 A native of Denver, Colorado, Drinkwater attended Pomona College, where he co-founded KSPC radio and earned a bachelor's degree in 1958.The following year he received a Master of Arts at the a University of California at Berkeley.Drinkwater's first major break in broadcasting came when he was hired in 1959 as general manager of Pacifica Radio KPFK-FM, a public station in Los Angeles.