(Obituary from Chicago Tribune, March 9, 2002, Shia Kapos, Tribune staff reporter )
Art Roberts, 70, early star of AM rock radio, was known as Chicago's "hip uncle" for his work on AM radio in the 1960s and '70s. And to teenagers of that time he was a godsend for bringing them the rock 'n' roll stars they craved.
Mr. Roberts, 70, a longtime radio disc jockey on WLS-AM 890, died Wednesday, March 6, in Reno, after a stroke.
He was one of seven young, star disc jockeys hired by WLS to bring rock to Chicago. And because there were so few FM stations at the time, WLS, which has since gone to a talk format, reached far beyond Illinois, making it one of the most dominant stations in the country.
Mr. Roberts started in the early afternoon slot, then took over the popular 9 p.m. to midnight gig from Dick Biondi. Along with spinning the most popular music of the day, Mr. Roberts was known for telling bedtime stories about "the head that ain't got no body" and creating fictitious characters like "Hooty Saperticker," who wanted to go through life doing nothing.
Mr. Roberts later worked at Chicago's WKQX.
"He was a creative genius," said friend and colleague Pat Martin, who hired Mr. Roberts to work for a station in Milwaukee in the 1980s.
"He was kind of like an Andy Rooney but with his own spin," Martin said. "He could take something simple like a cheeseburger and do something creative with it."
Mr. Roberts grew up in New York, "a part of our country that never knew the pleasures derived from Pace Picante Sauce," according to the biography on his Web page, www.artroberts.com. He graduated from Southeastern Louisiana University and started working in radio soon after, beginning in Atlanta at KALT.
His career in radio and media consulting took him and his family all over the country, with stops in Texas, Ohio, Buffalo, Chicago, Milwaukee, San Francisco and San Antonio. Most recently he was running a consulting business in Nevada.
But it was his work in Chicago that made him well known--especially among teenagers at the time. Bob Sirott, one of those young people, who later had his own show on WLS, remembered Mr. Roberts' participation in the "teen guest" segment. That's when teens could come down to the Michigan Avenue station and watch a show. It was so
popular, the station had to hire ushers to control the crowd, he said.
"He was loved because he talked, he didn't announce," Sirott said.
Survivors include his wife, Bobbi; sons Robert and Wayne; daughters Cheryl, Pamela and Dahleen; 10 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Art Roberts, 70, early star of AM rock radio, was known as Chicago's "hip uncle" for his work on AM radio in the 1960s and '70s. And to teenagers of that time he was a godsend for bringing them the rock 'n' roll stars they craved.
Mr. Roberts, 70, a longtime radio disc jockey on WLS-AM 890, died Wednesday, March 6, in Reno, after a stroke.
He was one of seven young, star disc jockeys hired by WLS to bring rock to Chicago. And because there were so few FM stations at the time, WLS, which has since gone to a talk format, reached far beyond Illinois, making it one of the most dominant stations in the country.
Mr. Roberts started in the early afternoon slot, then took over the popular 9 p.m. to midnight gig from Dick Biondi. Along with spinning the most popular music of the day, Mr. Roberts was known for telling bedtime stories about "the head that ain't got no body" and creating fictitious characters like "Hooty Saperticker," who wanted to go through life doing nothing.
Mr. Roberts later worked at Chicago's WKQX.
"He was a creative genius," said friend and colleague Pat Martin, who hired Mr. Roberts to work for a station in Milwaukee in the 1980s.
"He was kind of like an Andy Rooney but with his own spin," Martin said. "He could take something simple like a cheeseburger and do something creative with it."
Mr. Roberts grew up in New York, "a part of our country that never knew the pleasures derived from Pace Picante Sauce," according to the biography on his Web page, www.artroberts.com. He graduated from Southeastern Louisiana University and started working in radio soon after, beginning in Atlanta at KALT.
His career in radio and media consulting took him and his family all over the country, with stops in Texas, Ohio, Buffalo, Chicago, Milwaukee, San Francisco and San Antonio. Most recently he was running a consulting business in Nevada.
But it was his work in Chicago that made him well known--especially among teenagers at the time. Bob Sirott, one of those young people, who later had his own show on WLS, remembered Mr. Roberts' participation in the "teen guest" segment. That's when teens could come down to the Michigan Avenue station and watch a show. It was so
popular, the station had to hire ushers to control the crowd, he said.
"He was loved because he talked, he didn't announce," Sirott said.
Survivors include his wife, Bobbi; sons Robert and Wayne; daughters Cheryl, Pamela and Dahleen; 10 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
(Obituary from Chicago Tribune, March 9, 2002, Shia Kapos, Tribune staff reporter )
Art Roberts, 70, early star of AM rock radio, was known as Chicago's "hip uncle" for his work on AM radio in the 1960s and '70s. And to teenagers of that time he was a godsend for bringing them the rock 'n' roll stars they craved.
Mr. Roberts, 70, a longtime radio disc jockey on WLS-AM 890, died Wednesday, March 6, in Reno, after a stroke.
He was one of seven young, star disc jockeys hired by WLS to bring rock to Chicago. And because there were so few FM stations at the time, WLS, which has since gone to a talk format, reached far beyond Illinois, making it one of the most dominant stations in the country.
Mr. Roberts started in the early afternoon slot, then took over the popular 9 p.m. to midnight gig from Dick Biondi. Along with spinning the most popular music of the day, Mr. Roberts was known for telling bedtime stories about "the head that ain't got no body" and creating fictitious characters like "Hooty Saperticker," who wanted to go through life doing nothing.
Mr. Roberts later worked at Chicago's WKQX.
"He was a creative genius," said friend and colleague Pat Martin, who hired Mr. Roberts to work for a station in Milwaukee in the 1980s.
"He was kind of like an Andy Rooney but with his own spin," Martin said. "He could take something simple like a cheeseburger and do something creative with it."
Mr. Roberts grew up in New York, "a part of our country that never knew the pleasures derived from Pace Picante Sauce," according to the biography on his Web page, www.artroberts.com. He graduated from Southeastern Louisiana University and started working in radio soon after, beginning in Atlanta at KALT.
His career in radio and media consulting took him and his family all over the country, with stops in Texas, Ohio, Buffalo, Chicago, Milwaukee, San Francisco and San Antonio. Most recently he was running a consulting business in Nevada.
But it was his work in Chicago that made him well known--especially among teenagers at the time. Bob Sirott, one of those young people, who later had his own show on WLS, remembered Mr. Roberts' participation in the "teen guest" segment. That's when teens could come down to the Michigan Avenue station and watch a show. It was so
popular, the station had to hire ushers to control the crowd, he said.
"He was loved because he talked, he didn't announce," Sirott said.
Survivors include his wife, Bobbi; sons Robert and Wayne; daughters Cheryl, Pamela and Dahleen; 10 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Art Roberts, 70, early star of AM rock radio, was known as Chicago's "hip uncle" for his work on AM radio in the 1960s and '70s. And to teenagers of that time he was a godsend for bringing them the rock 'n' roll stars they craved.
Mr. Roberts, 70, a longtime radio disc jockey on WLS-AM 890, died Wednesday, March 6, in Reno, after a stroke.
He was one of seven young, star disc jockeys hired by WLS to bring rock to Chicago. And because there were so few FM stations at the time, WLS, which has since gone to a talk format, reached far beyond Illinois, making it one of the most dominant stations in the country.
Mr. Roberts started in the early afternoon slot, then took over the popular 9 p.m. to midnight gig from Dick Biondi. Along with spinning the most popular music of the day, Mr. Roberts was known for telling bedtime stories about "the head that ain't got no body" and creating fictitious characters like "Hooty Saperticker," who wanted to go through life doing nothing.
Mr. Roberts later worked at Chicago's WKQX.
"He was a creative genius," said friend and colleague Pat Martin, who hired Mr. Roberts to work for a station in Milwaukee in the 1980s.
"He was kind of like an Andy Rooney but with his own spin," Martin said. "He could take something simple like a cheeseburger and do something creative with it."
Mr. Roberts grew up in New York, "a part of our country that never knew the pleasures derived from Pace Picante Sauce," according to the biography on his Web page, www.artroberts.com. He graduated from Southeastern Louisiana University and started working in radio soon after, beginning in Atlanta at KALT.
His career in radio and media consulting took him and his family all over the country, with stops in Texas, Ohio, Buffalo, Chicago, Milwaukee, San Francisco and San Antonio. Most recently he was running a consulting business in Nevada.
But it was his work in Chicago that made him well known--especially among teenagers at the time. Bob Sirott, one of those young people, who later had his own show on WLS, remembered Mr. Roberts' participation in the "teen guest" segment. That's when teens could come down to the Michigan Avenue station and watch a show. It was so
popular, the station had to hire ushers to control the crowd, he said.
"He was loved because he talked, he didn't announce," Sirott said.
Survivors include his wife, Bobbi; sons Robert and Wayne; daughters Cheryl, Pamela and Dahleen; 10 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
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