Willis Conover
Willis Clark Conover (born December 18, 1920 in Buffalo , † May 17, 1996 in Alexandria , Virginia ) was an American radio host who was internationally known primarily for his jazz programs .
Life
Conover came from a soldier's family and went through many schools. Even as a college student in Salisbury, Maryland, he had a job for several weeks at a local radio station and wanted to become a radio presenter. He won an amateur competition and got a radio job in Cumberland, Maryland in 1939. After hearing a recording by Charlie Barnet ( Cherokee ), he took an interest in jazz, which he previously couldn't even classify by name. In 1942 he was drafted into the army. When looking after the troops (a USO canteen in Washington DC), he was noticed by his knowledge of danceable swing music and thus got a jazz broadcast on the radio, which was popular in the Washington DC area. He also organized concerts and continued to work in lifting the racial barriers in Washington night clubs. His reputation grew, and when Duke Ellington toured the Soviet Union in 1954, he was considered the natural choice when the public overseas broadcaster Voice of America sought a host for its jazz program. From the end of 1954 he was the moderator in charge of the Voice of America Jazz Hour and Music USA of the Voice of America, which are also very popular abroad . Although he was less well known in the USA , even among jazz experts, he was even more so in Eastern Europe, especially in the Soviet Union . Conover was also the concert promoter and editor of the Science Fantasy Correspondent . He made broadcasts for Voice of America until 1996. The University of North Texas has set up an extensive audio archive of Conovers radio broadcasts since 2015 and made them available online.
Awards
In 1990 Conover was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music . In 1993 he received an award from the American House of Representatives for his foreign policy role . In 1995 the jazz magazine Down Beat honored him with its Lifetime Achievement Award .
literature
- Carlo Bohländer , Karl Heinz Holler, Christian Pfarr: Reclam's Jazz Guide . 3rd, revised and expanded edition. Reclam, Stuttgart 1989, ISBN 3-15-010355-X .
- James Lester: Willis of Oz. A profile of famed Voice of America broadcaster Willis Conover . In: Central Europe Review . tape 1 , no. 5 , July 26, 1999, ISSN 1212-8732 (American English, CER Archives [accessed July 20, 2020]).
- Robert McG. Thomas Jr .: Willis Conover, 75, Voice of America Disc Jockey. In: New York Times . May 19, 1996, accessed July 20, 2020 .
- Hans Hielscher: Jazz Propaganda War. "More effective than bomber squadrons". In: Spiegel-Online. July 4, 2008, accessed July 20, 2020 .
- Sounds and Waves of Freedom. Jazz Hour 'with Willis Conover. In: Jazz Dünyasi (Jazz in Azerbaijan). April 2013, archived from the original on December 27, 2015 ; accessed on July 20, 2020 (English).
Web links
- Music Library Conover Collection. In: UNT Digital Library. University of North Texas, accessed July 21, 2020 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Doug Ramsey: The Willis Conover Archive Is Online. In: ArtsJournal. Rifftides. September 4, 2015, accessed on July 21, 2020 .
- ^ Honorary Degree Recipients. Berklee College of Music, accessed August 7, 2020 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Conover, Willis |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Conover, Willis Clark (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American jazz producer and presenter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 18, 1920 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Buffalo |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 17, 1996 |
| Place of death | Alexandria, Virginia |