Agile NPR voice Carl Kasell dies
National Public Radio’s longtime broadcaster Carl Kasell died Tuesday.
Kasell was a presence at NPR for more than three decades, retiring for good four years ago at age 80. He began his radio career at 16, DJing a late-night music show on his local station. He joined NPR in 1975 as a contributor to
Weekend All Things Considered, and he helped launch Morning Edition in 1979, building a fan following that would continue for more than 30 years.
In 1998, Kasell switched gears, revealing his wry sense of humor as the official judge and scorekeeper for the game show Wait Wait ... Don’t Tell Me! alongside host Peter Sagal.
“I am extremely sad to tell you all that my dear friend and colleague for 16 years, Carl Kasell has passed away at the age of 84, from complications of Alzheimer’s,” Sagal wrote on Twitter Tuesday. “He was, and remains, the heart and soul of our show.”