American Top 40
July 4, 1970 - American Top 40, a syndicated radio show that counts down the top 40 hits each week from the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart debuts with host Casey Kasem. The creators of the show were unsure about its chances for success initially. However, the show soon became very popular and by the early 1980’s it was featured on over 500 radio stations across the U.S. and many more around the world. Kasem stepped down on August 6, 1988 due to contract problems but later would rejoin the show as “Casey’s Top 40″ produced by a different radio network. Today AT40 is hosted by Ryan Seacrest who took over the hosting reigns from Shadoe Stevens on January 10, 2004.
Related links:
American Top 40.com
List of American Top 40 of 2007
Radio Hall of Fame