Radio Ink Publisher Eric Rhoads said, "Dave 'Kidd' Kraddick was a dear friend. We became friends in Salt Lake when I gave him his first morning show. He had been doing nights and I thought his nighttime teen sound would work well on mornings. His ratings soared. When he went to Dallas he told me his goal was to beat longtime Dallas legend Ron Chapman who had the top morning show in Dallas at the time, which he did. Dave was the most driven, most hard working, most creative air personality I ever worked with."
Entercom CEO David Field said, ?The entire Entercom family is shocked and saddened by the tragic death of our friend, Kidd Kraddick. Yesterday the world lost an amazing man and radio lost a tremendous talent. Even as he died, Kidd was doing what he loved and helping those who loved him. Kidd was a shining example to others. He brought joy and hope to thousands of chronically and terminally ill children through his dedicated work with his charitable foundation. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and his friends at this very difficult time. Kidd will be missed and always remembered.?
"I lived in Dallas for 12 years and knew Dave 'Kidd' Kraddock when I programmed KVIL. Not only was he an amazing talent but a wonderful person, father, husband. God bless his family and may he rest in peace." -- Tom Watson
"Kidd was like a Formula One driver. Always moving forward at a breakneck pace for fear of having someone catch up with him. Losing someone so vital, so seemingly unstoppable, is hard for the radio community and his legion of fans to process.
"When I was working across the street (at KVIL), I would marvel at the things Kidd could get done in D/FW. On the day he had volunteers at EVERY 7-11 in the Metroplex (and there are hundreds of them) collecting change to send another planeload of kids to Disney World. I listened. I cheered. Granted, not a very competitive reaction, but a worthy one given the kind of work Kidd performed. His vision and commitment were sterling.
"Kidd taught us that the art of well-planned and well-executed audio entertainment is alive and well.
"I am certain that after grieving over the loss of one of the best decision-makers in our industry, we will get back to questioning the value of talent. Are we paying them too much? Do they get in the way of what people really want from radio? Are they a management nightmare? The answers, as Kidd Kraddick demonstrated so well, is NO, NO, and NO, if the talent holds up his or her end of the bargain: Be smart. Show heart. Study what your audience consumes. Plan with wild abandon. Execute with precision. Be fabulous.
"Everyone of us who sits (or sat) behind the mike wonders if we will be remembered for our contribution to our listening community. In Kidd's case, he takes the knowledge with him that he was the best at it. Thanks for the inspiration, dear friend. Now it's our job to groom others to follow your lead." -- Smokey Rivers
(7/28/2013 5:07:27 PM)
Kidd and I arrived in Dallas the same week in the early 80s. We worked together for about 8 years.
I was the best man in his wedding and he was in my wedding.
One of my favorite memories of Kidd... He came to my home town in Thief River Falls, Minnesota for my wedding. My bachelor party was held at a cabin in the woods. First time Kidd saw the northern lights and I'm certain it was the first time he ever made a wager on wood tick races. I was visiting same cabin when I got the news.
Add a Comment | View All Comments Send This Story To A Friend
