The Sounds of Lost Zacherle
Original Airdates: Oct. 31-Nov. 3, 2025
TVC 712.1: From January 2013: Phil Gries joins Ed for a special edition of The Sounds of Lost Television honoring John Zacherle, the popular New York TV personality known as The Cool Ghoul. At a time when horror movies were a staple of local late-night television, Zacherley set himself apart from his contemporaries with an array of zany antics that were usually far more entertaining than the films he introduced, including sound effects, props, and cleverly inserting himself into the movie (usually just before the cutaway to a commercial). Topics this segment include Zacherle’s start hosting horror movies in Philadelphia (where his on-screen persona was known as “Roland”); how Zacherle adapted his onscreen persona on WABC-TV in New York from an undertaker character he’d played on Action in the Afternoon, a daily Western soap opera that aired on WCAU-TV in Philadelphia in 1953; and Phil’s own association with Zacherle, which lasted many years.
John Zacherle hosting Shock Theatre on WABC-TV/New York circa 1958
How Zacherle Became The Cool Ghoul
Original Airdates: Oct. 31-Nov. 3, 2025
TVC 712.2: From January 2013: Phil Gries plays more audio highlights from the early television career of legendary New York TV horror movie host John Zacherle, as well as a clip from Phil’s own interview with Zacherle from October 1997, in which Zacherle discusses how he came up with many of the routines that he did on-camera. Other topics this segment include Zacherle’s other work in local television, including hosting the afternoon dance party show Disc-o-Teen; his long association with Dick Clark; and Zacherle’s popularity with many music artists, including Ringo Starr and Jerry Garcia. John Zacherle passed away on Oct. 27, 2016 at age ninety-eight.
