Connecticut’s Beloved Broadcaster Bob Steele To be Celebrated at the New Haven Museum

New Haven, Conn. (August 31, 2021)— For more than 60 years, Bob Steele was the radio voice of Southern New England, entertaining WTIC-AM listeners with his wit and humor and an inimitable style that kept them faithfully tuning in each morning. Author Paul Hensler will highlight the Connecticut media legend during, “Bob Steele on the Radio: The Life of Connecticut’s Beloved Broadcaster,” a virtual talk presented by the New Haven Museum (NHM). The free lecture will be held on Thursday, September 23, 2021, at 6 p.m. via Zoom. Register to attend here.

Hensler’s presentation will be based on his book of the same title, which details Steele’s home life and an award-winning broadcasting career. Steele’s show captured the nation's highest market share, and the National Radio Hall of Fame inductee maintained an unparalleled popularity through the latter half of the 20th century. Steele and his "The Word for the Day" feature remains embedded in the memories of his many listeners.

Attendees will learn about the life of this seminal media figure and understand that he was much more than “the guy who read the ‘no-school’ announcements" each winter. Hensler will underscore numerous aspects of Steele's life, from his humble Midwestern roots to his move to California, and arrival in Hartford in the spring of 1936, when he began his tenure at WTIC. Hensler notes that the evolution of Steele’s career is also noteworthy for his early creation of a show devoted solely to sports coverage, guided by his love of boxing and baseball.

Hensler’s interest in Steele grew from the realization that there was no extant biography of the much-loved radio host. Hensler notes that one of his pet peeves is Steele not gaining membership in the Connecticut Hall of Fame; his hope is that by presenting Steele’s story in full the broadcasting legend will be rightfully remembered.