Al Travis Moved 22 Times Before 23 And Still Found His Voice
WJON's afternoon host is Al Travis. He is our latest guest on WJON's My Life series. Al was born in Huron, South Dakota before moving to California when he was just 1 year old. He was only there for 2 to 3 years before moving to Forrest Lake, Minnesota when he was 3 to 4 years old. Al left for Ohio when he was in 2nd grade for Toledo and then Bowling Green before returning to Minnesota when he was in the 6th grade. He lived in Wyoming, Minnesota and went to Forrest Lake High School.
Family Life
Al's dad worked for a meat packing plant in the Midwest and then California. He says his parents got divorced when he was 6 years old and his step dad was a Kirby Vacuum salesman. Al says his stepdad was a good enough salesman that he got his own Kirby Vacuum franchise which caused the family to move to Ohio. He has two biological siblings and 3 siblings from his step dad and another one was born to his mom and stepdad.
High School
Al was a well traveled person as he estimates having lived in 22 different residences by the time he was 23 years old. Al says he enjoyed sports as a kid but didn't get too involved because he was moving all the time. He recalls focusing on making money because he wanted to buy a car. Al got a job as a grocery store bagger at 14 1/2 years old, with her parents permission. His first car was a lime green Volvo he bought before he was 16 years old. Al left the grocery job when he was a sophomore in high school to become a bank teller 6 days a week from 3:30-6pm Monday-Friday. He held that job for 3 years.
Brown Institute
Before Al's senior year he signed up to join the service in the army reserves to make some additional money in the summer. After high school in 1983 Al knew he wanted to be on the radio so he applied at some Twin Cities radio stations but they wouldn't hire him. Al took the 9-month course at Brown Institute to become a radio professional and earned his degree in 1986.
First Radio Job
After pursuing a radio job in the Twin Cities didn't work, Al landed his first job at a country music station in Brainerd working overnights. He says he was there long enough to see numerous co-workers get fired and based on that, he became the morning guy within just a few years. Al was let go after 5 years in Brainerd and then he got a job at a brand new radio station in Marshall. He was there for only 6 months before he was fired again.
Fairmont
Al relocated to Fairmont where he got a new job in radio. He says his life changed quite a bit there. Al met his wife while living in Fairmont. She was from nearby Blue Earth. After a few years in radio in Fairmont, he realized he wasn't making enough money so he started his own marketing company. Al also started his own cable business where he hosted a show called "Between the Lines" starting in 1996. He talked to politicians and did more than 700 shows.
Back into Radio
Al recalls wanting to get back into radio and was given his chance from a client he knew from his marketing company. Al asked a couple of politicians to join him on this audition show and it worked worked well enough that he was given an offer to host a talk show. Al didn't want a long commute so his goal was a do the show in syndication. After a slow start was able to get a station in Faribault to take it. Al credits WJON in St. Cloud for helping getting the ball rolling with more stations coming onboard after WJON signed up. The Al Travis Show now airs on 9 radio stations in Minnesota.
If you'd like to listen to my 4-part conversation with Al Travis, click below.