James Rowley French (September 23, 1928 – December 20, 2017)
[ was an American ]radio personality
A radio personality (American English) or radio presenter (British English) is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host, and in India and Pakistan as a rad ...
and producer who has written and produced, as of 2011, over 803 radio shows, including ''The Adventures of Harry Nile'' and ''The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' series.[Mclennan, Douglas (October 6, 1997) 'Retired' KIRO host French to tape 100th radio drama. '']Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington, United States.
The newspaper was foun ...
''; accessed June 21, 2017.
Life and career
French became morning DJ on KIRO (AM)
KIRO (710 kHz "Seattle Sports") is a commercial AM radio station in Seattle, Washington, owned by Salt Lake City–based Bonneville International. The station airs a sports radio format and is an ESPN Radio Network affiliate. The station's studio ...
in Seattle in 1959.[Bundy, June (January 19, 1959). Vox Jox. '']Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' He later began production of '' Imagination Theatre'', which in 2003 moved to KIXI-AM[Virgin, Bill (January 9, 2003). 'Imagination Theatre' goes to new home at KIXI. '']Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington, United States.
The newspaper was foun ...
'' His syndicated programs are now broadcast on over 120 stations in the U.S. and Canada, and are also heard on the XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio (XM) was one of the three satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Holdings. It provided pay-for-service radio, analogous to subscription cable television. Its s ...
system all over North America.
He made an appearance on NBC's ''Pandora's Clock
''Pandora's Clock'' (also known as ''Doomsday Virus'') is a 1996 NBC miniseries based on a novel by John J. Nance about a deadly virus on a Boeing 747-200 from Frankfurt to John F. Kennedy International Airport. Directed by Eric Laneuville, the f ...
'' (1996) in the role of an Army non-com. He provided the voice for the Scientist in ''Gunman Chronicles
''Gunman Chronicles'' or ''Half-Life: Gunman'' (previously ''Gunman: TC'' and simply ''Gunman'') is a first-person shooter space Western video game originally created as a mod by the now defunct Rewolf Software. Gunman Chronicles was originally ...
'', Father Grigori
This is a list of characters in the ''Half-Life (series), Half-Life'' video game series, which comprises ''Half-Life'', ''Half-Life 2'', ''Half-Life: Alyx'', and their respective expansion packs and episodes.
Introduced in ''Half-Life'' and expa ...
in ''Half-Life 2
''Half-Life 2'' is a 2004 first-person shooter game developed by Valve. It was published by Valve through its distribution service Steam. Like the original ''Half-Life'' (1998), ''Half-Life 2'' combines shooting, puzzles, and storytelling, and ...
'', the Fisherman in '' Half-Life 2: Lost Coast'', Bill in the games ''Left 4 Dead
''Left 4 Dead'' is a 2008 first-person shooter game developed by Valve South and published by Valve. It was originally released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 in November 2008 and for Mac OS X in October 2010, and is the first title in the ...
'' and '' Payday: The Heist'' (as a cameo in the opening cutscene to one of the missions), and Elder Titan in ''Dota 2
''Dota 2'' is a 2013 multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game by Valve. The game is a sequel to ''Defense of the Ancients'' (''DotA''), a community-created mod for Blizzard Entertainment's '' Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos.'' ''Dota 2' ...
''.
In late January 2017, it was formally announced via the ''Imagination Theatre'' Facebook page that, due to age and health issues, Jim French and his family would be closing down their production company, Jim French Productions, and discontinuing all broadcasts of ''Imagination Theatre'' at the end of March 2017. French died on December 20, 2017 at age 89. He was predeceased by his wife Pat, who had died earlier the same year.
Filmography
Video games
See also
* '' Imagination Theatre''
References
External links
Jim French Productions
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:French, Jim (radio)
1928 births
2017 deaths
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
American dramatists and playwrights
American male dramatists and playwrights
American male radio actors
American male video game actors
American male voice actors
People from Pasadena, California