- Gene Burns
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Gene Burns Born December 3, 1940
Hornell, New YorkNationality American Occupation Radio host Known for Political and social commentary; Food and wine expert Gene Burns (born December 3, 1940) is an American talk radio host. He hosts two programs which broadcast from the studios of KGO (AM 810) in San Francisco. The Gene Burns Program, a political and social commentary show, airs weeknights. Dining Around with Gene Burns, a food and wine program, airs weekly on Saturdays.
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Early life
Burns was born and raised in Hornell, New York. Following high school graduation, he attended Rutgers University[1] before becoming involved in the local politics of Hornell, serving as chairman of a young citizens committee.[2]
Radio career
In his early 20s, Burns was hired as news director for radio station WWHG in his hometown of Hornell, New York before moving on to WSBA in York, Pennsylvania.[2][3] He began his career as talk radio host at WCBM in Baltimore in the mid-1960s. While at WCBM, Burns did two major international assignments, going to Vietnam[4] in 1968 and the Middle East in 1969.[3]
Following a brief stint with WEEI in Boston, Burns served as a talk show host as well as program director at WKIS-AM in Orlando, Florida, beginning in 1971. He would remain there until 1981, when he departed for WCAU in Philadelphia in 1981. He then returned to Orlando and WKIS in the early 1980s and was named the station's operations manager in 1984.[5] In 1985, Burns returned to Boston, hosting a talk show on WRKO.[3][6]
In 1993, Burns moved to New York City and began hosting a nationally syndicated talk program from the studios of WOR.[3][5]
In 1995, he began broadcasting for KGO-AM in San Francisco, where he remains currently. He hosts a talk show of political and social commentary called The Gene Burns Program on weeknights, as well as a program that focuses on wine and fine dining in the San Francisco Bay Area called Dining Around with Gene Burns which broadcasts weekly on Saturdays.[2][3][5]
Talkers magazine ranked Burns #24 on its list of The 25 Greatest Radio and Television Talk Show Hosts of All Time, in 2002.[7]
Politics
As a political commentator, Burns is known for his libertarian views.[2][3] He ran for the presidential nomination of the Libertarian Party in 1984,[2][5][8] but withdrew his candidacy prior to the party's nominating convention.[9] According to long-time libertarian activist Justin Raimondo, Burns "dropped out of contention for the Libertarian Party’s 1984 presidential nomination not because he wasn’t 'thrilled' at the prospect of running, but due to the discovery that he advocated going to war with Nicaragua’s Sandinistas. He was dropped, and not vice-versa."[10] In 2008, Burns announced that he had "re-registered" as a member of the Democratic Party, which he had left in the late 1960s after having been a member for several years.[4]
References
- ^ Bios:Gene Burns, Winejudging.com. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "Radio Years-Who's Who:Gene Burns", RadioYears.com. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ a b c d e f (2002) "Talker Magazine Online: Radio#24: Gene Burns", Talkers Magazine Online. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ a b Burns, Gene (2008) "I Have Re-registered as a Democrat", KGOAM810.com. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ a b c d Gene Burns biography and interview, CFLradio.net. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ Bickelhaupt, Susan (1992-11-6) "Gene Burns Heads For The Big Time Taking a call from New York", The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ (2002) "The 25 Greatest Radio and Television Talk Show Hosts of All Time", Talkers Magazine Online. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ Rothbard, Murray (1983 February) "For President: Gene Burns", The Libertarian Forum. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ Doherty, Brian "Libertarian Zionism, The Koch Bubble, And America's Third Largest Political Party". Radicals for Capitalism: A Freewheeling History of the Modern American Libertarian Movement. PublicAffairs. 2007. p. 420. ISBN 978-1586485726.
- ^ Raimondo, Justin (2007-03-17) Libertarianism and the Great Divide, Antiwar.com
External links
- GeneBurns.com, official site
- Gene Burns' Page at KGO-AM 810 official site
- Dining around with Gene Burns official site
- Gene Burns profile at Notable Names Database (NNDB)
United States presidential election, 1984 Republican Party
Convention • Primaries •
Primary resultsDemocratic Party
Convention • Primaries •
Primary resultsNominee: Walter Mondale
Candidates: Reubin Askew · Alan Cranston · John Glenn · Gary Hart · Ernest Hollings · Jesse Jackson · George McGovern
VP Nominee: Geraldine FerraroThird party and independent candidates Citizens Party Communist Party USA Libertarian Party Prohibition Party Nominee: Earl DodgeSocialist Equality Party Socialist Party USA Socialist Workers Party Workers World Party Independents and other candidates: Other 1984 elections: House • Senate • GubernatorialCategories:- 1940 births
- Living people
- American libertarians
- American political pundits
- American talk radio hosts
- California Democrats
- California Libertarians
- Radio personalities from Baltimore, Maryland
- Radio personalities from Boston, Massachusetts
- Radio personalities from New York City
- Radio personalities from Orlando, Florida
- Radio personalities from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Radio personalities from San Francisco, California
- Rutgers University alumni
- United States presidential candidates, 1984
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