Les Crane

Les Crane (December 3, 1935 – July 13, 2008) was a radio announcer and television talk show host, a pioneer in interactive broadcasting who also scored an unexpected spoken word hit with his 1971 recording of the poem Desiderata, winning a "Best Spoken Word" Grammy for his efforts. "Desiderata" reached #8 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. It had great influence on mainstream society and became a counterculture anthem of sorts, and in particular introducing many to the culture of prose poetry and spoken word recording. The recording was considered inspirational and positive during a somewhat negative time. Crane died on July 13, 2008.