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 Charlie Brennan interviews a Radio City Rockette. |
Charlie Brennan
"THE MORNING MEETING" GUY
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By Christine Imbs
When you think of the glory days of the disc jockey, names like Casey Kasem, Wolfman Jack, and even St. Louis’s own Johnny Rabbit may come to mind. The one name that doesn’t is Charlie Brennan. But it’s not because he didn’t try.
“I really wanted to be a disc jockey and spin records and meet rock stars,” he says with a laugh. “I guess it wasn’t meant to be.”
By the time Brennan came along, the age of the radio star had begun to fade and a talk revolution was beginning to take place. But as a young student at Boston College in 1978, he was happily spinning records for the student body at the campus radio station. Fortunately for him, his taste in music and that of his fellow students didn’t quite coincide. They suggested he try hosting a talk show instead.
It turned out to be the biggest break of his life.
“It was a bit of a letdown at first,” Brennan admits. “But I gave it a try. As it turns out, I liked it. I decided to become the next Phil Donahue instead of the next Casey Kasem.”
Brennan’s career as a professional broadcaster began in 1982, at WNTN in Newton, Mass. He was making about $12,500 a year, living in an apartment with furniture he’d bought at the local Medimart. One day his father paid him a little visit.
“He sat down on the couch, lit a cigarette and said, ‘You know son, you can’t live like this forever.’ After that I sent out 75 letters and tapes all across the country, blind hoping for a nibble from some radio station,” he says. “I got two.”
One was from a station in Hartford, Conn., owned by Merv Griffin. The other was KMOX. “I never did audition for the station in Hartford,” Brennan says. “KMOX offered me a job the first day I auditioned. It was one of the best stations in the United States, so I jumped at the opportunity.”
That was 1988. Since then Brennan, KMOX and St. Louis have become almost synonymous. His a.m. talk show, “The Morning Meeting,” offers St. Louisans a place to discuss the top issues of the day. But when it comes to St. Louis, he does more than just talk. He’s taken on local projects, ranging from the beautification of Washington Avenue to advocating more aesthetically pleasing security barriers around the Arch. His tour guide, “Walking Historic Downtown St. Louis,” earned about $13,000, which helped erect 27 plaques commemorating historic sites along the tour route. A third edition and another 15 plaques are planned for 2005.
As you might expect, 22 years of talk radio have left Brennan with some rather interesting experiences. The highlight of his career was interviewing then-candidate Bill Clinton in 1992. Clinton spoke about the cynicism in America for the first time. The transcript was published in the “New York Times” and picked up by “ABC World News Tonight.”
But the funniest thing that ever happened was during an interview with Ed Solomon, who wrote the screenplay for “Men In Black.” They were taking phone calls—including one from Solomon’s father-in-law, former Monty Python member John Cleese.
“He was calling from Solomon’s kitchen and asked, ‘Ed, where do you keep the coffee filters?’ It was so unexpected it really blew my mind,” Brennan laughs.
Of course, not every interview goes that well. Both Sen. Ted Kennedy and actor Tony Curtis walked out on him when the questions took an undesirable turn. “That’s just the way it works sometimes,” Brennan says. “But when you think about it, it’s not all bad. It actually creates some pretty good drama.”
TALKING POINTS
BORN: Lakewood, Ohio.
FAMILY: Wife, Beth Stohr, and children Lynly, 3, and Charlie D., 5.
FAVORITE BOOK: “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor Frankl.
FAVORITE MOVIE: “Groundhog Day,” with Bill Murray.
FAVORITE VACATION: Any place I can relax and the kids can, too.
FAVORITE MUSICIANS: Beach Boys.
HOBBIES/ACTIVITIES: My free time is generally kid-centered.
FAVORITE ST. LOUIS HAUNT: The Zoo and Kaldi’s Coffee House.
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