Jon Daye explored political and civic issues on Chicago television and radio over several decades, and once even ran for office himself.
The originator of a long-running awards program for African-American women, Mr. Daye, 67, died of complications from heart surgery Thursday, July 8, at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, said his fiancee, Bernadine Whiteurst.
Hosting programs including “On Target” and “Straight Talk” on cable television Channel 25 and WVON-AM, Mr. Daye led his guests in free-ranging discussions of hot-button topics. He was straightforward in his opinions and was at times an outspoken critic of Mayor Richard M. Daley and other city leaders.
Mr. Daye ran unsuccessfully for Cook County treasurer on the ticket of the Harold Washington Party, which was created after Washington’s 1987 death and fielded a slate of candidates for the 1990 election.
In the late 1970s, Mr. Daye started the Black Women’s Hall of Fame Foundation to honor African-American women for their accomplishments professionally and in community services. At the time, he felt honors were too focused on women in the entertainment field only, he told the Tribune in 1982.
“I knew that black women in other fields were doing important work. I felt they needed a showcase,” he told the paper.
The annual event morphed into the Kizzy Award, named after a character played by Leslie Uggams in the popular television miniseries “Roots.” The Kizzy awards continued to be issued until the early 2000s.
The son of a minister, Mr. Daye’s real name was Charles Alexander III. He was born in Mississippi, grew up in Helena, Ark., and graduated from high school in Buffalo, N.Y., as his father’s assignments led to frequent moves.
After high school, he enlisted in the Marines, serving in Okinawa during a four-year hitch. It was an experience and affiliation he remained proud of for the rest of his life.
He attended broadcasting school in Chicago and worked briefly as a program director here before joining WDAO in Dayton, Ohio, an FM station with a rhythm and blues format. He took the professional name Jonny Daye, which he maintained throughout his career.
As an on-air talent, he started out playing music but moved into a more issues-oriented format. After the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed in 1968, Mr. Daye’s cool and collected broadcast helped calm a jittery city, Whiteurst said.
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He returned to Chicago in the early 1970s. Mr. Daye’s father, the Rev. Charles Alexander Jr., was a pastor for many years at Mount Vernon Baptist Church on the South Side.
Mr. Daye’s first two marriages ended in divorce.
He is also survived by two daughters, Christy Robinson and Tracy Landing; a son, Anthony; a brother, John; nine grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.
Services were held.