Steve Julian, host of NPR's 'Morning Edition' on KPCC, dead at age 57

 

PASADENA, Calif. --

Steve Julian, who calmly delivered news, traffic and weather for 15 years as the local host of NPR's "Morning Edition" on KPCC radio, died Sunday.

The public radio station in Pasadena said in a statement that Julian died at age 57 of complications from brain cancer.

He died on Sunday morning at his home in South Pasadena, Melanie Sill, the station's vice president of content, told the Los Angeles Times.

Julian, a Southern California native, began his career in broadcasting in 1980, but he then decided to follow his father's footsteps and become a police officer. He returned to radio in 1995 and five years later went on the air at KPCC, where he remained for the rest of his career.

"He wasn't someone who bounced from one market to another," Sill said. "He was very much a native Southern Californian with a strong sense of community."

Julian was among the first Los Angeles-area broadcasters to report the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

His final broadcast was in November. In January, KPCC named a studio in his honor.

Julian is survived by his wife and mother.