who was the original host of american top 40 music countdown
American Top 40 Co-creator Casey Kasem hosted the original AT40 from its inauguration on July 4, 1970 until August 6, 1988. Shadoe Stevens took over the program on August 13, 1988 and hosted until January 28, 1995 when the original program came to an end. Three years later, Kasem teamed up with Premiere's predecessor AMFM Radio Networks to relaunch AT40. Kasem, who spent nine years hosting his own countdown for Westwood One, returned to hosting his creation on March 28, 1998. Seacrest took over AT40 on January 10, 2004 following Kasem's retirement from the series.