Laci Denise Peterson (née Rocha; May 4, 1975 – c. December 24, 2002)^[1] was an American woman who was the subject of a highly discussed murder case after she went missing while seven and a half months pregnant with her first child. Peterson was reportedly last seen alive on December 24, 2002. Her husband, Scott Peterson, was later convicted of murder in the first degree for Laci's death, and in the second degree for the death of their prenatal son Conner. Scott Peterson is currently on death row at San Quentin State Prison.

Early life and marriage[link]

Laci Denise Rocha was born in Modesto, California. Her parents, Dennis Robert Rocha and Sharon Ruth Anderson, met in high school and married shortly after graduation.^[2] Their first child, Brent Rocha, was born in 1971. Laci was the couple's second child, born in 1975. Her parents separated after Laci's first birthday. Dennis later remarried and had another daughter, Amy. Laci grew up visiting her father's dairy farm in Escalon, California,^[1] and she was a cheerleader in junior high and high school. After graduating from Thomas Downey High School, Laci attended California Polytechnic State University. At Cal Poly, she majored in ornamental horticulture. She hoped someday to open a specialty plant shop. While at Cal Poly, Laci met Scott Peterson at a small restaurant in Morro Bay called Pacific Café.

In December 1996, Scott and Laci became engaged, and they married on August 9, 1997, a few months before Laci's graduation. For the first two years or so of their marriage, they delayed trying to have children, but Laci began to express an interest in starting a family. In December 2000, they decided to try for a pregnancy. Becoming pregnant took longer than expected, and on the verge of scheduling fertility tests, Laci and Scott Peterson conceived naturally in May 2002. The baby was due on February 10, 2003, and the couple planned to name their son Conner Latham Peterson.^{[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]}

Disappearance and discovery of the bodies[link]

Apart from her husband, the last two people known to have spoken to Laci before she disappeared were her half-sister, Amy Rocha, and her mother, Sharon Rocha. Amy cut Laci's hair on the evening of December 23, 2002. Later that evening, Sharon talked to Laci on the telephone around 8:30 pm. Shortly after 10:30 am the following morning, a neighbor found the family dog, a golden retriever named McKenzie, running loose in the neighborhood, wearing a collar and a muddy leash. The neighbor then returned McKenzie to the yard. Laci's 1996 Land Rover Discovery SE sport utility vehicle was in the driveway, and her purse, containing her keys and cell phone, was on the table inside the house.^[10]

When Scott Peterson returned home from fishing that evening,^{[citation needed]} Laci was not there. There are some reports saying he washed his clothes, ate some cold pizza, cleaned up the kitchen, and took a shower. Then, at roughly 5:20 pm, he called Sharon Rocha to ask if Laci was with her. When Sharon told Scott that Laci was not there, Scott said, "Laci's missing." Sharon later said that she knew in her heart something horrible had happened to her daughter. Scott stated that when he left that morning, Laci was planning to buy groceries for their Christmas get-together and walk the couple's dog, McKenzie, in nearby East La Loma Park.^[11]

Laci's parents called the police at 6 pm. A search of the park and surrounding areas immediately ensued. Police, family members, friends, and neighbors searched widely on foot, in all-terrain vehicles, patrol cars, and sport utility vehicles, helicopters equipped with search lights and heat sensors, water rescue units, search dogs, and horseback teams. ^[12] Law enforcement agencies from several counties became involved. Police suspected foul play, doubting that Laci would vanish on Christmas Eve without contacting anyone. At a press conference, detective Al Brocchini said, "That is completely out of character for her."^[13]

A $25,000 reward was offered, later increased to $250,000, and finally to $500,000 for any information leading to her safe return. Posters, blue and yellow ribbons and fliers were circulated, and the original, basic version of LaciPeterson.com website was launched by a husband of one of Laci's friends. Friends, family, and volunteers set up a command center at a nearby Red Lion Hotel to record developments and circulate information. Over 1,000 volunteers signed up to distribute information and to help search for Laci.^[14] Critics alleged that this was another example of missing white woman syndrome, and that similar cases (primarily that of Evelyn Hernandez) were being ignored by the media and the community.^[15][16] However it should be noted that it was the immediate family and friends of Laci and the Rochas that organized the initial search and vigil for Laci: In the first two days up to 900 people were involved in looking for Laci, before community officials or police directly participated in the actual search and prior to significant media coverage.^[17]

On April 13, 2003, a couple walking their dog discovered the decomposing but well-preserved body of a late-term male fetus on the San Francisco Bay shore in Richmond's Point Isabel Regional Shoreline park, north of Berkeley.^[18] One day later, the body of a recently-pregnant woman, wearing cream-colored maternity pants and a maternity bra, washed to shore one mile away from where the baby's body was found. The woman's cause of death was impossible to determine due to decomposition; the body was decapitated, the forearms were missing, the right foot was gone, and the left leg from the knee down was missing. Later reports from the medical examiner revealed that there were injuries, two cracked ribs, that happened at or about the time of death. DNA tests verified that they were the bodies of Laci Peterson and her son, Conner. Mother and fetus had not been separated by coffin birth, as had been speculated. Rather, Laci's upper torso had been emptied of internal organs and that allowed for the fetus to pass through a perforation in the top of the decomposing uterus.^{[citation needed]}

Investigation and trial[link]

From the start, Scott Peterson was reluctant to talk to the press; at one point, he stormed out of a family press conference when reporters asked if the police considered him a suspect. Laci's brother, Brent Rocha, defended Scott, claiming that Scott was too distraught to make public statements about Laci, and added that did not mean he was involved in her disappearance. "No way," Rocha said. "Absolutely not." Although later he would recall Scott's use of the word "missing" seemed very frequent. He says, looking back, he felt uneasy that he started using that word so soon.^[19] Laci's family maintained Scott's innocence,^[13] and volunteers said that he joined their efforts at the command center every day. Police delivered a major blow to the family when they uncovered pictures showing Scott with another woman. They also found that he was with the woman during a time that Laci thought he was on a business trip. (The dates on the pictures revealed this) After this information came out, Laci's family called for Scott to be more forthright with them. They wanted to know what else he had lied about.

It was later revealed that Scott Peterson had had numerous extramarital affairs, one of which Laci knew about, but the most recent with a massage therapist named Amber Frey, a single mother from nearby Fresno. The affair began after Scott met a woman, Shawn Sibley, at a trade convention where he represented his company, TradeCorp, and told her he was single and "looking". He joked that he should put "Horny Bastard" on his name tag to help him meet women. Though Sibley was attached, she thought Peterson would be a good match for Frey, a friend of hers. She set them up on a blind date in mid-November 2002. Frey informed police of her relationship with Peterson shortly after seeing news of Laci's disappearance on TV^{[citation needed]}, and agreed to record their phone calls. She informed them that, a few weeks before Laci's disappearance, on December 9, Peterson had told her that he was a widower and that these would be his first holidays without his wife.^{[citation needed]}

Scott Peterson was arrested on April 18, 2003, in La Jolla, California, in the parking lot of a golf course, where he claimed to be meeting his father and brother for a game of golf. At the time of his arrest, Peterson was carrying $15,000 in cash, had four cell phones, camping equipment, a gun, a map to Frey's workplace that had been printed the day before, Viagra, and his brother's driver's license. His hair and goatee had been bleached blonde. The police took this as an indication that Peterson had planned to flee, possibly to Mexico.^{[citation needed]}

After a trial that ran from June 2004 through March 2005, Judge Alfred A. Delucchi sentenced Peterson to death, calling the murder of his wife "cruel, uncaring, heartless, and callous".^[20]

Aftermath[link]

The death of Laci and her fetal son led to the United States Congress passing the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, which is widely known as Laci and Conner's Law. On April 1, 2004, Sharon Rocha and her common-law husband Ron Grantski were in attendance at the White House when President George W. Bush signed the bill into law.^[21]

Late in 2005, a Stanislaus County, California judge ruled that Peterson was not entitled to collect on his late wife's $250,000 life insurance policy, having been convicted of her murder. Under California state law, criminals may not profit from insurance policies. On December 19, 2005, the money was given to Laci's mother, Sharon, as the executor of Laci's estate.^[22] The California Court of Appeal (Fifth District) later affirmed the trial court's decision on October 31, 2007.^[23]

In 2006, Sharon Rocha wrote For Laci: A Mother's Story of Love, Loss, and Justice, a biography and memoir about the life and death of her daughter. All proceeds are used to fund the Laci and Conner Search and Rescue Fund, which Sharon Rocha had founded.

See also[link]

• Domestic violence
• Scott Peterson

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Rocha, Sharon (2006). For Laci. Crown Publishing Group.

External links[link]

California portal

• Official site of Laci Peterson
• Find Laci 2003 Website

Michael J. Wildes
Mayor of Englewood, New Jersey
In office 2003–2010
Preceded by	Paul Fader
Succeeded by	Frank Huttle III
Englewood City Councilman
In office 1998–2001
Personal details
Born	Queens, New York City, New York
Alma mater	Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
Occupation	Attorney
Religion	Jewish
Website	Wildes and Weinberg PC

Michael J. Wildes is an American immigration lawyer and senior partner of Wildes and Weinberg PC. He is a former Federal Prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York,^[1], and a former Mayor of Englewood, New Jersey.^[2] He is recognized as an authority on Immigration Law, and has been referred to as the “Attorney to the stars,” on issues of immigration.^{[3] [4]}

Early life, education, and law career[link]

He served with the NYPD as an Auxiliary Police Officer from 1982-1992.

Wildes served with the United States Attorney's Office in Brooklyn from 1989-1993 and testified on Capitol Hill in connection with anti-terrorism legislation. He has represented several defectors who have provided difficult to obtain national security information to the United States^[5][6][7][8].

He was appointed by the President of the United States to the District Appeals Board of the Selective Service System for the State of New Jersey and is a member of the Committee on Present Danger^[9] (where he serves with former CIA Director, James Woolsey and Senator Joseph Lieberman).

Notable clients

• Helped soccer star Pelé obtain a visa to enable him to be a partner with the New York Cosmos soccer team^[10]
• Helped Miss Universe 2009 Stefanía Fernández obtain her visa^[11][12]

Academic career

Wildes is now an adjunct professor at Yeshiva University's Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.^[13]

Political career[link]

Controversial statements[link]

Wildes received widespread acclaim for his challenge to Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi when he organized rallies^[14] and pressed the U.S. State Department to prevent the Libyan leader from staying in a tent on Donald Trump's estate in Englewood during the 2009 United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York City.^[15][16]

He said, “I have every problem with a person who admittedly blew up a plane killing 38 New Jersey residents and has the audacity in recent days to give a hero’s welcome to a convicted terrorist. To have to remove his rubbish free of charge is insulting.” He was referring to the cost of the cleanup and security for the Libyan leader and the protestors who would come.^[14]

In the documentary Enemy Alien, Wildes was portrayed as suggesting that the Japanese internment during World War II might have been justified.^[17]

Fundraising[link]

Michael has become nationally recognized in the Democratic Party as a leading fundraiser for congressional and senate candidates throughout the United States---including U.S. Senators Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Joe Lieberman, etc. Senator Kennedy had said that he had "high expectations" that Michael Wildes will be joining them in the United States Congress in the future^[18][19] . The Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) voted him one of their “100 National Up and Coming Leaders to Watch^[20] .”

Englewood politics[link]

After serving two terms on the Englewood, NJ, City Council, Wildes was elected Mayor in November of 2003 and again to a second term in November 2006.

2012 congressional election[link]

In March 2012, Wildes decided to run in the newly redrawn New Jersey's 9th congressional district, based in Bergen and Passiac counties. In the Democratic primary, he will face U.S. Congressmen Steve Rothman and Bill Pascrell. It has been speculated that Wildes' candidacy helps Pascrell and will likely spoil Rothman's chances at winning re-election. This is because Rothman and Wildes have a lot in common: both are Jewish, are actively involved in the Jewish community, both live in Englewood, and both were Englewood mayors. Wildes has $700,000 on hand.^[21]

Philanthropy career[link]

Wildes served as chair of the American Jewish Congress' Committee on International Terrorism^[22]. He is a member of the Advisory Board for the Urban League of Bergen County^[23], and Member of the Board of Directors of Boys Town of Jerusalem^[24]. He is a certified EMT^[25] and a Member of the Hatzoloh Volunteer Ambulance Corps^[26] in New York; the Englewood Volunteer Ambulance Corp (EVAC), and served over 10 years (1982-1992) with the NYPD as an Auxiliary Police Officer^[27] .

References[link]

External links[link]

• Michael Wildes' Website
• Article of Wildes and Weinberg Securing Visas for John Lennon and Yoko Ono

Anne Melani Bremner (born June 4, 1958) is a Seattle, Washington-based trial attorney.^[1] She has performed legal work on a number of high-profile cases, including in the murder of Meredith Kercher in Italy as legal counsel and a spokesperson for the Friends of Amanda Knox, and as the lawyer for the family of Rebecca Zahau following her death in California.

Early life and education[link]

Bremner was born in McAlester, Oklahoma.^[1] Bremner attended Stanford University, where she studied medieval history, graduating in 1980.^[2] She describes her student self as "a liberal, an idealist, and a Democrat" who was opposed to capital punishment.^[3] She went on to Seattle University, where she completed her J.D. degree in 1982.^[2]

Career[link]

Work as prosecutor and with police[link]

From 1983 to 1988, Bremner was a deputy prosecuting attorney with the criminal division of the King County Prosecutor's Office, specializing in sex crimes.^[2] During these years she came into contact with a number of high-profile cases, such as the Wah Mee massacre trials; this experience, along with those later in her career, began to modulate her views on the death penalty.^[3] In 1985, she was deputy prosecuting attorney in a case against a University of Washington policeman believed to be the first person to be charged under the state's new computer trespass law; a trial court convicted the policeman of the charges, but the Washington Court of Appeals overturned his conviction.^[4][5]

During her career in private practice, Bremner represented law enforcement and judges in various civil and criminal cases. In 1996, she successfully defended the Seattle Police Department's use of police dogs to find and bite suspects against an American Civil Liberties Union challenge claiming that it violated suspects' civil rights and constituted excessive force.^[6] In 2001, she represented the Bellevue Police Department during the inquest into the conduct of officer Mike Hetle during his second fatal shooting that year; the jury found that Metle had reason to fear death or serious bodily harm.^[7] In the 2002 case Vili Fualaau v. Highline School District and the Des Moines Police Department, filed by the family of Mary Kay Letourneau's student Vili Fualaau, Bremner successfully defended the police department against liability for damages.^[8] She became acquainted with Letourneau during the course of the lawsuit, and the two remained friends afterwards.^[9]

Later major cases[link]

In October 2008, Bremner went outside of her typical role as a defender of police to take up the cause of Amanda Knox, a University of Washington student charged with the murder of Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy.^[10] She was contacted by family members of Knox's classmates, including Mike Heavey, a superior court judge with whom she was previously acquainted.^[11] The group subsequently held fundraisers to pay for Knox's defense, lobby lawmakers, and conduct public relations activities, turning media focus toward the conduct of the prosecution, especially Perugia chief prosecutor Giuliano Mignini.^[12] Bremner made various television appearances regarding the case, describing Knox as "naive" and comparing her to the title character in the French film Amélie.^[13]

In 2011, Bremner began working with the bereaved family of Rebecca Zahau after the San Diego County Sheriff's Department closed its investigation into Zahau's death based on a suicide finding.^[14] The family strongly believed that Zahau had not committed suicide, and Bremner stated that it "doesn't pass the smell test" and that "This would be the first case in the history of the world that a woman killed herself like this ... It's ridiculous on the face of it.".^[15] She appeared on television and gave media interviews relating to the case. Some of her statements were criticized by Zahau's boyfriend and Medicis Pharmaceutical CEO Jonah Shacknai, whose attorney said that Bremner had implied that Shacknai used his wealth and profile to improperly influence the police investigation.^[16]

Other activities[link]

Aside from her work as an attorney, Bremner also appears on television as a legal analyst, explaining prominent cases to the general public. In 2004, she appeared on Court TV and other cable networks covering the trial of Scott Peterson for the murder of Laci Peterson.^[3] Similarly in 2005, she took an unpaid leave of absence from her job to offer television commentary on People v. Jackson, stating that the publicity had brought in millions of dollars of business for her firm.^[17] In 2009, she appeared variously on CNN with Nancy Grace to discuss the Casey Anthony case.^[18][19]

In 2003, Bremner was one of the founding members of the Committee for a Two-Newspaper Town, along with Washington Supreme Court justice Phil Talmadge. The group was formed to pressure the Hearst Corporation and the Seattle Times Company to continue printing their respective newspapers, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and The Seattle Times, under their joint operating agreement signed in 1982.^[20] The group specifically opposed an attempt by the Times to dissolve the JOA and permit Hearst to close the Post-Intelligencer in exchange for 32% of the Times' profits for 80 years.^[21] However, in March 2009, the Post-Intelligencer printed its last paper edition and moved to an online-only format. In an e-mail about the event, Bremner stated: "What a terribly sad day this is. Only tomorrow will be worse."^[22]

DUI case[link]

On June 3, 2010, Bremner was in an automobile accident and called 9-1-1. A county sheriff suspected she was intoxicated and arrested her.^[23][24] She pled guilty to DUI on September 1^[24] and was sentenced to two days in jail.^[25]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

This article may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (December 2008)

Gary Spivey claims to be a psychic, medium, spiritual healer and spiritual teacher. He has made appearances on radio programs, TV shows, and in live casino shows and also conducts personal readings, seminars, workshops, and hosts retreats.^[1]

Radio shows[link]

Gary Spivey regularly performs morning radio shows. Current stations include shows in New York, Los Angeles (KYSR-FM), Chicago, San Francisco(KYLD-FM), Las Vegas(KLUC-FM),^[2] San Diego(XHRM-FM),^[3] Sacramento(KSFM-FM),^[4] Washington DC, Minneapolis(KDWB-FM),^[5] Miami, Milwaukee WMYX-FM),^[6] Nashville, Atlanta, KQRC 98.9 The Rock out of Kansas City Missouri, performing on the Johnny Dare Morning Show, as well as in Fort Myers, FL (WXKB-FM) Tuesday mornings 8am-9am on the Big Mama and The WiLD Bunch Morning Show.^[7]

Appearances[link]

Gary Spivey has appeared on shows such as Entertainment Tonight, Hard Copy, The Ricki Lake Show, The Other Half, Inside Edition, Jeopardy, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and Jerry Springer. He has also guest starred in A&E's Family Plots series^[8] and on World Championship Wrestling shows where he was scripted to be the mentor of Paul Orndorff. He is known for his unique hair which appears to be a dense, silver afro or afro wig.

Books[link]

Gary Spivey's first book, co-authored with Dean Hymel was written in 2006 is titled Your Keys to Heaven – Secrets from God.^[9]

Notes and references[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Your Keys to Heaven - Secrets from God Official website

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (June 2010)

The Opie & Anthony Show

Jim Norton, Anthony Cumia, and Gregg "Opie" Hughes
Genre	Talk, Comedy
Running time	6am to 10am, Monday through Friday
Country	United States
Starring	Gregg "Opie" Hughes Anthony Cumia Jim Norton
Creators	Gregg Hughes Anthony Cumia
Air dates	since March 28, 1995
Opening theme	"The Ecstasy of Gold" by Ennio Morricone "Street Fighting Man" by Rage Against the Machine
Website	SiriusXM.com

Gregg "Opie" Hughes (born May 23, 1963) and Anthony Cumia (born April 26, 1961) are the hosts of The Opie & Anthony Show, a talk radio program airing in the United States and Canada on XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Since the merger of the two satellite companies, this is now called Sirius/XM. It is co-hosted by stand up comedian Jim Norton. Based in New York City, the show was previously on WXRK-FM and WNEW-FM in New York, and prior to that, on WAAF-FM in Boston, Massachusetts.

On April 26, 2006, Opie and Anthony returned to the terrestrial airwaves after a four year absence, replacing CBS Radio's short-lived David Lee Roth Show, which aired mainly on the eastern coast of the United States. The terrestrial portion of the show ran until March 9, 2009. The team was terminated by WXRK-FM when it flipped formats from rock to Top 40.

The Opie & Anthony Show airs weekdays live from 6am through 10am ET exclusively on XM Radio Channel 105 and Sirius Radio Channel 206 "The Opie & Anthony Channel". Replays are available throughout the day on their XM and Sirius channels and on audible.com.

Background and history[link]

Gregg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia were raised on Long Island, New York, in Centerport and Elwood respectively. Hughes graduated from SUNY Geneseo and for the next seven years, interned and worked at several western New York radio stations such as 96.5 WCMF in Rochester (where he first worked for Brother Wease) and WUFX in Buffalo. Opie eventually found his way back home to rock station WBAB on his native Long Island. Although not initially doing a talk-show, Hughes did experiment with certain talk elements, including a recurring character named "Spuds Buckley". While earning a living as an HVAC duct worker, Cumia began recording comedy songs with his brother Joe. In August 1994, Hughes, seeking innovative ideas, received an entry during an O.J. Simpson parody song contest. The song was titled "Gonna Electric Shock OJ" (sung to the tune of Otis Redding's "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay") by a local band known as Rotgut, of which Cumia was the lead singer. The song was a hit on Hughes' show, and he invited the Cumia brothers to the studio to play live in September 1994. In December 1994, Cumia also appeared on The Howard Stern Show during an impression contest in which he imitated Jackie the Jokeman, Beavis and Butt-head, and Sam Kinison. Soon afterward, Hughes and Cumia became a radio team. Hughes' show was called "The Nighttime Attitude" and aired from 8 pm-midnight on WBAB.^[1] Shortly after Cumia's arrival, he and Hughes requested that the show be moved to morning or afternoon drive, the two most listened to timeslots in radio. When the station refused, Hughes and Cumia moved the show to afternoon drive on WAAF in Boston, Massachusetts, where they premiered on March 27, 1995 as Opie & Anthony (O&A).

WAAF-FM[link]

One of Opie and Anthony's most notable Boston stunts was their staged giveaway of "100 Grand", which was hyped for weeks. When they finally gave away the prize, the "winning" caller laid into the duo with biting invective after he realized the repairs he needed to make to his truck would be un-affordable with a 100 Grand candy bar instead of $100,000.^[2]

The duo was fired in April 1998 from WAAF for an April Fool's Day prank involving Mayor Thomas Menino. Opie and Anthony told their listeners that the Mayor had been killed in a car accident while transporting a young female Haitian prostitute. Many believed the story, leading Menino to file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission, as the FCC prohibits the broadcast of knowingly false information if it causes public harm.^[3] WAAF suggested that the duo have pies thrown at them while being held in town square stocks. The idea was summarily dismissed by the mayor's office. Facing a possible license challenge, WAAF fired them, but Opie and Anthony promised that they would return to Boston and get revenge. During the early days of XM Anthony stated that the intent of the April Fool's prank was to allow the duo to be released from their contract with WAAF. He also stated that the duo had been having illegal meetings with WNEW prior to the April Fool's prank. He preceded these comments with "The statutes of limitations must be up on this."^[4]

WNEW-FM[link]

In June 1998, O&A were back on New York station WNEW-FM, where they became a top 10 afternoon drive show in New York by 2000.^[5]

In November 2000, sixteen people associated with the show (including comedian Lewis Black and future show member Jim Norton) were arrested during a promotion for "The Voyeur Bus," a mostly glass-sided bus carting naked women through Manhattan with a police escort.^[6] The stunt was harshly condemned by Mayor Rudy Giuliani. O&A hosted the short-lived "XFL Gameday" – the pregame show for Vince McMahon's startup football league – for four weeks in February 2001. The half-hour show aired nationally on Saturday nights on select NBC affiliates prior to the evening's games. The show was taped on Wednesdays at the WWF's theme restaurant in Times Square, and was open to the public. It featured analysis by WNBC sportscaster Bruce Beck and New York/New Jersey Hitmen head coach Rusty Tillman, but also featured plenty of raunch. One particular segment featured O&A as chefs, inserting a cucumber in between two melons. O&A were almost banned from Giants Stadium for life during the filming of one episode when they imitated a proposed XFL rule where first possession was determined by placing the ball at midfield and having two opposing team-members attempt to get it. O&A did this as God Bless America began to play before a game.^[7] They said that the $100,000 cost of making each new show was the cause of its demise, though no official reason was given for its cancellation.

In 2001, O&A signed a syndication deal with Infinity to syndicate their show on 22 stations nationwide, including WBCN in Boston, longtime rival of WAAF. By this time, show friend Andrew Dice Clay had introduced O&A to Jim Norton, a comedian who toured with and opened for Clay. Norton was a hit on O&A and soon became a regular on the show, appearing three or four days per week.

Sex for Sam[link]

One of O&A's stunts was "Sex for Sam", an annual contest where the goal was to have sex in notable public places in New York City. Couples from various states would be selected to be trailed by a comedian or member of the show, who would call the program to report the location. The contest was sponsored by Boston Beer Company, maker of Samuel Adams beer, and prizes included trips to Boston concerts sponsored by the beer company. The contest was approved by the station and had no major problems for the first two years.

However, in "Sex for Sam 3", comedian Paul Mecurio encouraged Brian Florence and Loretta Harper, a Virginia couple visiting Manhattan, to have simulated sex in a vestibule at St. Patrick's Cathedral on August 15, 2002. When a security guard ordered Mecurio and the couple to leave the church immediately, Mecurio began to argue with the guard, who then contacted police. The couple was arrested and charged with public lewdness. Intense media scrutiny led to the Catholic League demanding that Opie and Anthony be fired. The Catholic League also threatened to get WNEW's license revoked.

O&A broadcast the next day, but were ordered not to directly address the incident for legal reasons. The show went into reruns the following week. On August 22, Infinity suspended Opie and Anthony for the duration of their contract, and canceled the show. However, the company continued to pay the duo to stay off the air for the balance of their contract. The Catholic League immediately dropped its bid to have WNEW's license revoked.

The repercussions of the incident were widespread:

• Infinity was fined a total of $357,500 by the FCC, the maximum amount allowed by law, and the second-largest indecency fine in American radio history. It refused to pay the fine.^[8]
• WNEW's ratings had been dreadful overall aside from Opie and Anthony. With the forced cancellation of its only strong performer, its ratings dropped even lower than those of noncommercial stations and never recovered. The station began playing music again in January 2003, starting with a Top 40 format, then going to an adult contemporary format, and later switching to a classic dance music format before returning to the AC format, at which point the station's call letters were changed to WWFS. Under WWFS, the ratings rebounded to a 3.1 rating, then cooled down to an average of a 2.5 rating.^{[citation needed]} In a bit of irony, Opie and Anthony would make fun of an incident at WNEW in late 2004, in which the program director got drunk, went on air, and confused the call letters with those of WNEW's arch-rival WKTU.
• Harper pleaded guilty a month later to disorderly conduct and was sentenced to seven days of community service.^[9] Her partner, Brian Florence, died of a heart attack on September 25, 2003.

XM Satellite Radio[link]

Opie and Anthony returned to the air on October 4, 2004 exclusively for XM Satellite Radio after two years off the air. Initially, the show was offered to XM subscribers at a premium cost of $1.99 a month, to which they encountered some resistance. In April 2005, "High Voltage" became part of the basic XM subscription. There are no numbers available with respect to the number of premium subscribers. Hughes gave some indication, however, when he told the Long Island press in 2006, "We went from having a show that was syndicated in 17 major markets to having a few thousand," which did not help to remove the discrepancy.^[10]

On April 17, 2006, DirecTV ceased airing the High Voltage channel on their satellite TV service, citing subscriber requests for more music channels and fewer talk and sports channels. However, less than a week elapsed before inside sources announced that, due to overwhelming audience demands that O&A return to DirecTV, the channel would be restored on April 26, 2006.^[11]

Opie & Anthony frequently mentioned on the air that they always hated the title "High Voltage", which was selected by one of the company lawyers. They had been trying to change the name but were unsuccessful for the first 2 years, until Eric Logan announced on their October 4, 2006 broadcast that High Voltage would be renamed "The Virus" on November 20, 2006, pursuant to the demands of hardcore O&A fans known as "The Pests".

A major part of the XM show was the "Assault on the Media", led by "The Pests" to give the show additional exposure. On May 19, 2005, show intern Nathaniel showed up behind Arthur Chi'en of WCBS-TV. The disruption caused Chi'en to shout "What the fuck is your problem, man?" while the cameras were still rolling. Chi'en was fired a few hours later. (The situation brought the show nationwide press.)^[12]

On May 15, 2007, XM suspended Opie & Anthony for 30 days, in response to a broadcast featuring a homeless man who wandered into the studio. Opie and Anthony dubbed the man "Homeless Charlie", who mentioned the possibility of raping Condoleezza Rice and Laura Bush.^[13] Charlie spoke wildly for nearly twenty minutes, commenting on a wide variety of news topics. A blogger posted a ten second excerpt of the discussion, which was later posted to The Drudge Report with no context given to the audio. Commentary on the incident was especially incendiary from Bill O'Reilly, who called the situation "the worst I have ever seen." (O'Reilly once had the radio duo on his show.)^{[citation needed]} CBS (terrestrial) radio continued to air the show from 6:00 am–9:00 am Eastern time, and had a decidedly more subdued sound, due to greater scrutiny.

Fans reacted to the news of the suspension by canceling their XM Radio subscriptions, with some fans even going as far as smashing their XM units. XM did offer a free month of service to subscribers who called in complaints of the suspension.^[14] Moreover, some sponsors pulled their advertising off XM in protest of the suspension.^[15]

The radio duo's month-long suspension from XM ended on June 15, 2007, when they returned to XM's airwaves. Shortly after the suspension, Opie closed on a $3.35 million 2,088-square-foot (194.0 m²) apartment in Trump Place owned by Donald Trump.^{[citation needed]}

Return to broadcast radio 2006–2011[link]

On April 24, 2006, Opie and Anthony announced that they signed a deal with CBS Radio in which the first three hours of the show would be broadcast on nine of CBS's rock stations, the first official show airing April 26.^[16]

After an 18-month run on XM, The Opie & Anthony Show began simulcasting on XM Radio and various terrestrial radio stations from 6 am to 9 am EST. From 9 am to 11 am (and on some days until noon), the show was broadcast exclusively on XM Radio. XM listeners were able to hear the show uncensored for the entire show (except when the main feed is "self-censored" by the hosts). During the 6–9 slot, the FM-only listeners would hear a Federal Communications Commission-compliant version of the show. In Philadelphia, O&A achieved a threefold increase in the month of May over David Lee Roth's April ratings in the age 18–34 demographic. In Boston, O&A doubled the number of all age demographics and achieved an even greater increase in younger listeners.^[17] According to the Winter 2007 arbitron ratings, O&A doubled Roth's ratings with their target demographic of 18 to 34-year-olds. But the improvement merely amounted to an increase of 2% to about 4% of the audience—a third of Stern's old numbers in New York City.^[18] Following the Summer 07 Arbitron ratings, O&A's 18- to 34-year-olds ratings slipped, while their morning drive rating in NYC of 2.1 left them only ahead of sports based WFAN network in the morning.^[19] In the spring 2008 under the new Portable people meter ratings system, Opie and Anthony again failed to crack the top ten in morning drive, and their flagship station WXRK ranked 20th out of 24 stations in overall ratings and out of the top ten in the coveted 25–54 demographic.^[20]

Rockstar Games gave the cast and crew of the show voice roles in the PlayStation Portable game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, including Club Soda Kenny as the voice of Derek the Dodo. The only exception was Jim Norton, since he had a voice role in previous Rockstar game Bully.

On October 23, 2007, WYSP in Philadelphia cut Opie and Anthony from their lineup in favor of the rock music format, to which the station had changed in September.^[21]

During the summer of 2008, the show delved into the romance between Anthony Cumia and Jill Nicolini, a model and actress who also serves as traffic reporter for WPIX. Nicolini and Cumia were often photographed together at public events. A running feature on the show focused on the authenticity of this May–December romance. While many initially doubted the beautiful Nicolini would actually date Cumia, the relationship appeared to blossom over time, although it ended disastrously in August 2008.

In 2008, as part of Rockstar Games' newest addition to the Grand Theft Auto series, Cumia performed the viral "Pißwasser" (or "Piss Water") commercial for Grand Theft Auto IV, as a parody to Budweiser's "King of Beers" campaign. It was later performed by Cumia on the Opie and Anthony Show. Other members of the show's cast appear as characters in GTA IV.

During their tenure at K-Rock, almost all of O&A's affiliates (many of which were in major markets) systematically dropped the show, primarily due to declining ratings.^[22] By November 30, 2008, Opie and Anthony remained in only three major cities – New York, Boston and Cleveland. The following day, however, WBCN in Boston dropped them in favor of their local Toucher & Rich show, while WKRK switched to a jockless alternative rock format.

On March 9, 2009, Opie & Anthony were heard on WXRK for the last time, and spent much of the time discussing the impending format change, and how their services were "no longer needed" at the station. Their executive producer for the FM portion, Michael "Stuntbrain" Opelka, was fired the following day.

As of October 1, 2010, the Opie and Anthony show renewed their contract with Sirius/XM satellite radio for 2 years. The two often mention that they will not renew their contract after the current contract expires, citing their disgust with the poor way they are often treated by Sirius management as the primary reason.

On October 13, 2011, the Opie and Anthony show's station was changed from the ViRUS to The Opie and Anthony Channel.

Run-ins with the FCC[link]

The Federal Communications Commission has twice fined O&A for broadcasting material deemed in violation of decency standards. The first fine involved several November 2000 – January 2001 airings of a jingle produced by Dru Boogie, a DJ/producer who regularly produces content for the show. The $21,000 fine also involved a segment of "Guess What's in My Pants", as well as a song titled, "I'm Horny for Little Girls".^[23] O&A's second FCC violation – the "Sex for Sam" broadcast – set a precedent for being the first time that a fine was issued to each individual station airing the alleged indecent material.^[24] The total was $357,500; $27,500 against each of the thirteen CBS Radio/Infinity-owned stations that broadcast the show.^[25] Infinity appealed both fines, after which its parent company Viacom made a $3.5 million settlement which canceled all pending indecency violations.^[26]

Program content[link]

This article may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (May 2008)

Opie and Anthony often comment on American sociopolitical and popular culture. Their "cringe" style of entertainment sometimes leads people to categorize them as "shock jocks". Hughes, Cumia and Norton broadcast for approximately four hours per day. Generally speaking, Opie sets the daily flow of the show and introduces topics, while Cumia and Norton provide color commentary. The show has few limits, and covers a wide array of topics interactively, with a great deal of time devoted to callers, and sound bites sent in by listeners. Some of the more hardcore O&A fans, nicknamed "Pests", have been known to go to extreme grassroots efforts to promote the show.

Friends and regular guests on the show include Adam Ferrara, Jim Jeffries, Joe DeRosa, Louis C.K., (who famously asked Donald Rumsfeld if he was a Mexican baby eating space lizard)^[27] Bill Burr, Brian Regan, Robert Kelly, Otto & George, Bob Saget, Rich Vos,^[28] Colin Quinn, Nick DiPaolo^[29] and Patrice O'Neal,^[30] all of whom have substituted for Norton when he has left New York to pursue his stand-up comedy and acting.

Frequent guests include Doug Stanhope, Stephen Lynch, Joe Rogan, Lazlow Jones, Jay Mohr, Kevin Smith and Mike Birbiglia. Host Anthony Cumia does impressions of various personalities such as Charlton Heston, Don West, Sylvester Stallone, Fred Flintstone, Bill Cosby, Ben Stein, Richard Nixon, Sam Kinison, Andrew Dice Clay, Tom Brokaw, Ronald Reagan, Mike Tyson, Tony Boselli, Tony Danza, Christopher Reeve, Ted Knight, Robert Reed, Regis Philbin, Vince McMahon (dubbed "Angry Vince" for the consistently violent tone of Anthony's voice in channeling McMahon's wrestling persona), Neil Diamond, Robin Williams, Winnie the Pooh, Popeye the Sailor, Don Imus, Marty McFly and The Greaseman. O&A's style and jokes typically target males in the 18–49 demographic.

The songs played at the beginning the O&A show are Ennio Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold" from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly followed by Rage Against the Machine's song "Street Fighting Man", a cover of the Rolling Stones' song of the same name.

Film references[link]

O&A's show features many inside jokes that a new listener may not immediately understand.^[31] There are many references to films,^[32] Boogie Nights being the most prominent. Other referenced films include Fargo, The Silence of the Lambs, Creepshow, The Accused, Predator, The Shining, American Psycho, Blazing Saddles, Fast Times At Ridgemont High, Smokey and the Bandit, Apocalypse Now, Bad Lieutenant, Ed Wood, Jaws, Platoon, A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket, Death Wish, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Schindler's List, Caddyshack, The Godfather, My Baby is Black, Mondo Topless, The Shawshank Redemption, Back to The Future, Sling Blade, Office Space, Caligula and anything starring Robert De Niro (most notably The King of Comedy).

Staff[link]

• Travis Tefft, Executive Producer – (aka T-Storm, Dr. Gay) – Former intern who became a regular staff member. Travis typically acts as the phone screener as well as providing minute-to-minute research. He is the acting 'Executive Producer'.
• Erik Nagel, Senior Producer – (aka Erock, Sex Bagel, Sex Man, Sexy, Sex) – Been with the show since the show's beginning at XM Radio. Co-Hosts 'Worst Of The Week Countdown' and the 'Worst-Of' shows. Erik is often a target of ridicule on the show, and does a character called 'The Virus' which stemmed from the annual Jocktober bit.
• Danny Ross, Senior Producer - Former intern who became a regular staff member. Danny originally started as a writer for former executive producer Steve Carlisi's web site, foundrymusic.com. Carlesi brought him on board as an intern. He is responsible for the show's daily content and has been the in-studio producer since 2008.
• Sam Roberts, Associate Producer – (aka Two Races, Prime Time Sam Roberts) – Former intern who became a regular staff member. Co-Hosts 'Worst Of The Week Countdown' and the 'Worst-Of' shows with Erock on weekends. He hosts 'After O&A Live', which airs from 10am to 11am on The Virus following the live show. Sam is involved in screening radio shows for Jocktober, and contributes regularly on-air when the subjects of professional wrestling and Scorch's PFG TV (a public access TV show, hosted by a former radio colleague of O&A's) come up. He now hosts 'After Opie & Anthony Live'
• John Feder, Security – (aka Club Soda Kenny) – A 22-year retiree of the West Orange, New Jersey Police Department, Kenny met O&A while working for Andrew Dice Clay. He was a part-time member of O&A's security staff since the summer of 2004, and joined O&A full-time in 2006 following his fully reinstated retirement. He is often ridiculed for his OCD and "oafish" demeanor.
• Troy Quan, Producer – Former intern known for his hipster lifestyle and for coming off as though he is in love with himself as well as various other side projects. Troy frequently DJ's in the Meat Packing district and in Pennsylvania. Troy gained notoriety as an intern for stealing a fellow intern's girlfriend. Following his internship, he became a phone screener and bit writer for O&A. Opie dislikes Troy because of his sense of fashion and hipster lifestyle.

Callers who became frequent guests[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2010)

• Pat from Moonachie (Patrick Philbin) – A 44-year-old, 340-pound self-employed courier with 9 toes (due to diabetes), who became a friend after winning O&A's first annual Eggnog Drinking Contest. Philbin consumed 71 double shots of eggnog and subsequently vomited. He is a competitive eater, ranked 19th in the world by the I.F.O.C.E^[33] and placed 10th in Nathan's Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest. The "Baby Bird" video which came about from the 2006 Eggnog Drinking Challenge earned him infamy and caused him to be barred from the I.F.O.C.E for his "effluvic interchange." Philbin's banishment was rescinded and he was eventually re-instated on December 6, 2006.^[34]
• Big A (Andrew Gold) - A Bronx cab driver with a speech impediment. (He has a severe stutter, especially when pronouncing words that begin with the "st" sound). Co-host of the 'Big A & Twitchels News Cast' segment. He has co-hosted the segment with show regular Bobo.
• Tom – Tom was discovered after they took a call from "an elvish sounding man". He is now the focus of "Is Tom alive? Friday", as Tom has a fatal lung disease, was kicked out of his apartment, and has had a broken back and lesioned spinal column; he was told by his doctor that he is now likely in his last year of life, however Tom has repeatedly claimed he will commit suicide to avoid the pain accompanying his passing. On June 12 of 2008 Tom called into the show to thank Opie and Anthony for the show and planned to kill himself. After talking with Tom, Opie, Anthony and Jim convinced him to unload his weapons and come on the show the following day. As of February 23, 2012, Tom is still alive and in better health.^[35]

Characters[link]

• Paul Harghhis/Hahrrgis – (AKA Uncle Paul) A character voiced by Jim Norton. Uncle Paul is a child molester with a creepy voice. Norton need only utter "huh?" or "yay!" in the voice to bring the character into a conversation, particularly one involving young children. Paul does not seem embarrassed by or even understand that his antics are inappropriate. He has demonstrated a hostile streak, as he yells at call-in guests or about "those goddamn meddling parents." Hahrrgis, along with Ted Scheckler were referenced in "The Substitute", the fourth episode of the sixth season of Lost. In the episode, a series of surnames associated with certain numbers were featured. Hargghis's number was 202, the XM channel number where the show can be heard.^[36]
• Steve from Yellowstone – (AKA Ben from Boston, Danny from W-Town, Jimmy from New Jersey, Erik from Breathtown, Po from Jersey, etc.) Fake characters that are voiced by Norton, occasionally used to mock bad guests on the phone or in-studio.
• Ted Sheckler – A character voiced by Jim Norton. Ted is an entrepreneur, said to own many odd boutique emporiums. He often recommends callers to purchase specific items at his emporiums. He also enjoys a variety of activities such as ghost hunting, light bulb manufacturing, race car driving, and serial killing by blowing second-hand smoke into crowds. The Sheckler character, along with Paul Hargghis were referenced in "The Substitute", the fourth episode of the sixth season of Lost. A series of surnames associated with certain numbers were featured in the episode. Sheckler's number was 197, the Sirius channel number where the show can be heard.^[37]
• Lyle Delmar "Chip" Chipperson – A character voiced by Jim Norton known for his horrendous jokes and frequent lies. He changed his name to Peppy Sinclair.
• Helen Bergeron – A character voiced by Jim Norton. Helen is an older Jewish woman who enjoys gossiping about celebrities and popular culture. She would be characterized as a "yenta". She usually says, "Helen Bergeron, signing off" when finished speaking.
• Edgar Mellencamp - Another character voiced by Norton, created primarily to annoy Norton's girlfriend. Edgar is known for his perpetually dry teeth, which he likes to have licked.
• The Virus – A character reluctantly voiced by "E-Rock". The character was "born" when Sam told a clueless but compliant E-rock to perform the character on the air. Virus is asked for comedic takes on daily events, but cannot come up with a punchline or any relevant material. When asked to say something amusing, there is merely a pregnant pause followed by a lame excuse, such as "You know I'm not good at this" or "The Virus is totally unprepared." Whenever he makes an appearance, the song "Baby Elephant Walk" is played.
• Bill Tetley – A fictional variety show host created by Jim Norton. (Jim uses the character to harass Anthony at home). Known for his horribly catchy theme song.

Other enterprises[link]

Demented World[link]

A CD released in November 1997 which includes a compilation of bits done on WAAF.

The Opie & Anthony Traveling Virus[link]

The Traveling Virus is a comedy tour headlined by Opie and Anthony, as well as friends of the show, that began in 2006. In its first year, it spanned several locations in the eastern United States during the summer. In 2007, it visited 10 cities through the spring and summer. It was an event they had discussed for many years, but were never able to bring it to fruition until they made their latest deal with CBS radio.

The 2008 Traveling Virus Tour was canceled in favor of one show, held at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey on August 2, 2008. On the morning of Monday, August 4, 2008, Opie stated that the August 2nd show in New Jersey would be "the last Traveling Virus show ever", due to the crowd consistently booing new comedians off the stage, causing established comedians to refuse to appear at the venue ^[38]

Search and Destroy[link]

On the morning of March 26, 2008, Opie & Anthony revealed they had taped a pilot for Comedy Central. The show is titled Search & Destroy and features teams of comedians performing various tasks throughout New York City.^[39] Opie and Anthony believe that it may have been too graphic even for cable television.^[39] Although Opie and Anthony considered the pilot a success, Comedy Central did not pick the show up.

Controversies[link]

• April Fool's Day: On April 1, 1998, while still on WAAF in Worcester, O&A announced that the mayor of Boston, Thomas Menino, had been killed in a car accident in Florida. Things became heated after Menino's daughter called the station believing the story to be true, and the duo was terminated the following week. During the early days of XM, Anthony stated that the intent of the April Fool's prank was to allow the duo to be released from their contract with WAAF. He also stated that the duo had illegal meetings with WNEW before the April Fool's prank. He prefaced these comments with "the statutes of limitations must be up on this." Despite the controversy that was started by the April Fool's Day prank, the duo was hired by WNEW-FM in New York City less than five months later.^[40]

• W.O.W.: During their WAAF years, O&A established "Whip 'em Out Wednesdays," which encouraged women to flash their breasts to anyone with a "W.O.W." sign. Consequently, it was common around Massachusetts to see cars with W.O.W. stickers, signs and even painted lettering. The campaign came to an end on WAAF in the summer of 1997, when the station forced the duo to discontinue the stunt and suspended the show for three weeks. W.O.W. has since been reintroduced to the show; W.O.W. stickers and signs are more common in O&A's biggest markets: New York and Boston. The campaign gained notoriety when a woman flashed the famous crowd fly-by camera during a broadcast of The Today Show.^[41] They are less visible in other markets, such as San Francisco, as they are more reluctant to back the W.O.W. promotion.

• Voyeur Bus: Fifteen participants in the show's "Voyeur Bus", including the driver, six dancers, and eight associates of the show, were arrested for disorderly conduct. The dancers had performed topless, fully visible through the vehicle's large transparent windows, which was driven along busy Manhattan streets. Charges against the eight associates were later dropped. New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani described the publicity stunt as "stupid." ^[42]

• Homeless Shopping Spree: In late 1999, shortly before Christmas, O&A held the first "Homeless Shopping Spree", which has since become an annual event. The bit involves a dozen of New York's homeless, who are each given several hundred dollars by the show and much more by the fans, and are taken to a posh shopping mall, most notably the Mall at Short Hills in Short Hills, New Jersey. They are allowed to buy whatever they want, including warm clothes and other items they could not normally afford, while being cheered on by the thousands of listeners who show up. In the 1999 Spree, the mall reacted by closing several of the nicer stores and eventually have the twelve homeless men removed from the mall by security. Boston mayor Thomas Menino expressed outrage at the event, declaring that the Homeless Shopping Spree degraded and humiliated the contestants, and that it was immoral to hold such an event on the same day the city was to do a census count of the homeless townspeople. The event was repeated at the same mall on December 16, 2006.^[43]

• "100 Grand": Early in the team's radio career, O&A announced a contest at WAAF in which the 107th caller would receive "100 Grand". They continued this bit throughout the show, careful not to say "$100,000", only "100 Grand". The 107th caller was ecstatic, believing that he had actually won $100,000, and exclaimed that he was planning to buy a new truck with his good fortune. He became furious when Opie informed him that the prize was merely a 100 Grand candy bar, and proceeded to curse loudly on the air, famously calling the duo "a bunch of douche bags."^[2]

• T&A with O&A: Opie and Anthony held a station-promoted beach party on the shores of Angola, NY (a suburb of the city of Buffalo) on Saturday July 13, 2002; they claimed 5,000 persons were in attendance. Several female attendees appeared nude or topless, and at least one inserted vegetables into various orifices. Buffalo officials quickly dispersed the crowd, warning O&A and crew not to return, lest they endure legal action. Additionally, FCC complaints were filed despite the event not being broadcast on any medium. Furthermore, reminiscing about the event on their July 25, 2011 show, Opie claimed that shortly after the event took place, management at WNEW informed the duo off-air that police in Erie County (who received over 250 complaints from area residents) had begun the process of securing warrants for their arrest over the incident. The aftermath went unrealized, as it was overshadowed by the more serious "Sex For Sam 3" incident roughly a month later.

• The Eggnog Drinking Challenge: An annual challenge where contestants have to drink as many shots of eggnog as possible before vomiting. On December 1, 2006, during the Challenge, Pat from Moonachie drank 75 double-shots of eggnog and subsequently vomited all over prospective intern Pat Duffy's mouth. This was dubbed the "Baby Bird" by Joe Rogan and became a hit on both the O&A website as well as Break.com due to YouTube's initial refusal to carry the video.^[44]

• Condoleezza Rice, Laura Bush & Queen Elizabeth II: A homeless man (Homeless Charlie) making a guest appearance on the XM version of the show described how he would like to have sex with the United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, First Lady Laura Bush, also calling Queen Elizabeth II "horse-faced", an act which the hosts joked could only happen through force.^[45] In the wake of the Don Imus firing, there was speculation that O&A might be fired following that segment that aired on their program May 9, 2007. On their Friday show, Opie and Anthony apologized for the bit by begrudgingly saying, "We apologize to the public officials for comments that were made on our XM show on May 9. We take very seriously the responsibility that comes with our creative freedom and regret any offense that this segment has caused."^[46] On May 15, 2007, XM suspended Opie and Anthony for 30 days.^[13]

• Donald Trump made a handful of calls to the show to promote his television series The Apprentice, and it appeared that relations between the radio show and Donald Trump were positive. However, Trump was later interviewed and called Opie and Anthony "two slobs" and swore never to appear on the show again, seemingly over a press release made by O&A that stated that Trump called them. Trump interpreted that statement as implying that he was desperate for media attention.^[47][48] Trump was supposed to call the show on January 10, 2008, but did not.

• Jesse Ventura: The Opie and Anthony Show hosted former Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura on December 2, 2009. During the show, a disagreement between co-host Jim Norton and Ventura erupted into an argument regarding the September 11 attacks, which Ventura has questioned the official account of, as well as the use of the military overseas. Ventura also suggested that Norton did not believe in the Constitution, which the latter strongly denied. Twenty minutes into the debate, Ventura walked off the air and the two exchanged explicit comments towards one another. As Ventura left the room where the show was being held, Norton said, "Fucking baby. Big fucking guy who doesn't like the little guy yelling."^[49]

• Weinergate Photo Release During his June 8, 2011 appearance, Andrew Breitbart showed Opie and Anthony a picture of Anthony Weiner's erect penis. A listener forwarded them a screenshot captured from their live Paltalk video feed, and Opie posted it on Twitter. Andrew Breitbart claimed to be very upset at what transpired.^[50] Opie had also taken a picture of the photo during the showing without the knowledge of Breitbart.

• Chris Kyle vs Jesse Ventura Former Navy Seal Chris Kyle appeared on the January 4, 2012 show promoting his book American Sniper. A listener called in to ask about Chris allegedly getting into a bar fight with former Governor and Navy Seal Jesse Ventura in 2006. Opie decided to ask Kyle about the rumor. Kyle was surprised by the question, and then confirmed that he did indeed punch Ventura at a bar in Coronado, California during a wake for Michael A. Monsoor, a Navy SEAL who had died in Iraq in 2006. Kyle claimed that Ventura was "letting it known that he didn't agree with the war." Kyle stated he went to Ventura and told him that most of the family members of Navy SEAL personnel who died were present, and it was not the time or the place to start talking about the war. To which Ventura replied that the SEALs "deserve to lose a few guys." This is when Kyle allegedly punched Ventura. After telling the story, radio personality Alex Jones, who is a friend of Ventura, claimed that Kyle was a "war monger" and that the whole interview was staged. This prompted a phone call by Kyle to the January 10, 2012 show by claiming he knew people who were present that will back him up on the story. Alex Jones then called the show and there was an argument to whose story was right.^[51] Ventura himself denied Kyle's accusations, saying that despite his opposition to the Iraq War, which ended weeks before the accusations against him emerged, he never had "spoken or wished any ill will towards the soldiers" who served in Iraq.^[52] Ventura also stated he would sue Kyle for defamation in court.^[53]

Stations[link]

The Opie & Anthony Show is heard on Sirius XM Radio, on XM channel 105, The Opie & Anthony Channel and on Sirius channel 206.

See also[link]

• The Opie & Anthony Channel
• The Opie and Anthony Show Army

References[link]

External links[link]

Official Sites

• SiriusXM (XM105/Sirius206 "The Opie & Anthony Channel" – The Opie & Anthony Channel Homepage.)
• Opie and Anthony on Myspace
• OA Pedia A fan made Opie and Anthony Encyclopedia.