I never knew Luther too well, but we did share some moments. As a broadcaster in another life, Luther with WDEF and me at WCLE, jointly hosted a trip to Hawaii in 1976. We realized when we arrived, as side trips were being promoted, they always gave mine and Luther's free so as to encourage others to sign up. We had a great time and talked about old time radio.
Later when we put WQLS FM on the air Jeff Massingill came to work for us. Of course we all thought that brought us close to the great one.
A friend and I bought a radio station in Quitman, Ga. On a trip to Valdosta, my business partner said, do you know Luther has a brother who owns a jewelry store. Well at that time, I had no clue who this Luther was. I did meet him and I guess I acted like I had known him for years.
They talked about a time when a national magazine had Chattanooga traffic on the front cover all because this guy on WDEF told everyone listening to turn their headlights on. This was better than any arbitron rating.
That's when I realized this must be some kind of radio man. I say to those young people getting into radio, stay at one job, know your community and strive to serve just like Luther. He was the best.
Tom Rowland
Mayor, City of Cleveland