RIP Don Cornelius

Although you probably haven't heard his name in awhile, the name "Don Cornelius" was burned into our brains on weekday afternoons (and later on in syndication on Saturday afternoons) as the legendary creator and host of the ground breaking Soul Train. Don hosted from its inception in 1971 till 1993 with a few other hosts taking over after him until the show ended in 2006.

In its 35 years in the air, Soul Train featured legendary acts such as Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, and Chaka Khan w/ Rufus. It was dubbed "The Black American Bandstand" Once you were on Soul Train, You knew you had made it. Along with its strong musical influenced it also helped shaped the fashion and dance moves of the 70's and 80's. If it was happening on Soul Train, it was happening across the map.

Soul Train's roots started in Chicago while Don Cornelius was a news reader and back up DJ on WVON. He then moved to sports at WCIU in 1967, where he was also traveling to area high schools featuring local talent calling it "The Soul Train". WCIU loved his outside work and let him bring his "Soul Train" to t.v.

The 1st Soul Train was broadcast on August 17th, 1970 as a weekly show in the afternoons. The first episode featured Jerry Butler, The Chi-lites and The Emotions. By October of that year it was syndicated in 5 major cities. (Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, Philly and San Francisco) By the end of its first season, it was picked up by the 17 remaining cities.
Today definitely marks an end of an era. D.C will surely be missed.