L.A. Radio Station Takes DJ Rick Dees Off-the-Air
Tuesday April 7, 2009
Longtime Los Angeles radio personality, Rick Dees, is homeless again. His most recent radio digs, 'Movin 93.9 FM' (KMVN) has taken Dees off-the-air because of an impending format change. Beginning April 15, the station will move to a Spanish format.
Dees has a contract which runs through September so it's likely he will not re-emerge on a local L.A. station prior to that - maybe longer depending on a no-compete clause or other contractual considerations. In the meantime, he will continue with his syndicated shows.
Dees began his career on a dare when a fellow student challenged him to audition on a local radio show.
He worked in a variety of cities including Raleigh, Birmingham, and Memphis before moving to Los Angeles in 1979.
For more on Rick Dees, see his profile.
Visit Rick Dees website at www.rick.com
Comments
I can’t believe that Rick Dees is not on 93.9 anymore. For the last 2-1/2 years (since I heard that he was on air again, I have listened to his show every morning that I drove to work. From his “burning your buns” to his funny demeanor with “Patty, long-legs Lopez and Mark Wong – it was a wonderful way to start my day. Hopefully, he will be on air again soon. Till then, I guess I am ALSO “homeless”, without a real station to listen to. It’s a very sad day for many of us “Rick Dees” fans.
Rick Dees was not my cup of tea, but I did listen to the station a bit and enjoyed it..I miss Frosty Heidi and Frank that was canceled. Now I haven’t found a station I like… K-Earth is an aggravation the same play list since the begging of time, I will not put a preset for them..
You guys must be idiots juest what we need another spanish station we don’t understand put dees back on
It only makes sense that we take Rick Dees off the air and put another FOREIGN LANGUAGE station for us to skip over. Rick was a good way to start my day. I liked the music and candid phone along with his very natural way of making us all feel like we were his personal friends. Thanks for NOTHING. You can keep your Spanish stations (IN THE USA) all to yourselves.
I’m just stunned.
And all due to some sweet financial deal with a company from Mexico, as I understand it.
Its all about money.
Who cares about anything else in life.
Oh my god I can’t believe it we are out of Rick Dees and his crew, are you serious for ANOTHER spanish station like we don’t have enough of those already!!!!!!! gees these is depressing what where they thinking.
I can’t beleive that Rick Dees is off the air. I listen to his station every morning while driving to work. I noticed the station was playing Spanish, I thought something was wrong with my radio. I hope he gets back on the air really soon. I don’t really care for any other station. His station made my moring.
Not only do we lose an entertaining format in Rick Dees & Crew, but Rick is all about giving back to the Community. He does so much in the way of Charity. Rick has made his fame and fortune & now he wants to “Give Back”…I once had the opportunity to talk with him & he told me that when “his time comes”, he would like to die with very little in his bank account…..that’s how much he he would like to help others…what a great guy! I hope & pray that his days on radio are not over.
So sad to lose Rick Dees again and his team of DJ’s. I use to listen while on my way to work when I was employed. Now Unemployed I would turn on my raido at home and listen to the station. I hope you come back or at least they should have move the station to another station. I feel for all those that my have lost their jobs. We do not need another SPANISH station. I am so sick of thoes stations.
We will miss you Rick Dees! Please come back soon.
OH MY GOD NOT AGAIN! I was really hoping my radio was broken, but it wasn’t. I can’t believe we have lost him again. This totally sucks. He has given the community so much, and the listeners too. Please Rick find your way back to us again, “VIA THE AIRWAVES”! Just buy your own radio station so this doesn’t keep happening. I know we will hear you again soon. Take Care and God Bless!
after 97.1 talk radio went off (leykis) i get sick of kroq and tired of seacrest he becomes saturated then i found out recently deez was on in the morning i would listen to him for my half hour to work and listen to the music after work i turn on today to some b.s. radio station…deez makes everything real hes like not from concentrate and almost human, disco duck rules! and im 38 years old also theres no rock stations the good ones are gone 103.1 which was a fav i guess radio is crap if deez has to be silenced then again these are new times and every album from anyone can be downloaded for free anytime anywhere!
I grew up listening to Rick Deez and his music format of the 70’s 80′ and 90′. Now that he is off the air again, were do we go now ? this really sucks
Thanks for the great music. Hope to hear you on the air again soon. Who ever did this is a blundering idiot. No more Spanish stations PLEASE!
I can not believe that you took Rick Dees show off the air. I listened to him every morning. I hate the music and now it is everywhere!! What were you thinking. I am not from California originally I am from back East. I am so sick and tired of Spanish raido, I don’t understand a word of it and don’t want to. Please don’t forget about us good old people who have no origins in a latino heritage.
I am so angry that they took rick dees off of the air. The station was the best thing around, alot of other stations(r&b and pop and rock) play music that speak of SEX, DRUGS, CHEATING, BEATING and KILLING…. this STINKS…. the music on 93.9 was good music from the past. Todays music is the same with every artist….. this is WRONG !!!!!! BRING HIM BACK, we are SICK of seeing Ryan Seacrest everywhere…
I thought my radio was not in working order either, so i kept on turning off and on to no avail. Please somebody out there, listen to our prayers and have Rick on the air again wit his wonderful crw and 70’s music.
Rick- you should have stayed on kissfm instead
of wasting your time with 93.9. 97.1 is now lousy music, 93.9 is lousy music, 102.7 is also lousy music. There are no choices now. I guess talk radio on AM is the only choice left. I hope 93.9 goes bankrupt soon.
Are you serious? I can’t believe this!! You really think spanish radio is more popular than RICK DEES??? I’m sure you’ll take a big hit on this one, what are you a bunch of idiots? Sorry, not you Rick though you are the No.1 idiot of all time. I can’t believe this, still in shock… again!!! blaaaa
Hey Edward,
I hope 93.9 can’t pay their bills either.
I read that the owners of the station were offered a deal of 7 million dollars a year on a seven year lease from a company in Mexico who wanted to have that station in Spanish.
The owners couldn’t pass it up and pretty much kicked out Rick Dees before his contract was even up.
It isn’t up till September.
Must have been a shocker for everyone working there as well as it has been for us listeners.
Your right about no other good stations.
I can’t find any.
Please say it isn’t so, we lost Rick Dee’s again what is this world coming to and now another Spanish radio station, like we need another one. RICK PLEAE COME BACK TO THE AIRWAVES WE MISS YOU AND YOUR CREW. Who ever did this is a blundering idiot. I know we will hear you again soon. Take Care and God Bless!
This was a stupied move on the owner of the station!! We grew up in the 80&90 that was our kind of music from atomic dog to stevie-b
rick dees was a great way to wake up and listen to. patty we saw live at oc fair a few years ago. she is very pretty and nice, also we went to rick’s concert live at nokia in la he hosted bands back from my era. you will be missed wish you, patty and mark all the best we hope to find you on the air again. I’am a proud mexican we have enough spanish station on the air already. this is one spanish station i will not listen too.
Once again another F**cking spanish radio station comes onto the airwaves. This is such B**lcrap!!
When the last English language radio station in L.A. goes to sleep would you please turn out the lights.
Thank You.
When I first turned on the radio on the way to work, I thought…….Rick is soooo funny, he’s playing Spanish music!! I listened to the entire song, when the NEXT song was in Spanish, I thought, am I on the wrong Channel? When I realized I wasn’t, I thought OMG, what have they done to Rick now!? I thought of poor Patty who just got married and bought a house, I thought about Mark and Amy and the baby……I felt so bad for them all and for myself too. Now what are we going to listen to? There’s no one who comes close to Rick. Just know Rick and Patty and Mark that I miss you, everybody does. I’m a proud Mexican but enough is enough!
When we turned on our radio, I thought something was wrong with our radio too. We kept hearing Spanish music. We turned it on again and more Spanish music. then I read Rick Dees is off the air. Are you kidding me? Another stupid Spanish station? I wonder what the owner was smoking when he did this. I’ll just listen to my cd’s. Are they aware this is still America? Maybe not.
I was shocked and sadened that rick dees show was taken off the air.rick and his other casts were very good on his show.I love 70s. 80s music. I won’t listen to 93.9 any more. I’ll go back jack fm.who needs anorther spanish format. Poor rick my buddy hang in there. Some other station mite bring u back.u got screwed rick.to many mexicans in California.take care rick rudy
SPANISH station… Put Rick Dees back on air. Icon like Dees should be on the air as long as he likes it. There are lot of Spanish station on air already. Dees and his crew are good radio people, my eight years old kid even like Dees, Wong and Lopez. She doesn’t know Ryan. I guess I have to take 93.9 out of my preset, and put it back to KISS.
93.9 is no longer on any of my presets. Adios!
bad move, we love rick dees in the morning. I will not listen to new station, it sucks.
Was extremely happy when we found Rick Dees, again. Listened to him every day. Owner of station, U suck the big one!!!
In some societies one would be given slow forms of torture for removing someone like Rick Dees from the airwaves.
yo soy mexicano pero me gusta la musica en ingles y como muchos de aqui me sorprendi al no oir a rick la unica estacion que valia la pena escuchar y ponen otra pinch… porqueria de musica en espanol ya ay muchas /%^# a su {%^#@ madre los de la nueva estacio, bring Rick’s back VIVA Rick and crew
nvisdh
Wow Rick at first I thought my mechanic had changed my station! Then reality hit me…”they took coal to New Castle” – another Mexican station??. PLEASE !!……..Now I come to work with our a smile and missing the nicest group of people ever. Such fun, cutting edge and always right on target with common since too! I am devastated…….Rick talked me through the Northridge earthquake as he was on air. As always he was totally together, calm and reassuring providing info and directions. I am forever grateful to this guy and his Pals.. Sorry Rick you will be so missed by us.
Are you out of your mind! That was a great radio station and why in the world would we need another spanish station, we have enough of those and not enougn of the Movin99 music. When I first turned on the radio, I thought it was a commercial and much to my shock it was not! What a nightmare!
I thought this was the United States of America
Its becoming The United States of Mexico!
i am not aginst spanish stations but why dont you go to the fcc to complain about rick with the genral idea that there is a flood of spanish stations within the area, and if the ethnic rule is the topic then to change the format to italian,french or german for example. maybe the station owner would be forced to leave the format alone.But only by a petition.
I WILL MISS THE 93.9 MOVIN FAMILY. THE GREAT MUSIC THEY PLAYED FROM THE 80s 90s AND TODAYS MY 2YR OLD DAUGHTER AND I WOULD DANCE AND SING TO THE TUNES. SAD VERY SAD I WILL MISS THEM NOT THE SAME NO MORE
I love everyone’s comments, everyone seems very passionate about music and that’s one reason why I don’t listen to the radio as much anymore.
The music that does get played are so repetitive and sucks.
I think we as (AMERICANS) should stand up and pickett radio stations or owners such as these and let them know we make them, they don’t make us. Without us buying or listing to music what do they have NOTHING.
WE must stand for something, obviously, MONEY is power and people don’t have any power.
Rick Dees is over the hill. He is yesterday’s news. That’s why he failed…..besides the fact that he is a hack.
I’m gonna miss Rick, he was better than a cup of coffee in the morning. I’ve listened to him since the 70’s and why can’t the “Disco Duck” days come back? We need to hear back from Willard Wiseman from the far east of L.A., Patty Long-legs and Mark Dong Wong….Love you Rick…Did you guys even think to give us a heads up…I didn’t even know that Rick was leaving the air….Benny Gonzales from Chino, CA
I’m very dissappointed that Rick is out of the
air wave. Tired of politics. 9.39 sucks!!!
I can not believe that Rick was taken off the air. To hear yet another Spanish station just pisses me off. I was never much for moring talk radio but I have been following Rick Dees and his cast for many years. Between him and Charlie Tuna I felt that they both had some really fun and interesting shows. Almost everyone I knew had thier stations set to 93.9 because of Rick and the line up of songs. Not much left out there for listeners to enjoy. But then again it is not for the bigshots at the station to be concerned with thier listeners it is all about money! Well, I have removed 93.9 from my dial.
Rick is so great! What a big mistake to take him off the air.What are they thinking ??? Spanish music???? I just listen to Sirius now.
Rick dees. Please stay in LA and come back to the airwaves soon.
We have to many spanish radio station,they need to go.Rick Dees is a icon to this city and the surrounding comunities. Rick Dees needs to come back!!!!
I can’t believe that Rick Dees was shut down this way!
Rick Dees was the ideal Dj for that GREAT Era, he has the perfect personally for this.
MOVIN 93.9 was the ONLY station that really catered to most of the Baby Boomers which is in fact the largest and ever growing population. Most of which enjoys reliving most of the popular Classic radio songs of the 70’s and 80’s.
My opinion is that it was a Bad move to whomever decided change this. I hope he somehow comes back soon! with the same type of radio show.
I am sick an tired of spanish this an spanish that taking over the english speeking MARKET it is a sad Day when Rick Dees himself gets booted out on his butt by a spanish speaking Radio Station…….. FOR GOD SAKES THIS IS FRICKEN AMERICA LEARN ENGLISH IF WE MOVE TO MEXICO WE HAVE TO LEARN SPANISH, IF WE LIVE IN JAPAN WE LEARN JAPANESE,CHINA,FRANCE, AND SO ON LETS DO IT HEAR IN AMERICA… IM NOT PREJIDIS..JUST SICK OF A WONDERFULL THING LIKE RICK DEES LEAVING THE RADIO WAVES FOR SPANISH VENUE….I cant wait for Rick Dees to come back to the Radio…..P.S. STOP THE MADNESS
I moved to LA in 1980, and have followed him ever since. He is very talented and has not really been rewarded accordingly. I was thrilled to find him again, and now I can’t find any music I like anywhere. He made KIIS in my opinion and even though I like Ryan Seacrest he is no Ric Dees
Rick Patty Mark and Crew Ther the BEST!!!!!!!!
I miss Rick Dees in the morning. I can’t stand Mexican Radio.
We all make our choices and I’m sure Rick had his reasons for signing on with KMVN. I’m sure he had another option or three in the LA market but “movin’” probably gave him free reins and he did what he’d done for the last 25 years. It was good but not good enough and certainly not good enough to carry the rest of the dayparts.
If, at some point, Rick decides to rejoin the LA radio zoo, I hope he finds a happy fit.
I thought the “Rick” stood for “Richardo”, and Rick was hispanic?
So why can’t he stay?
His name is Rigdon Osmond Dees III, and we’ve missed him since the 70’s here in Memphis. I used to listen to him first at WMPS, (where he wrote Disco Duck) then later at WHBQ in Memphis. All of his characters were developed here in Memphis. Rick will always be #1 wherever he decides to lay his head, and hang his hat.
Rick, if you can read this, look man, I know you have the money, BUY A STATION! OK? However, if you need investors, I would either STEER CLEAR of any Spanish-speaking ones, or learn Spanish!
It is a money making deal. Rick Dees is a great guy but so what just bend over and take it. Spanish music is beautiful thing and is going to rule the world!!! Just ask Patty “long legs” Lopez. Arriba!!
somebody buy ricks contract and put him back on the airwaves
Rick Dees was my 1st radio teacher.I was 19 years old when i began hosting radio show Rick Dees weekly top 40 on Georgia-former Ussr.It was really great way for me to diside became a radio host.Now i 31 years old and i thank u for all mr.Rick Dees!!!
PS-sorry for my English//
good, they need to take his top 40 off every station in the world, he sucks
I can’t believe it! AGAIN!!! I turned on my radio and thought oh sh__! He changed his hours and then I tried to find him at another time and couldn’t find a thing! You station owners are nuts! This is the US. NOT THE US OF MEXICO!! Give me a break!
Like they say, it’s all about the money who cares what people like anymore. A lot of great radio stations have gone to give way to crappy ones, I guess crappy is better now. I agree too many spanish radio stations and no more good ones!
Back in April I pressed my radio button and heard a Spanish station. So I had to do a double check. I checked a few days later and found that Rick Dees was no longer on the air. I used to listen to him in the 80’s as did my wife and friends. He made the drive to work bearable. Recently when I found him again on the air, I used him to take my mind off driving 30+ miles and listened to his antics. I have retired and now wonder what all those drivers listen too make to commute bearable?
DES
I love RICK’S GANG and his humor sense…. but as everybody know….money talk Bull#$%T Walk. I can see too much racial comments here… Don’t forget that the AMERICANS put the price and LATINO BUSINESS PEOPLE pay the price. Don’t blame Spanish people or Latino community for this. We all love Rick Dees show. I think FCC must rule.