Dick Buckley
| Dick Buckley | |
|---|---|
| Born |
George R. Buckley August 26, 1924 Decatur, Indiana, United States |
| Died | July 22, 2010 (aged 85) Oak Park, Illinois, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Indiana University |
| Occupation | Radio Host |
| Years active | 1956-2008 |
| Spouse(s) | Marjorie A. Buckley |
| Children | Janet Wayland, Jim Buckley, and Jeff Buckley |
George R. "Dick" Buckley (August 26, 1924 – July 22, 2010) was an American radio presenter who had hosted the jazz program, Jazz with Dick Buckley, on Chicago Public Radio. His program, which was on WBEZ from 1977 through 2008, tended toward jazz of the 1930s and 1940s, or what he has called "Golden Era" jazz. In the early eighties, he also hosted a jazz program on WXFM. Buckley had previously been involved with jazz shows on WAIT, WNIB, and WAAF. Buckley is known for his rich baritone voice and encyclopedic knowledge of jazz.
Dick Buckley was born in Decatur, Indiana on August 26, 1924. He grew up feeling that he was "the only jazz fan around." During World War II, he trained as a bombardier in San Angelo, TX to serve in the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) between 1943-'46. It was during his military career that he began his radio career. "Till I was 21 or 22, I wasn't aware my voice was exceptional. An Armed Forces station needed an announcer and said, `We'll give you experience.' That was the start."
He subsequently attended Indiana University where he played trombone for the marching band. At odds with his father, who wanted him to be an electrical engineer, he enrolled in a broadcasting school and remained in broadcasting thereafter. During broadcasts, he would occasionally refer to himself as "a reformed trombonist."
For a 1989 Sun-Times article by Bob Herguth, Buckley said "I grew up with radio. It was just that my tastes progressed to jazz bands. My mother, Ella May, who's 96 and lives in Plymouth Place in La Grange, still doesn't understand where she went wrong in my taste in music."
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