Dick Baker(1916-1975)

Richard Evans Baker was born in Chicago on May 2, 1916. By age three he was already banging on his mothers piano. As he grew older he learned to play "by ear". He learned the piano by watching and listening to his mother play church music. Dick became quite good at the piano without taking any lessons. He was so good then, that he started accompanying his mother. Singing and playing the piano at church became a regular routine. In his teens he became interested in playing jazz music. He played in a neighborhood band, playing at local fund-raising events and social doings. By the time he started high school he was already cutting classes to play in road trips with the Royal Ambassadors stage band. On some of these road trips he had the chance to perform in vaudeville houses. One of the more famous acts he was part of was the Charlie Mack Review. In the year 1936 he married Ruth Fisher. Traveling became tiresome after a while for the married couple. They decided to stay in one place in Chicago. Dick took a job doing a two-hour radio show called "Sunday Morning Party" on WJJD that he DJ'ed. He had some experience doing a little radio in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (circa 1932) playing in a band during his "road trip" days. It was during his early days with radio that he gotten his nickname "Two Ton Baker". Fellow worker Irving Wagner tagged him with the name and it stuck. Dick added "The Music Maker" which is how he introduced himself on his radio show. Dick Baker became so popular with his radio show that the Mutual Broadcasting System started more radio shows featuring "Two Ton" Baker the Music Maker. For a while you could hear Two Ton Baker just about everyday at all different times of the day. In 1945 the musical group, The Hoosier Hot Shots and Two Ton Baker recorded the song "Sioux City Sue" on Decca records . The song became a hit. Other notable songs that Two Ton Baker recorded on Mercury Records, himself, were "The Soup Song", "I'm a Lonely Little Petunia (in a onion patch)", "Civilization", I'm a Little Teapot", The Cocoanut Song", "Zip-a-Dee Doo Dah", Dancers In Love", "Kokomo, Indiana", "Music! Music! Music!", "Rickety Rickshaw Man", Red's Back In Town", "Polly Wolly Doodle", "The Work Song (from Cinderella)", and many more.

When the decision to start WGN-TV Channel 9 for the first time April 4, 1948, it was Two Ton Baker who was the first person to appear on WGN-TV, WGN-TV Salute to Chicago (1948). The show he hosted was called Wonder House (1948). Bakers most famous television show would be "The Happy Pirates" (1952). But everyone seems to remember Two Ton as the spokesperson for the Riverview Amusement Park commercials that he did (1957 - 1962). In every commercial you would hear him say; "Laugh your troubles away!" while he was rolling down in a roller-coaster ride. His only venture into movies was a small part in the film titled Mickey One (1965). In it he plays the part of a Night Club owner. The last television show for Baker was Corral 26 (1965-66, WCIU) on Chicago's Channel 26. A "UHF" station. This show would present old westerns and was hosted by Two Ton Baker. When the television show jobs ended, Baker played piano at night clubs throughout the Chicagoland area. He was a regular at the time (circa 1972), at one of the more famous night clubs, Mangam's Chateau. Dick Baker died at his home in Hazel Crest on May 4, 1975. He was 59.