Bay Area Radio Hall Of Fame Announces Class Of 2026.

The Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame has announced its Class of 2026, adding 19 new inductees who will bring the organization’s total membership to 304 since its inaugural class was honored in 2006.

According to a news release, the inductees will be recognized during the annual Radio Day By the Bay event in Alameda, CA on Saturday, July 18, where they will meet Bay Area radio fans. A formal induction luncheon, which is open to the public, is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 10. Ticket information will be announced at a later date.

This year’s class honors broadcasters and industry professionals across several categories, including programming, news, sports, management, engineering and production.

Among the program host inductees is Marla Davies, whose Bay Area radio career has spanned three decades at San Jose’s KEZR along with on-air and production roles at KOME, KFRC, KOFY-FM, KXFX and KQED-FM. She also works with the Poppy Jasper International Film Festival, where she helped secure approval for a low-power FM radio license.

Also entering the Hall is veteran personality Bill Lee, whose broadcasting career began in 1972 at WTIC-FM in Hartford, CT. Using his birth name, Bill Lenkey, Lee later became well known in the Bay Area for his work at KFRC during the 1980s and as part of KMEL’s “New Jack Zoo” morning show in the 1990s.

The Hall also selected the late Jeffrey “JV” Vandergrift and Dan “Elvis” Lay for their work on “The Dog House” morning show. Originally launched on San Jose’s KHQT, the program later moved to KSAN and KYLD, becoming one of the Bay Area’s highest-rated and most influential radio shows during the 1990s and 2000s. Vandergrift died in 2023 at age 55.

In the news category, Ken Bastida was recognized for a radio career that preceded his long tenure as lead anchor at KPIX-TV. Bastida began as an intern at KFRC before holding newsroom positions at KGO, KMEL, K-101 and KFYI. He joined KCBS in 1986 as South Bay bureau chief before moving to television in 1990.

The sports category honors Duane Kuiper, the former Major League Baseball player who joined the San Francisco Giants’ radio broadcast team in 1986 after concluding his playing career. Aside from one season with the Colorado Rockies in 1993, Kuiper has remained a fixture on Giants radio and television broadcasts.

Keith Naftaly was selected in the management category. After beginning his career answering phones at KFRC, he joined KMEL in 1984 as music coordinator and quickly rose through the ranks to become program director at age 24. He is credited with helping establish KMEL as one of the nation’s most successful Top 40 FM stations.

Larry Wood will be inducted in the engineering category. A certified professional broadcast engineer, Wood began his Bay Area career at KDIA in 1976 and later held engineering positions at a dozen stations before retiring after 23 years as chief engineer at KQED-FM.

In the specialty category, Jack Perry was honored for his production work at San Jose rock stations KOME and KSJO during the late 1970s through the early 1990s. He later spent two decades with CBS as creative services director, producing station imaging and commercials for KCBS and KRQR.

The new inductees were selected through voting conducted from June 1 through July 1. Eligible voters included current Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame members, members of the California Historical Radio Society, and members of the public participating in the organization’s “Donate To Vote” fundraising program.

For a complete list of inductees, click HERE.