Posted on 09/08/2013 9:14:39 PM PDT by County Agent Hank Kimball
Don Wade, a pillar of Chicago radio, has died of a brain tumor, about a year after the condition forced the morning show host off the air. He was 72.
Mr. Wade spent 55 years in broadcasting, 27 of them at WLS-AM 890, according to a statement Sunday on the station's website confirming his Friday death. In recent years, he worked mornings co-hosting "The Don Wade & Roma Show" with his wife.
Colleagues said Mr. Wade was a relentless researcher who would wake up in the middle of the night to get ready for his 5 a.m. show. The "lovable curmudgeon" became a Chicago institution by knowing the topics he covered inside and out, said former WLS General Manager Michael Damsky.
"I think that Don was probably the most influential local, perspective-based host in Chicago," Damsky said. "This city has a great history of beloved personalities, some of them far more well-known or higher-rated than Don. But when it came to information and perspective, Don really was the gold standard."
Damsky said people trusted Mr. Wade in a deeper way than they did other radio hosts.
"When there were big issues on the line that were of broad-based interest, people turned to Don," Damsky said. "No one else ever commanded that kind of respect."
As word spread Sunday of his passing, fans on social media networks remembered the broadcaster as a comforting presence with a sharp sense of humor......
(Excerpt) Read more at my.chicagotribune.com ...
RIP Mr. Wade.
Hank
didn’t actor Ernest Borgnine also die?
A bright, singular diamond in Chicago. A giant broadcaster, a genius. Thank you Don.
I liked their morning show. Really missed it. WLS has gone downhill since Don and Roma left. Really sad to lose him.
Used to listen to Don and Roma all the time here in West Michigan when I had jobs that required a lot of driving. This news made me sad.
whipped out a really old Bump List for Chicagoland area freepers...
Sad news, God bless his soul. He sure blessed me for the last 12 or so years.
So very sad. I left Chicago five years ago. (About the time Obama was elected president). Don was uplifting. Made the morning commute enjoyable.
sad news, indeed ... rip Don
wonder who the don and roma sound-alikes are doing the plastic surgeon commercials ... they're pretty good but not totally spot on
LOL - Though always good to hear their voice!
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