The voice of Michigan

Growing up in northwest Ohio, I had no idea what radio stations other teenagers listened to. My own radio dial was stuck on WJR out of Detroit, partly because this powerful station carried every Detroit Tigers game. In this way I missed most of the popular music of the day, but I did hear a lot of Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughn, Dinah Washington and Louie Prima. I also became acquainted with the voice of J.P. McCarthy, host of the station's morning show.

So when I found a copy of J.P. McCarthy: Just Don't Tell 'em Where I Am by Michael Shiels in a used bookstore in Ashland, Ohio, I knew I had to have it. And last month while vacationing in Charlevoix, Mich., I started reading it. Michigan seemed like the best place to do this, for long before the Pure Michigan campaign brought tourists to that state, McCarthy's broadcasts did the same thing. Driving to and from Charlevoix, the name of virtually every town I passed reminded me of McCarthy because I had heard him mention it.

Shiels was Joseph Priestly McCarthy's producer (he went by J.P. because of the other Joe McCarthy) and so knew him about as well as anyone, and this is very an affectionate, insider's biography. Unfortunately many of the stories, especially those about his passion for golf, sailing and travel hold interest mainly for those insiders, McCarthy's friends and family members.

Of greater interest to his former listeners are those tales early in the book about WJR. How the station managed when he showed up late for his 6 a.m. show, how he never seemed to prepare for his interviews yet always seemed prepared, why he liked Sinatra, how he met Fat Bob the Singing Plumber (a frequent guest on his show), how he hosted a "swimsuit edition" on his radio show, how he could talk with and earn the trust of both Republican and Democrat politicians without revealing his own political leanings, why major stars and political figures made it a point to stop by his studio whenever they were in Detroit -- all these and more make great stories.

And I simply enjoyed seeing the familiar names of others I used to hear on WJR: Ernie Harrell, Paul Carey, Bud Guest, John McMurray, Dave Diles, Dan Streeter and Mike Whorf among them.

When McCarthy died in 1995 from a bone marrow disease, he was given a Detroit funeral worthy of a pope.

For a J.P. McCarthy fan, this book lacks just one thing: his voice.