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Milton Butterball Smith “Keep Miami Cool” Campaign for Underprivileged Kids

milton butterball smith

milton butterball smith

Milton “Butterball” Smith was one of America’s 13 Original R&B DJ’s as noted by Jack The Rapper (Joseph Deighton Gibson Jr.) and worked on various radio stations in South Florida. His pioneering work in broadcast coincided with the careers of many famous people and he was influential nationally. Here is an article from Cash Box all about it.

“Milton “Butterball” Smith, a deejay at WAME-Miami, Fla., is busily engaged in his “Keep Miami Cool” program. Every week, for the past two months, “Butterball” has been taking 100 to 200 underprivileged children of every race and creed to Sunday picnics, swimming, boating, and soft ball sessions. He has been supported in this venture by Miami businessmen, Miami city officials, and individual citizens. His activities have been saluted by Miami Mayor Steve Clark, who has joined “Butterball” and the youngsters on two of the Sunday outings. “Butterball” calls the picnics “Butterball’s Happy Miami.” He went on the air on WAME asking support for his program. Atlantic Records made a substantial donation; Local Labor Union #478 in Miami contributed; Food Fair, Earl’s Market, and Sampson’s Market (all in the Miami area) donated large amounts of food; Fleetwood Price of the Coca Cola Company in Miami donated Cokes every week; Joe Mullins, a juke box dealer in Miami, arranged for pony rides at the beach; R. C. Coleman ‘s Service Station donated gasoline for the children’s boat rides; Johanna Singleton, a nurse at Mt. Sinai Hospital, donated more food; and Seacoast Appliances and Brook Distributors both provided portable stereo phonographs. Butterball’s “Teenie Weenies,” as he calls them, range in age from 6 to 18. He is now planning, in addition to his Sunday picnics, to make trips twice a week to the various “Happy Miami Youth Centers” throughout the city with hot dogs and Cokes.”

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