WMTH Alumni

by Robin Pendergrast, November 2021

For WMTH friends, alumni and listeners everywhere…and for the past 60 years.

Maine East High School, Park Ridge, Illinois probably March or April, 1963.

Almost done. Four years of fun, learning, trying to stay out of trouble and meeting and developing friendships that would last forever.

Steve Goodman was funny, talented , tiny and not a classmate…I believe 2 years younger…a sophomore. Then Maine East ( Maine ) had around 3600 students I think. Actually not sure, but a fabulous school to most and a place to spend a day for others.

Me, a mediocre student, always looking for fun, a wannabe football player but still termed a jock, lots of great friends and I thought of some special teachers and coaches also.

OK enough of that.

Steve Goodman and I connected at the then fledgling radio station, WMTH-FM. 88.5. Up until the station was created we didn’t know each other but then fast friends and both enjoying our company and our nonstop ability to have fun, hide in the radio station and as it turned out do some pretty creative work on the radio.

Sports was our real connection and Steve I think like being connected with me and the football team and the sports department. Let’s remember Steve was barely 5 feet tall, but an amazing musician ( guitar of course ), singer and songwriter. Little did we know that a few years later our Steve would be internationally known and followed for this talent. And yes he would ” entertain ” during the early WMTH years, usually in the Maine studio entertaining a few friends or just me. The guitar was always with him…that guitar seemed bigger than Steve but he handled it well.

Those radio days were ours. Sports, play by play of basketball and football and Steve was the color announcer and was hysterical. I guess I was the straight guy and he would constantly come up with player or game observations that sometimes were so funny I had a tough time following the game or doing the play by play.

But Steve was a knowledgeable sports addict and tempered his colorful comments with ” boy I think we need a touchdown…at a basketball game”. or something even more
off course.

Maine East was located in Park Ridge, Illinois . As many know, a predominantly WASP community ( all white ) filled the hallways of Maine East High School. But then a token contingent from Niles and Morton Grove of students and families of the Jewish faith. No problem to me or most…these were friends and good guys and gals. But don’t kid yourself anti-Semitism and racism were on the radar in Park Ridge and Maine then and maybe even today 6 decades later. Who knows.

Steve ( and maybe others ) became the subject of anti-Semitic taunts, then even bullying and comments that were inappropriate at best. Steve was above all that. The Stump as I would sometimes call him just ignored the comments and periodically confronted by the folks that stood for everything bad… and in some cases ” The Greasers “.

One day in the WMTH studio, Steve and I were listening to an interview with basketball coach Bernie Brady when he stopped the tape and said to me ” why do students hate Jews ? ” . Uhh ? He then told me about the constant verbal ( anti -Semitic abuse ) he received on a record basis in the hallways and after school and well everywhere.

He wondered if other Jewish students were getting the same harassment.

Then ( and now ) I was upset…pissed is the correct term I believe. These remarks and anti-Semitic confrontations had no place. Steve didn’t deserve this at all.

My turn. I took it upon myself to confront these folks either as individuals or a group and said to knock it off ” now “…no more…stop it. No more…or ” they ” would answer to some every happy friends of mine ( and Steve’s ). At first Steve was not a where of my confronting the ” bullies “, sometimes along with a few of my friends. At times these connects became confrontational, but eventually after a few threats and verbal ” presentations ” the remarks stopped completely. Maybe us , maybe something else.
Hell I don’t know. Move on.

For Steve and others all is well.

But now this situation for me gets interesting. One day while sitting in a class, maybe in April, a office messenger came in and handed a note to the teacher. He reads, looks up and says ” Robin, there is someone in the counselor’s office that would like to see you now “. Oh boy what now? I thought the end of the senior year and everything was well OK.

So off I went books in hand down to the office adjacent to that huge stairway that went up to the library and tower of the school. I walked in, was going to sit down and a staff member directed me to the open door. I walked in and there sitting ( 2 ) and one standing were 3 men dressed in blue, administrative type suits. I thought I knew one but the others…

They asked me to sit down, and the standing chap said ” thanks for coming down…we’ll only be a minute ” I said nothing and wondered what the _ _ _ _ _ is going on ? Small talk about the end of the senior year., what school are you headed to etc. Then…

” We understand there has been an issue with a friend of yours ( Steve ) and some other students making inappropriate remarks “. Absolutely I said. More than inappropriate but wrong and hurtful. Then they asked about the role that I took in preventing this from happening any more to Steve, potential confrontations and the danger of this ” getting out of control ” or possibly worse.

Now I get it. But I assured them that the anti-Semitic problem toward Steve had been taken care of. Resolved. But why all of this meeting and talking. Then there was some in hindsight references to finishing high school. moving on without any disruption. Hmm.

Then the closer was ( after about 20 minutes ) ” we need to encourage you to not say anything about this incident to anyone…anymore or if at all ” And a few more casual references to not repeating any of the your attempts to stop the harassing of Steve. “

” We don’t want to have anything disrupt the end of your term …you senior year “.

I didn’t quite get it other than I was uncomfortable and the door opened.

Nothing was ever said to my parents, friends, classmates, teachers, girlfriend Kathie…nothing.

Footnote: Author Clay Eals wrote a fabulous biography of Steve Goodman’s life and in Chapter 3 wrote about my radio station relationship with Steve that evolved in to much more over the years. Clay also qualified in the book STEVE GOODMAN FACING THE MUSIC some of the difficulties Steve and others faced as ” token ” Jews in Maine East High School. The above essentially a cover-up situation has never been revealed…until now.

Why now ? Why not ? Overt hatred towards minorities, towards Jews, towards indigenous groups is out of control or maybe really coming to the surface.

Steve Goodman died at the all to young age of 39 of cancer.

Steve Goodman a classmate, a fun friend, a dedicated Chicago Cubs fan to his dying days, a world class entertainer and musician…a good guy.

Steve I stand for you today.

Robin Pendergrast / Maine East High School / Class of 63