After 39 years of counting down the nation’s top songs, radio personality Casey Kasem, 77, hung up his headphones for the last time. Kasem announced during the July 5 “America’s Top 20″ show that it would be his last.

ABC News described Kasem’s retirement as “the end of an era.” Kasem was the last “big-time DJ” still broadcasting, according to the article. He developed the countdown format for radio and was well known for including biographical tidbits about the artists. His radio work earned him a star on the Hollywood’s Walk of Fame in 1981 and entry into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1992.

But Kasem’s work wasn’t limited to the radio. His voice can also be heard in television commercials, he guest-starred in a infamous episode of Saved by the Bell, and he lent his voice to cartoon characters, most famously Scooby-Doo’s faithful sidekick, Shaggy.

Kasem’s wife, Jeannie, said he decided to retire to pursue other projects including possibly writing a memoir. Changes in the radio industry also contributed to his decision, such as radio stations reducing the sizes of their playlists and in turn increasing the monotony in Kasem’s countdowns.

Some Twitterers were saddened by the news, while others were surprised to hear he was still on the air:

1. 
   BTIV93 Casey Kasem….no idea he was still on the air anyway….used to listen to that during my teenage yrs…
2. 
   mml1909 Listening to npr’s tribute to casey kasem…had no idea this many people liked him this much
3. 
   sashahowell Sad to hear that Casey Kasem signed off for good last Sunday after decades of America’s Top 40.
4. 
   CraigB68 Just learned of Casey Kasem’s retirement. Great memories growing up listening to his Top 40 Countdown. We’ll miss him.
5. 
   lindsa @DomHarvey sad to hear about Casey Kasem retiring. He’s been the voice of Shaggy on the Scooby Doo cartoons since 1969.
6. 
   kevinbudelmann Casey Kasem was Shaggy? Where have I been?
7. 
   badunn Casey Kasem retired. Didn’t even know he was still on the air. http://cli.gs/pHT6mT
8. 
   LADDGAL So long Casey Kasem, radio will never be the same with you! YOU ROCKED.
9. 
   SamirInVancity No more Casey Kasem. No more long distance dedications. http://bit.ly/14B2bR

Although Kasem will no longer be airing weekly broadcastings, his previous “Top 40 programs from the 1970s and 1980s will air on more than 200 stations.”  And, of course, Kasem serves as the inspiration for Ryan Seacrest’s ongoing “AT 40″ countdown.

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