Born in Buffalo, New York, Striker attended Lafayette High School and the University of Buffalo where he was a member of the Theta Chi Fraternity. He dropped out of college, first serving a brief stint in New York City with an amateur theatrical company. Returning to Buffalo, he joined the staff of radio station WEBR (now WNED), working as an announcer. In 1929, he moved to WTAM in Cleveland, Ohio, where he served as announcer, continuity writer, and wrote his first radio drama script, a biography of Stephen Foster. Lured back to WEBR as station manager, Striker wrote material ranging from skits to half-hour mysteries and Western scripts.