Lee Baby was the guy who inspired me to get into radio. Although a Top 40 disc jockey for most of his career -- certainly never a freeform disc jockey -- he broke formats all the time and was one of the true outlaws of Top 40 and "AM Radio."
His whereabouts are currently not known by me. If you know, let me know. Last spot I know of was KISQ in San Francisco, 2002.
Link below has a synopsis of his days at WPOP. There's even a short audio clip:
WPOP Personalities (1/1/04)
You might like to listen to some tunes by a band in Lawrence KS called "The Lee Baby Sims Show." Their music is influenced by the delta blues, bluegrass, old-time music, and various other genres. "Slaughterhouse Blues" and "In the Cards" is my favorite.
ReplyDeleteIf you would like to hear some vintage Lee Baby Simms, check out his aircheck from 1973 at WWW.Radioloidarity.Blogspot.Com And there are more from 1971 at WWW.Shadoe.Com
ReplyDeleteFound him and we have become good friends!
ReplyDeleteAs Ol' Doc Frail, Lee Simms tore up the morning show at KRLA in Los Angeles in 1975. His comedic style I would term passive aggressive, and very funny. My Dad and I drove into work together and he pretended not to like the good doctor, but finally had to laugh, though he said (as if to him): "Blow it out your ass!"
ReplyDeleteI Loved Ol' Doc Frail...
Lee Baby Simms was on WPOP in Hartford, CT 1966 - 1967. He was crazy, loud and abnoxious on the air but everyone loved him. I got to know him and we had good times and I was known as "The Jeanne" on the air.
ReplyDeleteMichael Butscher Lee Baby Simms on WPOP helped me become the PD at WHFS and PD at WHTG. Your leader"
DeleteJeanne, I am lee. I have thought about you a thousand times as the years have passed by. I would love to correspond with you. I am here leebabys@aol.com I trust that life has been good to you in the intervening forty five years. If you read this.... Please.
ReplyDeleteI still remember your show here in San Diego on KCBQ. I was in high school at the time and could not wait to get out then have to wait till you hit the air waves. Thank you for a lot of great entertainment and wonderful radio.
ReplyDeleteI had a MAD crush on Lee Simms and remember driving out to Pasadena, I think, to meet him. Sadly I chickened out when I got there. Still my favorite DJ ever, though.
ReplyDeleteAs Old Doc Frail on KRLA, he would have a "Giant Jackpot" contest, where he would take the spare change he had in his pocket, tumble the change on a table, and then count out the "Giant Jackpot" for the day, which would usually be "a dollar forty-seven," or something like that. Funny guy.
ReplyDeleteAs Old Doc Frail on KRLA, he would have a "Giant Jackpot" contest every day, where he would take out the spare change he had in his pocket, tumble the coins on a table, and then count out the "Giant Jackpot," which was usually "a dollar forty-seven," or something like that. Funny guy.
ReplyDeleteI listened to Lee during his WPOP days. Lee entertained in the day when people would run to their radios at 7pm to hear the beginning his program. He was an inspiration to me - and my career in broadcasting! Glad to know Lee Baby is still rockin'.
ReplyDeleteIt is my very sad task to inform my radio friends that radio personality Lee Baby Simms passed away today in his Bay Area home.
ReplyDeleteMy condolences go out to his family.
A great voice for many decades on radio.
He will be missed.
Lee was found dead today in his Vallejo California home. Rest his soul.
ReplyDeleteThis is indeed sad news. I worked with Lee at KOOL-FM in Phoenix. His best show was when he went on for 4 hours about how this was his last show in radio and that he was retiring - he did these with his typical train-of-consciousness rambling over new age music (which he did a lot at KOOL) . On his last break that morning he said, "Just Kidding!" He really pissed off the general manager of the station who was going out of his mind listening to Lee's show!
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