Nina Blackwood
Encyclopedia
Nina Blackwood is an American
disc jockey
and music journalist, who was the first of the original five MTV
VJs. She has also been an actress and model
.
. In a Seattle Radio interview on August 1, 2011 Nina explained that her father was not a Minister, although he did teach Sunday School. His full time job was in government service. She grew up on the west side of Cleveland
, Ohio
and attended Rocky River High School, graduating in 1970. Prior to entering broadcasting, Blackwood appeared nude in the August 1978 Playboy
pictorial, "Girls of the Office," as a brunette; the same issue coincidently featured an interview with another future cable television pioneer, Ted Turner
. On her November 7th, 2011 radio show on SiriusXM she stated she sang and played keyboards in her high school sweethearts band, and covered the song "Venus".
After moving to California, she studied at the Strasberg Institute. Blackwood acted in a number of TV show and films, making appearances in the 1982 movie Vice Squad
, Revenge of the Stepford Wives, and the 1993 film Reckless Kelly
.
, Mark Goodman
, Alan Hunter, and J. J. Jackson. After leaving the network in 1986, she hosted her own "Rock Report" for Entertainment Tonight
. She also hosted the TV music show Solid Gold from 1986-1988. Blackwood has appeared on A Current Affair
, Access Hollywood
, VH1
, The Discovery Channel, and MSNBC
.
launched a nationally syndicated radio show for United Stations Radio Network called Nina Blackwood's Absolutely 80's. The two followed up with the another nationally syndicated program, the 80's alternative-themed Nina Blackwood's New Wave Nation. Blackwood currently hosts a weekday show on Sirius XM Radio The 80s on 8
from 1 to 4 p.m. Eastern. On weekends she co-hosts the Sirius XM Radio show The Big '80s Top 40 Countdown with other original MTV VJ's.
She performed as part of the 2003 road company of The Vagina Monologues
.
Blackwood also broadcasts from San Diego
radio station
FM 94/9
on Sunday mornings.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
and music journalist, who was the first of the original five MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
VJs. She has also been an actress and model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
.
Early life and career
Blackwood was born Nina Kinckiner in Springfield, MassachusettsSpringfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
. In a Seattle Radio interview on August 1, 2011 Nina explained that her father was not a Minister, although he did teach Sunday School. His full time job was in government service. She grew up on the west side of Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and attended Rocky River High School, graduating in 1970. Prior to entering broadcasting, Blackwood appeared nude in the August 1978 Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
pictorial, "Girls of the Office," as a brunette; the same issue coincidently featured an interview with another future cable television pioneer, Ted Turner
Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
. On her November 7th, 2011 radio show on SiriusXM she stated she sang and played keyboards in her high school sweethearts band, and covered the song "Venus".
After moving to California, she studied at the Strasberg Institute. Blackwood acted in a number of TV show and films, making appearances in the 1982 movie Vice Squad
Vice Squad (film)
Vice Squad is a 1982 action/drama film, starring Wings Hauser, Season Hubley, and Gary Swanson, directed by Gary Sherman. The original music score was composed by Joe Renzetti and Keith Rubenstein...
, Revenge of the Stepford Wives, and the 1993 film Reckless Kelly
Reckless Kelly
Reckless Kelly is a 1993 Australian comedy film written, directed and starring Yahoo Serious. The story is a satirical take on a modern day Ned Kelly who is forced to Hollywood in order to make enough money to save his family's land. As it goes against his belief, he cannot simply rob banks for...
.
MTV and other television appearances
She was chosen for MTV's original video jockey lineup, along with Martha QuinnMartha Quinn
Martha Quinn is best known as one of the original video jockeys on MTV .-Early life:...
, Mark Goodman
Mark Goodman
Mark Goodman is a radio DJ, TV personality, and actor. He is best known as one of the original five VJs on MTV, from 1981-1987. He was supposed to be the first of the five to be broadcast at MTV's premier on August 1, 1981...
, Alan Hunter, and J. J. Jackson. After leaving the network in 1986, she hosted her own "Rock Report" for Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight is a daily tabloid television entertainment television news show that is syndicated by CBS Television Distribution throughout the United States, Canada and in many countries around the world. Linda Bell Blue is currently the program's executive producer...
. She also hosted the TV music show Solid Gold from 1986-1988. Blackwood has appeared on A Current Affair
A Current Affair (US TV series)
A Current Affair is an American television newsmagazine that aired in syndicated from July 1986 to 1996 before reappearing briefly in March 2005. The show was produced by 20th Century Fox, and long based at Fox's New York flagship WNYW.-Overview:...
, Access Hollywood
Access Hollywood
Access Hollywood is a weekday television entertainment news program covering events and celebrities in the entertainment industry. It was created by former Entertainment Tonight executive producer Jim Van Messel, and is currently directed by Robert Silverstein. In previous years, Doug Dougherty and...
, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
, The Discovery Channel, and MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
.
Radio career
In 1999, Blackwood and longtime manager/producer Danny SheridanDanny Sheridan
----Danny Sheridan is a musician, songwriter, producer, , and entertainment manager. In 2006 he also became a radio personality on 97.1 KLSX Free FM . He is credited as an influential electric bass player, and as the founder of the , pioneers of the so-called “outlaw country” music genre...
launched a nationally syndicated radio show for United Stations Radio Network called Nina Blackwood's Absolutely 80's. The two followed up with the another nationally syndicated program, the 80's alternative-themed Nina Blackwood's New Wave Nation. Blackwood currently hosts a weekday show on Sirius XM Radio The 80s on 8
The 80s on 8
The '80s on 8 is a commercial-free, satellite radio station on the Sirius XM Radio platform, broadcasting on XM Satellite Radio and on DirecTV channel 805. As a result of the Sirius/XM merger on November 12, 2008, the channel was merged with the Big '80s channel on Sirius 8 and Dish Network 6008,...
from 1 to 4 p.m. Eastern. On weekends she co-hosts the Sirius XM Radio show The Big '80s Top 40 Countdown with other original MTV VJ's.
She performed as part of the 2003 road company of The Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler which ran at the Off Broadway Westside Theatre after a limited run at AFRICA in 1996. Ensler originally starred in the production which was produced by David Stone, Nina Essman, Dan Markley, The Araca Group, Willa Shalit, Mike Skipper...
.
Blackwood also broadcasts from San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
FM 94/9
KBZT
KBZT is a commercial modern rock music radio station in San Diego, California, broadcasting on 94.9 FM.-History:During the 1970s and '80s, KBZT was known as "KBest95" but in the 1980s morphed from oldies into soft rock, before being sold to Sandusky Radio and becoming "Y95" in 1987...
on Sunday mornings.