Name: Stamz, Richard (1906-2007)

Historical Note: Richard E. Stamz (1906-2007) was a broadcaster and active member of the Chicago’s Englewood community. His1950s radio show on WGES, “Open the Door, Richard,” helped promote urban black musical genres such as soul, blues, and gospel, and it was a prominent outlet for advertisers to reach African American audiences. Stamz was born in Memphis, Tennessee on April 10, 1906. He attended LeMoyne-Own School before moving to Chicago in the early 1920s. Stamz’s involvement with broadcasting started in the 1940s as a driver of a sound truck – a travelling billboard equipped with speakers which played records to accompany advertisements. He began working for WGES 1390 in 1949 as a sound engineer and he used his sound truck to help Jack L. Cooper broadcast Negro League baseball games. In 1955, Satmz’s radio show, “Open the Door, Richard,” premiered. Dubbing himself as the “Crown Prince of Soul,” Stamz’s popularity as a disc jockey led to a television show, and on January 21, 1956, “Richard’s Open Door” premiered on WBKB TV-7 Chicago. The 30 minute variety show - which featured interviews, dance numbers, and news reports – lasted 13 episodes. Stamz left WGES in 1962, working in sales and promotion at WVON and Columbia Recording Company, and started his own record label and artist management company. Throughout his life in Chicago, Stamz was heavily involved in the Englewood community. He was director of the Englewood Crime Prevention Project, Co-chairman of the 7^th District Steering Committee, and a member of the Citizens Participation Advocacy Program, the Alliance of Shaping a Safer City, and the United Block Clubs.

Records or Manuscript Collections Created by Stamz, Richard