Remembering Boom Goldberg

Legendary former WMMS DJ Len "Boom" Goldberg was found dead in his home Wednesday, December 27. He was 74. Goldberg was the voice of the city's most storied rock station, 100.7 FM "The Buzzard," for three decades. Scene contributor Matt Wardlaw, a DJ for 92.3 K-ROCK, recalls Goldberg: During my time working at WMMS in the '90s, I was lucky enough to realize a number of dreams beyond the initial dream come true of working at one of the most legendary rock stations in the United States. Certainly, it was a once in a lifetime experience to work alongside Len "Boom" Goldberg. Boom was the one and only voice of The Buzzard for over 3 decades, and touched many people throughout the Cleveland listening area with his distinctive voice. Behind the scenes, Goldberg definitely had an opinion, and was never afraid to share that opinion. One of my favorite memories was during a station meeting announcing a new incoming morning show that would be joining WMMS. The show was made up of non-Clevelanders, and Boom blasted the move as the incoming morning show sat in the meeting, no doubt wondering what they had gotten themselves into. Boom was my role model in so many ways, and it was cool that even in his 70s, he remained as passionate as a music fan as he was back in the day when WMMS was breaking new artists like David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen. Boom was a mentor to many of us, and was very generous in sharing the things that he had learned during his years in the biz. With the passing of Len "Boom" Goldberg, it is truly the end of an era, and we have lost yet another local treasure. Like so many, I am thankful for the time that I got to spend in his world, and for the time that he chose to spend in mine. — Matt Wardlaw