R.I.P.: Chicago Radio Host, V/O Artist Wayne Juhlin

Longtime Chicago radio personality and voice-over artst Wayne Juhlin died April 17.

Wayne Juhlin with his wife

He was 77 according to The Chicago Sun-Times.

His midnight-5 a.m. show on WDAI 94.7 FM was the perfect time slot for comics who wanted to do a little self-promotion following late night stand-up gigs. From the early to late 1970s, Mr. Juhlin interviewed John Belushi, Martin Mull and Robert Klein.

Juhlin’s voices and characters caught the ear of WCFL 1000 AM legend Dick Orkin, who created “Chickenman” and “Toothfairy,” radio serials about offbeat Superheroes that aired in thousands of cities in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Orkin invited him to bring his funny voices and sketches to some of his shows.

The commercials Juhlin penned, produced and performed in won CLIO, ADDY and Windy awards.

His imitation of broadcast giant Walter Cronkite was so accurate, “you couldn’t tell the difference,” said Burt Burdeen, an instructor at Columbia College and former program director at WSDM-FM/WLUP-FM.

After a stint in the US Army, he landed a writing gig at WLS 890 AM and then worked as a record promoter. “He traveled all over the country,” his wife said. “He was one of the first people to hold a Beatles record.”

After his gig at WDAI-FM, he and his wife served as morning drive hosts for WFYR-FM, doing comedy bits and spinning the oldies.