''Loveline'' is a

syndicated radio Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...

call-in In broadcasting, a phone-in or call-in is a programme format in which viewers or listeners are invited to air their live comments by telephone, usually in respect of a specific topic selected for discussion on the day of the broadcast. On radio ( ...

program in North America, offering medical and relationship advice to listeners, often with the assistance of guests, typically actors and musicians. Its host through most of its run was Dr.

Drew Pinsky David Drew Pinsky (born September 4, 1958), commonly known as Dr. Drew, is an American media personality, internist, and addiction medicine specialist. He hosted the nationally syndicated radio talk show '' Loveline'' from the show's incept ...

, who was paired with a radio personality. ''Loveline'' was broadcast live, Sundays through Thursdays at 10pm–midnight PT (Mondays through Fridays at 1am–3am ET). Its flagship station was KROQ-FM in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Syndication was usually on rock, alternative, and adult talk radio stations. ''Loveline'' can also be heard online anywhere in the world, by streaming through the websites of affiliate stations. The radio show was discontinued in April 2016. After a hiatus, the show was rebooted as a podcast with

Amber Rose Amber Rose Levonchuck (born October 21, 1983) is an American model and television personality. She first gained attention after she appeared in the music video for Young Jeezy and Kanye West's single " Put On". In 2008, Rose began a high-profil ...

and clinical psychologist and sex therapist, Chris Donaghue, as hosts. The reboot podcast ran from September 8, 2016, until March 17, 2018. On November 1, 2018, ''Loveline'' was revived on

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

Q network Channel Q with Dr. Chris Donaghue as the solo host, heard Monday through Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m.

Eastern Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small port ...

. Channel Q is owned by

Audacy, Inc. Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corporation, it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning 235 radio stations across 48 media ...

and heard on the company's namesake streaming service and on the

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...

subchannels of about 20 FM stations in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Los Angeles,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and other large

media market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...

s. During its peak of popularity, ''Loveline'' also doubled as a weekly live audience television program on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

, also called ''

Loveline ''Loveline'' is a syndicated radio call-in program in North America, offering medical and relationship advice to listeners, often with the assistance of guests, typically actors and musicians. Its host through most of its run was Dr. Drew Pin ...

''. It was presented by Pinsky, Adam Carolla and a third co-host.

History

''Loveline'' began in 1983 as a Sunday night dating and relationships segment on

radio station KROQ-FM, hosted by DJ Jim "Poorman" Trenton, DJ "Swedish" Egil Aalvik, and Scott Mason. In 1984, Trenton added a segment called "Ask a Surgeon," hosted by his friend

, who at the time, was a fourth-year medical student at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

. The medical segment was pre-dated by an occasional legal segment in which a lawyer, known as "Lawyer Lee" would be present to answer legal questions. As ''Loveline'' developed and increased its audience, Pinsky became a public figure in his own right, and the show began referring to him informally as "Dr. Drew". After a traumatic break up, Mason announced that he would no longer be hosting the show. After they stopped doing the "Lawyer Lee" segment and "Swedish" Egil left the show, Trenton continued co-hosting the show with Dr. Drew. In February 1992, the show expanded from Sunday nights to five nights a week, Sunday through Thursday. In August 1993 Trenton was replaced by former

Riki Rachtman David Alan "Riki" Rachtman (born June 15, 1962) is an American television and radio personality. He is best known for his association with the late 1980s and early-to-mid 1990s hard rock and heavy metal scene, hosting MTV's ''Headbangers Ball'' f ...

. Pinsky and Rachtman were joined by Adam Carolla in October 1995, as the show was first being syndicated nationally. The trio hosted together for several months, but Carolla and Rachtman often competed for airtime, leading Rachtman to resign in January 1996. Carolla and Pinsky would go on to host the show together until Carolla's departure in November 2005. The popularity and reach of ''Loveline'' increased dramatically in the ten years during which it was hosted by Pinsky and Carolla. The two had a natural chemistry, in which Carolla's jocular tone emphasized Pinsky's reasoned expertise. Together, they refined the format of the show, and capitalized on their growing popularity with speaking tours, a television show on MTV from 1996–2000 (also titled ''Loveline''), a book, and cameo appearances on television series and movies. In November 2005, Carolla left ''Loveline'' to prepare for a new morning radio show, '' The Adam Carolla Show'', which began airing in January 2006. After Carolla's departure, he was substituted on a temporary basis by numerous celebrity guests, some of whom announced their desire to take the job permanently. During his first appearance on Carolla's new morning show, Pinsky revealed that the shortlist of candidates included Carson Daly, Joel McHale,

Danny Bonaduce Dante Daniel Bonaduce (born August 13, 1959) is an American radio personality, actor, television personality, and professional wrestler. Bonaduce is the son of veteran TV writer and producer Joseph Bonaduce (''The Dick Van Dyke Show'', '' One Da ...

, Steve-O and

Daniel Tosh Daniel Dwight Tosh (born May 29, 1975) is an American comedian, writer, and producer. After graduating from the University of Central Florida with a degree in Marketing, Tosh moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in comedy. His career acceler ...

. On July 23, 2006, KROQ-FM disc jockey

Stryker The Stryker is a family of eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicles derived from the Canadian LAV III. Stryker vehicles are produced by General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada (GDLS-C) for the United States Army in a plant in London, Ontario. It ...

was hired as Pinsky's co-host. On April 22, 2009, Stryker announced that due to financial cutbacks at Westwood One, he would be leaving the show and it would be his last appearance that night. After Stryker's departure, a number of celebrities guest co-hosted opposite Drew. On March 11, 2010, it was announced that Mike "Psycho Mike" Catherwood from '' The Kevin and Bean Show'' would co-host ''Loveline'' with Dr. Drew. After a long stint as a guest host, Simone Bienne was formally brought on as a co-host in December 2011. This followed Westwood One's merger with Dial Global. She was introduced to the show by Dr. Drew through ''Lifechangers'', and is the first female co-host of the radio show. As of November 2012 she is no longer a host. On December 7, 2012, Adam Carolla rejoined Dr. Drew for a Loveline-style "Reunion Tour" of the US to promote their new podcast, ''The Adam & Dr. Drew Show''. On January 5, 2015, Catherwood and Pinsky launched a new program, ''Dr. Drew Midday Live with Mike Catherwood'' on KABC in Los Angeles. On March 16, 2016, Catherwood announced that he would be leaving the show to focus more on raising his daughter. His final episode was March 31, 2016. A month later, on April 21, Dr. Drew announced ''Loveline'' would wrap up the following week, after the April 28 episode. Adam Carolla re-joined him as co-host for the final show. On September 8, 2016, the show was rebooted as a weekly podcast, with

and Dr. Chris Donaghue serving as hosts. Ann Ingold was named producer. The final episode of the podcast was released on March 8, 2018. On November 1, 2018, ''Loveline'' was once again rebooted, this time on

LGBTQ+ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...

formatted talk radio network Channel Q. It is hosted by Dr. Chris Donaghue, and airs Monday through Thursday from 7PM to 9PM (Pacific).

Format

''Loveline'' follows the call-in question-and-answer model with the primary goal of helping youth and young adults with relationship, sexuality, and

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use of ...

problems through the expertise of Pinsky, an internist and

addiction medicine Addiction medicine is a medical subspecialty that deals with the diagnosis, prevention, evaluation, treatment, and recovery of persons with addiction, of those with substance-related and addictive disorders, and of people who show unhealthy u ...

specialist, and the humorous context and insight provided by a comedic host. Adam Carolla explained his role as a "sheep in wolf's clothing". Furthermore, the comedy is often necessary to keep spirits high, as the show frequently handles callers who are dealing with serious issues such as drug addiction,

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

, and

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

. The show will occasionally answer calls of a general medical nature, especially on slow nights or if they seem peculiar. Also, listeners are encouraged to participate in Loveline's many games.

Personalities

Regular hosts

(December 1984 – April 28, 2016) * Jim "The Poorman" Trenton (1983 – August 1993) * "Swedish" Egil Aalvik (1983–1990) * Scott Mason (1983–1987) * Attorney Lee "Harvey" Alpert (1986–1989) *

(August 1993 – January 17, 1996) * Adam Carolla (October 1995 – November 3, 2005) *

(July 23, 2006 – April 22, 2009) *

Michael Catherwood Michael Dwight Catherwood (born March 15, 1979), also known as Psycho Mike, is an American radio personality. He is known primarily for his work at KROQ-FM on ''Kevin and Bean'' and as the co-host of '' Loveline'' from 2010 to 2016, and ''Neon Bl ...

(March 21, 2010 – March 31, 2016) * Simone Bienne (December 6, 2011 – November 11, 2012) *

(September 8, 2016 – March 17, 2018) * Chris Donaghue (September 8, 2016 – March 17, 2018)

Recurring fill-ins

For Pinsky (in the case of medical physicians) or Psycho Mike (in the case of usual comedic co-host) * Dr. Gary Alter: "Dr. Alter" ("Dr. Whack 'n' Sack, Dr. Alter-men") * Nicole Alvarez: DJ on KROQ-FM * David Alan Grier: a popular and frequent guest, sometimes referred to as the "Third Host" of ''Loveline'' or ''DAG''. * Dr. Ohad Ben-Yehuda: "Dr. Ben" (OB/GYN, Infertility, High Risk Obstetrics) * Dr. Marcel Daniels: "Dr. Marcel" * Dr. Bruce Heischober: "Dr. Bruce" (''Ichabod Bruce, Dr. Spaz'') *

Dr. Bruce Hensel Bruce Hensel (born 1947 or 1948) is an American physician, as well as a radio and television personality. He served as the chief medical correspondent for Los Angeles television station KNBC for nearly 30 years, reporting on medical issues and ...

: "Dr. Bruce" * Dr.

Reef Karim Reef Karim is a television personality, international speaker, author, and osteopathic physician. He is best known as the host of the Court TV television show '' House of Clues'', the host of the Discovery Fit & Health television show Broken Mi ...

: "Dr. Reef" * Dr. Robert Rey: "

Dr. 90210 ''Dr. 90210'' is an American reality television series focusing on plastic surgery in the wealthy suburb of Beverly Hills, California. The series ran for six seasons from 2004 to 2008 on E!. ''Dr. 90210'' gets its name from the zip code of ...

", a plastic surgeon from

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

Trina Dolenz Katrina Laverne Taylor (born December 3, 1978), known professionally as Trina, is an American rapper. She rose to prominence in 1998 with her appearance on the Trick Daddy single "Nann Nigga". Trina has been described by '' XXL'' as "the most ...

: former host of VH1's Tool Academy and couples therapist * Emily Morse: "Sex with Emily"

Producers

* Ann Wilkins-Ingold (1988 – April 28, 2016) * Lauren (Junior Producer) (2002 – December 20, 2007)

Radio engineers

The show has had many engineers throughout the years who have developed their own on-air presence. Whether it be conversations with hosts and guests or specific "radio drops" that they have produced usually from clips of previous shows. * Mike Dooley (October 1995 – June 20, 1999) ("Dooley," "The One-Nut Wonder," produced "The Drew Shuffle" and "The Drew Boogie") * Anderson Cowan (June 21, 1999 – April 28, 2016) ("The Magic Fingered One," "The Liberace of the Potentiometers," produced "Millionaire", PAB, Co-Host of "The After Disaster") * Damion Stephens (2000–2002) * Chris Perez (2003–2005) * Michelle (2004 – November 2005) (left for '' The Adam Carolla Show'') ;Timeline

ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:30 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:60 top:0 right:50 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:1983 till:03/17/2018 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:Co-Host value:red legend:Co-Host id:Expert value:green legend:Expert id:Engineer value:blue legend:Engineer id:Producer value:yellow legend:Producer Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:1983 BarData = bar:Trenton text:"Jim Trenton" bar:Aalvik text:"Swedish Egil Aalvik" bar:Mason text:"Scott Mason" bar:Pinsky text:"Dr Drew Pinsky" bar:Alpert text:"Lee Harvey Alpert" bar:Rachtman text:"Rikki Rachtman" bar:Carolla text:"Adam Carolla" bar:Stryker text:"Stryker" bar:Catherwood text:"Michael Catherwood" bar:Bienne text:"Simone Bienne" bar:Rose text:"Amber Rose" bar:Donaghue text:"Dr Chris Donaghue" bar:Ingold text:"Ann Wilkins-Ingold" bar:Dooley text:"Mike Dooley" bar:Cowan text:"Anderson Cowan" bar:Stephens text:"Damion Stephens" bar:Perez text:"Chris Perez" PlotData= width:10 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Trenton from:01/01/1983 till:08/01/1993 color:Co-Host bar:Mason from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1987 color:Co-Host bar:Aalvik from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1990 color:Co-Host bar:Pinsky from:12/01/1984 till:04/28/2016 color:Expert bar:Alpert from:01/01/1986 till:01/01/1989 color:Expert bar:Ingold from:01/01/1988 till:04/28/2016 color:Producer bar:Rachtman from:08/01/1993 till:01/17/1996 color:Co-Host bar:Pinsky from:10/01/1995 till:04/28/2016 color:Co-Host bar:Carolla from:10/01/1995 till:11/03/2005 color:Co-Host bar:Dooley from:10/01/1995 till:06/20/1999 color:Engineer bar:Cowan from:06/21/1999 till:04/28/2016 color:Engineer bar:Stephens from:01/01/2000 till:01/01/2002 color:Engineer bar:Perez from:01/01/2003 till:01/01/2005 color:Engineer bar:Stryker from:07/23/2006 till:04/22/2009 color:Co-Host bar:Catherwood from:03/21/2010 till:03/31/2016 color:Co-Host bar:Bienne from:12/06/2011 till:11/11/2012 color:Expert bar:Rose from:09/08/2016 till:end color:Co-Host bar:Donaghue from:09/08/2016 till:end color:Expert

Media tie-ins and cultural influence

A TV version of ''Loveline'', also called ''

'', ran on MTV from 1996 to 2000; it was produced by Stone Stanley Entertainment. It followed the same general format as the radio program but featured a live audience and a female co-host alongside Pinsky and Carolla. The female co-host role was filled over the course of the series by MTV VJ Idalis, actresses

Kris McGaha Kris McGaha (born February 6, 1966) is an American actress, comedian, and television program hostess. McGaha appeared on MTV's ''Loveline'' television show, co-hosting with Adam Carolla and Dr. Drew Pinsky. Biography McGaha started her career ...

Catherine McCord Catherine McCord (born May 10, 1974) is an American former model, actress, and television program hostess. She is the founder of ''Weelicious'', a website dedicated to helping parents expose their children to wholesome, delicious homemade food. Sh ...

Diane Farr Diane Farr (born September 7, 1969) is an American actress, producer, and writer. She is known for her roles as the FBI agent Megan Reeves in the CBS television series '' Numb3rs'' and the firefighter Laura Miles in '' Rescue Me''. Life and ca ...

and comedian

Laura Kightlinger Laura Kightlinger (born June 13, 1964) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She was a writer and consulting producer on ''Will & Grace'', while also occasionally appearing on the show as the character Nurse Sheila. She was also a write ...

. ''Loveline TV'' was filmed at

Hollywood Center Studios Sunset Las Palmas Studios, formerly General Service Studios and Hollywood Center Studios, is an American independent entertainment production lot located at 1040 North Las Palmas Avenue in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, providing stage facil ...

. ''The Dr. Drew and Adam Book: A Survival Guide to Life and Love'', an advice book written in a tone similar to the radio show, was released in 1998. The series has also spawned a number of ''Loveline''-inspired games that have been mentioned on the show.''Loveline'' February 23, 2003—Third Caller A thinly-veiled reference to ''Loveline'' can be seen in the 1988 film ''

Heathers ''Heathers'' is a 1989 American black comedy film written by Daniel Waters and directed by Michael Lehmann, in both of their respective film debuts. The film stars Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Lisanne Falk, Kim Walker, and ...

'' in a scene featuring a radio call-in advice program called ''Hot Probs'' hosted by none other than Jim Trenton, the then-host of ''Loveline''.

References

External links

* {{Westwood One American radio programs Comedy and humor podcasts Interview podcasts 1983 radio programme debuts English-language radio programs Audio podcasts 2016 podcast debuts 2018 podcast endings KROQ-FM