Dave's Radio Career
I'm currently taking a hiatus from radio, not sure when or if I'll return.
Dave "on the air" in the Live-95 studios, October, 2000.
KPSC/KCRZ
The first question I'm asked when I tell people I've been a radio disc jockey for 17 years is "where did you go to school"? I didn't! Actually, my home was my classroom. When I was 14 my dad gave me a build-it-yourself AM radio transmitter from Radio Shack as a get well present. It was originally intended to broadcast about 100 feet, was powered by a 9 volt battery, and had a small 10' antenna. Soon, I had it hooked up to a CB power supply, and the antenna was roughly 200 feet long, strung between power poles in my backyard. It broadcast approximately 3 city blocks. The station was originally in a small A-frame playhouse next to my parent's house. I was soon hooking up microphones, cassette players and turntables to my new toy, and magically I had a radio station. KPSC were the original call letters, and I broadcasted on 1050khz. The P stands for my last name, while the S & C stood for my friend's first names. It was the summer of 1983, and I was 14 at the time, just ready to enter the 9th grade. It wasn't long before I grew tired of my friends asking why the couldn't hear my station where they lived. One of my older radio friends picked me up a 20 watt AM transmitter in a state auction for $50. It had been used to broadcast road conditions on mountain passes. After building a 100' antenna out of 1/2 inch copper tubing attached to a tree, I was soon broadcasting 5 miles! This was totally illegal, and I sold commercials and printed playlists, and gave out business cards. The station was renamed KCRZ, and operated 24 hours a day. When the station wasn't live, the programming repeated itself every 90 minutes, using an auto reverse cassette deck. Every weekday morning I would get up before school at 5:30AM and run a live morning show until my bus arrived at 7:45am. As soon as I got home from school, I was back on the air!
KCRZ studios, circa 1986, located in my bedroom. Live & automated programming originated from this control room.
The following cuts are the earliest recordings of my radio career, taped in the summer of 1983, age 14. KCRZ was located in an A-frame studio at this time.
Introducing a song
A KCRZ station sign on announcement
A Picadilly Pet Circus commercial
Interviewing my 6 year old sister Amy
KGHO AM/FM
Dave at KGHO AM/FM Winter, 1983. I'm holding a lion cub my dad brought by the station.
A recent picture of me visiting the KGHO building. The station's appearance, other than the logo, is virtually unchanged since I first worked there.
The following are the earliest recording of my professional radio career. KGHO-FM 10/21/84, age 15. Under today's state labor laws I wouldn't be allowed to work this 12:00am-8:00am shift, which is a shame. This was the experience of a lifetime.
Station promo
Promoting "Hit Lines"
Top of the Hour I.D.
It wasn't long before my best friend's uncle learned of my station. Al Dale was the afternoon disc jockey and program director at the #1 Top-40 station in town, KGHO AM/FM. In October, 1983 Al offered me a job as board operator for Casey Kasem's American Top 40. At that time the nationally syndicated show arrived at the station on 33 1/3 records, and it was my job to mix the show's segments with station commercials, jingles and id's. My first "live" show came on December 24, 1983 when I was scheduled to play Christmas music. Twice an hour I had to identify the station, and give a sponsor mention "You're listening to KGHO AM/FM Hoquiam-Aberdeen, this hour of Christmas music is being brought to you by...." I was soon a weekend fixture on KGHO. It was quite a thrill. I was 15 at the time, I had my pirate station at home, and I was working on the Top-40 station all my friends listened to on the weekends. KGHO changed to a satellite format in December, 1984, and I decided to apply at crosstown rival KXRO-AM/KDUX-FM.
My first paycheck. My dad got it from the station's owner years later as a christmas gift.
My first FCC License. The first year I was in radio I didn't have one, nobody ever asked!
KXRO/KDUX
After being hired by Rhys Davis, my first shift on KXRO, an adult contemporary station, came in January 1985. KDUX-FM was an automated FM Top-40 station. I was the live disc jockey on KXRO, and taped on KDUX. I worked part-time weekend shifts until I graduated from high school in June, 1987. I was then promoted to full time 10am-2pm disc jockey on both stations. I was also promoted to music director, program director, and chief engineer/operator. In essence, at 18, I was second in charge of a radio station that employed roughly 20 people. During my tenure as PD/MD, the station boasted some of it's highest ratings ever. 90% of Grays Harbor radio listeners listened to one of our stations, leaving 10% of the audience for 4 other signals. I was fired in July, 1988 by station manager Steve Levold. Steve hired his softball buddy Stu Black to come in and take over as program director, even though the ratings were astronomical. Stu didn't like me, and I was forced out. But a much better career path awaited me in Centralia.
KXRO-AM 9/85 age 16.
Promoting upcoming news
Promoting sports coverage
The following is a montage of my last show on KXRO, 7/22/88.
Last show.
Rhys Davis and Doug McDowell were fixtures on KXRO/KDUX for several years before I started there. I'd idolized them as a young disc jockey, and this is a bit recorded 5/86 where all 3 of us were on the air together. I was filling in for KDUX morning man Randy Roadz, and Doug was doing his trademark "granny" impersonation commenting on how skinny I was.
A bit with Rhys and Doug
KTAC
During the summer of 1986 I worked weekends at KTAC-AM in Tacoma, WA. I would typically work at KXRO/KDUX in Aberdeen on Saturdays, and communte to Tacoma on Sundays to work at KTAC. I was working on the 5th floor of the Tacoma Mall Office Building, a big change from the shack of a station I worked at in the swampland of South Aberdeen. I bugged Program Director Rob Sherwood for about 6 months to hire me, but he had to wait for mean old Harold Greenberg to get blown out as General Manager. Greenberg told Sherwood that I was too young and couldn't relate to the audience. Once Greenberg was gone, Sherwood hired me. I've always appreciated the fact he gave me a chance. I believe the cuts listed below disproved Greenberg's theory. The format was adult contemporary, and the talent level was much higher than I'd previously been surrounded by. It was a great learning experience. Unfortunately the station changed to a satellite format in August, 1986, and I left the station.
KTAC 8/86, age 17.
Top of the Hour intro
Station promo
Morning show promo
News intro/Top of the Hour intro
KITI/Live-95
Following a 3 month vacation, I was hired by Roger Dale as the overnight disc jockey at KITI-AM Centralia, WA in October, 1988. KITI was a stand alone AM station, somewhat unusual at that time. Due to Centralia's location half way between Portland and Seattle, it was difficult for owner Derek Shannon to aquire an FM license. So, the station had to survive on the AM dial, a task that was becoming harder and harder as listeners migrated to FM. However, the station had great air talent. Many of the disc jockeys formerly worked in large markets, and I was able to learn a great deal from them. Specifically, the afternoon disc jockey, Denny Murray, quickly became my mentor. Denny had worked in the large radio markets of Baltimore, MD and Miami, FL in the early 70's. After taking several years off from radio he decided to take a radio job in his hometown in the early 80's. When I was promoted to night disc jockey in late 1989, my show followed Denny's. I would bring in tapes from the previous night's show, and he would critique me on breathing technique, word coloring, enunciation, pacing, etc. I was quickly at another level. At the peak of my 9 year full time career at KITI, I was News Director, Assistant Program Director, Music Director, Chief Operator and Account Executive, all at one time. It made for a very busy day, but I always enjoyed the challenge of diversity. However, I was getting burned out on radio by the late 90's and was offered an information systems (MIS) job at a local casino and decided to change careers. I remain on the KITI/Live-95 airstaff part-time. KITI was able to aquire an FM license in 1995. Live-95, a mixture of 70's, 80's, 90's and current hits, is currently ranked #1 in the Lewis County market.
KITI-AM spring, 1990.
2 Top of the Hour I.D.'s and a weather forecast
KITI-AM 9/30/93. Cuts from my last show as a disc jockey before I moved into the news department.
Last Show
Between October, 1993 and December, 1997 I was KITI News Director. That meant getting up at 4:30am, making phone calls to news sources, writing news stories, performing interviews over the phone and in person, and giving newscasts every half hour on KITI-AM. The following cut was recorded in 1996.
News Intro
The following are cuts from Live-95 Spring '2000
Cocaine drive-thru story
Upcoming music
Sports update
