Эмператор Роско: Америкалық диджейдің тарихы

American DJ

Michael Joseph Pasternak (born 26 December 1942), known by his stage name Emperor Rosko, is an American presenter of rock music programmes, most widely known for his shows on Radio Caroline and BBC Radio 1 in the UK in the 1960s and early 1970s.

Born in Los Angeles, California, he is the son of Hollywood film producer Joe Pasternak. He was influenced in his career choice by Los Angeles disc jockeys Lord Tim Hudson at KFWB and Wolfman Jack at XERB the Mighty 1090 (Rosarito Beach MX). Pasternak's opportunity to broadcast came when he was in the US Navy, where he presented a show on the aircraft carrier Coral Sea, using the name Michael Prescott. He then moved to Europe and hosted sponsored programmes in France and Andorra.

In an interview with Chris Edwards, for Offshore Echoes, Rosko explained: "I used to listen to a guy named Roscoe, who used to listen to a guy called Boscoe and the double syllable name ending in "o" was synonymous with rhythm and rhyme which was a precursor to rap. I also used to listen to several other people like Wolfman, Tom Donahue, etc. So I took a little bit of everybody and became Emperor Rosko to distinguish myself from all the others."

He joined Radio Caroline, a pirate radio station broadcasting from a ship off the coast of Britain, in April 1966. There, his American influenced fast paced presentation style soon made him one of the station's best loved DJs. After his time at Radio Caroline, speaking fluent French, he presented for French language stations Radio Monte Carlo and Radio Luxembourg as "Le Président Rosko".

In January 2023, it was announced that Rosko was to re join Radio Caroline. In a statement on their website the station stated that Rosko would present monthly breakfast shows under the Radio Caroline North link up with Manx Radio.

As a disc jockey with BBC Radio 1 at its launch in September 1967, Rosko initially recorded shows in France for the Midday Spin programme. On his first Midday Spin show, Rosko introduced himself with "I am the Emperor, the geeter with the heater, your leader, your groovy host from the West Coast, here to clear up your skin and mess up your mind. It'll make you feel good all over." He highlighted the new Motown, reggae and rock music. Around 1975, he briefly hosted Crackerjack on BBC Television with Little & Large. During that year he also presented a few editions of Top of the Pops, including the edition broadcast on 10 April. When Rosko returned to Europe, he was heard via recorded shows on Radio Luxembourg. In 1981 he returned to Radio 1 for a 13 week Sunday series of shows, and continued to broadcast at weekends during the Summer for four years until left Radio 1 in 1982. In 1988, he returned to Radio 1 to help celebrate the 21st birthday of the station. In 1992, he helped celebrate the station's 25th birthday with a special broadcast, before joining Virgin Radio 1215 in April 1993.

Rosko was the inspiration for the Philip Seymour Hoffman character "The Count" in the comedy film The Boat That Rocked, known as Pirate Radio in the United States. 2011 – Lifetime Achievement Award at the International Radio Festival in Zürich.

His book Emperor Rosko's DJ Book was published by Everest in March 1976 It was re published, with additional material, as an eBook in October 2012.