Posted by chicagomedia.org on October 25, 2009 at 16:45:50:
Jewish community losing its longtime 'radio voice' Bernie Finkel
By Manya A. Brachear
Tribune reporter
October 25, 2009
Before Bernie Finkel signs off from his last show on Sunday, he will read from the first book of the Hebrew Bible.
The story of Noah's Ark in the Book of Genesis seems like an appropriate way to wrap up one of Chicago's longest-running radio broadcasts, given its struggles to stay financially afloat.
Finkel, an observant Orthodox Jew who has hosted and produced the "Jewish Community Hour" for more than three decades, blames the poor economy for driving even the most loyal sponsors -- kosher markets and an electronics store -- to scale back, forcing the show off the air.
A keen observer and notorious pundit of Chicago's Jewish community, Finkel also cites the shift of priorities among today's Jews. Gone are the days when there were multiple Jewish radio shows focused on a largely immigrant population.
"The roots of the current generation are not the same," he said. "The show has run its course, apparently."
On Sunday, Finkel, the "Radio Voice of the Jewish Community," will broadcast live for the last time at 11 a.m. on WCGO-AM 1590 (formerly WONX). At 82, the radio host who has spent most Saturdays in the synagogue and most Sundays at the radio station for the last 34 years finally will take some time for himself and enjoy the Chicago winter from Florida with many of his contemporaries.
Bruce DuMont, chairman of the Chicago-based National Radio Hall of Fame, applauded Finkel's longevity on the airwaves.
"When there is a radio station personality and program that determines they're going to focus on serving that community and they do it for 40-plus years, that is a significant contribution to that community," DuMont said.
The show also has fueled Finkel's faith. After more than five years at the Hebrew Theological Union, he never lost his insatiable curiosity about Jewish traditions nor strayed from the pursuit of Jewish learning.
"The show helped me dig more deeply into things," he said.
It was a strict Sabbath observance that led Finkel from baseball to broadcasting. His exceptional pitching arm drew the Cubs' attention in 1947. But since tryouts fell on a Saturday, Finkel didn't go.
Instead, he studied journalism at the University of Illinois and enjoyed a storied career working for the Chicago Defender and later in advertising and public relations.
When his friend Jerry Rabin, a local cantor, launched the "Jewish Community Hour" in 1963, Finkel brought his clients for interviews. When Rabin died in 1975, Finkel filled in. He has broadcast his labor of love on Sundays ever since -- except for Jewish holidays.
His most popular show was the annual Passover hot line -- a Jewish rendition of the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line.
Rabbi Sholem Fishbane, kashrut administrator of the Chicago Rabbinical Council, said he will miss the excitement of the annual show.
"People who didn't necessarily listen tune in at least once a year for the Passover show," he said. "It was a mad scramble. The questions kept flying."
For some, Finkel said, the show served as a substitute for Sunday school. In addition to the live assortment of news, comedy, political commentary and music, Finkel would read the section of the Torah heard in synagogue services that week. That is why he will read from Genesis on Sunday.
His son, Phil Finkel, fondly recalls the first question his future mother-in-law asked about him 21 years ago: "Is he related to Bernie Finkel?"
"Her daughter married the son of a famous radio DJ," he said.