WAMU’s Fred Fiske, 91, to retire this week

Fred Fiske, senior commentator at WAMU 88.5 in Washington, D.C., is retiring at age 91 on Tuesday (Sept. 27), which marks his 64th anniversary on the local airwaves. “It’s been a wonderful ride,” he said in his final commentary on Monday. Fiske started on radio as a child actor in the 1930s. His career includes serving as a presidential announcer and veteran affairs commentator for Mutual Broadcasting, providing live coverage of the inaugurations of Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower. During the 1950s, Fiske hosted a midday pop music program at Mutual’s WWDC, and soon became Washington’s highest-rated music host. He arrived at WAMU in 1977. He’ll be honored at WAMU 88.5’s 50th anniversary gala on Oct. 29.