ARRLWeb: Hams for the Hams? LIMARC Does Letterman May 3

NEW YORK, NY, Apr 27, 1999--A sizeable contingent from the Long Island Mobile Amateur Radio Club plans to be together in the audience Monday, May 3, for the afternoon taping of CBS Television's "The Late Show with David Letterman." It's not known if Letterman has put aside a good stock of his famous canned hams for the occasion.

"I don't know exactly what is going to happen, but we are going to try and make it into a pitch for ham radio," said LIMARC Secretary (and QST YL Editor) Diane Ortiz, K2DO. "We plan to present Letterman with a LIMARC teddy bear and hope to have the opportunity to talk to him on or off the air and also take a few photographs." The group will have some ARRL literature on hand and--to ensure visibility--also will hoist the club's banner.

Ortiz says she expects upwards of two dozen or more LIMARC members to be on hand in the Ed Sullivan Theater for the show's taping, including club Vice President Ray Skrabut, WA2CNJ, LIMARC directors Rich Rosner, N2STU, and Karl Johnson N2RLD, Membership Chairman Ken Gunther, WB2KWC, and the editor of The LIMARC Log, Jane Kindler K2JAN. Ortiz says member Ted Karl, AA2GC, plans to have his two sons in tow, 14-year-old Matthew, KG2HV, and nine-year-old Jonathan, KC2EED. The Letterman program airs in the late evening on CBS, typically following local news broadcasts.

Ortiz says the trek to Manhattan and the Letterman show will provide "a social occasion for our members and a chance to show hams as 'normal' people." But just to make sure on the second count, she gave strict instructions to those attending: "No weird beanies with propellers or antennas mounted on hardhats, please!" The plan does call for everyone to wear LIMARC name badges.

Ortiz says the "Late Show" producers found LIMARC through its Web site, http://www.limarc.org, and thought they would make a "fun-filled" addition to their audience. "It is sure to be a show the Letterman producers and LIMARC members will never forget!" she said. "Stay tuned!"

A couple of the LIMARC teddy bears.

The LIMARC QSL card. Founded in 1965, LIMARC is the fourth largest Amateur Radio club in the United States. The bulk of LIMARC's membership hails from New York's Nassau, Suffolk, Queens and Kings counties. Many other members are from the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut tri-state area. The club operates five repeaters on VHF and UHF. The current club president is Rob Todaro, N1XL.