a Story by Larry

Larry wrote this yesterday March 10, 2011... Dad's last day was not that actual day but it was close. I will look through my journals and find the actual day and post it, but still a beautiful tribute.

Today marks a melancholy event that occurred three years ago when for the first time since Labor Day of 1956 that my dad, Zeke Mullins, wasn’t behind a microphone doing a daily country music show on a local radio station.



Dad was forced to retire from his career as a country deejay by the onset of Alzheimer’s in 2008.



For over 52-years dad’s down to earth, homespun style endeared him to generations of listeners throughout Southern Ohio and Northern Kentucky who grew up listening to Zeke on the radio.



Because of dad’s honest approach, family and religious values and dedication to the Country music art form and is knack to share antidotes from his (and his family’s) life that people could relate to his listeners consider him more like one of their family than just a deejay.



Over the years dad received many accolades during his radio career including being named Mr. Deejay USA in 1959 for which he was invited to co-host a special show on WSM Radio with Grant Turner and make a special appearance on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.



In 1967 dad received national recognition again when the Country Music Association presented him with the Golden Guitar Award for his efforts to promote Country Music.



Dad was recognized in 1982 by the City of Portsmouth, Scioto County Commissioners and the Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce on his 25th Anniversary in broadcasting.



In 1995 he received a Star of Fame on the Portsmouth floodwall and in 1999 he was named Scioto County Citizen of the Year.



In 2003 he was named to the Ohio Senior Citizens’ Hall of Fame.



My dad is a great man that loves his wife and family and Southern Ohio but most of all, my dad was an entertainer.



One of the greatest things about dad was unlike a lot of entertainers and “radio people” that have a public persona dad was real and genuine. The person that you heard on the radio was the same guy at home and in private life.



Growing up dad and I didn’t always see eye to eye on a lot of things and I spent most of my formative years trying to be as different from him as possible. But in the end I know that any redeeming value that I might have I owe to what I learned from him.



He was always quick with a joke or happy to sing an “old timey” country song but most of all he loved being a country deejay.



It’s sad that this damn disease took that away from him.



Now he has good days and bad days and the good days are so precious when you see the old Zeke.



He recently suffered another setback when fell, at the radio station, and broke his hip.



Ever resilient he is back on track and doing pretty good for a guy who turned 89 last September.



He still does a show on Saturday mornings on WNXT 1260-AM but it is taped in advance.



The folks at WNXT have been so good to dad and very supportive and have enabled him to stay active and let him keep doing what he loves to do and for that I’m very thankful.



Every time I hear Tom Petty’s “The Last Deejay” I think of dad because that song is so him!