Ed Bonner – 2004
During his run as a dj in 1950s St. Louis, Ed Bonner owned the market.
He began on KXOK in 1951 when he was 28. From the studio in the Star-Times Building he would invite his teenage listeners to come down and watch him work. His first program, “St. Louis Ballroom” soon gave way to the station’s afternoon drive slot, and his large audience encompassed teens and adults.
St. Louisans saw him everywhere, in personal appearances to benefit the Red Cross, Y.M.H.A., Cancer Fund, Heart Fund, March of Dimes, Catholic Youth Organization and many other groups.
A new record played on the “E.B.” show was almost certain to become a local hit. He left KXOK in 1958, taking his listeners with him to the noon – 4 slot on WIL, and the little station at 1430, which had put together a huge stable of talent, overtook KXOK in the ratings.
The Hoopers in St. Louis in 1959 showed Bonner’s audience the largest among all the area’s disc jockeys. He left WIL for a job in Los Angeles in 1962.