Radio Legend Paul Harvey Dies

Feb. 28, 2009— -- Paul Harvey, once known as the most listened to man in radio, has died at the age of 90 at a hospital near his winter home in Phoenix.

Harvey's career in radio spanned more than 70 years, and his shows "News & Comment" and "Rest of the Story" made him a familiar voice in Americans' homes across the country.

His death comes nine months after that of his wife, Lynne Cooper Harvey, whom he often called "Angel" on air, and who was also his business partner and the first producer ever inducted in the the Radio Hall of Fame.

"My father and mother created from thin air what one day became radio and television news," Paul Harvey Jr. said. "So, in the past year, an industry has lost its godparents. And, today millions have lost a friend."

From his humble beginnings as a teenager helping out cleaning up at a local radio station, Harvey went on to have his broadcasts carried by 1,350 commercial radio stations, as well as 400 stations of the Armed Forces Radio Service, and was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1990.

"Paul Harvey was one of the most gifted and beloved broadcasters in our nation's history," said ABC Radio Networks President Jim Robinson in a statement released today. "As he delivered the news each day with his own unique style and commentary, his voice became a trusted friend in American households.

"Countless millions of listeners were both informed and entertained by his 'News & Comment' and 'Rest of the Story' features, Robinson said. "Even after the passing of his loving wife Angel in May 2008, Paul would not slip quietly into retirement as he continued to take the microphone and reach out to his audience. We will miss our dear friend tremendously and are grateful for the many years we were so fortunate to have known him. Our thoughts and prayers are now with his son Paul Jr. and the rest of the Harvey family."

"Paul Harvey is, without question, one of the most influential Americans of our time," Traug Keller, then president of ABC Radio Networks said in 2000, when Harvey signed a new 10-year contract with the network. "In fact, political adviser and communications specialist Frank Mankiewicz noted that Paul Harvey's name appears most often in lists of the 10 most influential opinion-shapers of each decade since the 1930s."