Dennis Kelly has been at this radio game for awhile .. and in our own back yard for most of it. No one can argue that he knows news, has a nose for news, and can talk the talk.

It started for Dennis in the early 80's (before Flock of Seagulls was on the charts no less), as an anchor for KING AM & FM. Shortly afterward, he had his first sampling of Fisher Radio as an anchor and reporter on KOMO. As the 80's ended and Dennis refused to donate his wardrobe to charity, he moved to Little Rock because his clothes were still fashionable there. While in town he added Rush Limbaugh to the station he was programming and it moved from worst to first.

But recalling the Northwest had electricity and indoor plumbing, he returned to Portland and used the same trick: Put Rush on KXL and watch the ratings soar.

Shortly after his former Little Rock co-resident moved to the White House, Dennis returned to Seatle (1994) to become Director of News Programming for some stations here (one of the stations rhymes with Spy-Row) -- but a big thorn in Dennis' side was the brilliant programming by KVI (which, at the time, included some guy named "Rush"). Dennis convinced the Mariners to kick some butt that season, putting one of those stations (which rhymes with I-Know) into the top of the pack in town. A couple years later those stations were sold, and Dennis became a consultant (a profession that has a LOT to do with "happy hour") as President of News Talk Concepts, Inc..

When Fisher acquired the Mariners broadcast rights (May 2002), Dennis was instrumental in converting KOMO to a news operation, and by the end of the year was responsible for both KOMO and KVI. He still has the same role, the same office, and presumably, still has the same clothes from the early 1980's (but just never wears them to work).

He is married (over two decades, in fact) and has two teenage boys. Dennis plays baseball in summers, runs and bikes all year, spends time with the family at their cabin in Eastern Washington (but sometimes he pretends it is in Little Rock). He likes lit cigars, red wines, dark beer ... and, we presume, long walks on the beach.