Do you ever have trouble putting names to faces? What about faces to voices?

Radio has been around since 1920, when the first commercial station, KDKA in Pittsburgh, Penn., began to broadcast. Though we live in an age of unimaginable technological advances – who would have believed even 30 years ago that we would all be walking around with a telephone, computer, stereo, camera and more all on one device that fits in our pockets? – radio has stayed more or less the same, at least on the listeners’ end, for nearly a century.

One constant: the disembodied voice coming from the speaker. Sometimes we start to feel like we know the people attached to those radio voices that we hear across miles of air space. We laugh at their jokes and relate when they talk about their kids or plans for the weekend.

Because we can’t see them, we form pictures in our minds of what they look like. But do those images line up with reality?

We thought we’d find out. We asked a number of Maine radio personalities to share their images with us, as well as their thoughts on things radio. Here’s a look at the faces behind some of those well-known voices. Do they look the way you imagined them?

Irwin Gratz: MPBN

Born and raised in the Bronx, N.Y., Irwin Gratz moved to Maine in 1978. Since 1992, he has been the anchor of Morning Edition on MPBN. He has a master of journalism degree from New York University.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

Looking back, I realize I was intrigued by radio even as a small child, but I had a parallel interest in science, particularly astronomy and space flight, and never seriously considered a radio career until, in college, I went to work part time for the student-run radio station there. Actually seeing how it was done drew me right in.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

It’s being at the center of an information flow. As a kid, listening to the news on radio, or watching election night television coverage, I always thought it would be cool to be right at that spot, surrounded by other people to call on for details, summarizing information for the folks listening to the radio or watching TV. Now that I sit at that point every morning, I find it’s just as cool as I imagined it would be. On days when it all goes particularly smoothly, the sensation can be physical. I find myself pumping my fist in the studio, as if I just hit home run, or a half-court jump shot.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

Getting up at 3:35 in the morning.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

The interesting things are beyond counting. But for pure excitement, that’s easy: the ride I took with a Navy Blue Angels pilot in an F-18 jet in 1987.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

In no particular order, I like to read, in warmer weather ride my bike, travel when I have the time, and just hang out with my wife and son.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

Although I love being a news anchor, the other radio skill I cultivated in college (and loved doing even more) was being a sports play-by-play announcer.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I have no idea. I know in my own experience, I’ve met people I’ve listened to for years who look nothing like the picture you develop in your head.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

Nah, not really. I still get a bit sheepish when people recognize me at all.

Randi Kirshbaum: WPOR, WCLZ

A native of Minnesota, Randi Kirshbaum started her radio career in 1970 as the first female rock DJ in Minneapolis-St. Paul. She went on to work at stations in Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and Boston before landing in Maine in 1982. She currently hosts the midday show on WPOR and the afternoon show on WCLZ. She was inducted into the Maine Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2006.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

I’ve always loved radio. When I was a young girl in Minneapolis, I used to fall asleep with a transistor radio under my pillow listening to the great WLS from Chicago. I was fascinated by the fact that you could communicate with just your voice.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

Feeling like I am reaching out and touching a listener. When someone comes up to me and says, “Even though I’ve never met you, I feel like you are my friend,” I know I’ve made a connection.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

All the bureaucracy that goes along with being in media these days.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

There are so many, it’s difficult to choose, but one that especially stands out in my mind was getting request calls from the president of the United States’ chief of staff when I worked in Washington, D.C.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

Talk to my husband and kids (who probably wish I did less of that). I go to camp, and swim, and kayak, and enjoy all the beauty that Maine has to offer.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I don’t listen to music, except when I’m on the air.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

Well, men have always told me they pictured someone tall and blond (their fantasy, I guess).

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

Of course I do, and I’m always wrong! Sometimes it’s better to just not know.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

I tell them that they don’t look anything like their voice either!

Tom Porter: MPBN

Tom Porter’s voice stands out because he is the British-sounding anchor on MPBN’s Maine Things Considered. It’s not a pretense. Porter grew up in an industrial town near Birmingham, England, and worked for Bloomburg News in London for more than eight years before immigrating to the United States in 2003. He continued his broadcasting career in Virginia, and moved to Maine in 2008.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

There’s a lot of opportunity to be creative in radio. For obvious reasons, the production process in radio is considerably less unwieldy than television as there’s no visual aspect to consider.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

Every day is an adventure. Most of the time, a new day means a new story, new people, new issues.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

Sometimes, not very often, people decide to harangue me about how NPR/MPBN is either too left wing or too right wing. There has also been the occasional listener — very occasional — who does not like my voice, which is a shame as it’s the only one I’ve got.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

There have been so many. One recent fun story involved eating raw, diver-harvested scallops in a boat in Frenchman’s Bay!

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

Play jazz piano, watch England win at rugby, play with my two kids — boys aged 4 and 7. (Not necessarily in that order.)

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I usually do about 300 to 400 push-ups during Maine Things Considered.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I’ve been told I sound older than I am, and at 43 I’m hardly in the first flush of youth!

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

I’d like to be able to say I have a professional detachment when it comes to associating a voice with a mental picture, but I don’t. I have rough mental images of what Terry Gross, Steve Inskeep, Renee Montagne, etc., look like, and they rarely fit in with the reality.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

I normally make some lame quip about sounding much better looking, or smarter, than I am.

Dave Winsor: WTHT (The Wolf)

Dave Winsor has hosted the morning show on country station 99.9 The Wolf for 13 years. Originally from Massachusetts, he moved to Maine in 1996. He’s worked in broadcasting since 1980 in cities such as Hartford, Conn., Philadelphia, Atlanta and Phoenix.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

I’ve been attracted to radio ever since I was a teenager. I remember the fun I had listening to people talking in this “box” and how they were creative and got to do fun stuff.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

Meeting listeners and listening to their stories, getting into places that most people wouldn’t be allowed (apparently working in radio acts as a security screening unto itself) because of a microphone. I’ve driven a race car, floated away in the Hood airship and met lots of amazing people. Recently I had the honor of interviewing Taylor Swift in Nashville.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

The worst thing about this job is getting up every day at 2:30 a.m. That’s tough no matter what you do.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

Being the executive producer for the Philadelphia Phillies and the Arizona Cardinals. I was in charge of the game day broadcasts and got to visit many stadiums and ballparks. It was awesome.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

When I’m not on the air, I’m helping my wife with her business. She owns a bunch of sheep and she creates amazing fiber arts with their wool. I’m the go-to guy when it comes to hay and cleaning up messes and stuff.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I was a pretty good hockey player in my youth. I played in Canada for a bit. That taught me I wasn’t as good as the Canadian men. I tried like heck though. Even lost a few teeth playing that game.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I don’t know what they think. Ask them. I would hope they find me funny, interesting, friendly and approachable.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

It’s rare that I form an impression about someone’s looks based on their voice, but I am intrigued with commercial voiceover people and what they look like. They are such good actors, that they rarely look like what I think.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

When someone tells me that I look “different” than what they thought, I usually ask them to explain their mental photograph of me. Sometimes it leads to a funny discussion. Most times I say something like, “Don’t let this meeting ruin that fantasy for ya.”

Heidi Knight: WFNK (Frank FM)

Born in Presque Isle, Heidi Knight moved to Florida as a child, but eventually found her way back to Maine in 1987. She has hosted the morning show on Frank FM, along with co-hosts Stan Bennett and Joe Lerman, since 2008.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

When I was a kid, I had a boombox with a dual tape deck. I would tape music from the radio onto one tape, and record myself talking on the other tape. I always pretended that I was Rick Dees doing the Top 40 Countdown. I even had a “show” in my room, where I’d dance while the music played, and then quickly run to the boom box to announce the next song. I even made up dance routines that I could use for my “show.”

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

The best thing about my job is being happy every day. I love going to work, because I know I’m going to have an awesome time, laugh myself silly and listen to great music. Who could ask for anything better?

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

The worst thing about my job is the alarm clock. It goes off anywhere between 2:30 and 3 a.m. on weekdays, and it’s difficult to sleep past 4 a.m. on weekends, but I am pretty stoked that I get to take a nap every day.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

The most exciting thing about my job is the people that I get to meet. Families that I have met through The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital are now my personal friends. Listeners who go out of their way to make me feel understood, share recipes with me, offer me rides on motorcycles and give me great ideas for weekend outings. Frank Nation is made up of some pretty fantastic folks and they always keep it exciting.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

When I’m not working, I like to sleep. I also like cribbage, bad sci-fi movies from the ’60s and cheese. The fancier the cheese, the better. Cheese is almost as important to me as sleep.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I don’t think there is anything that would surprise Frank Nation about me. I pretty much “tell it all” every day.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I’m not sure what the listeners picture in their heads when they hear my voice, but when I meet them there’s always someone who says they thought I was shorter/taller/darker hair/lighter hair, etc. I wish they’d all picture me as thin and gorgeous. I’d like that a lot.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

My imagination gets pretty wild so I’ve learned not to form a mental image of others. I also don’t do it because I suck at it. I’m hardly ever right, so I’d rather just be surprised.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

When someone tells me I don’t look like my voice, I usually just smile at them for a few seconds. It gives them a moment to wonder if they should have said that, and what I’m going to come back with. Sometimes I like the awkwardness of it. I don’t have a standard answer. It always depends on how much sarcasm I think they can handle. It’s a case-by-case kind of situation.

Rick Johnson: WYNZ (Big Hits Y100.9), WCLZ

Rich Johnson was raised in North Attleboro, Mass. He worked for stations in Massachusetts until 2004, when he moved to Maine. He works for the Portland Radio Group/Saga Communications in South Portland, where he hosts the afternoon drive shift on Big Hits Y100.9 and the evening shift on WCLZ. He also serves as a fill-in host for other stations, including WPOR and Coast 93.1.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

I’ve had a love/fascination/obsession for music and all things musical from a very early age. However, I lack the ability to actually create music. Working in radio, where I get to play music and talk about it all day long, seemed like the next best thing.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

The fact that I actually get paid to do what I’d be doing anyway: sitting around playing music and shooting my mouth off about it!

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

The laughably low salary, the corporate culture of big business radio and unimaginative program directors who program for the lowest common denominator.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

Once, I was filling in as morning co-host on one of our stations. After the show, the other host at the time went home, but he forgot he had an interview scheduled for later that morning. Long story short, that’s how I ended up interviewing Martina McBride with less that five minutes worth of preparation. That was pretty nerve-wracking, but also very exciting.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

I collect vinyl records, so I love to crawl through the bins at some of the great used record stores in Portland. That’s where you’ll usually find me on a day off, searching for one of my elusive vinyl holy grails.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

On Big Hits, I do a daily Beatles feature called the Fab 4 at 4, a block of four Beatles songs hand selected by me. But listeners may be surprised to know I wasn’t always a Beatles fan. I discovered them late in life. Before we were married, my wife briefly lived in Los Angeles. She was a big Beatles fan, and I was a big Pink Floyd fan. On a cross-country road trip from L.A. to Massachusetts, we listened to every single Beatles album and every single Pink Floyd album in a row. By the end of the trip, I was a big Beatles fan, and she was a big Floyd fan. I’ve been obsessed ever since.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

Probably someone bigger, older and more handsome.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

It’s hard not to form an impression in your mind. I still do that to this day.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

No, but it doesn’t bother me. I’ve been fortunate to meet many DJs over the years, and across the board not one of them has looked like the picture I had in my mind, so I understand the surprise when people meet me for the first time after hearing me on the air. As long as they don’t tell me I have a “face for radio,” I’m fine!

Suzanne Nance: MPBN

The host of MPBN’s morning classical music program, Suzanne Nance grew up just outside Philadelphia, but always wanted to live in Maine. She worked in broadcasting in Philadelphia and Aspen, Colo., before getting her wish and moving here in 2008. She has a master of music degree from DePaul University.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

I love to perform and share music. Performing on the stage for a live audience is an awesome experience. When it’s right, there is a connection, an electricity and an intimacy. That experience is also possible on radio. It’s wonderful to be able to share a piece of music on the radio (and now the web) and reach thousands of people. It’s a very special medium.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

The people of Maine. And the people who listen “from away” because they love and appreciate all things Maine. There are so many creative and wonderful people in this state. It’s great to connect and shine a spotlight on local talent and happenings.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

I can never be late for work (she says with a wink and a smile).

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

My goodness! I’ve had some of the most amazing experiences here and abroad thanks to this job. They include meeting, interviewing and introducing some of my personal heroes, such as soprano Renee Fleming and cellist Yo Yo Ma. However, one of the best experiences I’ve had was when I sang for a large group of children at Bates College during one of their “Lunchtime Concerts” (they bus children from local schools to the Olin Arts Center for a musical experience). After the concert I received letters from every child thanking me for the concert and sharing their experience. Many drew pictures as well. I will treasure those letters forever.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

I love to travel around Maine and see concerts. I also love to sing and cook. Sometimes I do both at the same time!

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I love ’80s music.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I’ve been told that I sound like a woman in her 50s or 60s, full bodied, with brown hair and a bob hairstyle.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

I definitely create a mental picture of people when I hear their voices.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

I usually say, something like, “I get that a lot.”

Jeff Mannix: Portland Pirates

Portland Pirates announcer Jeff Mannix was born in Presque Isle and graduated from Bangor High School. He attended the University of Maine and has worked in broadcasting since 2000. Mannix is the son of Channel 6 meteorologist Kevin Mannix.

SJ: What attracted you to working as a sports announcer?

I’ve always loved sports, especially hockey. And broadcasting is in my blood. My dad has been in broadcasting since he was a teenager and both of my grandfathers were radio personalities.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

I get to travel and broadcast a sport that I have always loved. Just about everyone in the sport of hockey is great to be around.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

Time away from family and friends. The schedule can get quite demanding and spending days at a time away from home is normal.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

Meeting and interviewing one of my favorite hockey players when I was kid, Patrick Roy. I interviewed him while I was the broadcaster for the Lewiston MAINEiacs and he was very nice to me.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

My favorite thing to do is hang out on the couch and watch movies with my girlfriend, Nicole. Other than that, hang out with our friends and watch a game, whether it’s hockey or another sport. I’m also a huge soccer fan.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

For the longest time, my dad and I did not want to acknowledge that we were related in public, because we both wanted me to be able to carve out my own career on my own merits, and not as Kevin Mannix’s son. We are now both proud to acknowledge we are family.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

Someone who is enthusiastic and energetic.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

Yes, I still do, although not as much as before I was on radio.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

I haven’t had that happen, so I don’t know.

Stan Bennett: WFNK (Frank FM)

Stan Bennett is originally from Woolwich, currently lives in Auburn, and has lived in Maine his entire life. His radio career began in 1987 at WIGY and WJTO in West Bath. After some other radio jobs, he moved to Binnie Media, his current employer, in 1994. He currently co-hosts the Stan, Heidi & Joe show on Frank FM and serves as operations manager for Frank, The Wolf, ROCK 106.3, WLAM and WBACH.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

I was always fascinated listening to my radio as a kid. It was always much more interesting to me then television.

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

Every day is different and very challenging. I never get bored and am always looking for ways to be better at what I do. Keeping listeners’ attention with all the options out there is very difficult, but I love the challenge.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

Radio is 24/7. There are no holidays, and it is certainly not a 9-to-5 career. Oh, and getting up at 3 a.m. is just plain wrong.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

Meeting legendary bands and artists along with going to any event you can imagine is a ton of fun, but I think having the opportunity to play a role in raising close to $1.5 million over my career for charities like the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital and Make-A-Wish would top my list.

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

Spend as much time as possible with my family, and help my wife run our ice cream shop, Sundae’s on Center Street in Auburn.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I am very shy and become very uncomfortable in crowds. That is probably why I love radio so much, as we spend most of our time in a 10-foot-by-10-foot studio.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I hope they picture me as an everyday Mainer. My day is just like theirs. It is spent running the kids to whatever school or sports event they need to be at, cooking dinner, grocery shopping, going to work, paying the bills and, most of all, making sure I complete my honey-do list.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

I never really picture what they look like, and I’m sure it’s because of my profession. I spend more time listening to see if they have a voice for radio.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

Most people think I’m much taller so, I usually laugh it off and say thanks for listening.

Victoria Foley: WCLZ

Originally from Portland, Victoria Foley grew up in both Maine and Nova Scotia. She worked for public radio as a reporter and producer for six years in Canada and Colorado before moving back in 2010. She currently hosts the morning show on WCLZ.

SJ: What attracted you to working in radio?

I really like people’s voices and playing with sounds. And I love music. When I was little I dragged a Walkman around and recorded myself talking into it. I probably drove my parents nuts!

SJ: What is the best thing about your job?

Playing music I like, seeing great live shows and talking about music every day is a pretty good deal – and I really like meeting listeners and talking about what’s going on in the community.

SJ: What is the worst thing about your job?

I don’t know. Maybe the early-morning wake-ups.

SJ: What is the most interesting or exciting thing that has ever happened to you as a result of your job?

I got to meet my favorite band of all time, The Sam Roberts Band, and introduce them when they played in Portland. I was totally starstruck!

SJ: What do you like to do when you’re not talking to strangers over the airwaves?

I love to run, and I volunteer with Girls on the Run in Portland. It’s a nonprofit after-school program that inspires girls to be joyful, healthy and confident! I also volunteer on the board of the Maine Track Club.

SJ: Share one fact about yourself you think your listeners would find surprising.

I really like hip-hop music, especially Jay-Z. I think his lyrics are smart and politically astute.

SJ: What do you think people picture when they hear your voice?

I hope it’s someone smiling and happy.

SJ: When you hear a person’s voice, do you get a mental picture in your mind, or does your profession insulate you from doing so?

Totally! I love imagining what people look like when I hear their voice.

SJ: Do you have a standard response (or a response you wish you could use, but don’t) when someone tells you that you don’t look anything like your voice?

I don’t get that a lot, actually. When I do, I usually smile and hope it’s a compliment.