Freed had always loved music: during his high school years in Salem, OH, he and his fellow schoolmates formed a band called The Sultans of Swing (!) in which Freed played trombone. From 1942-1951 Alan was active in broadcasting, both on television and radio, but it was his arrival at WJW radio in Cleveland that set the stage for his greatest achievement: on July 11, 1951, Freed became the latest in a series of white DJs playing rhythm and blues for mized-race audiences. Calling himself "Moondog," he soon gained popularity due in large part to his excellent taste. The young DJ soon realized he was at the forefront of a new musical revolution: when, in March 1952, he promoted his first show, called the "Moondog Coronation Ball," 20,000 fans mobbed the Cleveland Arena, which only had seats for half that number. The dance was cancelled, but it has gone into history as arguably the first "rock" concert.
When he moved to a bigger market in 1954 at WINS radio in New York, the popularity of both himself and the music he was now calling "rock and roll" was on a major upswing. His concerts at the city's Paramount Theatre were important milestones in the development of the fad, and by 1957, when rock was in full swing, he was making movies about the music, as well. That same year, ABC gave him a television show not unlike fellow DJ Dick Clark's American Bandstand, but it was cancelled due to pressure from Southern affiliates after Frankie Lymon of the Teenagers -- a black kid -- was seen dancing with a white girl on the broadcast.
After violence occurred outside a Freed-promoted show at Boston Arena in 1958, WINS dropped the DJ, but he was immediately picked up by crosstown rival WABC. At the time of the scandal, he was arguably the most popular disc jockey in America, surpassing even Dick Clark, and easily the most influential.
