On Wednesday afternoon, Sag Harbor Village police cars closed off the northerly portion of Main Street, making room for an ambulance to park in front of the Sag Harbor pharmacy. A stretcher was brought out onto the street, and emergency workers helped bring Sag Harbor mainstay and WLNG radio celebrity Paul Sidney down from a nearby apartment.
After suffering from a prolonged illness, Sidney passed away early Thursday morning.
Sidney was one of Eastern Long Island’s most well known broadcasters and he monopolized the East End airwaves for almost four and half decades. He also served as the co-owner and general manager of WLNG radio, based in Sag Harbor.Â
Sidney’s unusual career in radio was described in a statement WLNG released on Thursday. Sidney was said to show a passion for radio even as a child. At the tender age of eight, he set up a small studio in his room in Brooklyn. By age 11, he was hanging around the Dumont TV studios in New York so often that they finally let him read commercials on air. After a stint with WLIS Old Saybrook in Connecticut, Sidney relocated to the East End. WLNG went on the air on August 13, 1963, and Sidney found himself, in his early twenties then, the new program director at the beginning of 1964.
Sidney’s trademark sound made WLNG famous even to those who never set foot on Sag Harbor’s shores, and he rapidly became the station’s vice-president, then general manager. He became the president of the company by the early ‘70s.
Sidney devoted much of his life to radio, which he felt was more than a simple broadcasting music or the news.
In an Express interview with Sidney, from early 2000, he said, “WLNG is like a person. You’re with it. It’s your friend. We’re talking to one person at a time. I know there is no other station in the world like it. Even if you want to avoid it, you always come back. Whether it’s Sag Harbor or Norman, Oklahoma. Main Street is Main Street.”
A gathering at Yardley Pino Funeral Home in Sag Harbor will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, and will be preceded by a prayer service. Sidney will be buried at the Chevra Kodetia Cemetery on Route 114 in Sag Harbor. All are welcome to attend.Â
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May you rest in peace Paul. You were WLNG always. Thank you for a wonderful station.
I am afirst cousin of Paul I am very happy to read that you all thought so well of him
Paul Sidney was Sag Harbor! Rest in eternal peace.
One of the most pleasurable remembrances of my younger days was going to the WLNG van when Paul Sidney was broadcasting live from location. What a fun experience for me; what a very good man for all of us. Rest In Peace, Mr. Sidney.
Farewell dear friend and thank you for making this village of ours into a community. Proud to have known you and worked with you. Thank you Paul
Paul Sidney loved WLNG and life in Sag Harbor. He had the best oldies show on Radio, and did the best job for his listeners and advertisers for many years. He also had a lot of friends with whom he met regularly at the Sag Harbor Deli for the morning “breakfast Club”. My late husband, Fred, was among them. Rest in peace, Paul, you are one man who cannot be replaced in Sag Harbor.
Barb Schmidt
Rest In Peace. I grew up listening to you and will always remember you as the “WLNG Man”
Paul, you had a way of making everyone feel especially important. It didn’t matter how long I was away from the village, you remembered me as if we had chatted yesterday. You watched lots of us grow up. Thanks for being you!
I remember listening that February night in 1978 when Paul was broadcasting during a nasty blizzard. The water in the cove came up forcing them to evacuate the station and being rescued by Sag Harbor Fire Dept in a 4-wheel drive. Made for good listening. A real Sag Harbor character!
He was a friend to everyone and everyone was his friend. One knew immediately it was him when he spoke. He remembered my golden oldy, (Presprodo) any time we met. And he knew what the Sag Harbor community was all about at any level with conveyed respect for everyone.