John, now that you're officially an Ocean Stater

[Mike P]

Ah, you have two strikes against you on getting Salty--you're under 40 and you just moved here. Salty was the morning drive-time guy on WPRO and WPRO-FM for about 30 years--biggest and most revered celebrity in the whole state. Every political candidate in the state would have killed to get him to endorse them. He had a half-hour kids' show on WPRO Channel 12 back in the early 60s, he always signed off with "Brush your teeth and say your prayers" then told his pet collie, Jeff, to "Say goodnight, Jeff". Jeff would then woof on cue.

Salty was the guy everyone listened to after a snow storm to find out whether school was cancelled--it wasn't official until Salty said it.

He's gotta be closing in on 90 right now, and doesn't do the radio show any more--but I heard him doing a commercial for Cardi's Furniture this summer.

I guess the best way to put it is, he's a bigger RI institution than the Blue Bug, Buddy Cianci and the Journal-Bulletin all rolled into one.

Where's Saltheart when you need him? He could probably explain it better