Former ZoomerMedia and Rogers executive George Grant has died at age 76.

Grant passed away Monday, Sept. 17 at Toronto General Hospital as a result of complications from chemotherapy treatments he was undergoing for prostate cancer.

Grant spent 50 years in the broadcast industry as a host, sales manager, programmer, and operations executive and played an integral role in the growth of ZoomerMedia.

“He had done everything there is to do in the industry from being a morning man to program director, sales guy, helicopter traffic reporter…he had worked in every aspect of the business and that’s what was most admirable about George,” Dan Hamilton, ZoomerMedia’s EVP of Broadcast and Chief Revenue Officer, told Broadcast Dialogue. “He understood every department and facet of a radio operation.”

Grant started in radio in 1964 at CKAR-AM Huntsville, ON as both morning show host and salesman. A stint at VOCM-AM in St. John’s, NL followed where he assumed program director duties in addition to hosting.

Upon returning to Toronto, he joined Rogers Broadcasting and CHFI-FM in a sales role and acted as the station’s helicopter traffic reporter. Grant quickly moved up to VP of Sales and general manager. During those years, he also produced “On the Slopes” – a skiing show that aired on Citytv and a number of Ontario radio stations.

In 1979, Grant branched out on his own, acquiring CKQT-FM and CKAR-AM Oshawa, which he re-branded “On The Quiet Side” and “Motor City Music” respectively. He grew and operated the stations up until 1990 when he sold them to Power Broadcasting.

“He was very proud of owning and operating two independent stations,” said Hamilton. “That was probably his proudest moment. It was family-run business and he was connected to all of the people that worked there and ran it like a family. That was probably his proudest accomplishment, outside his children.”

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