Adrian Cronauer, the military radio DJ who came up with the ‘Good Morning, Vietnam’ catchphrase made famous by Robin Williams in the film of the same name, has died aged 79. Cronauer died from an age-related illness. He had lived in Troutville, Virginia, and died at a local nursing home, his family sources said. After the military, he was involved in works in radio, television and advertising field. .During his service as a US Air Force sergeant in Vietnam in 1965 and 1966, Cronauer opened his Armed Forces Radio show with the phrase, "Goooooood morning, Vietnam!".

Williams made the refrain famous in the 1987 film, loosely based on Cronauer's time in Saigon. The film was a departure from other Vietnam war movies that focused on bloody realism, such as the Academy Award-winning Platoon. Instead, it was about irreverent young people fighting the military establishment.

When the film was released, the presidential campaign of the Democrat Jesse Jackson called asking if Cronauer would help out. The conversation died quickly after Cronauer asked the caller if she realized he was a Republican. In 1992, George HW Bush’s re-election campaign taped a TV ad slamming Bill Clinton’s draft record. In the ad, Cronauer accused Clinton of lying.

Cronauer was from Pittsburgh, the son of a steelworker and a schoolteacher. After the military, he worked in radio, television, and advertising. Cronauer attended the University of Pennsylvania’s law school and went into the legal profession, working in communications law and later handling prisoner-of-war issues for the Pentagon.