Dec. 17, 1962 - Rock ’n’ roll disc jockey Alan Freed (pictured left in 1956 with Little Richard and Bill Haley) pleaded guilty today to accepting bribes from record companies. He was fined $300 and given a 6-month suspended jail sentence. The 40-year-old Freed, now of Palm Springs, Calif., figured in a disc jockey payola investigation two years ago. It led to criminal charges being filed against him in May 1960, accusing him of accepting a total of $30,650 in bribes from 7 record companies. Assistant District Attorney Joseph Stone, who conducted the payola inquiry, said Freed had been on the payroll of a number of record companies that paid him $400 to $700 a month to favor their records.
