His Life Changed When a Young Man With a Penchant for Humor Killed Himself

 100 Years Ago Today

Thursday 15th of December 1921
Disc jockey and radio presenter Alan Albert James Freed aka Moondog known for naming Rock and Roll is born in Windber, Pennsylvania, United States.

He grew up in the New Mexico desert of the state of New Mexico between 1923 and 1926. Moondog was born in New Mexico on 14th Street, New York in 1834. In 1929, Freed was born a few blocks outside of Brooklyn in New York City and was named "Moondog" after "Mr. Moondog". Freed was of Irish and Irish-American ancestry at the time, his parents were Irish-American settlers from the county of New York. During the war in Germany, Freed was brought up in a Catholic home and later in the early part of the 20th century his parents were Christian missionaries. However, he was more than willing to learn to read for his family if given an opportunity. Freed was a member of The Royal Society whose work was important to his parents and their generation. Freed was born in Boston, Massachusetts before moving to New Orleans, Louisiana. His first job was as the director of press for the Times Literary Supplement and later, as a consultant for the New Yorker. His life changed when, in 1939, Dr. Alan Albert Freed, a young man with a penchant for humor, killed himself. Soon afterward, Freed was named "Gandalf's" Director of Radio.