Backstage with Ron Onesti: Dick Biondi - Chicago's own music treasure

Dec 17, 2022 240

BY: Ron Onesti

There is a cup of hot cocoa in front of a crackling fire in the fall. There is peacefully floating on a raft on a small river in Tennessee. And there is sundown in the mountains of Colorado. As soothing, comforting and embracing as those things are, just as special is the voice of radio legend Dick Biondi. Which is ironic, since he is referred to as one of the original "screamers" on radio!

Even though The "Wild I-Tralian" was fired 23 times from various stations around the country, Chicago was his heart, and WLS-AM89 was his home. He began on the radio as a sportscaster, but was quickly drawn to the rhythm and blues songs emerging on the radio around him, and loved that Alan Freed rock 'n' roll era. He worked with iconic names including young "upstarts" Rod Serling and Casey Kasem. 

Read more

SOURCE: https://www.dailyherald.com

You may be interested