WEEI

WEEI is a sports radio station in Boston, Massachusetts, that broadcasts on 850 kHz from a transmitter in Needham, Massachusetts, and is owned by Entercom Communications and operated by The Walt Disney Company, ESPN Radio's majority owner, under a local marketing agreement. Studios are located in Brighton, Massachusetts. The station currently broadcasts programming from ESPN Radio; until October 4, 2012, the station aired a highly rated locally produced sports talk format, which is now heard on WEEI-FM (93.7 FM).

History

WEEI's seven decades at 590 kHz

WEEI traces its roots to its original owner, Edison Electric Illuminating (hence the call letters). Edison placed the station on the air September 29, 1924. The station broadcast on various frequencies over the next several years, settling on 590 kHz in 1927. In 1926, WEEI became a charter member of the NBC Red Network and remained an NBC Red affiliate until 1936, when the station was leased by CBS and became an affiliate of that network. CBS bought WEEI outright from Boston Edison on August 31, 1942. An FM sister station, WEEI-FM (103.3 FM, now WODS), went on the air in 1948. Until 1960, WEEI, through CBS Radio, was the last Boston radio station to devote a large amount of its program schedule to "traditional" network radio programming of daytime soap operas, comedy shows, variety shows, and similar fare.

The Jimmy Fund

The Jimmy Fund raises funds to support adult and pediatric cancer care and research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1948 to raise funds for patient care and the fight against children’s cancer, the Jimmy Fund now supports the search for new cancer treatments and cures for both adults and children at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Since its founding in 1948, the Jimmy Fund has raised more than $750 million, including $61 million in 2010. According to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, eighty-nine cents of every dollar raised supports Dana-Farber’s lifesaving mission; however, this figure cannot be verified through the Better Business Bureau.

History

The Jimmy Fund was launched with the help of the Variety Club of New England (now the Variety Children's Charity of New England). The club organized a radio broadcast from the bedside of a young cancer patient dubbed Jimmy as he was visited by members of the Boston Braves baseball team. Contributions poured in to buy Jimmy a television set so he could watch the Braves play.

Sports radio

Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and callers. Many sports talk stations also carry play-by-play of local sports teams as part of their regular programming. Hosted by Bill Mazer, the first sports talk radio show in history launched in March 1964 on New York's WNBC (AM).

Soon after WNBC launched its program, in 1965 Seton Hall University's radio station, WSOU, started "Hall Line," a call-in sports radio talk show that focuses on Seton Hall Basketball. Having celebrated its 50th anniversary on air during the 2015-2016 season, "Hall Line," which broadcasts to central and northern New Jersey as well as all five boroughs of New York, is the oldest and longest running sports talk call-in show in the NY-NJ Metropolitan area-- and is believed to be the oldest in the nation.

Tom Brady

Thomas Edward Patrick Brady, Jr. (born August 3, 1977), is an American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL).

After playing college football for the University of Michigan, Tom Brady was drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL draft. In Brady's 14 seasons as a starter (he did not start as a rookie, and missed nearly all of 2008 with a torn ACL), the Patriots have earned six trips to the Super Bowl (the most for any quarterback, ever), winning four. Brady has won three Super Bowl MVP (Super Bowl XXXVI, XXXVIII, and XLIX) and two league MVP awards (2007 and 2010), has been selected to eleven Pro Bowls, and has led the Patriots to more division titles (13) than any other quarterback in NFL history. Brady is fifth all-time in career passing yards and third in career touchdown passes. His career postseason record is 22–9; he has won more playoff games than any other QB, and appeared in more playoff games than any player at any position. He led the Patriots when they set the NFL record for the longest consecutive win streak, including the playoffs, with 21 straight wins in the 2003 and 2004 seasons. He also set the record for most consecutive playoff wins with 10, and in 2007 led the Patriots to the first undefeated regular season since the season was expanded to 16 games. He has thrown for more passing yards and touchdowns than any quarterback in NFL postseason history, and has the sixth highest career passer rating of all time (96.6) among quarterbacks with at least 1,500 career passing attempts.