Someone mentioned Howard Stern in another thread. So this is mostly for Stern show fans, or even previous fans. If you don't like Howard overall, this isn't for you.

Got me to thinking about how the Stern show was so funny, on terrestrial and the first years of Sirius. Then something changed. I sorta remember a story about some woman at Sirius who slowly but surely cut his balls off, and his show became bland as fuck.

When he first went to Sirius, I was downloading all the HowardTV segments. The girls who came in and had rigged stand mixers and whatever with dildos, and let the machines fuck them until they squirted. Then every other female coming in and riding the Sybian (sp) vibrating horse saddle thing (which I'd seen before in some documentary and the women riding it quite literally passed out from it).

Endless moments of humor, outrageousness (remember Richard streaking through the lobby, and them opening the curtains in the studio which typically block anyone outside from looking in, and watching Richard run naked through the building).

And while I know that kinda stuff can't go on forever, it seems Howard really swung the other direction. I started to read his last book, the one with the interviews. I was just bored to death. Miss America was hysterical. I remember reading it on the express bus from Minneapolis to the Mall of America to go to work, and giggling out loud while reading the book on the commute. Once, a girl was sitting beside me and I was sorta trying to shield it from her so she wouldn't get offended or whatever. She leaned over and said, "Oh, Howard? Love him." He had just come into the Minneapolis market and was out to beat the local morning show (which he eventually did). She told me she worked at the radio station, and was one of the morning engineers for his show being piped in.

I see clips on Howard's YouTube now and is it just me or is he just trying too hard? He goes into this thing where he tries to over guess someone's response or what they were feeling, and go all Barbara Walters or something with his questions and comments. I think, "who's this fucking guy??" I know he's older, smarter, whatever. But goddamn. It's like two-face.

What do you think happened? For you Howard listeners, your thoughts?

I enjoyed some of Howard sticking it to the man humor. Howard himself is a walking contradiction-you learn this by listening to him or watching him. He accusses of people of doing something that pisses him off and he himself does the same thing and some how it's okay. Howard's ego narssistic ways are toxic and a lot of the time Howard is disingenuous. A good example of this disingenuous is his treatment of Artie when he was back in rehab. He was like I had no idea-shoot us listners knew that Artie was in dyer need of help. But you a boss and coworker had no clue? That is disingenuous.

I want to like Howard, but he himself makes it impossible to listen to him. I will for some interviews, but Howard's fakeness that he demands to be referred to as "realness"-I aint buying what he is selling.

Sorry for the rambiling.

I use to watch him on E! for free, was funny

I agree about the disingenuious part, especially with Artie. The guy was bloated, falling asleep, bragging about doing coke and hookers in Vegas, etc. And Howard would rather hear the story that tell him, "hey, you need help man, let's get it lined up for you right away."

Artie's nose is a trip. He really did some damage on himself. It seems the Stern show was one of the most toxic places to be for him. I kinda feel like there's a certain level of "OOHHHH MY GOD" working there anyway. Everyone's battling to get on the air, march in when Howard mentions them (IF he mentions them) and they can go in and talk for a few, and it's just this cock fight all the time. That competition shit alone is enough to drive me mad.

I guess I'm more disappointed with him because he really used to be in the ditches with people, then he got some money, moved to the Hamptons, and lost himself. Or at least some of his mojo.

However, a lot of those Artie moments (especially with High Pitch Mike) were hysterical.

Howard was at his best during the Jackie Martling/Billy West years (so many classic bits/moments). I still listened when Artie joined, but the show wasn't the same.

I don't understand these YouTubers getting on Howard for 'selling out'. Dude is 67 years old. It's crazy to expect him to be the same as he was in his younger, angrier 20s, 30s, even 40s. Be grateful that he gave us decades of wacky radio. Enjoy the classic stuff on YouTube and move on.

[Edited 8/28/21 5:27am]

He's just Fried-Egg-Tits to me.

nayroo2002 said:

He's just Fried-Egg-Tits to me.

I don't know what that is, but it's hysterical.

Howard started taking himself very seriously at some point. You bring up his modern interviews trying to be all super-deep, like in his newer book you mention, modern Howard tries to frame it like this is his gift to the world and his trademark as a broadcaster... It's like uhhh, no, people listened to The Stern Show because the Show was funny and raw, not for the Charlie Rose-esque 90-minute marathon A&E biography profiles he does now.

Billy West, Artie Lange, Jackie Martling, "Stuttering" John Melendez, KC Armstrong, Elegant Elliott Offen, Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf, wild out-there callers like the '97 call that's been trending on True Crime social media circles. A multitude of personality and energy, whether dark, light or everything in between, made The Stern Show can't-miss appointment-radio in the 90s/00s.

Like kewlschool noted, Howard always kind of had a thin skin that he was better at hiding in the 80s/90s when the show was more equal-opportunity offender and he'd bust his own chops or let his staff bust on him, then as the 00s wore on he became more insular, more sensitive and less humorous... basically the self-absorbed Hollywood types who take themselves too seriously that he used to goof on every day during Robin's news.

Thing is, it didn't matter so much when he still had Artie in the Jackie chair, Sal and Richard regularly causing hijinks... Take away what made the Show a Show and you're left with Howie's 2-bit Barbara Walters impression and not much else.

[Edited 8/28/21 18:49pm]

WhisperingDandelions said:

Howard started taking himself very seriously at some point. You bring up his modern interviews trying to be all super-deep, like in his newer book you mention, modern Howard tries to frame it like this is his gift to the world and his trademark as a broadcaster... It's like uhhh, no, people listened to The Stern Show because the Show was funny and raw, not for the Charlie Rose-esque 90-minute marathon A&E biography profiles he does now.

That's a good summation.

TrivialPursuit said:

WhisperingDandelions said:

Howard started taking himself very seriously at some point. You bring up his modern interviews trying to be all super-deep, like in his newer book you mention, modern Howard tries to frame it like this is his gift to the world and his trademark as a broadcaster... It's like uhhh, no, people listened to The Stern Show because the Show was funny and raw, not for the Charlie Rose-esque 90-minute marathon A&E biography profiles he does now.

That's a good summation.

He used to complain about having to go to commercials, now gloats about doing over an hour with guests... It's too much, man, leave the audience wanting more, brevity is the soulof and all that other blahblah. Horrible broadcasting trend, then you go to podcasts and it's like Joe Rogan's sitting across one dude with no cohosts all drowsy half-zonked out monotone for the combined runtime of all three Lord of the Rings extended cuts... Is this really what the people want?

How org'ers continually weep for the modern music-generation and their autotuned demiheroes, the state of talk/pod whatever is even more bottom of the barrel since Howie stopped showing everybody how it's properly done. Modern generation now accepts endless droning on with one-joke-per-show to be cutting edge content worthy of mashing their subscribe buttons to.

WhisperingDandelions said:

.... then you go to podcasts and it's like Joe Rogan's sitting across one dude with no cohosts all drowsy half-zonked out monotone for the combined runtime of all three Lord of the Rings extended cuts... Is this really what the people want?

The thing w/ Rogan in more recent years is that he tries so hard to be unaffected by anything, totally blazé, but he's actually so over affected by things he rambles on, like you said, for hours and hours.

TrivialPursuit said:

WhisperingDandelions said:

.... then you go to podcasts and it's like Joe Rogan's sitting across one dude with no cohosts all drowsy half-zonked out monotone for the combined runtime of all three Lord of the Rings extended cuts... Is this really what the people want?

The thing w/ Rogan in more recent years is that he tries so hard to be unaffected by anything, totally blazé, but he's actually so over affected by things he rambles on, like you said, for hours and hours.

How'd he even take off? UFC that popular society collectively decided, you know, hey, he's semi-decent at meathead color commentary, surely those skills must translate to extended marathon celebrity interviews?

automatic said:

Jackie and Billy years were the peak of the show for me. I still listened when Artie came on and enjoyed it. Really Eric "The Actor" kept the show funny for much of the 2000s. He could always be brought on the air for some really funny razzing. The little guy took everything so serious. Lol After he died I lost interest in the show.

Marci Turk is the woman who ruined Howard and his show. She got it in his head with the interview stuff and less of the funny outrageous things he's known for. Howard is also older and super rich. He's less in touch with the common person. This sadly happens to a lot of celebs.

Eric the Midget calling in as whoever from Texas was hysterical. He really thought he was pulling something over on everyone. hahaha

I actually know a regular person who fancies themselves an actor. She's been in like 2 or 3 things, never had a speaking part, and has always played the help. She was in the episode of Transparents where they are in Greece or something, having dinner on a cliff. There are three people (servers). She's the black girl nearest to the table. If you knew her, you'd know that dopey ass profile of hers. She's later seen from the back, in the kitchen washing dishes. She played the help in some other show recently. She, like Eric, refuses to play a criminal, a gay person, or anything other than - well, the help, or some goofy ass aunt in a Tyler Perry wannabe church play.

And yeah, Marci Turk is probably the woman I'm thinking about.

automatic said:

Jackie and Billy years were the peak of the show for me.

Richard Simmons, The Jesus Twins, 'Elegant' Elliot Offen, Mark Harris, Hank the Dwarf....the best guests

[Edited 9/1/21 9:36am]

TrivialPursuit said:

WhisperingDandelions said:

Horrible broadcasting trend, then you go to podcasts and it's like Joe Rogan's sitting across one dude with no cohosts all drowsy half-zonked out monotone for the combined runtime of all three Lord of the Rings extended cuts... Is this really what the people want?

Joe Rogan, the mega-popular podcaster who has questioned the necessity of the COVID vaccine on his show, revealed to his fans that he was sick from coronavirus. bit.ly/3gQAgEI