LOS ANGELES—After nearly 30 years, ‘Bean’ of “The Kevin and Bean Show” on KROQ, said goodbye to his Los Angeles fans during the show on Thursday, November 7.

Gene “Bean” Baxter, 59, was born in England and lived in Middlesex, England until his early teens. He was one half of the famous KROQ morning show which debuted on New Years Eve in 1989. His partner for the morning show is Kevin Ryder. 

The on-air show started with negative reviews from listeners, but later became a hit for Los Angeles morning traffic commuters. Bean left Los Angeles in the late 1990s and has worked on the show remotely via audio and video link from various locations such as an island off the coast of Seattle, Washington, Las Vegas and recently, New Orleans.

During his final show, Bean was on-air with Kevin, along with KROQ alumni Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel. He had surprise guests call in, such as Jim “Poorman” Trenton, who is a former KROQ on-air host and co-creator of “Loveline.” Trenton was let go from KROQ after putting together a prank on Bean that brought a caravan of 500 KROQ listeners, along with Trenton, to Bean’s house at midnight to celebrate Trenton’s birthday. The incident resulted in his lawn catching fire, his electricity being cut, and a brick being thrown through his window, forcing the radio host to move him and his family from that home.

Other surprise guests during the farewell show included Dave Grohl of the “Foo Fighters,” Ryan Seacrest, Big Tad, Lightning, and Dr. Drew. Longtime listeners called in with stories, some credited Bean with normalizing mental health diagnosis and instilling hope in their lives. One caller indicated the show helped to prevent them a possible suicide.

In the final moments of the show, Kevin stated:

“I don’t get the job at KROQ if it’s not for Bean. I don’t keep the job at KROQ if it’s not for Bean.” To which Bean responded: “Aside from the day I met my wife, the luckiest day of my life would have been the day that I walked into that radio station in Phoenix and met Kevin.”

Bean will be moving to London with his wife, where he hopes to continue working in broadcasting. The morning show will continue to air Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. on KROQ with Kevin Ryder, Allie Mac Kay, and Jensen Karp.