Joel Hartstone, a former radio station owner and industry investor, passed away on February 4 at the age of 79. Hartstone, a 1970 graduate of Cornell Law School, began his career as counsel for Aetna before transitioning into media ownership in the early 1980s.
In partnership with Barry Dickstein, Hartstone co-owned a portfolio of radio stations in Atlantic City, Chicago, Connecticut, and Delaware through their company, Hartstone & Dickstein Inc., later renamed StoneGate Capital Group in 1994. The group spent a decade acquiring and managing stations before selling properties in Youngstown and Atlantic City to Connoisseur Communications in 1994 and Utica-Rome assets to a team led by Ed Levine, now head of Galaxy Media.
By 1996, Hartstone had established himself as a key advisor in radio station transactions, appearing at industry symposiums alongside top media brokers. A year later, he co-founded Excalibur Media, which owned stations in Vermont and Port Henry, NY, in partnership with Jim Champlin.
Hartstone later ventured into other industries, serving as the first President and CEO of Commander Premier Aircraft Corporation. In 2020, he founded American PPE & CleanCoating, a producer of self-cleaning, Nano-coated medical face masks, leading the company until April 2021.
His son, Jarrett Hartstone, shared, “He loved sailing, flying airplanes, and seeing live music with his friends. Most importantly, he was a loving husband, brother, father, grandfather, and uncle who was relentlessly dedicated to his children’s education and showing them the way. Joel will be remembered for his devotion to family, his passion for mentoring emerging entrepreneurs, and his unwavering commitment to excellence in all his endeavors. His legacy will continue to inspire those who had the privilege of knowing him.”
With reporting from Adam R. Jacobson.
