That baritone voice heard on the Tristate's new Catholic radio station, WNOP-AM (740), may sound familiar.

        For 10 years, it was the sassy, brassy promotional voice of WLW-AM.

        We knew him as “John Bogart.” Now he's managing Sacred Heart Radio under his real name, Bill Levitt.

        “This is an answer to a call,” says Mr. Levitt, who did WLW-AM's on-air image campaigns 1985-95. He left the station six years ago to produce advertising and promotions with longtime business partner Tim Mizak.

        Working for WLW-AM was fun, “but I was being called for something else,” says the 46-year-old Kansas City native.

        Here's how he describes his personal and professional journey from the brash Big One to the Tristate's first all-Catholic station:

        “Before I left WLW-AM, I was attending Mass daily at Holy Cross-Immaculata Church. I was already on the path to do something like this, but in my wildest dreams, I never thought anything like this would come about,” he says.

        He sees God's hand in his five-year experience as a business owner and independent producer.

        “If I was still working for WLW-AM, I wouldn't be prepared to do this,” he says.

        Two years ago, he moved to Covington and began attending daily Mass at Mother of God Church. One day he wandered into the Authentically Catholic Books near the church and heard about Catholics trying to buy a radio station.

        He became a consultant for the group, with his 25 years of experience as a radio DJ, program director and production director in Kansas City, Miami, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Orlando and Cincinnati. He researched several stations, including the tiny jazz station here which had not made a profit in years.

        When Sacred Heart Radio agreed to purchase WNOP-AM from Al Vontz III, the Catholic radio committee asked him to apply as station manager.

        “I prayed over it, and I finally decided that God was calling me,” he said.

        For the past three months, he has been assembling the station's studio equipment and computers in an office at 12 W. Pike St., Covington. The two-person non-commercial station began broadcasting an audio service from Mother Angelica's Eternal World Television Network (EWTN) at 6 a.m. Monday.

        “When God calls you to do something, you initially aren't sure you're properly prepared for it,” he says. “I was a big fan of EWTN. It was just the time for me in my life.”

        Local news: WNOP-AM debuts its first local program at 4:30 p.m. Jan. 15. The Daily Bread, a 15-minute weekday show, is broadcast by the Rev. Al Lauer of Old St. Mary's Church.

        “We have plans to institute as much local programming as we can, but that is ambitious,” Mr. Levitt says. “We think we have the best Catholic programming that's available now.”

        All the jazz: If Mark Stevens, former general manager of “real jazz” WNOP-AM (740), is successful in reviving the jazz station on another frequency, WNOP-AM's new owners might let him have the old call letters.

        “We'd certainly consider that, if there were other options available to us,” says David Rinderle, Sacred Heart Radio president.

        Sacred Heart Radio has not discussed changing the call letters because the group is operating the station under a lease agreement until the purchase is approved by the Federal Communications Commission. The license should be transferred by spring, Mr. Rinderle says.

        Mr. Stevens, who tried to buy the station, has a broker looking for another AM station. He says the jazz format, which had lost money for years, was within 10 percent of making a profit in the past six months.

        Mr. Stevens was at the mike when the 40-year jazz tradition ended New Year's Eve. He signed off by playing Tom Lehrer's satirical “Vatican Rag” song from the 1960s, followed by Stan Kenton's rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

        Dad on Daddio: David Crowley spent part of the holidays in Hollywood with his son, Kevin, and ended up as an extra on Kevin's sitcom, Daddio.

        The family comedy has remained in production after being pulled by NBC with Tucker after two October telecasts. At least 13 episodes have been taped for use this year, says Mr. Crowley, owner of Crowley's Highland House Cafe in Mount Adams.

        “Obviously, someone is still optimistic,” he says. But that could change, with Today show executive Jeff Zucker replacing Garth Ancier as NBC Entertainment president this week.

        Kevin Crowley plays Rod, the wacky neighbor on Michael Chiklis' stay-at-home dad comedy.

        Radio waves: ""Hurricane” Dave Smith, program director at WIZF-FM (100.9), has taken over the 3-6 p.m. weekday shift. He has worked at stations in Tallahassee, Pittsburgh and Buffalo. He replaces Mark Gunn, who has moved to Louisville's WGZB-FM, a sister Blue Chip station.

Medicine's her music
Stern behaves himself in debut
Theater review: Macbeth
E. Hyde Park oxygen bar a breath of fresh air
WNOP manager answering 'a call'
Get to it