André Baruch (August 20, 1908 – September 15, 1991) was a French-American film narrator, radio announcer, news commentator,

talk show host Below is a list of talk show A talk show is a television programming, radio programming or podcast genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk ...

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...

and sportscaster. He hosted radio programs from the 1940s to the 1980s with Bea Wain, his wife.

Early life

Baruch was born on August 20, 1908, in Paris, France. When he was 12 years old, he came to Brooklyn, where he attended a public elementary school and had a newspaper route. his later jobs included working for a furniture company and several grocery-store chains. He obtained additional education at Manual Training High School,

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, and

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...

. He intended to become an illustrator before radio opportunities arose.

Career

Baruch began his career as a pianist for WCGU, a

Coney Island Coney Island is a neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to ...

radio station. Later, he got into the wrong line of applicants at another station; he had entered the announcers' line and was hired on the spot. In the late 1930s Baruch was often the radio announcer for big band and other musical programs. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Baruch served in the army and participated in the original invasion of

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

, spending almost four years overseas and was honorably discharged as a major. Baruch was involved in the mid-1940s launching of the Armed Forces Radio Service, with stations in

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

Oran Oran () is a major coastal city located in the northwest of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria, after the capital, Algiers, because of its population and commercial, industrial and cultural importance. It is w ...

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

and

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

. After

, Baruch and Wain worked as a disc jockey team in New York on WMCA, where they were billed as Mr. and Mrs. Music. Their show was later presented on the ABC and NBC networks. On February 4, 1954, Baruch was selected to replace

Red Barber Walter Lanier "Red" Barber (February 17, 1908 – October 22, 1992) was an American sports announcer and author. Nicknamed "The Ol' Redhead", he was primarily identified with broadcasts of Major League Baseball, calling play-by-play across four ...

as a broadcaster for the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...

on radio and TV. He called the team's home games in 1954 and 1955. On radio, television or both, Baruch announced for such programs as '' The American Album of Familiar Music'', '' The Fred Waring Show'', '' The Kate Smith Show'', ''

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by American magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by Gibs ...

'', '' Your Hit Parade'' and '' The United States Steel Hour''. In the 1960s, Baruch narrated short films for the Hamilton Wright Organization, an American public relations firm hired covertly by the South African government to counter the

anti-apartheid movement The Anti-Apartheid Movement (AAM) was a British organisation that was at the centre of the international movement opposing the South African apartheid system and supporting South Africa's non-white population who were oppressed by the policies ...

. In

1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

, Baruch and Wain moved to

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...

, where they did a top-rated daily four-hour talk show on WPBR. Baruch was the host of the show and ran the control board. Wain on occasions asked him to play tape cartridges (a selection of about 12 hung in a metal rack on the wall to the right of Wain) of vintage songs she had once recorded, the most popular being "

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

." :''When the deep purple falls over sleepy garden walls'' :''And the stars begin to twinkle in the sky—'' :''In the mist of a memory you wander back to me'' :''Breathing my name with a sigh...'' After nine years in

, at WPBR, Baruch and Wain relocated to

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

. During the early 1980s, the pair hosted a syndicated version of ''Your Hit Parade'', reconstructing the list of hits of selected weeks in the 1940s and playing the original recordings. Baruch died on September 15, 1991, in Beverly Hills.

Personal life

He met singer Bea Wain while announcing for the ''Kate Smith Hour'' and they married in 1938. Baruch and Wain had two children: Bonnie Baruch and Wayne Baruch. Bonnie and her husband Mark Barnes operate a vineyard in Northern California and run the Daisy Foundation, an organization which recognizes nurses for their critical role in patient care and supports research towards the cure of

autoimmune diseases An autoimmune disease is a condition that results from an anomalous response of the adaptive immune system, wherein it mistakenly targets and attacks healthy, functioning parts of the body as if they were foreign organisms. It is estimated that ...

. Wayne Baruch has a career in the music and theatre business, and his wife, Shelley Baruch, is a theatrical producer and filmmaker.

References

Listen to

Fred Hall's Swing Thing: Interview with André Baruch and Bea WainFred Hall's Swing Thing: Part Two: Interview with André Baruch and Bea Wain
*

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Baruch, Andre 1908 births 1991 deaths 20th-century American musicians American radio DJs American radio journalists American talk radio hosts Brooklyn Dodgers announcers Columbia University alumni French emigrants to the United States Major League Baseball broadcasters Musicians from Beverly Hills, California Pratt Institute alumni Radio and television announcers United States Army officers United States Army personnel of World War II Military personnel from California