Russ Knight (Weird Beard) – Nostalgia Central

Russ Knight (born Russell Lee Moore in 1932) – nicknamed “Weird Beard” – was an American radio DJ who first joined KLIF in Dallas in the early 60’s, pulling one of the highest market shares ever recorded (62%) for a US radio DJ.

Later on, he joined Houston’s KILT and eventually moved on to different radio stations across America, including WXYZ (Detroit), KICT (Houston), WOWO (Ft. Wayne), WAQY (Birmingham), WSGN (Birmingham), and WYDE (Birmingham).

Russ cranked out hit after hit while speaking in his rapid-fire, all-too-groovy patter, where just about everything he said rhymed.

While at KLIF, Russ was responsible for giving British DJ John Peel his first break in the US by making him the station’s (unpaid) “expert” on all things Liverpool and Beatles-related.

Peel (who used his real surname Ravenscroft) became the “Man on the Street”, giving KLIF listeners the info on what was going on with the Fab Four (he admitted later that he made most of it up).

After the death of John F. Kennedy, the FBI interviewed Russ because of his relationship with Jack Ruby, who assassinated Lee Harvey Oswald (the prime suspect in Kennedy’s assassination).

FBI agents found Knight’s personal phone numbers in Ruby’s possession. He subsequently testified before the Warren Commission in July 1964.

In 2003, he was inducted into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame.

Russ died in Connecticut on 12 October 2012 after a brief illness.