The Jet is based on a real person AND a cartoon character.

• He ate, slept, drank, and breathed...RADIO!  And didn't let school get in the way of his education.

 

• He bore a resemblance to this fellow and borrowed his name.

• He was the student station manager of WSIU, jocked at student station WIDB--and built WRRP (Roger Ramjet Productions) in his living room.

The SIU Radio and TV Department was was one of the top five in the country during the '70s, and students like Roger flocked to Carbondale from all over the nation.

To celebrate these times, we built a character based on SIU's Roger Ramjet and named him...Ronald.

In Chapter 4,  Peter Federson is sitting in Lentz Cafeteria, experiencing college life all...over...again...

" As I was about to take a timid bite out of my sandwich, I became aware of music trailing from the ceiling..."

(Cue to the reader: Start player and read along)

“WIDB...Carbondale…is…together!”

“Ronald Ramjet on together Six, WIDB. Sunny today, high of 80.  Cool tonight, low of 50.  Right now, 78 degrees.  Now, from out of the past, 1970, Mungo Jerry, ‘In the Summer Time’!”

Ramjet had timed his wrap perfectly over the beginning of the song until the vocal began.  'In the Summer Time' was my favorite tune for decades, before the song wore grooves into my mind and I could no longer stand to listen to it.  But at this moment, 'In the Summer Time' sounded…brand new, as if I had never heard it before.  My BLT forgotten, I was aware of nothing around me but the music.

Until I spotted Marta dancing to the beat at the salad bar.  She swayed as she plucked mushrooms from the huge bowl and dropped them on her plate.  Then, her love beads bouncing, she danced toward my table as Mungo Jerry sang about how you can reach right up and touch the sky, in the summertime.  She sat down across from me with a lazy smile.

'Groovin’ to the music, Peter?'  The scent of saffron incense that clung to her dress made it nice to live once again in 1971…for a moment.'"

“Oh God, yes! This is….great!”  Everyone else in the cafeteria seemed to be grooving, too.  Some choreographer had the students eating their food, drinking their coffee, and smoking their cigarettes in time with the music, and a costume designer had made sure that everyone wore huge collars, super-wide lapels, the paisley-ist paisley, the highest unisex heels, and the shortest dresses.

Marta, meanwhile, ran over to another table, picked up some books and a bag, and brought them back.  She sat down, pulled out a pair of oversized granny glasses from the blue velvet bag—on which JOHNNIE WALKER was stitched in yellow thread—and picked up a mushroom from her plate.  When the song ended, I noticed Marta wasn’t eating the mushroom, scrutinizing it with one eye closed, like a jeweler examining a fine diamond. Click here to read all of Chapter Four

In real life,  ROGER (Ramjet) Davis was jocking on WIDB during a spring day in 1971, and something went horribly wrong...

by