On July 4, 1970, Casey Kasem’s American Top 40 debuted, and the Detroit native quickly became synonymous with the countdown format. The format, reminiscent of the immensely popular Your Hit Parade program in the 1930s and 1940s, allowed Kasem to blend human-interest stories with the top songs of the day. His final show aired on August 6, 1988 due to contract conflicts with ABC, after which it was taken over by Shadoe Stevens. Casey eventually reclaimed the AT40 moniker in 1998, until the torch w
