(I used to write a bi-weekly column, RadioRadio, for Players magazine in the Tampa Bay area. The following story appeared in 1991.)

Profile: Austin Keys

By Bob Andelman

Years of notoriety, blown opportunities and wasted salary were never enough to convince Austin Keys to confront his problems. But when the right woman came along, the time was finally right.

"I grew up in the '60s," says the 98Rock jock. "That should just about tell you everything."

The first time Keys came face-to-face with drugs in the radio workplace was less a substance problem than an example of bad judgement. At the time he was working at San Francisco's now legendary KFOG, spinning discs every afternoon on Lee Abrams' flagship station for the "Superstars 2" format.

Keys says he was then associated with a nationally recognized concert promoter in the San Francisco Bay area who had an assistant of equal renown when it came to baking marijuana cookies. Every Christmas, the assistant baked gift boxes for friends and associates; in 1984, Keys was among the recipients.

Details are muddy, but somehow the cookies went from being locked up in Keys' car during his airshift to being "innocently" carried by a station employee into the studio. "I was set up," says Keys.

The radio station's general manager came into the studio. As in most offices - particularly at the holidays - food means a free-for-all. Cookies! exclaimed the GM. "He woofed one down, then another," recalls Keys with a pained expression. "I tried to tell him but he wouldn't listen."

It gets worse. The GM was on his way out to entertain clients. "I hoped the alcohol would fool him," says Keys. "He called me later. He thought somebody slipped him some acid. I had to tell him (the truth). They got me for cause."

Exit Keys from KFOG, but not before San Francisco newspaper columnist Herb Caen wrote about the incident, spreading Keys' infamy. "People I'd call about jobs said, 'Oh, yeah, I've head of you,'" recalls the DJ.

But Keys' on-air reputation at KFOG - and in Detroit at WLLZ ("Wheels") before that - preceded him. Since his mistake was judgement, not substance, only three days passed before he was picked up to do morning at KSJO in San Jose, Ca.

"I grew a lot in that transition," says Keys. "I was pretty well-known; I had good numbers. They gave me carte blanche and freedom. I took all the license I could. (But) they couldn't handle all the atrocities I created on the air there.

"Eight months later I was on the unemployment line again."

He turned briefly to real estate, getting a broker's license while doing fill-in and swing work at KONE in San Jose. Then came a two-year return to Frisco at KYA-FM, followed by a month back at KONE. That's when Keys dropped out of radio for 18 months due to personal problems.

"I couldn't figure out what was wrong and it was me," he says. "My personal life was (unraveling) and I think that reflected in talking to people. It was an era of more scrutiny. (FM) radio wasn't fly-by-night anymore. In the years I'd been in the business, I had the benefit of being known, but I'd also racked up some negatives. The incident of drugs (at KFOG) was well-known."

During his time off, Keys went through a difficult divorce. "I was working at a furniture distribution center, trying to decide if I was going to be a firefighter or a policeman," he says. "Although my nefarious background would have prevented me (from doing either)."

Keys moved back into his parents' home in San Diego and got a grip on his life. When 1988 rolled around, he decided to take one more shot at radio and gave himself 90 days to get a job. It didn't take that long, though; within 30 days, Beau Raines hired him to do 7 p.m.-midnight at WKRL, Tampa Bay's "Classic Rock 97.9."

It was great to be back on the air, but Keys' opinion of the station's format mirrored that of many in the market.

"I didn't like it," he admits. "I didn't like the format. It was poorly programmed. And I didn't like that the station was the butt of the market. I was especially sensitive of a 1.9 (rating). Or of (morning team) Smith & Barber, who were as poor as could be.

"But it was a job."

Keys gained responsibility when he was named music director (a position he still holds at 98Rock) and made an effort to widen the station's playlist, but KRL, as the record plainly shows, was snakebit from the first. When the station was sold to Great American, Keys survived an ownership change for the first time in his career. And to his surprise, he prospered.

But even in prosperity, an old problem loomed larger and larger on the horizon.

"Being involved with bands and nightclubs seven days a week took its toll," says Keys. "I found myself in bars and nightclubs every night of the week. I began running with seedy people. And everybody knew. This is a small town and everybody knew my business. I wasn't really doing that much. It was the frequency. It wasn't that I was calling in sick or missing shifts. It was time to take a fresh look at how one can be in the entertainment industry and not fall to the hazards within it. My bank account wasn't growing and it should have been because I was making more money. My view was limited. It was definitely time for a change."

At the top of this story is a reference to a woman. The woman who changed Austin Keys' life.

"She left me," he says. "Told me if I ever wanted to see her again, I better get help. That was my bottom.

"I went through rehabilitation," he says of the month-long program at Nova program in Tarpon Springs, which included two weeks off the air. To his surprise, management at 98Rock stood by Keys as he played through his demons. They appreciated his talented, recognizing the part he plays in the station's rush to greatness.

"I don't drink any more," according to Keys. "I've been clean 176 days. I don't do any drugs. That's a first for me in my entire life. I still frequent the same places, still know the same individuals and they're living the same lives. People still, they just want to give me cocaine all the time. They want to buy me alcohol and give me drugs. You find out how much of a stranger you can become. There are times I don't fit into a party anymore. And these are people I know. (But for me), life is much better. So if you run into me at any given nightclub the most you'll see me with is a ginger ale. It took 30 years for me to just say no. Who would have guessed in 1970 you could do that? Just say no?

"And let me tell you something. It was the best move I've ever made in my life. I quit tobacco on my 39th birthday, Sept. 9. I have my son with me now. He's 13. I take him around with me wherever I go. I have to be a strong influence in his life, so I have to be as strong as can be. I bought a house. It's amazing how much you can save. Plus, I have plans. And these plans don't have anything to do with drugs and alcohol."

What about the woman who turned Austin Keys around?

"I'm still seeing her," he says, grinning. "Things are going well. I'm on the road to a strong recovery."

PROGRAM NOTES! WMNF 88.5 FM is carrying the Senate hearings for Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas daily between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ... YNF 95 FM will host the world premiere of Motley Crue's new album, "Decade of Decadence" on Sept. 26 at 11 p.m. ... Coming up on 95YNF's "In the Studio" is Genesis (9/15). The show airs Sundays at 8 a.m. ... Upcoming on the Sept. 21 edition of WUSF 90 FM's American Jazz Radio Festival: Roy Hargrove, Christopher Hollyday. The show airs every Saturday night at midnight.