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Famed Radio DJ Don Imus Dies At Age 79

  

Category:  News & Politics

Via:  jasper2529  •  5 years ago  •  11 comments

By:   Mike Fleming Jr.

Famed Radio DJ Don Imus Dies At Age 79
Imus defined the “shock jock” period, where certain irascible personalities flourished on the air.

S E E D E D   C O N T E N T




Don Imus , 79, one of the iconic radio morning DJs in New York radio history, passed away this morning at Baylor Scott and White Medical Center in College Station, Texas. He had been being hospitalized there on Christmas Eve. Deirdre, his wife of 25 years, and his son Wyatt, 21, were at his side, and his son Lt Zachary Don Cates is returning from military service overseas. He is also survived by his four daughters Nadine, Ashley, Elizabeth, and Toni.

For many years, Imus was a towering presence in New York, where he started in 1971 when he was hired away from Cleveland where it was clear he was onto something big. In his heyday, he spearheaded WNBC and was a thorn in the side of   Howard Stern , who put his reminiscences of the bitterness between them in the autobiographical film   Private Parts . Imus defined the “shock jock” period, where certain irascible personalities flourished on the air. Imus developed a coterie of characters he played, including the Right Reverend Billy Sol Hargus, Blind Mississippi White Boy, Pig Feets Dupree, Senator Edward Kennedy, Scott Muni and others. Imus appealed to the right audience and his show drew blue chip advertisers for his strong demos, and did interviews with the likes of Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, John McCain and many others in the political sphere. His mainstay crew consisted of newsman Charles McCord and Bernard McGuirk, the latter a producer armed with a quick wit and a coterie of impressions. Imus continued to drive the radio station even as it embraced an all sports format.

Along the way, Imus had substance abuse problems he eventually overcame, and I recall once he didn’t show up for his shift. While his star faded, Imus cooked his own goose in 2007 when he referred to the Rutgers University women’s basketball team as “nappy headed ho’s, when the team lost in the NCAA finals. He was roundly condemned for his comments, and lost it all, shortly after Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton met with ex-CBS chief Les Moonves (whose own career would eventually be ended for allegations that were much worse) and it was decided Imus had to go. Imus was making $10 million a year at the time. While he and his cohorts straddled the line between satire and bad taste, and though he made an emotional apology, his comments about college athletes was too much. His career never recovered, though he would resurface on WABC.


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Jasper2529
Professor Quiet
1  seeder  Jasper2529    5 years ago
Imus got a bit of redemption in his later years, devoting much of his later years to the Imus Ranch program for kids with cancer, where he would invite kids to an actual ranch — Imus grew up on a working family ranch in Kingsman, Arizona — and allow them to forget their illnesses for a moment and have a good time. It was there that he met Zachary, who was 10 when he came to the ranch. The youth overcame leukemia, and he eventually became a member of the family when adopted by Imus and his wife Deidre.
 
 
 
Jasper2529
Professor Quiet
2  seeder  Jasper2529    5 years ago
Imus hung up his spurs and retired his Imus in the Morning show in March 2018. The family will hold a small private service in the coming days and request that any donations be made to the Imus Ranch Foundation which continues to provide resources to other outstanding charities which support families of children suffering from cancer and other illnesses during their times of needs.
 
 
 
Gordy327
Professor Expert
3  Gordy327    5 years ago
Imus defined the “shock jock” period, where certain irascible personalities flourished on the air.

Actually, it was Howard Stern who did that, and subsequently buried Imus in the ratings and markets.

 
 
 
igknorantzrulz
PhD Quiet
3.1  igknorantzrulz  replied to  Gordy327 @3    5 years ago

Actually, it was Howard Stern who did that, and subsequently buried Imus in the ratings and markets.

Stern was nevermy cup of tea, though i did n joy Imus and his crew

Bernie as Cardinal O'Connor was always interesting, or Rob Bartlett as Hulk Hogan

Enjoyed that show over the years

 
 
 
Gordy327
Professor Expert
3.1.1  Gordy327  replied to  igknorantzrulz @3.1    5 years ago
Stern was nevermy cup of tea, though i did n joy Imus and his crew

I liked Stern. Very funny and entertaining. Awesome interviews too.

 
 
 
JohnRussell
Professor Principal
4  JohnRussell    5 years ago

Never cared for the guy. I think his popularity was more of an east coast thing. 

He had the time slot on MSNBC prior to the Morning Joe show taking his place, if I remember correctly. 

Imus was always crabby. 

 
 
 
Gordy327
Professor Expert
4.1  Gordy327  replied to  JohnRussell @4    5 years ago
Imus was always crabby. 

That only seemed to get worse as he got older, and was outshined by Howard Stern.

 
 
 
Vic Eldred
Professor Principal
5  Vic Eldred    5 years ago

He did have his time, could make it happen.

So long Imus

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Jasper2529
Professor Quiet
5.1  seeder  Jasper2529  replied to  Vic Eldred @5    5 years ago
Turn out the lights...the party's over. ~ Don Imus

 

 
 
 
charger 383
Professor Silent
6  charger 383    5 years ago

Before he got a job in radio he was a brakeman for Southern Pacific Railroad

 
 
 
pat wilson
Professor Participates
7  pat wilson    5 years ago

Mr. Imus dubbed fellow talk-show host Rush Limbaugh a “fat, gutless, pill-popping loser”; called then-developer (now president) Donald Trump “a hideous, transparent goon . . . an unctuous, gauzy, pumping twit”

 
 

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