Attn Chicago DUer's: Ray Rayner has Died!

[Beaker]

i thought you might like to know...



http://www.rogersbasement.com/Rayrayner.htm

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/xrayn21.html


WGN's Ray Rayner dies
January 21, 2004

BY ART GOLAB Staff Reporter

The man who entertained generations of Chicago children with Chelveston the Duck, Cuddley Duddley and morning turtle races is dead.

Ray Rayner, who hosted the morning kid show “Ray Rayner and Friends” on WGN for nearly 20 years, and also played clown Oliver O’Oliver, has died in New Mexico, where he was living in retirement, according to WGN, which said it was informed of his death by Rayner’s daughter.

Known at one time as the busiest man in Chicago television, during one period in the 1960s, Rayner performed in three live television shows per day on Channel 9.

He was best known for “Ray Rayner and Friends,” a morning show which was to kids what the “Today Show” was to adults. Rayner, covered with notes pinned to his jumpsuit, showed Diver Dan and other cartoons, did weather reports and school closing announcements, improvised comedy routines with a duck named Chelveston, where most of the laughs came when the duck would snap at and bite Rayner...


Wednesday was Road-runner cartoon day.

[Gato Moteado]

1. bummer.....

i woke up every morning and watched his show before school.

remember the lunchtime show he did in the late 60's where he was in a spaceship?

[Beaker]

2. yep...

and I'll always remember the day that ollie o'oliver got in his car and left bozo's circus...

[Mari333]

3. aww I watched him every day

he always had little notes tacked all over his clothes ....My childhood memories........
RIP Ray.

[XNASA]

4. Another childhood hero.......................gone.

<sigh>

I'm gonna go home and nestle with my Cuddley Duddley doll.

[Ellen Forradalom]

5. I know. The end of an era.

I think I'll go feed Chelveston the Duck, myself.

Back in the day, there was such a thing as local television. The Ray Rayner Show was about as local as it gets.

[myrna minx]

6. Nooooooo.

I loved Ray Rayner. :cry:

[Rabrrrrrr]

7. Sad - I didn't like him when I was very small

But came to appreciate his show when I hit about 7 or 8 and came to really enjoy him.

I remember him on WGN, and we had a woman out of Milwaukee (Channel 18) who had a show in the morning, but I can't remember her name.

Ray was very funny, and provided a lot of entertainment.

His show was where I first heard "Camp Grenada" (to the tune of Beethoven's Sixth Symphony). I don't know if he wrote it, but I will always remember it.

[Gato Moteado]

9. i think tom lehrer wrote it

nt

[chiburb]

11. Lyrics:

Hello muddah, hello faddah
Here I am at Camp Granada
Camp is very entertaining
And they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining.

I went hiking with Joe Spivy
He developed poison ivy
You remember Leonard Skinner
He got ptomaine poisoning last night after dinner.

All the counselors hate the waiters
And the lake has alligators
And the head coach wants no sissies
So he reads to us from something called Ulysses.

How I don't want this should scare ya
But my bunkmate has malaria
You remember Jeffrey Hardy
They're about to organize a searching party.

Take me home, oh muddah, faddah
Take me home, I hate Granada
Don't leave me out in the forest where
I might get eaten by a bear.
Take me home I promise I will not make noise
Or mess the house with other boys.
Oh please don't make me stay
I've been here one whole day.

Dearest faddah, darling muddah,
How's my precious little bruddah
Let me come home, if you miss me
I would even let Aunt Bertha hug and kiss me.

Wait a minute, it's stopped hailing.
Guys are swimming, guys are sailing
Playing baseball, gee that's better
Muddah, faddah kindly disregard this letter.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Rabrrrrrr]

12. Thanks for posting!

I trip down memory lane.

I also appreciate Ra Rayner and some of the other local shows (remember Mr. Mustache?) because they had nothing flashy, no expensive props or scenery, none of them were good singers really, but they sang - the shows were done on a shoestring, and looked cheap, but the imagination had room to play and to grow and expand and make it all my own reality. And many of them were done live, so mistakes abounded. I miss shows like that. Now when I see kids shows, they're over-produced, super flashy, and change camera angles and cuts so often it's jarring.

What's wrong with one camera on one person while he/she reads a book? That's all you need.

[Beaker]

13. I think it was allan sherman-

he was the one who recorded it, anyway.

[Dogmudgeon]

15. un-posted

wiped that puppy

--bkl

[chiburb]

10. Camp Grenada! I heard it there too...

I think Alan Sherman wrote it, but Ray played it...

He seemed a good man.

[HereSince1628]

8. Sigh...

[BlackVelvetElvis]

14. My ex (and best friend) had her 5th birthday on the Ray Rayner show

She had tons of photos from that day that she would share. She still has her Cuddly Duddly. Her face would light up talking about that show! I remember we spent a whole day at the museum of tv and braodcasting so she could see that show again. She's 39 now. He was a special part of her childhood. Thanks for posting that so I could send her some love.