Category: In Memoriam Radio
Putting a Painful Father’s Day story to bed
Fifty years ago, the story spread like wildfire. There were variations, but the basic premise was this: Candy Newman, beloved daughter of Cincinnati TV personality Ruth Lyons, was dying from cancer and took one last trip with her family on a cruise ship to Europe. Late one night, in the... Continue Reading »
Nelson King: “King” of Cincinnati Disc Jockeys
One hundred years ago this month, August 7, 1914, Charles Schroeder was born in Portsmouth, Ohio. If that name is a bit unfamiliar, it's because he would eventually take the name “Nelson King” and become Cincinnati's most influential disc jockey. The job of “disc jockey,” or an announcer who plays... Continue Reading »
Remembering Candy Newman
Recently, Media Heritage’s Mike Martini embarked on a road trip to the St. Louis area to visit Linda Lupton Hern and accept the gift of a portrait of Candy Newman. Cincinnati radio and television fans certainly remember Ruth Lyons—perhaps the most influential local broadcaster of the 20th century. Candy Newman... Continue Reading »
Mary Wood Centennial
In a previous post, we mentioned the centennial of the birth of beloved Cincinnati vocalist Ruby Wright but Ruby wasn't the only one to enter the world in January 1914 because on the 19th of that month, Mary Wood was born. For folks outside of Greater Cincinnati, the name might... Continue Reading »
Richard “Red” Skelton
100 years ago today (July 18th), Richard “Red” Skelton was born in Vincennes, Indiana. For many he occupies a niche of fond memories and sweet smiles. His television variety program in the 1960s was a must-see, weekly event in many households. How many remember, with glassy eyes, his closing comment... Continue Reading »
Dick Bray
By the time Dick Bray got into sports broadcasting, he was already well known in the Cincinnati athletics community. Born in Hyde Park, a Cincinnati suburb, in 1903, Bray was a three-sport star at Xavier University. He played 2nd base for the Comello Clothiers 1928 National Amateur Championship baseball team,... Continue Reading »
Bill McCluskey and St. Patty’s Day
It's that time of year to remember St. Patrick and all things Irish and, for many older Cincinnatians, thoughts turn to the late Bill McCluskey. It was Bill McCluskey who co-founded Cincinnati's St. Patrick's Day Parade in 1968 and he was often Grand Marshal of that parade when he was... Continue Reading »
Mr. Peavey
When discussing the memorable characters on radio’s The Great Gildersleeve, there seems to always be interest in the character “Mr. Peavey,” portrayed by character actor Richard LeGrand. Mr. Peavey was proprietor of Peavey’s Drug Store in Gildy’s hometown of Summerfield. He was quiet and had a droll sense of humor.... Continue Reading »
Mrs. Dennis Day
A friend sent me a small death notice recently from California noting the passing of Margaret (Peggy) McNulty Day—widow of Jack Benny Show vocalist Dennis Day—on February 1st. Mrs. McNulty Day was 89-years old. Dennis (whose birth name was Owen Patrick Eugene McNulty, but used “Dennis Day” as a stage... Continue Reading »
Raymond Scott
For those of us who studied—really studied—those wonderful Warner Brothers cartoons of the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s, the names that rolled through during the credits are permanently inscribed in our memories: Chuck Jones, Fritz Freleng, Robert McKimson, music by Carl Stalling, voices by Mel Blanc. One name that did not... Continue Reading »
Barbara Cameron
For a period in the mid-to-late 1940s, the name “Barbara Cameron” was everywhere at WLW. The Dayton-born songstress was hired to replace none other than Doris Day in late 1943 and the attractive 18-year-old quickly filled several holes in wartime-depleted WLW’s vocal department. Barbara sang on the popular late-night Moon... Continue Reading »
Andy Williams
The news of the passing of legendary vocalist Andy Williams did not come as too much of a surprise. Andy, himself, announced he faced a diagnosis of bladder cancer last fall and British tabloids were reporting his impending death as recently as July. Still, even at age 84, Williams’ passing... Continue Reading »