User:Daboogieman

History of DaBoogieman

I’m a true native of Denver. I was born at Lamb Memorial Hospital, Denver in ‘49. I grew up in Englewood along with my sister Debbie. I attended Clayton Elementary, Sinclair Jr. High and Englewood High School. I went into the Army in ‘68. Studied broadcasting through Columbia School of Broadcasting correspondence courses.

I’ve been interested in radio ever since I can remember. I grew up listening to KIMN & KOSI on my transistor radio. I built my own closed circuit radio station in my mom’s home in ‘60 and would broadcast music and schlep the latest news over a 10 cent microphone. My mom would shake her head and say “Oh brother.”

I worked for Bi-Lo grocery when I was 15 years old and moved up to Miller’s Supermarkets when I hit the big 16 at a whopping 85 cents an hour! I’ve been a grocery sacker, grocery cashier, caisson driller, gas station attendant, plumber, electrician, auto mechanic, video store manager, owned my own mobile DJ business for 20 years (1972-1992), and a micro wave technician for HBO Denver.

KWBZ circa late 70’s I got my start in radio on an Englewood based station called KWBZ. The same station that I used to walk by every morning and evening on my way to and from high school. In 1964 it was KGMC and owned by Grady Franklin Maples. One afternoon I stopped into KGMC to watch the DJ when Mr. Maples spotted me and said “I’ve noticed you in here a lot. Do you want to get into the business?” I said “YES!” He took me into one of the studios and gave me an AP report to read as he taped my voice. I still have that tape.

It’s hard to believe that was the very station DaBoogieman started in. It was called KWBZ and owned by John Mullins Jr. Before KWBZ went oldies it was a talk station with talents like Peter Boyles, Bob (Rockin Rebel) Lee and Alan Berg.

The name “DaBoogieman” came to me only 15 minutes before I went on the air for the first time in Denver. We were all discussing what to call me when I looked down on the floor and saw an old KC & the Sunshine Band album. On the album was a song called “I’m Your Boogieman” and voila!...DaBoogieman was born! I started off doing Saturday afternoon and before I was through that day the boss asked me if I would like to do Monday through Friday 7pm - 12 midnight. At the time I was still working for HBO, but I said yes anyway. So for 6 months I worked at HBO from 6 am to 3 pm then went to KWBZ from 7pm to 12 midnight. Whew! I gave up the job with HBO, you would have done the same thing.

KHOW circa 1985. After about a year or so I received a call one night from Hal Moore (Hal & Charlie). He was very excited about what I played and how DaBoogieman sounded on the radio. He told me he would try to get me over to KHOW somehow. By this time we had changed our call letters to KRZN thanks to Susie Jones the program director at KWBZ. KRZN stood for “cruisin”. I got a call from Jim Heath the program director of KHOW and he asked me to come over and do DaBoogieman show on KHOW 7pm -12 midnight. After many years at KHOW I went to KIMN doing 7pm - 11pm, which I now realize was a big mistake. Six months later they closed the doors of KIMN and went off the air. I was out of radio for the first time in many years. What next?

I continued my mobile DJ business and went back to KHOW on weekends only. Then Danny Davis called me from KRZN. He was the program director and asked me if I would like to do 7 pm - 12 midnight Monday - Friday. I said “Yea buddy!” Two months later they changed formats and became KTLK radio 760. Uggh!

Then I landed a job at Jones Satellite Networks doing 7pm - 12 midnight on Saturdays for (are you ready?) $50. WOW! My friend Dave Bogart at Jones told me about RTD and what a good solid consistent job driving a bus would be. I didn’t waste much time. I needed some consistency in my life.

I worked for RTD for 7 years as a bus driver and a station supervisor. One day I spotted an RTD bus with a KLZ Legends logo ad. That gave me an idea to try and get back into the biz again (again?). They gave me some weekend work 2-6pm. Finally KLVZ (K-LOVE 1220AM, owned by the same company Crawford Broadcasting) was born and we rocked for a while but the power of the station was too small. So a decision was made to transfer my oldies format to the more powerful KLZ 560AM frequency. I worked on KLZ for about a year, when just after the WTC tragedy, the management decided I was too “earthy” for their tastes. After all, they were a Christian broadcasting company and I was an outsider. They fired me and told me I would never work in this town again. Sounds incredible doesn’t it? It’s true though.

Then came Steve Keeney with a phone call asking if I would be interested in part time work at KOOL 105 sitting in for the ailing Jay Mack. Steve Keeney and I had worked together at KHOW in the mid 80’s and he was familiar with my work and loved it. So to make a long story short I’m now on KOOL 105 FM doing 7pm to midnight Moday-Friday nights and KOOL Klassics 9p-midnight Sundays!

That’s me in a nutshell. Just a guy who loves rock ‘n roll.

I was terminated from KOOL105 because of budget cuts Tuesday September 30th, 2008. I was voted “Denver’s Best Oldies DJ” for 2004 by Westword Newspaper, what an honor and my thanks to to the gang at Westword.