Joel A. Spivak, radio, TV host

Joel A. Spivak, 75, a veteran talk-show host on radio and television, died of cancer Friday, March 4, at his home in Virginia. Mr. Spivak was a broadcaster in Philadelphia from 1968 through 1980, when he left for a station in the Washington area.

Mr. Spivak appeared on WCAU radio and television as a news anchor, reporter, and commentator for 12 years, according to news reports.

In the 1970s, he hosted the Morning Newsbeat radio program, bringing in guests and taking calls from listeners, then a controversial format for morning talk-radio shows.

He hosted a local TV news show in the late 1970s with a studio audience. His guests ranged from Gov. Milton Shapp to "Tuffy, the wrestling bear," according to a WCAU news release from 1976, which referred to Mr. Spivak as the "moderator, catalyst, interviewer, and devil's advocate."

In the Washington market, he was a talk-show host for station WRC-AM from 1987 until 1995 and had a top-rated program.

In a 1990 interview with C-Span, he said radio was more fun than television. "You don't have the time constraints that you do with television. People have more fun listening to the radio because they can see anything they want to see. . . . It's a very personal medium."

Since 1996, he had worked against tobacco use and was a spokesman for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

He is survived by his wife, Ann Decker Spivak; a daughter, Amanda Clare Spivak Barrett; sons Matthew Alexander and Jonathan Moss Spivak; and four grandchildren.

Funeral services will be 11 a.m. Friday, March 11, at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 2701 Cameron Mills Rd., Alexandria, Va.

Friends may call from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, March 10, at Everly-Wheatley Funeral Home, 1500 W. Braddock Rd., Alexandria, Va.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, 1400 Eye St. N.W., Suite 1200, Washington, D.C. 20005, or the Washington Humane Society, 4590 MacArthur Blvd. N.W., Suite 200, Washington, D.C. 20007.