Ted Weber

Ted Weber (born 1939) is a retired radio and television personality, best known for his work during the 1960s and 1970s as the host of several radio and television programs, mostly based in Chicago, on which he conducted many celebrity interviews. In 1981 he returned to his home town, Streator, Illinois, for family reasons, and later resumed his radio work on a local station, while also building an elaborate English garden around his parents' home that is now considered a Streator tourist attraction.
Career
Ted Weber’s long radio career began while a freshman in high school on his hometown radio station. He attended Columbia College Chicago.<ref name="Koziol"/> His Chicago career began when he and college friends, Don Tillman, and Jerry Dhesse came up with the idea of doing celebrity interviews for their respective hometown stations. Thus was born ‘Chicago on the Line’ which was eventually broadcast by a number of stations in Illinois and Indiana. Incredible as they found it, they were soon interviewing such guests as Harry Truman and Eleanor Roosevelt from the prestigious Blackstone Hotel on Michigan Ave. In 1961, at age 21, Ted Weber began broadcasting his own show from The Florentine Room of The Italian Village. That show continued as a basic format for him for almost twenty years.
For many years, the show which was syndicated around the country from Gainesville, Florida to Honolulu, Hawaii. It was broadcast from such Chicago landmarks as the Knickerbocker Hotel, Piper’s Alley, Punchinello’s on Rush, Marina City, and the Gas Light Club. It was also, occasionally, aired from theatre openings and special events. The biggest was the 1965 world premier of The Sound of Music in Hollywood. During his long career, Ted Weber interviewed everybody: presidents, first ladies, movie and television stars, authors, and even several German sailors who survived the sinking of the Bismark. Ted produced and hosted public affairs programs for WAIT, FMICO, and WCLR. He taught classes at Columbia College and wrote a show biz column for The Lakeshore Gazette.
He also hosted music programs. Notably an afternoon show of popular Broadway, and semi classical music on WRSV and a similar all night program on WEBH. Ted also worked with Chuck Schaden and Bruce DuMont on the legendary little station, WLTD. There was great outcry when the station was sold and the format changed. Ted Weber’s television credits include Ted and the Angel, Ted Weber in Old Town, C.E.T Amateur Hour in Chicago, and Good Afternoon in Santa Rosa, California.

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