Dave Hood

David Hood was born on 1 November 1950 in Stevenson, Washington. He started as a radio personality at 18 in Yakima, Washington, and worked his way up to become the number one afternoon drive host at KGW in Portland, Oregon, before a move to KRTH in Los Angeles.

Those early radio years established the warm, conversational on-air style that later defined his television presenting and children's characters.

At 30 Hood moved into television as host of the Oklahoma City version of PM Magazine on KTVY between 1982 and 1985. He then co-hosted the San Diego edition of PM Magazine on CBS 8 with Pat Brown from 1985 to 1990, becoming a familiar weeknight presence in San Diego living rooms. In the early 1990s he hosted travel segments for Tourific Destinations on the Discovery Channel.

In 1993, with Ken Urman of Power to Create, he launched Real Wheels (There Goes a...), a live action children's video series focused on vehicles and public service jobs. Hood produced, wrote, directed and starred, often billed as Firefighter Dave and sometimes joined by Becky Borg. The series won the Parents' Choice Award, Dove Foundation and National Parenting Association honours, sold nearly 8 million dollars in videos, and was syndicated as Dream Big. A live Real Wheels tour ran from 2001 to 2004.

He also created The Adventures of Dave and Becky travel adventure videos, later repackaged for PBS, and continued family entertainment and accessible tourism productions into the 2000s and 2010s.

After the peak of Real Wheels, Hood kept producing children's and family titles, including Crazy Adventures with Harry and Susy - Spanish is FUN! with Susy Dorn, The Family Ghost Hunters, and accessible tourism videos with the USDA. He remained connected to San Diego broadcasting circles and to alumni of KGW in Portland.

Dave Hood died on 28 February 2026 at the age of 75 from complications following coronary artery bypass surgery. Colleagues said he was at home recovering when sudden complications occurred. Local San Diego outlets and radio alumni publicly noted his death in early November 2026, which brought wider attention to a loss that had first been shared among broadcasting friends earlier in the year.

Hood is remembered as Firefighter Dave to a generation of children who learned about trucks, planes and rescue work through Real Wheels, and as a friendly magazine host who linked radio craft to national children's media. Awards including Parents' Choice recognised the educational intent of his videos, and San Diego viewers recalled his PM Magazine years as part of the city's local television identity.