Who's Who at WPLA

Jim Richardson

Jim came to Plant City in the late 1950’s and, for much of the time he was at WPLA, pulled two air shifts each weekday, both quite different from the other in terms of the music played. In the mid-morning, his J.R. Show played upbeat middle of the road songs by Sinatra, Ray Conniff, and Doris Day.  Then, right after the mid-day local news and through the early afternoon, he hosted Albums of Song, a mix of laid back easy listening favorites by artists like Percy Faith, Patti Page and Johnny Mathis. In the early 1960’s, when Mitch Miller and his Sing-Along Gang were popular, he hosted the Sing-Along Show each weekday afternoon for a half hour.

Jim left WPLA in 1967 to move to Tennessee, and passed away in 1981 at the age of 50. 

(Photo courtesy Plant City Photo Archives)

Station History