Leonard Postero
Encyclopedia
Leonard Anthony Postero, Sr. (December 11, 1922 - July 20, 2001) was a native of Athens, Georgia
, best known for his syndicated radio show, Leonard's Losers. He was a 1943 graduate of the University of Georgia
and served as an aviator in the United States Navy
from 1943-1945.
) and comedic scripts using alternate nicknames for college teams, usually related to the school mascot, but occasionally related to the school itself. Some of these included "The Riflemen" (as opposed to Volunteers) for University of Tennessee
, the "red clay hounds" (rather than Bulldogs) for University of Georgia teams, "giant water lizards" (rather than Gators) for University of Florida
, "pachyderms" to refer to the University of Alabama
(because the school often uses an elephant symbol), and "the Pope's pupils" to refer to the University of Notre Dame
(referring to its status as a Catholic university, rather than its "Fighting Irish" mascot). Leonard claimed that he possessed a "little smart pill machine" to come up with his prognostications and always closed his broadcast with a plea to his sidekick to "get me out of here, Percy". A game might be described as follows:
At the height of its popularity, Leonard's Losers was carried on over 1400 radio stations, including Armed Forces Radio. Postero also published a weekly newsletter called Leonard's Losers.
Postero retired in 1999 and a group of Athens businessmen purchased the show. As part of the transition to the new owners the new voice of Leonard Postosties was introduced as Leonard's nephew though there was no relation between the two. The show is currently delivered only via the web
.
However at the end of the 2005 season, a message appeared on Leonard's Website saying that due to personal reasons Leonard was unable to make his predictions and hopes to return later in the season. This message remained on the website until 2007 when the website went down. However a search on the web will find old pages on the site still active but not updated. In fact the most current audio of the show is the end of the 2004 season.
Athens, Georgia
Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...
, best known for his syndicated radio show, Leonard's Losers. He was a 1943 graduate of the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
and served as an aviator in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
from 1943-1945.
Leonard's Losers
In 1958, Postero taped his first Leonard's Losers radio show at station WRFC-AM in Athens. The show described college football matchups and then predicted which team would lose. Postero taped his show using a pseudonym of "Leonard Postosties" and was introduced by his sidekick "Percy Peabody" (also voiced by Postero). The show's "schtick" was a rural delivery style (a-la Jerry ClowerJerry Clower
Howard Gerald "Jerry" Clower was a popular country comedian best known for his stories of the rural South. He was often nicknamed "The Mouth of the South", although this title has also been used for other individuals.Clower began a 2-year stint in the Navy immediately after graduating high school...
) and comedic scripts using alternate nicknames for college teams, usually related to the school mascot, but occasionally related to the school itself. Some of these included "The Riflemen" (as opposed to Volunteers) for University of Tennessee
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
, the "red clay hounds" (rather than Bulldogs) for University of Georgia teams, "giant water lizards" (rather than Gators) for University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
, "pachyderms" to refer to the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
(because the school often uses an elephant symbol), and "the Pope's pupils" to refer to the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
(referring to its status as a Catholic university, rather than its "Fighting Irish" mascot). Leonard claimed that he possessed a "little smart pill machine" to come up with his prognostications and always closed his broadcast with a plea to his sidekick to "get me out of here, Percy". A game might be described as follows:
"Phillip Fulmer leads his Rifleman into the Athens Kennel for a shooting match with Jim Donnan's Pack of Drool Dogs. The Volunteer Army has owned the K-9s of late, while the Red Clay Hounds think its about time to sink their teeth into the Big Orange Rifle Brigade. The Knoxville Army is angry after last week, but the Athens Dawgs will get the job done. Leonard's Loser? Tennessee"
At the height of its popularity, Leonard's Losers was carried on over 1400 radio stations, including Armed Forces Radio. Postero also published a weekly newsletter called Leonard's Losers.
Postero retired in 1999 and a group of Athens businessmen purchased the show. As part of the transition to the new owners the new voice of Leonard Postosties was introduced as Leonard's nephew though there was no relation between the two. The show is currently delivered only via the web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
.
However at the end of the 2005 season, a message appeared on Leonard's Website saying that due to personal reasons Leonard was unable to make his predictions and hopes to return later in the season. This message remained on the website until 2007 when the website went down. However a search on the web will find old pages on the site still active but not updated. In fact the most current audio of the show is the end of the 2004 season.