A broadcaster, politician, singer, saxophonist and entrepreneur, Victor John Tedesco began his career at age 9, selling newspapers in St. Paul during the Great Depression.

Tedesco, who represented the East Side on the St. Paul City Council for 20 years, was recognized as one of the most colorful DFL leaders of his era. He died Monday at age 92.

With his brothers, Tedesco owned and operated 11 radio stations throughout the Upper Midwest from the 1940s to the early 1970s. He also played saxophone with the big band that bore his name.

He had recently injured his knee in a fall and was in and out of United Hospital and a transitional care unit, his family said. He had outlived brothers Nicola and Albert, sister Mary Gentile, daughter Elizabeth, and Florence Tedesco, his wife of 68 years.

The son of Italian immigrants from the province of Calabria, Tedesco was born in St. Paul's Swede Hollow neighborhood in 1922 at a time when the area was heavily Italian. He graduated from Johnson High School in 1941, by which time he was already singing and playing his saxophone in night clubs. He was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 2009.

Tedesco spent four years in the U.S. Army, serving as a tank instructor stateside during World War II. After the war, Tedesco married Florence Mary Valento. The two remained together until her death in 2007.

Tedesco served on the St. Paul City Council from 1966 to 1986 as an at-large member, later representing Ward 7 in the city's southeast corner. He was council president from 1979 to 1986. Tedesco was re-elected to the city council 10 times, at a time when terms were two years long. He also served as commissioner of Parks, Recreation and Public Buildings from 1966 to 1972. His supporters credited him with preserving park areas in St. Paul that could have been paved over for development. Former St. Paul City Council President Kathy Lantry recalled asking for Tedesco's political backing when she launched her first campaign in 1995. Her mother, Marilyn Lantry, had worked for Tedesco as a legislative aide from 1972 to 1980, before launching her own successful campaign for a state senate seat. "He was a huge part of my life -- one of the first people I talked to when I decided to run for council," Kathy Lantry said. Just an absolute joy of a man, always happy and singing. He was really a wonderful, wonderful guy." Marilyn Lantry recalled Tedesco as a "a tremendous boss, happy all the time." He also had a humorous side, she said. From the 1940s until 2014, Tedesco played big band and swing music with the eponymous musical outfit the Vic Tedesco Band. In 1951, the three Tedesco brothers founded station WCOW in South St. Paul, which eventually became contemporary "Top 40" music station KDWB. They later added KTCR Minneapolis, which added an FM signal and ultimately became the light alternative-music station Cities 97. In 1963, Tedesco began Impala Productions with Don Riley and Jack Douglas. The company aired 15-minute sports broadcasts on the radio and produced the newspaper Touchdown USA, which covered professional football. His cable television group, Vic Tedesco Productions, made local shows. In 2006, he authored the paperback memoir "I Always Sang for My Father, or Anyone Who Would Listen" with Star Tribune reporter Trudi Hahn, which chronicled his life of public service. Tedesco also served on the Board of Directors for St. Ambrose Church of St. Paul, Phalen Bank and Metro Cable Channel 6. "When he would play with his band at the senior citizen places, he would take off his wig, say it was made in Japan, and throw it back on. Everybody got a kick out of that, because he was pretty bald." "He never really had to campaign, because everybody loved him, especially on the East Side," Marilyn Lantry added. "He could have been in office for life." Tony Tedesco, a senior prosecutor with the city attorney's office, said his father's political influence was based on earning the trust of those around him by celebrating the city he grew up in. "I would just say that he very much loved life and loved people," Tony Tedesco said. "He really loved the city and wanted to do good for the city, especially his home area, the East Side. He was a great father, a good provider, very strong moral background, very committed to his family and his church."

Former St. Paul City Council Member Vic Tedesco gained worldwide attention in 1968, when newspapers published this photo of a Como Zoo snake weigh-in that went awry. For the weigh-in -- and some free publicity -- zoo officials wrapped their 16.5-foot-long python, Julie, around Tedesco as he stood on a scale. But when Julie started to tighten her grip on Tedesco's neck, zookeepers rushed in to free him. Julie, minus Tedesco's weight, came in at 133 pounds.