Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 06:19, 29 April 2006

Howard Allen Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio and TV personality, humorist and author. Stern currently hosts The Howard Stern Show four or five days (Monday-Thursday / Monday-Friday) a week on Sirius Satellite Radio.

The "King of All Media" (the title was a joking reference to Michael Jackson's appellation "The King of Pop") has been dubbed a shock jock for his highly controversial use of scatological, sexual and racial humor, and exploitation of his guests. Stern and many of his fans hate the term "Shock Jock." He has said himself, "The show was never about shocking people." Some of his commentaries are perceived by many to include bigoted, misanthropic and misogynistic remarks about various religious and ethnic groups, women and men - though one of his trademarks is that he makes fun of everyone equally, even himself. He is one of the highest-paid radio personality in the United States and the most fined personality in radio broadcast history.

He is best-known for his national radio show, which for many years was syndicated on FM radio stations (and a few AM stations) throughout the United States until his last broadcast via terrestrial radio on December 16, 2005. He began broadcasting via the subscription-based Sirius satellite radio service on January 9, 2006.

His national television shows include The Howard Stern Show on WWOR-TV, which ran in the early 1990s; Howard Stern, consisting of segments from his radio show, which ran from 1994 to 2005 on E!; and The Howard Stern Radio Show, which ran from 1998 to 2001 in syndication. The Howard Stern Show was a weekly skit-driven show that was produced in the Secaucus, New Jersey studios of WWOR-TV and shown in selected markets. The other shows were produced from video footage of his live radio broadcast.

Since November 18, 2005, Howard TV On Demand has been available on television through the iN DEMAND video on demand pay service that various cable TV systems offer. Currently, this includes uncensored versions of shows which previously aired on E!; video from his Sirius show will be available starting in April 2006. OnDemand also includes movies (Ex. Supertwink), skits, bits, wack packer videos, behind-the-scenes videos and anything else related to the show.

Early life and career

Howard Stern was born into a Jewish American family in Roosevelt, Long Island, New York. His father, Ben, owned a recording studio in Manhattan, and Howard developed an interest in broadcasting as a child when he would accompany his father to work. Although both his parents are Jewish, Stern has long claimed on his show to be "a half-Jew". His Hebrew name is Tzvi; his paternal grandparents, Froim and Anna (Gallar) Stern, and maternal grandparents, Sol and Esther (Reich) Schiffman, were Jews from Austria-Hungary who emigrated to America at about the same time.

Stern often joked that his parents "abused" him as a child, and presumptions of verbal abuse were confirmed when Stern played old family recordings during a 1990 broadcast. Many pieces of those old recordings have become soundbites, with such paternal gems as, "I told you not to be stupid, you moron" and "Shut up! Sit down!" being screamed at a 7-year-old Howard. These old recordings were later used in a parody commercial for the "Ben Stern School of Broadcasting", which specialized in graduating self-loathing and emotionally disturbed workaholic media leaders. Stern said his mother ran her house with "the intensity of Hitler" and that his father often called him a moron. However, he also has stated this was just part of his gimmick and that his parents were warm, loving and supportive.

Stern attended Roosevelt Junior High School, where he was one of the few white students in a predominantly African American school, until 1969. Stern's family then moved, and he attended South Side High School, where he graduated in 1972 . In 1976 he received his Bachelor's degree in communications from Boston University, carrying a 3.8 GPA where he had worked as a volunteer at the campus radio station WTBU.

After graduation, he worked as a disc jockey for WRNW in Briarcliff Manor, located in Westchester County, New York playing rock music. He discovered a talent for Lenny Bruce-type comedy, and developed a wide-ranging confrontational style. In 1978, Stern landed his first morning show job in Hartford, Connecticut at WCCC-FM and WCCC-AM. The radio stations with a progressive rock format lend itself nicely to developing Howard's "free-form" personality. It was at the Hartford radio station where Howard also met his future show writer and producer, Fred Norris, who was working as an overnight deejay as well. He migrated to an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan (WWWW known as W4) where he took over Steve Dahl's shift after Dahl moved his show to Chicago in 1978 where his success continues. It was there that the basic structure of Howard's show was gleaned from Dahl's. Howard of course took his own spin on the new "personality show" and made it uniquely his own. After developing his show at W4 he moved on to Washington, D.C. (putting in a year at DC101 and making it the #1 station in town in the process), and returned to New York in 1982 to work at NBC's flagship AM radio station WNBC-AM. Also working at NBC was David Letterman, who became a fan of Stern's radio show. Stern's guest appearance on Late Night with David Letterman on June 19, 1984, launched Stern into the national spotlight and gave his radio show unprecedented exposure. Stern would appear on Letterman's show many times thereafter.

Stern and his crew were fired from NBC in 1985, ostensibly in response to a particularly outrageous sketch — "Bestiality Dial-A-Date" — although relations between station management and Stern had been strained from the beginning. He quickly returned to the FM band by joining local rival station WXRK, premiering on November 18, 1985 and returning permanently to morning drive in February 1986. Stern's show was syndicated nationwide starting in 1986 by Infinity Broadcasting. The program made great sport of feuding with other cities' top-rated DJs, and soon Stern's broadcast was #1 in important markets including Philadelphia and Los Angeles. His Arbitron numbers remain strongest in the country's #1 radio market, New York, where his morning ratings more than triple his station's average numbers the rest of the day.

On June 4, 1978, Stern married his college sweetheart, Alison Berns, at Temple Ohabei Shalom in Brookline, Massachusetts. They have three daughters: Emily Beth (b. 1984), Deborah Jennifer (b. 1987) and Ashley Jade (b. 1993). A hallmark of Stern's humor was that he often expressed how tempted he was by the strippers, porn stars, and lesbians who appeared on his show, but always insisted that he had to be faithful to his wife. In October of 1999, Stern announced that Alison was divorcing him, due to the fact that he is a workaholic. The couple's divorce proceeding resulted in a settlement, and Alison remarried in 2001 to David Simon. Since early 2000, Stern has been dating model Beth Ostrosky, who is 19 years his junior. Ostrosky frequently appears in the men's magazine FHM .

Radio Show

In one typical example of his radio show, he persuaded a female caller to have phone sex with him on the air. He made deep buzzing noises into his microphone, and had her sit on a speaker with the volume turned up until she reached an on-the-air orgasm. Another notable episode was on WWDC-FM (DC101 Radio) in Washington D.C. in which Stern called Air Florida and asked what the fare was for a one-way ticket from Washington National Airport to the 14th Street Bridge (on the Potomac River less than 1 mile from the airport). He was making light of the crash of Air Florida Flight 90 one day earlier, on January 13, 1982, which had killed 78 persons (both onboard the airplane and in vehicles stopped in traffic on the bridge). That June 29, Stern was fired from DC-101 radio after being suspended for criticizing his station management and two other radio stations. Stern's lawyer alleged, "It's our view that the real reason they've is they would like to get new DC-101 deejays "GreaseMan" and "Adam Smasher" on the air as soon as possible, and hope the audience forgets about Howard, and that's a perfectly rational business judgment."

Stern has also shown the ability to take society's misfits and turn them into celebrities through The Wack Pack. Wack Pack members are able to parlay their exposure on Stern's show into personal appearances at clubs and even the occasional movie.

Stern has referred to himself as the "King Of All Media," a parody of Michael Jackson's claiming of the title "King of Pop." To his subjects this title is true, as they have been loyal consumers of The King's books, pay-per-view events and movies. Stern believes he represents the future of America, where, in keeping with a longstanding trend, public moral standards will continue to loosen. His show was frequently the subject of complaints by various listeners who find his deliveries offensive - something he deliberately encourages. Fines were occasionally issued against radio stations airing his show, generally for violating FCC requirements regarding content. Still, the parent conglomerate that hosted Stern's show, Infinity Broadcasting (a subsidiary of Viacom), seemed to consider those fines a necessary price to pay in order to support Stern's continuing popularity.

As of November 2004, the show, typically airing in the morning, was syndicated on 45 radio stations all across the U.S. (27 owned by Infinity Broadcasting), down from Stern's peak syndication of 62 stations. Those stations were not allowed to stream the show over the internet.

1990s

In 1992, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) fined Infinity Broadcasting $600,000 after Stern discussed masturbating to a picture of Aunt Jemima. His exact statement "The closest I came to making love to a black woman was I, uh, masturbated to a picture of Aunt Jemima on a pancake box. I did it right on her kerchief."

In 1994, Stern embarked on a political campaign for Governor of New York, formally announcing his candidacy under the Libertarian Party ticket. Although he legally qualified for the office and campaigned for a time after his nomination, many viewed the run for office as nothing more than a publicity stunt. He subsequently withdrew his candidacy because he did not want to comply with the financial disclosure requirements for candidates. He claimed that he had ultimately decided to support the Republican, George Pataki, who wound up winning over incumbent Mario Cuomo, and Stern was seen shaking Pataki's hand on television in congratulation.

In March of 1995, one day before the funeral of slain Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla, Stern played the sounds of gunshots in the background over some of her music. He also made comments that were considered racist by many people, such as "Alvin and the Chipmunks have more soul", and "Spanish people have the worst taste in music...they have no depth." After pressure from his radio station, Stern gave an on-air apology a week later in Spanish. In August of 1995 Howard was awarded the infamous "number 1 worst dressed male" on Mr. Blackwells list.

In 1997, Stern's autobiographical book, Private Parts, was adapted to film. The movie did moderately well at box offices and in video release, garnering a total of over $60 million. He had also announced plans for a film provisionally titled The Adventures of Fartman. based on a character created for his appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1992. As of 2006, this project has not begun pre-production.

On his show dated September 2, 1997, Stern, in an anti-French rant says "I've been picking on the French people for 15 years. I don't like French people. I felt that during World War II, France betrayed us. I believe that what they did was the most cowardly act. That when the Nazis marched into France, the French bent over... When I was over in France recently, Americans are looked at as dirt, as filth. We are the people that liberated them during WWII. They would be Nazis, they would be under the Nazi regime right now. They should only be kissing our asses, singing our praises."

Being a personality that engenders strong reactions from people, Stern has had his share of stalkers and death threats. On January 15, 1998 Lance Carvin, who had been stalking Stern, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for threatening to kill Stern and his family.

His April 21, 1999 show drew angry criticism and official "censure" from the Colorado State Legislature for his comment regarding the motives of the two male students who murdered 12 classmates and one teacher in the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado: "There were some really good-looking girls running out with their hands over their heads. Did those kids try to have sex with any of the good-looking girls? They didn't even do that? At least if you're going to kill yourself and kill all the kids, why wouldn't you have some sex? If I was going to kill some people, I'd take them out with sex." Stern did not apologize for his words but instead argued that his comments were an attempt to figure out what was wrong with the two attackers.

Also in 1997, Stern's show aired for the first time in Canada, appearing on CILQ in Toronto and CHOM in Montreal. Both stations cancelled Stern's show in 2000 after frequent listener complaints to the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council and the CRTC; for most of the time that the stations did air Stern's program, they were required to monitor the show for offensive content through the use of broadcast delays. Stern has commented on-air that the Canadian government disapproved of his use of the ethnic slur "polack", and that was one of the reasons why his show is no longer broadcast in Canada.

2000s

It was officially announced on March 5, 2001 that longtime show regular Jackie "The Jokeman" Martling had left the radio show after failed contract negotiations. Over the next several months, various comedians auditioned in the "Jackie Chair" for the job, with comedian Artie Lange landing the position.

Stern was on the air in his New York City studio during the September 11, 2001 attacks and stayed on the air with his cast/crew while many other broadcasters fled the city. His live reporting was the first news of the incident for many East Coast residents. Crew member K.C. Armstrong was the notable exception, as he left the city immediately and refused to return for several days. Stern and the rest of the cast/crew continued to broadcast over the subsequent days following the disaster. The show had a somewhat subdued tone, with many listeners calling in to share their own stories of survival or personal loss. As other comedy performers like David Letterman and Jon Stewart later returned to the air, many with emotionally-charged monologues, Stern was furious at the glowing response they received in the press, as he had been on the air the whole time without any positive reaction. This reinforced his long-held belief that there is a bias against him in the mainstream media.

In 2002, Stern's production company Howard Stern Productions acquired the rights to the 1982 movie Porky's and the 1979 movie Rock 'n' Roll High School. Stern was a producer of the short-lived TV series Son of the Beach.

Despite the provocative content of Stern's show, or perhaps because of it, many listeners and critics consider Stern to be a talented on-air personality and formidable interviewer. (He informed listeners early in 2004 that the ABC television network was in talks with him to produce an interview special.) His popularity has given rise to a number of rival "shock jocks" who have attempted to outdo Stern in terms of offensiveness and rudeness, but these rivals have yet to challenge Stern's ratings.

On February 25, 2004, Clear Channel Communications "indefinitely suspended" him from six markets because of alleged indecency involving sexual and racist dialogue during his show. The show in question featured Rick Salomon, whose claims to fame include a publicly released home video showing him having sex with hotel heiress and socialite Paris Hilton. During this broadcast Stern held what could be considered a sexually-provocative and racially insensitive interview with Salomon, asking him graphic questions about anal sex and making light of a caller's use of the word "nigger". Clear Channel president John Hogan said, "Clear Channel drew a line in the sand today with regard to protecting our listeners from indecent content, and Howard Stern's show blew right through it...it was vulgar, offensive and insulting, not just to women and African-Americans but to anyone with a sense of common decency." The move came only a day after Clear Channel fired Bubba the Love Sponge for similar reasons. This is considered to be part of a wide-ranging backlash against obscenity triggered by the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy. Because Clear Channel and some of its executives have donated over $200,000 to the Republican Party, Stern claims the company was trying to penalize him for his harsh criticisms of President George W. Bush.

It should be noted that Stern was one of the few celebrities who publicly supported Bush sending U.S. troops into Iraq. Stern turned against Bush, as he did Bill Clinton, because neither, as he has put it, got "the FCC off my back." Bush's religious beliefs were another reason for Stern's opposition to him. Stern said "Bush being born again is the source of Bush forcing his morals on this country, he's ruining America." Stern also said that "Bush needs to stop talking to Jesus." Stern endorsed John Kerry in the 2004 U.S. presidential campaign, and urged his listeners to vote for him, which at the time, was the latest in a long string of political endorsements Stern has made, having earlier supported former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, among others. In an on-air stunt, Stern promised then-gubernatorial candidate Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey that he would endorse her candidacy if she promised to name a rest stop on the New Jersey Turnpike after him if she were elected. She won and kept her promise, although one of her successors, Democrat Jim McGreevey, later claimed impropriety by Whitman and revoked the "honor."

On February 27, 2004, long-time Stern show regular John Melendez left the show to become the on-air announcer for The Tonight Show. Stern has consistently claimed the move is an attempt by Jay Leno to steal ideas from Howard's show. It should be noted, however, that this is not an atypical accusation by Stern, as he does at times take credit for the ideas of others, once even stating, "I've done it all." On the opposite side, Stern has also been accused of taking bits from other media personalities. Several personalities have accused Stern of not giving credit to, or acknowledging, others for their ideas in which Stern has incorporated in to using in his show.

Throughout the Spring of 2004, Stern, a militant atheist, was a very vocal and staunch critic of Mel Gibson and his religious epic, The Passion of the Christ. He called the film a "kook festival for a robotic freak audience" and even linked his radio suspension to the film, claiming that it was causing a "religious frenzy" and that anyone who goes to see the movie is "stupid and ignorant". At one point Stern said that "Mel Gibson makes Hitler look like Gandhi".

On April 8, 2004, Clear Channel Communications announced it would "permanently terminate" its relationship with the shock jock after being fined $500,000 by the FCC. However, on July 19, Stern returned to four of the six markets Clear Channel booted him from, and added five new ones to the roster—this time on Infinity-owned stations. In late August, he returned to a fifth market, Miami, on an independent station. Here, as was often typical with Stern, his return was greeted with controversy as the Miami Dolphins threatened to revoke their broadcast deal with the station in question if the station did not fire him.

On October 6, 2004, Stern announced on his show that he signed a five year, $500 million deal with the satellite radio service Sirius. The deal, which took effect on January 1, 2006, would enable Stern to broadcast his show without, at present, the content restrictions imposed by the FCC. In addition, the deal would also enable Stern to program an additional Sirius channel. Stern recently reported that Sirius has jumped from 600,000 subscribers to over 4 million subscribers since the announcement of his show moving there. It was revealed in the December 12, 2005 issue of New York Magazine that XM Satellite Radio had been prepared to offer Howard a $30 million dollar per-year contract in 2004, but its executives were slow to close the deal, giving Sirius the chance it needed. When asked why he picked Sirius over the competitor, XM, Howard replied that he "always liked the underdog. Every radio station I ever went to was a toilet bowl." He has also stated that during very preliminary negotiations with XM, he found the management to be slow and unresponsive while Sirius was "nimble". Stern's budget with Sirius, including all operating costs, is $500 million for the 5 year contract.

In addition, Sirius gave Stern two channels, "Howard 100" and "Howard 101." (A third channel was announced in 2004 but later dropped when Stern, Sirius, and Infinity failed to secure a deal which would have allowed old shows from Stern's terrestrial radio days at Infinity to be rebroadcast on Sirius. Infinity wanted Stern and Sirius to pay approximately $50 million for the rights of the old material, but Stern and Sirius felt the price was too high. If the deal had taken place, the third channel would have aired classic Stern clips and shows.) Both of these channels launched in October 2005. Although Stern himself was not able to broadcast on Sirius until his Infinity contract expired, he had been producing content to fill the otherwise dead air. Shows have included a live, 24-hour broadcast of Wack Pack member "Wendy the Retard", another 24-hour broadcast of "High Pitch Eric", which featured the weighing of his excrement, and auditions of other Wack Packers for their own permanent shows. A legitimate news team of award-winning journalists was put together to launch "Howard 100 News," a nightly broadcast of "all things Howard." Stern also announced fellow shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge would have his own nightly talk show starting in January 2006 on one of his channels. Since the move to Sirius, Stern has created "The Friday Show", which is an extended version of "The Wrapup Show", which airs everyday after his Morning Radio Show. "The Friday Show", hosted by John Hein and Gary Dell'Abate, airs live on those Fridays when Howard's show is not on the Air.

This move has been met with much controversy, as Stern talked about his move to Sirius on his show, even telling listeners how to purchase Sirius equipment and subscriptions. Nevertheless, to promote his move, Stern even held a rally in New York where he gave out coupons for free or discounted Sirius equipment. Stern's touting of his move to Sirius resulted in some radio stations censoring him every time he mentioned the words "Sirius" or "satellite radio". In one incident, Farid Suleman of Citadel Broadcasting went so far as to bill Stern $200,000 for the plugs he gave Sirius on his show. Stern's response was, "Keep sending me bills. Like I'm going to pay 'em," which he publicly stated on his show.

On April 6, 2005, Stern pleaded on-air for Infinity Broadcasting to let him out of his contract, citing the reason of possible prosecution, per U.S. House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner Jr.'s recommendation. FMQB.com quoted Stern as saying about his current employer, "They're holding me to the contract and I'm afraid to break the contract, because I don't want to ever do anything illegal or wrong. I'm very, very clear on that. I'm a pretty honest guy. I try to live by the laws, but it seems like I'm being set up." It must also be added that within Stern's contract with Viacom/Infinity, if he were to have been fired or his show cancelled, his employer would have had to pay out a twenty million dollar fee as a result of this early termination to him and his production company.

On June 22, 2005, it was announced that production of the Howard Stern television show on E! would be ending. The last new episode was taped on July 1 and aired on July 8. E! continued to rerun the show until December 31, 2005.

It was announced on November 7, 2005 that Infinity Broadcasting suspended Stern from going live on air on November 8 2005, because Stern was promoting his move to Sirius radio too much.

Goodbye to terrestrial radio

Howard's last show on conventional AM/FM "terrestrial" radio was on December 16, 2005. The show was on the streets of New York below K-Rock, simulcast live accompanied by video on the Internet through Yahoo!, with several thousand fans in attendance at the scene. The studio segment of the show ended with Stern and company each saying a final farewell, then leaving the studio for the street stage, with Stern being the last to leave. Many members of the show's "Wack Pack" gave speeches and Staind performed. Speeches were given by each member of the show: Gary, Artie, Fred, Robin, and finally Howard, who frequently referred to himself and his fans as "the last of a dying breed." During his speech, Stern thanked the NYPD and dedicated the show to Sgt. Keith Manning, a friend of the show currently serving in Iraq. Stern was then bused to the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square, where Martha Stewart (who also has her own Sirius talk channel) was on hand to induct Howard Stern into the Sirius family. Much of the show took place at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York where Sheryl Crow performed and mentioned on stage the debt America and musicians should pay towards Stern.

True to the last broadcast, much of Stern's final statements were bleeped/edited-out on the radio and even on the Yahoo internet broadcast. These statements largely pertained to Stern's animosity towards Clear Channel and the future at Sirius. As a response to Stern leaving FM radio, many of the radio stations under ownership of CBS Radio, including K-Rock in New York, changed their format from music to a hot talk format. Select stations were rebranded "Free FM". Stern's flagship station changed its name from 92.3 K-Rock to 92.3 Free FM. Stern himself was a harsh critic of the "Free FM" format in his last days on terrestrial radio, arguing that the name was a joke due to continued FCC and industry censorship.

Due to his former contract with Infinity Broadcasting, now CBS Radio, neither Stern nor anyone under contract from his show could be heard on Sirius before January 1, 2006. Stern called in to a New Years Eve broadcast on Howard 100 a few minutes past midnight on January 1st, and spoke to hosts from Howard 100 News for over an hour. There had been much speculation as to when exactly Stern would first be heard on Sirius. On January 1, 2006, Stern did a commercial free segment on his two stations Howard 100 and Howard 101 playing clips from his days as a child, to working at WTBU (Boston University college radio), WCCC, W4, WWDC, WNBC, and WXRK. On January 3 and January 5, 2006, Stern and other members of his show conducted live test broadcasts, 70-minute and 130-minute respectively, in which he tested, live and on-air, various components of his new studio including audio levels, call-in functions, and studio ease-of-use. Various callers congratulated Stern on his new venture, although he reiterated that the broadcast was nothing more than a test designed to give users a sneak peek, and not an actual show. He made a point to reaffirm the first show, technically clean but completely uncensored, would take place on January 9, 2006.

On February 28, 2006, CBS Radio announced it had filed a lawsuit against Stern, Stern's agent Don Buchwald and Sirius Satellite Radio, saying Stern used CBS's airwaves to unfairly promote the satellite service and enrich himself. The lawsuit also claims that Stern "repeatedly and willfully" breached his contract with CBS, "misappropriated millions of dollars worth of … airtime" for his own benefit, and "fraudulently concealed" his performance-related interests in Sirius stock. The suit, filed in New York state court, seeks compensatory and punitive damages. Not to be outdone, Stern earlier in the day (and prior to CBS's announcement) held a press conference at which, among other things, Stern said CBS added to the media attention and it, booking him for appearances on its news magazine show "60 Minutes" and "Late Show with David Letterman." "I made them millions of dollars. If I was hurting them why did they keep me on the air for 14 months?" Stern said. "How can you have it both ways?"

According to The Drudge Report, Viacom/CBS chairman Leslie Moonves himself appeared on one of Stern's final shows to compliment him on his move to Sirius and thank him for the record advertising revenue the network sold. Moonves even added that he bought Sirius stock.

There has been some controversy among his fans as to the poor availability of the Sirius signal in many buildings, where many of his fans listen from. As of this writing, Sirius has not begun streaming his show online (the company streams all of its music content and some select talk programming), however, they have indicated they will be doing so in June/July.

Initially, Sirius Canada chose not to carry Stern because of the possibility of a future issue with the CRTC. Josef Radomski, a Canadian writer, announced on the January 11, 2006 show that he has started an online petition to bring Stern to Sirius Canada. On February 1, 2006, Sirius Canada announced that they would start airing Howard 100, starting February 6. His first day on Sirius Canada, a caller claiming to be Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister designate who was sworn in as Prime Minister that same day, welcomed Stern back to the Canadian airwaves.

The Sirius Show

The Howard Stern Show debuted on Sirius, on January 9, 2006. The "Howard 100 Heartbeat" broke away to Also Sprach Zarathustra tunefully performed with flatulence. Howard's theme music, "Great American Nightmare," played a few bars before George Takei introduced himself as the show's new announcer. Callers were soon invited to call into the show using their new toll-free line, 1-888-9-ASSHOLE.

During the show, Stern revealed that there were 180,000 Sirius receivers activated the day before his inaugural broadcast. He also revealed that he was not married, squashing rumors which appeared (and he happily fed) during his hiatus. One of his first radio acts on Sirius included the uncensored Pat O'Brien sex tapes and his uncensored version of parody songs using the sex tape.

To dispel the notion that the move to Sirius would unleash a wave of cursing and vulgar language, Stern placed a gag order on himself and other members of his staff. Sal the Stockbroker and Ronnie the Limo Driver were especially singled out for excessive cursing and have since been forbidden to curse. Although Stern has the occasional slip up, such as calling Alexis Stewart "cunty," he has been conscious of not overdoing it. However, he has given Artie Lange carte blanche to use whatever language he wants, stating that "when Artie curses, it's funny."

In addition to his regular morning show, which is replayed at 1pm est, 7pm est and 1am est during the week on Howard 100, several "spin-off" shows have emerged, such as The Wrap Up Show, The Super Fan Rountable and The Intern Show, all dedicated to discussion of the Stern Show from the points of view of Howard's producer, fans and interns, respectively.

Howard 101

Along with his Howard 100 on Sirius, which carries the live morning feed of Stern's show, the Howard 100 News at Noon and 6est, and show replays all day, Stern is also in charge of Howard 101.

Howard 101 carries the West Coast feed of Stern's morning show, along with Bubba the Love Sponge in the afternoon and Scott Ferrall in the evening. In addition, the 7est hour is devoted to weekly original content, such as The Intern Show and The Superfan Roundtable.

Stern has promised to provide much more original content to his channels. As of April, 2006, Sam Simon, co-creator of and writer on such hit network comedies as The Simpsons and Cheers, is writing a weekly radio show for Stern's channels, a satirical take-off on ABC's hit Desperate Housewives, in which the show follows the daily lives of the cast members significant others.

The Revelation Game

Staff Revelation

On January 16, 2006 Stern began his Revelation Show where staff members of the show revealed dark secrets about themselves.

Howard announced the first revelation of I Cheated on My Wife and She Caught Me. He asked the owner of that revelation to come in and Scott the Engineer came in. Scott explained that it happened with his current wife about 12 years ago. Scott said that the girl, who he cheated with, kept calling and calling him. Scott, eventually, met up with her on one of his show road trips and had sex with her. The girl, angry that Scott did not leave his wife for her, sent his wife a tape of one of her phone conversations with Scott.

Howard admitted to having plastic surgery on his nose and chin a few days after the filming of Private Parts. Artie said that it was obvious and it looked very good. Robin criticized Howard saying “We already knew that. Big deal.” Howard said he kept it private for so long because he thought plastic surgery was “very gay.”

The crew's revelations are as follows: (Source: Mark's Friggin)

• Howard: "I've had cosmetic surgery."
• Robin: "I have pleasured myself with meat and vegetables."
• Fred Norris: "I have a half sister I have never met and don't want to."
• Gary Dell'Abate: "My buddy and I once ordered massage girls but they ripped us off and left us staring at each other in our underwear."*
• Artie Lange: "A guy once blew his load on my chest."
• Scott Salem: "I cheated on my wife and she caught me."*
• Benjy Bronk: "I once had my stomach pumped for alcohol poisoning and when I woke up, an acquaintance of the same sex was fondling me."
• Sal the Stockbroker: "I once hid in a bathroom closet and pleasured myself as my family members went to the bathroom."
• Richard Christy: "In the last year I got a girl pregnant and had to pay for her abortion."
• Jason Kaplan: "I think I'm addicted to porn, I jerk off twice a day and prefer to masturbate, rather than having real sex."
• JD Harmeyer: "I have spent well over $10,000 on internet porn."

NOTE: An asterisk indicates the cast member's original revelation was retracted and replaced with the one announced on the air.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/The_Howard_Stern_Show_Revelations_Game"

Wack Pack Revelation

On Wednesday February 8, 2006 it was announced that there would be a Wack Pack revelations game.

The Wack Pack members in the game were; Joey Boots, King of All Blacks, Double A, Captain Janks, Nicole Bass, Kenneth Keith Kallenbach and High Pitch Eric.

Joey Boots announced his revelation in the studio on Monday February 13, 2006, due to his departure to a rehabilitation clinic. The other revelations were announced by Sal the Stockbroker on Monday March 6, 2006. Double A, King of All Blacks, High Pitch Eric, Kenneth Keith Kallenbach and Captain Janks were all present in the studio. Nicole Bass joined them via telephone due to her recovery from pancreatitis.

Revelations from the show include:

• Double A: When I was 12 I banged my friend's mom, 10 years later I banged my friend's wife.
• Kenneth Keith Kallenbach: I once put a wrapped cigar up my ass while having phone sex.
• High Pitch Eric: I once got drunk with a friend of the same sex, I let him take out my penis and we tongue kissed.
• Joey Boots: When I was 15 I was anally raped by a stranger.
• Nicole Bass: When I was 18 a close family member put me on a plane to deliver 4 kilos of cocaine.
• King of All Blacks: I once ripped off my blind neighbor. A friend gave him $200 but I handed the blind guy 2 $10 bills.
• Captain Janks: I once made out with a former staff member's wife.

Television shows

• The Howard Stern Show (WWOR show): 69 episodes; July 14, 1990–Aug 1, 1992; often called "The Channel 9 Show" because WWOR is Channel 9 in the New York metropolitan area.
• The Howard Stern Interview (E! show): 36 episodes; 1992–1993
• Howard Stern (E! show): 2,278 episodes; 1994–July 8, 2005
• The Howard Stern Radio Show (syndicated): 1998–2001
• Howard TV (Formally Howard Stern on Demand) (iN DEMAND): Uncensored E! shows available since November 18, 2005; new shows available April 2006

Cast and crew of the Howard Stern show

• Robin Quivers (1981- ; Does the news segment for the show and is also Howard's co-host and close friend)
• Gary Dell'Abate (1984- ; Stern's producer; also frequently referred to as "Baba Booey" due to an inside joke stemming from his mispronunciation of the name "Baba Looey")
• Fred Norris (1979- ; Stern's sound effects wizard and show timekeeper; aka Eric Norris)
• Artie Lange (2001- ; comedian/co-host)
• Benjy Bronk (writer)
• Mike Gange (1992- )
• Ralph Cirella (Stern's stylist and friend)
• Richard Christy (2004- ; writer)
• Ronnie Mund (aka Ronnie The Limo Driver, longtime friend and bodyguard)
• Sal the Stockbroker (2004- ; writer and former Wack Pack member)
• Dan The Song Parody Man (2004- ; Dan The Song Parody Man is responsible for many of the song parodies heard on the show, including several of the now-classic Pat O'Brien songs.
• JD Harmeyer (media producer and Supertwink star; known as 'Daba' which is short for 'Dabadass')
• Jon Hein (2006- ; Hosts on Fridays when Stern is off, co-host of The Wrap Up Show)
• George Takei (2006- ; Howard Stern Show Announcer)
• Scott DePace (1994- ; On Demand producer, Former E! show producer)
• Celeste Barbadoro (2003- )
• Scott Salem (aka Scott the Engineer, Stern's studio engineer; creator of sound effects for show)
• Laura Lackner (Howard's long-time executive assistant)
• Doug Hurwitt (The Webmaster for HowardStern.com)
• Doug Goodstein (Executive Producer, Howard Stern On Demand)
• Isaac Mark (Producer, Howard Stern On Demand)
• Richie Wilson (Producer, Howard Stern On Demand)
• Jason Kaplan (Segment Producer, Howard Stern Show)
• Will Murray (Segment Producer, Howard Stern Show)

Regulars on the Howard Stern show

• Evil Dave
• Pamela Anderson
• Celeste Barbadoro
• Dr. Sal Calabro
• Heidi Cortez
• Nick DiPaolo
• Carmen Electra
• Vinny Favale
• Jim Florentine
• Gary Garver
• Craig Gass
• Gilbert Gottfried
• Jessica Hahn
• Jenna Jameson
• Jimmy Kimmel
• Joey Boots
• Reverend Bob Levy
• Norm MacDonald
• Crazy Cabbie
• Beth Ostrosky
• Red Peters
• Dennis Rodman
• Robert Schimmel
• Debbie Schlussel
• William Shatner
• Doug Stanhope
• Ben Stern
• Raye Stern
• Ed Torian
• Donald Trump
• Mike Walker
• Tabitha Stevens

For the Wack Pack regulars see: The Wack Pack

Former cast and crew

• Dead Air Dave (mid-80's, succeeded Howard and Gary as show's celebrity interviewer, a job he passed on to Mitch Fatel and then Stuttering John in 1988)
• Billy West (1990 - 1995) Master impressionist and comic, left due to a contract dispute with Tom Chiusano. According to West, Chiusano's contract offer included little money and a clause that said Billy would be responsible for legal fees if a slander suit was brought against him for his racy impressions.
• Steve Grillo - Dim-witted intern. He left to try acting in Hollywood. Eventually came back to New Jersey and got the role as a stand-in for Soprano's actor Robert Iler.
• Gay Rich
• Jackie Martling (1982-2001; quit over contract dispute in March 2001)
• John Melendez (Stuttering John) (1988-2004; left March 2004 to work on The Tonight Show)
• KC Armstrong (fired September 2004 over drug abuse)
• Tom Chiusano (1985-2005; WXRK Station General Manager, aka Tom Cheap-Ass-ano)
• Steve Fried (audio engineer at WXRK, appeared as Wood-Yi and in Supertwink)
• A.J. Benza (unofficial replacement for Jackie, banned from show for life for slapping Stuttering John in 2001)

Former Regulars

• Alison Stern (Howard's ex-wife; since their split, she no longer calls in to show)
• Bigfoot (Deceased)
• Bill Maher (Angry at the show staff, refuses to appear anymore)
• Bob Hope (Deceased)
• Crackhead Bob (No longer appears)
• Gina Girl (No longer appears)
• Gina Man (No longer appears)
• Grandpa Al Lewis (Stopped appearing due to failing health; deceased, February 3rd, 2006)
• Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf (Deceased)
• Jerry Seinfeld (Angry at show staff, refuses to appear anymore)
• Pat Cooper (Hates Stern with a passion)
• Penn Jillette
• Dana Reeve (Deceased)
• Richard Simmons (Angry, refuses to appear)
• Rodney Dangerfield (Died October 5, 2004)
• Sam Kinison (Deceased)
• Ted the Janitor (Deceased)
• Tiny Tim (Deceased)
• The Ramones (Most members deceased)
• The Jesus Twins (No longer appears)
• Chaunce Hayden (Banned from the show after misrepresenting Howard in the media.)
• David Lee Roth (Replaced Howard on terrestrial radio)
• Adam Carolla (Replaced Howard on terrestrial radio)

Enemies

• Leslie Moonves-- The head of CBS who orchestrated the multi-million dollar breach of contract lawsuit against Howard and agent Don Buchwald.
• Mancow-- (Stern once said he would skull fuck Mancow's recently deceased father after Mancow mailed a box of human waste to Stern's Studio. The box was opened by a 18 year old female intern. )
• Anna Nicole Smith-- (after a terrestrial show where she wanted to bring in cameras for her show into the studio)
• Rachel Hunter-- The model stormed out of the Sirius Satellite Radio studio when she saw a camera crew from Howard TV, prompting Howard to break his self-imposed no-cursing rule and call her a "fucking cunt."
• Don Imus -- Howard has long hated Imus, whom he worked with at WNBC in the 1980's, and has often berated the radio talk show host for being a senior citizen still in talk radio. In addition, Stern has accused Imus of ripping him off as a radio talk show personality, beginning during their years at WNBC.
• Michael Lance Carvin---A stalker who was convicted in 1998 of making death threats against Stern and his wife. He has previously been convicted of sending Gerald Ford, Nelson Rockefeller, and Ronald Reagan threatening letters and of pointing a toy gun at Reagan.

Frequent Show Games and Bits

(Discontinued games and bits are noted as historical. Winning a game usually gives a cash prize, losing usually involves nudity or humiliation.)

• Robin's News (Daily ending of the show, Robin reads the news and they discuss or make fun of it)
• Guess Who's The Jew
• Lesbian Dial-a-Date
• Lesbian Dating Game
• Wheel of Sex
• The Stupid Bowl
• Daniel Carver's KKK Movie Review
• The Homeless Game Many variants, often played with call-in guests
• The Gossip Game With Mike Walker from the National Enquirer
• The F-Emmies
• Stump The Booey (Song recognition contest against Gary; getting a question wrong requires removing an article of clothing, Gary usually wins)
• Stump The Perv (Guests compete against Richard Christy, Richard usually wins)
• Win Fred's Money (Timed trivia contest; losing to Fred involves nudity, Fred usually wins)
• 'Who Wants to be a Turkish Millionaire?'
• Evil David Letterman (David Letterman A voice impersonator who occasionally sits in the studio and makes off-color comments and non sequiturs during the show).
• Ride The Sybian (New with the Sirius show)Sybian riders include Jenna Jameson, Carmen Electra, Savana Samson, and Buck Angel(a man with female private parts)
• Mexican Delivery Guy Game (Played with Savanna Samson where upon receiving the food, a proposition of either a great tip or sexual favors would be given)
• Anal Ring Toss (discontinued on terrestrial radio due to indecency issues)
• The Tickle Chair (female guests strapped to a chair and tickled, mostly used as an excuse to feel up guests)

Common Show Sayings and Soundbites

(Only current Soundbites and Sayings listed. Many of the soundbites have been discontinued as Stern was not allowed to bring them over to Howard 100 at Sirius Satellite Radio)

• "Hey Now!" (Stern's greeting, based on Hank from The Larry Sanders Show)
• "Bababooey" (Used as everything from a nickname to a drop-in Stern reference during phony telephone calls)
• "Oh my!" (George Takei)
• "It Happens!" (OJ Simpson's voice)
• "I love to / touch / black / wang." (Cut-together George Takei)
• "How 'bout a reach-around?" (Cut-together Mike Walker)
• "Shut up! Sit down!" (Stern's father screaming at him in an old family recording)
• "I told you not to be stupid, you moron." (Stern's father yelling at him in an old family recording)
• "Suck my beep-beep-beep" (Pat O'Brien answering machine messages turned into a parody of Buster Poindexter's song "Hot, Hot, Hot" - Stern played an uncensored version of the recording on January 9, 2006 - his first day on Sirius)
• "This is gettin' to be ri-god-damn-diculous!"(John Wayne)
• "Sssssscott!" (Yelled by Mindy Sterling, a character from the Austin Powers movies, and played whenever Stern Show engineer Scott Salem was in the studio)
• "It doesn't matter!" (Screamed by an angry Haitian caller)
• "Holy Gazookas!" (Taken from a recording of young Howard doing a Batman show)
• "Ooooooh, Cunty" (Alexis Stewart, Martha Stewart’s daughter.)
• "BULLSHIT!" and "FUCK YOU!"- Martin Landau as Bela Lugosi from the film 'Ed Wood'.
• Excerpts from the song 'The Crazy Clock' are also played when technical difficulties arise.
• "Gwee-buck-a-dee!" (Andrew Dice Clay)
• "Great Ass!" (Al Pacino from the film "Heat")
• "Ex-CUSE me?" (Joan Cusack from the film "In and Out")
• "Nigga please." (rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard)
• "Yes." (as said by Wack Pack member Mark the Bagger)
• "God help us Jesus, oh God and Baby Jesus help us!" (from a Jerky Boys call)
• "Yo, yo, yo, yo, yo! Howard!" (Jackie Martling)
• "Keepin it real up in the field aiiiiite?!!?"
• "Somebody rape me for cryin' out loud!" (from Wack Pack member Wendy the Retard)
• "Hi Mommy, are you proud of me? I'm a fat pig whore just like you" (from Wack Pack member High Pitch Erik)
• "I'm getting myself hot" (from granny porn star Blue Iris)

Blumpkin

Blumpkin is a word used on air by Stern in a 2001 broadcast. He explained it as follows:

Well, a blumpkin is receiving oral sex while you're sitting on a toilet bowl if you are a man. You're sitting on a toilet bowl and uh, while you're evacuating you receive your oral.

In 2004, the licensee of his radio station, Infinity Broadcasting Operations, Inc., was given a forfeiture notice (fine) by the FCC for using what was described as "references to an oral sexual practice that also involves excretory activity" in a context that breached the Communications Act, 1934 and the Commission's own rules.

As reported By Peter Carlson in the Washington Post and other newspapers, Stern cited the fining as his reason for urging listeners to "Vote against Bush".

See also

• Howard 100
• Sirius Satellite Radio
• List of celebrity guests on the Howard Stern show
• List of relationships with age disparity
• The Wack Pack

External links

• Howard Stern Official Web Site
• Stern Fans Uncensored Message Board
• Stern Fan Network
• Marks Friggin (daily radio show summaries; extensive archive!)
• King Of All Media Website (Before there was Howard 100 News, there was KOAM.COM!)
• Howard Stern at About.com
• The Complete Howard Stern Links!
• Howard Stern On Demand official site
• News 10 Now Syracuse video report about Howard Stern Bashing Citadel Communications
• SternAndMore yahoogroup
• Chuck69.com
• BestTalkRadio.com

• 1954 births
• American radio personalities
• Atheists
• Howard Stern Show
• Jewish American actors
• Libertarians
• Living people
• Long Islanders
• Obscenity controversies
• People with obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Sirius Satellite Radio personalities
• Sirius Satellite Radio
• Television talk show hosts