FRITZ THE NITE OWL – Frederick C. Peerenboom aka Fritz the Nite Owl, lasted so long as a Movie Host that it would take a multi-volume set of books to truly do justice to his career. Consider this blog post a mere scratching of the surface.
Peerenboom was born December 27th, 1934 and is still at large as of this writing. He served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps until his honorable discharge in 1959. From there he worked in various broadcasting jobs “up and down the dial” as the saying goes, landing in Columbus, Ohio in time to begin hosting the Saturday night Bad Movie Show on WBNS-TV in September 1974.
Double Chiller Theatre aired a Double Feature beginning at 11:30pm. Over time it became better known as Nite Owl Theatre.
Fritz the Nite Owl wore the distinctive Owl Glasses that defined his Movie Host “look” to this very day. In multiple interviews over the years Peerenboom has expressed relief that the station rejected the initial plans to have him wear a full owl costume.
Let’s face it, the Owl Glasses let Fritz retain the oddball cool air he had cultivated as a radio DJ playing pure, deep-cut jazz in Columbus. That initial fan base would likely have rejected a man in a full body bird costume like a college sports mascot. Continue reading
