We have the book, now cast the movie!!!  This should be interesting on Monday morning!!  Leave your casting call suggestions below in comments!

The 12 DAVES OF CHRISTMAS continues this Thursday!!  Come out and purchase your copy of DAVE PRATT, BEHIND THE MIC, 30 YEARS IN RADIO and help out the American Cancer Society.  I would love to sign it for you!!  Plus, at every signing enter our FREE DRAWING for your choice of a private dinner at my home or front row concert tickets to your choice of shows.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4TH - TEMPE MARKETPLACE  7 PM

 SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6TH - ULTIMATE ELECTRONICS AT ARROWHEAD 2PM.  (75th Ave. just north of Bell)

Also, check out the remaining signing locations and dates for the 12 DAVES OF CHRISTMAS right here on the Pratt Page!  I’ll see you Thursday at the Barnes and Noble in Tempe Marketplace!  Thanks for supporting my book.  If the American Cancer Society doesn’t deserve it……WHO DOES?

Austin Hill, Commentary

It’s always great when a hometown guy does well, and even better when he does well for others at the same time. Dave Pratt knows a lot about both.

Pratt hosts the morning drive show at KMLE (107.9 FM). Arriving there in 2003, he remains among the top rated of all Valley morning shows, and far and away the most listened-to personality in the country radio genre.

And now, after nearly three decades on the Phoenix-area radio dial, Pratt has chronicled his life’s journey in a very public, and very crazy business, and put it all into his new book, “Behind The Mic: Thirty Years In Radio.”

Anyone who has enjoyed Pratt, radio, music, or Arizona in the past quarter-century will have a tough time putting this one down. And a little bit of my own history is in the book as well.

It was the summer of 1977. On a road trip from our family home in Huntington Beach, Calif., to the mountains of Idaho, my mom, dad, sister and I had just checked into a motel in a place I’d never heard of before — Elko, Nev. After the car was unloaded, I begged my parents to let me go visit what appeared to be a radio station down the road.

“Only if your sister will go with you” was the verdict from Mom. Minutes later, older sis and I were standing at the front door of KELK radio, where a guy not much older than me (I was 13 at the time) was inviting us in. Amazingly, this other “kid” was all alone, running the entire station by himself, and while he seemed more focused on my older teenage sister than me, he did nonetheless give us both “the tour.” When it was over, I left with the thought that “if that kid can do radio, so can I …”

That was 1977. It was the first time I had been in a radio station. And in 2002 when Pratt and I became friends, we pieced the stories together and, yes, that was a very young Dave Pratt inspiring a very young Austin Hill, 25 years earlier.

Pratt’s humble beginnings are captured in chapter 2, entitled “Have To Start Somewhere.” Here the life lesson is straightforward: whether you’re in the big leagues of your chosen profession, or something smaller, the basics of your work are essentially the same, so you best work hard and develop your skills wherever you are.

From there, Pratt recounts his move to the “big city” of Phoenix. He notes that at the time, KTAR radio had more station vehicles than KELK had employees and the campus of Scottsdale Community College was like Elko High School on steroids. Pratt also confesses that while a student at Arizona State University, he earned a master’s degree in “having a good time.”

We also learn of Pratt’s Phoenix radio beginnings; the time he was sent into a biker bar dressed as a “cupid” (a play on the call letters KUPD); his landing the overnight show at KUPD; and his unlikely transition from overnights to morning drive icon.

And the photos! There’s Pratt with mountains of school supplies donated by KMLE listeners; shots of “Dave Pratt And The Sex Machine Band” (love that ’80s rocker hair, Dave); and a picture of teenage Pratt at KELK, wearing — no kidding — a Brady Bunch T-shirt.

Ultimately, “Behind the Mic” is a story of combining a passion for one’s craft with exceptional business acumen, and a focus on giving back to others. Laced with endearing stories about family, the proceeds from Pratt’s memoir go to the American Cancer Society to help others confront and beat cancer, just as Dave did three years ago.

Trust me: this is a great gift item for the holidays. Visit www.daveprattbook.com for details.

Thanks for supporting my book!  Although it is on sale nationally, our goal is to give the highest percentage possible to the American Cancer Society.  My suggestion would be to either order my book on www.daveprattbook.com or stop by any of my book signings on our 12 DAVES OF CHRISTMAS tour listed right here on the Pratt Page.  Plus, at every book signing, we will have a FREE DRAWING for either a private dinner at my home or front row concert tickets of your choice!!  I hope to see you soon and sign your book!!

    Please share your personal review of DAVE PRATT, BEHIND THE MIC, 30 YEARS IN RADIO by posting below under comments.  Thank you!