Larry Ferrari (March 4, 1932 – November 20, 1997), born Lazarus Louis Ferrari, was an American

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

who hosted ''The Larry Ferrari Show'' from 1954 to 1997 on

WPVI-TV WPVI-TV (channel 6) is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Owned and operated by the ABC television network through its ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains studios on City Avenue in t ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, a weekly Sunday morning half-hour program of

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

music.

Biography

Born in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

on March 4, 1932 as Lazarus Louis Ferrari, Larry Ferrari was a son of Colomba Ferrari. He changed his name to "Larry" when a nun suggested he Americanize it. Ferrari studied piano and organ as a boy and started his music career when he began performing at his local church at 11 years old. Soon after, he began playing at a local skating rink. According to friends and family, Ferrari did not use sheet music; after hearing a song he could play it from memory. His career in broadcasting got its start shortly after he joined the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

in 1952. It was there, while idly passing the time during leave by playing the organ, that he came to the notice of his commanding officer as a likely person to put on the "Soldier Parade" with

Arlene Francis Arlene Francis (born Arline Francis Kazanjian; October 20, 1907 – May 31, 2001) was an American game show panelist, actress, radio and television talk show host. She is best known for her long-running role as a panelist on the television game ...

(later of ''

What's My Line? ''What's My Line?'' is a Panel show, panel game show that originally ran in the United States, between 1950 and 1967, on CBS, originally in black and white and later in color, with subsequent American revivals. The game uses celebrity panelists ...

'' fame). Shortly afterward, Ferrari performed on a number of public service recordings that were distributed coast to coast. An avid

amateur radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency radio spectrum, spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emer ...

operator, he held the call of WA2MKI and was heard nearly daily on the air talking to his friends as he drove to and from his home in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

to the television studio. During the 1960s, he also performed as the organist for Philadelphia's ice hockey team, the

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

. ''The Larry Ferrari Show'' was seen in the

Delaware Valley The Philadelphia metropolitan area, also known as Greater Philadelphia and informally called the Delaware Valley, the Philadelphia tri-state area, and locally and colloquially Philly–Jersey–Delaware, is a major metropolitan area in the Nor ...

for 43 years on Sunday mornings. (Its theme music was his instrumental version of " Once In A While.") Ferrari's show lasted longer than any other show on Channel 6, with the exception of '' Chief Halftown.'' He was also the Lowrey Organ company's National Concert Artist. He also made cameo appearances as the house "band" on the syndicated '' Wheel of Fortune'' during their visit to the former Philadelphia Civic Center in Fall 1992. He also was the background organist for WPVI produced shows including Chief Halftown and Captain Noah. The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia posthumously inducted Ferrari into their Hall of Fame in 2000.

Death

Ferrari's last broadcast aired on Sunday, November 30, 1997 at 6:30 am. A resident of

Cinnaminson Township, New Jersey Cinnaminson Township is a township in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Cinnaminson Township borders the Delaware River, and is an eastern suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population ...

, Ferrari died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

at age 65 on November 20, 1997.Staff
"Larry Ferrari"
''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...

'', November 21, 1997. Accessed June 18, 2012. "Larry Ferrari, 65, a Philadelphia institution who played the organ on his own show on Channel 6 for 40 years, died yesterday of cancer at his home in Cinnaminson."

Legacy

On November 16, 2000, Ferrari was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia. The award was accepted on his behalf by longtime colleague W. Carter Merbreier ('' Captain Noah and His Magical Ark''). Ferrari provided the music for ''Captain Noah'', '' Chief Halftown'', and ''

Dialing for Dollars ''Dialing for Dollars'' was a franchised format local television program in the United States and Canada, popular from the 1950s to the early 1990s. Format At the beginning of a typical ''Dialing for Dollars'' program, the host (a local televi ...

''. Teaching many classes at Fox Chase elementary school in Philadelphia, Ferrari also helped teach school children music.

Recordings

1. ''Relax with Larry Ferrari'', RCA Victor 1959 LPM-1496 (mono)
2. ''Reminisce'', RCA Victor Living Stereo LSP-1850 (Schwann catalog 1-59)
3. ''At the Mighty Wurlitzer Pipe Organ''-Detroit Senate Theatre
4. ''Encore''-Detroit Senate Wurlitzer
5. ''Hawaiian Favorites "Especially For You"''
6. ''My Favorite Hymns''
7. ''I Wish You The Merriest'' (Christmas)
8. ''Memories''
9. ''Merry Christmas Carols''
10. ''Most Requested T.V. Favorites''
Source: Schwann Catalog, April 1960 p. 203

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrari, Larry 1932 births 1997 deaths American male organists Deaths from leukemia in New Jersey Musicians from Philadelphia People from Cinnaminson Township, New Jersey 20th-century American musicians American people of Italian descent 20th-century American organists 20th-century American male musicians Amateur radio people American organists Musicians from Burlington County, New Jersey