Johnny Lombardi
| Johnny Barbalinardo Lombardi | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
December 4, 1915 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | March 18, 2002 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | broadcaster, businessman |
| Known for | multicultural broadcasting |
| Spouse(s) | Lena |
| Children | Leonard (Lenny), Donina, Theresa |
Johnny Barbalinardo Lombardi, CM OOnt (December 4, 1915 – March 18, 2002) was a pioneer of multicultural broadcasting in Canada. He has received many decorations and honours.
Lombardi was married to Lena, with whom he had one son, Leonard (also known as Lenny), and two daughters, Donina and Theresa. He was sometimes referred to as "Mr. Toronto", and usually wore a baseball cap.
The son of Italian immigrants, Lombardi was born in the Little Italy section of Toronto. His father Leonardo Barbalinardo changed his name to Leonardo Lombardi shortly after moving to Canada because the Anglo-Saxon community of Toronto at the time had difficulty pronouncing his name.
He was lead trumpet player for the Benny Palmer Orchestra in London, a popular Ontario big band during the 1930s. He enlisted in the Canadian Army during World War II in 1942, and was soon stationed in Europe. He was Sergeant in the army, and during the war he entertained the troops with his trumpet.
He returned to Canada in 1946, and in 1948 he opened a supermarket named Lombardi's Italian Foods Ltd., or simply Lombardi’s Supermarket, at 637 College Street, an area which came to be known as Little Italy. He began his broadcasting career as a producer for an hour-long Italian music program in which he advertised his supermarket. The show was successful and his store flourished. Lombardi became a promoter of concerts and sporting events. A champion of multiculturalism before it was implemented as Canadian government policy, he founded the multilingual radio stations CHIN in 1966 and CHIN-FM in 1967, which now serve over 30 ethnic communities. By 1968, CHIN was broadcasting in 32 languages, with Italian language programming predominant, at 60 hours per week.
Another entrepreneur who did not forget the "ethnics" was Johnny Lombardi, who put his creature, CHIN Radio, at their disposal. Not only for Italians, but also Hispanics, Asians, people from the Middle East. All of them found newscasts, talk shows, educational programs in their respective languages.
Lombardi later hosted an Italian-language television program on CITY-TV. He was also known for hosting the annual CHIN Picnics at the Canadian National Exhibition, featuring bikini contests derided by many feminists.
...
Wikipedia