Michael Jackson (radio commentator)

Michael Jackson (born April 16, 1934 in London, England) is an American talk radio host based in the Los Angeles, California area. Jackson is best known for his radio show which covered arts, politics, and human interest subjects, particularly in the Los Angeles and greater Southern California area in the era before "shock jocks." His show originally aired on L.A. radio station KABC and briefly aired on KGIL.

Early life

Jackson was born in England and experienced the Blitz as a child. After the war, during which his father served in the RAF as a navigator trainer, his family moved to South Africa where he became a radio disc jockey. The Jacksons were appalled by the apartheid then dominant in South Africa, and they moved to the United States in 1958. Michael had always wanted to be on the radio in Los Angeles, but first, he worked in cities like San Francisco, where he did a Top-40 show for station KYA. Listeners loved his British accent, but he didn't especially enjoy being a rock deejay. In fact, he hated rock music and ended up getting fired. When he was hired in the early '60s at KEWB to do an overnight shift, he gradually phased out playing records, and began chatting with callers. He got the reputation of being a problem-solver, and comedian Mort Sahl, a big fan of his, jokingly called...
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