Bill Slater (broadcaster)
Bill Slater | |
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_at_West_Point_in_1924.png) At West Point in 1924 | |
| Born | William Ernest Slater December 3, 1902 Parkersburg, West Virginia |
| Died | January 25, 1965 (aged 62) New Rochelle, New York |
| Burial place | Cypress Hills Cemetery |
| Occupation(s) | Educator, announcer |
| Relatives | Michael Hawkins (nephew), Christian Slater (great-nephew) |
William Ernest Slater (December 3, 1902 – January 25, 1965) was an American military officer,
Early life
Education and educator
Slater earned a master's degree in political science from Columbia University and was a 1924 graduate of West Point.[1][2] An imposing man of 6 ft 3 in, he subsequently taught English and math at his hometown of Parkersburg, West Virginia.
He then joined the
Military
He served as a lieutenant colonel in public relations for the U.S. Army, beginning in 1942.[citation needed]
From educator to broadcaster
While teaching at the Blake School for Boys in Minneapolis, it was suggested by a student, whose father was a radio executive, that Slater had the voice and knowledge to be a sports announcer.[3] His first network break came while at Adelphi Academy, when NBC network officials heard him calling the 1933 Army-Navy football game on CBS with Ted Husing, whose voice was similar.[1]
Radio
In addition to covering many sporting events on network radio, Slater hosted a Thursday night quiz show on CBS radio, Askit-Baskit, in 1940, using the stage name "Jim McWilliams".[3]
Television
Slater hosted/emceed many early television shows:
- Birthday Party (1947), aka King Cole's Birthday Party
- Charade Quiz (1947)[4]
- Messing Prize Party (1948)
- Twenty Questions (1949) DuMont and NBC versions[4]
- Fishing and Hunting Club (1949)
- Broadway to Hollywood Headline Clues (1949)
- With This Ring (1951)
Sports broadcaster
Slater was the primary voice of
Slater was announcing an NFL game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants when the first bulletin aired of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor.[5] He also co-announced the 1945 World Series[6][7] on Mutual with Al Helfer, as well as the 1945 and 1946 All-Star Games, also on Mutual.
Slater gave commentary on the first television broadcast of a World Series in 1947 between the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers, which the Yankees won. His co-broadcasters for that event were Bob Stanton and Bob Edge. Slater was the chief radio announcer for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network 500 Race in 1947 when the race was covered by the Mutual Broadcasting System.
Personal life
Born William Ernest Slater, December 3, 1902, in
Bill Slater died in New Rochelle, New York after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.[4][8] He was buried at Cypress Hills Cemetery.[9]
His younger brother, Tom Slater, five years his junior, was also a sports broadcaster and followed him as the host of Luncheon at Sardi's. Tom Slater's son, actor Michael Hawkins (Thomas Knight Slater) is Christian Slater's father.
References
- ^ ISBN 9780252099144. Retrieved September 17, 2017.
- ^ a b c Cullum, George Washington (1930). Donaldson, William H. (ed.). Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. From Its Establishment, in 1802, to 1890. Vol. VII: 1920–1930. Association of Graduates, United States Military Academy. p. 1880. Retrieved December 29, 2022 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ Broadcasting. February 1, 1965. p. 68. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Golden Voices of Radio – Patterson, Jackson
- ^ "1945 World Series Game 3 – Jack Benny OTR Podcast". Archived from the original on December 22, 2015.
- ^ "1945 World Series Game 7 – Jack Benny OTR Podcast". Archived from the original on December 22, 2015.
- ^ a b "'Bill' Slater, Broadcaster, Long Ill, Dies". The Daily Argus. Larchmont. January 26, 1965. p. 2. Retrieved December 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Assembly. Vol. 24–25. United States Military Academy Association of Graduates. 1965. p. 43. Retrieved December 29, 2022 – via Google Books.
External links
- Bill Slater at IMDb
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