George D. Hay

George Dewey Hay (born November 9, 1895 in Attica , Indiana , USA ; † May 8, 1968 ) was an American radio host and founder of the popular radio show Grand Ole Opry .

Life

George D. Hay began as a newspaper reporter for the Memphis Commercial Appeal . In 1923 his publisher bought a radio station and Hay got the chance to host his own show. He was so successful that the Chicago broadcaster WSL recruited him a year later. There he took part in the National Barn Dance Show , which played mostly rural music.

On October 5, 1925, the WSM radio station in Nashville, owned by the National Life & Accident Insurance Company, began broadcasting. A month later, Hay joined the company as program director. The Barn Dance Show , the forerunner of the Grand Ole Opry , was born on November 28 of the same year with the 77-year-old Fiddler "Uncle" Jimmy Thompson as the first artist. From then on, the show aired every Saturday night and quickly became a huge hit. In 1927 it was renamed Grand Ole Opry and became both the longest-running and most successful show in US radio history.

Hay looked after the Grand Ole Opry until the late 1940s. He then published a magazine. In 1966 he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame for his services to country music . He died two years later at the age of 72.