Tom Joyner
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tom Joyner (born November 23, 1949) is an African American radio host. His daily program, The Tom Joyner Morning Show, is syndicated across the United States and heard by over ten million radio listeners. He is married to fitness guru Donna Richardson.
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[edit] Early Life
Joyner was born in Tuskegee, Alabama and received a degree in sociology from Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University). He began his broadcasting career in Montgomery, Alabama immediately upon graduation, and worked at a number of radio stations in the American South before moving to Chicago at WJPC (AM). While a student at Tuskegee University in the 1960s, Joyner became an original member of the soul/funk musical group The Commodores but departed the group before it became an international success, recording for Motown records during the early 1970s.
[edit] Radio Profession
In the mid-1980s, Joyner was simultaneously offered two positions: one for a morning show at KKDA (K104) in Dallas and one for an afternoon show at WGCI in Chicago. Instead of choosing between the two, Joyner chose to take both jobs, and for years he commuted daily by plane between the two cities, earning the nicknames "The Fly Jock" and "The Hardest Working Man in Radio."
In 1994, Joyner was signed by ABC Radio Networks to host a nationally-syndicated program, The Tom Joyner Morning Show, featuring Joyner and a team of comedians and commentators reporting and discussing the latest news and sports of the day, and playing popular R&B songs from the 1970's through the 1990's as well as contemporary R&B hits. Also featured are celebrity guests, on-site remotes (called "Sky Shows"), and an on-air soap opera called "It’s Your World". Southwest Airlines is a prominent sponsor of the radio show, especially Joyner's "Sky Shows," and free round-trip airfare to any destination that Southwest flies to is a recurring giveaway on his show.
In the Fall 2005, a nationally syndicated television show, The Tom Joyner Show was launched with Joyner as emcee of a one-hour comedy/variety show, combining sketch comedy featuring the "Tom Joyner Show Players" (his co-hosts from the radio show), talent contests, and musical performances. In May, 2006, affiliates learned that Joyner has decided not to continue due to the high production costs involved. Re-runs are shown on TV One.
[edit] Other Activities
[edit] Tom Joyner Foundation
Joyner has also founded the Tom Joyner Foundation to provide financial assistance to students at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Since 1998, it has raised more than $35 million to help keep students enrolled at HBCUs.
[edit] Books
Joyner also is an author. In 2005, he along with his longtime writer, Mary Flowers Boyce, published, "I'm Just a DJ but ... It Makes Sense to Me", (Warner Books). The book chronicles his childhood and early days in radio as well as offers Joyner's thoughts on HBCUs, the power of the black consumer and fatherhood. He appeared with his father and grandfather in the documentary "Rising from the Rails: The Story of the Pullman Porter" crediting his family with passing down important values which he passed down to his sons as well. His grandfather Oscar "Doc" Joyner was a Pullman porter who became a medical doctor.[1],
