Don Wade
The life and legacy of legendary Chicago radio personality Don Wade will be celebrated in a special broadcast from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday on WLS AM 890.
News anchor John Dempsey will host the tribute to Wade, the highly regarded morning star of the Cumulus Media news/talk station for more than 25 years. Included will be audio highlights of Wade's 55-year career in broadcasting, interviews with friends and colleagues, and comments from listeners. Continue reading
Jonathon Brandmeier
Three weeks after Jonathon Brandmeier signed off as morning personality at WGN AM 720, he's back behind a microphone — and out of control.
Starting today, Brandmeier will be heard live from 6 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday online at WGN.fm, a virtual station being designed to incorporate audio, video and social media components. Today's show had been billed as a one-time test, but instead will air each weekday "for the foreseeable future," according to Jimmy deCastro, president and general manager of the Tribune Broadcasting news/talk station and related media ventures. Continue reading
Natalie Bomke
Take a good look at this woman's face. Who knows if you'll ever see it again.
On Sept. 30, Natalie Bomke will join WFLD-Channel 32 as co-anchor of "Good Day Chicago" from 5 to 7 a.m. Monday through Friday. Judging by the ratings, she'd probably be spotted by more people if she joined the witness protection program.
In the latest Nielsen numbers, the Fox-owned station has been averaging a paltry 0.4 rating among adults between 25 and 54 for the two-hour time slot. That's not only dead last in the market, it's 20 percent down from the same period last year. Continue reading
Richard Roeper
No one can replace Roger Ebert. We all know that.
But in a casting decision that makes perfect sense, the Sun-Times has named veteran columnist Richard Roeper its leading man on the movie beat.
Under a multiyear contract renewal to be announced Thursday, Roeper, 53, will take on the title of movie columnist, with his reviews and columns appearing in print, online and on mobile devices. In addition, he'll host two weekly video shows ("The Roeper Rundown" on Wednesdays and "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" on Fridays) on a new suntimes.com video channel. Continue reading
Walter Jacobson
In a broadcast journalism career spanning 50 years, Walter Jacobson has never held a radio job and has never made commercial endorsements. Now he’s about to do both.
The celebrated Chicago anchorman has agreed to appear on WLS AM 890 as a commentator and as a spokesman for an advertiser specializing in reverse mortgages. Continue reading
Kori Chambers
It's official: Kori Chambers is signing off as morning and noon news anchor at Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32 to join Tribune Broadcasting's WPIX-TV in his native New York.
His last day on the air here will be Thursday. Chambers currently anchors “Good Day Chicago” from 5 to 7 a.m. with Dawn Hasbrouck and the noon news with Anna Davlantes. No word yet on a replacement for either newscast.
WPIX announced Monday that Chambers has been hired to anchor from 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays alongside Sukanya Krishnan, starting Oct. 7. Continue reading
Don and Roma Wade
Don Wade defined talk radio in Chicago for nearly 30 years. But without a doubt, his greatest legacy was the extraordinary partnership he shared on and off the air with his wife, co-host and inspiration, Roma.
"Last Friday morning, my hero, my best friend, my soulmate left this mortal coil behind and entered the realm of spirit while wrapped in my loving arms," Roma wrote in a message posted on the WLS AM 890 website Sunday night. "I love him more than life itself."
Just days short of one year after he suffered a seizure and underwent surgery for a malignant brain tumor, Wade died in Florida, where the couple spent their time since officially retiring from WLS last December. He was 72. Continue reading
Burton Jablin
As a kid growing up in Highland Park, Burton Jablin faithfully watched Bill Kurtis and Walter Jacobson deliver the news every night and dreamed of someday becoming host of the "Today" show.
While "Today" never beckoned, Jablin did get to work closely with Bill & Walter at WBBM-Channel 2 — rising from research assistant on Jacobson's staff to executive producer at the CBS-owned station. Now, three decades later, he's running an entire network.
Jablin, 53, last week was named president of Scripps Networks, parent company of HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Travel Channel, Cooking Channel and Great American Country. He succeeds another former Chicagoan, John Lansing, onetime news director at CBS 2, who retired. Continue reading
Leslie Keiling
To fans of Steve Dahl and Garry Meier in the 1980s, she'll always be known as "Lane Closure." And though her unmistakable voice was heard on almost every radio station in town since then, Leslie Keiling has spent the last decade delivering traffic reports exclusively for WGN AM 720.
Now we're about to hear a lot more from her than the travel times on the Kennedy. Continue reading
Michael Phillips
Chicago Tribune film critic Michael Phillips, who co-hosted the final season of "At the Movies" in syndication, is returning to national television.
Starting Sept. 6, Phillips will host "Friday Night Spotlight: Future Shock," a monthlong series for Turner Classic Movies examining "visions of the future as depicted on film." The 16 films in the series span 75 years — from Fritz Lang's 1927 "Metropolis" to Steven Spielberg's 2002 "Minority Report." Continue reading