Kasem’s Last Countdown

Casey Kasem, the radio host who told listeners for decades to “keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars,” has finished his American Top 20 song countdown. “This will be our final countdown,” Mr. Kasem, 77, said over the weekend on “American Top 20,” ABC News reported. Mr. Kasem’s weekly playlists of the country’s most popular songs started in 1970 with “American Top 40,” and have been a radio staple since. While he passed the “Top 40” mic to Ryan Seacrest in 2004, he continued to host two abridged versions of the show. Mr. Kasem said in a statement that he “loved every minute” of the countdowns but that the final countdown would “free up time I need to focus on myriad other projects.” His wife, Jeannie Kasem, told ABC that he might write a memoir.