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Bill Forman (radio)

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by EnormityOP (talk | contribs) at 13:53, 5 April 2023 (Nominated for deletion; see Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bill Forman (radio).). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For the baseball player, see Bill Forman (baseball).

Bill Forman was an American radio announcer and actor. He was best known for his work as the title character on The Whistler.[1]

Forman was born May 26, 1915 in Mount Vernon, New York. He attended Wesleyan University, where he majored in English and theatre.[2]

Forman worked for WHBC in Canton, Ohio and then for WGAR in Cleveland, Ohio before he moved to Los Angeles to work at KMPC, where he succeeded Lou Huston, in 1942.[3][4][2]

He appeared on The Whistler starting in 1941, but his identity remained unknown for around 10 years.[2] According to a 1990 newspaper article, Forman did not provide the whistling of his character.[5]

He was known as the "dean" and for his many accents on Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge.[6]

He was the narrator on the Zane Grey Show and the announcer on The Tony Martin Show.[7][8]

He was inducted into the military at Fort MacArthur in 1945.[9]

Forman was married and had three children.[2]

References

  1. ^ "Old timers being heard again". The Wichita Beacon. 1973-04-27. p. 27. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  2. ^ a b c d "Star of 'The Whistler' on job 13 years". The Times. 1955-02-27. p. 55. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  3. ^ "Radio: Payroll Traffic". Variety. May 29, 1940. 138, 12. p. 35. Via Proquest.
  4. ^ "Behind the mike". Broadcasting, Broadcast Advertising. Mar 2, 1942. 22, 9. p. 36. Via Proquest.
  5. ^ "Now you know "Whistler' secrets". The Courier-Journal. 1990-09-09. p. 54. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  6. ^ "Music Records: Kay Kyser, Popular Bandleader, Radio Host, Dies In N. Carolina". Variety. Jul 31, 1985. 320, 1. p. 77. Via Proquest.
  7. ^ Chase, Sam. "Radio: Network program reviews & analysis - Zane Grey Show". The Billboard. Oct 4, 1947. 59, 39. p. 12. Via Proquest.
  8. ^ Herm. "Radio Review: Tony Martin Show". Variety. Jul 8, 1953. 191, 5. p. 24. Via Proquest.
  9. ^ "Chatter: Hollywood". Variety. May 16, 1945. p. 55. Via Proquest.


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