WBGO. As you sought and found a place for your kind of broadcasting at the top, you have lifted radio everywhere to new heights. May this be the first of many five year observances

for station WRVR. I would like to salute Riverside radio WRVR for its unique contribution to the greater community of New York City and its environs. It is certainly within the tradition and history of Riverside Church that it would create and carry through successfully this unique contribution. Those of us in the national conference of Christians and Jews are particularly appreciative of what has been accomplished because of our mutual concern with Riverside Church and Riverside Radio WRVR in developing the ecumenical spirit between the religious groups and also the ameleration of intergroup animosities. As you go into your sixth year, we compliment

you for your past and wish you well in the future as you attempt to ameliorate man's and humanity to man. A fifth anniversary is indeed a milestone with genuine admiration for the educational and cultural contributions of WRVR, the Reptory Theatre of Lincoln Center sends warm greetings and congratulations. We are all too familiar with the need for artistic continuity and maturity. A Reptory Theatre is neither one play, one year or one season. Not to five years of radio mean that the job is done. If the job is the challenging one, WRVR has taken on. The raising and maintaining of cultural levels is an unending process. WRVR has

set a standard. Its awards are richly deserved. This is Jim Amici of WHN New York, with good wishes to WRVRFM on its fifth anniversary. We congratulate the staff and management for the outstanding educational and cultural contributions to the community and offer them our best hopes for the future, filled with more Peabody awards for generous and meaningful service in the public interest. For the American National Theatre and Academy and as its executive administrator, I'm particularly pleased to have this opportunity to say happy fifth birthday WRVR. As a listener, my acquaintance with WRVR's programming is usually as accompaniment to my reading time at home of an evening.

However earlier this year, I became more intimately knowledgeable of both the work and vitality of the station. When I was able to be helpful to the fine series of programs, the performing arts, problems and prospects brought about by General Manager Jack Summerfields, Perceptivity and Enthusiasm. Programming of this kind in the Theatre Capital of Our Nation bodes nothing but good for this great metropolitan area that WRVR serves and for the theatre life of our community and the United States as a whole. I could wish that one day I might be on hand to say happy 50th anniversary WRVR. Certainly this fine station will multiply its first five years to 50 and beyond to the distinct advantage of the cultural life of our people and our nation. Assuredly then, the word is Godspeed. The trustees, deans and staff of New York City's Riverside Radio WRVR are to be congratulated for their great achievements during the past five years. Through their

imagination and determination, they have provided a rich repast for millions of Americans who wish to be nourished both mentally and spiritually with the great works of man. The awards and national recognition which WRVR FM has received during the past years are many. The most meritorious was for and I quote, lifting the entire moral, intellectual and cultural levels of radio. It has always been my conviction that radio has enormous opportunities and responsibilities for leadership in the overall broadcasting world. WRVR has demonstrated what enlightened leadership can accomplish for the public at all age levels with a non-commercial FM radio station. I think the key factor in this notable leadership is a combination of intelligence, creativeness and fearlessness which has been applied rigorously and consistently

to produce broadcast programs of excellence. Because of their quality, they have been heard by hundreds of other audiences through not only this country but many others. In some way, radio has the power to dramatize more effectively than television and I might add at a much lower cost. With radio, the listener is able to conjure up his own pictures which frequently prove to be more pleasing and thus more permanent than those projected onto a screen. This is certainly true of music and large measure. And so I wish to salute those responsible for Riverside Radio's rapid rise to national fame. And finally, I wish to say that during the next five years, I sincerely believe that this talented group of people will establish new directions for an even more productive

use of this valuable medium of communication and for the general welfare of all people. It's a privilege and the pleasure to send congratulations from Holland to Riverside Radio on this fifth anniversary. I counted a privilege because WRVR is a station that commands great respect. I counted a pleasure because of the good and amicable collaboration between our two organizations in so many fields. I need only mention that it is Riverside Radio which picks up by Transatlantic Cable, the transmissions of our topical programs European Review and Transatlantic Profile, making Riverside an indispensable biweekly link between radio and the member stations of the National Association of Educational Broadcasters.

This first lustrum is an important milestone both for WRVR and its listeners because in the field of mass communication, competition for public favor is keener than ever between radio and TV and between radio stations. In the midst of the struggle, WRVR came on the scene with an entirely individual approach, which at first was regarded by many as a sure way to failure. For WRVR put quality programs on the air. WRVR wanted popularity but refused to popularize. The wisdom behind this principle is evident in the success it has brought, a large circle of faithful listeners in sophisticated New York, a large number of distinctions including the coveted P body award and a nationwide reputation as witness the respectable number of stations which carry WRVR's productions. Riverside

Radio has shown beyond that that the taste of the public may not and must not be underrated. On behalf of Radio Naderont, the Dutch World Broadcasting System, I express the hope that in the next five years, WRVR's hearing will increase to the same degree and that we here in Hilverson may look forward to many, many more years, a friendly and fruitful collaboration. This is Lappel Stukowski, the conductor and music director of the American Symphony Orchestra of New York and I am wishing for WRVR everything that is good, culturally, artistically and for the sound of the music in the religious ceremonies, for discussions

on important subjects, for everything that has to do with the arts and with the cultural future of this great country. Here's a pat on the head for WRVR, a five-year-old from KSAC in Manhattan, Kansas, a senior citizen with 41 years of service. WRVR has shown the old timers of thing or two with the great variety, excellence and timeliness of its programming. Through national distribution of WRVR programs, the radio fare of our station, as well as other radio stations around the country, has been enriched and a new standard of excellence set for the industry. The record of WRVR has been outstanding to date.

We all look forward to its continued success in the years to come. Congratulations to Jack Summerfield and the staff of WRVR from KSAC in Manhattan, Kansas. In five brief years, Riverside Radio WRVR has achieved a record of recognition unique in the annals of broadcasting, as one who was proud to have hailed the launching of this station on New Year's Day in 1961. I am both pleased and proud of the outstanding service it has performed in serving a discriminating listening audience in the metropolitan area. This achievement has done much to lift the entire moral and intellectual tone of radio broadcasting and my very best wishes go to the entire staff, with the hope that new areas of broadcasting excellence will be opened by WRVR in the future.

This is George Skinner, station manager of WNBC Radio, the NBC flagship station in New York. Compared to the history of mankind, five years is but a flick of the eyelid. But in the broadcast industry, which is only about 40 years old, five years is an impressively long time. WRVR, as a trailblazer in FM broadcasting, has every right to be proud of its accomplishments. It is pioneered in developing radio broadcasting along lines that have aided and abetted the much needed diversification, so necessary for radio's growth and development. Here in New York we need all types of radio, rock and roll, popular music, quality music, talk, conversation, and the adventuresome programming that has distinguished WRVR. So all on its fifth anniversary, may I, on behalf of WNBC, join the many folks in New York

who wish WRVR many more years of significant contributions to radio broadcasting. This is Erwin Kahnem, Editor-in-Chief of the Christian Science Monitor. There are many reasons why I feel privileged to extend very warm greetings to station WRVR on its fifth anniversary. First of course because it is a most distinguished and discriminating voice on the FM air. Second because as a citizen, I believe earnestly in diversity of voices. A fresh, different, distinctive, or responsible voice is caused for congratulation to listeners as well as speakers. Where does a newspaper man? I congratulate respectfully a skillful and courageous exponent of radio journalism. And finally, as editor of a newspaper sponsored by a church, I am delighted to salute a radio station which is sponsored by a church.

I believe this kind of projection of the responsibility which comes from a background of spiritual dedication is very important in these days. WRVR, like the newspaper I edit, speaks not in denominational terms, not in religious idiom, but in an objective commitment to clarifying and enriching public thought. Happy Birthday WRVR from WBFO, the FM Radio Service of the State University of New York at Buffalo. We in Western New York look to New York City for leadership in many areas and happily for us leadership in non-commercial radio. We are a minority group in mass media, and WRVR has done for FM Radio the same thing it has done for the human rights movement, made it visible, and an object of personal commitment. By making an impact in the largest, most competitive city, it has given us the courage and incentive

to make our voices heard in our own communities. To help us realize, with all the scramble for a place in the market, there is also a need for a marketplace of ideas in the mass media. The staff at WBFO wishes Jack Summerfield and his staff at WRVR the very best for continued success. This is Howard Cook, President of International House. As one of your neighbors who wrote in support of WRVR's initial application for a broadcast license, it gives me particular pleasure to be able to say on the occasion of your fifth anniversary, how welcome you are here, and how pleased we are about the kind of programming you have done over the years, which has given so much pleasure to such a diversified audience. Even though your studio's tower over international house, you are not sitting in an ivory tower.

Rather, WRVR is a vantage point for producing cultural and informational programs of real value to the Morningside Heights community, as well as to the Greater New York area. I salute you and your entire staff for what you are to this community, and I wish you continued success. This is Elliott Sang at Chairman of the Board of WQXR AM and FM, the radio station of the New York Times. It hardly seems five years ago that I welcome WRVR to the New York community of good radio stations. Yet it is, and in that five years WRVR has earned a place which fills a special need for the people of New York. It has brought more good programs to the community, and we all agree that New York can use them. There is a place in New York for better-run educational stations such as WRVR.

There is also a place for good programming by commercial stations such as WQXR, if I may be modest for a moment. I sincerely hope that WRVR will have many more successful years ahead. Our congratulations on this anniversary to WRVR and its sponsor, the Riverside Church. Morningside Heights is justly proud to have such a distinguished member of its community as station WRVR. On this fifth anniversary, International House, its immediate neighbor, salutes the cultural and educational contribution of WRVR. Taking a firm lead five years ago, what has proven to be a hearty infant embarked on life for an ideal similar to that which motivated the director general of the British Broadcasting Corporation several years ago to raise the sights and contents of radio broadcasting. The BBC then inaugurated the now famous third program in contrast to the light program

which specialized in soap operas, etc. and the home service which had its aim the middle pitch. The third program was designed to educate, to raise the level. Listener Research in England has proven that their aim is now well on route to solid accomplishment. New York City is to be congratulated upon its grounding of a license to station WRVR to undertake a similar quality approach designed to suit the taste of the intelligent listener. It is therefore with sanguine heart and mind that we at International House will listen to the unfolding of the sixth and successive years and the future assured accomplishment of WRVR, cheers and best wishes. Greetings and congratulations WRVR. Your fifth anniversary is indeed an occasion for celebration and rejoicing.

Although you are relatively a newcomer in the field of broadcasting, your programming from its very inception has been distinguished and substantial, a challenge and a guideline to your fellow broadcasters. You set your sights to entertain and enlighten the people of our city with fine types of music, religious services and far-ranging discussions of public affairs, art and educational subjects. The good taste, the careful balancing and the high caliber of these diverse efforts have one for you a large and grateful audience. To quote your dedicated station manager, Mr. Jack Summerfield, good programs find their audience at every economic and educational level. Your programs have enriched people in all strata of our society in New York and beyond its

borders. What higher objective can there be in a democracy for mass media like radio and TV? For documentary, Birmingham, testament of non-violence, which won an Armstrong award, is in itself a testament to the resourcefulness, imagination and the deep sense of social responsibility shown in the conduct of your station. On behalf of WEVD, congratulations again for a job well done. This is Burton Paulu, Director of Radio and Television at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. During the five years WRBR has been on the air, we educational broadcasters have been

enormously impressed with its work and its progress. New York is a city of tremendous radio resources, yet it also is a city served by many radio stations. The remarkable thing about WRBR is the way it has found its role, developing certain programs not produced by other stations and devising new and better ways of doing other things which one might think had reached their permanent format. Congratulations WRBR on a memorable first five years and best wishes for at least 50 more. How do you do ladies and gentlemen?

Those are the century-old chimes of New York's historic city hall, and this is Seymour Siegel, the Director of Radio Communications for the City of New York. No one expects a radio station like Athena to spring full blown from the brain of Zeus. We know that outside the realm of mythology everything needs time to grow, to develop and to mature. The surprising thing is that WRBR has reached maturity in a brief span of five years. Our credo here at the Municipal Broadcasting System has always been adult, mature and literate programming. I'm happy to say that we do not have a monopoly on that concept. In the past five years WRBR has served its listeners well. It has concentrated on serious music, progressive jazz and enlightened discussion. It has faithfully tackled community problems, spoken out on city affairs, and was catapulted international prominence with a six-part documentary on civil rights.

Now that's an outstanding record of achievement. How many other five-year-olds can make that claim? WRBR has accomplished a great deal, it has much to be proud of. I'm sure everyone at the station knows this. And I'm sure it's not going to go to their collective heads. Because if they ever begin to feel tired or smug, they've got to remember that if they've accomplished so much in the last five years, the community expects them to be able to do a great deal more in the next five years. They'll have to apply the same energy and zeal if not more. As Director of Radio Communications for the City of New York and as Director of WNYC and speaking personally as well as officially, I joined with all the staff here at the Municipal Broadcasting System in saluting WRBR on a half decade of service to Metropolitan New York. Five years filled with distinguished cultural and informational programs.

Happy birthday WRBR, happy birthday to all of you. Hello, this is Greer Johnson of Q Magazine. As music, FM recordings and tapes editor of Q, I deal with more than 30 FM stations weekly, 52 weeks a year. In those Riverside Radio, WRBR has consistently impressed me with its programming contributions. It seems to me that these reflect throughout the broadcasting day and night, high taste and intelligence, adventurousness, even creative daring. It is with a sense of privilege and pleasure that I extend my congratulations on the occasion of WRBR's fifth anniversary, we are all still in luck. At the time of the planning stages of WRBR, I was the program and music director of WBAI

FM, which was also relatively new. Jack Summerfield and I determined to cooperate whenever possible, and eventually the two non-commercial stations did many programs together, including some exciting stereo broadcasts. I must admit that I wondered then with some lack of insight whether a church station, even with the known quantity of Jack Summerfield as manager, could serve the community in a non-parochial way. In the past five years, we have all learned and thoroughly enjoyed the scope of this wonderful station, ranging from the problems of the deep south to local issues and airing every broadcastable aspect of all the arts, and especially music. There is no need for me to further recite the accomplishments of WRBR. They have been overtly recognized by the industry.

What I do at my most is the tone of the station, the complete lack of pretentiousness, and of grand announcements of purpose. There is the willingness to learn from others and to use the raw materials provided by the city, wherever possible, and in the most professional manner. Good luck, Jack, and congratulations to all who have made the work of you and your staff possible. Hi, this is Father O'Connor, and in case you're kind of wondering who he might be, I'm not just off the street at Claremont, I have near anything like that. I do a regular jazz program for WRBR, and I happened to belong to a fringe group called the Roman Catholic community, but I think what is my greetings to WRBR and their fifth anniversary would consist of, to be first of all, gratitude of being able to work for them and to do some jazz along with Ed Beach and Max Cole, but more even that I think is to express my gratitude for all the wonderful types of programs that I've heard over the

years, that they have been on the air, things that have to do with civil rights, with the United Nations, with wonderful concerts, and even most recently, the concert of sacred music that was performed by Duke Ellington and Broadcast from the Earth Avenue Presbyterian Church. These are the good things, but more than that I think too is I want to express my gratitude to all those people who are in the church behind the station, who kind of make this thing all take place. I never know really how to express gratitude to people who do it every day and who do your favors every day, and I imagine that this is mainly the problem with most of us, but there's a staff, it's all under the direction of a man, but the name of Jack Summerfield, who makes this happen, and behind him are interested people who provide the funds that make it all occur, and this means then that you have a community of people and people who are struggling to maintain good things in the hectic life that most of us are involved in here in New York City.

I'm grateful to them, and I welcome also the wonderful opportunities that they have given me belonging to a different sort of background, I suppose, religiously, but they show how the ecumenical spirit, and they started it long before it became very fashionable to make and allow people to express their viewpoints, to support one another, to participate with one another, and thus to kind of bring the good news of our lives a little bit more into reality. So, my best to WRVR and their fifth anniversary in a hope that will be around and listening for many, many more years. My name is Eugene Smith, Executive Secretary of the World Council of Churches in the United States. I'm happy to have an opportunity to bring congratulations to Riverside Radio, WRVR on this occasion of its fifth anniversary. Five years is not a long time in history, either of a city or of a radio station, but

these five years of broadcasting by Riverside Radio, WRVR have been long enough for it to demonstrate how faithfully it has lived up to the high hopes with which the station was launched five years ago. The broadcasts of informational material, fine arts, educational and religious programs, day in and day out have been sustained with a high standard of excellence. The maintenance of such a standard for the first five years of this station's services comes as splendid, I agree, for the years that are yet ahead. I happen to find the words of greetings by my immediate predecessor, Dr. Roswell P. Barnes when the station first came onto the air. I quote him now, weary of trivial and superficial excitement. Many of us hope to find your programs spiritually helpful, intellectually interesting, aesthetically

satisfying and entertainingly intriguing. We hope you will not evade controversial subjects, but we'll deal with any matter with regard to which ignorance and confusion are dangerous. These are high standards to be set, but even by these criteria, this station has carried on with very high effectiveness. The fifth anniversary of Riverside Radio, WRVR is a fitting time to congratulate all those who are responsible for maintaining the station and for providing these programs on their significant service to this great city. On behalf of the British Broadcasting Corporation, it's my privilege to extend greetings to Riverside Radio, WRVR, on this anniversary.

Visitors to Broadcasting House in London are greeted in the entrance hall by Latin inscription. In English, its message is this. This temple of the Arts and Muses is dedicated to Almighty God by the first governors of Broadcasting in the year 1931, Sir John Reath being Director General. It is their prayer, the good seed sown, may bring forth a good harvest, that all things hostile to peace or purity may be banished from this house, and that the people, inclining their ear to whatsoever things are beautiful and honest and of good report, may tread the path of wisdom and uprightness. This prayer is present in everything that Riverside Radio sets out to do. It was with the highest hope, tempered with some doubt because of the magnitude of the

challenge that Riverside Radio's neighbors here on Morningside Heights, tuned in on WRVR for the first time some five years ago. Right we were to hope and foolish to doubt for WRVR has brought us excellence, brightened with excitement and strengthened with conscience. Our joy is great and our pride justified as we offer a hearty salute to WRVR on its fifth birthday. Many things about WRVR have made deep impressions on its audience, an audience which happily reaches far into the metropolitan area beyond the boundaries of Morningside. Perhaps most impressive of all is the maturity into which WRVR has managed to grow in so brief a time. We've heard courageous programs which have documented important struggles of our time, notably for example the struggle for civil rights.

We've rejoiced in uncompromising standards and music, ambitious programming which included the famous Tuscanini broadcasts and pioneering programs of the best in jazz. We've been challenged by departures from worn out concepts of routine radio and attempts to try something new but always carefully planned and skillfully executed. We've been stimulated by provocative discussions conducted at the highest cultural and intellectual and inspirational levels by some of the finest minds and talents not only of our own Morningside community but of the whole metropolitan region. And because of all these things, and speaking for my associates here at Columbia as well as for myself personally, I'm delighted and proud that WRVR is our neighbor. Our heartiest congratulations for having reached this milestone. We look forward eagerly to many, many years of continued dedication by WRVR to the excellence and achievement.

I understand that station WRVR is to celebrate its fifth anniversary on January 1, 1966. It has good reason to be proud of its five-year record. Those of us in the non-commercial educational broadcasting field think of WRVR as one of the outstanding operations in the country, and I'm sure that the important factor in this development is the ability of its general manager Jack Summerfield. WRVR not only serves the New York area with educational, cultural and informative programs unavailable elsewhere, but by the exchange of programs through the facilities of the National Association of Educational Broadcasters has contributed greatly to the improvement of radio across the nation. The excellence of its programs coupled with imagination and progressiveness are, I am sure, responsible for its latest honor, the coveted Peabody Award.

So we salute you, WRVR, and believe the next five years will be equally successful. This is Carlos Mosley, managing director of the New York Philharmonic. It is a great pleasure to extend anniversary congratulations to the Riverside Radio, WRVR, for five years of enterprising and imaginative activity. I feel personally most grateful for the immense boons at FM Radio has brought to the realm of musical loan, exploring a vast range of repertoire, giving us new and interesting artists and of course more faithful musical sound. Each station that dedicates itself to substantial programming in the arts serves us well. And WRVR has my profound thanks for the job it has done so outstandingly. This is Harvey Herb, station manager of KLRN, speaking from the University of Texas in

Austin. WRVR FM and its general manager, Jack Summerfield, are to be congratulated upon the impressive record which this fifth anniversary brings to our attention. Although WRVR is a relative newcomer to the field of educational broadcasting, the impressive accomplishments of this station are such that many venerable colleagues have had to step aside and look up to the new standards of excellence set by Summerfield and WRVR. We send our sincere congratulations and our appreciation for setting the outstanding example which you have set. We're holding the guide on high for all to see and for leading all who follow in the paths of excellence and broadcasting. Many happy returns WRVR on this your fifth birthday, with best wishes from the staff of KLRN and radio television at the University of Texas. This is Rudolf Bing, general manager of the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

It is a pleasure to salute Riverside, Radio, WRVR on the occasion of its fifth anniversary in spite of the so-called cultural explosion, the supply of good music on radio and television seems to be diminishing with alarming speed. The Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic had to have their own networks provided for them to stay on the air. For this we are profoundly grateful to our sponsor, Texaco. While my schedule here at the Metropolitan prevents my being a regular listener to your station, I see your program listings and am impressed with the high standard of your offerings to the public, not only of New York but in many other parts of the nation as well. Particularly appropriate as we begin this new year to call attention to the high purposes and achievements of WRVR and I wish you many more years of success.

This is Ralph Brent, president of Radio New York Worldwide, International Short Waves Station, WRUL. I am delighted to salute WRVR on the occasion of its sixth birthday. We at Radio New York Worldwide know very well about the fine programs of WRVR because we have worked closely with this fine FM station on many occasions as WRVR broadcast programs which we had produced originally for our overseas audiences and we in turn broadcast programs from WRVR which we felt were representative of the finest in broadcasting from the United States. The people of New York City are fortunate in having such a forthright and courageous broadcasting station as WRVR on their FM dials. WRVR truly represents forward thinking and broadcasting, diversity and viewpoint, integrity

and reporting. We are proud to be associated with such a responsible venture and we congratulate WRVR on five years of enlightened effort. This is Sally Swing Shelley, information officer of UNESCO that is the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization in New York. I want to wish station WRVR a happy birthday on their fifth anniversary. Like UNESCO, WRVR has been working for understanding in the community, in their local community, as UNESCO works in the world. Keep going WRVR. This is Hartford Gunn, General Manager of WGBH FM and TV in Boston.

On behalf of the 14 colleges, universities and cultural institutions that make up our broadcasting council here in Boston, I would like to extend our congratulations to Mr. Jack Summerfield and his staff at WRVR in New York City on this most auspicious occasion. We in Boston have a special interest in the work of WRVR FM in New York City. As former Assistant General Manager for Radio and Boston, Mr. Summerfield made many significant contributions to the development of our own operation, and under his guidance, WRVR is making a meaningful contribution toward fulfilling the needs of the listeners in the New York area. We are looking forward to continue to association with the staff of WRVR, which will result in better programs being offered to all our listeners. Again, our best wishes to WRVR in New York, and a sincere wish for a happy and prosperous new year.

It's great pleasure for me as President of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts to pay tribute to one of our city's important cultural agencies, Riverside Radio WRVR. For the past five years, your station is brought into our homes the very best of musical literature, as well as searching analyses of the arts. I think all of us who are concerned with meeting the cultural needs of the people are aware of the important role that FM Radio can fill. Now that FM and even tape recordings have come to the automobile, perhaps even the traffic problems of New York seem less burdensome. Radio along with the recording industry can make a great contribution by helping to develop audiences. Planning by electronic means to great artists playing the works of great composers creates a hunger that can only be satisfied by hearing those artists in actual performance in a concert

hall. As a non-profit agency subject to no criteria except those of excellence, Riverside Radio WRVR has been an especially favored position to contribute this end and it most certainly has. My heartiest congratulations go to Jack D. Summerfield and the members of the staff at Riverside Radio WRVR, as I enter upon that six year of service to the people of our city. This is Dr. Frank Woolsey, Associate Dean of the Albany Medical College and Director of the Colleges FM Station, WAMC. Five years of an increased tempo of success represents an adequate reason to express congratulations to those responsible for WRVR and its excellent programs. The altruism of this private enterprise undoubtedly exists because of altruism and firmness

of purpose, residing within the individuals who have developed this broadcasting station. Let me suggest that, in addition to those responsible, there is an equally important ingredient within WRVR's formula for success. This ingredient is those of you who listen. Outruism and nobility of purpose go for naught unless there is a recipient who appreciates the effort and draws benefit from his appreciation. Let me then also extend congratulations to you who partake of WRVR's programs. All concerned have earned these words of praise. This is Al Friedette, Manager of WAMC, the FM Station of the Albany Medical College. WRVR's performance over the past five years has been an inspiration to radio broadcasters,

commercial and non-commercial alike. WRVR provides a superior program fare locally, regionally and nationally and constantly makes significant contributions to the continuing growth of FM radio. To all of you at WRVR, staff, management and audience, happy anniversary, and may you continue to prosper. My heartiest congratulations to Riverside Radio WRVR for its phenomenally successful first five years. The citations and awards received are amazing proof of its distinguished service. However crowded the air channels may be, there is always room for quality. In the realm of material things, we compete with others.

The more one possesses, the less remains for those around him, but not so in the sphere of mental and spiritual values, the more one has, the more he enriches others. WRVR deals in the ultimate values of beauty, truth and goodness. The larger its range and service, the more it leaves, our whole community richer may God bless its future years. This is Ed Burrows, manager of the University of Michigan FM stations, WUOM and Arbor and WVGR Grand Rapids. I'm especially pleased to salute WRVR on the occasion of Riverside Radio's fifth anniversary. In those five years, in competition with the greatest number of affluent and influential radio and television stations anywhere in the United States, WRVR has made amazing strides,

not only in finding and holding an audience, but in providing that audience with stimulating, provocative and significant programs. Mr. Summerfield and his staff have not been content with the easy or the mediocre. They have been fearless in their investigation of those problems which concern all of us as citizens, are maintaining that high degree of balance, perspective and goodwill, representative of the best in an educational or religious institution. As chairman of the Board of National Educational Radio, that association of non-commercial educational stations which operates the Coast to Coast Network, I am particularly pleased to acknowledge the contributions of WRVR. Rivers produced by Riverside Radio and carried by the NER Network are among the most distinguished to be heard across the country in recent years. The numerous awards given to these and other productions are an indication of their excellence. May the next five years be as fruitful as the first.

May the links between Michigan and WRVR, as well as with other dedicated broadcasters throughout the land, continue and grow in the years to come. This is Noah Greenberg. As director of the New York ProMozika, I would like to extend my congratulations to WRVR on its first five years of service to the cultural and educational life of New York City. New WRVR is making a significant contribution to our town. Its interviews, discussions and forums, air diverse views on artistic and social topics and its policy of presenting music programs uninterrupted by commercials and of the best listening hours has resulted in well-balanced programming designed for the discriminating listener. My congratulations to WRVR on its first five years on the air and my best wishes for a continued career of fine broadcasting.

Congratulations to Riverside Radio WRVR on its fifth anniversary from the radio and television stations of the Oregon State System of Higher Education. This is Luke Lam, Director of Educational Media, expressing our warm admiration to the management and staff of Riverside Radio for their outstanding efforts over the last five years to bring distinguished cultural and informational programs to Metropolitan New York and through National Educational Radio to many parts of the nation as well. KOAC in Corvallis celebrated its 43rd anniversary last December 7th and as one of the elder statesmen of educational broadcasting commends WRVR as one of the leading stations in the country. The quality of programming of WRVR continues to impress the profession and is also recognized by the public as evidenced by the 1964 P-Body Award for Radio.

Congratulations on an outstanding first five years. May you continue to set the example for quality broadcasting in the years ahead. When Riverside Radio made its debut in January 1961, all of us here on the heights had high hopes for the new station. We thought that the voice of WRVR would strengthen the already existing ties which bind together the institutions in this neighborhood and that it could help each of us to maintain better communications with our neighbors, both individual and institutional. Looking back from our present perspective, we can see on the fifth anniversary of WRVR how modest our expectations were and how far the reality has exceeded our hopes.

First, WRVR has done more than strength from the bonds which connected institutions on the heights. It has created new bonds, lectures, discussions and concerts which had previously been intramural became extramural, extending the audience and influence many important institutional programs without changing their character by the physical presence of large numbers of people. The radio audience was enriched without any way impoverishing the direct audience of the particular program. We had the heights learned things about one another. We had not known before or participated as it were in programs we had known only by hearsay. Secondly, the limited institutional audience which most of us had envisioned when our good friend Francis Harmon was petitioning the FCC for a license has become in reality one

of the largest groups of intellectuals anywhere. Thanks to the able imaginative direction which Jack Summerfield has given to Riverside radio from beginning and to the rich institutional resources upon which he and the staff could draw, the station has won its own group of devoted listeners. While WRVR is indeed a neighborhood station in one sense, in another it transcends the physical neighborhood and brings the institutions and morning set heights, the acropolis of the new world to an ever-growing audience. I want to take this opportunity of congratulating the Riverside Church, WRVR and all its staff on five years of remarkable accomplishment and to wish you many more successful years. This is Armand Hunter, Director of Continuing Education and the Division of Broadcasting

Services at Michigan State University and I'm very happy to have this opportunity to extend greetings and best wishes to the trustees, deacons and staff of the Riverside Church and to the General Manager Jack D. Summerfell of station WRVR. We're particularly happy at Michigan State that WRVR has developed such a fine program over the period of the past five years and all of us in educational broadcasting are looking forward to the board and to the staff to continue their fine work in the future. And now to speak directly on behalf of our radio stations, here is Dick Estell, Manager of WKARAMNFM, Michigan State University. Thank you Dr. Hunter, Riverside Radio, under the sensitive and intelligent leadership of Jack Summerfell, has in the brief span of five years made a tremendous impact on the people of New York, but its reverberations have been felt across the nation.

Broadcasting in the true spirit of serving the public interest, WRVR has succeeded in blending programs of information, fine arts, religion and also education in the proper amounts so as to meet the many needs represented by a large community. But as valuable as Riverside Radio is to the community it serves, it is equally valuable to educational broadcasting throughout the country. For by its example of public service broadcasting it stands as a beacon to those who recognize their responsibilities toward providing society with programs designed to further human understanding. Since your congratulations to Jack Summerfield and his staff for serving the national community in a manner in which we can all share pride. As Director Radio and Television for the Protestant Council of the City of New York, I have

been in a unique position to know something about the achievements and service of WRVR in the five years of its existence. We have watched with great admiration the station grow and develop into a leading and important broadcast service. We congratulate the staff and the management. From its beginning WRVR made it clear that though it was owned and operated by the Riverside Church, its service would not only be ecumenical in the religious sense of that word but would provide programming for the entire community. It is truly amazing that with a budget of only a fraction of that of some of other New York outlets, this station has served so many interest and concerns. Its music, jazz and classical, its documentaries, its educational features, its coverage of important meetings and conferences are part of this variety of program services. There's so much going on in New York all the time and WRVR is consistently in the thick of it.

Because of its alertness and intelligence in building its schedule, WRVR has proved abundantly that an educational station operated by a church need not be dull. We also applaud its readiness to serve all the community and all the religious and educational groups. And we appreciate very much its cooperation with the Protestant Council. We gave WRVR our 1963 Award for Outstanding Achievement in Broadcasting for its excellent documentary series entitled Birmingham Testament of Nonviolence. We frankly had not anticipated that this annual award would go to a church-owned station, but the members of the committee representing the general community insisted that it be so. I'm glad that we recognized this standard of excellence and that this standard has been maintained. And we're honored to join with many others in expressing our gratitude and congratulations to WRVR for five years of outstanding achievements in broadcasting.

Thank you. It is indeed a privilege for WSLU to be able to congratulate Riverside Radio WRVR on the occasion of its fifth anniversary. The outstanding contribution to Educational Radio by WRVR has set the standard in excellence for all creative broadcasters. That standard was given exceptional recognition by the presentation of the Peabody Award to WRVR in 1965. Nowhere in the pages of Educational Radio can we find a more imaginative and responsible dedication to the role of information, education, and entertainment. Acutely aware of its important role as an Educational FM station in the heart of Metropolitan New York, WRVR has served the community of Educational Radio without standing material from the city.

In those years to come, WRVR will continue to be a leader for all those broadcasters and listeners who want the very best. To WRVR and you, her listeners, happy birthday from WSLU, Canton, New York. One of the accepted duties of a president of any organization is the periodic performance of certain ceremonial rights, among which is the extending of congratulations, anniversary greetings, and solicitous expressions. Central routine responsibilities are often merely a little more than the ritualistic utterance of a custom sense of noises. But when I was invited to help WRVR celebrate its fifth anniversary by providing a greeting, I accepted because this was something I felt I could do with complete sincerity. However, I have chosen not to recite some complimentary phrases for the benefit of the

station staff, but instead to talk to you, the station's listeners, and ask you some questions because your answers I am confident will provide a better testimonial than anything that I could say in praise of WRVR. There are four areas where educational broadcasting is in a unique position to serve. There are several kinds of educational problems. There are newer and broader cultural opportunities than ever before. There is the need for dealing with public issues, and there is the expanding program of social action in which educational media can help me to wide range of community needs. And as I enlarge upon these areas of service, I want you to reflect on the activities of WRVR during its five-year life. As an agency of education, a non-commercial station has the opportunity to elevate individual intellect and experience, and as a broadcasting facility, it has unique advantages for sharing

resources with many, sharing intellectual, spiritual, cultural, and scientific wealth among many people wherever and whoever they are, thereby helping to improve the quality of this nation's education and the broadened equality of educational opportunity. A second general area of service deals with the expansion of cultural opportunities. Educational broadcasting is a means of enhancing and extending cultural and aesthetic experiences. There is a need to provide greater opportunities for the humanists, the poet, the painter, and the musician to have access channels to the people and for the people to have the opportunity to hear them. The third area where educational broadcasting should play an increasingly important role is in public affairs. This is difficult and controversial, but it is essential that we provide within educational broadcasting a kind of academic freedom that will permit the full exchange of ideas.

Educational non-commercial broadcasting stations are the most ideally suited institutions in our society to undertake this stimulation of lively dialogue on public views. Are they courageous enough to do it? Finally, the vast program of social action now underway in this country provides the educational station with unprecedented opportunities to use radio to help serve the broad educational social, political, and cultural needs of the day, joining the attack on poverty, on illiteracy, on vocational deficiencies, and on the whole range of conditions which hindered national progress. The exhilarating challenge for the educational station is to place these instruments and its expertise in their use at the disposal of all agencies whose purpose is to foster human dignity. And now listeners, I ask you to match these criteria for the service of an educational

station against the five-year record of WRBR. How does it measure up? I suggest that it will come off very well indeed, and I further suggest that it will improve upon this record in the years ahead. And finally, if I may be permitted just one ritualistic utterance, congratulations to the staff of WRBR and most of all, congratulations to its loyal listeners who have the good fortune to live within the range of such an excellent source of enlightenment and the good sense to take advantage of their good fortune. This is Marjorie Newman at WFSUFM in Tallahassee, Florida. I congratulate WRBR on the completion of five years of broadcasting that have been of major significance in educational radio.

With dedication to service, Riverside Radio has sought to bring to its listeners in the New York area and in other parts of the country through the National Educational Radio Network, programs intended to inform, enlighten, inspire, and to provoke in the most constructive sense of that word. The easy well-tried ways have been avoided, and instead new and challenging directions have been sought and followed. Controversy has been not a threat but a stimulation to WRBR producers, and the arts have been the source of original and creative cultural programs. As WRBR begins its sixth year of broadcasting, I wish it success in continuing to fulfill its purpose in educational radio. This is Jim McHandrew, General Manager, and Cecil Safran, Director of Programming.

Of WNYEFM, the radio station of the New York City Board of Education. We're happy to join those who are saluting WRBR on its fifth anniversary. You know Jim, it's hard to believe that Riverside Radio is already five years old. It seems only yesterday we were welcoming a new sister station to New York City. And yet I don't know how New York ever got along without WRBR. I don't either. So you know that childhood jingle about what little boys and girls are made of. Oh, you mean sugar and spice and everything nice? Yes, I'd like to ask you, what are radio stations made of? And you expect me to say tubes and buttons and knobs and microphones and record players, but I won't, because radio stations are made of people. Right the first time, Cecil on WRBR is serving the people of the New York metropolitan area brilliantly, because it has the good fortune to have on its staff people with creative

imagination and faith in the role of radio in our time. And the kind of creative leadership in Jack Summerfield that has won a fine reputation for WRBR nationally as well as locally. Including a Peabody Award. Right. So here's wishing from WNYEFM to WRBR to Jack Summerfield and the staff of his station, a very happy birthday and many years of continued success. And as Jack himself would say, amen and FM. It was just five years ago this time that all of us here at WFUV, Fordham University's voice, had the genuine pleasure of congratulating and welcoming aboard our new fellow FM station WRBR.

In that greeting, we referred to our own creed for FM broadcasting, formulated fourteen years previously, and our belief in these ideals, that man today has need of inspiration. That a radio station must not underestimate the intelligence of its listeners. That in these troubled times, many questions are open to dispute and a radio station by its interviews, discussions and forums must bring many points of view to its listeners. That the harmony between nations depends upon mutual understanding and a conscientious informational and cultural radio station can do much to promote such a harmony. That music is one of the fine arts and the radio audience has the right to expect the best in music at the best listening hours. And finally, that a well-informed and well-educated citizen is a good citizen. All of the thousands of WRBR's listeners are aware of the really outstanding contribution

to FM broadcasting that this station has made during the past five years. And every one of those ideals that I have just mentioned has been realized to the nth degree. That is why we are, again, most happy to express our sincere and heartfelt congratulations with the hope and prayer. The WRBR will be blessed with many more years of inspirational and rewarding broadcasting. Ad Molto's Anos. It's difficult to believe that WRBR is only now in 1966 entering its sixth year of broadcasting. In a period of five short years, Riverside Radio has earned a national reputation for producing important programs of the highest quality.

Among the most significant, I would include the series Birmingham, a testament of nonviolence and the American people. WRBR staff has never been timid in dealing with controversial issues and ideas. At the same time, this imaginative enterprise of the Riverside Church has not neglected the listener seeking just music, whether it be jazz, opera, programs of sacred music or the complete recordings of Toscanini. Although WRBR's entire annual budget probably would not be sufficient to pay for one television spectacular, Jack Summerfield and a staff have done a first great job of broadcasting. It's no wonder that WRBR already has been the recipient of most of the broadcasting industry's most coveted awards, including a Peabody. I congratulate you on your five years of success and have no doubt that the next five will be even more rewarding to your listeners.

Birthday greetings to WRBR from Boston University Radio, WBUR. This is Will Lewis and Boston with an open letter to the staff and listeners of Riverside Radio. It would be redundant if downright presumptuous for me to tell you what having a station like WRBR means to a listener and his community. Just music, edge beach, Birmingham, a testament of nonviolence, these programs speak for themselves. Rather, I will address myself to what WRBR's presence means to the rest of us in non-commercial radio. Riverside Radio has provided the leadership and the inspiration to do in our respective communities what WRBR has done in New York. And that is, in the words of the 1964 Peabody Award Citation, to lift the entire moral, intellectual and cultural levels of radio.

It's a big task, but the five candles glowing atop WRBR's birthday cake is example enough that it can be done. This is Susan Stamberg of Radio Station WAMUFM, the American University in Washington, DC. It's a pleasure to bring salutations from the nation's capital to WRBR, as it observes its fifth anniversary of broadcasting service. WRAMUFM and WRBR shared a special relationship during the early days of both stations broadcasting. For almost two years, we were affiliates, along with six other educational stations, in a live, interconnected network that span the eastern seaboard of this country. As members of the Educational Radio Network, WRBR and WRAMUFM exchanged New York and Washington viewpoints, and the programs from WRBR were good ones.

Since the termination of the network, each station has focused on forming a unique broadcasting service for its community. WRBR's success has been outstanding. WRAMUFM looks to the station of the Riverside Church as a continuing source of broadcasting excellence, and is a fellow reporter of the outstanding ideas, events, and personalities of our times. 5 years of excellence in broadcasting by one of America's finest non-commercial radio stations. The staff of KUSD AM of the University of South Dakota siloots Riverside Radio WRBR as

a distinguished colleague and member of National Educational Radio, as it begins at six years of service to the city of New York. To its manager and our good friend, Mr. Jack Somerfield, we at KUSD wish him, his staff, and Riverside Church continued success in their efforts to provide outstanding radio broadcasting in the highest traditions of the art. WRBR, we salute you. As Riverside Radio enters upon its sixth year of service to the greater New York community, I want to congratulate you, the listeners to WRBR, for making this station possible. Only through your cooperation and support, evidenced by the steady growth in audience and monetary contributions, as the dedicated staff of Riverside Radio been able to continue

its work on your behalf. On your behalf, because, after all, it is the audience that profits from excellent programming, there can be no doubt of the high caliber of the many hours of information and cultural enjoyment Riverside Radio has brought to its listeners. Winner of numerous awards, reaching a high of nine awards in one thirteen month period about a year ago, WRBR was catapulted into national prominence as a result of its on the spot coverage of the Birmingham race riots of 1963. The series resulting from this coverage was carried by literally hundreds of stations throughout the country. This and other series, distributed nationally, gave an audience of millions an opportunity to enjoy a modest sampling of the excellent programming you can enjoy daily over WRBR. So again, I congratulate you, the listeners, during this fifth birthday celebration of Riverside Radio, and wish you and the station which serves you many more years of mutual

benefit. National Educational Radio is pleased to add its voice in saluting Riverside Radio WRBR as it enters its sixth year of public service. During its first five-year tenure serving the people of the Greater New York City area, WRBR has time and again provided ample evidence of its distinctive contributions to the cultural life of its listeners. Of the many awards bestowed on WRBR for distinguished service to the community, surely the one which calls particular attention to the unique role this station has performed is the Peabody Award for 1964, where WRBR was singled out as the only radio station in the United States for this high honor. And this is not altogether surprising.

For WRBR has been an important influence on the national scene, contributing as it has many outstanding programs for distribution to the 135 member stations of the National Educational Radio Network. Its programs have often dealt with important issues and dealt with them boldly and creatively. In the best sense of the term, WRBR is truly a pioneer in educational radio, always striving for new forms, significant content, and broader horizons in public service programming. National Educational Radio is proud to count WRBR as a member of its team. On behalf of America's non-commercial educational radio stations, we wish WRBR many years of continued success. This is Boris Goldowski, founder and artistic director of the Goldowski Opera Institute.

There is a great need in New York City for radio programs that do not underestimate the intelligence or discrimination of the listener. For five years, WRBR has helped fulfill this need by providing a consistently high level of FM broadcasting. Combining an emphasis on the performing arts, with attention to wide range of political economic and social problems, WRBR is providing in-depth entertainment for a wide audience. In my own field, WRBR has just completed a nine months survey of Russian opera and is about to launch an even more ambitious survey of opera in the 20th century. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to congratulate WRBR on five years of outstanding service. Such a contribution cannot be overestimated, and WRBR's broadcasting is certainly a most valuable addition to the cultural life of New York City.

Birthday is a good time to look back and to look ahead. Looking back, station WRBR has had a remarkable first five years. It is the only radio station to receive as such the George Foster Peabody Award. It is one of five to receive the major award, bestowed by the Armstrong Memorial Research Foundation, named for the inventor of FM. It won national attention with its documentaries on integration, which included the recording of a clan meeting in Birmingham. It has built up a following of devoted listeners to its artistic and public service programs. In terms of influence and recognized character, no single radio station, commercial or non-commercial, has fared better in its early years. It is a phenomenon in a phenomenal era of expanding communications.

The further word about this phenomenal era, as we look ahead, we see its importance. For the world will have to be blessed ultimately by universal communication, and by the understanding that only communication can bring if it is not to stagger into annihilation. I do not suggest that a single FM station can swing the choice of mankind's decisions, but it makes two contributions of note. It demonstrates that people are ready to pay attention to ideas and problems. They will listen if spoken to. And it shows there is devoted leadership to provide things worth listening to, and to do it simply because these things have worth. My salute to station WRVR, I wish it many even more rewarding birthdays to come. On behalf of the Juilliard School of Music, I want to congratulate Riverside Radio WRVR

on the occasion of its fifth anniversary. We are indeed pleased to be a neighbor, and with the fact that WRVR has at times presented programs by outstanding young artists from the Juilliard student body and members of the Juilliard faculty as well. May I also take this opportunity to congratulate WRVR on having been singled out for the broadcasting industries coveted George Foster P. Body Award for Distinguished Achievement and Maritorious Public Service. WRVR has demonstrated a conscience for excellence in music and for issues of deep concern, warm regards to the staff and their general manager, Jack D. Summerfield. It was about 360 years ago, some adventures and types from France found themselves and the not-too-enviable position of being stuck in the snowbank beside an inlet near the

Bay of Funday coast of Nova Scotia. To say the least, it was a tough winter, and casualties were many. However, in spite of the hardship and hard break, Samuel Cham playing, created out of the bleakness the first permanent settlement in North America, it was known as Port Royal. In the 360 years since, every conceivable type of pioneering has gone on in the United States and Canada, until now one would almost think pioneering was the thing of the past. One would certainly think pioneering in radio was pretty well passé, especially on the part of an FM radio station moving in to take up the last frequency in New York City. To make the slightest impression in New York with the cacophony of radio signals already available and long established is quite an accomplishment. For a station to make more than this is amazing. But for a comparatively low-budget non-commercial station to do it, as WRVR has done, it's worthy of considerable recognition.

WRVR has proved itself a pioneer in today's partially explored wilderness of FM radio. We here in the broadcasting industry of Nova Scotia have for some time known and admired the work of WRVR, and one of our own new FM stations here in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia have been honored to be permitted to carry some of the fine programs of WRVR. We are honored also to be permitted to take part in WRVR's program schedule, as we prepare impressions of our part of Canada once a month for the program Nova Scotia Notebook. Looking back over five adventure-filled years of broadcasting, General Manager Jack Somerfield and his dedicated staff must have felt somewhat rewarded for their untiring efforts as such coveted trophies as the pre-body awards for the first time in 25 years was presented to them as an entire radio station. As WRVR begins its sixth year of service to the FM audience, not only in New York City,

but in many parts of the North American continent, the broadcasters of the Atlantic Region of Canada, and especially we here at CKWM FM in the historic Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia, say congratulations to General Manager Jack Somerfield and his executive assistant Claire Monahan as well as program director Dr. Walter Sheppard and the entire staff. Congratulations, best wishes to you for continued success.