 |
Nathaniel "Magnificent" Montague (born in New Jersey, January 11, 1928[1]), is an American R&B disc jockey notable not only for the soul music records he helped promote on KGFJ Los Angeles and WWRL New York City, but also his trademark catch-phrase, "Burn, baby! Burn!" that became the rallying cry of the 1965 Watts riots. Following criticism that this phrase had inadvertently stirred up rioters, Montague advocated non-violence and urged young listeners to pursue their education, coining the new phrase "Learn, baby! Learn!"
Semi-retired by the mid-1970s, Montague relocated to Palm Springs, California, where he was instrumental in the launch of easy listening KPLM, today a successful country music station. His was the first radio station construction permit issued to an African-American in four decades.
Montague's catchphrase was referenced in the Apollo 11 software code that took Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the Moon in 1969: "BURN, BABY, BURN – MASTER IGNITION ROUTINE". In 2009, on the 40th anniversary of the first moonwalk, Don Eyles attributed this code reference to Montague.[2]
The catchphrase would also be referenced in the 1976 hit "Disco Inferno" by the Trammps.
His autobiography, Burn, Baby! Burn! (ISBN 978-0252028731) was published in October 2003 by the University of Illinois Press.