Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene, Jr. (January 23, 1931 â€" January 10,
1984), was an American television and radio talk-show host. A two-time
Emmy Award-winner, Greene overcame drug addiction and a prison
sentence for armed robbery to become one of the most prominent media
personalities in Washington, D.C.. On his shows, Greene often
discussed issues such as racism, poverty, drug usage, and current
events among others.Born Ralph Waldo Greene, Jr. in Washington D.C.,
the son of Ralph Waldo Greene, Sr. and Jacqueline Abernathy Greene, he
was raised by his maternal grandmother, Margaret "Maggie" Floyd, who
he referred to as "A'nt Pig" (Aunt Pig).Greene attended Stevens
Elementary School and Cardozo Senior High School in Washington. He
dropped out of high school in the ninth grade and enlisted in the
United States Army at age 16 in 1947. He served in the Korean War as a
medic and was honorably discharged from service in 1953.In January
1960, Greene was convicted of armed robbery in Washington and
sentenced to ten years imprisonment at Lorton Reformatory in Fairfax
County, Virginia. There he became the prison disc jockey, which made
him popular and well-liked by fellow prisoners. His loquaciousness
soon proved beneficial in other ways; in May 1966, Greene persuaded a
fellow inmate to climb to the top of the prison water tower and
threaten suicide, so that Greene would be able to "save his life" by
talking him down. "It took me six months to get him to go up there,"
he later recalled on his talk show. This act, combined with his
generally good behavior, earned him a reduction in his prison sentence
and parole the following week.
1984), was an American television and radio talk-show host. A two-time
Emmy Award-winner, Greene overcame drug addiction and a prison
sentence for armed robbery to become one of the most prominent media
personalities in Washington, D.C.. On his shows, Greene often
discussed issues such as racism, poverty, drug usage, and current
events among others.Born Ralph Waldo Greene, Jr. in Washington D.C.,
the son of Ralph Waldo Greene, Sr. and Jacqueline Abernathy Greene, he
was raised by his maternal grandmother, Margaret "Maggie" Floyd, who
he referred to as "A'nt Pig" (Aunt Pig).Greene attended Stevens
Elementary School and Cardozo Senior High School in Washington. He
dropped out of high school in the ninth grade and enlisted in the
United States Army at age 16 in 1947. He served in the Korean War as a
medic and was honorably discharged from service in 1953.In January
1960, Greene was convicted of armed robbery in Washington and
sentenced to ten years imprisonment at Lorton Reformatory in Fairfax
County, Virginia. There he became the prison disc jockey, which made
him popular and well-liked by fellow prisoners. His loquaciousness
soon proved beneficial in other ways; in May 1966, Greene persuaded a
fellow inmate to climb to the top of the prison water tower and
threaten suicide, so that Greene would be able to "save his life" by
talking him down. "It took me six months to get him to go up there,"
he later recalled on his talk show. This act, combined with his
generally good behavior, earned him a reduction in his prison sentence
and parole the following week.
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