Roy Leonard: WGN icon and film critic remembered

Daily Herald Film Critic

dgire@dailyherald.com

Roy Leonard and I sat next to each other while watching the movie "Wild Things" at Chicago's Lake Street Screening Room in 1998.

In one scene, Kevin Bacon strips down for a shower scene with full frontal nudity.

Roy whispered in my ear, "That young man has nothing to be ashamed of!"

The unexpected observation was one of many Roy Leonard shared with me during 20 years of screening films together. No matter how good or bad a movie was, the experience could always be improved by his commentary.

After an incredible run of 31 years broadcasting on WGN 720 AM radio, Roy Leonard, a consummate professional, a renaissance man and, yet, a regular guy, retired in 1998. He continued to communicate with fans through his blog and wrote travel stories for the Daily Herald in the early 2000s.

On Thursday, Roy died at Evanston Hospital after a brief illness at the age of 83.

He was a friend. A mentor. And an inspiration to generations of WGN radio fans who tuned in to hear his interviews with the greatest figures in movies, sports, music and literature.

I did my first broadcast with Roy in 1981 after publication of my story, "How to Make Your Own Maniac Movie." For several years, Roy would periodically invite me to join him to talk about films. My continuing education in how to be a Chicago arts broadcaster took place during the commercials.

"Roy," I said, "why don't you ever say, 'Let's take a break' like all other broadcasters do?"

"Well, Danny," he replied, "commercials are part of the show. We never take a break from the show. You should never tell listeners they need to take a break from what you do."

Roy possessed an unusually strong sense of broadcast ethics. To preserve his journalistic impartiality, he refused to read commercials for any movies, plays, concerts and shows that he had reviewed or would be reviewing. Someone else had to do it.

In 1990, Roy and I became two of the six founding members of the Chicago Film Critics Association, along with Chicago Tribune critic Johanna Steinmetz, WMAQ-TV's Norman Mark and WGCI-FM critics Sue Kiner and Sharon LeMaire.

Roy didn't put up with nonsense. When 20th Century Fox banned Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel from press screenings for their unflattering remarks about "Nuns on the Run," Roy, with other critics, called for a moratorium on all Fox movie reviews until the ban was lifted.

Siskel remarked to Variety that he was "proud to be a Chicagoan" because he believed that such a show of support could not have happened in any other city.

Roy was a dedicated family man who came from a broken home. His father deserted the family, and he grew up in a foster home. His mother worked as housekeeper for Claire Booth Luce, wife of Life magazine publishing magnate Henry Luce.

He met his wife, Sheila, when she cast him in a community play she was directing. Roy converted to Catholicism to marry her and together they raised six sons: Kelly, Kyle, Kerry, Kolin, Kip and Kent.

In an article about Roy's 30th WGN anniversary in 1997, I feigned an attack on his nice-guy reputation as "Sugar Roy" Leonard, a nickname given to him by legendary Chicago producer Dan Falato. I vowed to expose Roy's dark side and find the chink in his good-guy armor. With no success, of course.

I have struggled to express how important Roy Leonard is to Chicago and to broadcast arts journalism, and how well he exemplified a Midwesterner's life well-lived.

But I can't come close to the words of an Elkhorn, Wisconsin, listener named Donna, who wrote to Roy as he approached retirement:

"Dear Roy, you were my window to the world. We were raising a large family, too, and had very little opportunity to spend money on entertainment. You introduced me to so many different kinds of music.

"Over the years, you've interviewed so many interesting people. There is no one who can interview as intelligently and pleasantly as you do. I have to tell you that you inspired me to go to college.

"I wanted to be your secretary, but figured I'd need a college degree. When my youngest was in third grade, I started at Northeastern University and graduated in five years.

"Of course, I never worked for you, but I did work for Lutheran Social Services. We did get to do some traveling before we retired and enjoyed those new experiences. Aren't we alive at a wonderful time? Thanks again for being there all those years."

The local news outlets and social media are flooded with testimonials to Roy Leonard.

They are filled with affectionate references to his sharp intelligence, polite demeanor, professional conduct and his compassionate nature.

I ended a 1998 interview with the retiring broadcaster with the observation that "the only guy at WGN who has bigger shoes to fill is Bozo."

In retrospect, I was wrong.