Ed Walker
Encyclopedia
Ed Walker is a Washington, D.C.
, radio personality. He hosts a weekly four-hour Sunday night program, The Big Broadcast, on WAMU-FM
, featuring vintage radio programs from the 1930s to 1950s, such as Gunsmoke
, The Jack Benny Show, The Lone Ranger
, Fibber McGee and Molly
, and Superman
. Walker began hosting The Big Broadcast in 1990 when his friend John Hickman discontinued hosting due to illness. The show started in 1964, the longest running program on WAMU.
Walker, who has been totally blind
since birth, said that growing up "radio was my comic books, movies, everything". After graduating from Maryland School for the Blind
, he was the first blind student at American University
in Washington where, in 1950, he helped launch the campus radio station, WAMU-AM — the predecessor of WAMU-FM. Willard Scott
joined the radio station the following year, forming a professional and personal bond with Walker that continues to this day. Scott said in his book, The Joy of Living, that they are "closer than most brothers".
From 1955 to 1974, Walker teamed with Scott as co-hosts of the nightly Joy Boys
program, an improvised comedy
radio show in Washington. On Joy Boys, Scott sketched a list of characters and a few lead lines setting up the situation, which Walker would commit to memory or note on his Braille typewriter. The program began on WRC-AM, an NBC
owned-and-operated station
, moving in 1972 to WWDC-AM. In a 1999 article recalling the Joy Boys at the height of their popularity in the mid-1960s, the Washington Post said they "dominated Washington, providing entertainment, companionship, and community to a city on the verge of powerful change".
Since the Joy Boys left the air in October 1974, Walker has worked on other Washington-area radio and television stations, including WJLA-TV
from 1975 until 1980, News Channel 8 in the early 1990s and WRC, hosting radio programs. He has been married to Nancy, who is sighted, since 1957; they have two daughters and five grandchildren.
American University has recently released some of the Joy Boys radio broadcasts of the 1960s on CDs
.
Although he rarely makes appearances at conventions, Walker was a featured star at the 2007 Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in Aberdeen, Maryland
.
In 2009, Ed Walker was elected to the Radio Hall of Fame in the category "Local or Regional - Pioneer."
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, radio personality. He hosts a weekly four-hour Sunday night program, The Big Broadcast, on WAMU-FM
WAMU
WAMU is a public radio station that services the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The station broadcasts on 88.5 FM, online at wamu.org, and on HD Radio at 88.5-HD1, 2 and 3. WAMU is on-air 24 hours a day. It is licensed to American University, and its studios are located near the campus...
, featuring vintage radio programs from the 1930s to 1950s, such as Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
, The Jack Benny Show, The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked Texas Ranger who, with his Native American companion Tonto, fights injustice in the American Old West. The character has become an enduring icon of American culture....
, Fibber McGee and Molly
Fibber McGee and Molly
Fibber McGee and Molly was an American radio comedy series which maintained its popularity over decades. It premiered on NBC in 1935 and continued until its demise in 1959, long after radio had ceased to be the dominant form of entertainment in American popular culture.-Husband and wife in real...
, and Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
. Walker began hosting The Big Broadcast in 1990 when his friend John Hickman discontinued hosting due to illness. The show started in 1964, the longest running program on WAMU.
Walker, who has been totally blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
since birth, said that growing up "radio was my comic books, movies, everything". After graduating from Maryland School for the Blind
Maryland School for the Blind
Located in the northeast corner of Baltimore, The Maryland School for the Blind is a private, statewide resource center providing outreach, school and residential programs to children and youth from infancy to age 21 who are blind or visually impaired including those with multiple disabilities...
, he was the first blind student at American University
American University
American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
in Washington where, in 1950, he helped launch the campus radio station, WAMU-AM — the predecessor of WAMU-FM. Willard Scott
Willard Scott
Willard Herman Scott, Jr. is an American media personality and author best known for his television work on NBC's The Today Show and as the creator of the Ronald McDonald character.-Early years:...
joined the radio station the following year, forming a professional and personal bond with Walker that continues to this day. Scott said in his book, The Joy of Living, that they are "closer than most brothers".
From 1955 to 1974, Walker teamed with Scott as co-hosts of the nightly Joy Boys
Joy Boys (radio program)
The Joy Boys was a popular daily improvised comedy radio show in Washington, D.C., United States, between 1955 and 1974 that launched the broadcast careers of the program's co-hosts, Willard Scott and Ed Walker. The two did various skits and satirized prominent people of the day, such as Scott's...
program, an improvised comedy
Improvisational theatre
Improvisational theatre takes many forms. It is best known as improv or impro, which is often comedic, and sometimes poignant or dramatic. In this popular, often topical art form improvisational actors/improvisers use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously...
radio show in Washington. On Joy Boys, Scott sketched a list of characters and a few lead lines setting up the situation, which Walker would commit to memory or note on his Braille typewriter. The program began on WRC-AM, an NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
owned-and-operated station
Owned-and-operated station
In the broadcasting industry , an owned-and-operated station usually refers to a television station or radio station that is owned by the network with which it is associated...
, moving in 1972 to WWDC-AM. In a 1999 article recalling the Joy Boys at the height of their popularity in the mid-1960s, the Washington Post said they "dominated Washington, providing entertainment, companionship, and community to a city on the verge of powerful change".
Since the Joy Boys left the air in October 1974, Walker has worked on other Washington-area radio and television stations, including WJLA-TV
WJLA-TV
WJLA-TV, channel 7, is the ABC affiliated television station in Washington, D.C.. It is the flagship station of the Allbritton Communications Company, which also operates local cable station NewsChannel 8. The two stations share broadcast facilities in the Rosslyn section of Arlington, Virginia...
from 1975 until 1980, News Channel 8 in the early 1990s and WRC, hosting radio programs. He has been married to Nancy, who is sighted, since 1957; they have two daughters and five grandchildren.
American University has recently released some of the Joy Boys radio broadcasts of the 1960s on CDs
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
.
Although he rarely makes appearances at conventions, Walker was a featured star at the 2007 Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in Aberdeen, Maryland
Aberdeen, Maryland
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,842 people, 5,475 households, and 3,712 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,166.2 people per square mile . There were 5,894 housing units at an average density of 922.4 per square mile...
.
In 2009, Ed Walker was elected to the Radio Hall of Fame in the category "Local or Regional - Pioneer."