Loved, LOVED Open Phone America! R.I.P., Larry. I'd oft wondered if Donald Fagen's Night Fly song was somewhat inspired by King. It's not that Larry was so smart (which he was) so much as he was seemingly so curious/interested in his guests. He always asked probing questions, then stepped aside - leaning in with great interest - to allow his guests to shine. IMO, he was one of the greatest interviewers of all time.
I remember Larry from CNN mostly and his talk show on the radio. Back when you had Art Bell, Sally Jesse Raphael and Tom Snyder dominating the airwaves (and on KEX). It's doubtful that Fagen was inspired by King, since Nightfly came out before King was recognized nationwide, From his memoir: In his memoir, Eminent Hipsters, Fagen notes that the cover figure "wasn't supposed to be a stand-in for any particular jazz DJ," but noted a few personalities from the period that factored into the creation: Ed Beach, Dan Morgenstern, Martin Williams, R.D. Harlan, "Symphony Sid" Torin, and what Fagen regarded as his "main man", WEVD's Mort Fega.
A man of great inquisitiveness, great ability to draw inner thoughts out of his interviewees, and great suspenders. RIP
He used to eat breakfast every day at Nate n' Al's in Beverly Hills. I saw him there a few times, just seemed. totally normal/down to earth.
RIP.....he sure had a long career. I never watched him much but I know he was popular amongst tv fans
He famously did not prepare for interviews - that way he could ask questions without a bias, get curious about a subject, ask genuine questions, etc. It really worked for him.
Someone here called themselves Nightfly for awhile some years back - who was that, and are they still here? barfo
