Jack Harris (broadcaster)
| Jack Harris | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1941 (age 74–75) Logan, West Virginia |
| Residence | Tampa, Florida |
| Alma mater | West Virginia University |
| Occupation | Broadcaster |
| Years active | 1959 - present |
Jack Harris is a local broadcast personality in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. He has been involved in radio, television, and sports broadcasts in that market since 1970.
Early life
William H Harris Jr. was born in Logan, West Virginia, a rural coal mining town, on September 18, 1941. His childhood was spent across West Virginia, Virginia, and in Japan, before returning to Logan. After working as a janitor and grocery bagger, his first radio job began at WVOW radio in Logan, in 1959, under his longtime nickname "Bucky Harris". His next years were spent attending Davidson College and later, West Virginia University where he studied History and was a member of Army ROTC. He spent two years of active duty in the United States Army, with tours in Vietnam and the Dominican Republic, before settling in Morgantown, West Virginia where he became a regular personality on WAJR radio in the 1960s.[1]
Career
A job offer brought Harris to WFLA radio in Tampa in 1970, taking on his radio name of Jack Harris. He left Tampa in 1974, becoming a morning DJ on WRC radio in Washington DC, then on sister-station WKYS, the first all-Disco station in America, returning to Tampa and WFLA in 1975. Harris' radio career kept him at WFLA for the next ten years, before co-hosting the "Q-Morning Zoo" on rival WRBQ, then returning to WFLA sister-station WFLZ, then "Power 93 - The Power Pig" in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He has since left music radio, hosting the news/talk program "AM Tampa Bay" on WFLA with Tedd Webb since 1993. His television credits include hosting a show with then Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach John McKay on WTOG, hosting the successful afternoon program "Pulse Plus!" on WTVT between 1984 and 1989, hosting "NewsWatch 8 at Noon" and his own talk show "Harris and Company" on WFLA TV until 2000, restaurant reviewer on Bay News 9 in the early 2000s, an evening commentary on WFTS, and co-hosting "The Mayors Hour" with the sitting Tampa mayor on cable access, since 1996.[2] In recent years, he has published a book of humorous essays titled Jack Harris Unwrapped and currently provides voice-over announcements at Tampa International Airport.
Harris' sports broadcasting has included radio play-by-play for the South Florida Bulls college basketball, the Tampa Bay Rowdies NASL soccer team, the Tampa Bay Bandits USFL football team, the Tampa Bay Storm Arena Football League team, and the annual Outback Bowl; in addition to pre-game and half-time shows for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL and promotions with the Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL.[3]
He lives in South Tampa with his wife Joy, and has one son, Jackson, born 1991.
References
- ↑ Clark, Mike (June 2005). "WTVT Personality Profile". Big 13 Historical Site. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
- ↑ Deggans, Eric (January 17, 2008). "Old-school radio personality Jack Harris busy on and off the air". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
- ↑ Griffin, Justine (September 24, 2015). "Jack Harris renews contract with News Radio 970 WFLA". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2016-02-12.