Douglas Edward "Doug" Hoerth (born 1946 somewhere
in New Jersey) is a
disc jockey and
radio personality from
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
He had
most recently been hosting an afternoon talk show (he had
previously hosted mornings) on
WPTT-AM after a long stint at the former
WTAE-AM. He also was known for one of the
East Coast's last
doo-wop shows, which aired Sundays from 6PM to 12AM
on WPTT's sister station
WJAS.
While at WPTT, Hoerth did in-depth interviews with such celebrities
as
Stacey
Keach,
Sally Struthers,
Richard Dawson,
Pat Boone, and the
now deceased
Al
Lewis.
He abruptly disappeared from WPTT and WJAS the week
of Dec. 3,
2007, and all references to him were deleted
from the station's website. On Dec. 7,
Renda
Broadcasting (the owners of WPTT and WJAS) announced that
Hoerth's contract, due to expire on Dec. 31, was not being renewed.
WPTT has yet to name a replacement.
He moved to Pittsburgh from
Florida in 1980 to be host for a 7 p.m. to midnight talk show on
the former WWSW-AM. He also was host of a Sunday night oldies show
on the FM sister station - the original version of 3WS's "Sunday
Night Oldies Diner," which competed against his Sunday Night Oldies
Show on WJAS, which is WPTT's sister station.
In two decades,
Hoerth has made the rounds of the AM dial: He went on
KDKA in 1983,
KQV (1410) in 1985 and the former
WTAE (1250) in 1987. In 1998, ownership and
format changes forced him out at WTAE, and he moved to afternoon
drive at WPTT.
Hoerth was born in New Jersey and has been
candid on the air talking about his status as a recovering
alcoholic. He grew up idolizing New York disc jockeys like B.
Mitchell Reed and Dan Ingram. Hoerth always harbored the dream of
being in radio, but did not pursue a career. He was in his 30s and
a partner in an exterminating business in Florida when he called a
talk station during an "ask management" segment. Hoerth boldly
stated he could do a better show than some of the station's
staffers. Station manager Mike Harvey challenged Hoerth to come in
and make good on his boast, billing him as "Rocky Douglas, the
million to one shot." Hoerth's on-air audition went well, and he
was encouraged to pursue work in radio. He attended a broadcasting
school to learn the basics, and then worked for a number of
stations in Florida. Harvey brought him to Pittsburgh when WWSW-AM
launched a talk format as WTKN.