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Rege Cordic

A  tribute by Nellie King

 

    I got to know Rege Cordic in 1956 when I was pitching for the Pirates. Rege had moved from WWSW to KDKA two years earlier to begin what was to become the longest running and most successful radio show in Pittsburgh broadcasting history.

    When Rege joined KDKA to take over the early morning show, WWSW still maintained the rights to Pirate baseball broadcasts and was the top station in the market. Rosey Rowswell who began doing Pirate play by play broadcasts games in the mid-1930's was the top radio personality. Rege confessed he had a difficult time gaining a share of the audience in the first two years.

    In 1955 KDKA outbid WWSW for the Pirate broadcasting rights. According to Rege that decision was the breakthrough for his and KDKA's dominance in the Pittsburgh market. It did not began to take effect until the 1956 season. The new Pirate General Manager, Joe L. Brown made a complete change in the Pirate roster. The young Pirate team was in first place in the National League in mid-June. After so many dismal season, the baseball fans and listeners to Pirate games on KDKA increased dramatically.

    Rege said, "I found out we had a new and growing audience and it was related to Pirate baseball." In his usual modest way, he credited the rise in his ratings to the fact that listeners of Pirate games, would leave their dial set at 1020 when the game was over. When they awakened in the morning, they turned on the radio and heard "Cordic and Company". They liked what they heard and stayed with him and KDKA.

    It is difficult to believe the audience ratings then for radio. The AM dial was the main and sometimes the only source of entertainment and information. There was no fracturing of the audience as there is today with FM radio, cable and satellite TV. Mike Levine, a long time and popular KDKA news man, told me the ratings for Pirate baseball on KDKA in the 1960 championship season showed that 65% to 70% were listening to Pirate baseball. You will never see those numbers again. It was an unusual time for radio and Pittsburgh and so was Cordic and Company.

    Pirate baseball may have created the opportunity for an increased audience, but Rege and his "Cordic and Company" crew had to keep them satisfied. Working with talented performers Bob Trow, Karl Hardman, Sterling Yates and writer Bob McCully, they continually turned out fresh and funny skits. I recall after the baseball season in 1957 working with Rege and Bob Trow as part of Cordic's "Brick Throw Championships". It was held at the Mosque in Oakland to a huge audience. You couldn't do something like that anywhere else. It was pure Cordic, and pure Pittsburgh. Rege knew Pittsburgh and the people. He also knew the secret of radio. He told me, "The success of radio is getting past the speaker and talking directly to the listener. You have to make it like you are speaking to just one person, not a large group."

    His huge success in Pittsburgh and KDKA caught the attention of the big market city of Los Angeles in the late mid 1960's. Unfortunately his show was not a success in Los Angeles. While visiting with him in LA on Pirate trips to the west coast during the years I broadcast Pirate game he described LA well, stating, "Los Angeles is like 1000 Monroeville's. There is no 'there' there!" It lacked the personal identity with Pittsburgh.

    He stated, longingly and proudly, "When you ask someone from Pittsburgh where they come from, they will tell you 'Squirrell Hill', Greenfield, Homestead -- the section of town where they live. They have an identity and roots with the city.."

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About Nellie:

    Nellie King first came to Pittsburgh in 1956 as a pitcher for the Pirates. An arm injury curtailed his career and he got into radio. He learned his craft at stations in Greensburg and Latrobe, Pa. and was hired to replace Don Hoak on the Pirates' broadcasting team in 1967.

    He appeared on both KDKA radio and television with Hall of Fame announcer Bob Prince through 1975, which covered one of the most successful eras in Pirates history.

    When Prince and King were dismissed after the 1975 season, there were protests in Pittsburgh, including a parade down Fifth Avenue and a rally at Point State Park. Former General Manager Joe L. Brown would later call the decision to replace Prince and King one of the worst he made in more than two decades on the job.

    Nellie moved on to yet another successful career, this one in athletic administration at Duquesne University. He served Duquesne in a variety of roles and also worked as the color analyst on the school's basketball broadcasts. Nellie also worked as a sports reporter and talk show host for several Pittsburgh radio stations, including KDKA, WWSW, WTAE and WEEP.

    He still serves as Duquesne's golf coach and is active in the Pirates' alumni association. He is a popular banquet speaker and talk show guest. His storytelling ability is unmatched. Nellie is currently chronicling his experiences for a book.

    He graciously shared his memories from his long friendship with Rege Cordic.

- John Mehno