OK, so we know THERE are plenty of CRAPPY Pd's still employed in radio. Now its time to nominae The best PD YOU ever worked for.

Why was he so great, What did he do to help you become better on the air? why was he such a nice guy?

Lets hear em.......BEST PD's stories.

Uh....No, you start.

(Why do people who start threads like this NEVER(well, seemingly never) contribute anything to the discussion?

Im not in radio, never have been!

Then why do you care?? What does it matter?

Hey! I was gonna say that?

Hey Timberfake,
Ignore the Trolls. I thought it was a good thread.

Jim Lineger (sp?)

Well Beano, that's what you get for thinking.

Jim Liniger. And , yes , he was.

How about the worst PD you ever worked for ?

Let the games begin

We've already done that topic, started over a month ago.

Sheesh, pay attention will ya?!?!

(Step away from the hallucinogens....)

Sean Lynch. He gave me my first on-air job. A brilliant programmer and an ambassador among men.

Ken Benson. Has a great ear for great radio. He put me on the nightshow at Z100. I may (or, may not) have been ready for the job, at the time. I tried to rise to the occassion.

I would have to say..Robin Mitchell and Bob Harlow..These two men have empathy, integrity and intelligence and know how to work in the trenches..meaning they how to handle talent and have alot of success under their belt..I've been blessed to work with both of these talented men..

Chuck Tyler at KPDQ...He was one of those PD's that believed in me and my abilities. I think he saw past my short comings and focused on the type of broadcaster I could be. He was open and honest with me and I appreciate that. I would also say that Mike Anthony (former KCNR talent)was another PD that I admire. He gave me my first shot in radio back at KGRL in Bend in '81.

Ditto on what deejay56 said. i worked with and for bob harlow and found him to be a great progammer and a good person. thank you bob! i almost worked for robin mitchell but it just didn't work out. i do always hear that robin is also a good person and we already know his programming abilities.

Andy West- I haven't heard the name Mike Anthony in a long time. I worked with him at KCNR when he did mid-days on the FM and was afternoons on the AM side. He ended up in Denver and then I lost track.

Chuck Tyler became my PD while I was doing mornings at Spirit FM. But that gig for me only lasted 3 months so I didn't get a chance to really get to know Chuck that well.

Ted Rogers would probably be my favorite PD along with Ken Benson and even the legendary Bill Jackson I would put in that category.

Isn't Mike Anthony still at K-Love?

James Derby!

I've worked for many nice people (and not many not-so-nice, fortunately), but the best PD I've worked for directly would have to be Mike Dirkx. He gave me my first shot in Portland, letting me take afternoons on KXL-FM (during the Mix95.5 incarnation). He let me in on his programming philosophies and let me help with imaging as well. When Mike left the FM to focus solely on KXL-AM, he was honest about the direction he thought the station would go under his replacement and warned me to expect the worst. The worst happened a couple of months later when I was let go, but Mike kept in touch and offered a lot of advice for finding my next gig. I'd work for him again...were I to want to work in on-air again, that is.

Keith Isley, Bill Tanner.

Both, excellent programmers, but they both inspired me with their ability to manage those above them.

Dave Shakes! Working with Dave at B96 back in the day...nothing compares! Without a doubt,the best PD I've ever worked for! He taught me a lot about the importance of the "Hallway Vibe" at any station you work for.

>>Isn't Mike Anthony still at K-Love?

You might be thinking of Bob Anthony, who is now out of radio.

Of(f) course I am! Mike Anthony is the one who always gave away the million dollars; everyone knows that! I think I just baffled most people under 60.

Carl Widing, hands down, the best PD I was ever associated with. He allowed the jocks to be themselves with some very careful guidance. Never heavy handed, always a gentle observation bolstered with a good cup of coffee.
He is one of the truly class guys in the business and even though every time his name comes up here, he is trashed for a ONE time alleged failure, I never hear anything bad about his personage. He is a top notch man!

Robin Mitchell gets the "best brain" award.
Jim Ryan gets the award for not getting the proper respect while in Portland.

I never worked for Robin, but respected his style of programming, especially his strategy of "plan and attack", because I worked for the competition. Also one of the most respectful PD's allowing time to a "jobless" soul who wanted to join his team, when there were no openings available.

Definitely agree with Windy on Jim Ryan. Spent two years from the beginning of Q105 (hired before the switch flip) and even though he was a time bomb at times, his strategy was a great mix of old school and new age with a twist. If you took the time to listen, he would take the time to teach. Boy did he work you though, but there was a reason for it, and he had a lot of winning reasons. He was very misunderstood, but even back then, I loved his programming preparedness.

I later learned from his close friends that the only reason I was let go after a second killer book, was because I said "no" on a bad week for him. However, I was very thankful to learn all that I did in those two years, and would always welcome the opportunity to do so again.

Two others go into the PD category because they have their own styles, Glen Nobel from KRKT days, as Glenn gave me the both the human and radio personality respect, as I did him when he was part time at KUPL. He later informed me that was one of the reasons he hired me. I was the only one who would treat him as if he was full time and a solid member of the team, which was the respect he always gave his staff. Great to work with, and now that he's just doing the www.nobelnoise.com stuff (shameless plug there) he's still missed in the industry by those that worked with him.

And last, but not least, a name most of us know, Gary Bryan, ah yes, Mr. KNBQ (Seattle) and the man who put Z100 on the map (with the support of GM Dave Crowl too.)

As much as he didn't want me on the air in my early radio years, I still admired his programming style. He was one of those PD's that would make you feel like your team could kick any butt anywhere anytime!

Of course, I got to do some of that when I jumped and went to Q105! Great PD though!

You know, this is a tough thread, because I'm sure that each PD those of us who work(ed) for realize there is something special about each one.

A few pd's I worked for that stick out in my mind: Robin Mitchell skillfully programming KYYX Seattle and KB101 Portland. Chuck Tyler at KXL-FM (brilliant move to change format from AC to 70's in 1994). And Brian Burns at KDUK and KSND in Eugene. These guys also worked on-air and were well grounded in what makes for good sounding radio.

Jwindus/Kahtik....agree with you both. J.R. was masterful. He could be a hothead at times, to be certain. He was also one of the hardest working P.D.'s that I've ever known.

His success at Lite in N.Y.C. cannot be denied. #1 (overall) for two years?? Wow.

Ray Edwards @ KDRK in Spokane during the mid to late 90's. Great guy, excellent mentor, brilliant programmer.

Robin Mitchell is an icon programmer. Best strategist I have known. As Robin says, "We have the frosting, now we just need to slide the cake under it".