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Hour 2: Remembering Bernard McGuirk · The Mark Simone Show

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Now the Red Beret has returned to radio. Curtis lee
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Wall guest host The Mark Simone Show on sevent Tenor.
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: Oh, I heard that update about Governor Schrrell from a
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: congress woman. She's going on a diner tour. Boy. Nobody
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: is from Jack Ciarelli any longer. Remember he was the
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: big maga trumper guy this time around, third time around,
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: and her whole campaign was affordabily, cost the living, and
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: he washed. But you don't hear from him at all.
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: I don't know what he plans on doing. I've known Jack.
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: There's a good candidate, but the voters were interested in,
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: in course, the living, affordability. That's what propelled Johann Mondamia
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: New York and in other races where Democrats beat republics
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: around the country and maywell end up determining the fate
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: of the House of Representative. You know Trump, there was
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: all fake news, fake nord. Now it's all about oh no,
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: affordability courts OLIVI, Yeah, yeah, okay, get on board. But
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: it reminds me of a great radio figure who was
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: here from time to time, the King of talk radio,
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: Bob Graham. He was here on two different occasions but
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: when he was at WABC, was there I was at
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: that time, there was the woman trying to become governor. There,
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: Christine Todd Whittless. What de scratsiata what a shot though,
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: Remember she's the one who was the EPA chieftains for
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: Bush forty three and in the aftermath of the attack
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: of nine eleven said, oh, no toxins in the air.
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: You don't need gloves or masks or has matt suits.
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: Just inhal Xl. Look how many died, Look how many
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: still suffered. But anyway, at that time it was Governor Florio,
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: and Bob grand single handedly got her elected. He coined
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: the phrase Florio Free in ninety three. And Florio was
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: originally from Brooklyn. He worked in a butcher's shop, joined
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: the US Navy, and he was paving the way for
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: his reelection. He was raised in Texas. And Bob Grant
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: took Christine Todd with lists of patrician by the hand,
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: took her on the bus tour from Camden County to
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: Hudson County. Of course the stopover at his favorite haunt,
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: the Rio Diner and Woodbridge, New Jersey. We're at the time,
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: guess who the mayor was is he, well, yeah, the
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: guy who just lost his attempted political comeback in Jersey
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: City to become the mayor, as he addressed a nation
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: later on and said, I am a gay American. You
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: know that is Yeah, like Cormoll, he attempted to come back.
• 2:55
  Speaker 2: He was the mayor of Woodbridge at the time. Jim
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: McGready greed and he crashed in burnerw Jersey City. But anyway,
• 3:06
  Speaker 2: the point being is Bob Grant's single handedly took this
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: woman and got her elected, and then, in typical political fashion,
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: she stuck the shive in his back, came up, did
• 3:18
  Speaker 2: an interview in the studios at WABC at that time
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: at two pen Plaza, Madison Square Garden. Here's the guy
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: who got her elected. And because people were calling Bob
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: Grant a racist, she chimed in, oh yeah, she was
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: stabbing him in the back. And Bob was always respectful
• 3:39
  Speaker 2: to his guests on the radio. You know, he would
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: rail against them when he was doing his commentaries, but
• 3:47
  Speaker 2: he was always respectful. I was there at the station
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: that day. It was a horrific political performance, and you
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: got to understand that you may be loyal to certain politicians.
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: It doesn't matter. They care only about themselves. And that
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: was clearly evidenced the Christine Todd Whitless, miserable person, but
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: she had no loyalty. The guy who did have loyalty,
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: it's the great Bernard McGirk. And I say great because
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: he earned it. His father was a bus driver, Irish
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: bus driver in the Bronx. His mother raised kids in
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: the Monroe housing projects and Soundview's where Wesley Snipes grew up. Yeah, Wesley,
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: pay your taxes. They never did. And many others who
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: grew up there. But when you were white back then,
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: you were the minority, and it was a tough upbringing.
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: But when I've been to the Monroe projects and I
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: speak to the elderly African American women, many of them
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: still living there, they would say Bernard McGirk would walk
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: around with books all the time. He'd be reading books,
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: he'd be teaching kids to read, even the ones threatening
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: him to give him a beat down. And as you know,
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: Bernard was a tough guy. It was a Hayes man.
• 5:11
  Speaker 2: Went to Cardinal Hayes. I think he went to Mount
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: Saint Vincent up in Riverdale, then left school, was driving
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: livery cabs, up in youon because overnight you know how
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: dangerous that is. Back then the slowbine projects, Milford Gardens, thugs,
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: and then late at night, you know who's China hail
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: at back then livery cabs, it's pimps, it's prostitutes, it's John's,
• 5:36
  Speaker 2: it's drug dealers, it's drug users and drunks who are
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: getting out of the bars along McLean Avenue in the
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: wee hours of the morning, and it was tough. He
• 5:44
  Speaker 2: talked to me about all the times he got pissed
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: the whip guns to his head, Rob because back then
• 5:49
  Speaker 2: it was cash and carry. And then he fell into radio.
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: It's one of the best things that ever happened on radio.
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: At some point he hooked up with Imus, who had
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: had his ups and downs and was just a nasty guy.
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: Nasty guy, but he became the lynchpin, the flywheel, the
• 6:16
  Speaker 2: one person who was able to turn it around for
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: don Imus, who depended on which day it was, it
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: was probably in a really bad mood. If I remember correctly,
• 6:30
  Speaker 2: there was Imus, Charles McCord, his newsguy, Rob Bartlett Loifino,
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: who is now sid Rosenberg's wingman. If he hadn't gotten
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: Lui Fino here from w o WAL. I don't think
• 6:46
  Speaker 2: sid Rosenberg would have cut it. Once Bernard McGirk passed away.
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: We'll get into that momentarily. But by the time they
• 6:56
  Speaker 2: came to WABC, this is after that scarlet and situation
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: with Rutgers, which I think occurred in about two thousand
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: and seven. All of a sudden, MSNBC canceled them because
• 7:10
  Speaker 2: they were simulcast, and then WFA and canceled them. Fired,
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: the imish fired. Bernard McGirr kept the others on a
• 7:17
  Speaker 2: little bit, but let them go too, and they were
• 7:20
  Speaker 2: in a lurch. They were persona no grade. They had
• 7:24
  Speaker 2: a scarlet letter on them. They were called races, which,
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: let me tell you something. Bernard McGirr coughing up in
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: the projects with predominantly African Americans and Hispanics around him,
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: not far from the Soto Mayor Projects which used to
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: be the Bronxdale Projects renamed in her honor, near the
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: Bruckna in the heart of the South Bronx. He was
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: no racist. Probably the saddest moment that I experienced on
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: his behalf is that he was supposed to in two
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: thousand and seven be hired over at WRKO for the
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: morning program in Boston, and boy, they wanted him there
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: desperately because he would have been a perfect fit Irish.
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: And remember he used to do used to do the
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: imitations of John and Cardinal o'conna and Cardinal Egan. You know,
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: you had that Federal Express envelope as like the cone
• 8:19
  Speaker 2: on his head. He was great with the Irish brogue
• 8:22
  Speaker 2: man and loved him in Boston. So there I am
• 8:29
  Speaker 2: in the studios of WRKO in Boston. I was leading
• 8:32
  Speaker 2: Guardian Angel patrols. Some black minister had said, don't come
• 8:36
  Speaker 2: to Boston because you're just asking to end up in
• 8:39
  Speaker 2: a body bag. It was high crime. The mayor was
• 8:42
  Speaker 2: opposed to it, and so here it was they were
• 8:48
  Speaker 2: going to hire Bernard McGirk to be the co host
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: with the former Speaker of the crooked Boston Excuse mean
• 8:57
  Speaker 2: Massachusetts Legislature, Tom Finnerant and then Alslom Shady Sharpton and
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: Barack Obama started working the phones to all the advertisers
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: and telling him, if you hire that racist Bernard McGirk,
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: we're going to launch a boycott. So when I got
• 9:16
  Speaker 2: there that morning, I said, hey, where's Burnie. Oh no, no, no,
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: they decided not to take him. Honest, but what that
• 9:22
  Speaker 2: would have helped you, Thomas, you know you're a politician.
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: I was honest with him. Politicians make horrible talk show
• 9:29
  Speaker 2: hosts because they always speak with a seven second SoundBite.
• 9:32
  Speaker 2: They're the worst. He goes, no, you're right, I needed Bernie.
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: So once again, Bernard McGirk was off into the ABYSS,
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: labeled a racist. Meantime, unbeknownst to anybody, don Imus, who
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: represented his whole crew, because you paid Imus and then
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: he paid his crew, so you were subject to whatever
• 9:55
  Speaker 2: Imus said you had to do. He was meeting with
• 9:59
  Speaker 2: the Buckley family who owned WOR, this station seven ten
• 10:04
  Speaker 2: at the time, family owned station, and they were on
• 10:08
  Speaker 2: the cusp of hiring him. Now, remember the morning shows
• 10:10
  Speaker 2: there had either been gambling one, two, three, or programs
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: that sounded like the gambling show. You know, it soundedlikes
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: so this would have been a major departure for them.
• 10:24
  Speaker 2: I don't know what happened, but negotiations broke down and
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: at that point WOR decided not to bring him into
• 10:33
  Speaker 2: the mornings. That's like halfway through twenty two thousand and seven.
• 10:40
  Speaker 2: And then towards the end of two thousand and seven,
• 10:42
  Speaker 2: what happens. WABC hires Imis in the morning and his
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: crew to replace Curtis and Koby. They fired Koby and
• 10:49
  Speaker 2: they put me in a box doing overnight radio, and
• 10:52
  Speaker 2: that was syndicated across the nation. But they weren't gonna
• 10:56
  Speaker 2: let me go. They said it so wow. That was
• 11:00
  Speaker 2: all within a year, And every step of the way,
• 11:06
  Speaker 2: Bernard McGirk was loyal to Imus and loyal to the team.
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: Never told the stories, the horrific stories of how badly
• 11:15
  Speaker 2: i'mus treated him and all the members of his staff.
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: By the way, the executive producer, when you saw him
• 11:24
  Speaker 2: in the studio, he was feeding information i'mus. Bernard would
• 11:29
  Speaker 2: read the books, he would give him the questions to ask.
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: There was sometimes Imus was almost incoherent, and Bernard McGirk
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: would save the day whether i'mus was off in New
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: Mexico and then eventually in Texas at Ranch whatever. And
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: then he had a wish at WABC. He wanted to
• 11:50
  Speaker 2: have his own show. He had earned it many times
• 11:53
  Speaker 2: over great talk show hosts, and he said to management
• 11:56
  Speaker 2: and ownership, I want to be able to bring up
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: Sid Rosenberg from Florida, who was having a difficult time,
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: and he convinced him. He convinced them that, yeah, this
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: could be a good show. I remember I went down
• 12:09
  Speaker 2: to Florida. I was hosting a Guardian Angel conference at
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: the hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, and I was asking
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: questions about Sid because he had just been fired in
• 12:19
  Speaker 2: another radio station. Assumed he had some of the same
• 12:21
  Speaker 2: problems he had before. He hadn't. I reported back to
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: ownership management and I told, man, you got it. You
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: got to bring Sid up because he wanted to hire
• 12:32
  Speaker 2: Mike Lupeka, the sports writer at at the Daly News.
• 12:36
  Speaker 2: Great sports writer, but horrible talk show hosts. And I
• 12:40
  Speaker 2: must say, convince him. You don't have to come into
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: the station. You could do it from your basement in
• 12:44
  Speaker 2: New Canaan. Yeah, just destroy the station even more, saying God,
• 12:47
  Speaker 2: they listened to me. They brought Sid Rosenberg up. Sid
• 12:52
  Speaker 2: was a great addition. And then unfortunately Bernie, and this
• 12:57
  Speaker 2: is a message to all of you to get to
• 12:59
  Speaker 2: your men, never took that PSA test. A simple prick
• 13:04
  Speaker 2: of the finger, A simple prick of the finger. If
• 13:08
  Speaker 2: he had had that blood test, it's simple. I can
• 13:12
  Speaker 2: assure you he would not have died of prostate cancer
• 13:15
  Speaker 2: like so many men needlessly do because they don't get tested.
• 13:19
  Speaker 2: If you're forty five or older, you gotta get tested. Women,
• 13:22
  Speaker 2: folks listening out there, you have the right to nag them,
• 13:26
  Speaker 2: be all over them, make sure they get that test,
• 13:28
  Speaker 2: because the toughest guys are the ones least likely to
• 13:32
  Speaker 2: take the test because they think, oh man, it goes
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: my manhood. You know, I'll have to be using no
• 13:38
  Speaker 2: longer the urino. I'll have to go into the stall
• 13:41
  Speaker 2: and do a squad And for us, that's nonsense. I
• 13:43
  Speaker 2: had stage four prostate cancer. But Bernie was old school.
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: And when we return, I'll tell you exactly what happened there.
• 13:55
  Speaker 2: For one year, this guy suffered and you continue to
• 14:00
  Speaker 2: do talk radio while his partner, Sid Rosenberg was hoping
• 14:07
  Speaker 2: that he would have a shot to do the show
• 14:10
  Speaker 2: on his own. You imagine that this guy who had
• 14:15
  Speaker 2: brought him, who said I want sit up here, and
• 14:20
  Speaker 2: all Sid was doing while Bertie was suffering, is I
• 14:23
  Speaker 2: could do this show on my own. Really, No, you couldn't. No,
• 14:29
  Speaker 2: you can't. And I'll give you the rest of the
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: real story as I do my homage to a great
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: all round figure in talk radio, Bernard McGirk, who should
• 14:44
  Speaker 2: be honored on a regular basis for all he put
• 14:47
  Speaker 2: up with, all he did and what he contributed to
• 14:51
  Speaker 2: the thing of ours. One eight hundred three two one
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: zero seven ten. That's one eight hundred three to two
• 14:58
  Speaker 2: one zero seven ten.
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: Curtis Sliwa a guest host the Mark Simone Show on
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: seven tenor.
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: Every year when I was at WABC, not my place
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: to be. You got to be listening to seven to
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: ten war. It is the voice in New York. Don't
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: be a Massacus and go back listening there because they
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: don't do these tributes to a guy who was so
• 15:23
  Speaker 2: important to radio in general, never mind WABC. So Bernard
• 15:30
  Speaker 2: McGirk is fighting to have his own program and without
• 15:34
  Speaker 2: which I Miss could not exist without Bernie as his
• 15:38
  Speaker 2: executive producer. So the deal is made. Burnie will continue
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: to be the executive producer for don I Miss in
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: the Morning six to ten, and they would replace Heraldo Rivera,
• 15:51
  Speaker 2: who was a prima donna at that time, never wanting
• 15:53
  Speaker 2: to come and do the show in the studio with
• 15:56
  Speaker 2: the new show, Bernard McGirk and Sid Roseberg. Everybody knew
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: Bernard McGirk. Come on, he was on with O'Reilly. Remember
• 16:04
  Speaker 2: once a week before anybody really knew Gutfeld. Gutfeld now
• 16:08
  Speaker 2: everybody knows him, but Bernie carried that segment until Gutfeld
• 16:12
  Speaker 2: got his legs. So everybody knew Bernie, not everybody knew Sid.
• 16:20
  Speaker 2: But it was a great program because in twenty sixteen,
• 16:23
  Speaker 2: remember it was the election of Trump versus Hillary, and
• 16:26
  Speaker 2: Sid was truly a Hillary Rodham Clinton supporter, and as
• 16:31
  Speaker 2: you know, there was no bigger supporter of Donald Trump
• 16:36
  Speaker 2: than Bernard McGirk. So it's great to listen to them
• 16:38
  Speaker 2: back and forth. And then, as you know, Trump becomes president.
• 16:42
  Speaker 2: Hillary was still in a fetal position at the Jacob
• 16:45
  Speaker 2: Chavich Senna, willing to accept the coronation, and they had
• 16:49
  Speaker 2: a teller every day for a month. No, no, Hillary,
• 16:51
  Speaker 2: You're not the president. And finally bring it back to
• 16:54
  Speaker 2: the Love Shack in Chappaqua, the whitest suburb in America,
• 16:57
  Speaker 2: where even the launch jockey's away. So now they're moving along.
• 17:03
  Speaker 2: They're doing mid mornings. Remember Bernie's still the executive producer
• 17:06
  Speaker 2: in the morning for don Imus, who is losing it.
• 17:08
  Speaker 2: I mean, you could tell. And then finally they determined
• 17:13
  Speaker 2: that it's time for Imus to ride into the sunset.
• 17:17
  Speaker 2: That's it. He's retiring. I think it was in twenty eighteen.
• 17:22
  Speaker 2: And so now it's Sid and Bernie in the morning.
• 17:26
  Speaker 2: But Bernie's the bus driver. Bernie did all the show prep.
• 17:29
  Speaker 2: Bernie is getting cuts, Bernie is working hard like he
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: always worked. He was the executive producer and obviously the host,
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: the go to hosts and Sid. You could tell there
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: was like resistance resistance. It's like Sid wanted to talk sports,
• 17:45
  Speaker 2: okay a little bit of that, and naturally all about
• 17:48
  Speaker 2: himself and he'll tell you, oh, look I'm paranoid, I'm insecure,
• 17:53
  Speaker 2: I'm neurotic. But he had to tell you things about himself.
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: Quite frankly, they weren't all that interesting. But Bernard would
• 18:01
  Speaker 2: do the reading, do the research, and help do a
• 18:05
  Speaker 2: really good morning program. But unfortunately he did not pay
• 18:10
  Speaker 2: attention to the warning signs that maybe some of you
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: guys are having out there, and I beg you, I
• 18:14
  Speaker 2: beseech you, as somebody at stage four prostate cancer, get
• 18:18
  Speaker 2: the simple prick of the finger, the blood test. That's
• 18:21
  Speaker 2: all it is. Because if you don't, you might end
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: up like Bernard McGirt and so many others that you knew.
• 18:28
  Speaker 2: There was nobody healthier than Bernard mcgirky, lived in Long Beach,
• 18:31
  Speaker 2: his wife, his two children. He'd be on the board
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: walk there, riding his bicycle, healthy diet. It wasn't better
• 18:39
  Speaker 2: shape than any of us. In fact, in the lockdown
• 18:41
  Speaker 2: and pandemic, I'll never forget the image of Bernard McGirt
• 18:44
  Speaker 2: coming off the Long Island Railroad dressed like Lawrence of
• 18:48
  Speaker 2: the Arabia with a shive in his hand. Because only
• 18:51
  Speaker 2: emotionally disturbing and homeless people are taken over Penn Station.
• 18:55
  Speaker 2: I know we and the Guardian Angels were caring for him,
• 18:57
  Speaker 2: and I would see I would see Bernard to merge, man,
• 19:02
  Speaker 2: you didn't want to mess with bern Ar McGirk. He
• 19:05
  Speaker 2: was prepared, but he was gonna get to that station.
• 19:09
  Speaker 2: And it was a great team. In the morning, now
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: everybody recommended to him, Bernie, Bernie, you better go talk
• 19:18
  Speaker 2: to Curtison Studio B because he was I'm not feeling well,
• 19:23
  Speaker 2: and Bernie started to tell me what his symptoms were,
• 19:28
  Speaker 2: and I kind of understood it was prostate cancer. Having
• 19:31
  Speaker 2: been through the ordeal myself. Luckily I survived. He didn't.
• 19:35
  Speaker 2: He had not gotten a PSA test. He had to
• 19:39
  Speaker 2: go home and at times do the broadcast from home
• 19:42
  Speaker 2: laying down on the bed parallel to the ceiling. Wow,
• 19:49
  Speaker 2: there's cancer metastasized. I think he went into his liver
• 19:55
  Speaker 2: and then his brain. And then by twenty twenty two,
• 19:59
  Speaker 2: unfortunately Bernard McGirk is dead. They had a nice commemorative
• 20:06
  Speaker 2: mass in Saint Patrick's Cathedral and we all got a
• 20:11
  Speaker 2: chance to speak on behalf of Bernie, and the many
• 20:14
  Speaker 2: fans who had grown up listening to Bernard McGirk filled
• 20:17
  Speaker 2: Saint Patrick's Cathedral. People went out to his wake in
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: Long Beach, including at the time the Mayor of the
• 20:26
  Speaker 2: City of New York, Eric Adams, who always used to
• 20:28
  Speaker 2: tell Bernie and I tell Bernie, he's pulling your shorts. Oh,
• 20:32
  Speaker 2: it's my favorite morning show. Meantime you knew it was Charlemagne,
• 20:35
  Speaker 2: that god right, they tell the Mighty Whities. Yeah, you're
• 20:38
  Speaker 2: my favorite show. You in said, meantime, he's listening to Charlemagne,
• 20:41
  Speaker 2: the guy. He went all the way out there, and
• 20:43
  Speaker 2: Bernie's father, just like Bernie, looked at Eric Adams because
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: he was sitting up in the front and he said,
• 20:52
  Speaker 2: what are you doing here looking for votes? And everybody
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: busted out laughing because they knew what that was about.
• 21:00
  Speaker 2: But the fact was that Sid was having a tough
• 21:02
  Speaker 2: time carrying this program. It really was. People were used
• 21:05
  Speaker 2: to Bernie. They wanted Bernie. Obviously he could no longer
• 21:09
  Speaker 2: do it. So the suits, the owners of WABC, said
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: he needs a partner right away. They came to me
• 21:15
  Speaker 2: because I've not morning shows, I mean, you name it,
• 21:18
  Speaker 2: have done him many times with Lisa Angels in the morning,
• 21:22
  Speaker 2: with Ron Coolby, done a lot of morning shot and Nope,
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: not I. This guy does not want a partner. It
• 21:29
  Speaker 2: is clear he's a diva. He thinks the show should
• 21:33
  Speaker 2: be all about him. And so they tried Andrew Giuliani,
• 21:38
  Speaker 2: who was a rookie. I had him in the talk
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: radio boot camp there along with others like Dominic Carter
• 21:44
  Speaker 2: and others, and he was learning. And then one morning
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: he's on with Sid and they get into an argument about,
• 21:51
  Speaker 2: of all things, former New York Yankee Paul O'Neill of
• 21:56
  Speaker 2: no consequence to the argument, and Sid uses that as
• 21:59
  Speaker 2: the excure I don't want him here anymore. He never
• 22:02
  Speaker 2: wanted a partner to begin with, big mistake, and then
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: thankfully they brought over from here wr the former Border
• 22:13
  Speaker 2: operator and great contributor Lou Raffino, who became SID swingman.
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: But I will tell you the show. At times she
• 22:24
  Speaker 2: can't listen. It's all about said, I mean, you know,
• 22:27
  Speaker 2: my whole life, who cares? And then October seventh hit
• 22:31
  Speaker 2: the attack against all the Israelis and others in the
• 22:36
  Speaker 2: southern end of Israel, thousand, two hundred killed, two hundred
• 22:40
  Speaker 2: and fifty kidnapped, and said, who had never really been
• 22:46
  Speaker 2: in tune with his Jewish roots, would always complain to
• 22:48
  Speaker 2: wish I had been born as Supreme Cugiene. He'll admit it.
• 22:52
  Speaker 2: Suddenly discovered his Jewish roots, and I may have created
• 22:55
  Speaker 2: the monster that he is now. And I dubbed him
• 22:57
  Speaker 2: King David the Second because now on almost any morning
• 23:03
  Speaker 2: you tune in, he's either talking about a Jewish event,
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: he went to a Jewish event, it's giving him an honor, Israel,
• 23:11
  Speaker 2: BB Israel, anything related to Jews. And I'm saying to myself,
• 23:17
  Speaker 2: you know, there's more to this world than just Israel
• 23:20
  Speaker 2: and Jews. I created a monster, There's no doubt about it.
• 23:25
  Speaker 2: But he got so self absorbed you would think that
• 23:31
  Speaker 2: he would bless his lucky stars, that he would look
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: high in the sky to Hashem and say, man, I
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: I'm telling you, I would not be here if we're
• 23:40
  Speaker 2: not for Bernie McGirk. I would not be here. If
• 23:43
  Speaker 2: Bernie McGirk had not said his opportunity, which he could
• 23:46
  Speaker 2: have handled solo, he said, I want to do this
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: show would sit and it was a great show, especially
• 23:54
  Speaker 2: when they first came together in twenty sixteen, said a
• 23:57
  Speaker 2: true supporter of Hillary Rodham Clinton. He doesn't like to
• 24:00
  Speaker 2: talk about it now. And the ultimate Trumper before there
• 24:05
  Speaker 2: was MAGA was Bernard McGirt. So on that note, even
• 24:12
  Speaker 2: though they won't do it at WABC, I do it
• 24:16
  Speaker 2: every year no matter where I am, because if we
• 24:19
  Speaker 2: don't honor all of those who made this thing of
• 24:23
  Speaker 2: ours possible, shame on us. You just don't understand how
• 24:27
  Speaker 2: much abuse Bernard mcgirth was subjected to by don Imus.
• 24:32
  Speaker 2: How he kept that team together. He was the CONSIGLIERI
• 24:38
  Speaker 2: i'mus was out of control. Charles McCord, Rob Bartlett, lit Rafino,
• 24:44
  Speaker 2: all the others. He would be the ones. No, no, no,
• 24:47
  Speaker 2: I'll get control of him. He would do all the
• 24:50
  Speaker 2: show prep, he would read the books, he would feed
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: don Imus the lines. Did don ever acknowledge that? Of
• 24:56
  Speaker 2: course not? It's it ever that, of course not, And
• 25:03
  Speaker 2: all Bernard McGirk wanted to do with his own program.
• 25:07
  Speaker 2: Let's be the bus driver and do all the heavy
• 25:10
  Speaker 2: lifting and all the work that's necessary. Two hours of
• 25:14
  Speaker 2: preparation is required for one hour talk radio. If you're good,
• 25:20
  Speaker 2: if you're just repeating what you heard the night before,
• 25:23
  Speaker 2: anybody can do that so to a wor audience that
• 25:28
  Speaker 2: may not have ever really experienced the greatness of Bernard McGirk.
• 25:34
  Speaker 2: He so mightily contributed to this thing of ours and
• 25:37
  Speaker 2: suffered in so many ways. It's important for us to
• 25:41
  Speaker 2: acknowledge him each and every day. Our number is one
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: eight hundred and three to two one zero seven ten.
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: This is wor seven ten, the Voice of New York,
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: and it should be if you haven't listened before your
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: newfound station, the False of New York. On the Voice
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: of New York.
• 26:01
  Speaker 1: Curtis Sleewald guess Hose from Marks them All on sevent tenor.
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: As we Go to the phones, because it's your turn
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: to be heard. What should be your talk radio station
• 26:17
  Speaker 2: seven to ten wor the voice of New York. It
• 26:19
  Speaker 2: certainly is in the Sleeper family now, and don't be
• 26:22
  Speaker 2: a massacres and go back to WABC always blaming Curtis
• 26:28
  Speaker 2: for Zorah Mandamian, always bashing Curtis. I mean, that's what
• 26:30
  Speaker 2: they do. Let's go to the phones if we can.
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: And first up in the queue is Diane, who is
• 26:38
  Speaker 2: calling from Summit. Your turn to be heard here on
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: seven ten WOR. Diane.
• 26:45
  Speaker 3: Oh, thank you, Curtis. I'm so grateful to speak with you.
• 26:49
  Speaker 3: I cannot tell you how tholve them with emotion, I am.
• 26:54
  Speaker 3: I'm grateful to speak with you. I live to listen
• 26:58
  Speaker 3: to you, and what you did speaking of Bernhard was
• 27:03
  Speaker 3: so touching. However, I don't want to speak in an
• 27:07
  Speaker 3: emotional fashion. I have a few quick comments to make.
• 27:13
  Speaker 3: It was terribly disturbing, disgraceful and disappointing that the previous
• 27:20
  Speaker 3: a W place you worked, uh this you know, regarding you,
• 27:27
  Speaker 3: that spoke about you after you've been such a royal person.
• 27:33
  Speaker 3: I listen to you regularly. You are you would have
• 27:38
  Speaker 3: good best manure you are very intelligent. Codis I really
• 27:45
  Speaker 3: speak my heart? Would I tell you how much I
• 27:48
  Speaker 3: admire you. I'm trying to be so emotional, but no, no.
• 27:53
  Speaker 2: No, no, you have you have a right to be
• 27:56
  Speaker 2: emotional again. Feel for you.
• 27:59
  Speaker 3: Speaking for I'm speaking for the community. I'm speaking for
• 28:03
  Speaker 3: many people.
• 28:04
  Speaker 2: Right But I want to focus not so much on me.
• 28:10
  Speaker 2: I'm still alive and well at least I think for today.
• 28:14
  Speaker 2: With all the people whould love to kill me, that's
• 28:17
  Speaker 2: been my history, It's okay, So I love that. Edm
• 28:21
  Speaker 2: song bunt Oh. I enjoy I enjoy this day, another
• 28:26
  Speaker 2: day of life. It's the best day of my life.
• 28:29
  Speaker 2: It is because I'm alive. I have the best wife
• 28:33
  Speaker 2: you could ever have, Nancy. I have our cats, and
• 28:37
  Speaker 2: I have so many people who've grown up listening to
• 28:39
  Speaker 2: me for thirty five years in talk radio, and all
• 28:41
  Speaker 2: the people that I've reached out and touched all over
• 28:43
  Speaker 2: the world. No, no, this is the tribute to Bernard McGirk,
• 28:48
  Speaker 2: who is not here. And if you want to honor
• 28:52
  Speaker 2: bern All McGirk as I do every year, as you
• 28:55
  Speaker 2: should do, the way you can do it every day
• 28:58
  Speaker 2: is to warn forty five and older to get that
• 29:03
  Speaker 2: simple prick of the finger that psa blood test that
• 29:05
  Speaker 2: saves lives. I had stage four prostate cancer. You hear
• 29:10
  Speaker 2: from doctor Gil lead him in often after other doctors
• 29:16
  Speaker 2: have not done well for their patients. He oftentimes can
• 29:20
  Speaker 2: patch people up and give them life where they would
• 29:22
  Speaker 2: have normally had a horrendous death like Bernard McGirt did.
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: So keep that in mind. That's how that's how you
• 29:31
  Speaker 2: honor the memory of Bernard McGirt to make sure that
• 29:34
  Speaker 2: doesn't happen to other men. A simple blood test and
• 29:36
  Speaker 2: he would still be alive. He was the healthiest of
• 29:40
  Speaker 2: all of us. Over there at WABC, let's go. I
• 29:42
  Speaker 2: we can with Chris, who is calling from Beth Page.
• 29:45
  Speaker 2: Your turn to be heard here at seven to ten
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: WOR Chris.
• 29:50
  Speaker 4: Thank Curtis.
• 29:51
  Speaker 5: I used to listen to and call you a lot
• 29:53
  Speaker 5: your on the other station, obviously, and I love you.
• 29:56
  Speaker 5: You're great. But I have to push back on a
• 29:58
  Speaker 5: couple of things if you don't, if you will let me.
• 30:01
  Speaker 5: First of all, I listen to Sid all the time.
• 30:04
  Speaker 5: He used to have you on like five days a week.
• 30:06
  Speaker 5: These guys were the best together. I don't know what
• 30:08
  Speaker 5: the heck happened, And to this day Sid will even
• 30:11
  Speaker 5: say he goes, I love Curtis. I'm not you know,
• 30:14
  Speaker 5: I'm sorry that this election got between you guys. It's
• 30:17
  Speaker 5: just it's lunacy to me that this has happened was tremendous.
• 30:22
  Speaker 2: Well, you have to understand, you have to understand that
• 30:24
  Speaker 2: all when he was saying that testio, remember the godfather,
• 30:29
  Speaker 2: whoever arranged the meeting is the trader, that's it, who
• 30:36
  Speaker 2: all along was contacting people to vote for Cuomo, encouraging
• 30:42
  Speaker 2: people to jump from my campaign to the Cuomo campaign. Look,
• 30:47
  Speaker 2: I have all the evidences, no doubt about it. He
• 30:50
  Speaker 2: had had five lunches, five dinners with Andrew Cmo. What's
• 30:54
  Speaker 2: he having dinner for? That's how Andrew Cuomo Andrew evilized operated.
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: I knew that Sid is a novice to politics. He
• 31:03
  Speaker 2: never dealt with politics before. He is a sports guy,
• 31:08
  Speaker 2: and then he became a homo sexual big time, Oh
• 31:13
  Speaker 2: big time. And the reason that I was on five
• 31:16
  Speaker 2: times a week is I would not ever consider being
• 31:19
  Speaker 2: his partner because he needs one, He desperately needs one.
• 31:22
  Speaker 2: Lu Rafino does a great job as his wingman. The
• 31:24
  Speaker 2: board operator was great with Imans that keeps him a
• 31:28
  Speaker 2: little more focused. But when he got rid of Andrew
• 31:32
  Speaker 2: Giuliani was trying, you can't see you can't disagree with Sid.
• 31:38
  Speaker 2: Now I could, because obviously I have more credit, I'm older,
• 31:42
  Speaker 2: I have more experience than Sid. There but others couldn't.
• 31:45
  Speaker 2: He couldn't. So I got on once a week and
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: then they said, well, do it twice a week, three
• 31:51
  Speaker 2: times a week, four times a week, five times a week.
• 31:54
  Speaker 2: No problem, he needed that. I didn't mind doing the
• 31:58
  Speaker 2: extra radio. Let does Barney talk? You know, sit in friends,
• 32:04
  Speaker 2: I love you, you love me? And then, my god,
• 32:07
  Speaker 2: you can predict what the program is each and every day.
• 32:12
  Speaker 2: I can tell all of you if Bernard McGirk had
• 32:16
  Speaker 2: survived as prostate cancer, like luckily I had Stage four,
• 32:21
  Speaker 2: what happened at WABC, to me would never have happened.
• 32:25
  Speaker 2: Bernard McGirk a man of honor. You couldn't be any
• 32:29
  Speaker 2: more loyal than Bernard. Look at all those years with Imus.
• 32:32
  Speaker 2: Look at all those years he kept that program together.
• 32:37
  Speaker 2: Look at all those years that he would be beaten
• 32:40
  Speaker 2: down each and every day by Imus, who was a monster,
• 32:45
  Speaker 2: and then he'd be the one to rally Charles McCord
• 32:48
  Speaker 2: and Rob Bartlett and Lou Rafino and the other contributors
• 32:54
  Speaker 2: and say no, no, no, let's let's let's focus for
• 32:56
  Speaker 2: another day. And he would do all the heavy lifting.
• 32:58
  Speaker 2: He would do all the show prep, just like he
• 33:01
  Speaker 2: did for the brand new show Bernard McGirk and Sid Roseberg.
• 33:05
  Speaker 2: Let's Sid. Now he thought he didn't need anybody. He does.
• 33:11
  Speaker 2: You can't just do an eye on me show. You
• 33:15
  Speaker 2: gotta do the work, and not just with your friends.
• 33:17
  Speaker 2: You have to deal with your foes. Let's go if
• 33:21
  Speaker 2: we can to Bob, who's calling from Perth? Hand boy?
• 33:24
  Speaker 2: Your turn to be heard here on seven to ten
• 33:27
  Speaker 2: wor Bobby.
• 33:30
  Speaker 4: Good morning courtage. How are you sir? Happy new year?
• 33:33
  Speaker 4: Do you so, sir?
• 33:34
  Speaker 2: Oh? Thank you, thank you. It's been greater. Had a
• 33:36
  Speaker 2: two week run here substituting for the best in talk radio,
• 33:40
  Speaker 2: Mark Sabone and can't get any better than that.
• 33:45
  Speaker 4: And I also know a good friend of yours that
• 33:48
  Speaker 4: used to do Elvison Personaeder dear Elvis Paul Daniels.
• 33:55
  Speaker 2: Oh yes, Paul lifelong and a good Polish American too,
• 34:00
  Speaker 2: who I might.
• 34:00
  Speaker 4: Add absolutely yes, he is definitely well. Anyway, I want
• 34:04
  Speaker 4: to say, what is uh the airplane, the helicopter pilot
• 34:11
  Speaker 4: and hook, who's gonna do at the outer bridge? Which? Uh,
• 34:16
  Speaker 4: you know how how bad that is? They picked every
• 34:19
  Speaker 4: other thing, but they can't fix the outer bridge, the.
• 34:22
  Speaker 2: Outer bridge crossing. How many people over the years have
• 34:27
  Speaker 2: done the hop skipping a jump? You know what that is?
• 34:31
  Speaker 2: Is he they start out in Brooklyn, they cross of Arizona,
• 34:35
  Speaker 2: they go to the south shore of Staten Island, then
• 34:38
  Speaker 2: across the outer Bridge crossing, go down to Manalapana, Jersey Shore.
• 34:42
  Speaker 2: Next stop might be Pennsylvania, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, parts unknown.
• 34:49
  Speaker 2: It all starts with the outer Bridge crossing. Are there right? Oh,
• 34:56
  Speaker 2: let me tell you something. I just want you to
• 34:59
  Speaker 2: keep that focus. I know there are many many callers
• 35:02
  Speaker 2: blazing away there, blazing away. Please at the start of
• 35:07
  Speaker 2: the new year, sink back to all the greats in
• 35:11
  Speaker 2: this thing of ours that we love so much talk radio,
• 35:16
  Speaker 2: from Barry Gray to Bob Grant, to Barry Farbird and
• 35:20
  Speaker 2: Samuels to Bernard McGirk, all the people who paved the way.
• 35:28
  Speaker 2: None of them, though, suffered like Bernard McGirk suffered. You
• 35:33
  Speaker 2: just have no idea what it was like to be
• 35:35
  Speaker 2: in the Imus cage in the morning. He had to
• 35:40
  Speaker 2: deal with that monster, and then he had to prepare
• 35:44
  Speaker 2: the show. He had to keep don Imus going. And
• 35:47
  Speaker 2: then when his dream came true, instead of saying what
• 35:51
  Speaker 2: so many in our business, well no, no, no, no, I
• 35:53
  Speaker 2: want to do it my own, he said. I want
• 35:54
  Speaker 2: to bring up my friends, said Rose Murty from Florida,
• 35:57
  Speaker 2: who had lost every job down there and had just
• 36:00
  Speaker 2: been fired from another radio station. I don't know why,
• 36:04
  Speaker 2: but they were a great partnership. Twenty sixteen. Sid was
• 36:08
  Speaker 2: for Hillary really legitimately, and Brenald McGirk was a Trumper
• 36:15
  Speaker 2: before many became Trumpers. And then when Sid thought it
• 36:22
  Speaker 2: could be his own, watch out the long knives come out.
• 36:27
  Speaker 2: Oh by the way, he's planning to move to Florida. Now,
• 36:29
  Speaker 2: oh yeah, he lives out there in the Irish Riviera.
• 36:32
  Speaker 2: He's ready to sell his house. Hey, look, God bless
• 36:35
  Speaker 2: all of you out there. If you don't want to
• 36:37
  Speaker 2: stay in the land of Mondami, I get it. That's
• 36:40
  Speaker 2: what America is about. You get to move to the
• 36:43
  Speaker 2: places you want to go, but don't pretend you're gonna
• 36:46
  Speaker 2: stay and fight for what you know is right, improve
• 36:49
  Speaker 2: don't move. You gotta prove it. You gotta be a
• 36:53
  Speaker 2: man of honor. You come into this world with nothing,
• 36:56
  Speaker 2: you go out with nothing. God bless Bernard McGirk. He
• 37:02
  Speaker 2: lived as a man of honor. He died as a
• 37:06
  Speaker 2: man of honor.
• 37:07
  Speaker 1: The voice that fights for New York literally Curtis Leewad
• 37:13
  Speaker 1: guest hose for Mark Simone on sevent tenor.
• 37:19
  Speaker 2: As we move into this new year, the big talk
• 37:23
  Speaker 2: is going to be about artificial intelligence. Was back in
• 37:26
  Speaker 2: twenty fifteen that the masters of the universe, the billionaires
• 37:30
  Speaker 2: Elon Musk and Sam Altman, who owned open ai, said
• 37:35
  Speaker 2: we can't control this thing AI. It releases demons. Now
• 37:41
  Speaker 2: they don't care because they're making millions billions of dollars.
• 37:45
  Speaker 2: People are gonna be wiped out, they're going to lose
• 37:48
  Speaker 2: their employment salesforce. Amazon already said we don't need you anymore.
• 37:53
  Speaker 2: We got artificial intelligence. Yeah, and then they're going to
• 37:57
  Speaker 2: have to build these massive data centers, which requires double
• 38:02
  Speaker 2: the amount of electricity that we have now where we're
• 38:04
  Speaker 2: gonna get that from, and lots of water, and it's
• 38:08
  Speaker 2: gonna be put in neighborhoods near you and software companies.
• 38:12
  Speaker 2: They're gonna use AI to write code. You're not gonna
• 38:18
  Speaker 2: need people to do it. They got a white college job.
• 38:20
  Speaker 2: You lived the American dream, you went four years of
• 38:23
  Speaker 2: college education, you came out, you're CPA. You know you're
• 38:28
  Speaker 2: a financial analyst, you're a lawyer. Hey, lawyers are using
• 38:31
  Speaker 2: it to draft legal breach. They're not gonna need you,
• 38:35
  Speaker 2: and they don't want to slow it down because the
• 38:37
  Speaker 2: masters of the universe are making money hand over fist.
• 38:43
  Speaker 2: You're not regularly gonna hear people talking about that. Just
• 38:47
  Speaker 2: keep that in mind, do your research, think for yourself,
• 38:50
  Speaker 2: challenge authority. And oh, by by the way, you know
• 38:54
  Speaker 2: the person who's gonna be happiest at Mark Simona is
• 38:56
  Speaker 2: back on Monday. It's gonna be great WABC. That guy
• 39:02
  Speaker 2: he's been tortured for like two weeks because he did
• 39:05
  Speaker 2: all of his show prep by listening to the best
• 39:08
  Speaker 2: in talk radio, Mark Simone. And you should too.