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Scelsa also acknowledged the many general managers and program directors who tended to ignore him and pass him along from one to the next, rather like an enigmatic "grandfather clause." He tipped his hat to a mysterious "rabbi named Mel" ā in thanks for whatever it is the rabbi does or doesn't do to
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On
December 13, 2007 (a few weeks after celebrating his 40th anniversary on New York radio, and the day after his 60th birthday) Vin was the recipient of the prestigious ASCAP Deems Taylor Radio Broadcast Award. Scelsa was praised for "outstanding coverage of music on his long-running show Idiot's
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During the last years of this WNEW stint, "Idiot's
Delight" usually did not have a fixed ending time. Rather, the show was officially scheduled to run from 8:00 pm Sunday nights through 2:00 am Monday mornings, but in actuality ended as late as 4:30 am, depending upon when Vin felt the show had
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in the morning, who remained all talk). Scelsa opted to leave the station rather than restrict his playlist to the newer rock and shortly thereafter returned to WNEW-FM where he continued hosting "Idiot's
Delight". For a period of time at WNEW, Vin channeled his doubts regarding the station's
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Music World. His WFUV program was one of the few to not be streamed on the internet initially, because Scelsa preferred to be free of the online regulations of the period which limited the programming of multiple tracks from an artist or album without special permission.
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stated in her presentation of the award, "Vin Scelsa, a mainstay of New York radio for four decades, is one of the last true free-form radio hosts... He is a champion of new and untested music and, with his devoted listening public, an important tastemaker."
262:-FM 92.3 K-Rock in 1985 and hosted a freeform program there through the end of 1995. His Sunday night show at K-Rock became known as "Idiot's Delight," and many fans of the show participated in the online e-mail group "Idiot's Delight Digest."
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show of
September 16, 2006, he announced a schedule change which he attributed to his health problems. For a short time "Idiot's Delight" presented new programming only from 8 to 10 pm on Saturdays, with archived material (from both
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Mr. Fornatale was at the forefront of the FM revolution, along with WNEW-FM colleagues like Scott Muni, Rosko, Vin Scelsa, Dennis Elsas, Jonathan
Schwartz and Alison Steele (who called herself 'the Nightbird').
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commitment to his show by playing a different version of the standards chestnut "I'll Be Seeing You" each week. Yet Vin remained in place at WNEW through several programming formats until the end of 2000.
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On his March 28, 2015, WFUV show, Scelsa announced he would be retiring from radio. His last show on SiriusXM aired on April 30, 2015, and his final radio show aired on WFUV on May 2, 2015.
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protect him from the harsh realities of 21st
Century radio. This tribute is thought to have been a reference to veteran Infinity Broadcasting/CBS/Viacom/Sirius-XM radio executive
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reached an appropriate conclusion. The final 'Idiots
Delight' on WNEW was particularly memorable. It aired on December 31, 2000, and ended at around 3:30 am on January 1, 2001.
297:/90.7 FM. He also briefly hosted an internet only radio show called "Live at Lunch" during 2000 and 2001 which he broadcast from his home or from a custom-built studio at
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In addition to the
Saturday night WFUV broadcasts, Scelsa began hosting two additional hours of "Idiot's Delight" live on both Wednesday and Thursday afternoons for
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309:'s "The Loft," (initially called Sirius Disorder). The four weekly hours of Sirius/XM shows are repeated early Friday mornings and on Sunday nights.
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from 1988 to 1992. In 1994, he co-created a live musical series called "In Their Own Words: A Bunch Of
Songwriters Sittin' Around Singing at
426:(WNEW-FM air personality and program director, for trusting Vin with total freedom on a major commercial radio station) and air personality
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in New York City". The Bottom Line series yielded a number of live compilations on CD and albums of one-off pairings that occurred, such as
254:. Similarly, when WNEW instituted fixed playlists for all personalities in 1982, Scelsa moved on again. He surfaced briefly once again at
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Scelsa has ended his radio programs since the late-70s WNEW-FM overnight shifts with the closing sound-clip from the movie "
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in her role as
Dorothy says "Oh Auntie Em, there's no place like home," and the orchestra breaks into the melody of "
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In accepting the award, Vin thanked New York radio veterans Bob Fass (an early mentor and role model),
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102.7 where he hosted late nights and evenings from 1973 through 1982. In 1981 he was namechecked on
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When WPLJ restricted the air personalities' ability to pick their own music to play, Scelsa moved to
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Scelsa has appeared on stage numerous times, notably as Vladimir in the Luna Stage production of
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and also worked for Poppy Records. On February 14, 1971, while he was music director and a DJ at
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before devoting the next two years to off-air endeavors. He joined then-new rock station
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Delight" (as heard on WFUV broadcast radio and Sirius/XM Satellite Radio). Songwriter
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CDs featured an exclusive track of a live performance from "Idiots Delight".
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From 1994 to 1996, Scelsa also selected music and wrote the liner notes for
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Scelsa married his wife Freddie in 1970. The two met in high school.
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In 2006 he underwent successful surgery for prostate cancer. On his
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487:"Vin Scelsa, Host of Radio's 'Idiot's Delight,' to Retire"
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VIN!dication ā where new (old) shows are added every week
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Scelsa announced that "Idiot's Delight" was moving to
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Audio Archive of Idiot's Delight Shows (VINdication)
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Scelsa went on to work in commercial radio first on
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457:"Pete Fornatale, a Pioneer of FM Rock, Dies at 66"
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286:2000sā2010s: Return to public radio, and satellite
265:In January 1996, K-Rock changed its format from
524:Complete Archive of the Idiot's Delight Digest
239:in 1970, called "White Port and Lemon Juice."
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529:The Idiot's Delight Digest Information Hub
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190:priest before pursuing a career in radio.
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414:, President and chairman of the board of
72:ASCAP Deems Taylor Radio Broadcast Award
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559:Radio personalities from New York City
534:Free-Form D.J. Loses Weekly Radio Show
320:Scelsa served as the music editor of
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554:American people of Italian descent
455:Martin, Douglas (April 27, 2012).
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215:-FM in New York City. He became
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564:People from Bayonne, New Jersey
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509:Idiot's Delight Message Board
199:1970sā2000s: Commercial radio
151:(born December 12, 1947, in
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519:The Idiot's Delight Digest
504:Vin Scelsa, Fare Thee Well
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219:for singer-songwriter
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35:Vincent Anthony Scelsa
584:Upsala College alumni
237:Mothers of Invention
153:Bayonne, New Jersey
52:Bayonne, New Jersey
579:American radio DJs
334:Kris Kristofferson
322:Penthouse Magazine
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589:WFUV people
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342:Pete Seeger
248:The Ramones
205:Long Island
548:Categories
442:References
424:Scott Muni
170:Early life
41:1947-12-12
25:Vin Scelsa
468:April 29,
391:", where
330:Lou Reed
157:freeform
119:Freeform
84:Stations
353:Grooves
349:Grooves
299:J&R
244:WNEW-FM
225:WABC-FM
125:Country
96:WNEW-FM
91:WABC-FM
404:Honors
336:, and
188:Jesuit
78:Career
69:Awards
416:ASCAP
340:with
332:with
115:Style
470:2012
379:WFUV
374:WFUV
295:WFUV
260:WXRK
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