Casey Kasem Never Wanted to Be

A DJ, Casey Kasem Shaggy Voice –

Much more than Rant

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R.I.P. CASEY KASEM, Top DJ of his time, who revolutionized the ‘American Top 40’ Music Radio heard on hundreds of stations worldwide over the past FOUR DECADES. Most noted for the inspirational stories that listeners would send in, it was a show that only Kasem could perform, witness the current version hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Kasem’s signature close was ‘Keep your feet on the ground and your head in the stars.’ MORE Reportedly, Kasem never wanted to be a disc jockey, though he worked hard at it once ensconced in the profession. He developed his rock-trivia persona from his work as a disc jockey in the early 1960s at KYA in San Francisco, California, and KEWB in Oakland, California (SEE CLASSIC SURVEY, ABOVE) . He also worked for several other stations across the country, including WJW (now WKNR) in Cleveland, Ohio; WBNY (now WWWS) in Buffalo, New York; and KRLA 1110 in Los Angeles, California (1963–69), before launching the national show American Top 40 on July 4, 1970. Another early radio gig for the great Kasey Casem, RIP Kasem worked all the way up to 2009 on American Top 40 and other projects. Unfortunately, in recent years with social media and technology, a you tube audio of a ‘Casey Kasem rant’ in which he was having a bad day and starting cursing out employees got out and spread virally. Kasem was the butt of jokes for this, but he should be remembered for the many positive things he did rather than this (it was off air between his famous ‘Long Distance Dedications’ when he was having problems with staff members. He was the same age in passing as fellow DJ and TV legend Dick Clark, who passed a couple years ago. Another promo/survey piece featuring Kasem, already a star at KEWB in 1962