Third Row"; he was not, in reality, bald) where he pioneered the Top-40 format. It was in 1955 that he landed his ill-fated job with WMGM in New York City, presenting "Your Hits of the Week". Tripp died at the age of 73 following a stroke, leaving two sons and two daughters. His four marriages all ended in divorce. T.C. Boyle's short story "The Kind Assassin", in Tooth and Claw (2005), is inspired by Tripp's "Wake-A-Thon". References External links Biography at history-of-rock.com "The Stay-Awake Men", The New York Times, recounts Peter Tripp's stay-awake stunt 1926 births 2000 deaths American radio personalities Sleeplessness and sleep deprivation People from Port Chester, New York