KGO Radio's 7-10 PM host, Gene Burns, who in December had a seizure which resulted in a broken back, fell and broke a couple of ribs over the weekend.
Burns will not work his shift tonight, and perhaps tomorrow too, (Pat Thurston will fill in.) His immediate condition is not known.
Burns has missed considerable time off his show of late and rumors continue to circulate that he may be retiring soon. He has had some significant health issues in the recent past.
Burns has been at KGO since 1995.
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This is bad news. Mr. Burns has been my favorite host for over a decade. I find it odd that he has had a string of bad luck with his health recently considering that in the last few months he took up a very healthy regimen and lost over 80 lbs. I hope he gets well soon!
ReplyDeleteTHE best talk show host in the KGO stable, easily. Let's leave the rumors out of it for once? Get well soon Gene...your measured intelligence is much needed on the airwaves right now.
ReplyDeleteI hope Gene gets better quickly...I enjoy his balance and think he legitmately tries to engage everyone in a sincere dialogue. He is a credit to the broadcast industry and if he retires I, for one, shall miss his professionalism.
ReplyDeleteI hope Gene recovers quickly and returns to KGO. He is the smartest man on radio today.
ReplyDeleteGene and Ronn are my KGO favorites. Very different in style and substance but each a credit to the talk radio biz in his own way. If only talk radio was like this around the country! Life has not been kind to Gene health-wise. He only recently returned from a broken back. I wish him the best, but I'm sure KGO management is very concerned about the lack of continuity in that important time slot and can live with the frequent extended absences only so long. Given Gene's age and health history, I doubt the situation improves. It looks like they are grooming Pat Thurston for either Gene's slot, or perhaps John Rothmann's 10 pm slot, with Rothmann perhaps taking over at 7. Pat is ultra-liberal in her weekend slot but, in my opinion, would need to come back to a more balanced approach to be successful in an earlier, 5 days per week slot. I mean, how many nights in a row can you hero worship Julian Assange?
ReplyDeletePat Thurston? She comes off like a lightweight to me, the latest version of the affirmative action / host movement ... Karel, Christine Craft, and that young ditzy woman from years ago (I forget her name). Each host seems to have several areas of expertise... she appears to have none.
ReplyDeleteSussman on KSFO and Thurston on KGO....I won't be able to listen to either station!
ReplyDeleteGene Burns is perhaps the most articulate, thoughtful and circumspect gentleman in our local media. Even when I disagree with his views, they are shaped by a sense of deliberation and delivered with such a stentorian command and facility of language that I cannot but respect his tone and the manner in which he expresses himself. His is a rare gift, and I hope beyond hope that he will soon be able to helm his three hour evening time slot again. The debilities of age are cruel, but his eloquence is uncommon, and I hope KGO appreciates this.
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