Before there was Howard Stern, there was Dennis Netto, known to radio listeners as Dennis Erectus. As a fixture on San Jose’s KOME in the late ’70s and ’80s, Erectus not only got huge ratings, but endeared himself to a generation of fans by pioneering the extreme brand of radio that would take over the dial years later. He died this week at the age of 61, after a heart attack.
Dennis Erectus may have been the original shock jock, but he was a shock jock with a soul. That’s what separated him from so many of the blowhards that came after. He didn’t just push listeners’ buttons, he captured their imaginations, and that’s why he continues to be one of the most fondly remembered Bay Area radio figures of all time decades after his peak. As news of his death on Wednesday at a care facility in Castro Valley began to spread, fans took to the Internet to pay tribute.
Erectus came to KOME straight out of college in 1977. Though he continued on radio until the mid-2000s, it’s hard not to feel that Erectus was lost to the airwaves long before his time. A 2006 heart attack left him with brain damage and ended his career for good. Corporate radio, no matter how hard it tried, never could.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoYxm850bJE[/youtube]
.R.I.P. Dennis Erectus, South Bay Radio Legend
I remember calling in one very slow radio night to answer his on air question of “what’s your greatest fear? ” I was 18- 19…… I answered…. a hot p&%%y with teeth. He lost it on air. Was a fun guy….. but if he didn’t like….. he’d rip you a new one. MR. Erectis if you’re Nasty. Lol- rip Dennis.
Spent many nights listing to him. He always played the best music. RIP
One of his frequent lines: “Don’t touch that dial…its got KOME on it!”
My cousin, Angel and I talked him into going to party with us, one late night after his shift, to Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.
We came and picked him up from the radio station and when we got there, built a big bonfire, popped pink champagne, toasted each other and the others that had somehow joined us, celebrating the sunrise with
joyous laughter.. it was a moment to remember. Thank you, Dennis for being yourself. We’ll always have Santa Cruz! Love you, sweet man!
Gigi R.
San Jose, CA