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If you grew up in the Mon Valley in the 1960s and '70s, and you liked rock and roll music, chances are you were listening to the Terry Lee show.

Mon City native Terry Lee Trunzo was in high school when he got his start as a disc jockey just down the river at Charleroi's WESA (940). From there it was a short hop to Canonsburg's WARO (540) and finally to McKeesport's WMCK (1360).

The sleepy 5,000-watt (daytime) AM station in the Elks Temple on Market Street was better known for its high-school sports broadcasts and ethnic programming than for rock-and-roll.

But Trunzo turned it into the unlikely top station for teens --- at least during his time-slot. And though the signal was limited to 1,000 watts at night, 1360 served as Terry Lee's launching pad for an impressive entertainment empire as concert promoter, record producer and owner of TL's Nite Train.

Pretty soon he was on TV as host of Channel 11's dance party show. And when 1360 became WIXZ, Terry Lee was the only disc jockey retained.

. . .

But the radio business and the Mon Valley were both changing in the late 1970s, and after stints at some other suburban stations, Trunzo left Western Pennsylvania more than 20 years ago.

Ever since, TL's where-abouts have been one of the enduring mysteries of McKeesport. Was he dead? Was he in hiding?

On Saturday night at the Palisades Ballroom, the mystery of Terry Lee's status was solved.

. . .

More than 500 people packed the venerable old dance hall on Fifth Avenue to welcome home a local musical legend. They jammed the dance floor at the Palisades.

Oh, their hair may have been a little bit grayer or even thinner, but the moves were just as smooth and the sentiments were just as sweet as they were more than 40 years ago.

And if you squinted just a little bit, you could have imagined yourself, too, back in the 60s, at the Palisades or the Vigilant Hose Company hall in Port Vue or the White Elephant, or maybe just at home with a certain special someone.

The evening was especially poignant for members of Terry Lee's family, who had no idea just how popular their dad was during his radio heyday --- and didn't realize how loyal all of those fans remained all of these years later.

. . .

Oldies DJ George Lambl of Jeannette's WKFB (770) radio grew up listening to Trunzo. He says Terry Lee, along with Porky Chedwick and the late Mad Mike Metrovich, is one of the Pittsburgh area's most unique and enduring radio personalities, and helped set the standard that others here still follow.

If you missed Saturday's sell-out event, a camera crew was on-hand to capture everything for possible use on PBS. And Trunzo plans a return engagement at the Palisades on May 15.

There's also a rumor that he and his family may come back to the Mon Valley permanently.

For now, you can hear him --- via tape --- on Saturday evenings on WLSW-FM (103.9) in Scottdale.

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