The Louisiana Association of Broadcasters inducted longtime KRVS 88.7 FM program host Lee Kleinpeter into its Hall of Fame on Friday, March 22.
The organization honored Kleinpeter during its 2024 Prestige Awards ceremony, a little over a year after he passed away at age 73.
“Thanks to the LAB for recognizing someone we miss every day,” said Cheryl Devall, KRVS general manager. “We at KRVS appreciate this recognition of his long, memorable radio career.”
Kleinpeter began his 56-year career in radio after graduating from Catholic High School in New Iberia. He worked at various stations, including KANE in New Iberia. At KRVS, he commanded the hosting chair for more than 30 years and eventually gained a worldwide following thanks to its popular internet stream. On Radio Acadie, Kleinpeter hosted "Old Gold," "Born on the Bayou," "Big Band Swings" and — with Bill Boelens — "Dirty Rice."
Lee produced some of these weekly music programs live from the KRVS studio. With his distinctive delivery and vivid imagination, he took listeners in the “wayback machine” to an era when radio comedy and drama reigned supreme, tunes from Broadway and movie musicals topped the pop charts, and elegantly dressed couples swayed to the big bands in the fictional Avocado Room of the Hotel Biltwell. Former KRVS general manager Dave Spizale said the scene setting sounded so real that some listeners called the station asking for directions.
An appreciation by John Anderson for The Daily Iberian noted: "That was the beauty of Lee, you could never tell if you were listening to a show from 1922 or 2022, his voice was perfect."
LAB’s hall of fame recognizes industry pioneers who have made significant contributions to the development of broadcasting and their communities. Past honorees include former KRVS membership director and host Judith Meriwether.
KRVS has broadcast from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus since 1963, when the Federal Communications Commission granted it an FM license as a student-run, 10-watt station. Its signal covered a radius of about six blocks.
Today, KRVS reaches a global audience. Its website and smart phone app offer free live streaming and archived podcasts that carry south Louisiana sounds to the world. It also offers jazz, classical, rock, roots, folk and reggae.
Learn more about KRVS.
Photo caption: Lee Kleinpeter in the KRVS studio in 2016, where he produced some of his most popular radio shows. Credit: KRVS Public Media