If you work in the radio biz long enough, you’ll meet your share of celebrities. It’s fun sometimes, but often nowhere near as cool as you might think. Hey, it’s probably not fun for them, either. There are SO many pics I wish I had, but most of my encounters came long before cellphone cameras. Today, we’re spoiled.
PS: This section is LOADED with bad hair photos of me. Sigh.
Sure, you expected me to start with a rock star. But this is MY kind of rock star: The second person to ever walk on the moon, Buzz Aldrin.
Playing golf with Huey Lewis & The News, late 1980s. That’s me in the red cap next to Huey in the green shirt. I mean, THE SHORTS. Times have changed.
On stage, Janet Jackson was electric. Offstage, she was so shy and quiet. But also so kind and gracious. I love this signed photo she handed to me.
George Michael was generous and kind, signing this program for me before his show in Denver in 1991. This was the tour for his album “Listen Without Prejudice, Volume 1”, which is magnificent.
With George Michael about 15 minutes before he hit the stage at McNichols Arena in Denver,1991.
August, 1989 with Sir Elton John. Another embarrassing hair pic of me - but Elton said, “At least you’ve GOT hair.”
In 1985 I was one of the dorkiest dudes you’ll ever see. I had no chance at all with Nancy Wilson of Heart, even though she was my celebrity crush at the time.
A blurry photo with MC Hammer, backstage before his show. The funny thing is, I ALMOST wore the exact same outfit as Hammer. That would’ve been embarrassing.
I pitched beach balls to Colorado Rockies star Dante Bichette, and he blasted them into the crowd. See Chapter 16 in the book for the story.
After dreaming as a kid of someday being in the pages of Sports Illustrated, I finally made it with this shot. But it was for my bake sale, not for my athletic abilities. See Chapter 16.
Fundraising with Kim Christiansen from Denver’s Channel 9. Kim has always been a good sport, putting up with my flirting.
I was 21 years old when I interviewed Charlton Heston. (Google him, kids.) He said to me, “Call me Chuck.” A week later, this arrived in the mail. He was one of the biggest stars in the world - and he signed a personal thank you letter to a punk radio kid in Abilene, Texas. Can you even imagine “stars” of today doing that?
Backstage with Jellyfish, 1992. Absolutely LOVE their music.
And backstage with Jellyfish in 1993, on D3’s 13th bday. Doesn’t he look like he belongs in the band? My son has always been cooler than me.
Donating a bunch of gold and platinum records to School of Rock. Hopefully they inspire young musicians.
Could very well be one of my most embarrassing photos ever. This was at a convention in San Francisco. But hey, it was 1988 - a lot of us radio idiots looked like this. Cher, of course, is timeless, beautiful, and charming as hell.