R.I.P.: Gregg Hunter, Longtime L-A Radio Celeb Interviewer

Gregg Hunter

Gregg Hunter, who spent four easygoing decades on the radio in Los Angeles talking about restaurants, music, television and classic movies, died May 15 in Los Angeles, his rep, Michael Sinclair, said.

He was 87, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Known as "the friendliest voice on the airwaves," Hunter worked at KIEV-AM from 1968-98 and hosted such programs as Weekend World of Entertainment; Meet Me at the Derby. He generally avoided hot-button issues on the air. "There's plenty of shouting and political controversy around the dial," he said, "but it seems to me that late evening should provide a time to wind down and relax."

When Salem Communications purchased KIEV in 1998, Hunter segued to CRN Digital Talk Radio Networks and worked there until 2015.

A song-and-dance man who composed more than 100 tunes, he signed with Fox and came to Los Angeles, but it was "a bad career move," he said. "The studio brought me west and promptly forgot I was on the lot." Still, he decided to remain in California, working at radio stations including KPOP, KFVD, KLWN and KMLA-FM before joining KIEV, then a 500-watt outlet. (It would gradually grow to a powerful 20,000 watts by 1998.)