Radio Therapist David Viscott Leaving KABC After 13 Years : Broadcast: He likened his break to an ‘academic sabbatical,’ saying he planned to pursue other projects such as a book and TV show.

KABC-AM radio psychiatrist David Viscott dispensed his final piece of advice Monday night after 13 years as a regular call-in host, after announcing early in the show that he is leaving the station in order to pursue other career opportunities.

“This represents a milestone in the career we’ve shared together,” Viscott said to his listeners as he began his nightly 7-9 p.m. show. “Tonight marks my last program on KABC. There comes a time when you move on in life, when you let go, when the events of your life move you into places where it’s necessary to take chances and move into other areas.”

He likened his break with the radio station where he began his broadcasting career to an “academic sabbatical” and discussed various other projects, including a new late-night television show in the offing and a book due out in the fall titled “Finding Your Strength in Difficult Times,” as well as his involvement in writing a script for Hollywood Films called “The Making of a Psychiatrist.”

“As you know, I have for years been gathering information about all of you,” Viscott told his audience. “As a matter of fact, I would say that I have information on about 40,000 calls now. And there comes a time when you have to work on the stuff that you get and filter it and organize it and bring it to new levels. . . . I have a lot of things I want to do right now, so you’ll still see me around.”

Viscott and KABC general manager George Green both stressed that Viscott’s relationship with KABC would continue, with occasional on-air stints and the station’s sponsorship of Viscott seminars.

Green said the station will not immediately replace Viscott, whose show during baseball season is frequently preempted by live Dodgers broadcasts. Between now and September when he expects to name a replacement, Green said, substitute talk-show hosts such as Gloria Allred, Susan Estrich and Joel Roberts will fill in from 7-9 p.m.

Until last year Viscott’s daily call-in show had been heard in the early and mid-afternoon hours since his start at KABC (790). Radio industry insiders speculated that the psychiatrist had been unhappy that his program was switched to evenings.

“That may have been a part of it in his mind,” Green said. “He has a family life and 7-9 p.m. is certainly family time.”

Though his on-air announcement revealed no outward bitterness toward the station, Viscott showed some annoyance when technical difficulties interrupted his farewell speech Monday.

“Wouldn’t you believe it? Delay cut,” Viscott groused. “Isn’t that annoying? You see, you can never count on anything going the way you want. Because the moment you need to have a thing clear so you can think--boom! It’s out the window. And this is in our brand-new, $18-million station.”

Green said he and Viscott planned ahead to avoid “a whole lot of saccharine stuff,” but when the two spoke briefly on the air they ended an awkward-sounding exchange with “I love you’s.”

“I’ve got to share as much love with you as you’ve shared with your audience,” Green said. “You’ve got hundreds and thousands of fans who love you dearly. . . . We wish you well.”

Callers also got sentimental with Viscott on the air following his announcement.

“I wanted to thank you for being on the radio for all of us and I’ve cried along with some of them,” said a caller named Patty, who said she was abused as a child and raped by a stepbrother. “You’re so caring and loving.”

The psychiatrist told his listeners that his Viscott Center in West Los Angeles--established seven years ago and specializing in short-term psychotherapy--will be “the main contact for finding out where I am, what I’m doing and how to participate.”

Worried that his listeners might feel betrayed by his departure, Viscott said, “When you get into a situation that has any therapeutic overtones, when the therapist changes, people often feel rejected and I hope you don’t feel that. . . . Mainly I just want to be sure that you know this is not an opportunity for you to get upset, but it’s an opportunity to understand that sometimes you move on and that moving on has to be done in a way that’s best for everyone concerned.”