Imus in the Morning

Following a successful run as an on-air personality in Cleveland, Don Imus was hired by WNBC to host Imus in the Morning in late 1971. Imus is credited with introducing New York, and the larger Top 40 radio community, to the shock jock style of hosting. His initial run in New York ended in August 1977, when NBC management ordered a purge of WNBC's on-air staff in order to revive sagging ratings. Imus returned to Cleveland, but NBC brought him back to New York only two years later. On September 3, 1979, Imus started off his first program back on WNBC with his old character/voice/bit, "The Reverend Billy Sol Hargis". The show regularly parodied songs and voices, satirizing national and local events and persons.

After WNBC was sold to Emmis Communications in 1988, a frequency shift on New York's AM radio dial saw WFAN, Emmis's sports-talk station, move to WNBC's 660 AM dial position. WNBC signed off in October 1988, and WFAN decided to retain Imus, replacing its original morning drive-time show hosted by Greg Gumbel. Initially limited to the broadcast range of WFAN in the New York metropolitan area, the show's radio audience and influence expanded considerably once Westwood One began syndicating it in 1993.

During the WNBC years, Imus in the Morning was conducted out of NBC's radio studios at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. The program then moved to the Kaufman Astoria Studios in Astoria, Queens, WFAN's longtime studio home. In 2005, the program moved to a dedicated Imus in the Morning set at MSNBC's studios in Secaucus, New Jersey, although certain cast members remained at the WFAN studios using a split-screen format. When at the Imus Ranch, Don Imus would broadcast the show from Ribera, New Mexico, while the rest of the cast remained in New York and New Jersey.

For the first 15 months of Imus' simulcast on RFD, the show originated from a custom set created for RFD located in the Cablevision Rainbow studios in midtown Manhattan's Penn Plaza. In April 2009, the show moved to the multipurpose WABC radio studios; Imus cited the high cost of the Cablevision studios as being the reason for the move. In September 2009, the show moved to Fox Business Network's television studios in Rockefeller Center, where Fox Business began simulcasting the program on October 5, 2009.[3] The Fox Business simulcast ended May 29, 2015.[4] On June 15, 2015, the show started broadcasting solely on the radio from the WABC radio studios.

Originally considered a shock jock, Imus turned his show more towards politics and news and gained public influence as a result. During the 1990s, Imus in the Morning became increasingly important as a useful, non-traditional platform for politicians to express their views and gain exposure. Former U.S. Sen. Al D'Amato (R-N.Y.) was one of the first officeholders to ingratiate himself with "The I-man", as Imus was frequently called by cast and guests. The show's many guests included prominent politicians such as Bill Clinton (during his 1992 presidential campaign), Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Mitt Romney, John McCain, John Kerry, Vice President Dick Cheney, J.D. Hayworth and Harold Ford, Jr., as well as reporters and columnists from Newsweek, NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, CNN, Fox News and other media outlets. Among the cream of the press who regularly appeared on the show were Tom Brokaw, Tim Russert, Dan Rather, Brian Williams, Andrea Mitchell, Cokie Roberts, Sam Donaldson, Howard Fineman, Mike Barnicle, Frank Rich, Jonathan Alter and Jeff Greenfield.

In 1996 as MSNBC was being launched, the original plan for weekday morning programming was to rerun the previous night's prime-time shows. However, NBC Executive Producer of Special Events and Breaking News David Bohrman suggested to NBC president Andy Lack that putting the newsmaking Imus program on the new cable channel was the right thing to do. Bohrman contacted Imus, and over the course of several visits and business conversations a deal was struck so that the radio program would be simulcast on MSNBC. Cameras were installed in the WFAN radio studio, and remotely controlled from MSNBC headquarters in New Jersey. One of the unique features of the first few years of the program was that the television version's commercials and the radio commercials happened at different times, which allowed TV viewers a voyeuristic view of Imus and his team getting ready for the next segments. The program was a huge success on cable news for quite a while. Bohrman (who Imus referred to as "Moosebutt") produced the first few dozen programs, then hired Terry Irving to become the day-to-day Executive Producer of the television version of the program. In 1997, Imus was named as one of Time magazine's "25 most influential people in America"; he was also on the cover of Newsweek in 1999.

In 2005, Imus in the Morning was carried by about 90 radio stations across the United States,[5] although at the time of its 2007 CBS Radio/MSNBC cancellation it was carried by 61 stations.[6] Arbitron analysis put the program among the most listened to radio talk shows in the United States,[7] with about 1.6 million radio listeners per week.[8]

In an April 26, 2005 article, David Kiley wrote in Business Week magazine that Imus in the Morning commanded higher advertising rates compared to competing talk shows with larger audiences, because the Imus show was less politically partisan and its demographics were "affluent, educated and influential men". Kiley also quoted former CBS News anchor and Face the Nation moderator Bob Schieffer as saying, "I don’t know anyone in Washington who doesn’t listen to Imus or watch him on TV. I get more feedback off my spots on Imus than from my own shows."[9] (This included the former Howard Stern terrestrial radio broadcast. In comparison, Stern attracted more than 8.25 million listeners on half as many stations and Rush Limbaugh attracts 13.5 million listeners).

At the time of its 2007 MSNBC cancellation, Imus in the Morning averaged 361,000 viewers in the first quarter of 2007 and was up 39 percent over the previous year, ranking third among cable morning news programs in the Nielsen ratings, compared to 769,000 viewers of Fox and Friends on Fox News Channel and 372,000 viewers of CNN's American Morning.[10] The program was reported to generate $20 million in annual revenue for WFAN, representing approximately 25 percent of the New York anchor station's revenue. Total revenue, including affiliate advertising and MSNBC, was said to be $50 million.[11] MSNBC is said to have paid CBS $4 million annually in simulcast fees and to have averaged $500,000 per year in production expenses.[8]

Imus generally selects country and western songs as bumper music and he often promotes artists he likes such as Delbert McClinton, Lucinda Williams, Levon Helm, Little Sammy Davis, The Flatlanders as well as his de facto theme song from Kinky Friedman, "They Ain't Making Jews Like Jesus Anymore". Rock music, blues, oldies, and the occasional jazz piece is also used as bumper music. Imus is known for playing bumper music at a length that is unusual for talk radio.

Imus in the Morning had a regular cast of members who supplied news and comedy, and acted as foils to Imus. Part of the appeal of his show was the overt display of office politics: cast members were frequently the object of Imus' sarcasm, largely because of their outspoken points of view. The idea of including production staff as an on-air cast of characters was the idea of Fred Imus, Don's younger brother, who briefly served as the show's producer and was a regular guest on the show until his death in August 2011.[12]

From the 1970s until his retirement on May 6, 2011,[13] Charles McCord served as the program's newsman and head writer. In character, he usually acted as either the straight man or, occasionally, as an Imus sycophant or antagonist. McCord affected a neutral, reasoned tone and thus usually stayed out of Imus' line of fire, compared to the antics of the other cast members. He was responsible for developing the lines of questioning Imus would ask his guests, in addition to his anchor duties.[14] Connell McShane took over the newsman position on May 9 and continued in the role until December 14, 2017.[15]

Bernard McGuirk, his producer, was the show's antagonist, whom Imus had sometimes referred to as a "bald-headed stooge"; he also performed character voices (such as New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, former New York Catholic Archbishops Cardinals Edward Egan and John Joseph O'Connor, and poet Maya Angelou). McGuirk was the only other member of the cast to lose his job in the Rutgers controversy[16] and was initially off air for the first few weeks of the revival before returning.

At the time of the show's ending, Sid Rosenberg was the program's sports reporter. He engaged in disputes with his fellow cast members, including a boxing bout with McGuirk. He also co-hosted Middays on WFAN with Jody McDonald and Joe Beningo. Rosenberg resigned from WFAN in 2005 and was fired later that year from the Imus show for comments about Kylie Minogue's Breast Cancer Diagnosis. He worked at various sports stations in South Florida for 10 years, and remained a substitute and guest contributor on the Imus program, before returning to his post on the program when Warner Wolf, who had two prolonged runs as the program's sportscaster, was ousted in November 2016.[17] Other sports reporters included Chris Carlin (best known for "the fat boy lock of the week!,") Patrick McEnroe (who auditioned to replace Imus on WFAN), Don Criqui, Mike Breen (valued for his deadpan delivery of false sports news, and ridiculed after his head injuries during the 2008 NBA Finals), and Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo. For years, Larry "Ratso" Sloman contributed humorous New York Rangers reports but after he collaborated with Howard Stern on "Private Parts" he was persona non grata on the show and became a whipping boy for Imus especially when Imus' guest was Kinky Friedman, who is a close friend of Ratso.

Rob Bartlett[18] impersonated a cast of celebrities (Bill Clinton, The Godfather, Dr. Phil, Brian Wilson, Hulk Hogan, Rush Limbaugh, Scott Muni, Omar Minaya, Alberto Gonzales, Vicente Fox, Al Gore, Blind Mississippi White Boy Pig Feets Dupris, Liza Minnelli, Yoko Ono, Carl Paladino, Mick Jagger and many others).

Tony Powell, an African-American comedian, originally gave sports reports before shifting into a general contributor and celebrity impersonator, usually impersonating black celebrities such as Little Richard, Jesse Jackson, Eddie Murphy, and Charles Rangel. He was one of two African-Americans added to the staff when the show returned on WABC and RFD; Texas native Karith Foster was the other, though Foster left when her contract was not renewed in 2009, just prior to the move to Fox Business Network. Powell filled a role previously held by Larry Kenney, an impersonator who (along with Bartlett) served as a celebrity impersonator (some of the voices Kenney impersonated Richard Nixon, George Patton, Ted Kennedy, Andy Rooney, Jack Nicholson, and Jerry Falwell), but was bumped from the program when it returned on WABC and RFD in favor of Foster and Powell.

Lou Rufino served as the program engineer; he had a considerable on-air role, but did not appear on-air as often as the other cast members.

Other previous reporters included Janice Dean, Christy Musumeci, and Tracy Burgess, who departed for Fox News Channel, MSNBC, and WFAN respectively. Karith Foster, a Texas-raised black woman hired in the wake of the Rutgers controversy, was a comedian and general contributor, but left the show in August 2009 after her contract was not renewed. Alexis Glick briefly served as a business reporter for the show shortly after it debuted on Fox Business, but left the show and the network after two months; Diane Macedo and Dagen McDowell filled the positions for the remainder of the show's run on Fox Business.

Imus had regular guests on the program to discuss upcoming sporting events. Typically, these guests appeared only during the season of their respective sport. Such guests include Jim Nantz and Phil Simms (of CBS) and Terry Bradshaw (of Fox) for football, and Darrell Waltrip (of Fox) for NASCAR. During an interview with Boomer Esiason, after ridiculing him, Imus chided Esiason with a trademark phrase "get off my phone," insisting he hang up. Esiason shot back with "no, you get off my phone." Other frequent guests included Bo Dietl, a private investigator; and Imus's wife.

Imus offended President Bill Clinton with remarks in front of the Clintons during a 1996 Radio and Television Correspondents Association dinner speech.[19]

On October 19, 1998, Newsday reported that Imus called Washington Post media writer Howard Kurtz "that boner-nosed ... beanie-wearing little Jew boy".

Imus has had a long-standing rivalry with Howard Stern, dating back to their days at WNBC. It boiled to the surface in 2003, when Stern called Imus while both were on the air to demand an apology for a comedy skit that Imus had aired. After exchanging insults, Imus cut Stern off.[20] In late 2005, Imus commented that he wished Stern would do well at Sirius satellite radio, as Imus held Sirius stock. In a CBS News interview he conducted before his retirement, Imus stated that he considered Stern one of the best radio performers in history, along with himself, Arthur Godfrey, Jack Benny and Wolfman Jack.[21]

When the program was simulcast on MSNBC, Imus frequently ridiculed NBC/MSNBC personalities, staff, programs, and policies. During election coverage in 2004, NBC set up an outdoor interactive visitors attraction, Democracy Plaza at Rockefeller Center. Imus referred to it as "Hypocrisy Plaza."

On the December 15, 2004, Imus in the Morning show, Don Imus referred to the publishers Simon & Schuster as "thieving Jews" and later in the same show gave a mock apology, calling the phrase "thieving Jews", "redundant".

Beginning in February 2005, MSNBC featured Amy Robach, and then-afternoon regular Contessa Brewer as news readers on Imus in the Morning. Brewer held the position for over two months and was the target of Imus's constant ridicule, which was initially dismissed as typical show fodder. On April 29, 2005, the New York Post published a statement attributed to Brewer calling Imus a "cantankerous old fool." He responded on-air by calling her "fat" and "painfully stupid," and hurled countless personal insults. Brewer left Imus in the Morning immediately.

On November 30, 2006, on Imus in the Morning, Imus referred to the Jewish management at CBS as "money-grubbing bastards".

Sid Rosenberg, who provided sports updates on the Imus show, got into trouble when he suggested on air that tennis stars Serena and Venus Williams were animals better suited to pose for National Geographic than Playboy.[22] Rosenberg also stated that Palestinians mourning the death of Yasser Arafat were "stinking animals" upon whom the Israelis "ought to drop the bomb right there, kill 'em all right now..."[23] He was fired from the Don Imus show after making crude remarks about Australian singer Kylie Minogue's breast cancer diagnosis.[24] Chris Carlin replaced Rosenberg, although Rosenberg continued to call into the Imus program up until its cancellation on WFAN/MSNBC. He has appeared on the WABC/RFD incarnation on different occasions, notably providing reports from Super Bowl XLIII.

Although speculated since his dismissal, the return to morning radio for Imus was officially announced by New York talk-radio station WABC on November 1, 2007. The show's first broadcast aired on December 3.[46][47] The financial package between Imus and WABC is a 5-year deal worth up to $40 million.[48]

Newsman Charles McCord, producer Bernard McGuirk, and engineer Lou Rufino are part of the revived show, along with most of television production crew that worked the MSNBC broadcast; the first guests were historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, Senator John McCain, Senator Christopher Dodd, Democratic Party strategist James Carville, and Imus regular Bo Dietl.

A significant rollout of Imus in the Morning took place in March 2008 following mass layoffs at Citadel Broadcasting. Imus was packaged with The True Oldies Channel to replace select underperforming Citadel stations. In August, Imus claimed his show was heard on more stations than it was at the time of his 2007 firing.

As of late 2009 the show remains one of the ten most listened to morning shows in New York City.[49] Imus signed three-year extensions with Cumulus Media Networks (the company that bought Citadel in late 2011) and television partner Fox Business Network (see below) in December 2012.[50] The arrangement with Cumulus was again renewed in 2016.[51]

Imus was off the air for much of 2017 because of health problems,[62] some of which stem from a 2014 rib injury that has made it difficult for him to breathe; he also suffered from emphysema for an unknown length of time.[21] The health problems also forced Imus to shorten his program from four hours to three[63] and eventually led to his 2019 death.[64]

On January 22, 2018, Imus announced that he would be retiring and that the show would not continue under his name without him; he stated his last show would be March 29.[65] The decision was not entirely of Imus's choosing; as he stated on-air, Cumulus Media intends to void his contract in the company's chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.[66] Even if Cumulus had not gone bankrupt, Imus was planning on retiring at the end of his contract in December.[67] In his closing remarks, Imus tearfully expressed remorse for his 2007 statements, thanked a select few members of the family and close radio associates, and stated that, while he would not miss the grind of a daily radio show, he would miss the listeners, thanking them for listening and for their contributions to the numerous charitable causes Imus promoted throughout his career.[67]

McGuirk and Rosenberg continue in the time slot as co-hosts of The Bernie & Sid Show (later renamed Bernie and Sid in the Morning).[68]

• Official website
• Imus in the Morning at IMDb
• Imus in the Morning at TV.com