R.I.P.: Steve Gaspar, Longtime Radio Professional, Innovative Pioneer

Steven Joseph Gaspar (1949-2023)

Steve Gaspar, a longtime SoCal radio professional has died last week following a brief illness.

He graduated from St. Augustine High School in San Diego , class of 1967. He attended San Diego City College for 5 years to avoid the draft and left with an associates degree in Broadcasting while working in music and broadcasting.

Gaspar got his start in radio at KCBQ/San Diego, working with the legendary Buzz Bennett. From there, he went to Y-100/Miami and was a part a team that created radio magic. After Y-100, he went to KDWB/Minneapolis (again with Buzz) before they made their way back to sunny California.

After returning to SoCal, Gaspar became Promotions Director at KLOS-FM, later enhanced to Creative Services Director for ABC Radio Networks. During his tenure, the station went from "worst to first", beating out KMET-FM, a milestone few imagined possible in those days, but Steve always knew it would happen at some point. He found ways to wreak havoc with the crosstown competitors by showing up at their concerts and providing free parking ("compliments of KLOS") or handing out bumper stickers with the performing act's name. He created that famous "rainbow racetrack" sticker which became the gold standard at all ABC O&Os and coveted by listeners coast to coast even today. The list of promotional feats he was responsible for implementing is long and would require extra paper.

 

Steve Gaspar

Gaspar left KLOS in 1984 to become a pioneer yet again by starting Wavelength Video, a company that would put music videos in bars and restaurants. Adjunct to that, he created the concept of “Cafe Vid”, the first hip bar/restaurant to be enmeshed in this music + video marriage. He then formed National Video Subscription to service those entities jumping on the video bandwagon. Springboarding to his next venture, he formed ETV Network, encompassing all things video in the publishing and entertainment sector. The music video business could not have had a better ally than Steve.

He saw the burgeoning energy + health industry trying to break into new areas so he jumped into the deep end and started Aloha Carbs, a bricks and mortar store that carried a propriety all-natural energy drink, “E-10”. He secured Jerry Rice as spokesman for this and worked tirelessly to get E-10 in retail all across Los Angeles. However, E-10's creator-chemist passed on without ever sharing the formula so the product ceased production.

Following that venture, he made the decision to spend more time with his family so he moved back to the San Diego area to help care for his then-aging parents and to be closer to his sister and family. In his later years, he worked with Hewlett-Packard as a technical consultant to Best Buy stores and ran a successful media sales venture.

Preceded in death by his parents Emily and Joseph Gaspar and his beloved sister Louise Gaspar Carroll. Survived by nephew Stephen Carroll and a host of cherished friends and fellow radio and record company legends. Service arrangements are pending.