Gary Owens was a radio talent, actor, and voice talent. In addition to radio, people of a certain age will remember him as the announcer for the comedy show Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In.
Born in South Dakota, early in his career, Owens passed through 1290 KOIL-AM in Omaha, a fertile proving ground for many young talents.
In 1961, Owens landed in Los Angeles at 980 KFWB. In the days before 640 KFI moved to news/talk, Owens hosted mornings. His cast included Dan Avey, Barbara Whitesides, David Blake, and producer Laura Brown, most of whom can be seen in the video contributing to the show.
Owens received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1980, which can be found between Walt Disney and Betty White. Owens passed away in February 2015 at the age of 80.
Enjoy Gary Owens’s smooth baritone voice, 1986 640 KFI Los Angeles from California Airchecks.
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Jeff Lynn serves as Editor of Barrett Media’s Music Radio coverage. Prior to joining Barrett Media, Jeff spent time programming in Milwaukee, Omaha, Cleveland, Des Moines, and Madison for multiple radio groups, including iHeartMedia, Townsquare Media, NRG Media, and Entercom (now Audacy). He also worked as a Country Format Editor for All Access until the outlet shut down in August 2023.
To get in touch with Jeff by email, reach him at Jeff@BarrettMedia.com.
