Born: Abbeville, AL.

Inducted: 2005 in Centreville,Va, by Widmarc Clark

Biography: Tom “Cat” Reeder was without doubt the most popular country music disc jockey in the Washington, Maryland, and Virginia area, ever. His morning show was booked solid with sponsors. There was a waiting list of sponsors wanting to advertise their product on The Tom ” Cat ” Reeder Show aired Monday thru Friday 6:am till 10:am.

Tom Reeder has a dynamic personality, surpassed by no one in country music. He was absolutely the best in the business. From the time he signed on till he signed off, the phone in the studio never stopped ringing. It ranged from sponsors calling in to say hello, to fans and country music artist, all wanting to talk to Tom “Cat” Reeder.

Had Tom “Cat” wanted to, he could have gone to any country music station in America to work. He got offers daily wanting him to work in another market. He turned them down because he liked living and working in the Washington, D.C. area where he had made thousands of friends and had a fan base unlike any other disc jockey working in any market in America no matter what type music they played.

If a country music promoter wanted to make sure he would get a huge audience for the artist he was bringing into the Washington, D.C. area, he would buy air time on Tom “Cats” show, and if at all possible hire Tom to emcee the show, it never failed, Tom “Cat” would bring in half the audience just by emceeing the show. His fans were loyal like nothing ever seen in the Washington, D.C. Maryland, Virginia area before or after Tom “Cat” Reeder.

Tom “Cat” Reeder made the call sign WDON famous. WDON had attained fame in the Rock n Roll era by Don Dillard the son of Everett Dillard who went world wide installing FM radio stations making millions in the process. As good as Rock n Roll and Don Dillard might have been for WDON in the late 50′s, when Tom “Cat” came on the scene in the early 60′s he took WDON to heights never thought possible. Tom “Cat” Reeder was not only ( the # 1 “Tom Cat” ) he was ( Top “Dog” ) as well.

Tom ” Cat ” begin his DJ career at WARL in Arlington,Va in 1956, moving on to WABB in Mobile,AL. He joined the USAF shortly after. He was honorably discharged at Andrews AFB in Washington. D.C. He went back to work at WARL in Arlington, Va. He became good friends with Don Owens who was the best known country music DJ in the Washington area. When Don Owens was killed in a car crash, Tom took Don’s time slot at WARL and in a very short time became a well known name in the Washington, Maryland, Virginia, radio market.

From WARL Tom moved to WDON where became the best known country DJ ever in the Washington.D.C. area. From WDON Tom ” Cat” became station manager at WKCW in Warrington, Va. Tom has his own publishing company ( Tom-Cat Music ) his own record company ( Kash ) records, he has owned two radio stations, WYAL in Scotland Neck, N.C. and WARI in Abbeville, AL. Tom ” Cat ” Reeder is retired and living the good life in Centreville, VA with his most wonderful companion Ms. Judy, a truly great person. On occasion Tom “Cat” does a bluegrass show from the studio’s of WAMU at American University in Washington. D.C. Tom ” Cat ” always closes his show by saying “May the good Lord take a liking to you, may you live as long as long as you want, and never want as long as you life, behind the music of the late Buck Owens ” Tom Cattin” written especially for Tom “Cat” Reeder.

In 1990 Tom “Cat” Reeder was inducted the Country Music DJ Hall of Fame in Nashville. In 2005 he was inducted into The Southern Legends Entertainment and Performing Arts Hall of Fame, in Portland, TN. He is also a lifetime member of The Southern Legends Association.