Paul Dixon was a daytime
televisionTelevision is a widely used telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images, either monochromatic or color, usually accompanied by sound. "Television" may also refer specifically to a television set, television programming or television transmission...
celebrityA celebrity is a person who is famously recognized in a society or culture.Generally speaking, a celebrity is someone who gets media attention and most frequently has an extroverted personality. The desire to be notable is implied by some to be a part of Western culture and more specifically the...
and talk show host in
Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. The municipality is located north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border. The population within city limits was estimated to be 333,336 in 2008, making it the state's third largest city...
. He originally began his career with
radioRadio is the transmission of signals by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
shows in
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and
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
before being enticed to come to then-radio station WCPO in Cincinnati as a news reporter and announcer around 1945. He was chosen best
newscasterA news presenter is a person who presents a news show on television, radio or the Internet.-Newscasters and newsreaders:...
in Cincinnati in 1947 after conducting an interview with men trapped in a collapsed building in downtown Cincinnati.
Eventually abandoning radio news in favor of entertainment, he spent his first few years in television as host of
Paul Dixon's Song Shop, a three-hour daily show he co-hosted with Dottie Mack and Wanda Lewis pantomiming to records of the day. By 1954 his show was so popular that
Dumont TelevisionThe DuMont Television Network, also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont, Du Mont, or Dumont was one of the world's pioneer commercial television networks, rivalling NBC for the distinction of being first overall. It began operation in the United States in 1946. It was owned by DuMont...
enticed Dixon to come to New York to do the show nationally. After a year a homesick Dixon returned to Cincinnati, and hired on at WLWT to host a new daytime TV show geared to housewives.
Television
The Paul Dixon Show premiered on Cincinnati's
WLWTWLWT, also known as News 5, is a television station in Cincinnati, Ohio, broadcasting digitally on UHF channel 35 as an NBC affiliate. The station is owned by Hearst Television....
in 1955. The show began as a half-hour program, but later expanded to 90 minutes with co-hosts
Bonnie LouBonnie Lou is an American Rock and Roll and Country Music singer. During the mid 1950s, rock and roll was the hottest selling music on the market. Few women however ventured into this territory, like Bonnie Lou...
and Colleen Sharp.
Avco Broadcasting CorporationThe Crosley Broadcasting Corporation was a radio and television broadcaster founded by radio manufacturing pioneer Powel Crosley, Jr.. The company was an early operator of radio stations in the United States. Based in Cincinnati, Ohio, Crosley's flagship station was WLW...
, who owned WLWT, syndicated Dixon's show in other markets where they owned TV stations, including
ColumbusColumbus is the capital and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is the county seat of Franklin County, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware and Fairfield counties...
and
DaytonDayton is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The population was 166,179 at the 2000 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 848,153 in the 2000 census. Dayton is the fourth largest...
, Ohio and
IndianapolisIndianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. The United States Census estimated the city's population, excluding the included towns, at 798,382 in 2008...
, Indiana. "Paul Baby", as he came to be known (the nickname was given him by a prop boy) had a breezy style and a sense of humor that appealed to housewives and others alike.
His show reached its peak on Tuesday, March 11, 1969, when he staged a wedding for two
rubber chickenA rubber chicken is used as a prop in comedy. The phrase is also used as a description for food served at speeches, conventions, and other large meetings, and as a metaphor for speechmaking.-Comedy:...
s, that had become longtime props on the show (they were mainly used for in-house commercials for
KrogerThe Kroger Co. is an American retail supermarket chain and parent company, founded by Bernard Henry Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$76 billion in sales during fiscal year 2008. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume ...
). Fellow Cincinnati TV personality
Bob BraunBob Braun was a local television and radio personality in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was born in Ludlow, Kentucky....
appeared as Best Man, with Colleen Sharp and Bonnie Lou as Matrons of Honor. To this day The Chicken Wedding remains a significant piece of WLWT's (and Cincinnati's) television history. Late Night TV host
David LettermanDavid Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman...
, who grew up in Indianapolis, cites Dixon's comedic talent as inspiration for his own antics.
Author
Dixon wrote and published two books; the first in 1968 titled
Paul Baby: Confessions of the Mayor of Kneesville. Two years later he published
Letters to Paul Baby, a compilation of Dixon's favorite fan mail.
Personal life
Dixon and his wife Marge had two children; Pamela and Greg.
Dixon suffered his first heart attack in 1970, shortly after his son Greg was killed in a car accident. On the heels of his son's death, a grieving Dixon had to be helped on stage to do his show one day.
Complications later led to a ruptured
aneurysmAn aneurysm or aneurism , is a localized, blood-filled dilation of a blood vessel caused by disease or weakening of the vessel wall....
, which claimed Dixon's life on December 28, 1974.
AvcoThe Crosley Broadcasting Corporation was a radio and television broadcaster founded by radio manufacturing pioneer Powel Crosley, Jr.. The company was an early operator of radio stations in the United States. Based in Cincinnati, Ohio, Crosley's flagship station was WLW...
executives concluded that Dixon could not be replaced, so following a month of reruns,
The Paul Dixon Show quietly ended its near-20 year run by the end of January 1975. Dixon is buried in Gate of Heaven Cemetery.
External links