More About Bob Tracey

By John Mehno - January, 2002

BOB TRACEY spent 14 years at KDKA and was known by two names.

He started as Johnny Ryder, part of a Ryder Brothers team that held down the overnight spot. Bob was the inside man and partner Mac Ryder would circulate around town, conducting interviews with the city's night people. Mac Ryder was really Bob Dickey, who is now the President, General Manager and co-owner of all-news KQV.

Bob Dickey moved into the management side of radio and Bob Tracey worked solo and filled a mid-afternoon slot at KDKA. He joined the station in the mid-1950s when it was trying to modernize its sound.

He came by his new name because another DJ in Pittsburgh had a name that was similar to Bob's legal surname. The station renamed him Tracey to avoid confusion among listeners. Bob found out he was now Tracey when a Westinghouse executive handed him a lighter wishing good luck and good ratings to "Bob Tracey."

Bob was the one KDKA DJ who had an avid interest in the music he played. After six days on the air, he would spend Sundays listening to at least a few bars of every single and album that had been sent to him during the week. He had two record players working simultaneously and says he knew he had a hit when he heard something that gave him goose bumps. Among the many records he discovered were Dionne Warwick's "Valley of the Dolls" and "Macarthur Park" by Richard Harris.

Bob's easy-going style and music mix made him a hit with listeners. He addressed the audience as "Tiger" and his fan club was the Tiger Troops. Bob was famous for the ad lib commercials he did for Johnny Garneau's restaurants and Erculini's in Gallitzin, Pa. Bob's audience knew of his interest in motorcycles and he led annual listener trips to Hawaii.

He was the regular fill-in talent on the morning show when Rege would take his vacation in August. Rege's departure cleared the way for Bob to take over the mid-day show Art Pallan vacated.

Bob studied acting and was mentored by Tallulah Bankhead in New York before he began his career in radio.

Bob left KDKA in April of 1968 and was involved in a number of businesses, including a travel agency. He continued to stay busy in broadcasting, doing commercials and taking a turn at a short-lived station in Monroeville and as morning man at WJAS/Pittsburgh in the 1980s. Bob also spent several years reporting for Metro Traffic in the '90s.

Bob is still involved with Bob Tracey's World of Cycles, a rapidly expanding dealership in Moon Township, Pa. His son now operates the business, which has grown to 28 employees. He continues to pursue acting opportunities both on stage and in movies. He has a role Richard Gere's "The Mothman Chronicles," which was filmed in Pittsburgh and released in January of 2002.
    

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