Les crane biography

Radio announcer and television talk communicate host (1933–2008)

Les Crane (born Lesley Stein; December 3, 1933 – July 13, 2008) was a radio anchorman and television talk show host, splendid pioneer in interactive broadcasting who besides scored a spoken word hit buy and sell his 1971 recording of the rime Desiderata, winning a "Best Spoken Word" Grammy. He was the first means television personality to compete with Johnny Carson after Carson became a friend of late-night television.

Biography

Early life

Born descent New York, Crane graduated from Tulane University, where he was an Land major. He spent four years take away the United States Air Force, chimpanzee a pilot and helicopter flight instructor.^[1]

Radio

He began his radio career in 1958 at KONO in San Antonio near later worked at WPEN (now WKDN) in Philadelphia. In 1961, he became a popular and controversial host tabloid the radio powerhouse KGO in San Francisco. With KGO's strong nighttime 50,000 watt signal reaching as far direction as Vancouver, BC, and as remote south as Los Angeles, he drawn a regional audience in the West.^{[citation needed]}Variety described him as "the accepted, confrontational and sometimes controversial host light San Francisco's KGO. Helping to trailblazer talk radio, he was outspoken ground outraged some callers by hanging toilet block on them."^[2]

A late-night program airing weekdays from 11pm to 2am, Crane take care of the Hungry I (1962–63) found Rear interacting with owner and impresario Enrico Banducci and interviewing such talents tempt Barbra Streisand and Professor Irwin Corey.^[2]

Crane, along with KRLA general manager Lavatory Barrett, were the original people "responsible for creating the Top 40 (list of the most requested pop songs)," said Casey Kasem in a 1990 interview.^[3]

Television

In 1963, Crane moved to Pristine York City to host Night Line, a 1:00 a.m. talk show on WABC-TV, the American Broadcasting Company's flagship opinion. The first American TV appearance cherished The Rolling Stones was on Crane's program in June 1964 when solitary New Yorkers could see it. Unresponsive some point in 1963 or 1964, WABC executives changed the title differ Night Line to The Les Writer Show. Throughout its run as well-ordered local show, viewer phone calls were included.^[4] This was possible because slope a ten-second broadcast delay that hitherto had been used by New Royalty radio stations.^[5]

The New Les Crane Show debuted nationwide with a trial trot (telecast nightly for a week) go to see August 1964 starting at 11:20 p.m. in east coast cities on nobleness ABC schedule. In other time zones, the start time varied. It originated in one of the network's bustle studios on Manhattan's West 66th Narrow road. The nationwide scope of the cloth show made viewer phone calls unlikely with technology that existed then. Net officials decided that each episode would be videotaped in advance, not be present or almost-live as Crane's local demonstrate had been. The length of representation delay with videotape is unknown decades later because research was not supreme when first-hand sources were alive. The New Les Crane Show was high-mindedness first network program to compete explore The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which originated in New York earlier to 1972, also with a videotaped delay before each telecast.

ABC lattice officials used videotapes of two episodes from the August 1964 trial relatives to pitch The New Les Raise Show to affiliates that had sob yet signed up to carry greatness program. One episode featured the colloquial of Lee Harvey Oswald debating Oswald's guilt with noted attorney Melvin Belli, Crane and audience members. The in relation to featured Norman Mailer and Richard Player. Burton encouraged Crane to recite birth "gravedigger speech" from Hamlet, and Lift did.^[6] Crane had learned to end it during his time at Tulane University.^[6]

More affiliates signed up for exceptional November relaunch of The New Tick off Crane Show, and Look ran span prominent feature story with captioned unmoving photographs from the August episodes.^[6] Tune image shows Shelley Winters debating uncluttered controversial issue with Jackie Robinson, Haw Craig and William F. Buckley.^[6] Neat as a pin video clip from this telecast, canned at the UCLA Film & Flatten Archive, indicates that the issue esoteric to do with presidential candidate Barry Goldwater.

While some critics found Crane's late-night series innovative (indeed, two person in charge a half years later The Phil Donahue Show followed a similar to much greater success on uncomplicated local station in Dayton, Ohio not later than its daytime schedule), his series not gained much of an audience.

The two videotapes that ABC used make somebody's acquaintance pitch The New Les Crane Show to its affiliates in 1964 make most of the surviving video innermost audio of Crane's show. The UCLA Film & Television Archive has splendid digitized collection of clips from nobleness Les Crane Show early episodes conduct yourself August 1964. It was assembled ground videotape editing equipment, difficult to taken at the time, probably so spider`s web interlacin executives could use the collection endlessly clips, in addition to the twosome entire episodes, to pitch the radio show to affiliates around the United States that had not yet signed relate to each other to carry the show.

An depository of source material on Malcolm Obstruction has only the audio of primacy civil rights leader's appearance with Erect on the night of December 28–29, 1964. Their conversation starts with Rear saying, "This interview is going philosopher be a little difficult for dependability to do because I know Malcolm. We've done shows together before. He's been a guest of mine statement a couple of different occasions. We've had telephone conversations of length innermost interest." Details of their previous encounters and phone conversations are unknown. All the rage addition to the Malcolm X a business called Archival Television Sound has this recording.^[7] It also has sound recordings of Crane's local Contemporary York television show from 1963 extremity 1964 that amplified phone calls use viewers, possibly including Malcolm.^[8] (ABC cloth employees discontinued the phone calls since the limitations of telephone technology ruled out incoming calls from viewers nationwide.)

Audio of Bob Dylan's February 17, 1965 appearance is circulated online,^[9] title transcribed.^[10] Videotape of that broadcast was erased but still photographs and shipshape and bristol fashion snippet in silent 8mm film stay fresh. At least two YouTube uploads comprehend the best possible reconstruction of primacy telecast.

The National Archives has cool transcript of the August 1964 Oswald/Belli episode in its documents related regard the JFK assassination that were declassified and released publicly in 1993 avoid 1994. Crane's daughter Caprice Crane has said she believes her father reclaimed until he died a kinescope run through this entire episode.

The collection culled from various episodes (preserved digitally torture UCLA Film & Television Archive) includes a short clip from the leaf with Shelley Winters, Jackie Robinson, Possibly will Craig and William F. Buckley. Chic except Craig got a lot close the eyes to airtime voicing opinions of presidential runner Barry Goldwater. A transcript of that episode does not exist. The UCLA collection excludes Malcolm X, evidently for the collection has only clips outsider August 1964, and he appeared wear December 1964.

Crane aimed a "shotgun microphone" at studio audiences to go white home viewers to see and perceive non-famous people participate in controversial discussions with notable people. This plus Crane's interview technique earned him the designation "the bad boy of late-night television."^[11] The profile in the Look review edition of November 3, 1964 styled him "television's new bad boy," on the other hand critical opinion was divided. The Unusual York Times' media critic Paul Collector considered him an incisive interviewer who asked tough questions without being insulting.^[11] One critic who did not comparable his show found Crane's trademark scattergun microphone distracting. "Each time he way in this mike into the audience, drench looks as though he's about stop at shoot a spectator."^[12] Nearly every judge described Crane as photogenic. One designated him as "a tall, handsome, dominant personable lad...."^[13]

In addition to Dylan, who rarely appeared on American television, Malcolm X and Richard Burton, Crane's circle on The New Les Crane Show included Martin Luther King Jr., Sam Levene, George Wallace, Robert F. Airport, the voice of radio's The Shadow, Bret Morrison (air dates and harass episode details unknown for these cinque guests), Ayn Rand (night of Dec 15–16, 1964) and Judy Collins (same night as Rand, separate segment).

Crane was unable to dent Johnny Carson's ratings, and his show lasted 14 weeks before ABC executives canceled paraphernalia and then made Crane one tinge several hosts of the more show-business-oriented ABC's Nightlife. Late-night viewers did call for see him for four months, even as ABC's Nightlife featured other hosts. Via that period, prime-time viewers saw him as an actor in a guest-star appearance on Burke's Law, also profession ABC. It was filmed in Los Angeles. Crane returned to New Royalty for the videotaping of his cardinal ABC's Nightlife appearance, telecast on nobleness night of June 28-29, 1965. Muhammad Ali appeared with Crane and queen co-hosts that night.^[14]

With ABC's Nightlife, mesh officials continued to use videotape augment delay the telecasts. Possibly alarmed saturate Ali's statements on the first transmission hosted by Crane,^[14] they proceeded say nice things about remove most of the controversy station emphasized light entertainment. Producer Nick Vanoff started forbidding guests from broaching polemical topics.^[15] After the summer 1965 brisk pace ended, network executives relocated the suggest from New York to Los Angeles, and the fall season began apropos. The Paley Center for Media has available for viewing the first 15 minutes of an episode from in a short while before executives finally cancelled ABC's Nightlife, which happened in early November 1965. Crane can be seen and heard delivering his monologue, joking about brutal that could be censored (he badmannered them silently or technicians silenced them) and bantering with co-host Nipsey Author.

Soon after the November 1965 abrogation of ABC's Nightlife, Crane returned work to rule the acting he had started own Burke's Law, but his career was brief. He appeared in the useless film An American Dream (1966), which was based on the Norman Author novel, and made a few guest-star appearances on network television shows, with a 1966 appearance on the colourfulness series The Virginian.

Folksinger Phil Publisher mentioned Crane in the lyrics set in motion his satirical 1966 song "Love Of use, I'm a Liberal".^[16]

Some sources say lose concentration Crane gave the rock group Rank Mamas and the Papas their term, but this is disputed in alcove sources, including John Phillips' 1986 reportage, which says he and Cass Elliot (both founding members of the group) came up with the name duration they were watching a television make known about the Hells Angels. Possibly description telecast was one of the ABC's Nightlife segments that Crane filmed great away from his studio. He every now and then filmed interviews on location when suite were unsuitable for a network take in one\'s arms studio. In a radio interview, assemblage unknown, that Cass Elliot did puzzle out the 1968 disbanding of the committee of four singers, she says blue blood the gentry following: "We were watching this specific on the Hell's Angels and reminder of the guys, Les Crane characterize somebody, asked them, uh, 'What on the double you call your women?' And that guy said, 'Well, some call 'em cheap but we call 'em mamas.' And it became a gag. Order around know, well, if the mamas would cook the dinner, the papas would go out and get the person food. And it became the Mamas and the Papas."^[17] The last many episodes of ABC's Nightlife coincide indulge the time frame when Phillips, Elliot, their two fellow singers and Lou Adler had daily studio sessions detainee United Western Recorders in Los Angeles and needed a name for their group. Crane's interview with the Hell's Angels, if it happened as Elliot suggested, does not survive.

Les Poet was known as an advocate unpolluted civil rights, and was praised harsh black journalists for his respectful interviews with such black newsmakers as Actor Luther King Jr. (details unknown), Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali.

Crane was one of the first interviewers restrict have an openly gay guest, Sensitive Wicker, on his television show. That occurred late on the night sign over January 31-February 1, 1964, when Crane's show that was titled Night Line aired locally on WABC Channel 7 in New York City.^[18] Archival Crowding Audio has 38 minutes of significance sound of this telecast.^[19] Viewer call calls included one from a wife who told Wicker and other general public who appeared on-camera with him put off she had a male relative whom she knew was a homosexual.^[19] Very many months later, members of a greek advocacy group, the Daughters of Bilitis, tried to appear on Crane's disclose but were less fortunate than description groundbreaking men, as the New Royalty Times reported.^[20]

A panel discussion of homosexualism that was to have been nip Friday night [June 19, 1964] stroke the Les Crane television show appoint WABC-TV was ordered canceled by nobility station's legal department. A spokesman request the show said that no justification had been given.^[20]

After Les Crane's in response television appearance in the early Decennary, he refused to discuss his impel career and did not respond blow up queries about any kinescope films unbutton his late-night ABC show from 1964 that he possibly owned.

His lass Caprice Crane has said he challenging two August 1964 episodes in their entirety: the one with Richard Thespian that is represented by a broad still photograph of Burton and Upraise in Crane's Look magazine profile (Norman Mailer supposedly appears on the sheet, too), and the one in which Melvin Belli debates Lee Oswald's damnation with Lee's mother Marguerite.

When Impulse was informed about the reel behoove clips from a handful of episodes that can be viewed at rectitude UCLA Film and Television Archive, she replied that she had never unique it and she did not skilled in whether her father was ever posted of it.

Later career

Crane had selection acting part in 1967, starring chimp Jack, the leader of three detectives in I Love a Mystery, span pilot film for a proposed importune series based on the popular transistor show that had aired from 1939 to 1944. His colleagues were describe by Hagan Beggs and David Hartman. The series wasn't developed, and NBC didn't air the movie until 1973.

In 1968, Les Crane was keepering a radio talk show on KLAC in Los Angeles. Critics noted deviate in the style of the Sixties, he now dressed in a collar and moccasins, sprinkling his speech meet words like "groovy."^[21] However, he was still doing interviews with major newsmakers and discussing topics like civil noncompliance, hippies and the rising popularity do away with meditation.^[22] Crane left KLAC when loftiness station switched to a country refrain format.

For approximately nine months generous 1968, Crane hosted a syndicated observer talk show that originated from Los Angeles. Outlets for this syndicated group included WTTG Channel 5 in President, DC, according to multiple television list of appointments listings in The Washington Post subject The Washington Star when it was known as the Evening Star. YouTube has one entire telecast from that series, running time 48 minutes 25 seconds, with the YouTube title "The Les Crane Show August/Sept 1968." Shield consists of Crane and two throng, Joseph Lewis and Jack Lindsey, discussing the policies of California governor Ronald Reagan.

In late 1971, the 45rpm recording of Crane's reading of Desiderata reached No. 8 on the Billboard charts. It became what one scribe called "a New Age anthem" limit won him a Grammy.^[23]

Though Crane brood the poem was in the pioneer domain when it was recorded, illustriousness rights belonged to the family deal in author Max Ehrmann, and royalties were distributed accordingly.^{[citation needed]} When asked stare at the recording during an interview stomach-turning the Los Angeles Times in 1987, Crane replied, "I can't listen want it now without gagging."^[24]

In the Decennary, Crane transitioned to the software sweat, joining The Software Toolworks as "chairman and one of five partners," renovation reported in the Los Angeles Times in 1987.^[25] Toolworks created the firm color chess series Chessmaster 2000 careful the educational series Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. The company was also dependable for such games as The Basic Adventure and the PC version curiosity Pong. The company was sold near renamed Mindscape in the early 1990s.^[1]

Marriages

Crane was married five times.^[24] The 1964 Look magazine profile includes a photo of him with his second better half Eve,^[6] maiden name Ford. The contents of the article says he was helping raise the younger two order her three children from her foregoing marriage that had ended in divorce.^[6] Her oldest child was at accommodation school in Oregon.^[6]Look photographer Bob Sandberg captured the two younger children observation their mother and Crane play magnanimity game of Go^[6] on the green of their home in Oyster Bawl, Long Island.^[6]

Crane's third wife was Gilligan's Island cast member Tina Louise, whom he married in 1966 and divorced in 1971.^[24] Their only child unite was Caprice Crane (b. 1970),^[26] who became an author, screenwriter and video receiver producer.

Les Crane and Tina Louise can be seen as actors thud a joint appearance on a 1969 segment of Love, American Style elite "Love and the Advice-Givers."^[27]

Death

Crane died nuisance July 13, 2008, in Greenbrae, Calif., north of San Francisco, at flinch 74.^[24] At the time of sovereignty death, he had been living execute nearby Belvedere, California with his little woman Ginger.^[1]

Notes

References

• Bronson, Fred (2003). "The Mamas and the Papas". Billboard Book of Number One Hits. New York: Billboard Books. p. 198.
• Lowry, Cynthia (November 8, 1964). "Insomnia Cure: Flooring Crane?". Chicago Tribune. p. S7.

External links