 He briefly attended Wright Junior College and then enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1952.On becoming a columnist, Royko drew on experiences from his childhood.He began his newsman's career as a columnist in 1955 for The O'Hare News (Air Force base newspaper), the City News Bureau of Chicago and Lerner Newspapers' "Lincoln-Belmont Booster" before working at the "Chicago Daily News" as a reporter, becoming an irritant to the City's politicians with penetrating and skeptical questions and reports.