“Mr. State Fair” had lengthy career in media, making his first television broadcast from the Iowa State Fair in 1946. He began the Bill Riley Iowa State Fair Talent Search in 1959, rounding up young winners from across the state to compete at the Iowa State Fair every summer for more than 40 years. Along the way, Anne and Bill Riley established a fund “to inspire and encourage Iowa projects such as those accomplished by Bill, Anne and thousands of Iowans working together over the years. ” Bill Sr. led fund raising to build Des Moines’ Blank Park Zoo and the Science Center of Iowa, as well as championing bicycling and trails for Iowa.