The Midnight Special (radio)

The Midnight Special
Genre	Folk music, farce, showtunes, & satire
Country	United States
Languages	English
Home station	WFMT-FM at 98.7 MHz
Syndicates	National - XM 15: The Village Local: Mainly public radio (List of local syndicates)
Hosts	Mike Nichols Norm Pellegrini Ray Nordstrand Rich Warren (currently)
Creators	Mike Nichols
Recording studio	Chicago, Illinois
Air dates	1953 to Present
Audio format	Stereophonic
Opening theme	The Midnight Special
Website www.midnightspecial.org

The Midnight Special is a now-syndicated radio show that has been broadcast on a Chicago, Illinois radio station, WFMT-FM (98.7 MHz) since 1953. It is a showcases of folk and roots music from historical and contemporary artists. The show also features comedy sketches. The show is named after the well known folk song of the same name, which is usually associated with Leadbelly; His version of the song is used as the show's opening theme. The show title also tied into its timeslot, as it is broadcast on WFMT near midnight every Saturday.

In 1953, WFMT station manager Mike Nichols (later notable as a comedian, writer, actor, and director) decided to host a folk music program on Saturday evenings. Early regular guests were local musicians including Fleming Brown and Big Bill Broonzy. They would play in the station's studio, a converted ballroom on the west side of Chicago. When Nichols left the program Norm Pellegrini became the host and it evolved into a record program. Ray Nordstrand also shared the hosting responsibilities of "The Midnight Special" until 1974. Various celebrities guest-hosted the program over the years, including Tom Paxton, and theater director Robert Falls.^[1] In 1974, Rich Warren was invited to help out hosting and became the sole host of the program 22 years later in 1996.

Footnotes

External links

• midnightspecial.org - Program's website

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