John Williams gets nod from WGN

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: And the winner is ... : John Williams gets nod from WGN as O'Dell successor : : John Williams, a onetime WGN-AM 720 intern who has been game for just about anything the station ever asked of him, has landed its biggest on-air job. : WGN has chosen Williams to succeed retiring morning man Spike O'Dell in what historically has been one of Chicago radio's most listened-to slots, dating back to Wally Phillips in the 1960s, through Bob Collins and O'Dell, who took over after Collins' death in 2000. : An official announcement is scheduled for O'Dell's 5 to 9 a.m. show Tuesday. But WGN staffers were told late Monday afternoon in a memo from Tom Langmyer, the station's vice president and general manager. O'Dell's last day will be Dec. 12, with Williams taking over on the 15th. A successor for Williams' 1-to-4 p.m. weekday and 9 a.m.-to-noon Saturday shifts will be named in a few weeks. : "Spike, Bob and Wally left big shoes," Langmyer said in his memo. "I have no doubt that John will wear them well and with great pride and dedication." : Langmyer cited Williams' "passion, dedication, community involvement, creativity and commitment in building WGN's brand across multiple platforms." : Weeks after the Chicago Tribune, which, like WGN, is owned by Tribune Co., launched RedEye, its free commuter edition, in 2002, Williams contacted Jane Hirt, then RedEye's editor and now the Tribune's managing editor. He suggested a newspaper-radio tie-in with the Sudoku puzzle. : Together, they came up with the idea of publishing how long it took Williams to complete each day's puzzle, challenging readers to beat him. He remains a RedEye fixture to this day. : "Our listeners expect a smart, informative, relevant and entertaining show. John brings that," Langmyer said by e-mail. "He is very intelligent and inquisitive. John is truly involved in the community, he works very hard, goes everywhere, brings back interviews, builds content and production elements for the show and he is well-respected. ... John Williams is also a very good person. Character counts at WGN, and he is a person of good character." : Williams returned to WGN-AM in 1997, to the mid-day shift, after stints in Minneapolis and Peoria. He was the in-house runner-up when O'Dell got the morning job in 2000, seen as too new. Instead, he was given O'Dell's old afternoon job, with Steve Cochran installed in middays. : Williams and Cochran switched shifts last year. Many interpreted this as making Cochran heir apparent to O'Dell, who had a long-standing goal to retire in 2008 at age 55. But Williams got the nod. : "The staff is thrilled," Langmyer said. "John delivers on a number of planes. He is a great broadcaster and a super person. He is a positive leader on our staff, so this was a very popular decision." : : (Phil Rosenthal, Chicago Tribune)

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