Stray dog
Before I get into the actual story here -- Chris Russo leaving WFAN -- a couple of comments about NYC's holy trinity of tabloid newspapers:
I grew up in New York, specifically Brooklyn, and while Newsday has always been a distant third to the Post and Daily News in most regards, my father always had Newsday delivered to the house because of its better coverage of the outer boroughs, plus he always liked their Mets-friendly coverage, especially in the 80s.
That said, while I think the above headline is phenomenal and actually had me laughing out loud, Newsday is the only one of the three papers that felt the Mike and the Mad Dog breakup was worthy of a back-page headline.
I don't know that I agree with that.
In any case, here's my take on the Mike and the Mad Dog split:
Chris Russo, by himself, sucks. His poor command of the English language and inability to pronounce certain everyday words rivals only a certain Texan that currently resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. It's not as charming. Russo's knowledge of sports is also sub-par for someone in his position and some of his theories and beliefs are off the charts retarded.
Mike Francesa, by himself, sucks. He is a pompous egomaniac, who, though his knowledge of sports is top-notch, finds himself at the edge of implosion if a caller dares to question something he said. He is boring, he drones on, he name drops to the point of nausea, and, frankly, is probably a dick in real life.
But Chris Russo and Mike Francesa together are great. They balance each other well, their banter is very entertaining, and, frankly, I always enjoy listening to them when they're together -- but never when they're alone.
But what frustrates me most about this split isn't so much that I'm going to miss listening to these clowns on the way home from work, but after all these years of listening to countless yahoos call in for the Superbowl trivia contest, I finally compiled a database with answers to all the types of questions they usually ask and I was gonna take a shot at a Superbowl trip this year. Damn it!
The bottom line is that with ESPN Radio gaining prominence in the NY area, if WFAN thinks they're not going to see a steep decline in their drivetime ratings with Russo's departure -- just as they would have had Francesa bolted and Mad Dog stayed -- they've got another thing coming.
If they do plan on bringing in a co-host for Francesa, it better be someone good. I think the station will be hard-pressed to find someone who complimented Francesa as well as Russo did -- the yin to his yang, if you will -- and I don't see this one ending well for our friends in Astoria.
I don't know the inside details on why one was kept and the other allowed to move on, but WFAN is about to learn the hard way that Mike without the Mad Dog is about as entertaining as Richard Neer on 20mg of Valium.
I know there are plenty of you out there who hated them together or apart, but I, for one, will miss the show immensely. I've been a regular listener to WFAN since Day 1, and as someone who spent a lot of time at home in the early days after being expelled from high school after high school, it was Mike and the Mad Dog that was my soundtrack to all the big sports stories of the time, and the same can be said about the years since.
Love 'em or hate 'em, Mike and the Mad Dog are part of the New York sports scene and have been for 19 years. And as someone who has never dealt well with change, this one is going to be hard to get used to.
Say something funny, Mike.
I grew up in New York, specifically Brooklyn, and while Newsday has always been a distant third to the Post and Daily News in most regards, my father always had Newsday delivered to the house because of its better coverage of the outer boroughs, plus he always liked their Mets-friendly coverage, especially in the 80s.
That said, while I think the above headline is phenomenal and actually had me laughing out loud, Newsday is the only one of the three papers that felt the Mike and the Mad Dog breakup was worthy of a back-page headline.
I don't know that I agree with that.
In any case, here's my take on the Mike and the Mad Dog split:
Chris Russo, by himself, sucks. His poor command of the English language and inability to pronounce certain everyday words rivals only a certain Texan that currently resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. It's not as charming. Russo's knowledge of sports is also sub-par for someone in his position and some of his theories and beliefs are off the charts retarded.
Mike Francesa, by himself, sucks. He is a pompous egomaniac, who, though his knowledge of sports is top-notch, finds himself at the edge of implosion if a caller dares to question something he said. He is boring, he drones on, he name drops to the point of nausea, and, frankly, is probably a dick in real life.
But Chris Russo and Mike Francesa together are great. They balance each other well, their banter is very entertaining, and, frankly, I always enjoy listening to them when they're together -- but never when they're alone.
But what frustrates me most about this split isn't so much that I'm going to miss listening to these clowns on the way home from work, but after all these years of listening to countless yahoos call in for the Superbowl trivia contest, I finally compiled a database with answers to all the types of questions they usually ask and I was gonna take a shot at a Superbowl trip this year. Damn it!
The bottom line is that with ESPN Radio gaining prominence in the NY area, if WFAN thinks they're not going to see a steep decline in their drivetime ratings with Russo's departure -- just as they would have had Francesa bolted and Mad Dog stayed -- they've got another thing coming.
If they do plan on bringing in a co-host for Francesa, it better be someone good. I think the station will be hard-pressed to find someone who complimented Francesa as well as Russo did -- the yin to his yang, if you will -- and I don't see this one ending well for our friends in Astoria.
I don't know the inside details on why one was kept and the other allowed to move on, but WFAN is about to learn the hard way that Mike without the Mad Dog is about as entertaining as Richard Neer on 20mg of Valium.
I know there are plenty of you out there who hated them together or apart, but I, for one, will miss the show immensely. I've been a regular listener to WFAN since Day 1, and as someone who spent a lot of time at home in the early days after being expelled from high school after high school, it was Mike and the Mad Dog that was my soundtrack to all the big sports stories of the time, and the same can be said about the years since.
Love 'em or hate 'em, Mike and the Mad Dog are part of the New York sports scene and have been for 19 years. And as someone who has never dealt well with change, this one is going to be hard to get used to.
Say something funny, Mike.
posted by SJPSandman at
2:08 PM
2 Comments:
Good post, cat.
Reako and I were discussing this in the office yesterday, and came to generally the same conclusion.
We differed, however, on the question of: If you were forced to listen to one of them alone, who would it be?
I would prefer to listen to Russo alone. Despite the comparative shallowness of knowledge, I think he's engaging and I could be entertained by the conversation, whereas I would slit my wrists listening to Franhumorlessassclown.
By
Pete, at 8/17/2008 7:56 PM
See, I think I would rather have the substance over the style (not that I plan to listen to WFAN much in drive time anymore).
The only exception would be if there were some Yankees ripping going on -- y'know, like the day after they blew a 3-0 series lead in the ALCS
By
SJPSandman, at 8/19/2008 9:34 PM
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