Barry ZeVan: Not Just Another "Pretty Face," a Broadcast Legend

By Mary Em Burns

Barry ZeVan

On Sept. 29, 2013, longtime Twin Cities broadcast professional Barry ZeVan was inducted into the Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame, adding to his awards list, which also includes membership in the Montana Society of Broadcast Legends. ZeVan, who was born in Pittsburgh, began his long and storied career as a pint-sized singer on KDKA radio in 1943. Even as a 5-year-old, he knew this was something he wanted to do, so only three years later he began his professional career in the new medium of television, joining the cast of King’s Party Line, airing on what would later become New York’s WCBS-TV.

He moved to New York with his mother, and while seeking work in TV, radio and film, ZeVan also attended the Lodge Professional Children’s School, sharing classrooms with future stars Elliott Gould, Sandra Dee, Sal Mineo and others. During that time, he appeared as a regular cast member of the classic TV program Mister Peepers (1952-53), and eventually as a featured performer in TV series such as The Alcoa Hour and Studio One. It was during this time that ZeVan became a member of the big three performer’s unions: AEA (summer stock work), SAG (an appearance in The Seven Year Itch) and AFTRA (the Mister Peepers series).

A turning point came for ZeVan at age 17, when he was called in to audition for a movie role and was asked to bring friends who had a similar look (the classic 1950s teenage “hood” — including a full head of slicked dark hair). He ended up bringing friends to the audition including Sal Mineo, and unfortunately, Sal got the part! After this rejection, ZeVan decided to follow his mother’s advice to acquire some other job skills, and so he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. After completing basic training, he enrolled in USAF classes in meteorology — which later proved to be quite serendipitous! 

After his short USAF stint, ZeVan spent more time performing, including two years spent as a singer on The Perry Como Show. In 1957, ZeVan got his first taste of broadcast production in the form of an offer to work at a radio station in Helena, Montana, and then on TV in Missoula and other Montana markets, where he stayed until 1960. These jobs not only provided ZeVan with income but also with valuable lessons, as he often had to take on multiple tasks in addition to his on-camera work. They were also his first opportunity to present a weather forecast onscreen, finally giving him a chance to utilize both his performing skills and the USAF training. It was at the Missoula station where he first became known as the “Peek-a-Boo” weatherman, having had the “title” bestowed on him by station personnel as a joke. Because there was only one stationary camera used during the broadcast, he had to “duck and peek” occasionally at the camera while he was working with the weather board. This routine became one of his weatherman calling cards, and he utilized it off and on throughout his career. ZeVan later took a job at KID-TV in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and stayed with that station for five years, acting as the weatherman and hosting a talk show and a children’s show. The highlight of ZeVan’s Idaho broadcast experience came when he secured a 30-minute televised interview with former President Harry Truman, who was very candid and shared some amazing stories about his time in the White House.

Barry ZeVan and Harry Truman

The next several years in ZeVan’s broadcasting career took him to a variety of markets. It was during his tenure in Las Vegas that he gained priceless experience interviewing celebrities (including his reported favorite interviewee, Gregory Peck). ZeVan first came to Minneapolis in 1970 and spent the next four years working for KSTP-TV as a weatherman and host of the Ski Scene. Over the next nine years, he worked at union TV stations in Washington, D.C., and in Detroit. Finally, in 1983, he returned to Minnesota to take a job with KARE-TV as a weatherman and as entertainment editor — a position that allowed him to connect regularly with a wide variety of entertainers and sports celebrities, many of whom forged personal relationships with him.

As you can tell, ZeVan is a man who cannot sit still for long. Since his on-air retirement in 1987, he has continued hands-on involvement with multiple film/TV projects, including two renowned projects aired by PBS: The Remarkable Twentieth Century, for which he was producer, writer and interviewer, and Television: The First Fifty Years, which he produced and wrote. In addition to his work as a marketing/PR consultant, ZeVan keeps busy with a variety of projects, including writing for several ski-related magazines, narrating an occasional documentary, continuing his involvement with various charitable organizations, and serving on the board of our SAG-AFTRA Local. One of his proudest post-retirement projects was as executive producer, writer, director and production designer for a 2006 Telly Award-winning documentary titled American Indian Homelands (now being aired globally). He is also a devoted husband, father of two, grandfather of four and great-grandfather to seven children.

In our conversations, ZeVan noted that the years he spent working under AFTRA contracts for TV stations in Washington, D.C., and Detroit, as well as time spent doing weekend weather for ABC’s Satellite News Channel, were the highlights of his broadcast career. Although he may not be a “Peek-a-Boo” weatherman these days, ZeVan definitely is still full of surprises, and you can be sure he will continue to amass more stories in his legacy if given the chance in front of a camera or microphone or behind the scenes.

This item was originally featured in the May 2014 local newsletter.