The Birth of The End Zonies

 February 9, 2023

   Believe it or not, we're having a KSLX reunion tomorrow night and someone posted a photograph of the End Zonies at a Cardinals' football home game and all the memories came flooding back.

A Zany Kingman Kowboy Rocks Stadium

  We had Gordon Smith on guitar and Flint Carny doing his In-din thang (far left, below) and me with my bullhorn egging on the rowdy End Zonies to reach new heights of bad taste and subhuman behavior.

That's Me With Bullhorn In Obnoxious Mode

   In 1989, the Jones, Boze & Jeanne Show was in its third year on KSLX radio and someone suggested we could lead a rah-rah fan group like the "Dogpound" in Cleveland, or the "Cheeseheads" at Green Bay to back the Cardinals in Phoenix. What would we call ourselves, our general manager wanted to know?

The Jones & Boze Show, circa 1989

"Home of The Zany Zonies"

   It was the always clever David K. Jones who immediately came up with The End Zonies, off my opening tagline in the news:

"Good morning you Zany Zonies!"

   The entire morning show team immediately agreed that was a perfect name for a group who would promote mayhem in the end zone and drive visiting quarterbacks to distraction. I immediately started sketching ideas for a logo.

Daily Whip Outs: September 4, 1989

   The cowskull with the goal posts for horns won the day. And we were an instant hit in the stadium and on the airways and all over Phoenix and we rocked that place game after losing game, until. . .we took it a paper sack too far.

The End Zonies Sacked!

   We were kicked out of the stadium and told to never return, but, of course, the Cardinals kept using the logo.

   It was fun while it lasted and some say we made our mark. Oh and a big shout out to the legendary Ralph Rippe who took all of the above treasured photos, which I have kept under lock and key ever since.

"Hit the road Zonies and don't you come back no more, no more, no morons!"

—Michael Somebody who was in charge of Cardinal homegame tickets