Sirius Hires Walton to Host Show

Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. is getting an assist from Hall of Fame basketball star Bill Walton.

The noted Grateful Dead aficionado and ESPN basketball analyst will host his own weekly music program for Sirius, “One More Saturday Night With Bill Walton,” the pay radio service announced Tuesday.

A self-proclaimed Deadhead, Walton said the show would feature music from the band and his other favorite performers, including classical music artists.

“I’m going to try not to sing, but I can’t make any promises,” he said.

Walton’s hiring follows a series of aggressive moves by Sirius, including luring shock jock Howard Stern and recruiting former Viacom Inc. President Mel Karmazin as chief executive.

The announcement comes after Sirius disclosed a deal to broadcast the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. men’s basketball tournament and English Premier League soccer.

Walton, 52, is a former All-American at UCLA and was the National Basketball Assn.’s Most Valuable Player in 1978, when he led the Portland Trail Blazers to the NBA title.

He will contribute to Sirius’ Jam On channel, which features bands such as Phish. Walton has attended more than 650 Grateful Dead concerts and in 2001 was the first inductee into the band’s Hall of Honor.

“Too much of everything is not enough,” said Walton, invoking one of the band’s credos in a telephone interview. “All I ever wanted in life was more.”

Walton’s show will air Saturday nights beginning this week, and will be rebroadcast on Wednesdays. Listeners can e-mail requests to billwaltonsirius -radio.com, he said.

Shares of Sirius fell 6 cents to $6.63 on Nasdaq.

Bloomberg News was used in compiling this report.