Kolls returns to KSTP Radio after alcohol rehab

Star Tribune

Last update: October 27, 2009 - 4:25 PM

KSTP Radio talk show host Jay Kolls returned to the air this morning after a long absence for alcohol treatment.

Kolls, who turned 49 last week, told AM 1500 listeners that he spent 28 days at the Hazelden treatment center in Minnesota, which he described as a humbling experience.

While up at "Camp Hazelden," Kolls said, "Not only do you talk about what a jackass you are, but you write down what a jackass you are. ... Then you have people write to you and tell you what a jackass you are."

Kolls said today is his 42nd day of sobriety. "I missed everything," he said of his time away from his job. "I don't even know what's going on in the real world."

The on-air acknowledgment came in an interview with his co-host, Patrick Reusse, the Star Tribune sports columnist who went through alcohol rehabilitation many years ago.

In January 2008, Kolls was convicted for drunken driving in Ramsey County.

Along with a broadcast career that included reporting for KSTP-TV, Channel 5, Kolls is also the husband of television gardening expert Rebecca Kolls.

PAUL WALSH