977 2000 newcomers in Maytown? page 3 Next week; meet candidates SUSQUEHANNA TTMES Vol. 77 No. 16 April 27, 1977 How Joyce & friends beat WG +" Never underestimate the power of a public-spirited, TV-addicted feminist The Steinman family has been forced to sell its broadcasting empire, in- cluding WGAL-TV and two radio stations. Why? It all started when Joyce Reimherr Perry discovered that channel 8 transmitted the only signal powerful enough to reach her Mar- ietta home. Joyce likes to watch a lot of TV, and she didn’t like the program- ming on WGAL-TV. There weren't any women news- casters, and the coverage of community affairs was inadequate, Joyce felt. Joyce’s friends at the Lancaster Women’s Center agreed that the station ought to change. They decided to put a little pressure on the WGAL management. When that didn’t work, they went to court. Last week, Walter Cron- kite rushed a CBS news team to Marietta, to talk to the young woman who had toppled an empire. Joyce Reimherr Perry picked up her phone at about 7:30 A.M., and learned that Rodger Mudd’s news team wanted to interview her that after- noon. Unfortunately, the old Front St. mansion Joyce shares with her husband Don was in the early stages of restoration. “My house was a wreck,’ Joyce says. Doug Milliken lent the Perrys some furniture, and Don stayed home from work to help wrestle it into position. By the time Rod- ger Mudd came running through the door, waving a bottle and asking for ice, one room was nicely de- corated for the cameras. There wasn’t any ice in the house. Don ran down to Paul Elliott’s to buy some ice, but forgot to take his wallet. ‘You've got to give us some ice,” said Don. “Rodger Mudd can’t func- tion without ice for his souse.’’ Paul gave Don some free ice, and the interview proceeded on schedule. Joyce appeared on the CBS evening news, but the camera didn’t show the Susquehanna Times & The Mount ~ MARIETTA & MOU? * Elizabeth Gurland Smoot (left) and Joyce Reimherr Perry (right) are confirmed TV addicts, who wanted to change programming practices at WGAL-TV. When the station refused to go along with the young womens’ requests, they took WGAL to court. The result: the station’s owners will have to sell WGAL. hastily-decorated room. On- ly her head appeared on the screen. After her experience with Mr. Mudd, Joyce decided to meet the Susquehanna Times reporter at the home of her friend and colleague Elisabeth Gurland Smoot. Like Joyce, Elisabeth is restoring a Marietta man- sion. And, like Joyce, she is a member of the Feminists For Media Rights, the group which forced the sale of WGAL. The reporter banged on Elisabeth’s front door for five minutes before she heard him. She and Joyce were both glued to the TV, too involved in Rhoda to notice the racket at the door. When the reporter finally made his presence known, Joyce greeted him with, “Can you wait five min- utes? I've just got to see what happens.”’ Elisabeth had two TV’s the reporter noticed. The smaller tube was mounted piggy-back style on top of the wide- screen model. “I think I'd call myself a TV addict,” Elisabeth said. “but some things about it bother me. The sexism on my television is horren- dous.” [continued on page 2] WR Guy DY & A0 FIFTEEN CENTS John C. Wealand, Jr. 16 year-old fireman and their families. Fire Company members have good reason to be proud of John; he is a When a bus carrying his hockey team crashed in upstate New York, 16 year-old John C. Wealand, Jr. knew what to do. ‘‘He ... was instrumental in helping to give aid and attenticn to those who were injured,”’ members of the Friendship Fire Co. say. At a ceremony last week, the fire company gave John a certificate honoring his ser- vice to injured teammates Meet your candidate by Dennis Shumaker On Thursday, April 28, 1977 at 7:00 p.m., the Marietta Lions Club will host the second ‘‘Meet Your Candidate’’ evening at the Colonial Inn. Mr. Harold Kulman, candidate for mayor of Marietta will speak and field questions. The public is cordially - invited to participate. junior member of the Friendship Fire Co. To become a full-fledged fireman, you must be at least 18, but plenty of the company’s activities are open to younger ‘‘junior members.”’ ‘*A junior member,’ says John, ‘‘can do almost anything except enter burn- ing buildings or climb a ladder.” John not only fights fires- he studies emergency rescue techni- ques. , Fortunately for his hockey teammates, John [continued on page 2]
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