A Career in Radio & TV - Interview with Dave Skyler
SacTV.com "Video of the Day" review by
Alex Cosper on April 17, 2012
Dave Skyler probably holds the record for working at the most radio stations in both Sacramento
and Los Angeles. In the eighties after working on air in Los Angeles, he came to Sacramento and bounced
around from FM 102 to KWOD to KPOP, which he ultimately helped change to 93 Rock on his morning show in 1986.
He also programmed a few stations on the outskirts of the market including a former AM station in Folsom
called 10Q and a Marysville station called K100. But the journey continued as he became a television news
anchor for Channel 58 and then started doing nights at former adult contemporary station KAER, which later became Y92.
Skyler then returned to his home in L.A. and worked on a series of radio stations including top 40 station
KIIS where he used the name "Sky Walker." The name, given to him by the late Steve Rivers, clicked and he has used
it in other places. Skyler also worked on the more hip hop-leaning KBBT "The Beat" and briefly unnofficially
worked for the now defunct Pirate Radio. In the late nineties, Dave and I reunited after many years. We knew
each other from KWOD then I hired him while I was Program Director at Milwaukee station WLUM, owned by
Green Bay Packer legend Willie Davis. Another legend Dave worked for was Stevie Wonder, who owned a station
in Southern California.
In 1999 Skyler returned to Sacramento as the morning host of KHYL and then KNND, also known as "107.9 The End."
The following year he was back on the air in L.A. It was March 14, 2000 when Dave and I did this interview,
which gives you a sense of how fast things change in radio. One of the highlights of this footage is Dave's
story about working for Rick Carroll at KROQ in 1981. Carroll was the pioneer of the modern rock radio format
that gradually began to spread to a dozen major market stations. Carroll, who graduated from Sac State and had
worked on local radio, was also the consultant for MTV. Skyler says that Carroll was innovative, nice and
one of the most helpful people in his career. Skyler currently works on air at legendary L.A. oldies station
KRTH, also known as "K-Earth." Read more about Sacramento media history here.
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