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San Francisco
Bay Area Radio History
by Alex Cosper
Part One: Early Bay Area Radio Pioneers
PART TWO:
SAN FRANCISCO - OAKLAND - SAN JOSE RADIO (1950s-2000s)

San Francisco Bay Area AM & FM Radio Dial 2007
see also Sacramento Radio History

The Longevity of KGO

A big part of KGO's success over many years as the Bay's most popular radio station, has something to do with the familiarity and longevity of its talk hosts. The schedule rarely changes. Ray Taliaferro has done the overnight show since the sixties. Ronn Owens has been the midday host since the mid-eighties. Ted Wygant was the morning co-host and News Director from 1974 to his retirement in June 2003. Jim Dunbar held the anchor position of the morning show from the mid-eighties to the early 2000s. Since then the Bay Area's top morning show has been hosted by Ed Baxter and Jennifer Jones.

Bernie Ward joined the KGO line-up in December 1992, replacing Michael Krasny. In July 1994 Dianne Feinstein's campaign manager Duane Garrett replaced Lee Rodgers in the 7-10pm slot. Rodgers moved to talk station KIRO in Seattle. Four years later Garrett committed suicide, jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. Ward moved up to 7-10p as Shann Nix moved into the 10p-1a slot. However, in July 1998, Gene Burns, who came to KGO a year earlier from Boston, took the 7-10p slot as Bernie Ward returned to 10p-1a and Shann Nix moved to weekends. In 2003 Karel replaced her on weekends.

Jack Swanson, who was KGO's Program Director most of the eighties, returned to that position in August 1994, a month before Cap Cities/ABC took over KSFO, which then became KGO's sister station. More KGO info can be found on a web page written by by Keith Woodard.

The Early Days of KPFA

Jon Hammond, an afternoon host on KYOU Radio in 2006, first hit Bay Area airwaves as a five year old on KPFA in 1958. That was about the time he started listening to radio stations that included KEWB, KFRC, KDIA and KYA. His on-air debut happened on a regular children's show hosted by Natalie Lessinger. Aside from that show, KPFA's programming tended to be more adult and for the most part, cutting edge compared to the rest of the dial in the late 1950s. Some of the more progressive shows even drew the attention of government officials including the FBI.

Classical music and jazz were prominent musical genres in fifties KPFA programming. Philip Elwood became the station's authority on jazz for nearly 40 years. He hosted a Sunday afternoon show called "Jazz Review." Jon Hammond helped manage the station's classical music library in his teen years during the sixties. Some of the classical programming on KPFA during the fifties and sixties included a show called "Chamber Music," which included Bay Area musicians, operas and regular orchestral concerts. Alan Rich, who was Music Director during the period, hosted a weekly show called "Symphony Critique."

KPFA, of course, was always more of a talk station than a music station. One of the mainstay hosts for almost 40 years was nationally-acclaimed mystery writer Anthony Boucher, who started at the station on day one of its original broadcast on April 15, 1949. He hosted a weekly series called "Golden Voices." He also helped contribute opera music to the station's library for many years. Alan Watts, known for his writings on Buddhism, was also a regularly featured host for decades. Film critic Pauline Kael was another host whose career at KPFA spanned decades. Henry Jacobs did a Sunday night show in the fifties called "Ethnic Music," about the homegrown music of various parts of the globe. KPFA also frequently broadcast presentations from U.C. Berkeley professors.

Annalisa Moves From East To West

KFOG midday host Annalisa began her radio career in the eighties at Bridgewater State College station WBIM in Massachusetts where she did news and a DJ show. Her first paying gig was at independent country station WCAV just outside of Boston. There she was called "The Night Gal." Annalisa recalls that "an old college friend who worked there urged that career move...fun little station...long hours...low pay...new appreciation for good ol' boys." Then she rocked harder at WAAF in the Worcester/Boston area. At first she did overnight weekends on the rock station but quickly moved up to full-time middays and held the job for five years.

In the early nineties Annalisa remained in Boston but moved to middays at classic rocker WZLX. After a year she moved to mornings. "Fun while it lasted," she says. But three years later she spent her 30th birthday in the unemployment office after the station was sold to Infinity. She then drifted into part-time on-air work at WBOS in Boston followed by WHJY in Providence, before heading west. Her first Bay Area gig was at former rock station KRQR (now KLLC). Then in the mid-nineties she landed part-time work at KFOG before advancing to middays. After traveling the country, the Bay Area has become her home, as she says, "I can't believe it...best town...best people."

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