By John Jackson
Alan Freed was born Albert James Freed today (December 15, 1921,) near Johnstown, PA. In 1933 the Freed family moved to Salem, Ohio. In high school, Freed formed a band know as The Sultans of Swing, in which he played trombone. In 1942, Freed landed his first broadcasting job, at WKST (New Castle, PA). He took a sportscasting position at WKBN (Youngstown, OH) the following year.
The Moonglows recorded their version of “Blue Velvet” today (December 13, 1956.) The Moonglows were headed by Harvey Fuqua, who was the nephew of Ink Spots’ guitarist, Charles Fuqua.
