The Howard Stern Show

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The Howard Stern Show
Genre	Comedy, Talk
Running time	5 hours (approximately)
Country	United States
Home station	Howard 100
Starring	Howard Stern Robin Quivers Artie Lange Fred Norris
Creator(s)	Howard Stern
Writer(s)	Howard Stern Fred Norris Benjy Bronk
Executive producer(s)	Gary Dell'Abate
Air dates	1978 – Present
Opening theme	"American Nightmare" by Rob Zombie
Ending theme	"Tortured Man"
Website	http://howardstern.com

The Howard Stern Show is Howard Stern's radio show heard four days (Monday–Thursday) a week on Howard 100 (West Coast feed on channel Howard 101), a Sirius Satellite Radio station. Replays of the show can be heard throughout the day on Howard 100 and various times on Howard 101.

For over twenty years^[1] the radio show was syndicated on FM radio stations (and a few AM stations) throughout the United States until the last broadcast via terrestrial radio on December 16, 2005. The Howard Stern Show began broadcasting via the United States subscription-based Sirius satellite radio service on January 9, 2006. It began broadcasting to Canada via the Canadian version of Sirius on February 6, 2006.

Contents 1 Overview 2 Show history 2.1 1970s and 1980s 2.2 1990s 2.2.1 Publicity stunts 2.2.2 Selena controversy 2.2.3 Private Parts movie 2.2.4 A brief stint in Canada 2.2.5 Columbine controversy 2.3 2000s 2.3.1 Jackie leaves the show 2.3.2 September 11, 2001 attacks 2.3.3 Parting ways with Clear Channel 2.3.4 Political tones 2.3.5 Stuttering John leaves the show 2.3.6 Infinity contract ends 2.3.7 E! Show ends 2.4 The move to Sirius satellite radio 2.5 Goodbye to terrestrial radio 3 The Sirius show 3.1 Howard 101 4 FCC fines 5 Radio controversies 5.1 Terrestrial radio return controversy 6 The Howard Stern Film Festival 7 Television shows 8 Criticism 8.1 Government 8.1.1 Selective prosecution 8.2 Watchdog Groups 8.3 Needing an enemy 9 Regulars on the Howard Stern Show 10 Former regulars 10.1 Deceased 10.2 Feuds, Splits 10.3 No Longer Appears 10.4 Banned 10.5 Hosting on other radio shows 10.6 Others, and might come back 11 See also 12 References and Notes 13 Further Reading 14 External links 14.1 Official Sites 14.2 Official Rundowns of Show Milestones 14.3 Fan Sites

[edit] Overview

The Howard Stern show is a free form comedy show consisting of banter between the cast, various games (often with sexual themes) involving the cast or listeners, taped bits such as prank phone calls and celebrity interviews. Common themes include current events, Hollywood gossip, politics, and ridiculing staff members for their mistakes and incompetence. Traditionally, producer Gary Dell'Abate (a.k.a. "Bababooey") and Scott the Engineer take the brunt of Howard's anger most frequently, but no person or topic is considered sacred and every cast member including Robin and Howard himself have taken ridicule on the show.

[edit] Show history

[edit] 1970s and 1980s

The earliest recognizable incarnation of the Howard Stern Show started in 1979 at WCCC in Hartford, Connecticut. Stern decided to apply for the job after reading a WCCC ad in Radio & Records looking for a "wild, fun, morning guy". Stern was hired for $12,000 a year. It was at WCC that Stern met Fred Norris. Norris was working evenings under the pseudonym "Earth Dog".

In 1980 Stern again noticed an advertisement in Radio & Records, this time for WWWW in Detroit, Michigan. He met with management and signed a contract for $30,000 and moved his family to Detroit. At WWWW the show was further refined with bits such as Dial-a-Date being invented. The show started to get noticed by the industry, and Stern won the Billboard award for best AOR disc jockey. With this new found recognition job offers started to come in and the show moved to DC-101 in Washington, D.C.

In one typical example of the radio show, Stern persuaded a female caller to have phone sex with him on the air.^[2] He made deep buzzing noises into his microphone, and had her sit on a speaker with the volume turned up (this incident appeared as a scene in Stern's 1997 movie Private Parts). 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 one 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 on-board 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 [fired Stern] 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.^{[citation needed]}

In 1986, Stern's show was syndicated in Philadelphia via WYSP, which he announced on Late Night with David Letterman. The local media initially doubted that Stern would be a success in the Philadelphia market;^[3] however, in a move that would repeat itself many times over in his career, Stern was successful in knocking off the local morning talent (John Debella) to become number one in the ratings.^[4]. Early in his career the show was already turning lucrative for advertisers, due to Stern's promotional ability. Defying critics like Don Imus who in 1986 responded to Stern's success with, "Talk to me six months from now. . . Prestige accounts are not going to advertise on that kind of program no matter what Howard does. You can get local retailers on who don't care what he says about them and there are only so many of them out there." ^[5]

[edit] 1990s

In 1991, The Howard Stern Show began to broadcast into Los Angeles, a move that was considered risky at the time, on the station KLSX 97.1. Predictions about the success of his show like the one of a local L.A. radio listener, "Vulgarity has reached a new low. I think he's going to bomb beautifully out here. At least I hope he does. I'm sure he'll find the Los Angeles market is more sophisticated", proved in the end to be untrue.^[6]

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 was, "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."^[7]

[edit] Publicity stunts

In 1994, Stern embarked on a political campaign for Governor of New York, formally announcing his candidacy under the Libertarian Party ticket.^[8] 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. Stern stated 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. Stern made national news in 1994 by preventing a suicidal man from leaping to his death off the George Washington Bridge.^[9]

[edit] Selena controversy

In March 1995, one day before the funeral of slain Tejano singer Selena, 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."^[10] After pressure from his radio station, Stern gave an on-air apology a week later in Spanish.

[edit] Private Parts movie

In 1997, Stern's autobiography Private Parts was adapted to film. The movie did well at box offices, opening at number one^[11]. Together with the video release, it garnered 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.

[edit] A brief stint in Canada

Also in 1997, Stern's show aired for the first time in Canada, appearing on CILQ "Classic Rock Q107" in Toronto and CHOM-FM in Montreal.^[12] Both stations canceled Stern's show (CHOM-FM sometime in 2000, "Pure Rock Q107" (latter-Stern name, though they have since returned to Classic Rock) in November 2001) 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 "Pollack", and that was one of the reasons why his show was not broadcast in Canada until February 6, 2006, when "Howard 100" debuted on Sirius Canada.

[edit] Columbine controversy

Stern's 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.^[13]

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. Stern believes much of the furor was roused by deejays at competing stations in the Denver market. He said:

There has been a tragic shooting in Denver. It's a national horror and what are the deejays doing? They're announcing my sponsors trying to get them to pull out. Are they really caring about the Denver community, or are they really just saying, 'Hey, maybe we can get Howard Stern off the air?' If I'm so vicious, why would you draw attention to me?

He explained his remarks this way: "Maybe my intent was poorly worded, but ... the point in making that comment was an attempt to try to understand a motive."^[14]

[edit] 2000s

[edit] Jackie leaves the show

On March 5, 2001, the Howard Stern Show officially announced 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.

[edit] September 11, 2001 attacks

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.^[15] Fittingly, he was in the middle of a rousing story about a rendezvous with Pamela Anderson when he first mentioned the World Trade Center was on fire. His coverage of the tragedy increased as the gravity of the situation became clear. His live reporting was the first news of the incident for many East Coast residents. 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. Stern's September 11, 2001 broadcast was replayed in its entirety on the fifth anniversary of the attacks on September 11, 2006. Among Stern fans - many of whom work in the broadcasting and entertainment fields - the September 11th broadcast was a watershed moment; as Stern remarked before the gravity of the situation was truly apparent, "I'm auditioning for Dan Rather's job".

[edit] Parting ways with Clear Channel

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.^[16]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 asked Salomon questions about anal sex, during which a caller used 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. Due to the timing of the incident, this is considered to be part of a wide-ranging backlash against obscenity triggered by the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy.

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.^[17][18] 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. ^[19] 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.

[edit] Political tones

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. Stern normally avoids political commentary, but told his listeners:

There are a lot of people saying that the second that I started saying, 'I think we gotta get Bush out of the presidency,' that's when Clear Channel banged my ass outta here. Then I find out that Clear Channel is such a big contributor to President Bush, and in bed with the whole Bush administration, I'm going, 'Maybe that's why I was thrown off: because I don't like the way the country is leaning too much to the religious right.' And then, bam! Let's get rid of Stern. I used to think, 'Oh, I can't believe that.' But that's it! That's what's going on here! I know it! I know it!^[20]

Stern turned against Bush because neither Clear Channel nor Bush "got the FCC off my back." Stern perceived Bush's religious beliefs as fanatical and has described George W. Bush as a "Jesus freak," a "maniac" and "an arrogant bastard".^[21]

Stern endorsed John Kerry in the 2004 U.S. presidential campaign, and urged his listeners to vote for him, the latest in a long string of political endorsements Stern has made.^[22] In the past, he had also supported former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani. In one 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.

[edit] Stuttering John leaves the show

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 was an attempt by Jay Leno to steal ideas from Howard's show. Many late night talk show bits are said to have been stolen from the Stern show, including Jay Leno's bit "Jaywalking".

[edit] Infinity contract ends

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:

They're (Viacom) 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.^[23]

It must also be added that within Stern's contract with Viacom/Infinity, if he were to have been fired or his show canceled, his employer would have had to pay out a $20 million dollar fee as a result of this early termination to him and his production company.

[edit] E! Show ends

On June 22, 2005, Stern announced that production of the Howard Stern television show on E! would also 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.

[edit] The move to Sirius satellite radio

On October 6, 2004, Stern announced on his show that he signed a five year, $500 million deal with the satellite radio service Sirius.^[24]The deal also contained an additional $225 million one-time stock bonus which he would receive if the show attracted a certain amount of listeners in a given time, which it did.

The $500 million contract and $225 million stock deal placed Stern at the second richest celebrity of the year at $302 million dollars, ahead of George Lucas, Oprah Winfrey, The Rolling Stones and Tom Cruise.^[25] The deal, which took effect on January 1, 2006, enabled Stern to broadcast his show without the content restrictions imposed by the FCC. In addition, the deal enabled Stern to program an additional Sirius channel.

The move to satellite radio met with controversy, as Stern talked about his move to Sirius on his terrestrial show, including telling listeners how to purchase Sirius equipment and subscriptions.^{[citation needed]} To promote his move, Stern held a rally in New York City 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 billed Stern $200,000 for the plugs he gave Sirius on his show. Stern's responded publicly on his show "Keep sending me bills. Like I'm going to pay 'em". Citadel eventually pulled Howard Stern off 4 stations in Grand Rapids, Rochester, Syracuse, and the lower Susquehanna Valley area of Lancaster, Harrisburg, and York during Howard's Christmas break in 2004.

On November 7, 2005 Infinity Broadcasting suspended Stern from going live on air on November 8, 2005 because Stern was excessively promoting his move to Sirius Radio.

The December 12, 2005 issue of New York Magazine revealed 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 their competitor XM, Howard replied that he "always liked the underdog. Every radio station I ever went to was a toilet bowl."^[26] 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 five year contract.

In addition, Sirius gave Stern two channels, "Howard 100" and "Howard 101". 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 included a live 24-hour broadcast of Wack Pack member "Wendy the Retard", a 24-hour broadcast of Wack Packer "High Pitch Eric" featuring the weighing of his excrement, and auditions of other Wack Packers for their own permanent shows. A 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 Wrap-up Show", which airs everyday after his Morning Radio Show. "The Friday Show", hosted by Jon Hein, Gary Dell'Abate and Ralph Cirella, aired live on those Fridays when Howard's show was not on the air, although it has since been replaced by "Master Tape Theatre", replays of selected pre-Sirius Stern Shows.

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 Year's Eve broadcast on Howard 100 a few minutes past midnight on January 1, and spoke to hosts from Howard 100 News for over an hour. 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.^{[citation needed]} 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.

[edit] Goodbye to terrestrial radio

Howard's last show on conventional AM/FM "terrestrial" radio was on December 16, 2005.^{[citation needed]} The studio segment of the show ended when the Stern staff each gave a final farewell, then walked to a stage on the streets of New York City below K-Rock, simulcast live accompanied by video on the Internet through Yahoo!. Several thousand fans attended the event. Stern was the last to leave the studio. On the stage, 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 Sergeant Keith Manning, a friend of the show who at the time was serving in Iraq. Stern was then bussed 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 City where Sheryl Crow performed and mentioned on stage the debt America and musicians should pay towards Stern.

True to the last broadcast, many of Stern's final statements were 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. CBS Radio revenue fell eight percent after Stern's departure.^[27]

Eight months following the changeover to satellite radio, Ad Age reported that advertising revenue from Stern's show is a third of what his terrestrial radio show commanded for a live read spot.^[28] Analysts partially attributed this to the lack of measurable listener data Sirius makes available for its individual channels, but also due to the smaller satellite audience when compared with Stern's previous terrestrial broadcasts.

[edit] 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.^{[citation needed]} 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 playing of Pat O'Brien's sex tapes uncensored and his uncensored versions 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.^{[citation needed]} Sal the Stockbroker and Ronnie the Limo Driver were especially singled out for excessive cursing and were forbidden to curse. Although Stern has the occasional guest slip up, such as when Alexis Stewart recalled a friend describing her as "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."

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

In addition to his regular morning show, which can be heard on Howard 100 at 5:55a – 11:00a and 12:00n – 5:55a, several "spin-off" shows have emerged, such as The Wrap Up Show (aka "the show about the show"), The Super Fan Roundtable, 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.

As of June 19, 2006, Howard 100 and Howard 101 are streaming online from Sirius.

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.^[29] On Stern's 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.

[edit] Howard 101

Along with Howard 100 on Sirius, which carries the live morning feed of Stern's show, the Howard 100 News hourly updates, 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 7 o’clock hour is devoted to weekly original content, such as The Intern Show, The Superfan Roundtable, Miserable Men, "Hello, Earth" with Riley Martin, and Basic Training, a show dedicated to military issues hosted by Brent of the Bubba the Love Sponge Show.

Stern has promised to provide more original content on his channels. In April 2006 Sam Simon, co-creator of and writer on such shows as The Simpsons and Cheers, announced he was writing a radio show for Stern's channels, a satirical take-off on ABC's hit Desperate Housewives, which would follow the daily lives of the cast members' significant others. The show, The Bitter Half, aired on October 24, 2006.

[edit] FCC fines

Over Stern's career, the Stern Show has drawn FCC complaints for indecency. These complaints are paid by the broadcast station against which the complaints were filed, not by Stern or the Stern Show. The first complaint was filed in 1986 when Stern asked a caller "Have you ever had sex with an animal?", to which the caller answered no. Stern continued, "Well, don't knock it. I was sodomized by Lamb Chop--you know, that puppet Shari Lewis holds?"^[30]. He was not fined for this complaint, but after his first fines in 1988 they continued until he left terrestrial radio.

FCC Fines leveled against The Howard Stern Show

Notice Date	Total Amount	Incidents	Company Fined
Dec. 16, 1988[30]	$6,000	3	Infinity
Oct. 27, 1992[30]	$105,000	12	Greater Media
Dec. 1992[31]	$600,000	N/A (Settlement)	Infinity
Aug 1993[31]	$500,000	N/A (Settlement)	Infinity
Feb. 1, 1994[30]	$400,000	4	Viacom
Oct. 1996[30]	$10,000	1	WVGO Richmond
Jul. 2001[32]	$27,500	1	Infinity
Apr. 8, 2004[30]	$495,000	18	Clear Channel
2004[30]	$1,750,000	N/A (Settlement)	Clear Channel
2004[30]	$3,500,000	N/A (Settlement)	Viacom

[edit] Radio controversies

[edit] Terrestrial radio return controversy

In May 2006, Stern said that he had received offers from three major terrestrial radio companies to return. Stern said that while he would not return "It would be cool to go back and kick their [CBS] asses." None of the companies involved were named or came forward.

Media organizations announced that he was thinking of returning to terrestrial radio and to clear up the rumors Stern called Associated Press on-air on May 10, 2006. While talking to Associated Press Stern said, "The story is I wouldn't do [terrestrial radio] for any reason."^[33]

In September of 2006 rumors once again arose that Stern would be returning to terrestrial radio. These rumors were once again denied by Stern and Sirius. Sirius representative Patrick Reilly told UPI "There has never been any discussion of Howard Stern in any way, shape, or form being anything but exclusive to Sirius. Published reports suggesting otherwise are wrong,".^[34]

[edit] The Howard Stern Film Festival

On April 27, 2006, the first annual Howard Stern Film Festival debuted at The Hudson Theatre in New York City. The film festival took entries from fans and featured a grand prize of $35,000 in cash and prizes. Stern said of the festival "People want access. The Tribeca Film Festival is too commercial. This is the one where the next great comedy directors will be discovered. This is good for New York, and it's good for the listeners. They get to come down here, participate, make creative films, and all the films are about me. What better topic is there?"

The winner of the festival was Scott Masterson whose film "Radio Play" was a sentimental tribute to Stern that wondered what it would be like if Stern, Quivers, and Norris met over amateur radio as children.^[35]

The winner of the staff competition in the Howard Stern Film Festival was a tie between Fred & Robin and Doug. Robin gave her award to Sal because she said the crowd seemed to like Sal's best.

[edit] Television shows

Howard Stern's national television shows include The Howard Stern Show on WWOR-TV (aka "The Channel 9 Show"), 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.

On November 18, 2005, iN DEMAND launched Howard TV, a Video on demand pay service that is available through various cable TV systems. Current content includes uncensored versions of shows which previously aired on E! and video from his Sirius show. Howard TV also includes movies (i.e. Supertwink), skits, bits, Wack Packer videos, behind-the-scenes videos, and anything else related to the show.

• The Howard Stern Show (WWOR-TV show): 69 episodes; July 14, 1990–Aug 1, 1992; often called "The Channel 9 Show" because WWOR is Channel 9 in the New York City metropolitan area.
• The Howard Stern Interview (E! show): 36 episodes; 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 became available April 2006

[edit] Criticism

Stern is a polarizing figure in the entertainment industry. While beloved amongst his fans, he is loathed by his critics^{[36] [37]}. In 2005 aides to former FCC Commissioner Michael Powell admitted that Stern is a lightning rod (for FCC action), while entertainers like Oprah who also discuss issues like sexuality are "untouchable".^[38]

[edit] Government

Main article: Howard Stern Show#FCC_fines

The FCC has fined stations for content on the Howard Stern Show upwards of 5 million dollars since 1990.^[39]

[edit] Selective prosecution

Stern feels that he has been selectively targeted by the FCC. Though this defense has never been used against the agency, some legal scholars believe that Stern's case passes the selective prosecution test and that the FCC's regulation of indecency is not proper.^[40] However, in a 2004 interview the FCC commissioner Jonathan Adelstein stated that the FCC was not out to drive Stern off the air and was just enforcing the law. "I don't think it's a necessary outcome that good content is driven away from the radio," Adelstein told Billboard Radio Monitor.^[39]

[edit] Watchdog Groups

Media watchdog groups have been especially aggressive in attacking The Howard Stern Show, and Stern personally. Jack Thompson, a Florida attorney, has stated he thinks Stern should be in jail.^[41]. The Parents Television Council headed by Brent Bozell has been one of Stern's chief critics^[41], organizing write-in campaigns to the FCC and frequently appearing on television to speak against Stern.

[edit] Needing an enemy

A frequent criticism of the show is that Howard is only funny when he has an enemy to rail against. After his move to Sirius in 2006, Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield wrote, "No wonder he's bored - he's got nobody to piss him off anymore".^[42]. Stern has responded to these criticisms by making anologies like, "That's like saying Chris Rock's HBO special would have been better if he had a censor to fight."^[43]

[edit] Regulars on the Howard Stern Show

For the Wack Pack regulars see: The Wack Pack

Pamela Anderson: actress, former Playboy playmate Alec Baldwin: actor Jim Breuer: comedian Bubba the Love Sponge: former rival, now a fellow Sirius DJ Dr. Sal Calabro: plastic surgeon who has treated many Stern show guests Andrew Dice Clay: comedian Andy Dick: comedian Heidi Cortez: model, formerly host of Tissue Time on Sirius Crazy Cabbie: former WXRK DJ Carmen Electra: actress Fake Arnold: an Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonator Jim Florentine: comedian Gary Garver: celebrity interviewer Craig Gass: comedian Gilbert Gottfried: comedian Kathy Griffin: comedian Jessica Hahn: actress, former Playboy playmate Insane Clown Posse: rap duo Jenna Jameson: porn star Kendra Jade: porn star

Jimmy Kimmel: comedian, talk show host Reverend Bob Levy: comedian Norm MacDonald: comedian Beth Ostrosky: Howard's fiancée Ozzy Osbourne: musician Sharon Osbourne: talk show host,and wife of Ozzy Red Peters: comedic musician Dennis Rodman: athlete Joan Rivers: comedian Robert Schimmel: comedian Debbie Schlussel: political columnist John Stamos: actor Ben Stern: Howard's father Raye Stern: Howard's mother Tabitha Stevens: porn star George Takei: actor, current announcer of the Howard Stern show Pat Cooper: comedian Donald Trump: real estate mogul Mike Walker: columnist for the National Enquirer Chuck Zito: actor, former celebrity bodyguard Vinnie Favale (CBS Television Late Night producer)

[edit] Former regulars

[edit] Deceased

• Bigfoot
• Grandpa Al Lewis
• Dana Reeve
• Anna Nicole Smith
• Rodney Dangerfield
• Sam Kinison
• Ted the Janitor
• Tiny Tim
• The Ramones (Most members deceased)
• Hank the Angry Dwarf
• Richard Jeni

[edit] Feuds, Splits

• Alison Stern (Howard's ex-wife; since their split, she no longer calls in to show)
• Bill Maher (angry at the show staff, refuses to appear anymore)
• Melrose Larry Green (banned after feud with Stern staffers)
• Jerry Seinfeld (angry at show staff, refuses to appear anymore)
• Andrew Dice Clay (constant arguing during show)

[edit] No Longer Appears

• Gina Girl
• Gina Man
• The Jesus Twins

[edit] Banned

• Chaunce Hayden (for misrepresenting Howard in the media)

[edit] Hosting on other radio shows

• Penn Jillette (hosting program on CBS Radio's Free FM.) He no longer has a radio show.
• Adam Carolla (The West Coast terrestrial radio replacement for Stern. Stern joked that when Adam gets fired, he is welcome back on the show.) Adam has called into Howard on Sirius and aired it on FreeFM in Los Angeles.

[edit] Others, and might come back

• Barrett Moore a.k.a. Veronica Caine (adult film star)
• Richard Simmons (may return as a regular, as they had been close friends on and off the air; he recently reconciled with Stern on the air after more than 10 years^[44])

[edit] See also

• Howard Stern Show Games and Bits
• List of celebrity guests on the Howard Stern show
• The Wack Pack

[edit] References and Notes

[edit] Further Reading

• Stern, Howard [1993-10-15]. Private Parts, 1st edition, Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0671880163. OCLC 28968496. 
• Stern, Howard [1996-11-01]. Miss America, 1st edition, Regan Books. ISBN 978-0060391676. OCLC 33432817. 

[edit] External links

[edit] Official Sites

• Howard Stern
• Howard Stern On Demand
• Official Cast Bios

[edit] Official Rundowns of Show Milestones

• Final Broadcast From K-ROCK
• First Broadcast on SIRIUS

[edit] Fan Sites

• Marks Friggin (daily radio show summaries; extensive archive)
• Stern Fan Network

The Howard Stern Show
Cast	Howard Stern • Robin Quivers • Artie Lange • Fred Norris • Gary Dell'Abate • Benjy Bronk • Richard Christy • Sal the Stockbroker • J. D. Harmeyer • Scott Salem • Jon Hein • Will Murray • Jason Kaplan • George Takei • Ronnie Mund • Ralph Cirella
Former Cast	Billy West • Jackie Martling • Stuttering John • K. C. Armstrong • Tom Chiusano • A. J. Benza
The Wack Pack	Beetlejuice • Eric the Midget • Miss Howard Stern • High Pitch Eric • Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf • Riley Martin • Siobhan Meow • Jeff the Drunk • More...
Howard Channels	Bubba the Love Sponge Show • Scott Ferrall • The Wrap-Up Show • Howard 100 News • Superfan Roundtable • More...
See Also	Show Celebrity Guests • Show Games and Bits • Sirius Satellite Radio • Sirius Canada