Bill Randle (March 14, 1923 – July 9, 2004) was an American disc jockey, lawyer and university professor.He was born William McKinley Randle Jr. in Detroit, Michigan. In Detroit, he hosted a popular show on WJLB-AM radio (now WDTK) called The Interracial Goodwill Hour, featuring rhythm and blues music and hot jazz. As a pioneering disc jockey at radio station WERE in Cleveland, Ohio he helped change the face of American music. In the 1950s, Time Magazine called Bill Randle the top DJ in America. His popularity and huge listening audience allowed him to bolster the careers of a number of young musicians, including The Four Lads, Bobby Darin, and Fats Domino. Nicknamed "The Pied Piper of Cleveland", a 1955 musical documentary film was made about him titled The Pied Piper of Cleveland: A Day in the Life of a Famous Disc Jockey. The film includes a Cleveland concert at Brooklyn High School on October 20, 1955 featuring Pat Boone and Bill Haley & His Comets with Elvis Presley as the opening act. It is the first film footage of a Presley performance.Curiously enough, Randle almost did not survive early radio. One Thanksgiving, he played an unusual version of "Silent Night" sung by gospel and blues artist Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Many persons called in to complain and the station manager, longtime radio and television fixture Sidney Andorn fired Randle. The next morning, WERE owner Ray T. Miller, the chairman of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party, rehired Randle after he learned he had so many listeners to Randle's program, and fired Andorn instead.While working in Cleveland, Randle would travel back to Detroit for some radio programs. In the late 1950s, Randle would fly back and forth from Cleveland to New York where he produced radio shows in both markets (at WERE and WCBS-AM, respectively). He sat alongside other top DJs of the era including Carl Reese, Phil McLean and Howie Lund.Many songs that Randle championed on-air ended up as commercial hits, the most successful of which was an edited 45 rpm single of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's "Battle Hymn of the Republic." That version, which Randle suggested to and arranged with Columbia Records (then owned by CBS and a sister property to WCBS-AM) was an unlikely hit in 1959; it ended up on the Billboard charts for 11 weeks and reached as high as #13 on Billboard's "Hot 100" that autumn. In addition, the album "The Lord's Prayer" hit No. 1 and stayed on the charts for 80 weeks, and the choir won the 1960 Grammy Award for Best Performance by a Vocal Group or Chorus.A wealthy Bill Randle left Cleveland radio in the 1960s to enhance his education. During the 1960s, Randle appeared on the local CBS affiliates in New York City interviewing celebrities. He obtained an undergraduate degree from Wayne State University and a law degree from Oklahoma City University. He went on to earn a doctorate in American studies, a master's degree in sociology from Western Reserve University, a master's degree
Was instrumental in introducing Elvis Presley into the music scene.
3
As a radio DJ, he was instrumental in introducing Elvis Presley to the American music scene. Was once hailed as the top DJ in America by Time magazine.
4
Disk jockey in 1950s at radio station WERE, Cleveland, Ohio.
Actor
Title
Year
Status
Character
Once Upon a Horse...
1958
Barfly (uncredited)
Sing Boy Sing
1958
Disc Jockey
Producer
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Final
2010/I
executive producer
The Pied Piper of Cleveland: A Day in the Life of a Famous Disc Jockey
1955
Documentary producer
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
Elvis: His Life and Times
1997
TV Special
Presley
1987
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself
Stage Show
1956
TV Series
Himself
The Pied Piper of Cleveland: A Day in the Life of a Famous Disc Jockey