Creative Mastermind for Week 06/16: Casey Kasem, Radio Host

Happy Wednesday friends of The Creative Cabana! Thanks for stopping by for another week of Creative Mastermind appreciation awareness. This week's Mastermind though is being honored on a more tragic note than what I usually share. Making recent news with the announcement of his death, I would like to dedicate the honor of Creative Mastermind to a man of many voices: Casey Kasem.

Casey Kasem is one of my personal idols and I've admired him since I was a child. He was truly one of the most beloved actors and disc jockeys of the 20th century and his talent was unique. As you can see from the picture on the left, he was the voice of many famous cartoon characters- most notably Shaggy from Scooby Doo. Kasem was also the host of the popular radio show American Top 40 which was a countdown of the biggest music hits throughout the year. Kasem held the title of host of this program from 1970-1988 and 1998-2003. Today American Idol host, Ryan Secrest, is the host of American Top 40, however you can still hear the passion of Kasem's personality come through on each episode of the program. Casey Kasem had the energetic drive that could really engage people and draw them into what he was saying. Throughout his shows he would share different segments about up and coming music, trivia facts, and stories about the artists. This is what true radio broadcasting was like- all about the music, less about the money.

Casey Kasem was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1932. It is believed that he was inspired by radio from listening to "Make Believe Ballroom", another popular radio broadcast from the 1940s. After graduating from college, Casey Kasem was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1952, sent to Korea and became a DJ/Announcer for the Army's Radio Network. When he returned to the U.S. he became a success working in several radio stations across the country. He has earned a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and has also been inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame. Casey Kasem also provided the voices for several cartoon characters throughout his career. His most famous role was Shaggy Rogers from the popular children's show Scooby Doo. Kasem voiced Shaggy for 40 years between the TV shows, spin-offs, and movies. His unique voice provided a clear and comic relief to the character of Shaggy. As a tribute to Casey Kasem here is a great clip I found of Scooby Doo and Shaggy hosting a radio show. In this scene Shaggy does his "radio voice", stop and think about this: Casey Kasem is doing an impression of himself- CLASSIC

One of the reasons why I would like to honor Casey Kasem as a Creative Mastermind is that he was such an unique and talented individual, it can't go unnoticed. I firmly believe that many DJ and On-Air talents have an aspiration to be like him. It's difficult to really explain, but when you're working in a studio and the only way people know you is through your voice, you have to create another personality that comes alive. No one sees you, so you have a job to really create a vibrant personality using sounds. Casey Kasem did that with perfection. He didn't just announce music or read a script- he told stories, he shared moments with his listeners, and he reached out to people through his dedications and messages. Radio has lost that special feeling because everyone turns to their MP3 devices for music, and radio has just become another home to advertisements and sales. Casey Kasem created a whole new generation for radio listeners and gave us so many nostalgic memories as kids because we heard his voice on so many shows. He truly was a legend and creative in his productions. He could write, speak, entertain, and make us laugh so hard we thought we had lost our minds. People like that don't come around very often; many imitate, but few achieve. Thank you for educating us Mr. Kasem and reminding us to always "keep reaching for the stars". 

Remember, the door is always open if you would like to send The Creative Cabana a nomination for Creative Mastermind. Have your favorite Creative Genius highlighted and put in the spotlight by simply leaving your nomination in the comments of this post or you can share it on our Facebook and Twitter accounts- just search "Creative Cabana". Be sure to give us details on who your nomination is and why they are a Creative Mastermind! Until next time friends, have a great day! 

* I am in no relation or affliated with Casey Kasem or members of the Kasem family. All opinions in this post are of my own and are expressed in dedication to him. Scooby Doo is the property of Hanna-Barbara and Warner Bros. I do not own any of the characters mentionned in this post and hold no ownership to their rights. Images used in this post, were collected from Google Images search results. The sad Scooby Doo illustrations were found through my Facebook account where friends had shared these images from other sites. I am not the creator of these images, and I give credit of these images to the artist of each drawing. The YouTube clip was posted on the network by a YouTube user in dedication to Casey Kasem. The clip is being used here for educational purposes only. No Copyright Infringement Intended.