Casey Kasem Retires at 77
Radio legend and Top 40 pioneer Casey Kasem is retiring after 39 years counting down America’s hits. His show first premiered on July 4, 1970, and he counted down his final hit on Saturday, July 4, 2009.
Kasem was the first to combine the countdown format with his personal touch of dedications, where he took letters from listeners, read them on the air, and played for them the song they requested, in addition to the Top 40 hits already included in the show.
Kasem handed over the reigns of the original America’s Top 40 countdown show to Ryan Seacrest in 2004, but he continued to do America’s Top 20 and American’s Top 10.
Of course, Kasem long ago retired from his other claim to fame, the voice of Shaggy on the original Scooby-Doo cartoons. Still, he so defined the character that anyone else who tries to vocalize Shaggy is left with nothing to do but give a cheap imitation of Casey Kasem.
Though he’s 77 years old, Kasem says he’s not retiring in order to take things easy. He says he needs to free up some time for some other projects he’s been wanting to work on. Kasem lives with his wife, Jean, and daughter Liberty in Los Angeles.
Casey Kasem left his listeners with the same wisdom that has closed his show for 39 years: “Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars.”
