Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, Pete Scalia always knew he was destined to be on camera, on stage and in the studio – this is where it all began.
“I’ve been blessed to have done a lot of really cool things in my life. The funny thing is, I knew at a very young age exactly what I wanted to do.” – Pete Scalia
A Performer from day one…
As you can see and hear in the video above, Pete knew he wanted to be a performer at a young age. He started playing piano at age four and formed his first “band” while attending Delhi Junior High School (now Delhi Middle School). Comfortable onstage and behind the microphone, Pete performed in numerous stage productions at Oak Hills, as well as The Best of Oak Hills talent show. (His parents have the VHS videotapes to prove it!) While working as an office aide his senior year, a school secretary told him “You have a great voice. You should go into broadcasting!” After producing and recording the morning announcements as “Your Friendly Oak Hills Homecoming Announcement Person,” that’s what he did.
After graduating from Oak Hills in 1991, Pete studied communications at Ohio University — where he also hosted and produced original music for numerous stage, radio and television programs.
Upon graduating from OU, Pete worked behind the scenes at WLWT-TV as a production assistant. That job was cut short, however, by the opportunity to tour with Chicago guitarist T.D. Clark as the opening act for classic rockers Ted Nugent and Bad Company.
After returning from the road, Pete worked numerous broadcasting jobs in Cincinnati. He worked in radio as a DJ and producer of the Warm 98 (WRRM-FM) morning show; producer of Nick Clooney and later Dusty Rhodes’ morning shows on WSAI-AM; as stadium producer for the Bengals Radio Network — traveling with the team and announcer Dave Lapham; a production assistant for WXIX-TV; and as an audio engineer at Audiocraft recording studios. He also did a lot of freelance musical work through his home recording studio, and eventually toured as keyboardist for Cincinnati funk favorite Freekbass — produced by legendary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Bootsy Collins. You can still catch Pete playing music with his dad, Tony in their band, Snidely Whiplash.
For many years, Pete also worked extensively through a local talent agency, working as a spokesperson and on-camera talent for many corporate and commercial productions.
Pete’s talents eventually led him back to WLWT, where he worked as morning traffic reporter – where he proposed to his wife, Amy on live TV. From there, Pete anchored morning television at the ABC and FOX duopoly WKEF-TV and WRGT-TV in Dayton, Ohio. After a few years, he became morning anchor of Good Day Columbus at WSYX-TV and WTTE-TV in Columbus, Ohio. Thanks to his success at GDC, he was lured away by the local competition to anchor mornings at 10TV — WBNS-TV. After the COVID-19 pandemic, and a lot of soul-searching, in 2021 Pete and his family returned to the Greater Cincinnati area where he now hosts Cincy Lifestyle on ABC affiliate WCPO 9.
Around the age of 30, Pete was diagnosed with severe rheumatoid arthritis. After several years of treatment, he and Amy decided to start a family — which meant discontinuing his medication. Conceiving their first child proved to be difficult, but eventually, they were blessed with their daughter, Lola. Being off of his medications for so long proved life-changing for Pete, resulting in bilateral hip and knee replacement surgeries and many other physical changes. A true RA warrior, Pete considers it an obligation to educate people about arthritis. He has openly shared his journey with chronic illness and infertility on air and on social media, and is actively involved with the Arthritis Foundation at both the local and national level – serving as an advisory board member in Columbus and as emcee of numerous events.
In 2020, Pete launched The PSNeverGiveUp Movement – including a podcast, online shop, social media content and more – encouraging those living with chronic pain to “Never Give Up!” He and Amy are also launching The PSneverGiveUp Foundation to provide resources and information for couples managing infertility while living with chronic illness.
Pete and his wife Amy live in Greendale, Indiana with their three children, Lola, Sofia and Nico and their dog, Pappy.