- Collection:
- Broadcasting Collections
- Title:
- Bill Wilder oral history interview, 2013 September 30
- Creator:
- Wilder, William, 1946-
- Contributor to Resource:
- Patenaude, Sara
- Publisher:
- Atlanta, Ga. : Georgia State University Library
- Date of Original:
- 2013-09-30
1910/1989 - Subject:
- Radio broadcasting
Country Music - People:
- Wilder, James, 1907-1981
- Location:
- United States, Georgia, Cobb County, 33.94147, -84.57667
United States, Georgia, Cobb County, Marietta, 33.9526, -84.54993 - Medium:
- oral histories (literary works)
- Type:
- Text
Sound - Format:
- application/pdf
audio/mpeg - Description:
- Bill Wilder is the son of James M. Wilder. He was born December 16, 1946 in Savannah, Georgia. Since birth he was raised in his fathers’ radio station on the side of their home. Bill Wilder held a Third Class broadcasting license and occasionally worked at his fathers’ station. Bill Wilder later went on to become a musician playing in the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and with popular artist such as Henry Mancini, and Tony Bennet. James M. Wilder was born July 1, 1907 in Columbus, Georgia. James owned and worked as the station manager of WBIE-FM and WCOB. James Wilder started with virtually nothing and had a sixth grade education, but managed become very successful in what he loved to do most. James M. Wilder died February 13, 1981.
In this interview Bill Wilder gives detailed insight of his father, James M. Wilder, and his career as the owner and station manager of WBIE-FM and WCOB. Bill recalls growing up in the radio station his father built on the side of their house. James M. Wilder had a sixth grade education and left school to help his family financially. In early stages of his life, James Wilder found great interest in radio; without formal training he became skilled at broadcasting. James went into a partnership which resulted into owning WBIE in 1955. He was one of the first people in Georgia to own a First Class Broadcasting license. James Wilder later moved to Marietta to start a station with another business partner, Dudley McCaskell. Bill recalls his fathers’ dedication to the radio station as he worked tirelessly, and how he once stayed on the air to finish a show though he was suffering from a heart attack. James M. Wilder continued to do radio until he passed away February 13, 1981, but his hospitality didn’t end, his fortune expanded to charities and foundations to assist humane societies around the Atlanta area. - Metadata URL:
- http://digitalcollections.library.gsu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/broadcast/id/2056
- IIIF manifest:
- https://digitalcollections.library.gsu.edu/iiif/2/broadcast:2056/manifest.json
- Language:
- eng
- Additional Rights Information:
- Copyright to items in this collection is owned by Georgia State University Library. Georgia State University Library has made this digital collection available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License. Please see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ for more information.
- Bibliographic Citation (Cite As):
- Bill Wilder, interviewed by Sara Patenaude-Schuster, September 30, 2013, Popular Music and Culture Collection. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University.
- Extent:
- Audio: 01:42:13, Transcript: 41 pages
- Original Collection:
- Popular Music and Culture Collection
- Holding Institution:
- Georgia State University. Special Collections
- Rights:
-
