Originating on San Jose’s Hot 97.7 KHQT, the ensemble show led by “JV” (Jeffrey Vandergrift) and “Elvis” (Dan Lay), with producer Lance “Hollywood” Otani, would move to San Francisco’s Wild 107.7 (KSAN) and then Wild 94.9 (KYLD) and become a dominant cultural and ratings force in the 1990s and 2000s.
The Dog House was know for irreverence that on more than one occasion led to controversy. The show’s cast of characters evolved over the years, including names such as “Big Joe” (Joe Lopez), “Hammerin Hank” (Henry Ochs), “White Menace” (Jason McMurry), “Showbiz” and “DJ Greg Lopez”.
After being let got by KYLD (“Wild 94.9”) in April 2005, The Dog House caught on at KIFR, group owner Infinity Broadcasting’s attempt to create a format called “Free FM” centered on what KIFR general manager Ken Kohl called “big personalities with big points of view”.
Their stay was brief; Infinity offered to move the show to its “Free FM” station in New York City, WFNY-FM. A controversial prank call segment ed to their dismissal there just over a year later.
Vandergrift and Lay launched various multimedia ventures in later years while Lay hosted a version of The Dog House without Vandergrift. Vandergrift returned to Wild 94.9 in 2009 to host The JV Show, working with his wife, Natasha Yi. Vandergrift and Yi took a lengthy break in 2021 and 2022 after Vandergrift revealed he was dealing with Lyme disease.
In 2023, Vandergrift disappeared. His body was found in San Francisco Bay a month later.