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257:. An article in the June 27, 1965, issue of the Chicago Tribune reported, "These remote pickups ... are bigger nightly draws these summer nights than the city's biggest night clubs." Columnist Larry Wolters added, "People come from Madison, LaCrosse, Dubuque, Milwaukee, Chicago, and other places to watch Franklyn read his poetry, hear popular and familiar music, to hear him philosophize, and give out information on a variety of subjects."
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MacCormack often incongruously interspersed romantic on-air poetry readings with talk of running down to the corner to buy the early edition of the morning paper which he would read while munching down a corned beef sandwich (listeners recall that his long-time engineer, who was with him the night he
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MacCormack was an enigma to his listening audience, a manifestation of the magic of radio. While some perceived him as an aloof, effete romantic, his real-life personality was a gregarious ordinary beer drinking Joe who could walk the streets of
Chicago blending in with every other blue collar man
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MacCormack became ill during the broadcast of June 12, 1971, and was quickly taken to a hospital. He had, in fact, suffered his second heart attack in a nine-month period, this time fatally, as he died
Saturday afternoon. His time slot was initially filled by occasional guest host and staff
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Late in his career MacCormack teamed up with recently widowed Nelson Eddy for a live concert in
Chicago, leaving his flowing toupee at home and letting his fans see him as the simple radio announcer "behind the curtain" that he really was.
100:, from the 1930s into the 1970s. After his death, Ward Quaal, the president of the last company for which MacCormack worked, described him as "a natural talent and one of the truly great performers of broadcasting's first 50 years."
300:, a poet living in Chicago, for copyright infringement. The suit was dismissed in February 1944 after the judge ruled Yorke was unable to prove her cause of action. In 1961 he married Barbara Carlson, his secretary.
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in
Chicago, Illinois, where he was "an actor, announcer and producer." His obituary in the Chicago Tribune said, "He developed his technique of lacing music with poetry while announcing in his native Waterloo, Ia."
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Radio
Speakers: Narrators, News Junkies, Sports Jockeys, Tattletales, Tipsters, Toastmasters and Coffee Klatch Couples Who Verbalized the Jargon of the Aural Ether from the 1920s to the 1980s--A Biographical
309:(despite owning one of the shiniest black Cadillacs in town, a self-earned perk). Due to the immense power and reach of clear channel WGN his all night radio show, sponsored by the everyday man's
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on WGN from 1959 until the day he died in 1971. The program was syndicated in addition to its broadcasts on WGN. The show originated at Uphoff's
Rotunda Motel and Restaurant in
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beer, had a huge following of long haul truckers who tuned in his show because they could cross several state lines without having to change stations once.
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died while a record was playing in the first hour of the show commented on-air that MacCormack died after choking on a corned beef sandwich).
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203:, and for many years he was the overnight broadcaster on two of Chicago's well-known clear-channel radio stations, first on WBBM and then on
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MacCormack was born
Franklin H. McCormick on March 8, 1906, in Waterloo, Iowa, and had four siblings. He attended the University of Iowa.
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music. One poem, "Why Do I Love You?" became his signature, the first line of which he would typically use to begin his program:
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In contrast to the primary sports-and-talk formats of WBBM and WGN, MacCormack read romantic and sentimental poetry and played
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character
Charles the Poet, who can never get through one of his overly sentimental poems without breaking up into laughter.
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269:(John C. Winston Company, 1948), and a paperback edition was published in 1963 by Chicago's Carl Mack Books.
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MacCormack began his radio career in South Bend, Indiana, and in 1930 had his first large-market job with
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MacCormack was married earlier in his life to Vi
Johnstone. In 1943, he and his wife were sued by
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184:. Beginning November 9, 1936, MacCormack (poetry reader) and Jack Fulton (tenor) starred on
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Radio Stars: An
Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960
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era popular songs, backed by a string orchestra arranged and conducted by Russ Garcia.
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MacCormack is cited as a member of the eclectic (and fictional) "orchestra" in The
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newscaster Clif Mercer. 2,500 people gathered two days later to honor his passing.
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for two weeks every summer, through the courtesy of local waterski show impresario
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Fortney, David (June 14, 1971), "2,500 Gather in Memory of Franklyn MacCormack",
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I love you not only for who you are, but for what I am when I am with you.
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In 1971, the Franklyn MacCormack Music Library was established at the
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Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows
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Why I Love You and Other Poems from My Old Book of Memories
417:"Franklyn MacCormack Dies; Veteran of Midnight Radio Show"
423:. Illinois, Chicago. June 13, 1971. p. Section 4–23
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Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920-1960, 2nd Edition
284:, consisted of spoken-word interpretations of classic
558:. California, Oakland. November 9, 1936. p. 23
394:"Franklyn MacCormack, WGN Chicago Radio Personality
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27:
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128:MacCormack was the announcer of the long-running
245:In his final stint on radio, MacCormack hosted
120:in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1933, he moved to
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698:. Illinois, Dixon. July 28, 1971. p. 20
552:"Jack Pearl to Return to Air on NBC Tonight"
236:style of reading these poems inspired the
17:
753:Live365.com Franklyn MacCormack broadcast
663:Broadcasting magazine, February 21, 1944
343:, where he is credited with playing the
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92:(March 8, 1906 – June 12, 1971) was an
692:"MacCormack Library fund over $ 2,000"
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442:Chicago and Cook County Cemeteries,
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135:Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy
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638:"The Man the Night People Go For"
444:The Golden Age of All-Night Radio
768:Radio personalities from Chicago
748:Franklyn MacCormack tribute page
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636:Wolters, Larry (June 27, 1965).
615:. McFarland & Company, Inc.
594:. McFarland & Company, Inc.
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533:. McFarland & Company, Inc.
493:. McFarland & Company, Inc.
272:In 1958, MacCormack recorded an
138:. He was also the announcer for
265:MacCormack edited the 245-page
1:
793:Radio personalities from Iowa
188:. The program was carried on
731:Franklyn MacCormack readings
158:The Story of Joan and Kermit
457:"What Do You Want to Know?"
199:in Chicago, he was host of
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788:People from Waterloo, Iowa
611:DeLong, Thomas A. (1996).
251:Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin
798:University of Iowa alumni
529:Terrace, Vincent (1999).
590:Sies, Luther F. (2014).
696:Dixon Evening Telegraph
340:The Intro and the Outro
178:The Curley Bradley Show
174:Caroline's Golden Store
335:Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
247:The All Night Showcase
304:Behind the microphone
201:A Great Day for Music
147:Hymns of All Churches
96:radio personality in
359:in Dixon, Illinois.
282:The Torch Is Burning
261:Books and recordings
773:MGM Records artists
743:Franklyn MacCormack
644:. Illinois, Chicago
162:The Wayne King Show
90:Franklyn MacCormack
22:Franklyn MacCormack
467:(2): 69. June 1938
357:Dixon State School
32:Franklin McCormick
621:978-0-7864-2834-2
600:978-0-7864-5149-4
539:978-0-7864-4513-4
499:978-0-7864-6086-1
488:Cox, Jim (2007).
98:Chicago, Illinois
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63:Years active
58:Radio personality
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170:Bouquet for You
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501:. Pp. 177-178.
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166:Woman in White
153:Myrt and Marge
130:old-time radio
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292:Personal life
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280:. The album,
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50:June 12, 1971
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35:March 8, 1906
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706:– via
700:. Retrieved
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461:Radio Mirror
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425:. Retrieved
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311:Meister Brau
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298:Elenor Yorke
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77:Vi Johnstone
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783:1971 deaths
778:1906 births
239:Bob and Ray
104:Early years
762:Categories
491:Dictionary
375:References
369:Nick Kenny
234:sotto voce
55:Occupation
725:Listen to
602:. P. 275.
471:August 8,
345:harmonica
212:classical
141:Easy Aces
66:1930-1971
702:July 17,
648:July 19,
562:July 18,
541:. P. 49.
427:July 19,
363:See also
286:big band
220:Broadway
216:big band
94:American
132:serial
71:Spouses
619:
598:
537:
497:
351:Legacy
41:, U.S.
325:Death
274:album
112:Radio
704:2016
650:2016
617:ISBN
596:ISBN
564:2016
535:ISBN
495:ISBN
473:2016
429:2016
276:for
218:and
197:WCFL
180:and
122:WBBM
47:Died
28:Born
511:MBC
205:WGN
195:On
190:CBS
118:WIL
764::
694:.
640:.
628:^
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554:.
518:^
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465:10
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.