User:Billysea

WILLIAM S. “BILL CHERRY”

Author and radio-television personality Bill Cherry was born in Galveston, Texas June 20, 1940. He began working as a radio disc jockey in 1954 at KGBC-AM. He wrote his first piece for the "Sunday Houston Chronicle Rotogravure Magazine" on April 25, 1957.

While attending Tulane University in New Orleans, he hosted the famed American Airlines “Music ‘til Dawn” program on WRR. American Airlines aired this program with different hosts in every major market that the airlines served. Bill is a Premier Member of the Texas Radio Hall of Fame.

In 1961, he married St. Louis' famous classical and jazz concert pianist, Judy Fosher. They traveled as a team, each playing different venues. Bill performed at the piano at such spots as the St. Louis Playboy Club, New York Waldorf-Astoria, Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, Blackstone Hotel in Chicago and the Chase-Park Plaza Hotel in St. Louis. Judy played as a classical soloist with symphonies and as a jazz pianist.

Judy passed away from an unexpected heart attack in 1963 at 24-years of age. Bill returned to the University of North Texas in Denton for additional education. In 1967 he went to work in the securities industry, and later the commercial lending field. In 1970, he married an accountant, Sandy McKnight. They divorced in 1990.

In 1980, he joined Columbia Communities in Houston where he was vice president of residential home building.

In 1985 he founded The Old House Company Real Estate Brokers in Galveston and Houston, where he concentrated his practice toward the field of historical home and commercial building restoration. It was the largest real estate firm in Galveston.

He wrote a very popular weekly column for The Galveston County News for ten years titled, "Bill Cherry’s Galveston Memories." A book of some 60 of those columns was published in 2000 by VanJus Press (ISBN 0-966438-4-4). Thousands have sold.

In 2001, he began doing on camera television features for News 24-Houston that were of a venue similar to his newspaper columns.

Now living in Dallas with his third wife, Patty, his college sweetheart, he continues to write, do voice-overs for commercial films, and plays piano for weddings, receptions and dinner parties. He is a real estate consultant.

Education

Tulane University, New Orleans. University of North Texas, Denton. Washington University, St. Louis Rice University, Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Administration, Houston. American Institute of Banking

Recognitions

Marquis "Who's Who in America," 61st Edition; "Who's Who of Professionals and Executives," "Who's Who in Business and Finance," and Who's Who in American Real Estate" since 1980.

Professional Schools

Elkins School of Broadcasting (1957), American Institute of Banking School of Commercial Lending (1980).

Licenses

Federal Communications Commission 1st Class Radio-Telephone Engineer's License (1957), Texas Real Estate Broker (1964), Texas licensed Secondary Education Teacher (1966), NASD Registered Financial Principal (1967), State of Texas Central Appraisal District Arbitrator (2005),

Church Membership

Church of the Incarnation (Episcopal), Dallas

Professional Affiliations

Preservation Dallas Historic Home Specialist, Dallas-Fort Worth Professional Musicians Association, Local 72-147 AFM, Premier Member (No. D0096) of Texas Radio Hall of Fame (2005).

Business and Civic Associations

Rotarian since 1970, Mardi Gras Knights of Momus (1985 Founding Board Member; Member, Executive Committee), Preservation Dallas, Lifetime Member of the Galveston Historical Foundation, and National Trust for Historic Preservation; former Member Galveston County Central Appraisal District Appraisal Review Board;

Other Affiliations

Host of the famed American Airlines' "Music 'til Dawn" radio program in New Orleans while in college; newspaper history weekly columnist for "Galveston County Daily News" for ten years; author of Bill Cherry's Galveston Memories, published by VanJus Press in 2000; former on-camera personality for News-24 Houston; professional jazz and dinner music pianist, performing regularly for more than 40 years; former adjunct professor at St. Thomas University, Houston and Galveston College (economics and real estate investments); after dinner story teller and motivational speaker for civic clubs, churches and business groups.

Sources: http://www.texasescapes.com, http://www.billcherrypianotuner.com, http://www.galvnews.com