Ray Rayner
Encyclopedia
Ray Rayner was a staple of Chicago
children's television in the 1960s and 1970s on WGN-TV
.
in Worcester, Massachusetts
; his first media job was working for WGBB
radio in Freeport
on Long Island
while he was attending night school at Fordham University
. When World War II
broke out he enlisted in the Army Air Corps
, serving as the navigator of a B-17 during World War II, when he was shot down over France
April 3, 1943. During years as a POW
in Stalag Luft III
, he helped prepare the escape depicted in the film The Great Escape
—though he was transferred to another camp before the escape took place. It was during his time as a POW that he would discover his talent for entertaining, namely through his fellow prisoners and his German
captors.
as well as New York and Dayton, Ohio
radio following the war, Rayner joined what was then WBKB
but later became WBBM-TV in Chicago as a staff announcer; he also worked on a local morning program called Rayner Shine in 1953. This was Rayner's first work with puppets, who were provided for the show by the Mulqueens. He would get a noontime program called The Ray Rayner Show in 1953, he and his co-host Mina Kolb would host a somewhat free form show that would feature music, comedy skits, dance
and pantomime
. The show, geared towards teens, ran for five years.
WBBM asked Rayner to switch to a children's program in 1958, though reluctant at first, he did so with The Little Show, which was very much like Ray Rayner and His Friends; on this version, the duck he worked with had the name of Havelock. It ran two years; he also hosted Popeye's Firehouse (as Chief Abernathy) for another two. He would move on to WGN-TV
in 1961.
as country bumpkin clown Oliver O. Oliver. By 1965, Rayner's clown character, along with "Sandy", played by Don Sandburg
, were added to Larry Harmon
's Bozo coloring books. Rayner left the show in 1971 because he wanted more time for other projects. After that, he would occasionally do an appearance on the show as Oliver and would fill in for Ned Locke
as "Mr. Ray" when needed. Following the cancellation of Dick Tracy, a new afternoon program called Rocket to Adventure ran until 1968; this featured early appearances by Gigantor
and Tobor the Eighth Man
. Rayner hosted the show appearing as an astronaut
. In 1968, he also appeared in television commercials for Mc Donalds as Ronald McDonald
. At one point, WGN-TV had enough hope in being able to syndicate Rayner's Dick Tracy show to produce a pilot for that purpose.
s such as various Warner Brothers
character cartoons, arts-and-crafts, and animals such as Chelveston the Duck who was named after RAF Chelveston
where Rayner was stationed during World War II. Chelveston would occasionally bite, and Rayner was notably wary. During these segments, Chelveston would basically walk around the set, eat, or bathe while a then-current top 40 song was played. Rayner later said he put duck feed in the cuffs of his coveralls so Chelveston would nip at them, then save himself from the duck by giving him a head of lettuce to pick apart. What was not known to the public until after the program was no longer on the air was that Chelveston was actually played by four different ducks over the years.
Ray also had a talking dog puppet, Cuddly Dudley
, created and voiced by Roy Brown
, a.k.a. "Cooky the Cook" from The Bozo Show
. The segment would highlight viewer mail which included many hand-drawn pictures submitted by children. The segment was often humorous as it was a chance for Rayner and Brown to interact and use comedic ad-libs. He always wore a jumpsuit
, covered with small pieces of paper that held reminders of what to do next on the program (a cartoon, a commercial
, a visit from Chelveston, etc.). He would also simulcast
traffic reports from sister-station WGN Radio
over stock footage of traffic moving along the Chicago-area Interstates
. During baseball
season, he would show & narrate highlights of the Cubs
and White Sox
games from the previous day, wearing a custom-sewn ball cap that had the front half of each team's cap, resulting in a two-billed cap which he would spin around, depending on which team's highlights were being shown.
The arts-and-crafts was a regular segment that always began with a finished version prepared in advance by someone "behind the scenes" (who quite often was the wife of Producer Dick Flanders) that was displayed to the audience, followed by Ray attempting to demonstrate the process in an amusing, all thumbs effort, also set to music, that resulted in a comically sub-par facsimile that more resembled a random collection of felt, construction paper and glue. Ray's version would then be displayed along side the original further emphasizing his comical ineptitude regarding crafts. He held an annual jellybean contest where viewers were to submit guesses of the quantity in a large jar displayed for a period of time on the show. Every Christmas
he would have an Advent Calendar
and reveal a date until the Christmas holiday. Another bit was a lip-synching
sketch Rayner would do usually to an older novelty song
such as "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah
" by Allan Sherman
. However he would also perform serious songs while actually singing. Another feature on the show was Ark in the Park, a taped segment of a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo
featuring the then-director of the zoo, Dr. Lester Fisher. The introductory music for this segment was "The Unicorn
" by the Irish Rovers. Rayner also featured a "How and Why" segment on his shows with J. Bruce Mitchell of Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry
, as did Garfield Goose and Friends
. Along with The Bozo Show, Rayner added a video game those at home could play by phone called TV Powww!
. Rayner hosted this show until 1981.
During his time at Channel 9, starting in 1974, Rayner also hosted a Thursday night broadcast of The Illinois State Lottery
's then-weekly drawings, which featured a top prize of $300,000 ("Weekly Bonanza") and a second prize of $50,000 to a field of about a dozen contestants who had won a special lottery game over the preceding seven-day period. The show aired at 7:00 PM CDT.
nomination for one of his roles. Rayner also did directing for student productions at Loyola University Chicago
. He received an M. A. in Humanities from the University of Chicago
in 1970, writing his thesis about children's television's first goal being to entertain. He was a member of the Silver Circle of the Chicago chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences
and received many local Emmys for his television work.
Rayner also wrote a book titled The Story of Television published in 1972. It is basically an industry guide to how a television show is made featuring many photos of Rayner from his Ray Rayner and Friends show. The book is quite rare and commands a high price, when available, from on-line auction sites.
, the CBS
affiliate in Albuquerque, New Mexico
, in 1981, before retiring from television in 1989. He cited the harsh Chicago winters as the motivating factor. Rayner was the station's weatherman, complete with notes pinned to his jacket as they were to his coveralls in Chicago; he also hosted the local PM Magazine
in Albuquerque. He returned to Chicago for the 25th and 30th anniversary shows for Bozo's Circus. Rayner continued to accept some Chicago theater roles and took some time to patiently answer children's questions about his work even after moving to Albuquerque. He did a week-long stint filling in at weather and other duties at Chicago's "Fox Thing in the Morning" on WFLD
in May 1995. Rayner took some courses at the University of New Mexico
, did some teaching and wrote a column for a local newspaper there.
Rayner moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida
after his wife, Jeanne, a former nurse, died of lung cancer
in 1995. His activities there included reading to the blind, Grant A Wish (for terminally ill children), and delivering Meals on Wheels.
He died on 21 January 2004, of complications from pneumonia
in Fort Myers, Florida
at the age of 84.
He is survived by his second wife, Marie, daughter Christina Miller, his son Mark Rahner, and his grandchildren Patrick, Sean, Hilary Miller and Troy Rahner.
Clips from Rayner's shows are featured in the WGN Christmas special, Bozo, Gar and Ray: WGN TV Classics
. In 2005, the Museum of Broadcast Communications
awarded WGN-TV's Studio 1 a plaque to commemorate the forty years of children's television broadcast from the studio. Ray Rayner and Friends with a likeness of Rayner and Chelveston, is on the plaque along with Frazier Thomas
and Garfield Goose and Friends
and Bob Bell
and Bozo's Circus
. Rayner's coveralls, complete with notes, and one of his Oliver O. Oliver costumes are part of the museum's collection. Cuddly Dudley and his doghouse are also part of the museum's collection. A photo of Rayner on the set of his television show with two guests was chosen as the cover photo for Chicago Television, published for the Museum of Broadcast Communications in 2010.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
children's television in the 1960s and 1970s on WGN-TV
WGN-TV
WGN-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the CW-affiliated television station in Chicago, Illinois built, signed on, and owned by the Tribune Company. WGN-TV's studios and offices are located at 2501 W...
.
Early life
Rayner (the name was initially spelled "Rahner" but pronounced "Rayner") grew up in Queens, New York. He attended College of the Holy CrossCollege of the Holy Cross
The College of the Holy Cross is an undergraduate Roman Catholic liberal arts college located in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA...
in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
; his first media job was working for WGBB
WGBB
WGBB is an AM radio station licensed by the FCC in Freeport, New York. It is located at 1240 kHz on the AM dial.-History:WGBB has been serving the Long Island area since 1924. WGBB serves western Suffolk, Nassau, Queens, Brooklyn and parts of New Jersey.It was founded and managed by Harry H...
radio in Freeport
Freeport, New York
Freeport is a village in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, USA, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 42,860 at the 2010 census. A settlement since the 1640s, it was once an oystering community and later a resort popular with the New York City theater community...
on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
while he was attending night school at Fordham University
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
. When World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
broke out he enlisted in the Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
, serving as the navigator of a B-17 during World War II, when he was shot down over France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
April 3, 1943. During years as a POW
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
in Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe-run prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. It was in the German Province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan , southeast of Berlin...
, he helped prepare the escape depicted in the film The Great Escape
The Great Escape (film)
The Great Escape is a 1963 American film about an escape by Allied prisoners of war from a German POW camp during World War II, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough...
—though he was transferred to another camp before the escape took place. It was during his time as a POW that he would discover his talent for entertaining, namely through his fellow prisoners and his German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
captors.
Chicago
After briefly working in radio in Grand Rapids, Michigan on WOOD RadioWOOD (AM)
WOOD is a news/talk radio station broadcasting at 1300 kHz and 106.9 FM in Michigan, United States. WOOD-AM is licensed to Grand Rapids, Michigan and WOOD-FM to Muskegon, Michigan.-Full-service station:...
as well as New York and Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
radio following the war, Rayner joined what was then WBKB
WBBM-TV
WBBM-TV, virtual channel 2 , is the CBS owned-and-operated television station in Chicago, Illinois. WBBM-TV's main studios and offices are located in The Loop section of Chicago, as part of the development at Block 37, and its transmitter is atop the Willis Tower.-History:WBBM-TV traces its history...
but later became WBBM-TV in Chicago as a staff announcer; he also worked on a local morning program called Rayner Shine in 1953. This was Rayner's first work with puppets, who were provided for the show by the Mulqueens. He would get a noontime program called The Ray Rayner Show in 1953, he and his co-host Mina Kolb would host a somewhat free form show that would feature music, comedy skits, dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
and pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
. The show, geared towards teens, ran for five years.
WBBM asked Rayner to switch to a children's program in 1958, though reluctant at first, he did so with The Little Show, which was very much like Ray Rayner and His Friends; on this version, the duck he worked with had the name of Havelock. It ran two years; he also hosted Popeye's Firehouse (as Chief Abernathy) for another two. He would move on to WGN-TV
WGN-TV
WGN-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the CW-affiliated television station in Chicago, Illinois built, signed on, and owned by the Tribune Company. WGN-TV's studios and offices are located at 2501 W...
in 1961.
WGN-TV Channel 9
His first role on WGN was as Sergeant Pettibone, the host of the Dick Tracy show. He joined the cast of Bozo's CircusThe Bozo Show
The Bozo Show is a locally-produced children's television program that aired on WGN-TV in Chicago and nationally on what is now WGN America. Recognized as the most popular and successful locally-produced children's program in the history of television, it only aired under this title for 14 of its...
as country bumpkin clown Oliver O. Oliver. By 1965, Rayner's clown character, along with "Sandy", played by Don Sandburg
Don Sandburg
Don Sandburg is an American writer, actor, and producer who has worked in television, most notably as producer of The Banana Splits for Hanna-Barbera as well as WGN-TV's Bozo's Circus....
, were added to Larry Harmon
Larry Harmon
Lawrence Weiss , better known by the stage name Larry Harmon and as his alter-ego Bozo the Clown, was a Jewish American entertainer.-Biography:...
's Bozo coloring books. Rayner left the show in 1971 because he wanted more time for other projects. After that, he would occasionally do an appearance on the show as Oliver and would fill in for Ned Locke
Ned Locke
Norbert Locke, better known as Ned Locke , was an American television personality and radio announcer, best known for the role of "Ringmaster Ned" on WGN-TV's Bozo's Circus from 1961 - 1976....
as "Mr. Ray" when needed. Following the cancellation of Dick Tracy, a new afternoon program called Rocket to Adventure ran until 1968; this featured early appearances by Gigantor
Gigantor
Gigantor is an American adaptation of the anime version of Tetsujin 28-go, a manga by Mitsuteru Yokoyama released in 1956. It debuted on U.S. television in 1964. As with Speed Racer, the characters' original names were altered and the original series' violence was toned down for American viewers...
and Tobor the Eighth Man
8 Man
or is a fictional manga and anime superhero created in 1963 by science fiction writer Kazumasa Hirai and manga artist Jiro Kuwata. He is considered Japan's earliest cyborg superhero, predating even Kamen Rider , and was supposedly the inspiration for RoboCop.The manga was published in Weekly...
. Rayner hosted the show appearing as an astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
. In 1968, he also appeared in television commercials for Mc Donalds as Ronald McDonald
Ronald McDonald
Ronald McDonald is a clown character used as the primary mascot of the McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain. In television commercials, the clown inhabits a fantasy world called McDonaldland, and has adventures with his friends Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, Grimace, Birdie the Early Bird, and...
. At one point, WGN-TV had enough hope in being able to syndicate Rayner's Dick Tracy show to produce a pilot for that purpose.
Ray Rayner and His Friends
Starting in 1962, Rayner began hosting his own long-running Ray Rayner and His Friends, which had the title Breakfast With Bugs Bunny, when he became its host; it was renamed in 1964. The show featured old cartoonCartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
s such as various Warner Brothers
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
character cartoons, arts-and-crafts, and animals such as Chelveston the Duck who was named after RAF Chelveston
RAF Chelveston
RAF Station Chelveston was a military airfield located on the south side of the A45, 5 miles east of Wellingborough, near the village of Chelveston in Northamptonshire, United Kingdom....
where Rayner was stationed during World War II. Chelveston would occasionally bite, and Rayner was notably wary. During these segments, Chelveston would basically walk around the set, eat, or bathe while a then-current top 40 song was played. Rayner later said he put duck feed in the cuffs of his coveralls so Chelveston would nip at them, then save himself from the duck by giving him a head of lettuce to pick apart. What was not known to the public until after the program was no longer on the air was that Chelveston was actually played by four different ducks over the years.
Ray also had a talking dog puppet, Cuddly Dudley
Cuddly Dudley
Cuddly Dudley is a lifesize shiny plush stuffed animal nostalgic cocker spaniel doll that was used as a subscription sales promotional item by the Chicago Tribune in the mid-1960s...
, created and voiced by Roy Brown
Roy Brown (clown)
Roy Thomas Brown was an American television personality, puppeteer, clown and artist best known for playing "Cooky the Cook" on Chicago's long running Bozo's Circus.-Early years:...
, a.k.a. "Cooky the Cook" from The Bozo Show
The Bozo Show
The Bozo Show is a locally-produced children's television program that aired on WGN-TV in Chicago and nationally on what is now WGN America. Recognized as the most popular and successful locally-produced children's program in the history of television, it only aired under this title for 14 of its...
. The segment would highlight viewer mail which included many hand-drawn pictures submitted by children. The segment was often humorous as it was a chance for Rayner and Brown to interact and use comedic ad-libs. He always wore a jumpsuit
Jumpsuit
Jumpsuit originally referred to the utilitarian one-piece garments used by parachuters/skydivers, but has come to be used as a common term for any one-piece garment with sleeves and legs.-Use:...
, covered with small pieces of paper that held reminders of what to do next on the program (a cartoon, a commercial
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
, a visit from Chelveston, etc.). He would also simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
traffic reports from sister-station WGN Radio
WGN (AM)
WGN is a radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is the only radio station owned by the Tribune Company, which also owns the flagship television station WGN-TV, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and Chicago magazine locally. WGN's transmitter is located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois...
over stock footage of traffic moving along the Chicago-area Interstates
Interstate Highway System
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, , is a network of limited-access roads including freeways, highways, and expressways forming part of the National Highway System of the United States of America...
. During baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
season, he would show & narrate highlights of the Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
and White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
games from the previous day, wearing a custom-sewn ball cap that had the front half of each team's cap, resulting in a two-billed cap which he would spin around, depending on which team's highlights were being shown.
The arts-and-crafts was a regular segment that always began with a finished version prepared in advance by someone "behind the scenes" (who quite often was the wife of Producer Dick Flanders) that was displayed to the audience, followed by Ray attempting to demonstrate the process in an amusing, all thumbs effort, also set to music, that resulted in a comically sub-par facsimile that more resembled a random collection of felt, construction paper and glue. Ray's version would then be displayed along side the original further emphasizing his comical ineptitude regarding crafts. He held an annual jellybean contest where viewers were to submit guesses of the quantity in a large jar displayed for a period of time on the show. Every Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
he would have an Advent Calendar
Advent calendar
An Advent calendar is a special calendar which is used to count or celebrate the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Some calendars are strictly religious, whereas others are secular in content...
and reveal a date until the Christmas holiday. Another bit was a lip-synching
Lip sync
Lip sync, lip-sync, lip-synch is a technical term for matching lip movements with sung or spoken vocals...
sketch Rayner would do usually to an older novelty song
Novelty song
A novelty song is a comical or nonsensical song, performed principally for its comical effect. Humorous songs, or those containing humorous elements, are not necessarily novelty songs. The term arose in Tin Pan Alley to describe one of the major divisions of popular music. The other two divisions...
such as "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah
Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah
Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah! is the name of both a musical review and a children's book based on a similarly named Allan Sherman song that received the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Comedy Performance.-Hello Muddah, Hello Fuddah! :...
" by Allan Sherman
Allan Sherman
Allan Sherman was an American comedy writer and television producer who became famous as a song parodist in the early 1960s. His first album, My Son, the Folk Singer , became the fastest-selling record album up to that time...
. However he would also perform serious songs while actually singing. Another feature on the show was Ark in the Park, a taped segment of a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo
Lincoln Park Zoo
Lincoln Park Zoo is a free zoo located in Lincoln Park in Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, making it one of the oldest zoos in the nation. The zoo is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums ....
featuring the then-director of the zoo, Dr. Lester Fisher. The introductory music for this segment was "The Unicorn
The Unicorn
The Unicorn is the second album by Irish folk music group The Irish Rovers, released in 1967.The title track The Unicorn, a recording of Shel Silverstein's poem, reached #7 in the U.S...
" by the Irish Rovers. Rayner also featured a "How and Why" segment on his shows with J. Bruce Mitchell of Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry
Museum of Science and Industry
MOSI may refer to:* MoSi — molybdenum silicide, an important material in the semiconductor industry* MOSI - Master Out Slave In, a signal on the Serial Peripheral Interface Bus* MOSI protocol, an extension of the basic MSI cache coherency protocol...
, as did Garfield Goose and Friends
Garfield Goose and Friends
Garfield Goose and Friends was a children's television show produced by WGN-TV in Chicago, Illinois, United States from 1955 to 1976. The show was known as Garfield Goose and Friend from 1952 to 1955 when it aired on WBKB and WBBM-TV. It was the longest running puppet show on television. The host...
. Along with The Bozo Show, Rayner added a video game those at home could play by phone called TV Powww!
TV POWWW
TV POWWW was a franchised television game show format, in which home viewers controlled a video game via telephone in hopes of winning prizes.-History:...
. Rayner hosted this show until 1981.
During his time at Channel 9, starting in 1974, Rayner also hosted a Thursday night broadcast of The Illinois State Lottery
Illinois State Lottery
The Illinois Lottery is run by the government of Illinois. The Lottery was founded in 1974, when U.S. lotteries were confined to the Northeast and Midwestern states. Televised drawings are based at the West Bradley Place studios of Chicago's CW affiliate WGN-TV , and occur twice daily, with the...
's then-weekly drawings, which featured a top prize of $300,000 ("Weekly Bonanza") and a second prize of $50,000 to a field of about a dozen contestants who had won a special lottery game over the preceding seven-day period. The show aired at 7:00 PM CDT.
Actor and author
During his years in Chicago, he also frequently appeared in live theater, including plays at the Forum Dinner Theater in suburban Summit; receiving a Jefferson awardJoseph Jefferson Awards
The Joseph Jefferson Awards are given annually by a volunteer non-profit committee to acknowledge excellence in theatre in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are given in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson...
nomination for one of his roles. Rayner also did directing for student productions at Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a private Jesuit research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1870 under the title St...
. He received an M. A. in Humanities from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
in 1970, writing his thesis about children's television's first goal being to entertain. He was a member of the Silver Circle of the Chicago chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences
National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences or NATAS was created in 1955 to advance the arts and sciences of television. Headquartered in New York, NATAS's membership is national and the organization has local chapters around the country....
and received many local Emmys for his television work.
Rayner also wrote a book titled The Story of Television published in 1972. It is basically an industry guide to how a television show is made featuring many photos of Rayner from his Ray Rayner and Friends show. The book is quite rare and commands a high price, when available, from on-line auction sites.
Later years and legacy
He moved to KGGM-TVKRQE
KRQE, digital channel 13, is the CBS-affiliated television station serving the Albuquerque, New Mexico television market; the station is owned by LIN TV Corporation and is sister station to Fox affiliate KASA-TV...
, the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
affiliate in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
, in 1981, before retiring from television in 1989. He cited the harsh Chicago winters as the motivating factor. Rayner was the station's weatherman, complete with notes pinned to his jacket as they were to his coveralls in Chicago; he also hosted the local PM Magazine
PM Magazine
PM/Evening Magazine was a television series with a news and entertainment format. It was syndicated to stations throughout the United States...
in Albuquerque. He returned to Chicago for the 25th and 30th anniversary shows for Bozo's Circus. Rayner continued to accept some Chicago theater roles and took some time to patiently answer children's questions about his work even after moving to Albuquerque. He did a week-long stint filling in at weather and other duties at Chicago's "Fox Thing in the Morning" on WFLD
WFLD
WFLD, virtual channel 32 , is the Fox owned-and-operated television station, based in Chicago, Illinois; through its parent company News Corporation, the station is owned in a duopoly with area MyNetworkTV affiliate WPWR-TV...
in May 1995. Rayner took some courses at the University of New Mexico
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico at Albuquerque is a public research university located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. It is the state's flagship research institution...
, did some teaching and wrote a column for a local newspaper there.
Rayner moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
after his wife, Jeanne, a former nurse, died of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 1995. His activities there included reading to the blind, Grant A Wish (for terminally ill children), and delivering Meals on Wheels.
He died on 21 January 2004, of complications from pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
in Fort Myers, Florida
Fort Myers, Florida
Fort Myers is the county seat and commercial center of Lee County, Florida, United States. Its population was 62,298 in the 2010 census, a 29.23 percent increase over the 2000 figure....
at the age of 84.
He is survived by his second wife, Marie, daughter Christina Miller, his son Mark Rahner, and his grandchildren Patrick, Sean, Hilary Miller and Troy Rahner.
Clips from Rayner's shows are featured in the WGN Christmas special, Bozo, Gar and Ray: WGN TV Classics
Bozo, Gar and Ray: WGN TV Classics
Bozo, Gar and Ray: WGN TV Classics is a two-hour television special produced by WGN-TV in Chicago, Illinois. It debuted in 2005 and featured on both WGN-TV and its superstation simulcast, WGN America...
. In 2005, the Museum of Broadcast Communications
Museum of Broadcast Communications
The Museum of Broadcast Communications is an American museum that currently exists exclusively on the Internet and not in any physical capacity. Its stated mission is "to collect, preserve, and present historic and contemporary radio and television content as well as educate, inform and entertain...
awarded WGN-TV's Studio 1 a plaque to commemorate the forty years of children's television broadcast from the studio. Ray Rayner and Friends with a likeness of Rayner and Chelveston, is on the plaque along with Frazier Thomas
Frazier Thomas
William Frazier Thomas was a Chicago television personality. While Thomas became the author of nine children's books, he was best known for creating, hosting, writing and producing the long-running children's television program Garfield Goose and Friends on WGN-TV.-Magic and broadcasting:Thomas...
and Garfield Goose and Friends
Garfield Goose and Friends
Garfield Goose and Friends was a children's television show produced by WGN-TV in Chicago, Illinois, United States from 1955 to 1976. The show was known as Garfield Goose and Friend from 1952 to 1955 when it aired on WBKB and WBBM-TV. It was the longest running puppet show on television. The host...
and Bob Bell
Bob Bell (actor)
Robert Lewis Bell , better known as Bob Bell, was famous for his alter-ego, Bozo the Clown. He was the original portrayer of the character for Chicago superstation WGN-TV.- Early life :...
and Bozo's Circus
The Bozo Show
The Bozo Show is a locally-produced children's television program that aired on WGN-TV in Chicago and nationally on what is now WGN America. Recognized as the most popular and successful locally-produced children's program in the history of television, it only aired under this title for 14 of its...
. Rayner's coveralls, complete with notes, and one of his Oliver O. Oliver costumes are part of the museum's collection. Cuddly Dudley and his doghouse are also part of the museum's collection. A photo of Rayner on the set of his television show with two guests was chosen as the cover photo for Chicago Television, published for the Museum of Broadcast Communications in 2010.
External links
- http://www.tvparty.com/lostrayner.html
- http://www.chicagokidstv.com
- Ray Rayner WGN Photo Gallery Chicago Tribune
Watch
- [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/rayrevised.wmv Ray Rayner Show] Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/raycomplete3.wmv Ray Rayner Show] Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/raycomplete2.wmv Ray Rayner Show-Ark in the Park] Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/rayclips.wmv The Many Faces of Ray Rayner] Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/TV%20Radio%20News/TV_00241-1/stream0.asf Bozo's Big Top] circa 1960s. Rayner as Oliver. Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/balloonskit.wmv "Bozo's Balloon Trick"] 1966. Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/sandyandoliver.wmv Sandy and Oliver] 1966. Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/piemaker.wmv Oliver and Bozo] 1968. Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
) - [mms://208.100.39.213:80/MGWMS/MBC/features/chicagotv/bozo25anv.wmv Bozo 25th Anniversary] 1986. Museum of Broadcast Communications (Windows Media PlayerWindows Media PlayerWindows Media Player is a media player and media library application developed by Microsoft that is used for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as on Pocket PC and Windows Mobile-based devices...
)