Meet O’Neill Williams: TV and radio show host

We had the good fortune of connecting with O’Neill Williams and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi O’Neill, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
Atlanta born, bred and educated. Declined offers of corporate transfers and promotions because it separated my children from their grandparents who were local and the grandparents from my children. The Family is what matters, not corporate success. Declined first promotion to corporate management when 22 years old then deflected similar promotions repeatedly to Charlotte, Jacksonville, Birmingham, Tampa, Chicago and Knoxville, etc. I always thought it was a greater challenge to progress and maintain growth and success locally and personally instead of moving my family across the country.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
See O’Neill Williams at wikipedia: O’Neill Williams, born in Atlanta in October 1943, is host of O’Neill Outside, an outdoor based television series on to 200,000,000 subscriber households weekly and “O’Neill Outside” radio broadcasts to 38 states via WSB Radio in Atlanta and is in syndication nationally via the 155 SportsMap Nation affiliates. “O’Neill Outside” radio is the #1 outdoor based live radio talk show in the country. Raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Williams graduated from Emory University with a degree in Economics.[2] He is a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity and was awarded Significant Sigma Chi status in 2013, one of only 1500 Sigma Chi national members awarded such since the founding of the fraternity in 1935. Williams has been a television fishing personality for 40 years with shows titled Fishing in Georgia, Southern Fishing, Reel Adventures, Adventures Afield and O’Neill Outside. Williams is a body builder and finished third in the Mr. Atlanta Bodybuilding Championship at age 43 in 1987. He was a Georgia All State High School Association baseball player at the shortstop position and set a modern-day high school career batting average of .567 which has stood unbroken for over 60 years. He’s married to high school classmate, Gail (Williams) Williams, and have been married 55 years since June, 1965. They have two daughters, Amy Williams Johnson and Allison Williams Moravec, who are married and live in the same areas in Georgia, three grandchildren who also live locally. Williams’ grandson, Travis Johnson, is co-host of both the television and radio shows and is a professional Whitetail Deer guide in Texas and Oklahoma. Williams also hosts O’Neill Outside Radio on WSB, which is broadcast to 38 states live every Saturday morning at 4AM to 6AM has a weekly audience of over 800,000 fishermen and hunters and is syndicated nationally via the 155 SportsMap Affiliates. It is the number one live outdoor based radio talk show in the USA and has been airing weekly for 28 years.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We’d fish for Stripers in Lanier, Trout in the Soque River, Redfish at St. Simon’s Island and hunt quail and Whitetail Deer in October.  Fishing guide information abounds on the Internet and contact is easily accomplished.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My wife, of course, who always supported me and dished out the confidence required to make our efforts successful.

Website: oneilloutside.com
Facebook: O’Neill Williams
Youtube: O’Neill Outside