And there goes the patience for Snuggles. (RIP Casey Kasem, 82)

No word yet on whether all the squabbling factions of his family have had time to notice.

RIP

RIP, the voice of Shaggy, and many childhood memories listening to his top 40 countdowns.

"Keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars."

Good advice! I loved the Top 40 countdowns. And the dedication songs. And all the quirky details he shared about the songs.

Here's my long-distance dedication, in memory of a great guy, a great voice and part of the soundtrack of my youth - RIP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wkR13DoBvo

His countdown was fun to listen to. I always looked forward to hearing his broadcast.

RIP Casey.

I was 13 years old back in 1979 when I was first introduced to Casey Kasem by another 13-year-old girl. I was spending the night Saturday night at her house and so we sat in our pajamas listening to the countdown. I was no stranger to pop radio, and I of course had HEARD of this thing called "the top-40" but I never knew how it all worked until the night I listened to Kasem.

The following Monday I walked from school to the local K-Mart to buy my very first 45 RPM of one of the songs in the countdown that I loved so much. And there at the K-Mart they had the "Top-40" all arranged exactly as Kasem had recited them. In other words: all 40 songs --as recorded in the format of 45 RPM records-- were set up in shelves of exactly 40 slots per shelf, and the number ranking was labeled right onto each slot. And then there was a sign hanging up next to the rack of 40 slots, listing all 40 songs in their numeric order with that week's date on it. A 45 RPM at K-Mart back in 1978 cost ¢99 and I gladly payed it. I walked home with it and played it immediately. I finally felt like a teenager for the first time --like I actually had a legitimate claim to being a regarded as a bona fide teenager.

After that I listened to him every week for over a year. I while I was too young to articulate it at the time, I found I actually enjoyed the quality of his voice and drew comfort from the semi-pastoral vibe he emanated.

The following year, 1980, I outgrew that slavish need to listen to him, and merely glanced at the printed listing of Top-40 from time to time. And my preferred focus from 1980 onward became the new cable TV channel called MTV.

But he was still the rock-solid staple of the whole pop music scene for an entire generation.

The long distance dedications were my favorite part, too. I loved how Kasem would read the letter, allow the content (lost love, dead parent, twoo wuv) a brief moment of silence to impress on his listeners, and then, with an extra catch in his voice, say, "Misty, here's your request...and dedication." Man, those were earnest times.

Part of my childhood... RIP

RIP Casey. I grew upon the Top 40 Countdown. Hard to believe he's gone.

A local radio station tonight aired the very first of his Top 40 countdown shows, and it was bloody wonderful. Among the songs I'd completely forgotten was one called "Go Back", the only hit from the one-hit wonder band Crabby Appleton. This was special for me because the drummer for that band was a good friend of mine in college a couple of years earlier. He lived in the same rooming house, and we shared many a beer together late at night, evading the need to study by listening to music real loud.

caw

I was always very fond of his voice as a child. He did the voice of Robin on the Batman TV series, and Mark on Battle of the Planets.