Classix 102.9’s Mitch Faulkner recuperating after aorta tear, hopes to be back on air this weekend
Originally posted Tuesday, May 28, 2019 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
Mitch Faulkner, the imaging and weekend host at Classic 102.9, was recently hospitalized for two and a half weeks after a serious aorta tear and kidney failure.
He left the hospital last Thursday and is recuperating, his older brother Arvester said. He said Mitch suffers from high blood pressure and that exacerbated his condition.
Mitch, 61, is already itching to get back in the studio and hopes he’s strong enough to do so this weekend.
“He’s a pretty tough cookie,” Arvester said of his younger brother.
In a brief interview, Mitch said being in the hospital was no fun “being poked and prodded every 15 minutes.” He’s just glad to be home and said his medical condition “is not as bad as I thought it would be.”
He is a veteran radio host in town and was inducted into the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame last year. He has spent most of his 39 years in radio in Georgia, including WIGO-AM, V-103 and Kiss. He also did voice-over work in the 1980s and 1990s for his own On Mic Productions. Arvester said Mitch’s voice at one point in the early 1990s could be heard on more than 200 stations nationwide.
Mitch will have to do dialysis three days a week, Arvester said, and depending on his health, he might qualify for a kidney transplant in a year.
About the Author
Rodney Ho writes about entertainment for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution including TV, radio, film, comedy and all things in between. A native New Yorker, he has covered education at The Virginian-Pilot, small business for The Wall Street Journal and a host of beats at the AJC over 20-plus years. He loves tennis, pop culture & seeing live events.
