A memorial service was pending Monday for Scott Mason, who spent 36 years as a DJ and engineer at KROQ and went on to serve as regional engineering director for 45 West Coast CBS Radio stations.
Mason, 55, died in Los Angeles on April 19, according to CBS Radio.
For the past 15 years, Mason was CBS Radio’s engineering director for a West Coast region that includes KNX 1070 Newsradio, Jack-FM, K-EARTH, AMP Radio and 94.7 The Wave in Los Angeles. He helped oversee construction of the Wilshire Broadcast Center on the Miracle Mile, which is home to four stations, and Venice studios where three more stations are housed.
After landing his first on-air job in 1974 at age 15, Mason joined KROQ in 1979 as a weekend DJ and engineer, becoming a fixture at what became the nation’s pre-eminent alternative music station.
“As chief engineer of KROQ for so many years, Scott always put the station first, sometimes before his own needs,” said Kevin Weatherly, KROQ program director and vice president of programming. “His contributions to KROQ and L.A. radio are numerous and significant. We have lost a cherished friend and co-worker.”
Mason was the original host of KROQ’s “Loveline” and also hosted and produced the “Openline” public affairs show. In 2012, KROQ morning DJ Gene “Bean” Baxter donated one of his kidneys to Mason.
“Even with the additional time his new kidney might have given him, it wasn’t nearly enough,” Baxter said. “He is gone from our sight now but not from our hearts. KROQ will owe Scott a great debt of gratitude for a long time to come for how much of his life he shared with us.”
Mason is survived by his parents, brother and sister. Plans for a memorial are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
