Biondi
Credited as being the first AMERICAN DJ to play a BEATLES song on the air in the UNITED STATES at WLS-A (THE 89)/CHICAGO, iconic radio personality and RADIO HALL OF FAME member DICK BIONDI aka “The Wild I-Tralian” has died at age 90 (6/26).
According to the CHICAGO SUN TIMES, over BIONDI’s amazing career he claimed to have worked at and “to have been fired from 25 radio stations over his lifetime, never wanted to retire and rarely took vacations. Until he was sidelined with health issues in APRIL 2017, he had been a fixture at classic hits WLS 94.7-FM since 2006.
“What was the secret to his longevity in the business? ‘I have never lost the drive and the desire,’ BIONDI told the SUN TIMES. ‘Radio is the greatest way of communicating in the world. Nobody, nobody can get more intimate than your voice getting into somebody’s head.’”
During his CHICAGO career, BIONDI also spent time at crosstown Top 40 competitor WCFL-A and later at WMAQ-A as well as Top 40 WBBM (B96) where he did mornings for a time and at his last station in CHICAGO, WJMK.
Former WJMK PD CHARLEY LAKE recalled his days with BIONDI, “During the years that we worked together, I saw DICK in the company of listeners, sponsors, recording artists, other radio people, etc. and I will never forget the immense respect, love and reverence he was always shown. He was always gracious in return – and then he’d wink and you knew he wasn’t taking himself too seriously.”
BIONDI is survived by his wife MARIBETH, and sister GERALDINE WALLACE and a private service was recently held.
ART “RADIO’s BEST FRIEND VUOLO created a video tribute to DICK BIONDI created from his video interviews with BIONDI in 1987, 1997, 2004 and 2007. We hope that you enjoy it.
Remembering Dick Biondi from Art Vuolo on Vimeo.
