WLBE-AM
790Eustis Leesburg
Original Call Letters: WEUS
Originally Licensed: Aug 1947
Call Letter Origin: (geographic) Eustis
Original City of License: Eustis
Original Power: 1,000 watts
Original Format: Pop
Network Affiliations: NBC
CBS
FOX
Owner(s): 1947-Paul Eleanor Hunter (Owners of Liberty Magazine)
1951-Paul and Sally Husebo
1975-WLBE Radio, Inc. (H. James Sharp, President)
1978-Gene Smith In Memory
1983-WLBE 790, Inc.
History Of Call Letters and Formats: WEUS-1947-Pop
WLBE-1949-Pop
WLBE-1980-Adult Contemporary
WLBE-1991-Big Band/Easy Listening
WLBE History
The Husebos came to Lake County from Minneapolis in 1951. Wendy had worked in a major station there as the program director and chief announcer. When his brother, Paul Husebo, called him to say he was moving to Central Florida from their native Minnesota, Wendy Husebo told him if he found a radio station for sale, he would move, too. While Paul Husebo was scouting around for the right town, he arrived in Leesburg on the day of the Watermelon Festival. He liked the friendliness and the activity in the town, spotted a radio tower and stopped in a gas station to call the station. "He asked if the station was for sale, and the voice said, `Yes.' " WLBE, had been purchased by the former publisher of Liberty Magazine, who died within six months, Husebo said. The man's wife was stuck trying to keep the station running. From 1951 to 1962, WLBE was a major news source to people in Lake County. Husebo remembered the first remote broadcast of a Leesburg High School football game in Palatka and a 37-hour stretch at the microphone during Hurricane Donna in 1960. "People depended on radio for local news," he said. "We didn't have television, and most of the papers were weekly. So, we tried to cover everything." Lacking also were the services of an advertising and public relations agency. When area businesses wanted to stage a grand opening or plan a promotion, they went to Wendy Husebo. So did civic leaders in Leesburg, when, in a twist of fate, they named him chairman of the festival that helped bring him to Leesburg. In the 1950s, the Leesburg Watermelon Festival was important to the city. To promote it, the mayor and prominent residents formed a 30-car motorcade with a P.A. system and part of the high-school band and visited all the other towns in the area. "Our mayor would pop out and present their mayor with a watermelon," Husebo said. "The people in the cars would jump out and put posters in all the windows..." By 1962, he was so involved in promotion outside the radio business that he sold WLBE and formed Husebo Advertising & Public Relations. His son, Lanny Husebo, worked with him in the mid-1970s. "He has become known for his sayings, `How may I brighten your day?' and `Consider it done.'
1992-WLBE drops NBC news
for CBS, and in the process lost the right to broadcast popular talk show
host Bruce Williams. The syndicator of Williams' show is an NBC
company. In Williams' place, WLBE aired Gil Gross from 8 to 11
p.m. 
WLBE studios on Radio Road in Leesburg
WLBE Personalities
Bob Andrews-1980 to present
-mornings. BiographyCharles (Charlie) Northrup-1966
Lee Gillette-news director
Alan B. Walts Bob at the WLBE studios in 2004
Michael Solt Photo courtesy of Bob Andrews
Bill Gephart-News director In Memory
Wayne Coleman-1972-1974
Peter Rocchio-1998-1PM-4PM- Mondays through Thursdays
"Uncle Russie Ross"-Russ Ross-Sat 2PM-5PM Biography
Chuck Stevens-Host of "Party Line"-callers buy, sell, and trade their items live on the air.
''Big Red''-1994-host of "The Party Line"
Chris Sawyer-1994-middays/program director
Jack Wilson-1953-1993-play-by-play broadcasts of Leesburg High's football games
Eve Martin-"Eve the Mystic"
Al Martin
Richard Ryan-2002-"Comin' Home"
Dick Ravenhill-Program Director In Memory
Dick Coleman-Program Director
Victor Lent-1996-2-5PM and News 5-6PM weekdays. Leesburg Athletics Minor League Baseball Play-by-Play.
Dutch Edwards-1971
Mark Logas Biography
Fred
Johnson-2008-Co-host "Lake
County/Central Florida Roundtable" Ralph
Smith-2008-Co-host "Lake County/Central Florida
Roundtable" Other Names in WLBE History
Sally Husebo-1951-1962-"Mr. Sunshine"-Owner
Paul Husebo-1951-1962-Owner
T. Hooke McCauley-1951-General Manager
Jim Sharp-station manager/owner
John Fennessy-General Manager
Eugene F. ''Gene'' Smith-General Manager 1970s, early 1980s, and again in the early 1990s. He died of cancer in August 1993. In Memory
E.J. "Mac" McNair-1997-General Manager/partner
Merrill Isaacson-General manager
Esther White-1952-1994-Hired as bookkeeper by the station's first general manager, T. Hooke McCauley, in 1951. She became office manager, with sales and public relations responsibilities and would even do an occasional commercial for Edenfield Jewelers and Grays' Orange Barn.
Ronald V. Regan-host of "Veterans Cafe"
Doug Hoy and Matt Turse-2000-"Wise Guys Sports Football Handicapping"
Chuck Grant-sales
Bill Reedy-sports
Bruce Williams-syndicated
Prior Smith-"Canada Calling"-syndicated
Bill Mays
l to r Frank Reed, Bob Andrews, Gabe Burton and Dave Edwards l to r Frank Reed, Bob Andrews, Gabe Burton and Mac McNair
(photos courtesy of Dave Edwards 2007)
courtesy of Mark Logas
1970's license plate click photos for full sized view courtesy of Mark Logas 1980's license plate
click photos for full sized view courtesy of Mark Logas
click photo for full sized view courtesy of Mark
Logas
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