Rod Calarco

Rod Calarco died of a heart attack on 12 October 2026, at the age of 79. His death was reported a week later, on 19 October, by the radio trade press, including Radio Ink, Inside Radio, Talkers and Radio-Online.

A funeral Mass was arranged for Tuesday 27 October 2026 at 11am at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, 920 Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains, New York. In lieu of flowers, his family asked for donations to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

Rod Calarco was born John Anthony Calarco and was known throughout his working life as Rod. Published obituaries give his age at death as 79, which places his birth in 1946 or 1947; his exact date and place of birth were not given in the trade reports. When he returned to New York in 1986 he told Radio and Records that New York was his home and that his family still lived there. He later made his home in White Plains, in Westchester County, the town where his radio career had started.

Calarco started out selling advertising at WFAS-AM in White Plains. He joined CBS in 1973 and began as a salesperson at WCBS-AM in New York. He was later local sales manager at CBS-owned WCAU in Philadelphia and manager of CBS Radio Spot Sales in Chicago, the company's national radio sales representative firm. He then spent five years as general sales manager of WCBS-FM. His career also included positions at ABC Television.

CBS made him vice president and general manager of KRQR in San Francisco. In May 1986 he was named vice president and general manager of WCBS-FM, replacing Nancy Widmann, who moved up to run the CBS-owned AM stations. CBS Radio Division president Bob Hosking said that Calarco's five years as the station's sales manager and his management experience in San Francisco had amply prepared him for the job. Under his leadership the oldies station climbed to number one, and trade obituaries said WCBS-FM remained his professional passion for the rest of his career.

In August 1990, by then an 18-year CBS Radio veteran, Calarco was promoted to vice president of CBS-owned FM stations, succeeding George Sosson and reporting to Nancy Widmann, then president of the CBS Radio Division. The FM group at the time took in WCBS-FM, KODJ in Los Angeles, WBBM-FM in Chicago, KRQR in San Francisco, WOGL in Philadelphia, WJOI in Detroit, WODS in Boston, WLTT in Washington, KLTR in Houston, KTXQ in Dallas, KLOU in St. Louis and WYNF in Tampa. In all he spent 28 years with CBS Radio.

After leaving CBS he joined WorldSpace International Radio, one of the early satellite radio ventures. He then went back to WFAS in White Plains as general manager, the station where he had first worked in sales, and held that post until he retired. He also served on industry boards, including the Radio Advertising Bureau.

Calarco was married to Cathleen "Cathy" Kelly Calarco. They had three children and five grandchildren. In his later years he divided his time between White Plains, New York, and Naples, Florida.

Calarco belonged to the generation of CBS executives who built the company's FM stations into some of the most successful in American radio during the 1980s and 1990s. His tenure at WCBS-FM, where he moved from selling airtime to running the station, coincided with its rise to the top of the New York market, and he went on to oversee a dozen CBS FM stations in major cities. Colleagues remembered him less for titles than as a trusted leader who mentored the people who worked for him and helped them build their own careers.