He then worked for KOMA Radio in Oklahoma City in 1966, where he first used the name "Charlie Tuna" which he adopted from Chuck Riley, who had used it for one show the week prior to Ferguson's arrival. In 1967 Tuna worked at WMEX in Boston for 9 months, when he received a call from the infamous Bill Drake - who offered him the 9 AM to noon slot at Boss Radio 93 KHJ. And earning the elite distinction of being able to call himself an official Boss Jock on Thanksgiving Day 1967.
The date is January 7, 1971 and Charlie is working the turntable at KHJ in Los Angeles. [ LISTEN ] (1:00:30)
In 1972 Charlie became one of the original DJs at KROQ AM, at the new Top 40 station in Los Angeles KRLQ, the station called itself "The Rock of Los Angeles" - a format described as high energy, all cutting edge rock, all the time. A year later in 1973, he moved to KKDJ as both program director and morning personality. He was there through its 1975 call-letter change to KIIS-AM, and broadcast the first show on KIIS-FM when it began its AM/FM simulcast.
If you were among the first ten listeners to show up after Charlie called in his telephone booth location to 93/KHJ, he would give you cash! Here's the result of one of those call-ins on June 28, 1971.In addition to local programming Charlie headed up his own radio syndication business, which distributed shows both nationally and internationally. He was the announcer for Casey Kasem's 1980's television program "America's Top Ten", and filled in for Casey on his syndicated "Top 40 Countdown" show.
He hosted "Your Goodtime Oldies Magazine" from 1992 to 1995, and he produced and hosted 52 weekly episodes of the syndicated "Back to the 70's" which were rerun at radio stations across the country until 2008. A proud supporter of the U.S. military, Charlie broadcast approximately 6,000 radio shows from 1971 through 1996 on the American Forces Radio Network.
Charlie at KCBQ in San Diego on the morning of April 11, 1972. [ LISTEN ] (12:17)
On this morning show aircheck: Charlie gets tongue-tied, KCBQ's "The Last Contest" promo, a Ford Pinto car commercial, Shell gasoline "Bing For Cash" commercial, and a Chevy Camaro ad.Also, Charlie has signed up to find his "perfect match" at a computer dating service. The service receptionist is quite surprised when he calls to set up the date.
KHJ February, 1969
His television work included 30 years as host of "Cinema, Cinema, Cinema", an internationally sydicated show featuring the top movies in the United States. He was the off-camera announcer on a number of television game shows "The $25000 Pyramid", "Scattergories", "Time Machine", and "SCRABBLE". He was also the announcer for the last two years of the "Mike Douglas Show", Alan Thicke's "Thicke of the Night", and the station voice of L.A. independent TV station KDOC Channel 56. On the big screen Charlie appeared in the 1977 Universal film "Rollercoaster", and the 1979 independent film "Racquet".  |  |  |
Charlie with B.B. King (top) December 12, 1968, and George Harrison (bottom) on May 26, 1975, and Elton John and Neil Sedaka on September 13, 1975
Charlie is now at KROQ in Los Angeles in June, 1973.
[ LISTEN ] (7:21)
[ LISTEN ] (7:21)
A time before the now-legendary K-Rock on FM, this station started out as an original Top 40, KBLA, and after a number of format changes, returned to Top 40 from the ashes of Country station KBBQ in 1972.
Charlie's charitable work included raising more than 2.5 million dollars for the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, the Revlon Run/Walk, and hundreds of local charities throughout the years.
He also emceed the annual Woodland Hills 4th of July Spectacular that attracted crowds of over 50,000.
In 1999 Charlie was inducted into the Nebraska Broadcasters Hall of Fame, and into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2008. In 2010, Charlie received a Lifetime Achievement Award and was inducted into the Route 66 Hall of Fame in San Bernadino, CA. L.A. Radio People readers and peers voted Charlie Tuna one of the top ten radio personalities of all time. In 1990 he followed fellow Boss Jocks Robert W. Morgan and The Real Don Steele with his own star on the world famous Hollywood Walk of Fame.
More Tuna...
He worked at KBIG 104.3 where he hosted a long running morning show Charlie Tuna in the Morning which aired from 5 to 10 am. His last full-time morning show aired on September 17, 2007, when the station flipped to a non-rhythmic-based adult contemporary format, as 104.3 My FM. He returned to radio February 9, 2008 when he became the weekend personality on Los Angeles oldies station K-Earth 101. CBS on August 27, 2015 began down sizing their stations in Los Angeles, at which point Charlie moved on to expand his syndicated radio business with Charlie Tuna Syndication. Tuna had a year long run in 2009 of a 5-hour classic hits daily and weekend show, syndicated through United Stations Radio Network in New York. He joined Black Card Radio in Los Angeles in 2010 as host of a 5-hour weekend show Charlie Tuna - The 70's, which is distributed nationally and internationally, and later added a 5-hour daily and weekend show for all radio formats.
With a Busch Gardens parrot at KHJ in November, 1977.Tuna spent the last years of his life in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Tarzana, where he served as the community's Honorary Mayor from 1977. He passed away in his sleep on February 19, 2016 at his home, aged 71.
Hollywood Walk of Fame, 1990.WHERE DID CHARLIE WORK? Here is the list: KGFW, KLEO, KROQ, KKDJ, KIIS, KHJ, KTNQ, KHTZ, KBZT, KOMA, KROQ, WMEX, KRLA, KODJ / KCBS, KMPC / KABC, KIKF, KLAC, KBIG, and KRTH.
