Tony Radio - Simply Red

Holding Back the Years. This is a Tony 80's favorite flashback.

Taos Pueblo, New Mexico

One of America's Oldest Neighborhoods.

Tony's Roots - New Mexico by Air

Belen to Shiprock by way of Gallup.

Tony's Roots - Wigan #2

Shots of Wigan, UK, and it's surroundings.

Tony's Roots - Wigan

Tony's Mom, Betty, was born in Wigan, England in 1927. Lying at the west extreme of the Greater Manchester County, Wigan is probably best known for its coal-mining, its Rugby League, and for the reference to its famous Pier by George Orwell in his book about working-class life in the north in the 1930s. Once a major northern coal producing town, (records show that the first coal pit was begun in 1450), Wigan has developed into a modern town with many attractions. Once Wigan boasted over 1000 pit shafts within 5 miles of the town centre, but these have all gone and the over 2000 acres of industrial dereliction which they created has been cleared and redeveloped in the past few years, and slag heaps have given way to landscaping and green developments.

Tony's Mom grew up on Teck Street in St. Patrick's Parish. She met Tony's Dad, an American GI, during a blackout in WW II. They married at St. Patrck's after the War and moved back to the US, settling first in St. Louis, where Tony was born, and then moving on to Southern California, where Tony's siblings were born and all still reside to this day.

Not An Exit - by Perry

I remember going to Hambuger Henry's late one night in Belmont Shore. We all were at a big table and Tony's chair was in front of the emergency exit. He leaned back and hit the latch on the door and the alarm went off. REALLY LOUD. Embarrassed, Tony laughed it off and told the waiter, "I bet that happens all the time." The waiter replied that it had never happened since he'd been there, and he had worked there for three years. I also remember Tony coming by the house on Euclid all excited about a song. The song was All Day Music by War. Tony said, "You've gotta listen to this. The harmonies are awesome!". Those are some of my recollections - those and me being "Perry Perry mo Perry."

Greetings From St. Louis

Tony, Your Auntie Anne in St. Louis would like to wish you the happiest 60th Birthday. She wants to remind you that you are a Missouri native, the very first grandchild of Tim and Anne Jordan Moran, and that you were a bubbly joyful beautiful baby. Your Missouri cousins, Margaret, Dennis, Tim, Ray, Edmund, Patty, and Anne, would also like to wish you the happiest 60th Birthday, if we had moved to California, we might know how to submit something high tech, rather than this note, but we too are thankful that you were the first grandchild of Tim and Anne Jordan Moran. Tony - wishing you the happiest of Birthdays!!!!

Guess Who Else is Turning Sixty?

Tony is not the only guy blowing out 60 candles this year. He has plenty of cool (and some not so cool) company huffing and puffing with him:

Arnold Schwarzenegger
Billy Crystal
Camilla Parker Bowles
Carlos Santana
Cheryl Tiegs
Dan Quayle
Danielle Steel
Danny Glover
David Bowie
David Letterman
David Mamet
Dick Fosbury
Elton John
Glenn Close
James Woods
Johnny Bench
O J Simpson
Salman Rushdie
Sammy Hagar
Stephen King
Steven Spielberg
Susan Lucci
Ted Danson
Tom Clancy
Tom Daschle

Tony's Roots - Mountainair

Tony's Dad, Fidel, was born near the town of Mountainair New Mexico in 1922. Mountainair, located on Abo Pass between the Rio Grande and the Estancia Valley is a ranching and farming community near ancient Indian country. The year 2003 marked Mountainair’s 100th anniversary. Follow the hyperlink to take a virtual tour of Moutainair or check out what's happening today in town by reading the online city newspaper, The Country Chronicles.
Mountainair is in Torrance County on New Mexico Highway 60 in southwest United States. Around 1900, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad (AT&SF) was planning a "cut-off" at Belen, New Mexico, for routing freight trains either east or west. John W. Corbett, a newspaper man from Winfield, Kansas, learned that the easterly tracks would likely pass through Abo Pass in New Mexico. He and a friend, Colonel E. C. Manning, decided to locate a townsite at the top of the Pass. The cool summer breezes off the Pass resulted in their naming their new community, "Mountainair". In addition to being a railroad town known for shipping pinto beans, Mountainair became a site for summer lecture series, for a place to find bargains in used cars, and for "Pop's" Hotel Shaffer. The pinto beans, lecture tents, and car dealers are now gone--but there are new art galleries and the National Park Service Visitors' Center headquarters for Salinas National Monument sites. Fast becoming a New Mexico attraction worth a visit is the new Art Alley, displaying art works outdoors.

The family eventually migrated to Albuquerque, where many of Tony's relatives live today. A few years back, Tony accompanied his Father to a family reunion in Belen, New Mexico.

P.S. - Serpent Gate , the third novel in the Kevin Kerney mystery series by author Michael McGarrity, is set in the town of Mountainair.

Tony Radio - Santana

Black Magic Woman - live in Santo Domingo. Carlos, Carlos, Carlos . . .

Tony Radio - Los Lobos

La Bamba! Yo no soy marinero.
English translation:
In order to dance the Bamba
In order to dance the Bamba
A little humor is needed
A little humor for me and for you
Faster and faster
Faster and faster
I'll be for you
I'll be for you
I'm not a sailor
I'm not a sailor
I'm captain
I'm captain
I'm captain

Tony Radio - Tavares

Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel. Yvonne requested this one for Tony and Sammy.

The Magic Number - by Erin

425-1068. That is the very first phone number I ever memorized. And for a very good reason. At just about three or four years old I knew that by dialing that number, I was guaranteed a ride to wherever I wanted to go. Whether it was going to the Dairy to get an ice cream, or going to have a play date with Sammy. And the best part was that I didn't even have to ask my parents. I just made the call and Uncle Tony would be at my house within 5 minutes. I didn't even have to explain to my parents what was I doing or where I was going. Uncle Tony would do that for me too! By the time he would finish telling my Mom and Dad that I had called and wanted to go out ( I think he may have thought that I had told them), I'd already be in the front seat of his car all buckled up and ready to get on with my day. Then we'd drive off and I'd just wave goodbye. Thanks Uncle Tony.

Tony Radio - Crystal Blue Persuasion

1969 - "the Summer of Love." Tony has said that this song always reminds him of the year he returned home from the Army. It rates high on his SONGS THAT MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD soundtrack.

Why I Play Guitar - by Joe

Tony introduced me to a guitarist by the name of Jimi Hendrix when I was about 9. It was almost a religious experience.... "Have you ever heard this guy before?!" then preceded to turn the volume up and air guitar like Michael J Fox after a Red Bull (..sorry just painting a picture). Anyway, had he not, I might not have picked up a guitar myself. Also had he not, I would've never learned why my uncle tom always put a melody behind his greeting of ... "Heeeey Joe!"

Tony Radio - Kermit sings about rainbows

Pidgey once sang this in a school production. File this one under songs that can make Tony cry.

Tony's Monkey Face - by Kelly

When I was about 13 or 14 and my mom and Tony were still first dating, we would usually meet Tony for Sunday Mass. Without fail, every time we went to church Tony would peer around my mom at Randy, Alyssa and I and proceed to make the craziest faces ever. (I think everyone that knows Tony will know what I'm talking about, that cross-eyed monkey face) Anyways, I would try so hard not to giggle or anything. But my mom would hear those few chuckles that escaped and give me the dirtiest look, saying without words to be quiet and behave in church. Of course, I would try to tell her that Tony was making faces at me and that's why I was laughing. My mom would look at Tony, who would pretend to be totally innocent and wrongfully accused. Finally after a while of this going on, my mom looked at Tony when I laughed and caught him right in the act of making one of those faces at us. It was pretty funny to see him finally get caught.

Some other things that I think of with Tony is :Thunder and Lightning; Tony's 18 inch Pythons! ; Tony who still wont give up his VHS player so he can tape TV shows for Samantha, my mom, and anyone else that asks ; the Bino songs.

Samantha's Top 10 favorite memories about her Daddy...

1. When there was a full moon, my Dad would pick me up, carry me outside and sing in his most perfect voice..."There's a Moon out tonight...oh, oh, oh, oh...There's a Pidgey in my heart, oh, oh, oh, oh..." To this day, I sing this song when there is a full moon out.


2. My favorite trips with my Dad were when he would take me to 7-Eleven and buy me "rip off Barbies".


3. When it was time for me to go to bed, I didn't like to leave my Dad so I would make him come in and out of the room to make sure he was still there.


4. "Rockie-nonee...for a Pidgey...Rockie-nonee...for a Pidgey"


5. We used to watch "Three's Company" together in my bedroom while I completed my homework.


6. When we would go to McDonald's, sometimes the french fries were too hot to eat, so my Dad, being the smartest man in the world, taught me to hang my french fries out the window while we drove home to cool them off.


7. When my dad would come home, he would try, as best as he could, to close the door quickly to make sure that the "tickle bug" wouldn't get in. For some reason, he was never fast enough because the "tickle bug" would ALWAYS get in and attack me.


8. My dad's favorite thing to do to embarrass me in public was the "Poopie Dance".


9. My Daddy was and always will be my number one fan! No one will love me as much as my Dad loves me!


10. The one thing that I am most looking forward to in my future is dancing with my Dad to Barry Manilow's "I Can't Smile Without You" at my wedding...

Tony Goes to the Movies #5 ROCKY

Gonna fly now.

Tony at the Drive In - by Debby

One night, about thirty years ago, Tony and I were at the Los Altos Drive-In and we discovered that the outdoor speaker wasn't working properly. Well, Tony, in his infinite wisdom, opened the door and put the speaker back on the post and then attempted to spar with it. Right hook...left hook... and surprisingly, the speaker won!
Oh yeah . . . do you know what else? Tony speaks Korean!
Have him say a few lines for you...