Austin�s public radio station KUTX 98.9 marks a special milestone Thursday as morning DJ John Aielli celebrates 50 years on the air. Aielli�s show Eklektikos, which airs daily between 6 and 9 a.m. is the stuff of Austin legend, known as much for Aielli�s random musings�and his thoughtful interviews with local artists�as his eclectic mix�of popular and classical music.

Joe Gross succinctly summed up Aielli�s unique position in Austin culture in his excellent 2012 profile on the radio personality, Conversations with KUT�s John Aielli:

To crudely paraphrase Lester Bangs, Austinites may never disagree on anything quite the way we disagree about John Aielli.

�He is very comfortable with people not liking everything he does,� says Paige Maguire, who used to do web design for KUT. �I think the key to his appeal and the key to people not liking him are the exact same thing. He is just operating in his own world.�

Representatives from the city will be on air to recognize Aielli�s achievements and declare �John Aielli Day� in Austin at 8:30 on Thursday. Then, fellow KUTX host Susan Castle will devote her daily �Ocho Loco� segment of listener suggested tunes to �Songs John Aielli Turned You On To� at 11 a.m.

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