BILL HAHN - Boston Radio/TV Pioneer Dies at 89.

[Omnibus]

One of the pioneers of Boston television on the old "Yankee Network Channel 7 [ long before it became the disgraceful Ed Ansin tabloid junk news station...] died this week at age 89 at his home in Quincy.

Bill was a true gentleman. Originally from Rockford, Illinois he came to Boston to attend Harvard College from which he graduated in 1945. His radio career began at Harvard's radio station which led to his being hired by the Yankee Network - the first group of local network stations established by the department store magnet, John Sheppard, in the 1930'- 40's.

In later years Bill Hahn was the Public Affairs Director at WRKO and hosted the longest running religious program in Boston - Talking Religion.

In 2009 Bill Hahn was inducted into the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

 

[Joseph_Gallant]

According to some old TV listings circa 1950 I have from the old Boston Post, Bill Hahn was also a pioneer in daytime television here in Boston: He hosted "Inter-Vues" on WNAC-7, which was one of the first local daytime shows on Boston TV (Louise Morgan, often nicknamed "Boston's First Lady of Radio and Television", was the first person to host a regular local daytime TV show in the Hub; she began hosting "Shopping-Vues" for WNAC a year earlier).

Both Hahn's and Morgan's shows were broadcast back-to-back at the Noon hour, likely to grab people on their lunch hour who were dropping by at radio and appliance stores (since relatively few people owned TV sets then).