Radio

THERE WAS something very South Philly about Louis Conaway. "He was kind of a typical South Philadelphian," said a family member. "It's hard to explain. He could charm the pants off you. He could make you smile. " Louis Cecil Conaway, a passionate tinkerer who enjoyed delving into the mysteries of electronic gadgets and figuring them out, died Jan. 25 of cancer. He was 51 and lived in South Philadelphia. He was born in Philadelphia to Louis Cecil Conaway Sr. and Camille Conaway.

Helen Vitkow Guggino, 96, who began her career as a copy girl at The Inquirer and eventually became the paper's radio and television editor, died of heart failure Friday, Jan. 4, at Hampton Care Center in Southampton. When she was in her 60s, Mrs. Guggino embarked on a career in fashion design, creating dresses that drew a following among Philadelphians seeking simple but elegant frocks, said her son, Jhon Christopher. Bold and witty, she spoke her mind. When people asked what she earned at The Inquirer years ago, she answered, "Not enough.

Ralph Collier, 91, of Society Hill, a sophisticated voice in Philadelphia radio who interviewed celebrities and newsworthy figures, died Tuesday, Jan. 29, of heart failure at Pennsylvania Hospital. Until this month, Mr. Collier was writing a weekly travel column for the Main Line Times. For two decades until 1988, Mr. Collier hosted a daily interview program on classical-music WFLN-FM. "He had a knack for opening people like a book," said his wife, Birtan. "He was never confrontational," said Dave Conant, the station's program manager during part of Mr. Collier's tenure.

Donovan McNabb, already an analyst for the NFL Network, now has a national radio deal. He's joining the fledging NBC Sports Radio network, which launched Sept. 4, expanded to offer weekend-long programming on Jan. 5, and will go 24/7 on April 1. The NBC rollout is the latest challenge to turf once ruled by ESPN. On Jan. 2, CBS Sports Radio went national, offering a broad perspective at 610 on the AM band, while 94 WIP continued with its local lineup on FM. ESPN's represented in Philadelphia by 97.5 The Fanatic, also on FM. McNabb will be one of NBC Sports Radio's top NFL analysts, taking part in this weekend's Super Bowl coverage, and regularly talking by phone with shows on various affiliates.

It's not the restoration of a national radio presence, but starting Feb. 24 the Philadelphia Orchestra will return to regional radio under the terms of a new deal with WRTI-FM (90.1). Through the end of the 2012-13 season, the Temple University station will air a series of regular Sunday-afternoon delayed broadcasts of Philadelphia Orchestra concerts, with rebroadcasts over the summer. The series is expected to resume next season, said David S. Conant, WRTI's general manager. But first, this Sunday at 2 p.m. WRTI-FM will rebroadcast WQXR-FM's recording of the orchestra's Thursday Carnegie Hall performance of Ravel's La Valse , Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 , and Leonidas Kavakos in Karol Szymanowski's Violin Concerto No. 2 . Conant said he had been talking with the orchestra for several years about the radio series, which required the approval of musicians and music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

THEATER IS SUPPOSED to surprise. But there was no way I was prepared for what happened last Sunday afternoon when I arrived at the Players Club of Swarthmore for a matinee performance of playwright Tom Gibbons' "Permanent Collection. " I opened the playbill and learned the character of Paul Barrow is being played by John Harvey. The name "John Harvey" may not immediately ring any bells, but readers of a certain age are likely to remember "Harvey in the Morning," the popular show he hosted for more than two decades on WIOQ (102.1-FM)

The Buzz Bissinger talk-radio experiment is over. The outspoken Pulitzer winner, author of Friday Night Lights , jousted with callers from 3 to 7 p.m. at 1210 WPHT for half a year, but decided last month to call it quits. A pending investigation by corporate parent CBS into a verbal altercation with a colleague was reportedly the triggering event, but Bissinger shared another reason: "This is not how I should be spending my life. " He declined to get into details of his resignation - "contractually, I really cannot comment," he said - saying that it was "a wonderful experience" and he was "treated very, very well" by managers Marc Rayfield and Andy Bloom.

This morning, fans who regularly wake up to WIP 610 may have wondered what happened to Angelo Cataldi's morning show. Where was the ranting about Andy Reid? The ogling of Wingettes? The banter with Al Morganti and Rhea Hughes? And why were these strange voices talking about the Clippers and the Knicks? Today, a national CBS sports talk network took over 610 AM, with the local sports lineup now found just on FM. For the most part. "CBS Sports Radio 610 is also the home for play-by-play coverage of St. Joseph's University Men's Basketball, Villanova Men's Basketball and Football, NFL Sunday Afternoon and Primetime (Thursday, Sunday and Monday Night Football)

Montgomery County has snagged a deal that puts the best Black Friday doorbusters to shame - a new radio communications system for first responders, for only $39.9 million. Previous estimates had been in the range of $70 million to $100 million. The county had been shopping for a system since 2010, and last month decided to negotiate with Motorola Solutions instead of going through the competitive bidding process. "Those negotiations came to a frenzy" Wednesday," said Commissioner Bruce L. Castor Jr., and the vote was rushed onto the board's agenda Thursday morning.

A prank call that may have led to the death of a British nurse has struck a chord with Americans just as guilty of laughing at TV and radio jokes that have come close to prompting tragic, if not fatal, responses. The prank call remains a staple of a number of U.S. syndicated radio programs, including the Tom Joyner Morning Show and the Steve Harvey Show , with a cast member calling a listener, pretending to be someone else, and then goading the unsuspecting victim into an irate response.