Gary Deeb, influential Chicago media columnist, dies at 79

It can be hard to wrap your head around the influence Gary Deeb had on the media industry — locally and nationally — when he was a columnist in Chicago from 1973 to 1983.

Newspapers, radio and network television reigned supreme prior to the rise of cable TV and the advent of the internet.

And Mr. Deeb offered readers something novel.

He lifted the industry’s veil and showed readers the inner workings of the industry, introduced its executives and gatekeepers and pointed out their blunders.

He was well-sourced, delectably readable and, at times, vicious, directing fire at on-air personalities in an “Oh, damn! Did he just say that?” style.

The singers, variety show hosts and siblings Donny and Marie Osmond were “twerps.”

The singer and actor Shaun Cassidy was “a slack-jawed wimp.”

He