ST. PAUL
One of the Twin Cities' most beloved and recognizable voices is saying goodbye to radio after more than half a century on the air. Charlie Boone will do his final broadcast today (6-9 a.m.) on WCCO-AM. Joining him will be his former radio partner of 30 years, Roger Erickson.
The one-time kings of morning radio drive were known for their funny skits, bad Scandinavian jokes and helping to solidify WCCO's nickname "The Good Neighbor."
While the two split up in the late '90s when Erickson retired, Boone - he worked at KFGO Radio in Fargo before his start at WCCO - has continued his WCCO radio run, hosting a Saturday morning show until deciding this year that it was time to retire.
He's hoping post-radio life will include traveling more with his wife of 33 years, Carol, upping his tennis playing from three to five days a week, continuing to record audio books for the blind and maybe even tuning his cello that he hasn't touched in years.
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Here's what the gracious 83-year-old had to say about his time at WCCO during a recent chat.
Q. Wow. After more than 52 years on WCCO, you're retiring.
A. I didn't sleep much the other night. I started thinking about all the wonderful things I've been able to do. It's joyous and gratifying, but it's crazy. I'm not used to this much attention.
Q. Why did you decide to retire now?
A. I had a birthday last summer that caused me to think: What am I doing working? All the guys I play tennis with have been retired for 15 years. People said, "When you're ready to retire,
you'll know." And I just knew.
Q. You and Erickson did a lot of interviews with celebrities during your many years on air. What's your most memorable one?
A. Well, the Zsa Zsa Gabor story is famous. She was coming into town to promote her cosmetic company. She had just had an altercation with a policeman in Beverly Hills. We wanted to talk about Hollywood and her celebrity life and she didn't want to talk about that at all. And she was really upset when we did commercials because she wanted to sell her cosmetics. So we said, "Zsa Zsa, your time is up." And we got rid of her.
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Later we were flying and they seated us in first class. Pretty soon the plane lands in Las Vegas and who should come aboard but some famous movie stars, including Zsa Zsa. Before Zsa Zsa came aboard, her agent came up to us and said, "Gentlemen, you're sitting in Zsa Zsa Gabor's favorite seats. We're wondering if you would move back to permit her to have those seats." And without even discussing it, Roger and I turned to each other and said, "No way." That was retribution.
Q. What will you miss the most about being on air?
A. I'll miss connecting with listeners because I like to tell them what's happening. News that they don't get. I go through magazines like crazy, sniffing out little factoids and stuff to talk about on Saturday, and it's been so fun.
There's been so much joy, and rightfully so, because I've had a fabulous career. When you think about it in radio today, a guy spending this much time at one station, that's unbelievable. It's been a great experience.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
