CLEVELAND — A familiar voice in Cleveland radio is about to sign off.
Bill Louis of 98.5 WNCX announced his upcoming retirement on Wednesday.
“Everything has to end sometime, even something that means as much to me as hanging out with you,” according to a post from Louis on WNCX’s site. “The last two years have taken their toll and I will retire at the end of the year. My health is fine, I'm just worn out. Thanks for being the greatest rock n roll audience in America. I love you all.”
His bio on their site says Louis “is known to Cleveland radio listeners as the host of “Cleveland’s Classic Café, serving up lunch requests and a bit of rock and roll trivia every midday on WNCX.”
Louis also addressed his upcoming retirement with the following message on air:
“This is the 411th month that we’ve been hanging out together. How about that? As hard as this is to say, this is going to be our last month together. I’ve decided to retire at the end of this month. The last two years have been a series of challenges. From trying to keep NCX sounding like NCX with no one even in the studio for months at a time during the height of the pandemic, to learning about Michael’s [Stanley] illness early on, to joining you all in mourning his passing. I’ve never experienced anything that required such constant attention in my 42 years in radio. Now it’s time to slow the pace of my life down a little bit. I intend to fill this last month with great music and bad jokes that you’ve come to expect in these last 34 years. As I get ready to pass the baton after 25 years of program director, I leave WNCX as one of the most respected classic rock stations in America, and the future is very bright. It’s all because of you. You deserve nothing but the best because, you, Cleveland, are the greatest rock ‘n’ roll audience in America. It’s been my honor and privilege to be of service to you. Thank you, Cleveland.”
You can listen to that message below:
Longtime radio host Jeff Kinzbach, who retired from 97.5 WONE in Akron last year, offered his best wishes to Louis on Facebook.
“Bill, you did a great job!” Kinzbach commented. “Now it's your time! Enjoy life on your terms and have fun!! We'll have to catch up sometime!”
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