Bill "Hoss" Allen
| Bill "Hoss" Allen | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | December 3, 1922 Gallatin, Tennessee, United States |
| Died | February 25, 1997 (aged 74) Nashville, Tennessee, United States |
| Occupation | Disc jockey |
Bill Allen (aka "Hossman" or "Hoss"; born William Trousdale Allen III, December 3, 1922 – February 25, 1997) was an American radio disc jockey who attained fame from the 1950s through the 1990s for playing rhythm and blues and black gospel music on Nashville radio station WLAC.
Allen was the youngest of a quartet of disc jockeys known as "The 50,000 Watt Quartet." It included Gene Nobles, "John R." (Richbourg), and Herman Grizzard. Allen had the longest career of any. He worked for radio stations for 45 years before his 1993 retirement. Like Richbourg, from the 1960s through the 1980s, Allen was involved with Nashville's small but vibrant blues and gospel music scenes.
Allen was reared in the small town of Gallatin, some 35 miles northeast of Nashville, by an African-American domestic who worked for his grandparents. She was primarily responsible for his nurturing and upbringing, which included taking the young boy to church with her on Sundays. This was where Allen grew to love gospel music. Because of their closeness, Allen identified primarily with black youngsters as playmates and peers, an orientation unusual in the segregated South. Because of Bill Allen's tall, athletic frame, his grandfather nicknamed him "Hoss".
Allen became a jazz musician as a youngster. During World War II, he played abroad in USO shows. When peace came, Allen enrolled as an English major at Vanderbilt University, where he developed a reputation as a strong amateur actor. Although he considered joining the professional theater, Allen decided instead to enter what he considered the more promising field of radio. In 1948 he went to work for Gallatin station WIHN hosting the Harlem Hop show. There he used Gene Nobles' routine of playing R&B and jazz tunes, mixed in with standard pop music. His success was so great, that, after only a few months, he approached WLAC for a job.
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