A lot of their jobs rely on being the right side of Fred and others. They aren't wholly disinterested observers.
Shertenlieb Show? Rich Radio? - mornings on ZLX
- Thread starter Rusty13
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I guess I just don't understand why anyone cares about any 'behind the scenes' speculation. I don't know any of these people and couldn't care less about that gossipy drama - I care about the show. Separate the fart from the fartist.
On that note, boy is Rich exhausting. There is no topic where he doesn't instantly spit out "I know a guy who.." or "I have a theory...", so he monopolizes every single conversation. It makes the show feel like one giant, unfocused monologue. It's odd to tell the host whose name is in the title of show to shut up, but dude needs to rein it way the hell in.
On that note, boy is Rich exhausting. There is no topic where he doesn't instantly spit out "I know a guy who.." or "I have a theory...", so he monopolizes every single conversation. It makes the show feel like one giant, unfocused monologue. It's odd to tell the host whose name is in the title of show to shut up, but dude needs to rein it way the hell in.
I get where you are coming from. And, at first, Fred was pretty diplomatic with the split given it seemed a bit out of nowhere that Rich was leaving. They wished him well etc etc etc. Then they learned Rich was getting his own show running up against them and it's become far more negative.
I agree about the behind the scenes stuff but I think having listened for so long that it's hard to separate the two. I want the shows to be funny and engaging. Something you are excited to hear. Neither show has done that since the split. T&H are in a weird cruise control where they aren't trying anything really new. Rich is throwing everything at the wall and missing, a lot.
Ugh, yes, yes, yes, yes, I have a thought on the theory on the latest news that you just mentioned...and then says something that's so misinformed it's painful.
I put it on today and Rich was talking about the Las Vegas Sphere for the billionth time. I honestly thought it was a repeat segment until he started talking about the Olympics Closing Ceremonies. They of course followed it with the 'oh my god..' and 'they have t-shirts out there' clips that they feel compelled to play during every single segment. Then the Emerson dude, whom I don't know and never want to hear again, started laughing hilariously at the very arrival of the French Dude's Penis voice. I really wanted to like this show and gave it a lot shots but man, it is not good.
Yeah it's just not finding a groove, and Rich is running out of bits and things to gab on about. Not getting a decent and consistent second chair has really hurt the show. Obviously, the initial promise of having Wilder on the regular rotation hasn't worked out, and instead we get extra doses of Ted Johnson and the aforementioned unfunny Emerson dude. The only regular aspect that has worked has been Hurley, but he definitely hits his peak as a flash guy/3rd chair. Rich needs to try and find another co-host that is a better fit for the show before it's too late. Unfortunately, I only see Ted Johnson's airtime going up with Pats season around the corner.
Sorry but I haven't listened the last few weeks, did he really just recycle the LeBron penis bit?
That's been good. Although Hurley did TERRIBLE today on the movie soundtrack category.
I feel bad for Hurley, Ted and Giardi. It seems like they were promised the world. I wonder what will happen first: one of those guys jumping ship or management forcing Rich to play music (which they should’ve done on day one).
What shouldn’t be forgotten is what iHeart did to McKenzie and Heather. They kicked them to the curb hoping for a ratings boost. From what I’m seeing on Twitter and Finn, it seems like it had the opposite effect. Karma.
What shouldn’t be forgotten is what iHeart did to McKenzie and Heather. They kicked them to the curb hoping for a ratings boost. From what I’m seeing on Twitter and Finn, it seems like it had the opposite effect. Karma.
Eh. I could care less about Ted to be honest. He's become a bit of hack. And Giardi at least still has a day job. Hurley, on the other hand, is a lot younger and this is now his full-time gig. He risked a lot here. There is still plenty of time to turn things around though.
I didn't hear that one but this was a big booming voice saying it's the French pole vaulter's penis. I assume there was a joke coming but I turned it off at that point. I put the show back on a while later and immediately heard an AI Bill Belichick voice so that might be the last chance I give this show until I hear that it's improved.
Yeah, so about 9 years ago ABC accidentally showed the tip of LeBron's penis and Rich got a whole production together with the song "I'm Coming Out" and a deep booming voice filter to be LeBron's penis. It was funny at first but he ran it into the ground back then. From what you say it seems he found a way to resurrect a long dead bit.
When does he get sued for the Belichick stuff or at least a cease and desist? This time he mixed it with the Mcafee interview.
And yes he’s reusing the Lebrons penis bit. I just checked both on the podcast
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Why does it have to be sports? We have plenty of that. Talk music and pop culture (and some sports) and play a few cool songs that otherwise wouldn’t be on ZLX. Get a cool co-host that wants to debate best prog rock albums or casting 80s movies with today’s actors or whatever. Sprinkle some bits in. Done.
Agreed. From the day it was announced that Rich was going to do a sports show I didn’t understand why. Maybe he felt it needs to be that for marketing purposes. Or that he wants to compete with Fred on the same turf. But it’s just not his strong suit.
It such a bummer that we went from having one all time great morning show to two wholly mediocre shows.
I like it as well but doing it daily twice a show is going to burn it out really quickly.
A good second chair would probably help smooth out a lot of the initial rough edges. He doesn't need someone exactly like Fred but if he could find someone with a different sense of humor and a calmer less spastic demeanor, that could turn out well.
I've only tuned in a couple of times but oof this is a tough listen. I heard the butt rock segment today and it's just so manic
Cackling and playing the fart sound effect, honestly it comes across like Nick Kroll's character in parks and recreation, "crazy ira and the douche"
Cackling and playing the fart sound effect, honestly it comes across like Nick Kroll's character in parks and recreation, "crazy ira and the douche"
Turned it on for a couple minutes today and it was AI Belichick talking about rolling doobs and how his favorite time of the day is 4:20.
Seriously?
I long for the days of Fred riffing as Eddie Money. So. Good.
Seriously?
I long for the days of Fred riffing as Eddie Money. So. Good.
I know some of you are shitting on it, but I love the AI Belichick stuff. It's funny. On the same note, the Nickelback (lyrics) or Not? bit yesterday was also great.
This morning Rich has started to play full songs as a re-join from commercials. Got me thinking about how I don't enjoy T&H anymore, but their 20-minute segments starting in Hour 2 are usually broken up into some combination of 1. a bit, 2. jibber jabber, 3. an interview with a sports media member.
One of Rich's issues is that there aren't enough bits and regular sports media interviews, so the jibber jabber overwhelms the segments and, as others have mentioned, it gets a little manic without an established co-host.
So I'm guessing the introduction of full songs is an attempted lifeline to core ZLX listeneners as well as a means to fill up segments a little better. (Just guessing here).
This morning Rich has started to play full songs as a re-join from commercials. Got me thinking about how I don't enjoy T&H anymore, but their 20-minute segments starting in Hour 2 are usually broken up into some combination of 1. a bit, 2. jibber jabber, 3. an interview with a sports media member.
One of Rich's issues is that there aren't enough bits and regular sports media interviews, so the jibber jabber overwhelms the segments and, as others have mentioned, it gets a little manic without an established co-host.
So I'm guessing the introduction of full songs is an attempted lifeline to core ZLX listeneners as well as a means to fill up segments a little better. (Just guessing here).
I turned on and heard Blind Melon "No Rain" and immediately thought Rich might have taken a vaca. I think slowly infusing music into the show is a good thing.
Agree. Maybe one more song per block, then a bit of sportzin', and some pop culture. Think that would structure and organize things a little better and take the edge off Rich's mania.
Ha, just turned the show on randomly and they were playing a G&R song full length. Thought the show had been cancelled
Probably because they're paying rich a fair amount of money to be a morning show guy
I wonder what the initial logic for supporting this move was. Because Rich was on the #1 show he should easily be able to go to another station on the dial and pull people over?
Have to figure Rich started putting out feelers during covid when Fred started to come apart pre-rehab or later with the throat stuff. How unhappy do you have to be to leave a show after 17 years to take a risk like this? They must have thrown him a pile of iheartradio cash but still...the probability of this totally failing are extremely high and Rich's actions don't seem like someone adapting to grow.
I guess execs thought this could grow over time? A really long time?
Rich must have thought there was no way he wasn't going to win over Fred. At worst they'd both get extended, but from all that was said, I can't imagine he thought this would be the outcome. I'm sure he also had major belief in himself and that he was driving a lot of the ratings and would be OK in a worst case scenario which he is in now. I'm guessing he got a guaranteed contract but who knows for what.
It doesn't sound like he even tried to win him over. I get the impression Rich decided his time with the show was done, tried to get Fred pushed out (that seems to be what was inferred), when that failed, started looking elsewhere or maybe he'd already done that and that was his negotiating power, and got himself this deal. It's such a weird progression. It does seem like little to nothing was attempted between Rich and Fred to repair whatever had broken with them. To the point you'd be willing to take a massive risk like this, with a very high chance of failure, to basically do a knock off of your old show but missing the pieces that made it enjoyable.
You have to figure they guaranteed him a year, at least six months.
I wonder if Rich has made enough money over the past few years where that part doesn't matter? He was done with Fred and took the best alternative that he was left with, and if it works out, it works out.
I remember reading somewhere that Fred could be making $800k per year, so Rich could be sitting on a pretty decent pile of cash if he wasn't living an extravagant lifestyle.
I remember reading somewhere that Fred could be making $800k per year, so Rich could be sitting on a pretty decent pile of cash if he wasn't living an extravagant lifestyle.
I don't think that they meant win Fred over to his side, but rather, win over Fred in the eyes of management with the worst case for Ruch being a stalemate where they both get renewed (although I personally don't think the stalemate option was actually possible.)
They should have just inserted music from the beginning. I think the insertion of them after breaks has helped the show's structure a bit more and has allowed things to breathe a bit. But I'm not so sure it will make any difference in the ratings.
Last I heard he lives in downtown Boston and has a place in Vermont and Nantucket (via Cape Air), so no idea of his money situation, nor do I care, but he's living like it from what he said on T&R. This isn't gossip or the 6th page, but just from what he said on air. If he's comfortable then great. He said when he launched the show it's up to be successful, so here we are. Regardless of money, I'm not sure anyone going from nearly $1m a year (reportedly) to whatever he gets now makes someone happy. Maybe he's cash flow happy and happy with the contract?
If there's 15-18 minute breaks in-between commercials and chewing it up with 4-6 minutes of a song, it doesn't say a whole lot of the 2-5 people you're paying to fill the 9-12 minutes.
At least on 98.5 a break appears to be like 7:03-7:18/7:20. I’m sure some are shorter and some are longer but 15 min seems like a good average.
Don't recall for sure but thought the Nantucket place was a Covid hideout due to his wife's autoimmune issue, (ie renting a place).
Have posted this before but given his age (late 40s) and the state of health care/ insurance I would doubt he's put aside enough money to feel comfortable not really having to work again.
I think he means 15-18 minute segments, not (commercial) breaks. On T&R, beginning in hour two one segment would be a bit or topical discussion, one would be an interview, and the third would be post-interview discussion/grabass.
TRSS doesn’t have the luxury of the interviews and post-interview discussion, so in addition to the songs coming out of re-joins and “Handle Hurley”, they haven’t built up other repeatable segments. That’s one area where the search continues…
I'm 90% sure he owns the Nantucket place. He used to talk about it a lot. He even bought that fishing boat back then that he, somehow, had zero luck with and complained about the storage stuff.
I am glad he's stopped trying to shove classic bits that weren't working. Fart whatever needs another person to riff off them. Same with 911. Rich's reactions to Fred's riffing made it funnier together.
He should try to work on stuff that goes to the show's strengths and works with the dynamic they have. I've found myself most interested when they are talking about current bands they enjoy. I just wish Rich understood there are other levels to things beyond "it's perfect. Just perfection," and "the worst. Just the worst."
I agree with you. I think Rich didn't want to do a show with Fred anymore. According to Fred(and I believe him on this fact), when their contracts were running out, Rich said that he wanted his agent to negotiate separately from Fred's, which wasn't what they'd done previously, and is apparently unusual for a radio duo like them. I think Rich wanted Beasley to get rid of Fred, and when they wouldn't and instead gave Fred another contract, Rich rejected the new contract offered to him. Beasley made a statement at the time that they "offered to renew his contract for multiple years on terms better than his existing contract." I saw at least one person here last year saying something about Fred talking about having to take a big pay cut, but that was a misinterpretation of Fred's sarcastic comments about being desperate to sign anything that was offered. There's no reason to believe Fred wasn't given something similar to his previous compensation.
I will say I thought it was weird that, at least publicly, it appeared the last straw for Rich was Fred's throat issue, which few people would consider his fault(though, admittedly, he was a smoker). In retrospect, I think Rich already was going to split from him, but it's strange if Rich thought the public or Beasley would view the throat thing as Fred "screwing up again", or bailing on the show.
Or he made a good return on investments. I recall him mentioning a couple of times, early in TSH run I think, something like he didn't know much about investing, but loved Apple products and believed in them as a company, so he put his money into their stock. Obviously, who knows when he started buying, how much he invested, or when he sold. However, back when he made clear that he owned a place in Nantucket, and Fred sounded surprised, I remember thinking "Oh, I guess Rich is worth appreciably more than Fred because of his Apple investment."
They owned a place in Nantucket since at least a few years before that. They spent far more time there during Covid than they normally would, because of her issue, which is why you're remembering it that way.
Don't know if that was the last straw, but it was clear that this situation infuriated Rich primarily because Fred said he had throat cancer. He did not. Fred's attempts to walk it back didn't matter; he had crossed the line. Given Rich's experience with Mary, he found this incredibly offensive and considered it medical "stolen valor". Fred's throat situation was clearly quite serious for multiple reasons, but to claim (or even infer) that you have cancer when you don't is a pretty big no-no.
I do agree that I think Rich saw this as a "him or me" type situation, but I don't think Rich saw it as Fred screwing up or bailing on the show. I believe it was an irreconcilable betrayal of trust between the two. Rich didn't want to work with Fred any more, and given the impending contract expiration, I think Rich saw this as his best opportunity to make a break.
It was also during that time that Rich seemed to reach a breaking point in terms of bearing the load for producing the show. Fred was out a LOT between his alcoholism, marriage issues, rehab and throat issues.
I vividly remember Rich and Fred getting into it in the Throat Era with Rich saying that he was at the end of his rope getting segments together, etc. Fred countered that he could do some stuff, like What Happened Last Night, by just riffing. That he didn’t need to prep for it. And I’m sure that pissed off Rich even more since Fred, intentionally or not, was suggesting he could handle a Rich segment without doing any real work.
And honestly, that attitude is symptomatic of why Toucher & Hardy doesn’t work as well as Toucher & Rich. It’s very clear that the day to day work isn’t there. Lots of riffing, far less planning.
Agree, and part of that whole equation included Lockhart getting fired and Rich picking up his salary to keep Lockhart around. Rich implored Fred to understand everything that Lockhart did to support the show, and Fred basically spit on him and Rich, saying neither of them had to do any of the prep work cuz Fred could just wing it.
Frankly, that’s why it was disappointing to hear that Lockhart was on Team Fred, because it was Rich who saved his ass and Fred was willing to let him go.
Frankly, that’s why it was disappointing to hear that Lockhart was on Team Fred, because it was Rich who saved his ass and Fred was willing to let him go.
I dunno. I think it says something that one side continues to talk about this shit nonstop and the other side, to my knowledge, hasn't said a peep.
I’m long past the point of caring who is “right” or “wrong” in this situation. But it’s been clear for a long time that Fred comes from the Howard Stern school of radio where you’re supposed to be an open book about your personal life and mine it for content. Rich has always been far more private. He’ll talk broadly about Mary, or his Mom, but rarely in any deeply personal way (which is what made the cancer situation all the more emotional). He also tends to avoid discussing his kids (whereas Fred literally has them on the show).
Which is just to say that it’s not at all surprising that Fred continues to needle Rich, and Rich says nothing. That’s who each them is.
This is a great point I'd forgotten about. Fred can certainly riff on things but it has a limit as the new show as shown. Fred was at his best riffing on Rich's well produced content. It feels like now they put in a tenth of the effort on preproduction (those weird Adam12 game bits were lazy and not funny) and it shows in the final product.
Rich's problem is he can produce the same quality stuff but has no one to riff react to it.
Another good point. I don't think Rich has ever said the name of his other son. He's mentioned the older one by name but I can't recall him ever saying the other's name on air.
But, whenever Rich does talk about his personal life it comes off odd. I remember when the old show was talking about Rich's Tesla and he was being weird about it.
I remember Fred asking Rich if he had a gun and that becoming a quite hostile break where Rich was outraged about compromising his security.