Jerry Blavat – The King of Philly Rock & Roll

The Life and Career of Radio Legend Jerry Blavat 

Fans know local legend and WVLT radio personality by many different names.  To some, Jerry Blavat is the Geator with the Heator.  To others he is The Boss with the Hot Sauce.  To others Jerry Blavat is simply the King of Philly Rock & Roll. But no matter what the name, Jerry Blavat is a true radio legend in the Philadelphia region and beyond.  For decades, Jerry Blavat has been as much a part of the city of Philadelphia as the world famous cheese steaks and soft pretzels.  Jerry has been entertaining music fans throughout the Delaware Valley for more than four decades now, and this radio legend is not ready to hang up his microphone yet.   

The Jerry Blavat story begins back in 1940, when the future radio star was born in South Philadelphia.  The city has been in his blood since the very beginning; he started his career in entertainment at the tender age of 13, debuting as a dancer on the Original Bandstand with Bob Horn.  At the age of 16, Jerry Blavat became the road manager for Danny and the Juniors.  It was around the same time Jerry met Sammy Davis Jr, and the two went on to become lifelong friends.  In fact, Sammy Davis Jr. and Jerry Blavat were so close that Jerry served as the best man when Sammy married Altovese Gore.   

Sammy Davis Jr. was not the only famous person to call Jerry Blavat a lifelong Blavat served as Mr. Rickles’ personal valet. By 1960, Jerry Blavat had started his own radio talk show on WCAM in Camden, New Jersey, and a lifelong career in radio was born.  By September of that same year, the radio show Jerry Blavat started was being broadcast live from the Venus Lounge in South Philly.  That live broadcast was aptly named the Jerry Blavat Show, and it featured a number of local singers, dancers and performers of the era.   

The nickname the Geator with the Heator was born one snowy night in Philadelphia, when Jerry Blavat entertained listeners through the storm by pulling out stacks of his favorite records.  That seminal show went on all through the night as the storm raged, and by morning the legend of the Geator had been born.  By the mid-1960s, Jerry Blavat  had an audience of more than half a million listeners each month.   

Around the same time, Jerry Blavat added television to his radio entertainment empire.  In 1965, Jerry hosted a popular TV show known as the Discophonic Scene.  The show was broadcast on local station WCAU-TV, and it had a solid debut.  A few years later, the Discophonic Sound moved to WFIL-TV, where in ran live and in syndication for the remainder of the decade.  

In 1972, Jerry Blavat became one of the first on-air personalities on oldies station WCAU-FM. That show ran on Sunday nights from 7 to 10 p.m.  Jerry later moved to WFIL, serving as a regular in 1983.  He hosted a Sunday night show and often filled in for other personalities on the weekends.    

By 1987, Jerry Blavat had moved on to host Philly Gold Radio on WPGR. In 1992, Jerry purchased the station and his popular show went on to become the Geator Gold Radio show.  These days Jerry Blavat is still active in local and national TV shows, including the popular Doo Wop specials on PBS.  Blavat served as the local host when the PBS Doo Wop show as aired locally on WHYY-TV. 

With more than four decades behind hm, Jerry Blavat shows no signs of slowing down or resting on his past accomplishments.  Jerry plans to remain active in local and national TV and radio for years to come, and his fans are certainly happy about that.

  

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