Former radio host Harry Teinowitz, a Chicago original and ‘man of the people,' dies at 64

New York Times

7 days ago

In his heyday on sports radio, Harry Teinowitz was at his happiest when he was pitching ideas in show meetings. He just loved to be heard.
'He just had a million ideas and he always wanted to be funny,' his old co-host Carmen DeFalco said. 'He was always thinking of silly, creative, goofy things to do and he believed in all of them. He always committed to the bit. If it flopped, he didn't care. He just wanted to try.'
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On the air Wednesday, another former co-host on ESPN 1000 John Jurkovic smiled as he remembered one of Teinowitz's catchphrases: 'Why don't we try it?'
That phrase epitomized Teinowitz, a forever stand-up comic who was always working a room.
'He truly was a big 'idea man,'' DeFalco said. 'He thought every idea was great and funny.'
DeFalco and Jurkovic smiled as they eulogized their friend on the radio Wednesday after Teinowitz passed away at 64. He was found unresponsive at his home on Tuesday morning, his younger brother Danny Teinowitz said.
.@carmendefalco and @Jurko64 remember their great friend and our teammate Harry Teinowitz.
Watch- https://t.co/9y6oXoFEJv
Listen- https://t.co/aqKo6JEKZ6 pic.twitter.com/9xLlGy5BFL
— ESPN Chicago (@ESPN1000) July 16, 2025
Teinowitz was an actor, comedian, sports media personality and most recently, a playwright whose greatest fame locally came as one of the three co-hosts on ESPN 1000's hit 'Mac, Jurko & Harry' show, also known as 'The Afternoon Saloon.'
He hosted the massively popular drive-time radio show with Dan McNeil and Jurkovic from 2001 through 2009 and then with DeFalco and Jurkovic from 2009-13.
Teinowitz's unyielding sense of humor and encyclopedic knowledge of Chicago sports made him an essential member of those shows. His humanity made him relatable.
At restaurants and bars across Chicago, he was the life of the party. From radio advertisers to North Side bartenders, he knew everyone's name. He was a bon vivant and a friend to all, but that came at a cost.
Teinowitz's late-night carousing was a punchline for many years on the radio show, but his life changed forever in 2011 when he was pulled over in Skokie and arrested for a DUI. He was suspended by the ESPN-owned radio station and went to rehab, returning to host 'Carmen, Jurko and Harry' for two more years. He was let go by the station in March 2013.
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He later hosted for WGN Radio's short-lived sports station, among other jobs, but never reached the level of success he had at AM 1000.
Along with his former radio partner Spike Manton, Teinowitz wrote a play about getting sober called 'When Harry Met Rehab.' It opened in Chicago in December 2021 and had a run in New York City in the fall of 2024.
When we talked in 2021 before a performance of his play, a contrite Teinowitz reflected about how a tow-truck driver who called the cops on him in 2011 actually saved his life.
'You know, I went to bed that night, thinking that tow-truck driver was probably the biggest (jerk) in the world,' Teinowitz said. 'And now I look back on it, and I think if it weren't for him, I never go to rehab. And never figure out what I figured out. And I'm dead by now.'
Health Update:A year ago today @DineeMD spent 10 1/2 hours saving my life by switching livers for me while no one was looking. My friends & family were unbelievable through 7 failed attempts to get a Liver. You guys have been awesome too. But it's the NURSES I can't thank enough. pic.twitter.com/SqBchQH76B
— Harry Teinowitz (@HeyTweetHarry) June 25, 2024
Teinowitz had been in poor health for years and had heart valve surgery and a liver transplant in 2023.
'He was on a clock,' McNeil said in a phone conversation. 'He's been on a clock for several years.'
Two days before he passed, former ESPN Chicago reporter Nick Friedell texted Teinowitz from The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, N.J., because Teinowitz was a diehard Bruce Springsteen fan. Other friends, like WGN's Dave Eanet, saw him over the weekend.
But when McNeil talked to Teinowitz on Sunday and said they should've gotten together for the 2005 White Sox reunion, he thought Teinowitz was unusually curt. It worried him.
'He said, 'The last thought on my mind lately has been the '05 White Sox,'' McNeil said. 'That's not Harry. Harry was still gung-ho about every (Chicago team).'
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He is survived by his children, Lucy and Reggie; two brothers, Danny and Billy; and a sister, Nancy.
'Harry was the best big brother I could ever imagine having,' Danny Teinowitz said. 'He was selfless, he was sweet, he was generous and very, very funny.'
Teinowitz was a Chicago original. He grew up in Glencoe and graduated from Columbia College. His father, Phil Teinowitz, who died at 92 in 2019, was a prosperous real-estate developer and attorney who also invested in racehorses, such as Cryptoclearance, which finished fourth in the 1987 Kentucky Derby.
Teinowitz had a love for horse racing and even wrote about it for The Athletic.
They're giving away money tomorrow at iconic #churchilldowns in #KentuckyDerby151 It's supposed to pour tomorrow in Louisville. Sitting at 18 to 1 is the great, great, great, greatgrandson of Cryptoclearance, the number one mudder of his time, #Tiztastic should love the slop! 🏇🏻
— Harry Teinowitz (@HeyTweetHarry) May 2, 2025
In his acting days, he had a bit part in 'Risky Business' where he complimented Tom Cruise's character on having a party with high school students and prostitutes.
'Excellent idea, Joel,' a smiling Teinowitz said. 'Really excellent.'
While he had a bigger role in the 1980 comedy 'Up The Academy,' he always lamented that he should've had Curtis Armstrong's part in 'Risky Business,' which in his mind would've led to him being a star in 'Revenge of the Nerds.' But he wound up making it in Chicago radio. He worked with Jonathon Brandmeier and Danny Bonaduce on The Loop and hosted with Manton on WMVP before his big break.
The 'Mac, Jurko and Harry' show launched on May 3, 2001, with great hopes and no guarantees. But it became a hit. These three large men filled a small studio with humor, tension and $400 lunches catered by local restaurants.
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McNeil was the acerbic sports radio veteran, while Jurkovic was the colorful recently retired NFL player. Teinowitz was the everyman, a fan of all teams, even both the Cubs and White Sox. His privileged upbringing and cockeyed optimism made him a target for his co-hosts, but to people who worked at the station, he was always warm and engaging.
Got the call today that my good friend Harry Teinowitz passed away, & my heart just sank. He believed in me before I believed in myself. Always lifting me up, always in my corner. Harry was the kind of friend everyone hopes to have in their life. 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/HcsWGBboAG
— Jarrett Payton (@paytonsun) July 16, 2025
He also knew his sports. He memorized jersey numbers, he knew dates and anniversaries. His 'Harry's almanac' segments were a staple of his shows. He became friends with athletes like Steve Trachsel and Kelly Wunsch.
'Harry's Chicago sports acumen was aces,' McNeil said.
'Harry was an absolute necessity,' Jurkovic said on the air Wednesday. 'You had to have him to make that thing work. Without him, it wouldn't not have worked to the level that worked.'
While Teinowitz courted laughs, the on-air tension between Teinowitz and McNeil was one of the reasons for the original Afternoon Saloon show's success.
'I think the main reason people listened is they wanted to hear when Mac and I were going to kill each other,' Teinowitz told me years ago.
The two argued on and off the air and even shoved each other in the studio once, leading to joint suspensions. At the 2005 World Series, they yelled at each other so loud in the radio booth that the players noticed. But Teinowitz and McNeil became closer in recent years, talking regularly and meeting for meals. McNeil said he thought Teinowitz had been feeling better about his life.
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'I'm hanging on to the idea that he became 'Happy Harry' again for about 18 months,' McNeil said.
Danny Teinowitz said his brother was still working on different projects, including a movie screenplay.
'He had done so much, but he had so much left to do,' he said.
Teinowitz's funeral is scheduled for Monday in Wilmette, and friends and family will gather at a local restaurant to celebrate his life. You can bet everyone will be laughing about something Teinowitz said or did, doing impressions of him and retelling his old bits. It will be his kind of party.
'He was a man of the people,' McNeil said. 'He loved life in Chicago, and he loved sports fans. We should do a toast to Harry Teinowitz one day every year for people who celebrate what's good in our city. That's his legacy.'
(Top photo, from left, of John Jurkovic, Dan McNeil and Harry Teinowitz: Courtesy of ESPN 1000)