Gordie Little: Local Legend

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Most people don't get fired and hired the same day, read monologues for the Ed Sullivan show, or emcee Louis Armstrong concerts. Gordie Little is not most people.

As I sit down for this interview, I ask Little if it is OK to refer to him as Gordie because that is how he is known around town. He obliges because, as he tells me, "That is my name."

Gordie has stories to tell, and he enjoys telling them. He begins each of our interviews with "My time is your time."

Born in Rockland County, the minister's son has lived in many towns and cities in New York through his family's travels. Gordie also took some time to settle down at college. After getting kicked out of two schools, he finally landed at Stony Brook University.

Little intended to become a civil engineer when he attended high school, citing his strengths in math and the science. It was then that Gordie worked at his first radio station in Malone. At this point, Gordie knew he would not be a civil engineer. He knew he wanted to be on the radio.

After getting kicked out of two schools, Gordie finally landed at Stony Brook. "I spent a lot of my four years at Stony Brook practicing my radio skills," says Little. "They didn't have a station, but I practiced using tape recorders, and making up news shows."

Early on in Gordie's love affair with the media, he recalls being asked by the Tonight Show's Jack Parr to read the remainder of the show's monologue on the Ed Sullivan Show because the act had been so poorly received by the audience. Parr had asked if there were any comedians in the audience and Gordie eagerly volunteered. Parr handed him the monologue as a joke. Gordie still has the monologue buried somewhere in his house.

When Gordie graduated in 1961, he sent out audition tapes he had produced using tape recorders in his home. He landed his first job at WEAV in Plattsburgh. After working for WEAV for three months, Little was fired without explanation. "I was working 65 hours a week for $65, and they didn't even give me a reason."

Unemployment did not last long, however. He resumed work the very next day, landing a job at WIRY, also in Plattsburgh. The station had been interested in Gordie for months. He began working at WIRY on Oct. 20, 1961, where he remained until April of 1997. Except for one throat illness that kept him away from work for several weeks, he never missed a day.. The money was better than what he was paid at WEAV, but still wasn't great, even after more than thirty years.

Why work at a job for thirty-six years if the money wasn't good? For Gordie, it wasn't about the money. He is a people person, always referring to the interaction between his listeners and himself as the cornerstone of his career. "The money wasn't good, but it was a tremendously rewarding job," he says. "I really enjoy working in a small town."

Working and living in Plattsburgh offered more than just a small town atmosphere. During the sixties, Plattsburgh was a hub for famous music acts. He even got the opportunity to act as Master of Ceremonies for a Louis Armstrong show held at Memorial Hall, at Plattsburgh State University. Louis Armstrong was his idol, and he was able to meet him on several occasions.

Ultimately, Gordie became the news and program director at WIRY. Under these titles, he was in charge of music programming as well. Little explains how weekly the station would receive stacks and stacks of 45's. He would have to listen to all of them in search of the next big hit so he could have it first on his station.

"My job was to create a mix of music to fit the area," says Gordie. His selections included mostly country and popular music. He also ran a top 10 kids show every evening. Gordie pioneered a popular WIRY show called "The Sunday of Solid Gold." The show is still produced at the radio station. The program offers music for an older crowd—music that is rarely played on any stations today.

His style focused on the relationship between his listeners and himself. He would encourage listeners to call in with any tidbits or news relating to the area. This format eventually enabled Gordie to feed local news stories to the Associated Press, for which he later received a lifetime achievement award from the AP.

Tidbits that local residents would find ordinary appeared unique to the AP. Gordie recalls a story of a panty thief who would sneak into a specific woman's room and occasionally steal a pair of panties. Eventually the woman realized that she had none left. That made the AP wire.

During the years the Air Force Base operated in Plattsburgh, Gordie was a major advocate of the facility until it's closing in 1995. Although the base has closed, Gordie continues to work toward the public use of the land. Ironically, Gordie poured the cement that constructed the base years ago.
"I had a wonderful relationship with the base," says Gordie "I fought hard to keep it open, but to no avail." Gordie did countless broadcasts from the base including concerts and various events.

In 1997, Gordie left the radio industry for reasons he chooses not to dicuss. For some, that would mean retirement, but not for Gordie. His latest adventure features a role as victim's advocate.

Today, Gordie helps crime victims. He begins the process when someone is involved in an incident. He helps them with tasks such as being reimbursed for out of pocket expenses and helps them through the maze of the judicial system. He is not a lawyer, just an advocate.

"It's very satisfying to help victims," says Gordie. "Most have no awareness of the system and how it works. If I have a mission in life, it's helping people in the community." Gordie parks his car directly on the spot that used to be the WEAV building which was his first job in the area.

Gordie also occupies his time by writing a weekly column for The Press Republican. The column was originally supposed to be based on his radio days but has expanded to include every conceivable topic. He has written approximately two hundred thirty-five columns for the Press since he began.

He also does a weekly television show based on the history and people of the area called "Our Little Corner." He has hosted over 200 shows, each about two hours long. The show airs on the Plattsburgh cable access station.

Gordie then tells me what he does in his free time. It is amazing he has any. Gordie studies what he calls 'borderline' materials: ghost stories, hypnosis, the human soul, and the rest of the paranormal. He has been collecting and writing down ghost stories for years now. Usually, Gordie goes to schools during Halloween and shares some of these stories with the children.

He also does a lot of behind the scenes work with various organizations throughout the area. This is a topic that Gordie is modest about. He did not name the specific organizations, other than saying he was a big women's rights supporter. "This is a wonderful volunteering community," says Gordie, who also spends plenty of time promoting the Battle of Plattsburgh. "It is great for tourism, and great for the people who live here."

Life in a nutshell according to Gordie is as follows: "Most people are planning fifteen years in the future, and then today goes by. Everyday is a day I must do something for someone, even if it's telling my wife that I love her."

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