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{{short description|American radio personality}}
{{Infobox Radio Presenter
{{Infobox person
|name = Steve Dahl
|alias = |name = Steve Dahl
|image = Replace this image1.svg |image = Steve Dahl (cropped).jpg
|image_upright =
|imagesize = 150px
|caption = |caption = Dahl in 2008
|birth_name = Steven Robert Dahl
|birthname =
|birthdate = {{birth date and age|1954|11|20}} |birth_date = {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1954|11|20}}
|birthplace = {{flagicon|United States}} ] |birth_place = ], U.S.
|spouse = Janet (m. 1978)
|deathdate =
|deathplace = |children = 3
|death_date =
|show = The Steve Dahl Show
|death_place =
|station = ], ], ]
|website = {{Official website}}
|timeslot = Monday - Friday, 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM Central
|show2 =
|station2 =
|timeslot2 =
|style =
|country = ]
|prevshow =
|web =
}} }}
'''Steven Robert Dahl''' (born November 20, 1954)<ref name="CST032496">{{cite news|last=Herguth|first=Bob|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4322619.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150328200849/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4322619.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-03-28|title=Steve Dahl, Unplugged|newspaper=]|page=8|date=1996-03-24|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access=}}</ref><ref name="CST121089">{{cite news|last=Hoekstra|first=Dave|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3974644.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150328200850/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3974644.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-03-28|title=Steve & Garry's Radio Timeline|pages=Show, 5|newspaper=]|date=1989-12-10|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access=subscription}}</ref> is an American ]. He is the owner and operator of the Steve Dahl Network, a ] ]ing network. Dahl gained a measure of national attention after organizing and hosting ] at ].<ref name="jaehakim">{{cite news|first=Jae-Ha|last=Kim|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4280228.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329103903/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4280228.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-03-29|title=Disco's Mood Rings True: '90s Dance Fans Show Signs of Nostalgia Fever|newspaper=]|date=1995-04-21|url-access= |access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref><ref name="greene">{{cite news|first=Leonard|last=Greene|url=https://nypost.com/2007/07/13/n-y-gets-dance-fever/|title=N.Y. Gets Dance Fever|newspaper=]|date=2007-07-13|access-date=2014-12-25}}</ref>


Originally, Dahl broadcast with Detroit stations ] and ] and later with Chicago ] ], ], ], ] and ]. He served as a columnist for the '']'' in their ''Live'' section as the resident "vice advisor" until November 2010.<ref name="st004">{{cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-stevedahl,0,3820982,bio.columnist|title=Chicago Sun-Times Steve Dahl biography|access-date=2014-10-24|newspaper=]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407090949/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-stevedahl,0,3820982,bio.columnist|archive-date=2014-04-07|url-status=dead}}</ref> He is also known in Chicago for his longstanding former role as one half of the ''Steve & Garry'' team (with ]),<ref name="cbs199">{{cite news|author=CBS News|title=Chicago Radio Legends Steve Dahl and Garry Meier Reunite|work=]|date=2006-08-19}}</ref> and the two are members of the ]. Dahl is considered an influential ] in ].<ref name="st001">{{cite news|first=Robert|last=Feder|author-link=Robert Feder|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3924055.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329103904/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3924055.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-03-29|title=Like it or not, folks, Steve Dahl did drop|newspaper=]|date=1989-01-16|url-access=|access-date=2014-12-25}}</ref><ref name="rm001">{{cite news|title=Radio Currents Online: Apr 3 - Apr 9, 2006|url=http://radiomagonline.com/currents/weekly/radio_currents_040306/index.html|work=Radio Magazine Online|date=2006-04-04|access-date=2008-05-21|quote = Steve Dahl, the talent from WCKG/Chicago, who brought his brand of shock and awe to radio decades ago and redefined the medium for his generation}}</ref><ref name="col001">{{cite book|last=Colford|first=Paul|title=Howard Stern, King of All Media: The Unauthorized Biography|year=1996|publisher=Diane Publishing Company|isbn=0-7881-6336-1}}</ref>
'''Steve Dahl''' (born ], ]) has been an ] ] for over thirty years. Dahl is currently ] at ] Radio, in ], ]. Before WCKG, Dahl was with Chicago ] ], ], ] and ].


In addition to his radio career, Dahl is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His band, Teenage Radiation, recorded and performed a number of song parodies (which he often played on his show throughout the 1980s) and since 1990 he has performed and recorded as Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins. Dahl is also an occasional actor, and has appeared in films such as '']'', '']'' and '']''.
Steve is known for his "every guy" approach to life in Chicago where he often tells bucolic stories about his life and family on the air. Many Chicagoans grew up with Dahl's family, through the stories he told on the radio. Dahl is also famous for his song ] and for the many impressions that he does. He is considered a pioneer in ]{{weasel-inline|date=September 2007}} and has been influential for many current and upcoming radio personalities.{{Fact|date=September 2007}}


==Early career== == Early life ==
Dahl grew up in ]. He is the son of Roger and Carol Dahl, an electronics parts manufacturer's representative and a homemaker.<ref name="CT110694" />{{Failed verification|date=February 2020}}


== Radio career ==
Dahl began his radio career in his home state of ] at the age of sixteen. He then moved to ] and was on the air on WWWW in Detroit in 1976. In 1978, Steve left Detroit to join WDAI in Chicago. Less than a year later, WDAI changed formats to ] and fired Steve on ], 1978.
=== Early radio career ===
In the ], Dahl began hanging around a local ] radio station, ],<ref name="CST121089-2">{{cite news|last=Hoekstra|first=Dave|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3974542.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329103901/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3974542.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-03-29|title=Steve & Garry 10 Years of Radio Mayhem|pages=Show, 1|newspaper=]|date=1989-12-10|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access=}}</ref> in his home state of California. At the age of sixteen, after he started working at the radio station full-time, he unofficially dropped out of high school.<ref name="CT110694">{{cite news|last=Johnson|first=Steve|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1994/11/06/shocked-jock-2/|title=Shocked Jock - His Partner Dumped Him. His Station Demoted Him. His Listeners Deserted Him. Will Steve Dahl Survive?|newspaper=]|date=1994-11-06|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref><ref name="steveblog">{{cite web|url=http://www.dahl.com/weblog/3_5_07.asp|title=Steve's Web Log|access-date=2014-10-24|date=2007-03-05|work=Steve Dahl Official Blog|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080213165750/http://www.dahl.com/weblog/3_5_07.asp |archive-date = 2008-02-13|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dahl later explained, "I convinced my parents and the school that I would do an independent work-study thing. I never got around to it."<ref name="CT110694" /> At the age of eighteen, he obtained his ] and briefly married a woman he met after she called him on-air to request "]", a song by ] which told a tale of a troubled relationship. Dahl later explained his short-lived marriage by commenting, "I should have paid more attention to that song."<ref name="CT110694" />


Dahl was told by radio executives that he'd never make it in radio because his voice was too high. At one point, Dahl was so discouraged that he quit for about six months and attempted to pursue a career as a recording engineer. However, this never amounted to anything more than making ]s of popular songs for play on airplanes. Throughout this time period, he was making efforts to reconcile with his ex-wife, who by then was dating the program director at the Los Angeles radio station where she worked. He later admitted to stalking her by sleeping in his Subaru outside her house.<ref name="CT110694" />
==Steve and Garry==


In 1976, Dahl's ex-wife told him about an opening for a morning show in ] on ]. He managed to secure the job, despite the fact that he did not think he was good enough for it<ref name="CT110694" /> (he later learned that the station was owned by the same company his ex-wife worked for). At WABX, Dahl learned as much as he could about what constituted "good radio" and also began experimenting with his content. His popularity increased to the point that he achieved a ].<ref name="CT110694" />
In 1979, Steve was hired to do a morning show at WLUP where he met up with overnight DJ, ] (who was then broadcasting under the ] of "Matthew Meier"). Shortly thereafter, Steve and Garry began a cross talk that eventually led to Garry being teamed up with Steve as both ] and newsman.


During his time at WABX, Dahl was introduced to Janet Joliat, a ] English and drama teacher in a Detroit suburb, who was casually dating a friend of his and was also a listener of his show. The two hit it off after Dahl invited her to a "]" broadcast he was doing from the camel area of the ].<ref name="CT110694" />
During the ], Dahl, along with his band Teenage Radiation, recorded and released a parody of ]'s song '']'', called '']''. He also made phone calls to the ] ], and ordered a few buckets for his friends in the ]. Dahl also parodied the ] murders with his song ''Another Kid in the Crawl'' (to the tune of ]'s '']'').


WDAI executives in Chicago, attracted by Dahl's 7.1 share, approached him and offered to double his salary to $50,000 a year.<ref name="CT110694" />{{failed verification|date=November 2019}} However, Janet did not want to leave her family in Detroit and he did not want to leave her. This prompted Dahl to ask his bosses for $35,000 a year to stay in Detroit, which they refused.<ref name="CT110694" />{{failed verification|date=November 2019}} In 1978, after Janet accepted his marriage proposal, Dahl left Detroit for WDAI in Chicago.<ref name="CT110694" />{{failed verification|date=November 2019}}
According to "King of All Media: the Unauthorized Biography of ]," by Paul D Colford, a former writer for Long Island Newsday, Howard Stern listened to tapes of Steve and Garry sent from Chicago by a friend of the chief engineer at WCCC Hartford. Colford claims that it is possible Stern eventually developed his on-air style as a result of these tapes. In an ironic twist of fate, Stern was hired to replace Dahl at WWWW Detroit when Dahl moved to Chicago.


=== ''Rude Awakening'' ===
==Disco Demolition Night==
Dahl began at WDAI Chicago on February 23, 1978, with his solo ''Steve Dahl's Rude Awakening'' show,<ref name="CST121089" /> but it never achieved solid ratings despite media attention. Ten months later, on Christmas Eve, 1978, WDAI changed formats from rock to disco and fired Dahl.<ref name="CT110694" />
{{main|Disco Demolition Night}}
Dahl, along with both Mike Veeck (son of then ] owner ]), and Jeff Schwartz of WLUP promotions, came up with a radio promotion and tie-in to the White Sox called ] which took place on on Thursday, ], ]. They decided to end disco once and for all in the ] of ] that night. This resulted in the second game of the ] being postponed due to hundreds of rowdy fans storming the field and refusing to leave. ] President ] later declared the second game of the doubleheader a ] victory for the visiting ]. Six people reported minor injuries, and thirty-nine were arrested for ]. <ref> "Anti-Disco Rally Halts White Sox" '']'' New York, N.Y.: ], ]. pg. A16 </ref>
<ref>"Shock Waves" Macaulay Campbell. ''New York Times''. (Late Edition (East Coast)). New York, N.Y.: ], ]. pg. C.7 </ref>
Never as popular in the midwest as it had been on the coasts, by 1979 dislike of disco had transcended musical tastes. Steve had been 'destroying' disco records on the air, along with recording his own satire, ''Do You Think I'm Disco?'' (a parody of ]'s, '']''), due to the 'fact' that he believed that 'disco sucks'. After this promotion, disco soon began to lose its popularity.<ref>"No anniversary party for disco debacle;" Rod Beaton. '']''. McLean, Va.: ], ]. pg. C.03</ref><ref>"WLUP Chicago Reminisces", '']''. New York: ], ]. Vol. 101, Iss. 16; p. 10</ref>


==End of Steve and Garry== === {{anchor|Steve and Garry}}''Steve & Garry'' ===
<!-- The articles ], ] and ] all link to this section; Please do not change section name before discussing on ]-->
In March 1979, after a few months without a job, Dahl was hired to do a morning show at WLUP where he met overnight DJ ] (who was then broadcasting under the ] of "Matthew Meier"). Shortly thereafter, the two began a cross talk that eventually led to Meier being teamed up with Dahl as both ] and newsman.<ref name="CST121089" /><ref name="CT110694" /> Dahl effectively forced Meier to use his actual name by calling him "Garry" on-air accidentally. After openly discussing the subject, again, on-air, Meier officially dropped his pseudonym.


==== Disco Demolition Night ====
Steve and Garry went to WLS, but ultimately returned to WLUP where they stayed until their split in 1993. The alleged reason for the break-up was Steve’s on the air comments about Meier’s new wife, commercial real-estate broker, Cynthia Fircak, while the couple were on their ]. Meier also blamed Dahl's ] and unpredictable behavior. Dahl, for his part, blamed Fircak for the split, once saying on air "When I met her, I knew the rules had just changed."
{{Main|Disco Demolition Night}}
In response to Dahl's firing from WDAI, Dahl and Meier mocked and heaped scorn on disco records and WDAI (calling it "Disco-D.I.E." mocking the station's slogan, "Disco-D.A.I.") on the air. Dahl pronounced the word disco with 'a contemptuous lisp',<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/music/ct-ent-disco-demolition-bee-gees-showtime-1219-20201218-2s3uhxsjsbduvl4kqswnvpswny-story.html | title=How Disco Demolition Night demonstrates racist reaction to disco, Bee Gees | website=] | date=18 December 2020 }}</ref> in mockery of its homosexual associations. Dahl even recorded and started playing a parody of ]'s "]", which he called "Do You Think I'm Disco?". The song managed to crack the national charts to peak at No. 58 on the '']'' ] and received airplay across the country.<ref name="CT110694" />


During this same time period, Dahl and Meier, along with ] (son of then ] owner ]), Jeff Schwartz of WLUP Sales and Dave Logan, the WLUP Promotions Director, came up with a radio promotion and tie-in to the White Sox called Disco Demolition Night which took place on Thursday, July 12, 1979. The concept was to create an event to "end disco once and for all" in the ] of ] that night by allowing people to get tickets at the box office if they brought $0.98 (for WLUP's frequency) and at least one disco record.<ref name="sw010">{{cite news|first=Macaulay|last=Campbell|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/16/business/media-shock-waves.html|title=Media; Shock Waves|newspaper=]|date=2002-09-16|access-date=2014-12-25}}</ref> More than 50,000 fans showed up, many loosely interpreting "disco record" to mean any disc with music by black artists.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jul/19/disco-demolition-the-night-they-tried-to-crush-black-music | title=Disco Demolition: The night they tried to crush black music | newspaper=The Guardian | date=19 July 2019 | last1=Petridis | first1=Alexis }}</ref> The records were collected, piled up on the field and blown up. As the second game of the ] was about to begin, the raucous crowd ], refused to leave, and proceeded by setting ], tearing out seats and pieces of turf, and other damage. ] President ] later declared the second game of the doubleheader a ] victory for the visiting ]. Six people reported minor injuries, and thirty-nine were arrested for ].<ref name="1979xxx">{{cite news|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9E03E6D9113AE23BA15750C1A9619C946890D6CF|title=Anti-Disco Rally Halts White Sox|newspaper=]|page=A16|date=1979-07-13|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
, a ] for the '']'', wrote, on ], ] the following observation about this breakup:
{{cquote|It's the divorce that just keeps on giving: A decade after Steve Dahl and Garry Meier severed their legendary radio partnership, their breakup remains a source of bitterness and anger for them &mdash; and continuing fascination for their fans.}}


==== Height of collaboration ====
After the team broke up, Steve was shipped off to ] WMVP AM and teamed with Chicago ] and funny man Bruce Wolf. Various factors caused his ratings to suffer.
As a result of Disco Demolition Night, Dahl attained national recognition and his popularity increased significantly. He established a ] and the ''Steve & Garry'' show began airing in Detroit and ], where it performed well. However, in February 1981, WLUP fired Dahl, citing "continued assaults on community standards". "It was going on in ] and Los Angeles, like, on Monday, and on Friday they fired me," Dahl later said.<ref name="CT110694" /> Meier was offered the opportunity to continue the show by himself, but he refused.<ref name="CST121089" />{{rquote|right|I always used to get ticked off when I would get lumped in with Howard Stern as being a ]. I guess I did shock people, but I did it unintentionally. It comes out of who I am.|Steve Dahl<ref name="CT110694" />}}


During the ], Dahl, along with his backing band Teenage Radiation, recorded and released a parody of ]'s song "]", called "]". Released as a single, it reached No. 12 on the weekly Musicradio survey of Chicago superstation ]-AM on February 9, 1980.<ref>http://www.oldiesloon.com/il/wls020980.htm WLS Musicradio Survey, February 9, 1980</ref> He also made on-the-air ] to the "Islamic Fried Chicken" (a play on ]), ordering buckets of chicken for the hostages in the US ], for which the ] later reprimanded him.<ref name="CT070403">{{cite news|first=Maureen|last=Ryan|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2003/07/04/you-call-that-service/|title=You call that service?|newspaper=]|date=2003-07-04|access-date=2014-12-25}}</ref> Dahl also parodied the ] murders with his song "Another Kid in the Crawl" (to the tune of ]'s "]"). The playing of the song was stopped after parents of the murdered children called to complain.<ref name="DahlLeaves" />
==Current==


Dahl and Meier won a ]<ref name="CST121089-2" /> for a television special they did in 1981 called, ''Greetings from ]'', which was a comedy spoof on the tourist shrine<ref name="WSJ052595">{{cite news|title=Roach Clips|work=]|page=Rhythm, 3|date=1995-05-25}}</ref> and featured ] "Uncle Vester" selling Elvis cookbooks from the guardhouse.<ref name="CST121089" /> They briefly had a morning television show, called ''It's Too Early'' on local Chicago station, ], which nationally syndicated columnist ] called "the best program on television", "amazing", and "hypnotic" in his June 20, 1983 column. The show was canceled after four weeks on the air because it was deemed "unsuitable for general viewing... in particular for young children"<ref name="WSJ052595" /><ref name="CT062083">{{cite news|last=Greene|first=Bob|title=Dahl's TV attempt was just 'Too Early'|newspaper=]|date=1983-06-20}}</ref> after Dahl was shown fully clothed sitting on a toilet seat reading a newspaper.<ref name="WSJ052595" /><!-- Deleted image removed: ] -->
Dahl ended up on ], doing an afternoon show, on that station. <ref>"'Subtler' Steve Dahl still rocks Chicago." Steve Knopper. ''Billboard''. New York: ], ].Vol.110, Iss. 10; pg. 68</ref>
He is currently teamed with ], who was Dahl's newsman starting in 1980 on ]. Dahl's show is available as a ] at his ] and live streaming on Free FM's website.


In 1982, he stated on the air that motorists could allegedly substitute ] for coins in automatic toll booths on Chicago's ]. The ] later said that approximately a dozen toll machines broke down due to people trying to use the candy to pay tolls.<ref name="CST121089" /><ref name="CT070403" />
On Friday, ], ], Steve was doing a remote broadcast of his show at Oak Street Beachstro, a restaurant on Chicago's ]. Coincidentally, Garry Meier was eating lunch there with friends. After Steve learned of Garry's presence there, he invited Garry to appear on the air with him, which Garry accepted. Garry wound up staying for the remainder of the show. This historic event was covered widely throughout the Chicago ] that evening. A portion of that broadcast can be found


Dahl decided to get a ] in March 1989, which was performed live on the air at a ]'s office in Indiana.<ref name="CST121089" /><ref name="CT110694" /><ref name="CT070403" /><ref name="bearseyeview">{{cite news|last=Dahl|first=Steve|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2007-01-11/entertainment/0701110016_1_gummi-bears-soldier-field-bears-eye|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015175807/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2007-01-11/entertainment/0701110016_1_gummi-bears-soldier-field-bears-eye|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 15, 2014|title=What's the best Bears-eye view? - Premium seats have it all-food, great view, even cute waitresses|newspaper=]|page=9B|date=2007-01-11|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref> According to ] for that survey period, Dahl and Meier's ratings jumped from a tie for seventh place in afternoons to a tie for third place.<ref name="CST121089"/>
On April 2, 2007 Meier returned to Chicago radio, doing the 8 AM-11 AM show on WCKG. He appeared briefly on Dahl's show that same day. They occasionally contribute to each others' shows, and they spent several hours in studio together during Steve's show on the 28th year anniversary of their Disco Demolition Night recounting the events of that night.


According to Paul D. Colford, a former writer for '']'', ] listened to tapes of Steve and Garry sent from Chicago by a friend of the chief engineer at WCCC Hartford. Colford claims Stern eventually developed his on-air style as a result of these tapes. Later, Stern was hired at WWWW Detroit (which Dahl had left when he moved to Chicago).<ref name="col001" />


==== End of collaboration ====
Dahl is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Over the years, as "Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins," he has performed and released albums (1992's "Tropical Tides" and 1997's "Mai Tai Roa Ae"). In 2006 backed by Des Moines band ], Steve embarked on a tour of Chicago-area concert venues .
''Steve & Garry'' moved to WLS, but ultimately returned to WLUP where they stayed until their split in 1993. The alleged reason for the break-up was Dahl's on-the-air comments about Meier's new wife, commercial real-estate broker Cynthia Fircak, while the new couple were on their ].<ref name="CT110694"/> Meier also blamed Dahl's ] and unpredictable behavior. Dahl, for his part, blamed Fircak for the split, once saying on air "When I met her, I knew the rules had just changed."


In 2003, ], a ] for the '']'', said, "It's the divorce that just keeps on giving: A decade after Steve Dahl and Garry Meier severed their legendary radio partnership, their breakup remains a source of bitterness and anger for them — and continuing fascination for their fans."<ref name="st002">{{cite news|last=Feder|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Feder|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1485752.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307170651/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1485752.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2016-03-07|title=Meier blasts 'delusional' Dahl over radio breakup.|newspaper=]|date=2003-06-03|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access=}}</ref>
Dahl's son, ], is now part of the regular WCKG lineup and hosts the show immediately following his father's.


After the team broke up, Dahl went to ] WMVP AM and teamed with Chicago ] ].<ref name="CT110694" />
==Other activities==


=== WCKG years ===
* Steve currently writes for the '']'' in the ''At Play'' section as the resident "vice advisor".
Dahl ended up on WCKG, broadcasting an afternoon show on that station.<ref name="knopper010">{{cite magazine|first=Steve|last=Knopper|title='Subtler' Steve Dahl still rocks Chicago|magazine=]|page=68|date=1998-03-07}}</ref> He eventually teamed up with Buzz Kilman, who was Dahl's newsman starting in 1980 on WLUP, and the show was available as a ] at Dahl's ] and streamed live on WCKG's website. Dahl's afternoon show was rated fifth (4.1) among men 25–54 in the winter 2006-2007 ratings report.<ref name="kampert">{{cite news|first=Patrick|last=Kampert|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2007/05/01/hispanic-stations-in-3-slots-of-chicago-radios-top-10/|title=Hispanic stations in 3 slots of Chicago radio's Top 10|newspaper=]|date=2007-05-01|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref> In 2007, Dahl was named one of the '100 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts' by '']''.<ref name="tm001">{{cite journal|title=Talkers Magazine Heavy Hundred: The 100 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts In America|url=http://www.talkers.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=19&Itemid=44|journal=Talkers Magazine Online|year=2008|access-date=2014-10-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080116142514/http://www.talkers.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=19&Itemid=44|archive-date=2008-01-16|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* Steve has dabbled in acting. Steve was in the 1984 ], '']'' with newcomers ] and ].
* Recently Steve was named one of the '100 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts' by '']''.
* Steve is currently serving on the Board of Trustees at Columbia College Chicago.
* Steve has been sober since 1995. He achieved it ].


] of ''The Steve Dahl Show'' at ] in March 2008]]
Steve and his friend, record producer Joe Thomas, played a large role in the comeback of Steve's idol, ]. Thomas developed a friendship with the former Beach Boys leader and became his neighbor (in St. Charles, IL), songwriting partner and producer. Together, Wilson and Thomas recorded the CD IMAGINATION. The song, "Your Imagination", which was released as a single, was co-written with Steve Dahl, who also provided background vocals.
On Friday, August 18, 2006, Dahl was doing a remote broadcast of his show at Oak Street Beachstro, a restaurant on Chicago's ]. Coincidentally, Garry Meier was eating lunch there with friends. After Dahl learned of Meier's presence there, he invited Meier to appear on the air with him, which Meier accepted. Meier wound up staying for the remainder of the show. This event was covered widely throughout the Chicago ] that evening.<ref name="holdyourbreath">{{cite news|first=Robert|last=Feder|author-link=Robert Feder|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1633704.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116105650/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1633704.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2018-11-16|title=Don't hold your breath for more Steve & Garry|newspaper=]|date=2006-08-22|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access= }}</ref><ref name="beachawash">{{cite news|first=Phil|last=Rosenthal|author-link=Phil Rosenthal|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2006/08/19/beach-awash-in-strange-radio-waves/|title=Beach awash in strange radio waves: A funny thing happened on the way to the air and water show: Steve and Garry reunited|newspaper=]|date=2006-08-19|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref>


On April 2, 2007, Meier returned to Chicago radio, doing the 8 AM-11 AM show on WCKG. He appeared briefly on Dahl's show that same day. They occasionally contributed to each other's shows, and Meier spent the first hour and a half in studio during Dahl's show on the 28th anniversary of Disco Demolition Night, recounting the events of that night.<ref name="cbs199" />
==References==
{{Reflist}}


==External links== === Jack FM ===
Dahl announced on October 29, 2007, that he would move to mornings at WJMK on November 5, 2007, as WCKG changed ]. He was the only live personality at the ] outlet as the rest of the station was pre-programmed and run by computer. Dahl's son Matt was part of the regular WCKG lineup and hosted the show immediately following his father's. However, the WCKG format change, from an FM talk station to an ] station<ref name="freshstuff">{{cite news|first=Phil|last=Rosenthal|author-link=Phil Rosenthal|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2007/11/06/fresh-sound-unveiled-at-wckg/|title=Fresh sound unveiled at WCKG|newspaper=]|date=2007-11-06|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref> meant the end of Matt's show on WCKG.
*

*{{imdb name|id=0196974|name=Steve Dahl}}
Criminal suspect ] and his lawyer, Joel Brodsky, called in to Dahl's show on January 23, 2008. Dahl had been lampooning Peterson since the start of the former police officer's notoriety. Brodsky suggested that Dahl host an on-air "dating game" with Peterson the following day, but WJMK managers and Dahl later decided not to go through with it."<ref name="chitrib090">{{cite news|first=Phil|last=Rosenthal|author-link=Phil Rosenthal|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2008/01/24/dahl-draws-line-on-date-for-drew/|title=Dahl draws a line on date for Drew|newspaper=]|date=2008-01-24|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref>
*

*
On December 5, 2008, Dahl announced the end of his show on Jack FM due to low ratings.<ref name="SteveOut">{{cite news|first=Phil|last=Rosenthal|author-link=Phil Rosenthal|title=Steve Dahl out at CBS' WJMK-FM|newspaper=]|date=2008-12-05|url=http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/towerticker/2008/12/steve-dahl-out.html|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref><ref name="SteveLeaves">{{cite news|author=<!--Staff writer(s); No-byline-->|title=Steve Dahl Leaves JACK-FM Radio|date=2008-12-05|url=http://cbs2chicago.com/local/steve.dahl.leaves.2.880599.html|publisher=]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081208072209/http://cbs2chicago.com/local/steve.dahl.leaves.2.880599.html|archive-date=2008-12-08|access-date=2014-10-24|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*

*
"They were saying, 'Well, do a couple of weeks, a farewell.'" Dahl said. "I said, 'It's not a farewell. You guys are taking me off the air. I'm not retiring.' ... "I still have two and a half years left on my deal so, quite frankly, I'm not letting them out of it." Dahl also said he was prepared to stay off the air for the remainder of his contract, which was to end in mid-2011 and was said to be worth more than $1 million annually.<ref name="SteveOut"/>

After the end of Dahl's final broadcast, ], the normally sarcastic signature voice, Jack, heard on many Jack FM stations, delivered a sincere sendoff to Dahl followed by "]" by ], a long-time friend of Dahl.<ref name="DahlLeaves">{{cite news|first=Ted|last=Cox|url=http://prev.dailyherald.com/story/?id=256021|title=Dahl leaves Jack-FM, but doesn't call it quits|date=2008-12-05|newspaper=]|publisher=Paddock Publications|location=Arlington Heights, Illinois|access-date=2014-12-25}}</ref><ref name="SteveOut"/>

=== Back to WLS ===
On October 7, 2014, media blogger ] reported that Dahl would be returning to terrestrial radio on ]. Feder wrote: "Dahl, 59, will join the Cumulus Media news/talk station as afternoon personality, from 2 to 6 p.m. Monday though Friday. If all goes as planned, Dahl would start in early November. Sources familiar with the deal said Dahl will continue his subscription podcast venture, with Cumulus Media becoming a partner in the Steve Dahl Network. Under the agreement, Cumulus would provide financial, technical and marketing support, while Dahl would continue to host a separate, 90-minute daily podcast for his paid subscribers."<ref>{{cite news|last=Feder|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Feder|url=https://www.robertfeder.com/2014/10/07/surprise-wls-to-hire-steve-dahl-for-afternoons/|title=Surprise: WLS to hire Steve Dahl for afternoons|date=2014-10-07|newspaper=]|url-access=subscription|access-date=2014-10-09}}</ref> Dahl confirmed Feder's report on October 8 saying "he's eager to get back on the air to become 'part of the daily conversation in Chicago'".<ref>{{cite news|last=Feder|first=Robert|url=http://www.robertfeder.com/2014/10/08/steve-dahl-on-joining-wls-radios-not-dead-yet/|title=Joining WLS, Steve Dahl declares: 'Radio's not dead yet'|date= 2014-10-08|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|url-access=subscription |access-date=2014-10-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Thomas|first=Mike|url=http://entertainment.suntimes.com/celebrity/steve-dahl-returning-wls-roe-roeper-slot/|title=Steve Dahl Returning to WLS-AM in Roe and Roeper Slot|date=2014-10-08|newspaper=]|access-date=2014-10-09|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011113127/http://entertainment.suntimes.com/celebrity/steve-dahl-returning-wls-roe-roeper-slot/|archive-date=2014-10-11}}</ref><ref name="RO">{{cite web|author=<!--Staff writer(s); No by-line-->|url=http://news.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/rol.exe/headline_id=n29857|title=Steve Dahl to Return to WLS-AM/Chicago in November|date=2014-10-08|publisher=Radio Online|access-date=2014-10-09}}</ref>

Dahl's first day back on WLS was November 3, 2014. His show included an appearance by ] and a phone interview with ]. Prior to the show, Dahl said in an email, "My plan for the show is to be funny and get good ratings."<ref>{{cite news|last=Johnson|first=Steve|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-steve-dahl-wls-review-20141103-column.html|title=Steve Dahl returns to Chicago radio|date=2014-11-03|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|access-date=2014-11-04}}</ref> Dahl also said that he sees his return as not only a good opportunity to try and re-energize radio, but also as a way to turn people onto his podcast.<ref>{{cite news|author=<!--Staff writer(s); No by-line-->|url=http://abc7chicago.com/entertainment/steve-dahl-returns-to-chicago-radio-on-wls-am/379020/|title=Steve Dahl Returns to Chicago Radio on WLS-AM|date=2014-11-03|work=]|access-date=2014-11-04}}</ref>

In October 2018, Dahl confirmed to Feder by email that he was leaving WLS after four years in December 2018, in advance of the major weekday lineup shakeup the station announced would take place in early 2019. Dahl also stated that he intended to continue to produce his daily podcasts in partnership with WLS's owner ].<ref>{{cite news|last=Feder|first=Robert|url=https://www.dailyherald.com/news/20181024/feder-steve-dahl-leaving-wls-afternoon-show-dec-21|title=Feder: Steve Dahl leaving WLS afternoon show Dec. 21|date=2018-10-24|newspaper=]|access-date=2018-11-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Feder|first=Robert|url=https://www.robertfeder.com/2018/10/24/robservations-steve-dahl-leaving-wls-afternoon-show-dec-21/|title=Robservations: Steve Dahl leaving WLS afternoon show Dec. 21|date=2018-10-21|newspaper=Daily Herald|access-date=2018-11-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Swartz|first=Tracy|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/ct-ent-steve-dahl-radio-show-20181024-story.html|title=Steve Dahl's final WLS-AM afternoon show to air in December|date=2018-10-24|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|access-date=2018-12-24}}</ref> His last day on WLS was December 21, 2018.<ref>{{cite news|last=Feder|first=Robert|url=https://www.robertfeder.com/2018/12/21/happy-ending-stellar-career-steve-dahl-leaves-wls-today/|title='Happy ending' to stellar career as Steve Dahl leaves WLS today|date=2018-12-21|newspaper=Daily Herald|access-date=2018-12-24}}</ref>

== Other work ==
=== Podcasts ===
On September 8, 2009, Dahl began doing daily podcasts from a studio in the basement of his home. At the time, Dahl was still under contract with ], who had agreed in July 2009 to partner with him to produce a daily, hour long podcast complete with a few commercials. On August 1, 2011, Dahl, no longer under contract with CBS, began the Steve Dahl Network<ref name="RO"/> to continue podcasting.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dahl.com/about/|title=About SDN|access-date=2014-06-24|publisher=The Steve Dahl Network|archive-date=2014-07-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140720010007/http://www.dahl.com/about/|url-status=dead}}</ref> In February 2019, the podcast's affiliation with CBS and Cumulus Media ended, with Dahl stating, "I think it was a good partnership and it benefitted both parties when we were still on the air there", and "Now that we are off the air, it really didn't make a lot of sense for either of us to continue the relationship."<ref>{{cite web|last=Feder|first=Robert|url=https://www.robertfeder.com/2019/02/27/robservations-cumulus-cancels-steve-dahl-podcast-deal/|title=Cumulus cancels Steve Dahl podcast deal|date=2019-02-19|website=Robert Feder|access-date=2020-02-21}}</ref>

In addition to podcasting, Dahl maintained a presence with his fans through ], ], ], occasional newspaper articles (he wrote a regular column for the ] up until 2011), and various television and radio appearances.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/chi-tue-phil-dahl-0908sep08,0,2210058.column|title=Steve Dahl embarks on digital journey with new perspective|last=Rosenthal|first=Phil|author-link=Phil Rosenthal|date=2009-09-08|newspaper=]|access-date=2009-09-08}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Channick|first=Robert|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-0805-dahl-blogging-20120805,0,542656.story | newspaper=]|title=Steve Dahl's pay podcast marks 1st anniversary | date=2012-08-05|access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref>

=== Music ===
In addition to recording ] for his radio show with his early band Teenage Radiation, Dahl began recording and playing live performance with a new band in 1990, called Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins. This band has recorded and released several albums, including 1992's ''Tropical Tides''<ref name="dahlfin001">{{cite web|url=http://store.dahl.com/store/product_detail.asp?prod=17|title=Tropical Tides|access-date=2014-10-24|website=Dahl.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219235238/http://store.dahl.com/store/product_detail.asp?prod=17|archive-date=2009-02-19}}</ref> and 1997's ''Mai Tai Roa Ae''.<ref name="dahlfin002">{{cite web|url=http://store.dahl.com/store/product_detail.asp?prod=2|title=Mai Tai Roa Ae|access-date=2014-10-24|website=Dahl.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219235328/http://store.dahl.com/store/product_detail.asp?prod=2|archive-date=2009-02-19|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dahl frequently collaborated with Chicago-based producer ].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Chadbourne|first1=Eugene|title=Joe Thomas|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/joe-thomas-mn0001848367/biography|publisher=]}}</ref> In the 1990s, they worked with ] ] in co-writing the song "]" which appeared as a single and on Wilson's 1998 album '']''. Dahl provided backup vocals on the song as well.<ref name="CMT">{{cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/dahl_steve/bio.jhtml|title=About Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins|access-date=2014-10-24|website=]|publisher=]|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-10-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020184434/http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/dahl_steve/bio.jhtml}}</ref><ref name="derogatis">{{cite news|first=Jim|last=DeRogatis|author-link=Jim DeRogatis|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4444208.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924194416/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4444208.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-09-24|title=Brian Wilson, 'Imagination'|newspaper=]|date=May 24, 1998|access-date=October 24, 2014|url-access= }}</ref> In 2007, backed by ] band ], Dahl embarked on a tour of Chicago-area concert venues.<ref name="WCKGtour">{{cite web|url=http://www.wckg.com/pages/405876.php|title=Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins Summer Tour, 2007|access-date=2014-10-24|date=2007-09-11|publisher=]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071026125029/http://www.wckg.com/pages/405876.php|archive-date=2007-10-26|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Acting ===
Dahl had minor roles in the films '']'',<ref>{{cite news|last=Craft|first=Dan|url=https://www.pantagraph.com/entertainment/years-after-putting-pontiac-on-silver-screen-where-are-they/article_7e04c97c-828e-11de-868d-001cc4c03286.html|title=25 years after putting Pontiac on silver screen, where are they now?|date=2009-08-06|newspaper=]|access-date=2019-03-14}}</ref> '']''<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Nesselson|first=Lisa|url=https://variety.com/2004/film/reviews/outing-riley-1200529617/|title=Outing Riley|date=2004-11-10|magazine=]|access-date=2019-03-14}}</ref> and '']''.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Pirnia|first=Garin|url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a26791/most-overlooked-chicago-movie/|title=The Most Overlooked Chicago Movie: Jeff Garlin's 'I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With'|date=2014-01-07|magazine=]|access-date=2019-03-14}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Ebert|first=Roger|author-link=Roger Ebert|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/i-want-someone-to-eat-cheese-with-2007|title=I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With|date=2007-10-04|website=RogerEbert.com|access-date=2019-03-14}}</ref>

== Honors ==
On November 9, 2013, Dahl and former partner Meier were both inducted into the ] in recognition of their work together on the "Steve and Garry Show".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2013/06/27/steve-dahl-and-garry-meier-head-2013-radio-hall-of-fame-inductees/|title=Steve Dahl and Garry Meier head 2013 Radio Hall of Fame inductees|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|date=2013-07-23|access-date=2013-12-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.radiohof.org/news.htm|title=2013 RHOF Induction Ceremony|date=2013-11-09|access-date=2013-12-25|archive-date=2014-01-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102201404/http://radiohof.org/news.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Currently, Dahl resides in the western suburbs of ] with his wife Janet, a non-practicing lawyer, whom he married in 1978.<ref name="CST081187">{{cite news|first=Herguth|last=Bob|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3839781.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321174232/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3839781.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2016-03-21|title=Chicago Profile: Janet Joliat Dahl|newspaper=]|page=8|date=1987-08-11|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access= }}</ref> Before law school, she taught junior high for seven years in ].<ref name="CST081187" /> The couple have three sons.<ref name="Dahl.comBio">{{cite web|title=Steve Dahl - Radio Legend|work=Dahl.com|url=http://www.dahl.com/about/people/steve_dahl.asp|access-date=2008-05-24|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080501070833/http://www.dahl.com/about/people/steve_dahl.asp |archive-date = 2008-05-01|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dahl has served on the board of trustees at ].<ref name="college">{{cite web|url=http://www.colum.edu/Administrative_offices/Presidents_Office/Board_Liaison/Trustee_Bios/Dahl.php|title=Columbia College Board of Trustees biography for Steve Dahl|access-date=2008-05-21|publisher=]|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080516054030/http://www.colum.edu/Administrative_offices/Presidents_Office/Board_Liaison/Trustee_Bios/Dahl.php |archive-date = 2008-05-16|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Dahl has battled alcoholism throughout his adult life, which he has alluded to a number of times.<ref name="memories">{{cite web|title=Steve Dahl Memories|work=Dahl.com|url=http://www.dahl.com/memories/index.asp|access-date=2008-05-22|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080621133320/http://www.dahl.com/memories/index.asp |archive-date = 2008-06-21|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="bloggxx">{{cite web|title=Steve's Web Log, December 8, 2006|work=Steve Dahl Official Blog|url=http://dahl.com/weblog/12_8_06.asp|access-date=2006-12-08|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070205004000/http://dahl.com/weblog/12_8_06.asp |archive-date = 2007-02-05|url-status=dead}}</ref> He has been ] since 1995, the day after a drinking bout at the ] home opener, achieving it ].<ref name="CT123195">{{cite news |first=Steve |last=Johnson |url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-12-31/features/9512310392_1_radio-morning-steve-dahl |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140113162357/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-12-31/features/9512310392_1_radio-morning-steve-dahl |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 13, 2014 |title=Dahl's Fall - Steve Dahl Reformed? Turning 40 Will do That to a Guy |newspaper=] |date=1995-12-31 |access-date=2014-10-24}}</ref>

{{blockquote|It was sort of prompted by the fact that I realized that Patrick (eldest of his three sons) was 14 and I was rapidly approaching a 'Do as I say, not as I do' situation. I didn't think I had a right to comment on behavior based on my behavior. Plus, once I turned 40 (in November 1994) some ] thing happened to me and I guess I just got old.|Steve Dahl<ref name="CT123195" />}}

In 1999, his wife filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against ] over lewd comments Muller made about her on his show. In 2001, the case was ]. Although the terms of the deal were not disclosed, it was reportedly seven figures.<ref name="CST123189">{{cite news|first=Robert|last=Feder|author-link=Robert Feder|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3977561.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415231513/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3977561.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2016-04-15|title=Dreck, lies and videotape: On the air in '89|newspaper=]|date=1989-12-31|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access= }}</ref> Also in 1999, Steve Dahl admitted secretly recording conversations among staffers at WCKG because he suspected they were talking about him behind his back. In snippets Dahl has played on his afternoon show, two station employees can be heard mocking him as "Steve Dull" and ridiculing his show. Dahl said, "I did it within my organization to confirm my suspicions. This was in a studio filled with microphones and cameras. Legally, I don't feel they had any expectation of privacy in that case."<ref name="st003">{{cite news|first=Robert|last=Feder|author-link=Robert Feder|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4518560.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308211002/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4518560.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2016-03-08|title=For Steve Dahl, it was the tale of the tapes|newspaper=]|date=1999-10-21|access-date=2014-10-24|url-access= }}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0196974|name=Steve Dahl}}
* Archived from on 2012-10-24
*

{{good article}}

{{Authority control}}


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Latest revision as of 10:16, 17 October 2024

American radio personality
Steve Dahl
Dahl in 2008
BornSteven Robert Dahl
(1954-11-20) November 20, 1954 (age 70)
Pasadena, California, U.S.
SpouseJanet (m. 1978)
Children3
WebsiteOfficial website Edit this at Wikidata

Steven Robert Dahl (born November 20, 1954) is an American radio personality. He is the owner and operator of the Steve Dahl Network, a subscription-based podcasting network. Dahl gained a measure of national attention after organizing and hosting Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park.

Originally, Dahl broadcast with Detroit stations WABX and WWWW and later with Chicago stations WCKG, WDAI, WLUP, WMVP and WLS. He served as a columnist for the Chicago Tribune in their Live section as the resident "vice advisor" until November 2010. He is also known in Chicago for his longstanding former role as one half of the Steve & Garry team (with Garry Meier), and the two are members of the National Radio Hall of Fame. Dahl is considered an influential shock jock in talk radio.

In addition to his radio career, Dahl is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His band, Teenage Radiation, recorded and performed a number of song parodies (which he often played on his show throughout the 1980s) and since 1990 he has performed and recorded as Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins. Dahl is also an occasional actor, and has appeared in films such as Grandview, U.S.A., Outing Riley and I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With.

Early life

Dahl grew up in La Cañada, California. He is the son of Roger and Carol Dahl, an electronics parts manufacturer's representative and a homemaker.

Radio career

Early radio career

In the 9th grade, Dahl began hanging around a local underground radio station, KPPC, in his home state of California. At the age of sixteen, after he started working at the radio station full-time, he unofficially dropped out of high school. Dahl later explained, "I convinced my parents and the school that I would do an independent work-study thing. I never got around to it." At the age of eighteen, he obtained his GED and briefly married a woman he met after she called him on-air to request "Suzanne", a song by Leonard Cohen which told a tale of a troubled relationship. Dahl later explained his short-lived marriage by commenting, "I should have paid more attention to that song."

Dahl was told by radio executives that he'd never make it in radio because his voice was too high. At one point, Dahl was so discouraged that he quit for about six months and attempted to pursue a career as a recording engineer. However, this never amounted to anything more than making mix tapes of popular songs for play on airplanes. Throughout this time period, he was making efforts to reconcile with his ex-wife, who by then was dating the program director at the Los Angeles radio station where she worked. He later admitted to stalking her by sleeping in his Subaru outside her house.

In 1976, Dahl's ex-wife told him about an opening for a morning show in Detroit, Michigan on WABX. He managed to secure the job, despite the fact that he did not think he was good enough for it (he later learned that the station was owned by the same company his ex-wife worked for). At WABX, Dahl learned as much as he could about what constituted "good radio" and also began experimenting with his content. His popularity increased to the point that he achieved a 7.2 market share.

During his time at WABX, Dahl was introduced to Janet Joliat, a junior high school English and drama teacher in a Detroit suburb, who was casually dating a friend of his and was also a listener of his show. The two hit it off after Dahl invited her to a "hump day" broadcast he was doing from the camel area of the Detroit Zoo.

WDAI executives in Chicago, attracted by Dahl's 7.1 share, approached him and offered to double his salary to $50,000 a year. However, Janet did not want to leave her family in Detroit and he did not want to leave her. This prompted Dahl to ask his bosses for $35,000 a year to stay in Detroit, which they refused. In 1978, after Janet accepted his marriage proposal, Dahl left Detroit for WDAI in Chicago.

Rude Awakening

Dahl began at WDAI Chicago on February 23, 1978, with his solo Steve Dahl's Rude Awakening show, but it never achieved solid ratings despite media attention. Ten months later, on Christmas Eve, 1978, WDAI changed formats from rock to disco and fired Dahl.

Steve & Garry

In March 1979, after a few months without a job, Dahl was hired to do a morning show at WLUP where he met overnight DJ Garry Meier (who was then broadcasting under the pseudonym of "Matthew Meier"). Shortly thereafter, the two began a cross talk that eventually led to Meier being teamed up with Dahl as both sidekick and newsman. Dahl effectively forced Meier to use his actual name by calling him "Garry" on-air accidentally. After openly discussing the subject, again, on-air, Meier officially dropped his pseudonym.

Disco Demolition Night

Main article: Disco Demolition Night

In response to Dahl's firing from WDAI, Dahl and Meier mocked and heaped scorn on disco records and WDAI (calling it "Disco-D.I.E." mocking the station's slogan, "Disco-D.A.I.") on the air. Dahl pronounced the word disco with 'a contemptuous lisp', in mockery of its homosexual associations. Dahl even recorded and started playing a parody of Rod Stewart's "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?", which he called "Do You Think I'm Disco?". The song managed to crack the national charts to peak at No. 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 and received airplay across the country.

During this same time period, Dahl and Meier, along with Mike Veeck (son of then Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck), Jeff Schwartz of WLUP Sales and Dave Logan, the WLUP Promotions Director, came up with a radio promotion and tie-in to the White Sox called Disco Demolition Night which took place on Thursday, July 12, 1979. The concept was to create an event to "end disco once and for all" in the center field of Comiskey Park that night by allowing people to get tickets at the box office if they brought $0.98 (for WLUP's frequency) and at least one disco record. More than 50,000 fans showed up, many loosely interpreting "disco record" to mean any disc with music by black artists. The records were collected, piled up on the field and blown up. As the second game of the doubleheader was about to begin, the raucous crowd stormed onto the field, refused to leave, and proceeded by setting fires, tearing out seats and pieces of turf, and other damage. American League President Lee MacPhail later declared the second game of the doubleheader a forfeit victory for the visiting Detroit Tigers. Six people reported minor injuries, and thirty-nine were arrested for disorderly conduct.

Height of collaboration

As a result of Disco Demolition Night, Dahl attained national recognition and his popularity increased significantly. He established a syndicate and the Steve & Garry show began airing in Detroit and Milwaukee, where it performed well. However, in February 1981, WLUP fired Dahl, citing "continued assaults on community standards". "It was going on in El Paso and Los Angeles, like, on Monday, and on Friday they fired me," Dahl later said. Meier was offered the opportunity to continue the show by himself, but he refused.

I always used to get ticked off when I would get lumped in with Howard Stern as being a shock jock. I guess I did shock people, but I did it unintentionally. It comes out of who I am.

— Steve Dahl

During the Iranian Hostage Crisis, Dahl, along with his backing band Teenage Radiation, recorded and released a parody of The Knack's song "My Sharona", called "Ayatollah". Released as a single, it reached No. 12 on the weekly Musicradio survey of Chicago superstation WLS-AM on February 9, 1980. He also made on-the-air prank phone calls to the "Islamic Fried Chicken" (a play on Kentucky Fried Chicken), ordering buckets of chicken for the hostages in the US embassy, for which the State Department later reprimanded him. Dahl also parodied the John Wayne Gacy murders with his song "Another Kid in the Crawl" (to the tune of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall"). The playing of the song was stopped after parents of the murdered children called to complain.

Dahl and Meier won a local Emmy award for a television special they did in 1981 called, Greetings from Graceland, which was a comedy spoof on the tourist shrine and featured Elvis Presley's "Uncle Vester" selling Elvis cookbooks from the guardhouse. They briefly had a morning television show, called It's Too Early on local Chicago station, WFBN-TV, which nationally syndicated columnist Bob Greene called "the best program on television", "amazing", and "hypnotic" in his June 20, 1983 column. The show was canceled after four weeks on the air because it was deemed "unsuitable for general viewing... in particular for young children" after Dahl was shown fully clothed sitting on a toilet seat reading a newspaper.

In 1982, he stated on the air that motorists could allegedly substitute Necco Wafers for coins in automatic toll booths on Chicago's tollways. The Illinois Tollway System later said that approximately a dozen toll machines broke down due to people trying to use the candy to pay tolls.

Dahl decided to get a vasectomy in March 1989, which was performed live on the air at a urologist's office in Indiana. According to Arbitron ratings for that survey period, Dahl and Meier's ratings jumped from a tie for seventh place in afternoons to a tie for third place.

According to Paul D. Colford, a former writer for Newsday, Howard Stern listened to tapes of Steve and Garry sent from Chicago by a friend of the chief engineer at WCCC Hartford. Colford claims Stern eventually developed his on-air style as a result of these tapes. Later, Stern was hired at WWWW Detroit (which Dahl had left when he moved to Chicago).

End of collaboration

Steve & Garry moved to WLS, but ultimately returned to WLUP where they stayed until their split in 1993. The alleged reason for the break-up was Dahl's on-the-air comments about Meier's new wife, commercial real-estate broker Cynthia Fircak, while the new couple were on their honeymoon. Meier also blamed Dahl's alcoholism and unpredictable behavior. Dahl, for his part, blamed Fircak for the split, once saying on air "When I met her, I knew the rules had just changed."

In 2003, Robert Feder, a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, said, "It's the divorce that just keeps on giving: A decade after Steve Dahl and Garry Meier severed their legendary radio partnership, their breakup remains a source of bitterness and anger for them — and continuing fascination for their fans."

After the team broke up, Dahl went to Sports Talk WMVP AM and teamed with Chicago sportscaster Bruce Wolf.

WCKG years

Dahl ended up on WCKG, broadcasting an afternoon show on that station. He eventually teamed up with Buzz Kilman, who was Dahl's newsman starting in 1980 on WLUP, and the show was available as a podcast at Dahl's website and streamed live on WCKG's website. Dahl's afternoon show was rated fifth (4.1) among men 25–54 in the winter 2006-2007 ratings report. In 2007, Dahl was named one of the '100 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts' by Talkers Magazine.

Dahl and Buzz Kilman during a live remote broadcast of The Steve Dahl Show at Navy Pier in March 2008

On Friday, August 18, 2006, Dahl was doing a remote broadcast of his show at Oak Street Beachstro, a restaurant on Chicago's Oak Street Beach. Coincidentally, Garry Meier was eating lunch there with friends. After Dahl learned of Meier's presence there, he invited Meier to appear on the air with him, which Meier accepted. Meier wound up staying for the remainder of the show. This event was covered widely throughout the Chicago media that evening.

On April 2, 2007, Meier returned to Chicago radio, doing the 8 AM-11 AM show on WCKG. He appeared briefly on Dahl's show that same day. They occasionally contributed to each other's shows, and Meier spent the first hour and a half in studio during Dahl's show on the 28th anniversary of Disco Demolition Night, recounting the events of that night.

Jack FM

Dahl announced on October 29, 2007, that he would move to mornings at WJMK on November 5, 2007, as WCKG changed formats. He was the only live personality at the Jack FM outlet as the rest of the station was pre-programmed and run by computer. Dahl's son Matt was part of the regular WCKG lineup and hosted the show immediately following his father's. However, the WCKG format change, from an FM talk station to an adult contemporary station meant the end of Matt's show on WCKG.

Criminal suspect Drew Peterson and his lawyer, Joel Brodsky, called in to Dahl's show on January 23, 2008. Dahl had been lampooning Peterson since the start of the former police officer's notoriety. Brodsky suggested that Dahl host an on-air "dating game" with Peterson the following day, but WJMK managers and Dahl later decided not to go through with it."

On December 5, 2008, Dahl announced the end of his show on Jack FM due to low ratings.

"They were saying, 'Well, do a couple of weeks, a farewell.'" Dahl said. "I said, 'It's not a farewell. You guys are taking me off the air. I'm not retiring.' ... "I still have two and a half years left on my deal so, quite frankly, I'm not letting them out of it." Dahl also said he was prepared to stay off the air for the remainder of his contract, which was to end in mid-2011 and was said to be worth more than $1 million annually.

After the end of Dahl's final broadcast, Howard Cogan, the normally sarcastic signature voice, Jack, heard on many Jack FM stations, delivered a sincere sendoff to Dahl followed by "Life's Been Good" by Joe Walsh, a long-time friend of Dahl.

Back to WLS

On October 7, 2014, media blogger Robert Feder reported that Dahl would be returning to terrestrial radio on WLS AM 890. Feder wrote: "Dahl, 59, will join the Cumulus Media news/talk station as afternoon personality, from 2 to 6 p.m. Monday though Friday. If all goes as planned, Dahl would start in early November. Sources familiar with the deal said Dahl will continue his subscription podcast venture, with Cumulus Media becoming a partner in the Steve Dahl Network. Under the agreement, Cumulus would provide financial, technical and marketing support, while Dahl would continue to host a separate, 90-minute daily podcast for his paid subscribers." Dahl confirmed Feder's report on October 8 saying "he's eager to get back on the air to become 'part of the daily conversation in Chicago'".

Dahl's first day back on WLS was November 3, 2014. His show included an appearance by Ron Magers and a phone interview with Bob Odenkirk. Prior to the show, Dahl said in an email, "My plan for the show is to be funny and get good ratings." Dahl also said that he sees his return as not only a good opportunity to try and re-energize radio, but also as a way to turn people onto his podcast.

In October 2018, Dahl confirmed to Feder by email that he was leaving WLS after four years in December 2018, in advance of the major weekday lineup shakeup the station announced would take place in early 2019. Dahl also stated that he intended to continue to produce his daily podcasts in partnership with WLS's owner Cumulus Media. His last day on WLS was December 21, 2018.

Other work

Podcasts

On September 8, 2009, Dahl began doing daily podcasts from a studio in the basement of his home. At the time, Dahl was still under contract with CBS, who had agreed in July 2009 to partner with him to produce a daily, hour long podcast complete with a few commercials. On August 1, 2011, Dahl, no longer under contract with CBS, began the Steve Dahl Network to continue podcasting. In February 2019, the podcast's affiliation with CBS and Cumulus Media ended, with Dahl stating, "I think it was a good partnership and it benefitted both parties when we were still on the air there", and "Now that we are off the air, it really didn't make a lot of sense for either of us to continue the relationship."

In addition to podcasting, Dahl maintained a presence with his fans through Facebook, Twitter, blogs, occasional newspaper articles (he wrote a regular column for the Chicago Tribune up until 2011), and various television and radio appearances.

Music

In addition to recording parody songs for his radio show with his early band Teenage Radiation, Dahl began recording and playing live performance with a new band in 1990, called Steve Dahl and the Dahlfins. This band has recorded and released several albums, including 1992's Tropical Tides and 1997's Mai Tai Roa Ae. Dahl frequently collaborated with Chicago-based producer Joe Thomas. In the 1990s, they worked with Beach Boy Brian Wilson in co-writing the song "Your Imagination" which appeared as a single and on Wilson's 1998 album Imagination. Dahl provided backup vocals on the song as well. In 2007, backed by Des Moines, Iowa band The Nadas, Dahl embarked on a tour of Chicago-area concert venues.

Acting

Dahl had minor roles in the films Grandview, U.S.A., Outing Riley and I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With.

Honors

On November 9, 2013, Dahl and former partner Meier were both inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in recognition of their work together on the "Steve and Garry Show".

Personal life

Currently, Dahl resides in the western suburbs of Chicago with his wife Janet, a non-practicing lawyer, whom he married in 1978. Before law school, she taught junior high for seven years in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The couple have three sons. Dahl has served on the board of trustees at Columbia College Chicago.

Dahl has battled alcoholism throughout his adult life, which he has alluded to a number of times. He has been sober since 1995, the day after a drinking bout at the White Sox home opener, achieving it cold turkey.

It was sort of prompted by the fact that I realized that Patrick (eldest of his three sons) was 14 and I was rapidly approaching a 'Do as I say, not as I do' situation. I didn't think I had a right to comment on behavior based on my behavior. Plus, once I turned 40 (in November 1994) some metabolic thing happened to me and I guess I just got old.

— Steve Dahl

In 1999, his wife filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Mancow Muller over lewd comments Muller made about her on his show. In 2001, the case was settled. Although the terms of the deal were not disclosed, it was reportedly seven figures. Also in 1999, Steve Dahl admitted secretly recording conversations among staffers at WCKG because he suspected they were talking about him behind his back. In snippets Dahl has played on his afternoon show, two station employees can be heard mocking him as "Steve Dull" and ridiculing his show. Dahl said, "I did it within my organization to confirm my suspicions. This was in a studio filled with microphones and cameras. Legally, I don't feel they had any expectation of privacy in that case."

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