Sue Mandel and Rob Weingarten,'85, a Match Made at WJPZ

Sue Mandel and Rob Weingarten,'85, a Match Made at WJPZ

Author: WJPZ April 10, 2023 Duration: 24:22
WJPZ at 50
HistoryEducation

Note: Thanks to Newhouse Professor Tina Perkins, WJPZ Class of 1993, for editing this episode of the pod.

 

Sue Mandel and Rob Weingarten may be the first marriage to come out of WJPZ.  Members of the Class of 1985, they met on campus when they realized they went to rival high schools.  In fact, in Sue's pictures of her high school boyfriends playing sports - Rob's often in the picture as the opponent!   35 years, several moves, and two kids later, he's still in the picture.

 

Today's WJPZ power couple were station leaders when we went to the FM dial.  Sue's news department covered everything from the AIDS epidemic to the Grand Slam murder in Syracuse - yes, we have another Denny's reference in this episode.  Rob's sports staff covered everything they could - including the high school basketball games of Felisha Legette-Jack, now the head coach of the Syracuse Women's team.

 

Sue decided she did not want to pursue the on-air route, so she got into the sales side of things, working remotely waaay before it was en vogue.  Rob's sports career included work at WFAN, and helming sports stations in DC, St. Louis, and Tampa.   He also began traveling for work - commuting to some of these gigs from Florida....as these Syracuse grads quickly fell in love with the Tampa climate.

 

Now, Rob works for the Gem Shopping Network - serving high end clientele with the hosting skills he first honed at WJPZ.

 

And you won't want to miss the story of an on-campus concert with James Brown, and what that had to do with New York State raising the legal drinking age to 21.

 

The WJPZ at 50 Podcast Series is produced by Jon Gay, Class of 2002, and his podcast production agency, JAG in Detroit Podcasts.

 

Want to stay in the loop with WJPZ Alumni events?  Subscribe to our newsletter on the right hand side of the page at http://wjpzalumni.org/

Want to be on the show? Email JAG at jag@jagpodcastproductions.com

Connect with the WJPZ Alumni Association: https://wjpzalumniassociation.org/


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.


For fifty years, the student-run airwaves of Syracuse University's WJPZ at 50 have been more than a radio station; they've been a launchpad. This oral history project captures that legacy not through dry facts, but through the voices that built it. Each episode is a conversation with a different alumnus, from the pioneers of the 1970s to recent graduates, tracing how their hands-on experience in what's called the "world's greatest media classroom" shaped careers in broadcasting and far beyond. You'll hear personal stories of late-night broadcasts, technical mishaps turned into triumphs, and the forging of lifelong bonds that created a unique professional family spanning generations. This podcast digs into the real, often messy, work of learning by doing, revealing how a campus station became an enduring institution. Tune in for a collection of fifty interviews that together form a living archive, celebrating the people, not just the programming, behind five decades of student-led radio.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Official website RSS
WJPZ at 50
Podcast Episodes
Consultant Jay Nachlis, '94, on Radio's Past, Present, and Future [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:02
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who understands the radio industry as well as today's guest: Jay Nachlis from the Class of 1994. Like many of us, this San Francisco native came to Syracuse with plans of being the n…
John Ferracane, Class of 2003, On the Ostrom House and More [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:03
John Ferracane was one of the key figures in the survival of WJPZ when the station was temporarily moved to an off-campus house on Ostrom Avenue for the 2000-2001 school year. With the help of an incredibly dedicated sta…
Hall of Famer Dave Gorab, Class of 1993 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:23
One of the hallmarks of any great leader is sharing the credit with his or her team. Hall of Famer Dave Gorab, Class of '93, rose through the ranks of WJPZ to become General Manager at a very successful time in the radio…
Audacy's Corey Crockett, Class of 2015 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:06
One of the amazing things about WJPZ is how many of our illustrious alumni actually grew up listening to the radio station. This has been true for decades. Liverpool native Corey Crockett, from the Class of 2015, is no e…
Back to Z89 (and Receivership) with Dena and Harry, Class of 1999 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:17
Simply put, Harry Wareing and Dena (Giacobbe) Laupheimer are two people the radio station wouldn't have survived without. Both members of the Class of 1999, Harry first came to the station as a freshman and became a "uti…
Behind the Banquet Scenes With Eileen Spath, Class of 2014 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:35
For several years, Eileen Spath (Class of 2014) chaired the Banquet Committee. When we all come back to Syracuse every year for one of our favorite weekends, we may not realize what happens behind the scenes to get this…
Damian/JD/Governor D Redman, Class of 1995 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:03
You may know today's guest by many names - JD, Governor, or even his given name, Damian Redman. He talks about coming to Syracuse the summer before his freshman year, meeting Dion Summers, and finding WJPZ together.You'l…
Hall of Famers Chris Bungo and Rocco Macri, Class of 1986 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:53
Chris Bungo and Rocco Macri met at WJPZ when they were working in production and promotions, respectively. Their friendship has led to a business partnership of over 3 decades, creating the first-of-its-kind software for…

«1...678910