Polish American ProgramPolish American Radio Program in Pasadena (1983 - 1994)
by Gene Harubin Zygmont
The Polish American Program aired its first broadcast on September 3, 1983, over KPCC.FM, a Public Broadcasting Station (PBS), located on the campus of Pasadena City College.
Marty Cepielik, founder and host structured the program to appeal to a wide variety of tastes. It included popular music from Polish and Polonian sources, a Weekly Calendar of Events and a segment entitled Polish Profiles, which was a concise historical summary of events, personages and places.
Polish Profiles soon became one of the most popular features of the program. Segments included such diverse subjects as the history of the Poles at Jamestown, the trailblazing Sadowski family, Helena Modjeska, the Panna Maria settlement in Texas, Tadeusz Kosciuszko, Casimir Pulaski, the May 3, 1791 Constitution, Jan III Sobieski's victory over the Turks at Vienna and numerous others. It was, in short, a mini-course in Polish and Polish - American history. Frequent contributors to this portion of the program were Paul Knoll, Professor of History at USC, Leon Waszak, historian and Gene H. Zygmont, researcher and lecturer.
In 1987, the directors of KPCC restructured all programs to concentrate on Talk - Radio. Mr. Cepielik then reorganized the program to meet these demands. In lieu of the Polish Profiles segment, interviews with prominent Polish and Polonian leaders were instituted and a bi-weekly telephone interview with Warsaw correspondent Robert Strybel kept listeners abreast of current events in Poland. Special programs at Easter, Christmas, Fourth of July and notable anniversaries, familiarized listeners with Polish customs and traditions and propagated these among Americans, ensuring the continuity of a unique cultural heritage.
At various times, Mr. Cepielik was aided by guest hosts Gene H. Zygmont and Lee B. Weber, as well as by engineer Marek Piatkowski, commentator Basia Frankowska and telephone volunteer Betsy Cepielik.
In the spring of 1994, KPCC again restructured its programming and air time for the Polish American Program discontinued. The last segment aired on Sunday, April 17, 1994: It was the 554th broadcast. Thus, for over a decade the Polish American Program was a source of education as well as entertainment and stimulated an awareness of Polish culture among its listeners.
From: Polish Americans in California, vol. II. National Center for Urban Ethnic Affairs & Polish American Historical Association. California 1995.