Where I live his radio show is televised here in the wee hours of the morning (The Don Imus Show). From time to time I'm up late and run across it while flipping through the TV channel.

Can someone tell me just what exactly is he reporting on his show? He has this kind of slurred drawl and I can't understand a single word he's saying. And periodically he'll just sit there in front of his microphone and just say nothing, catatonic-like. Dead air for verrrry long stretches at a time. Its like a giving a dead corpse with a cowboy hat his own radio show. WTF? Why is he on the air?

I never cared for his show, but it's political commentary, humor. He's been on NY radio since the early 70's. Had a bad time with alcohol and cocaine at some point. Mortal enemy of Howard Stern.

What can I say? Some people find him very clever and his political observations astute in a sarcastic, biting way.

Steve

Imus get the best guests of any radio talk show and probably the cable shows, both left and right, and gets them to open up about what's going on in the world. He still has plenty of "shock jock" in him and he and his co-workers are politically incorrect more often than not which makes the humor all that better. It's funny, he's always grumpy, and some real news is sometimes made when guests let down their guard around him. I have him on MSNBC every morning while I get ready for work. I'm a fan.

I'm a huge fan as well for the reasons listed above. Remember when you are watching it on TV that it is a radio show and when he appears to be staring off into space, there may be audio or a radio drop that you aren't necessarily hearing.

The TV show has always emanated (?) from the studios of WFAN in Queens until recently; Imus and his newsman Charles McCord now do their part from the MSNBC studios in New Jersey while the rest of the "cast" (Bernie, Lou, Sid, etc) is back at WFAN. Its a little shaky, but I think Imus has been getting good rehearsal for this considering he broadcasts alone every summer from the Imus Ranch in New Mexico.

The Imus Ranch, it should be noted, is a working cattle ranch for kids with cancer and other serious ailments. It was built entirely with private funds as well as at least $20-30 million dollars of Mr. Imus' own money. The funny and awesome thing is that they don't baby these kids---they figure they get enough of that being sick; instead they treat them like adults and make them work their asses off at this cattle ranch (shoveling shit, riding and caring for their own horse, etc.) to try and give the kids some of their dignity and self worth back.

Ironically, they don't serve any meat or use any chemical based cleaning or agricultural products at the ranch.

I grew up on Imus, from the mid-70's when he was on W nnnnnnnnN! BC. His tanscendance from substance hooked sophomoric to the astute, biting, and insightful is truly an inspiration.

His crew have done some stuff that has made me burst out loud while driving. Yails's right, the "dead air" is probably a commercial break, or he's playing some bit they taped the day before.

He's old now, but hasn't lost a step. He's also tight with Kinky. I never took a morning drive slot in college because I didn't want to miss Imus. He's the thinking man's Stern.

<===loves him some I-Man.

Yup. One of the few charities to which I donate. Imus got hooked into the Tomorrow's Children's Fund about 15 years ago, through that org's founder whose name escapes me. His, and his wife's, attachment to these kids, and doing exactly what you said, treating them like people and bestowing the respect and dignity they deserve, is totally sincere and admirable. I used to love listening to him browbeat his celebrity guests into donating during the telethons, which, more than anything else, got a hospital wing built for these kids.

Also, I think Fred rules.

<==wearing his Auto Body Express baseball cap.

Don Imus, explained:

+ =

It works better on radio, unless you're the sort that's fascinated by seeing what someone's like during commercials. I guess you can see it as catatonic. I see him as surly and very intelligent, but not about to do jackshit if he can get his assistants to do it for him.