TV & Radio Chicago Legendary Personalities
A list of Great Legendary Personalities of Chicago. Many of these people are from the Golden Days of WGN TV, Channel 9. A few are keeping the torch burning brightly thanks to their present day contributions.
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- Actor
- Producer
Ray Rayner was born on 23 July 1919 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for McDonaldland (1963), Riptide (1984) and Shades of Gray (1948). He was married to Jeanne and Marie Moore. He died on 21 January 2004 in Fort Myers, Florida, USA.- Robert Lewis Bell was born on January 18, 1922 in Flint, Michigan. His father was an assembly worker at General Motors and his mother was a housewife. He had two older brothers. After graduating high school, a friend's family offered to take him along to Arizona, where he dug ditches, worked as a carhop and lumberjack, and signed onto construction jobs. His show business career began as a U.S. Cavalryman extra for the motion picture Arizona (1940), where he also helped build the village of "Old Tucson" for the movie.
Although he was certifiably blind in his right eye, he succeeded in passing the Marine Corps physical in 1941, by memorizing the eye charts. Less than a year later, however, he was given a medical discharge but decided to try again, only this time, with the Navy. With the help of a sympathetic Navy doctor, he was accepted and served in San Francisco and, later, the Philippines, until 1946.
Upon his discharge, he returned to Flint, where he joined a community theater production and was subsequently offered a job as an announcer and disc jockey at WMRP Radio. A year later, he moved to South Bend, Indiana's WHOT Radio where he met and married copywriter Carol Atkinson. In 1950, they moved to Indianapolis, where he broke into television on WFBM-TV.
Bell's flair for comedic character acting surfaced in 1953, when he was paired with variety/talk show host Wally Phillips at WLWT-TV and WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1956, the stations' Executive Vice President, Ward Quaal, left the company to become General Manager of WGN Continental Broadcasting Company (WGN-TV & Radio) in Chicago and brought Bell, Phillips and the show's writer/director/producer Don Sandburg along. During the four years that followed, Phillips and Bell starred on their own variety series, which included "The Wally Phillips Show" and "Midnight Ticker". Bell also doubled as a staff announcer. From 1959 until 1968, he hosted "The Three Stooges" weekday afternoon showcase as "Andy Starr", the elderly custodian of the Odeon Theater. But it was in 1960 when WGN-TV asked him to portray the character that would make him a Chicago television legend, "Bozo the Clown".
Alan Livingston created "Bozo" for Capitol Records in Hollywood, California in 1946. He hired voice artist and former circus clown, 'Pinto Colvig', to portray the character on the recordings and first Bozo television series, "Bozo's Circus", on KTTV-TV in Los Angeles in 1949. In the late 1950s, Livingston and Capitol briefly parted ways and sold the licensing rights to Larry Harmon, whose business partner, Jayark Films Corporation, began distributing Bozo limited-animation cartoons to television stations along with the rights for each to hire its own live Bozo host.
Chicago's Bozo debuted on June 20, 1960 starring Bob Bell on a live 30-minute "Bozo" show weekdays at noon, performing comedy sketches and introducing Bozo cartoons. The program was placed on hiatus in January 1961 to facilitate WGN-TV and Radio's move from Tribune Tower in downtown Chicago to the city's northwest side. The show was expanded to an hour and returned as "Bozo's Circus" on September 11, 1961 with additional cast members, a 13-piece orchestra, comedy sketches, circus acts, cartoons, games and prizes before a 200+ member studio audience. The show and Bell's portrayal achieved a popularity and success unlike any locally produced children's show in the history of television. His improvisational skills on live television, double-entendres and Jackie Gleason-like mannerisms also attracted a huge adult following. The program began airing nationally via cable and satellite in 1978, and studio audience reservations surpassed a 10-year wait. In 1980, the series moved to weekday mornings as "The Bozo Show" and aired on tape delay.
Bell retired in 1984 with the show remaining #1 in its timeslot. Immediately following his retirement, the Chicago Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Board of Directors honored him with their Governors' Award. Fellow cast members throughout his 24-year run as Bozo included Ned Locke as Ringmaster Ned, Bob Trendler as Mr. Bob, Don Sandburg as Sandy the Tramp, Ray Rayner as Oliver O. Oliver, Roy Brown as Cooky the Cook, Marshall Brodien as Wizzo the Wizard, and Frazier Thomas. Joey D'Auria took over the Bozo role until 2001.
After raising four children, Bell and his wife Carol moved from Deerfield, Illinois to Lake San Marcos, California, an area he had visited while serving in the Marine Corps during World War II. In addition to presiding over the Kiwanis Club of Lake San Marcos, he served on the board of directors of a community educational association that raised funds for the local school system.
In 1986, he was greeted with a lengthy standing ovation when he returned for a special guest appearance as himself during a live broadcast of "The Bozo 25th Anniversary Special" from Medinah Temple in Chicago. Ten years later, he became the first portrayer of Bozo to be inducted into the International Clown Hall of Fame in Wisconsin.
On December 8, 1997, Bob Bell passed away due to heart failure at the age of 75 in San Marcos, California. Illinois Governor Jim Edgar and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley proclaimed April 18, 1998 "Bob Bell Day" in the State of Illinois and City of Chicago as Addison Street near the WGN-TV Studios was named "Bob Bell Way." In 1999, actor and Chicago native Dan Castellaneta, best known as the voice of Homer Simpson and Krusty the Clown on "The Simpsons" television series, revealed during a national television interview that his voice characterization of Krusty was based on Bob Bell's Bozo. Considering Bell's sly sense of humor, there's no doubt he would be proud. - Actor
- Editor
- Producer
Frazier Thomas was born on 13 June 1918 in Rushville, Indiana, USA. He was an actor and editor, known for Family Classics (1962), Bozo's Circus (1961) and Garfield Goose and Friends (1952). He was married to Ann Deeds. He died on 3 April 1985 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.- Ned Locke was born on 25 December 1919 in Red Wing, Minnesota, USA. He was an actor, known for Big Top (1965) and Bozo's Circus (1961). He died on 4 February 1992 in Kimberling City, Missouri, USA.
- Set Decorator
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Puppeteer, clown and artist. Before graduating the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, he came to Chicago children's television in 1952 doing graphic arts for the Magic Drawing Board on the "Garfield Goose and Friends" program. He became the show's puppeteer shortly thereafter. In 1968, he created Cooky the Cook for "Bozo's Circus" when the producer and writer, who also played Sandy the Tramp, announced he was leaving the show. Brown restyled a discarded Bozo wig and other props, and his "audition" was on a live Bozo program the following week. He won a Chicago/Midwest Emmy award in 1992. In 1993, he was inducted into the Chicago Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' Silver Circle, and the Internatonal Clown Hall of Fame in Wisconsin.- Best remembered for portraying Svengoolie on "Screaming Yellow Theater," which aired in Chicago from 1970 to 1973. He then moved to San Diego in 1978 to become the host of "Sun Up San Diego." In his 13 years as host, he won 3 emmy awards. Along with his busy schedule, owned 2 Chicago themed restaurants, Greek Islands Cafe and Asaggio Pizza. He died of a heart attack at a local San Diego hospital.
- Producer
- Actor
- Writer
Don Sandburg was born on 24 October 1930 in Rocky River, Ohio, USA. He was a producer and actor, known for Big Top (1965), Bozo (1960) and Bozo's Circus (1961). He died on 6 October 2018 in Springfield, Oregon, USA.- Actor
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Bill Leff is known for Major League (1989), Major League II (1994) and Toon in with Me (2021). He is married to Teri Leff. They have two children.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Rich Koz was born on 12 March 1952 in Park Ridge, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Svengoolie (1995), Son of Svengoolie (1978) and Screaming Yellow Theatre (1970).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Harry Caray was born on 1 March 1914 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. He was an actor, known for Undercover Boss (2010), 1964 World Series (1964) and 1968 World Series (1968). He was married to Dolores "Dutchie" Goldmann, Marian Binkin and Dorothy Kanz. He died on 18 February 1998 in Rancho Mirage, California, USA.- Actor
- Writer
- Editor
Jack Brickhouse was born on 24 January 1916 in Peoria, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Golden Gloves Story (1950), The Duke (1979) and Chicago Cubs Baseball (1946). He was married to Patricia Ettelson and Nelda Teach. He died on 6 August 1998 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.- Steve Stone was a major league pitcher from 1971-81. He pitched for the San Francisco Giants (1971-72), Chicago White Sox (1973, 77-78), Chicago Cubs (1974-76), and the Baltimore Orioles (1979-81). Stone's best year was in 1980 when he went 25-7 with a 3.23 ERA and won the American League Cy Young Award. Stone also pitched in the 1979 World Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. After his major league career came to an end, he made the transistion to the broadcast booth, along side the late Hall of Famer Harry Carry for the Chicago Cubs on WGN-TV. He stayed in the booth after Harry's death in 1998 and joined Chip Carry, who took over for his grandfather. After the 2000 season, Stone announced that he was retiring from broadcasting.