‘Farewell Fagan’ party sends talk show host off in style

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A group of fans of Dan Fagan, host of the Dan Fagan Show, gathered a Guido’s Pizza on Wednesday to have a farewell party for the morning talk-show host, who hung up the mic for the last time on Thursday at 9 am.

The Dan Fagan Show aired weekday mornings between 5:30 and 9 am on Newsradio 650 KENI. After four years, Fagan said it was time for him to retire. His phone lines were lit up on his last day on the air in Alaska, and he received call after call from listeners all over the state who wished him well and told him how much his news analysis had meant to them over the years. Fagan moved to New Orleans a few years ago and has broadcast the show from his home studio there, where he also has written columns for Must Read Alaska, although less regularly in recent years.

Fagan is a conservative icon in Alaska who pioneered conservative news blogging with The Alaska Standard. He had the highest-rated morning drive-time radio show in Alaska. He also had hosted a highly rated talk show on KFQD, and been a political reporter for KTUU. On his KENI show, he was a harsh critic of former Gov. Sarah Palin, whom he regarded as nearly a socialist, due to her signing of the ACES tax policy that jacked up taxes on oil producers. He also was a critic of Sen. Lisa Murkowski, and in recent months became critical of Sen. Dan Sullivan and Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who he often described as not having the courage of their convictions.

During the farewell party at Guido’s, which has been an advertiser on the show for years, a vote was taken for who should replace Fagan in his morning, with Suzanne Downing of Must Read Alaska receiving the most votes, followed by Rep.-elect Jamie Allard, according to people who attended the party.

22 COMMENTS

  1. No disrespect to SD, but if I could pick the replacement it would be Queen Sarah.

    It would likely be radio gold. Love her or hate her, one thing she never is is boring.

    Wasn’t a fan, but wish Dan the best is his retirement.

    • MA….
      It’s people like you that give Sarah more encouragement. Enough already! YOU are a big part of the problem. Sarah is spending her millions outside of the state with her Ken Doll boyfriend.
      .
      My vote is for Suzanne.

      • Just for giggles:

        I didn’t support her, vote for her, and have been staunchly critical of her. Kinda an odd way of bring part of the problem. But you do you, boo.

        If she wants to further humiliate herself for money, I’ll pop popcorn and enjoy the train wreck

    • I hope the next show will have somebody that doesn’t mind a caller who’s to the contrary with the host on certain topics. Dan would not take my calls after I destroyed him on a pebble debate 😉

    • Herb Shaindlin’s carcass would be better than the reliably unreliable Sarah Palin. You really should have reconsidered 99% of the posts you’ve made here. You’re in the wrong place and you’re dense enough to be rude to our host. There may be a special needs forum that you could join.

    • I’d rather listen to a looped soundtrack of a dentist drill nonstop than Palin’s whiney twangy vacuous voice don’tcha know.

  2. Dan, I am truly sorry I missed your final show–not your “last” for sure. You will be missed by most all Alaskans, even those who were of a different political philosophy. Good luck in your future endeavors and God bless.

    Sincerely,
    David Boyle

  3. Dan is a GIANT in the industry and will surely be missed.
    Keep your head down on the golf course and hit it straight, Dan.

  4. The Michael Dukes Show is a lot better than Fagan, in my opinion.

    Tune in to Michael and judge for yourself.

    • Evidently he put his hat in the ring to replace Dan Fagan. I like Michael Dukes a heck of a lot more.
      I find it kind of odd that he wasn’t included in the votes to replace Dan.

  5. What made me a fan:
    Several years ago, Dan described an incident where he was kicked out of the Noisy Goose restaurant. Funny story but I understand why he was ejected. He even commented that he was disappointed because the food there was good.
    About a year later, while talking to the restaurant’s owner, he related the same story to me. Almost word for word with what Dan had said on air.
    Shows that even small details can influence the people around you to believe that you are a good guy and not one of the ‘others’.

  6. We’ve had conservative trash talkers both statewide and nationally for 35 years. We need conservative political leaders, and we need them yesterday.

  7. I was a regular caller to the show both dan and rick taught me alot of good lessons and they are both giants they will be missed by many

  8. Well that explains it. I had no idea he was in NO and not ANC. No wonder he was crotchety after I asked how the weather was in ANC in the four minutes I was on the show. Listened to him a few times always found him to be more concerned about political power consolidation than Liberty and Freedom.
    Meanwhile most of you would have supported Repub Conservative Don Young who never once submitted a govt reduction plan, was often the first to belly up to the bar of spending, who supported the vaccine mandates (even fired an employee over it), supported D Haaland, and supported the debt increases. Perhaps repub conservative does not mean what I thought it meant.

  9. I think Alex Jones would be a great replacement for Dan Fagen’s spot.We need real world news.Instead of the samehum drum…

  10. Just an observation, but I zoomed in on the picture of those that attended Dan’s going away shindig. One word could describe the assembled , OLD! Now I’m old too, Older than Alaska, since I was born in the Territory. My point is going forward we need someone to represent our cause who can appeal to a younger generation,. Failure to do so will doom the future for the American way.
    Think about this and hopefully comment back with recommendations.

  11. Sure will miss the show. Also miss the days when all the sources of media, including radio, were not owned by a single group and there were DJs slapping vinyl and all the commercials were not from left leaning political organizations hiding behind made up names. KHAR 590 used to play great old music, not from a sound track that repeats itself. I realize that most of the new generation gets their news and music from modern sources, but the live broadcasts of yesterday were exciting and still have a place. Dan’s show was great because it was live, local, and encouraged local participation. It was a holdout to the days of great local live radio. And if I were to purchase a station, political advertising would be banned, regardless of the message. This would include so called community service adds. Honest business adds only. Money isn’t everything. It’s also how you make it.

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