Alan Lambert's Obituary
Foy Allen ‘Jack’ Lambert and Kathleen ‘Kay’ Duggar Lambert of Little Rock, Arkansas gave birth to a baby boy on April 22, 1943 and named him John ‘Alan’. He was cute as a button with baby blue eyes and a half moon smile that would melt any mother’s heart. As he grew into a toddler and in elementary school, his little boy charms wore thin on big sister, Helen ‘Maureen’ who was six years older. Although She loved the little rascal, she wished he would go play somewhere else. That he did with the help of his parents, but continued to be a pesky little boy when nobody was looking. Between the age of five and six, the family moved to Oklahoma City where Dad built a mock radio station in Alan’s closet. A great place to keep Alan away from big sister and the place he fell in love with radio.
When Alan was nine, the family moved to Tulsa. Once again, Dad built a mock radio station in the garage and piped it into the kitchen. This enabled his mother to listen to her son playing the rock and pop tunes of the 1950s while fixing dinner. I understand she could be found dancing to Elvis and Fats Domino around the kitchen. Soon he became a teen-age rocker hooked on radio. He also had his own band with Tom Sparks and others playing Gigs.
Alan landed his first professional radio job (Tulsa station KGTO) at the age of sixteen while attending Will Rogers High School as a Junior. After a year at The University of Tulsa, the word got out in radio-land that he was a young talent with a great developing baritone voice. He went with his passion into radio and was hired to do a daily TOP 40 nighttime show on KOME. In 1965, he moved to KVOO-TV to be ‘Captain Alan’ for a children’s show ‘Alan’s Cartoon Alley’, which aired nearly four years. For those who may remember, Omagog was part of Alan's show.
Alan remained with the KTUL Channel 2 announcing staff doing on-camera weather-cast, test patterns, camera work, production and learning the business from the ground-up. When the opportunity gave him a chance to move away from television to his first love RADIO, he became KVOO News Director for two decades. His total stint with KVOO AM-FM BIG COUNTRY was twenty-seven years, almost half of his sixty years in the business and always being on the airwaves. All things related to radio was his life.
He served twice as the state President of the Associated Press Broadcasters and helped with the Tulsa Radio and Television News Directors Association. His awards through the years are too many to mention; but he was especially proud of being a Tulsa Press Club Icon and Press Club President and Vice President for two years, plus he was honored to win the 2003 KBEZ Top Banana award.
In 1993, he changed stations and became the station manager for KRSC-FM at Rogers State College in Claremore, Oklahoma for thirteen years. During the time period he was there, the college transitioned to Rogers State University. He managed the radio station, taught broadcast courses for radio and television, helped create 91.3-FM Real College Radio and served as interim general manager for TV-35 for one year. In 1997 he helped put KRSC into a live-streaming mode to be heard world-wide and offer online college courses. Many of his students have gone on to work in radio and television across the nation, four of which have worked with Alan at KBEZ.
In 1995 while still full-time at KRSC in Claremore, Alan began producing and hosting a four-hour radio show called Big Band Saturday Night which aired on KBEZ-FM for ten years. In 2005, the show was moved and aired for ten years to KWGS-FM, an NPR affiliate at The University of Tulsa. In 2015, a new one-hour show was developed called Big Band American Songbook. This version of Alan’s big band show was on THE GRID (radio programming online at Tulsa Community College), until October, 2022. It attracted a cross-section of big band listeners, fans of the music, many who were not born when Alan first took over the program in 1995.
Alan retired in 2007, but continued his big band show at the TU studios and/or his home studio. He enjoyed being outdoors with his wife Diana drinking coffee near the gardens, taking hikes in Oklahoma or his favorite state in New Mexico. He was looking forward to trying out his new fly rod there soon. Alan was beloved and known as G-Dad to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren who often referred to him as 'Silly-G-Dad'.
Alan is survived by his wife of thirty-six years, Diana and six children: Scott Alan … spouse Angie, Mark Edward, Christopher Aaron; Step children: Kirk Alan … spouse Kathy, Dolly Ruth finance’…Tony, Bonny … spouse Dustin, Robert Lawrence ‘Larry’ (deceased).
Grandchildren: David Scott, Caitlin Elaine, Nickolas 'Nick' Christian, Heather Chancellor… spouse John, Kevin ‘Blake’… spouse Sarah, Taylor Aaron, Hayley Jane Mcquire, Kristyn Rene’’… spouse Matt, Brandon Keith (deceased), Great-grandchildren: Verrah Jade, Nahlia Renee, Rowan Opal.
Alan is also survived by his sister Maureen Bright and her daughter Debbie … spouse Lee VanHorn and their children and grandchildren, plus many cousins in his native state of Arkansas.
Celebration of Life will be 10:00 am, Monday, December 12, 2022, at Floral Haven Funeral Home Chapel.
To view the service via webcasting please use the link below:
http://webcast.funeralvue.com/events/viewer/82146/hash:819CF1003ACE4601
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