Vic Roby
Encyclopedia
Victor Mills "Vic" Roby, Jr. (November 9, 1917 – September 22, 2011 ) was a radio and television announcer, voice-over artist
and public affairs
show host, and served for years as a staff announcer with NBC
.
, Roby was an alumnus of Millsaps College
('38) where he had been an Alpha Iota brother. He entered the broadcasting
business in 1943, working as a newsreader
and announcer at KOA (AM)
in Denver, Colorado
. After a brief stint with the Mutual Broadcasting System
where he announced on the 1950 version of The Rudy Vallee Show
, Roby joined the announcing staff of NBC
in New York City
in 1950.
and working as sub-announcer on Concentration
and The Price Is Right in the early 1960s. But his chief claim to fame was announcing on network promos
, bumpers
and program introductions
, most notably a variation of the shortened 1968 version of the "Laramie Peacock" bumper on which he intoned, "Now, a special program in living color on NBC," which ran on television special
s aired on the network through 1975. In addition, he handled local announcing duties for WNBC-TV
, including public service announcement
s, station identification
s, live tag
s and occasional Emergency Broadcast System
tests. He was one of a core group of well-known voices for the NBC network which also included Don Pardo
, Howard Reig
, Mel Brandt
, Bill Wendell
, Roger Tuttle, Bill McCord
, Arthur Gary
, Bill Hanrahan
, Wayne Howell
and Jerry Damon
(whose voice bore some similarities to Roby's, leading to some confusion between the two).
's Phil Tonken
) who did so. Roby made headlines in 1969 when he put an advertisement
in Variety
indicating that he would no longer be available for cigarette commercials, citing "evidence . . . that smoking could lead to cancer, heart attacks, strokes, emphysema
and fires." He was one of a growing number of media personalities to do so, nearly two years before cigarette advertising
on television was banned.
of the discussion/call-in show
Direct Line for much of its 1959–73 run, and after its cancellation he was one of the narrators of the long-running weekly documentary
series, New York Illustrated. On WNBC (AM)
, he hosted another call-in series, In Contact.
, retired from NBC in 1983. In 2008, he and his wife, Josephine, moved to Framingham, Massachusetts
.
Roby died in Natick, Massachusetts
after a brief illness on September 22, 2011 at age 93.
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
and public affairs
Public affairs (broadcasting)
Public affairs, a broadcasting industry term, refers to television programs which focuses on matters of politics and public policy. Among commercial broadcasters, such programs are often only to satisfy Federal Communications Commission regulatory expectations and are not scheduled in prime time...
show host, and served for years as a staff announcer with 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...
.
Early life and career
Born in Tylertown, MississippiTylertown, Mississippi
Tylertown is the county seat of Walthall County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,910 at the 2000 census.-History:Tylertown was first known as the Magee Settlement. Its first settlement dates back to the emigration of the Magees and Thornhills from South Carolina and is located on a...
, Roby was an alumnus of Millsaps College
Millsaps College
Millsaps College is a private liberal arts college located in Jackson, Mississippi. Founded in 1890, the college is recognized as one of the country's best private colleges dedicated to undergraduate teaching and educating the whole individual. Affiliated with the United Methodist Church, Millsaps...
('38) where he had been an Alpha Iota brother. He entered the broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
business in 1943, working as a newsreader
News presenter
A news presenter is a person who presents news during a news program in the format of a television show, on the radio or the Internet.News presenters can work in a radio studio, television studio and from remote broadcasts in the field especially weather...
and announcer at KOA (AM)
KOA (AM)
KOA is a clear channel, news/talk radio station serving the Denver-Boulder and Colorado Springs, Colorado markets. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications and is nicknamed "the Blowtorch of the West" for its 50,000 watt signal.KOA was originally owned by General Electric and began...
in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
. After a brief stint with the Mutual Broadcasting System
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
where he announced on the 1950 version of The Rudy Vallee Show
Rudy Vallée
Rudy Vallée was an American singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer.-Early life:Born Hubert Prior Vallée in Island Pond, Vermont, the son of Charles Alphonse and Catherine Lynch Vallée...
, Roby joined the announcing staff of 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...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1950.
Network announcer
Roby handled announcing for numerous radio and television programs during his career, including MonitorMonitor (NBC Radio)
NBC Monitor was an American weekend radio program broadcast from June 12, 1955, until January 26, 1975. Airing live and nationwide on the NBC Radio Network, it originally aired beginning Saturday morning at 8am and continuing through the weekend until 12 midnight on Sunday...
and working as sub-announcer on Concentration
Concentration (game show)
Concentration was an American TV game show based on the children's memory game of the same name. Matching cards represented prizes that contestants could win...
and The Price Is Right in the early 1960s. But his chief claim to fame was announcing on network promos
Promotion (marketing)
Promotion is one of the four elements of marketing mix . It is the communication link between sellers and buyers for the purpose of influencing, informing, or persuading a potential buyer's purchasing decision....
, bumpers
Commercial bumper
In broadcasting, a commercial bumper, ident bumper or break-bumper is a brief announcement, usually two to 15 seconds that can contain a voice over, placed between a pause in the program and its commercial break, and vice versa...
and program introductions
Opening credits
In a motion picture, television program, or video game, the opening credits are shown at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes on top of action in the show. There...
, most notably a variation of the shortened 1968 version of the "Laramie Peacock" bumper on which he intoned, "Now, a special program in living color on NBC," which ran on television special
Television special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
s aired on the network through 1975. In addition, he handled local announcing duties for WNBC-TV
WNBC
WNBC, virtual channel 4 , is the flagship station of the NBC television network, located in New York City. WNBC's studios are co-located with NBC corporate headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in midtown Manhattan...
, including public service announcement
Public service announcement
A public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
s, station identification
Station identification
Station identification is the practice of radio or television stations or networks identifying themselves on air, typically by means of a call sign or brand name...
s, live tag
Tagline
A tagline is a variant of a branding slogan typically used in marketing materials and advertising. The idea behind the concept is to create a memorable phrase that will sum up the tone and premise of a brand or product , or to reinforce the audience's memory of a product...
s and occasional Emergency Broadcast System
Emergency Broadcast System
The Emergency Broadcast System was an emergency warning system in the United States, used from 1963 to 1997, when it was replaced by the Emergency Alert System.-Purpose:...
tests. He was one of a core group of well-known voices for the NBC network which also included Don Pardo
Don Pardo
Dominick George "Don" Pardo is an American radio and television announcer. He is best known as the voice of the long-running late night sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live....
, Howard Reig
Howard Reig
Howard Reig was an American radio and television announcer. His last name was pronounced "reeg."-Personal life:...
, Mel Brandt
Mel Brandt
Melville Brandt was an actor and NBC staff announcer. He was born in Brooklyn, New York.Brandt joined the network around 1948. His radio announcing credits included The Adventures of Frank Merriwell, Author Meets the Critics, and The Eternal Light...
, Bill Wendell
Bill Wendell
Bill Wendell was an NBC television staff announcer for almost his entire professional career.-Biography:...
, Roger Tuttle, Bill McCord
Bill McCord
William J. "Bill" McCord was an American radio and television announcer.Born in Colville, Washington, McCord moved to Spokane in the 1930s, where he began his broadcasting career. During World War II, he served as a pilot in the United States Army Air Corps, stationed in Riverside, California,...
, Arthur Gary
Arthur Gary
Arthur James Gary was an American radio and television announcer.A graduate of New York University, Gary's announcing career spanned from 1936 to 1984...
, Bill Hanrahan
Bill Hanrahan
William A. "Bill" Hanrahan , was an American radio and television announcer, perhaps best known as the "Voice of NBC News."...
, Wayne Howell
Wayne Howell
Wayne Clay Howell Chappelle , known professionally as Wayne Howell, was a voice-over announcer for the NBC television and radio networks from 1947 through 1986...
and Jerry Damon
Jerry Damon
H. Jerome D'Amato , known professionally as Jerry Damon, was an American radio and television announcer and actor.-Biography:Damon was a staff announcer for NBC in New York from 1954 until his death...
(whose voice bore some similarities to Roby's, leading to some confusion between the two).
Commercial voice-over
Over the years, Roby did many commercials for various products and services on both radio and television; he was part of a group of New York announcers (also including his NBC colleague Howard Reig and WOR-TVWWOR-TV
WWOR-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the flagship station of the MyNetworkTV programming service, licensed to Secaucus, New Jersey and serving the Tri-State metropolitan area. WWOR is owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, and is a sister station to Fox network flagship...
's Phil Tonken
Phil Tonken
Phil Tonken was an American radio and television producer, announcer and voice-over artist....
) who did so. Roby made headlines in 1969 when he put an advertisement
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
in Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
indicating that he would no longer be available for cigarette commercials, citing "evidence . . . that smoking could lead to cancer, heart attacks, strokes, emphysema
Emphysema
Emphysema is a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath. In people with emphysema, the tissues necessary to support the physical shape and function of the lungs are destroyed. It is included in a group of diseases called chronic obstructive pulmonary...
and fires." He was one of a growing number of media personalities to do so, nearly two years before cigarette advertising
Tobacco advertising
Tobacco advertising is the advertising of tobacco products or use by the tobacco industry through a variety of media including sponsorship, particularly of sporting events. It is now one of the most highly regulated forms of marketing...
on television was banned.
Public affairs host
Roby also served as host, narrator or interviewer on numerous public affairs shows that ran on NBC's New York radio and TV outlets. On WNBC-TV, he was a moderatorPresenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
of the discussion/call-in show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
Direct Line for much of its 1959–73 run, and after its cancellation he was one of the narrators of the long-running weekly documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
series, New York Illustrated. On WNBC (AM)
WNBC (AM)
WNBC was a radio station that operated in New York City from 1922 to 1988. For most of its history, it was the flagship station of the NBC Radio Network...
, he hosted another call-in series, In Contact.
Retirement and death
Roby, who lived for years in Scarsdale, New YorkScarsdale, New York
Scarsdale is a coterminous town and village in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the northern suburbs of New York City. The Town of Scarsdale is coextensive with the Village of Scarsdale, but the community has opted to operate solely with a village government, one of several villages...
, retired from NBC in 1983. In 2008, he and his wife, Josephine, moved to Framingham, Massachusetts
Framingham, Massachusetts
Framingham is a New England town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 68,318 as of the United States 2010 Census. -History:...
.
Roby died in Natick, Massachusetts
Natick, Massachusetts
Natick is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Natick is located near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 33,006 at the 2010 census. Only west from Boston, Natick is considered part of the Greater Boston area...
after a brief illness on September 22, 2011 at age 93.