Editing Walter Winchell (section)

== Professional career == 
Winchell began his career in journalism by posting notes about his acting troupe on backstage bulletin boards. He joined the ''Vaudeville News'' in 1920, then left the paper for the ''[[New York Graphic|Evening Graphic]]'' in 1924, where his column was named ''Mainly About Mainstreeters''. He was hired on June 10, 1929, by the ''[[New York Daily Mirror]]'', where he became the author of the first syndicated gossip column,<ref>{{cite web |title=The Age of Winchell |url=http://www.evesmag.com/winchell.htm |first1=Ralph D. |last1=Gardner |year=2001 |access-date=February 19, 2015}}</ref> ''On-Broadway''. The column was syndicated by [[King Features Syndicate]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archives.nypl.org/the/21480 |title=Walter Winchell papers, 1920–1967 |website= [[New York Public Library for the Performing Arts]]}}</ref>

He made his radio debut over [[WCBS (AM)|WABC]] in New York, a [[CBS]] affiliate, on May 12, 1930.<ref name="Dunning">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fi5wPDBiGfMC&pg=PA708 |last=Dunning |first=John |author-link=John Dunning (detective fiction author) |title=On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio |date=1998 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-19-507678-3 |pages=708–710 |edition=Revised |access-date=2019-09-09}}</ref> The show, ''Saks on Broadway'', was a 15-minute feature that provided business news about Broadway. He switched to WJZ (later renamed [[WABC (AM)|WABC]]) and the [[Blue Network|NBC Blue]] (later [[Cumulus Media Networks|ABC Radio]]) in 1932 for the ''Jergens Journal''.<ref name="Dunning" /><ref name="WVobit">Obituary ''[[Variety Obituaries|Variety]]'', February 23, 1972, p. 71.</ref>

Walter Winchell's radio-acting career included an episode of ''[[Lux Radio Theatre]]'', when on June 28, 1937 he played the role of newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in a one-hour adaptation of ''[[The Front Page]]''.<ref name="Youngstown Vindicator">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0d5RAAAAIBAJ&pg=1306%2C5727738 |title="Radio Theater" Signs Amelia Earhart for Talk |page=22 |newspaper=Youngstown Vindicator |date=1937-06-28 |access-date=2025-02-11 }}</ref>

=== Underworld connections ===
[[File:"The Bard of Broadway" with Walter Winchell ad in The Film Daily, Jan-Jun 1932 (page 461 crop).jpg|left|thumb|262x262px|"The Bard of Broadway" with Walter Winchell ad in ''[[The Film Daily]]'', 1932]]
By the 1930s, Winchell was "an intimate friend of [[Owney Madden]], New York's no. 1 gang leader of the [[Prohibition in the United States|prohibition]] era,"<ref name="TBR">{{cite news
| title = Columny
| newspaper = [[Time (magazine)|TIME]]
| date = September 23, 1940
| url =http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,802020,00.html
| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20081113142947/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,802020,00.html
| url-status =dead
| archive-date =November 13, 2008
| access-date= October 17, 2011}}</ref> but in 1932 his intimacy with criminals caused him to fear he would be murdered. He fled to [[California]] and "returned weeks later with a new enthusiasm for law, [[G-Man (slang)|G-men]], [[Uncle Sam]], [and] [[Old Glory]]".<ref name="TBR" /> His coverage of the [[Lindbergh kidnapping]] and subsequent trial received national attention. Within two years, he befriended [[J. Edgar Hoover]]. He was responsible for turning [[Louis Buchalter|Louis "Lepke" Buchalter]] of [[Murder, Inc.]] over to Hoover.

His [[Column (periodical)|newspaper column]] was syndicated in a wide array of newspapers worldwide, and he was read by millions every day from the 1920s until the early 1960s. His Sunday night radio broadcast was heard by another 20 million people from 1930 to the late 1950s. In 1948, Winchell had the top-rated radio show when he surpassed [[Fred Allen]] and [[Jack Benny]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Thomas |first=Bob |author-link=Bob Thomas (reporter)|title=Winchell |year=1971 |publisher= Doubleday|quote=His ranking among the most listened-to radio programs climbed higher and higher until in 1948 his audience was the biggest in radio. | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ajUrAAAAMAAJ&q=%22most-listened-to+radio+programs%22 }}</ref> One indicator of his popularity was being mentioned in [[Richard Rodgers]] and [[Lorenz Hart]]'s 1937 song "[[The Lady Is a Tramp]]": "I follow Winchell and read every line."<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/FuP2AlKEvy4 Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20190920220156/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuP2AlKEvy4&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuP2AlKEvy4|title=The Lady Is a Tramp|last=Mary Martin – Topic|date=November 7, 2014|via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

=== Outspoken views ===
Winchell was one of the first commentators in America to attack [[Adolf Hitler]] and American pro-[[Fascism|fascist]] and pro-Nazi organizations such as the [[German-American Bund]], especially its leader [[Fritz Julius Kuhn]]. He was a staunch supporter of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and the [[New Deal]] throughout the [[Depression era]], and frequently served as the Roosevelt Administration's mouthpiece in favor of interventionism as the European war crisis loomed in the late 1930s.<ref name="PBS" /> Early on, he denounced American isolationists as appeasing Hitler, and explicitly attacked such prominent isolationists as [[Charles Lindbergh]], whom he dubbed "The Lone Ostrich", and [[Gerald L.K. Smith]], whom he denounced as "Gerald Lucifer KKKodfish Smith". Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Winchell was also an outspoken supporter of [[Civil and political rights|civil rights]] for African Americans, and frequently attacked the [[Ku Klux Klan]] and other racist groups as supporting un-American, pro-German goals.

During World War II, he attacked the [[National Maritime Union]], the labor organization for the civilian [[United States Merchant Marine]], which he said was run by Communists, instancing West Coast labor leader [[Harry Bridges]].<ref>"Liberty Ships" 1995 [[Public Broadcasting Service]] (PBS) documentary</ref> In 1948 and 1949, he and influential columnist [[Drew Pearson (journalist)|Drew Pearson]] attacked [[United States Secretary of Defense|Secretary of Defense]] [[James Forrestal]] in columns and radio broadcasts.<ref>[http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-14496-4/cbss-don-hollenbeck/excerpt ''CBS's Don Hollenbeck: An Honest Reporter in the Age of McCarthyism''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006135419/http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-14496-4/cbss-don-hollenbeck/excerpt |date=October 6, 2014 }}, Loren Ghiglione, 2008, Chapter 16</ref>

Subsequently, Winchell began to denounce Communism as the main threat facing America.

=== Television ===
During the 1950s, Winchell supported Senator [[Joseph McCarthy]]'s quest to identify Communists in the entertainment industry. His weekly radio broadcast was broadcast on ABC television on the same day. His program debuted on TV on October 5, 1952. Sponsored by Gruen Watch Company, it originated from [[WABC-TV|WJZ-TV]] from 6:45 to 7 p.m. ET.<ref>{{cite journal |title=This Week – Network Debuts, Highlights, Changes |journal=Ross Reports on Television |date=October 5, 1952 |volume=4 |issue=5 |page=1, Supplement B |url=https://archive.org/details/rossreportstele25ross/mode/2up?view=theater |access-date=January 23, 2022}}</ref> By 1953,<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/86037989/winchell-starts-22nd-year/ Winchell Starts 22nd Year] Fort Worth Star-Telegram. December 6, 1953.</ref> his radio and television broadcasts were simulcast until he ended that association because of a dispute with ABC executives in 1955. He starred in ''[[The Walter Winchell File]]'', a television crime drama series that initially aired from 1957 to 1958, dramatizing cases from the New York City Police Department that were covered in the ''New York Daily Mirror''. In 1956, he signed with NBC to host a variety program called ''[[The Walter Winchell Show]]'', which was canceled after only 13 weeks—a particularly bitter failure in view of the success of his longtime rival [[Ed Sullivan]] in a similar format with ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Gabler |first=Neal |title=Winchell: Gossip, Power and the Culture of Celebrity |publisher=Knopf |year=1994 |pages=434–435 | isbn=0-679-41751-6}}</ref> ABC rehired him in 1959 to narrate ''[[The Untouchables (1959 TV series)|The Untouchables]]'' for four seasons. In 1960, a revival of the 1955 television simulcast of Winchell's radio broadcast was canceled after six weeks.

In the early 1960s, a public dispute with [[Jack Paar]] effectively ended Winchell's career—already in decline due to a shift in power from print to television.<ref>''[[Pioneers of Television]]'': "Late Night" episode (2008 [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]] mini-series) <blockquote>"Paar's feud with newspaper columnist Walter Winchell marked a major turning point in American media power. No one had ever dared criticize Winchell because a few lines in his column could destroy a career, but when Winchell disparaged Paar in print, Paar fought back and mocked Winchell repeatedly on the air. Paar's criticisms effectively ended Winchell's career. The tables had turned, now TV had the power."</blockquote></ref> Winchell had angered Paar several years earlier when he refused to retract an item alleging that Paar was having marital difficulties. Biographer [[Neal Gabler]] described the exchange on [[Tonight Show with Jack Paar|Paar's show]] in 1961:

<blockquote>Hostess [[Elsa Maxwell]] appeared on the program and began gibing at Walter, accusing him of hypocrisy for waving the flag while never having voted [which, incidentally, wasn't true; the show later issued a retraction]. Paar joined in. He said Walter's column was "written by a fly" and that his voice was so high because he wears "too-tight underwear" … [H]e also told the story of the mistaken item about his marriage, and cracked that Walter had a "hole in his soul".{{sfn|Gabler|1994|pages=362–363}}</blockquote>

On subsequent programs, Paar called Winchell a "silly old man" and cited other examples of his underhanded tactics.{{sfn|Gabler|1994|pages=364}} No one had previously criticized Winchell publicly, but by then his influence had eroded to the point that he could not effectively respond. The ''New York Daily Mirror'', his flagship newspaper for 34 years, closed in 1963; his readership dropped steadily, and he faded from the public eye.{{sfn|Gabler|1994|pages=420–435}}

=== Personal ethics ===
Winchell became known for his attempts to destroy the careers of his political and personal enemies as his own career progressed, especially after World War II. Favorite tactics were allegations of having ties to Communist organizations and accusations of sexual impropriety.<ref>{{harvnb|Gabler|1994}} chap 8–9.</ref> He was not above name-calling; for example, he called New York radio host [[Barry Gray (radio)|Barry Gray]] "Borey Pink" and a "disk jerk".<ref>{{cite magazine
| url=http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,817546,00.html
| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050505144022/http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,817546,00.html
| url-status=dead
| archive-date=May 5, 2005
|magazine = Time
| title = The Press: Feud Days
| date = December 8, 1952
| access-date = May 27, 2010}}</ref> Winchell heard that Marlen Edwin Pew of the trade journal ''[[Editor & Publisher]]'' had criticized him as a bad influence and called him "Marlen Pee-you".<ref name="TBR" />

For most of his career, his contracts with newspaper and radio employers required them to [[indemnity|hold him harmless]] from any damages resulting from lawsuits for [[Defamation|slander or libel]].<ref>{{harvnb|Gabler|1994}} noted in several places in the book.</ref> He unapologetically published material told to him in confidence by friends; when confronted over such betrayals, he typically responded, "I know—I'm just a son of a bitch."<ref name="TBR" /> By the mid-1950s, he was widely seen as arrogant, cruel, and ruthless.<ref>{{harvnb|Gabler|1994}} chap 8–10.</ref>

While on an American tour in 1951, [[Josephine Baker]], who never performed before segregated audiences, criticized the [[Stork Club]]'s unwritten policy of discouraging black patrons, then scolded Winchell, an old ally, for not rising to her defense. Winchell responded swiftly with a series of harsh public rebukes, including accusations of Communist sympathies.<ref name="PBS" /> He spurned any attempts by friends to mitigate the heated rhetoric. The ensuing publicity resulted in the termination of Baker's work visa, forcing her to cancel all her engagements and return to France. It was almost a decade before U.S. officials allowed her back into the country. The adverse publicity of this, and similar incidents, undercut his credibility and power.<ref>Hinckley, David (9 November 2004). [http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/firestorm-incident-stork-club-1951-article-1.571278 "Firestorm Incident at The Stork Club, 1951"]. ''New York Daily News''. Retrieved 29 February 2016.</ref>

In his radio and television broadcasts on April 4, 1954, Winchell helped stoke public fear of the polio vaccine. He said, "Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. America ... and all the ships at sea. Attention everyone. In a few moments I will report on a new polio vaccine claimed to be a polio cure. It may be a killer." Winchell claimed that the U.S. Public Health Services found live polio viruses in seven of ten vaccine batches it tested, reporting, "It killed several monkeys ... the United States Public Health Service will confirm this in about 10 days." [[Jonas Salk]], developer of the polio vaccine, immediately responded that the vaccine, which had been recently tested on 7,500 schoolchildren at the University of Pittsburgh, had been triple tested for the absence of live virus by its manufacturers, the National Institutes of Health, and his own research lab, and that similar testing would continue to screen out batches containing live virus.<ref>Barcousky, Len (12 April 2020). [https://www.post-gazette.com/local/pittsburgh-history/2014/04/13/Eyewitness-1954-Legendary-broadcaster-Watlter-Winchell-warns-of-killer-vaccine-for-polio/stories/201404130067 "Legendary broadcaster Watlter Winchell warns of 'killer' vaccine for polio"] ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette''. Retrieved 1 September 2021.</ref>