Conway Jr.---Foot in mouth again

[calguy]

Tim Conway Jr. really blew it tonight. He insulted a soldier whose mother welcomed him home with new upholstery for his car.

He made fun of the mother for being cheap. He didn't do his homework either as the soldier was home on emergency leave because his cousin was sick and dying. He sure tried to back pedal once the soldier and his mom called. It was horrible. I just don't understand why people think this unprepared guy with the overblown ego is good. Once you get past "What Did Jessie Say?" feature what's left of this guys show? He had the balls to say that this is the 1st mistake he's made in his 15 years of broadcasting. What the..? I'm just so incensed that he would do this to a man fighting for our country and to his mother on top of it...

 

[SimiRadioListener26]

Tim Conway Jr. really blew it tonight. He insulted a soldier whose mother welcomed him home with new upholstery for his car.

He made fun of the mother for being cheap. He didn't do his homework either as the soldier was home on emergency leave because his cousin was sick and dying. He sure tried to back pedal once the soldier and his mom called. It was horrible. I just don't understand why people think this unprepared guy with the overblown ego is good. Once you get past "What Did Jessie Say?" feature what's left of this guys show? He had the balls to say that this is the 1st mistake he's made in his 15 years of broadcasting. What the..? I'm just so incensed that he would do this to a man fighting for our country and to his mother on top of it...

Not to mention it sounds like he doesn't have an appreciation for good car upholstery, either because he's never had a car with bad upholstery or because he's dead inside. As someone with an old car, I think new upholstery would be sweet. To be fair, though, I guess being dead inside is what you get from having a large family with a mom who's depressed and angry all the time and a dad who's working all the time.

 

[calguy]

Tim Conway Jr. really blew it tonight. He insulted a soldier whose mother welcomed him home with new upholstery for his car.

He made fun of the mother for being cheap. He didn't do his homework either as the soldier was home on emergency leave because his cousin was sick and dying. He sure tried to back pedal once the soldier and his mom called. It was horrible. I just don't understand why people think this unprepared guy with the overblown ego is good. Once you get past "What Did Jessie Say?" feature what's left of this guys show? He had the balls to say that this is the 1st mistake he's made in his 15 years of broadcasting. What the..? I'm just so incensed that he would do this to a man fighting for our country and to his mother on top of it...

Not to mention it sounds like he doesn't have an appreciation for good car upholstery, either because he's never had a car with bad upholstery or because he's dead inside. As someone with an old car, I think new upholstery would be sweet. To be fair, though, I guess being dead inside is what you get from having a large family with a mom who's depressed and angry all the time and a dad who's working all the time.

That sounds like a lot of families. He's not unique in that respect...

 

[Robnoxious]

New feature!

What the Hell did the Tuck and Roll Say?

 

[karldotcom]

Yeah, that was painful listening.

 

[notmenoti]

I once dated a man who reupholstered the seats in my car. I was thrilled! I'm sure the soldier was pleased too. Something like that can make an older car look better and feel more comfortable.

 

[von nupkins]

Re: Jr. SHOULD be suspended!

Simply speaking, due to lack of time at this moment, "Jr." SHOULD be suspended for at least as long as John and Ken were off the air due to their "Whitney/crack whore" comment. Or to be more precise, John's comment.. (Which he DID come on his own afternoon show with Bill Handel filling in, and apologize for).

Friday night's comments and attempt at humor by "Jr." was actually worse, since the people he was attempting to make fun of were ALIVE, LISTENING and ready to respond.. And good for them that they did! Kudos to the Klein family!

And while we're handing out "atta boys" here, I'll take this time to thank Calguy for his insight and his more eloquent observations about a poor excuse for a broadcaster.

Go ahead Robin! Show us that you have the nerve and backbone to take the BULL by the horns and do so easily to "Jr." what you were so quick (and right) to do to J + K.

The rest of us in this business, and some of the outraged listeners are waiting..

Thanks for your time,

Von Nupkins

 

[von nupkins]

Re: "Jr." and his attempt at "show fodder" with no reserach.

Remembering a few things from Friday night's debacle on KFI. (Now that I'm on a roll and the memories are too sharp and painful to ignore)..

"Jr." (only after being caught in the act) "apologized" for not knowing that the soldier's cousin was in a hospital, near death. A bit of reasearch would've cleared THAT up!

He "apologized" to the soldier's mother, who held her ground and who was a lot more gracious than most of us would've been under the circumstances. She told him that he ought to THINK about other's feelings BEFORE he decided to make fun of things he really didn't have a grasp of. I heard some murmers from "Jr." and Steckler was actually up front about what had gone wrong with "Jr's" thinking, etc..

Thought that was interesting because it probably wasn't Steckler's idea to do the bit.. I just get the feeling he follows whatever attempt at "content" 'Jr.' comes up with. That's when he's not betting on the ponies to make up for something that he's lacking as an adult. Oh, the list goes on.. Don't let me roll on too much with all of "Jr's" psychological ticks and problems. That would certainly take up a LOT of room here, that we don't have patience for. We'll leave THOSE observations to his Psychologist, when he gets around to admitting that he's nowhere the man his father is, and that maybe he should stop trying.

And the ultimate insult while talking to Mrs. Klein on the phone, badly back-peddling all the way:

Explaining to her that he didn't have a good relationship with HIS mother, so making fun of other's parents/mothers, whatever, is where he gets his anger or "ideas" that it's OK. Especially when "Jr." didn't do research to find out WHY the son, (the soldier) was given emergency leave, and what hassles the soldier's mother HAD to go through to even GET the car, upholstery done and finished in time.

Yep! Those of us IN the industry and more than a few on the outside are convinced that "Jr" wouldn't be on the air, if his last name wasn't associated with his father. And we can be sure that Dad didn't raise "Jr." to make fun of motherhood, those who cannot afford a new car, soldiers fighting for their country, or anyone else who's basically got more backbone and courage than "Jr." ever had in his dreams.

That's why you've NEVER heard anything even close to this attitude and behavior about Mr. Conway Sr. That's because he's beloved, respected, hard working and the total opposite of what turned out to be #1 son.. Funny how that happens. Guess "Jr" knows secretly that he really takes after his mom, who he's stated on the air, was a miserable person, who he didn't get along with. Self-hatred? Maybe. Idiot on the air, FOR SURE!

So, "Jr" tells his audience Friday evening that "when he makes a mistake, he puts in the front wiondow for everyone to see." Understand, there are a lot of us who've been in this business way before "Jr." attended Portola Jr. High, which he's fond of reminding us of. Weekly, if not more. Thanks for the repetition, "Jr.". We almost forgot what a "country bumpkin from the flats" that you are.. Except that you remind us, if not daily, weekly or hourly..

You're right, "Jr." You DID run out of material years ago. Shame on Jack Silver for not ever seeming to pull you aside and tell you the do's and don'ts of good radio work and what's acceptable behavior and what's not. Oh, and one more thing..

You mentioned that you'd take your lazy backside down to Orange County and apologize in person to the Klein family. Really? Really? You've gotta be kidding! You think they want YOU in their living room, after insulting the entire family days before? You think bringing the Klein family a couple of orange KFI 640 AM 'post it' note pads is really going to do the trick? Nice, "Jr."

Go ahead, Robin.. Stand up for what's right or dissapoint us, just on morals and proper action in the face of one of your employees turning a :30 mention into a 45 minute back-peddling apology that rang hollow for the rest of the thinking audience.

More to come,

Von Nupkins

 

[MC]

He called Chris Mathews of MSNBC "diabetes boy" thought he would get some heat for that.

I would not criticise any military person for anything ...a third rail.

Conway complains about the celebrity culture, but that is half his show.

 

[SimiRadioListener26]

Ouch. Let me say that I'm disappointed at how much Conway's show has gone off the rails since it left KLSX and am no longer a listener. I also agree that what he did was wrong. That all being said, I think some of us have gone overboard in attacking him (not me, even though I called him "dead inside"). Just say "Junior's Junior" or "Conway's Conway" (as Adam Carolla says, it's a veiled way of calling someone an a-hole) and leave it at that.

 

[LKellerIII]

Call me modern, but I think of re-upholstering a car much like re-painting a car. Nobody does that anymore. The cost of reupholstering or painting exceeds the value of the car, in most cases. Unless it's a 57 Chevy (or a similar classic), it's a waste of money.

And in the last couple of decades, factory original upholstery and paint jobs are much higher quality. It's pretty rare that seats rip, or paint fades. Same with mufflers. If you'll notice, Midas emphasizes the other work they do on cars now, not mufflers, because those generally last the life of the car.

Having said that, I guess Conway shouldn't have dissed the mama, because anything dissing a soldier or veteran is considered "unpatriotic."

 

[ChannelFlipper]

Call me modern, but I think of re-upholstering a car much like re-painting a car. Nobody does that anymore. The cost of reupholstering or painting exceeds the value of the car, in most cases. Unless it's a 57 Chevy (or a similar classic), it's a waste of money.

And in the last couple of decades, factory original upholstery and paint jobs are much higher quality. It's pretty rare that seats rip, or paint fades. Same with mufflers. If you'll notice, Midas emphasizes the other work they do on cars now, not mufflers, because those generally last the life of the car.

Having said that, I guess Conway shouldn't have dissed the mama, because anything dissing a soldier or veteran is considered "unpatriotic."

"Having said that, I guess Conway shouldn't have dissed the mama, because anything dissing a soldier or veteran is considered unpatriotic."

Fixed it for you. Your welcome.

 

[von nupkins]

Re: "Jr." is just being "Jr." I guess.

In response to the last post about "going overboard..." Let me see if I understand you correctly.. It's OK if "Jr." calls someone an "A-hole" on his show and he uses the term. (and THAT is a weekly, if not a daily process) But IF I refer to him as "Jr." it's offensive and shouldn't be done? Am I getting the jist of your post?

Hmmmm... Defending the culprit rather than understanding the affliction.. Interesting.

OK, I'll meet you half way, for the sake of argument and not to ruffle too many "Jr." sniffers and TC apologists..

From this point on, this journalist will not refer to the "host" of the 7-10 pm weekday slot on KFI by "Jr." I shall delete the quotes around the "suffix." From this post on, he will be referred to in MY writings, as just Jr. In fact, I'll do you one better. I'll save myself a step and just refer to him as jr, without the capital 'J'. We all know who we're talking about, right?

Really, I'm very dissapointed in myself. Used to have a very sharp memory for dates and times, etc.. With age (and YES, if I was doing good radio before jr was in Jr High) comes a few lapses in memory here or there. When jr first started with KFI, I was willing to give him a chance and more than just a few listens to get what he was attempting to do with his time slot.. It's NOT a "show" per se`. It's his time slot.. A show is supposed to be "entertaining." A time slot filled by just warm bodies CAN be entertaining or just an audio train wreck.

Guess which side I come out on?

And some radio professionals I know and work with have the same opinion.. He wouldn't have lasted at KLSX if it weren't for Steckler, and secretly he knows that. He wouldn't have lasted there IF his last name wasn't tied to his father's reputation and name in his chosen field. He has #'s NOW. I predict that jr will be jr's OWN undoing.. Sort of like that great hire Robin thrusted upon us. John Ziegler. What a self-aggrandizing sycophant he turned out to be!

Kind of ironic that he tried to OUT people after he was jettisoned from KFI. The truth of the matter was for the last couple of years or so, he was doing his show out of a studio, about the size of a small closet in Sherman Oaks, after being banished from the CC building in Burbank. Ironic, yes! Sort of like jr making fun of people, not doing his reserach, blaming it (probably) on Misty, and going home and having a couple of pops feeling better about his work than his audience.

Getting back to my memory.. I used to keep a mental log of all the screw ups and mis-statements, wrong info., and just plain lies that jr. was putting out on a weekly basis. Can't keep track anymore.. Just too damn many to count. Like Calguy said in an earlier post.. If you take away "What The H___ did Jesse say?" what do ya have?

 

[SimiRadioListener26]

Re: "Jr." is just being "Jr." I guess.

Let me see if I understand you correctly.. It's OK if "Jr." calls someone an "A-hole" on his show and he uses the term. (and THAT is a weekly, if not a daily process) But IF I refer to him as "Jr." it's offensive and shouldn't be done? Am I getting the jist of your post?

Uh...No, not at all. That is so far from my point. How in the world did you get that from what I wrote? ???

 

[von nupkins]

Please be specific. I thought you mentioned in your post that some people (referring to me) were going "overboard" by calling him "Jr." and that we should call him Conway's Conway, etc. etc..

My point was if HE calls himself "Jr." then why I can't I refer to him as "Jr.?"

And that quoting Corolla, it's as if I'm calling him an A-hole by doing that. Did I mis-interpret your post or did I not read something between the lines that you were trying to say?

I'm open to being corrected if there was something that I missed.

 

[SimiRadioListener26]

Please be specific. I thought you mentioned in your post that some people (referring to me) were going "overboard" by calling him "Jr." and that we should call him Conway's Conway, etc. etc..

No, I meant you were going overboard with the personal attacks and calling for his suspension. I didn't say calling him "Jr." was a personal attack. I said, just say "Conway's Conway" or "Junior's Junior" (or however you want to spell the latter). It's an Adam Carolla joke: when you want to be subtle and concise about calling someone an a-hole, say "X is X". I just meant that there was too much piling on for what was ultimately a mistake that he apologized for, that the incident only deserved a few brief comments and not a wall of text about what a jerk and a hack he is. And now I'VE spent too much time going all meta on this discussion. Later.

 

[robnokshus06]

What Simi means by "Conway's Conway" is not the possesive but the contraction of "Conway is" as in; "Conway is Conway" or "That's just Conway being Conway."

 

[henry]

The very fact this blew up means KFI is on track. During the J&K Whitney incident, the first word out of my uncle's mouth when I pulled into his driveway during an LA visit was: "Did you hear what happened to John and Ken today?"

Anyone who knows Hollywood knows buzz is good. Even bad buzz. We can spend an eternity questioning the sincerity of Conway and Steckler's apology. But like an episode of The Office, the awkwardness made for a really good hour of radio.

Producers obsess over trying to find bits that make a listener say "huh?" and turn up the volume. I certainly did that. Well played Misty & Company! And to TCJ's credit, he offered to drive over and apologize in person. I can't see John Kobylt offering to do that.

 

[calguy]

You know I’m thinking that “Jr.” gets a pass a lot of the time here on RI. He defiantly has his fans, and you can excuse him all you want and talk about how it was a good hour of radio. I however don’t listen to him that often because I don’t really think that much of him, but when I do it’s not to hear him stumble through a show. I don’t liken him to Howard Stern who had haters that tuned in any way to hear what he would say next. Besides, Howard is actually informed. What was on the air on KFI was awful, and if “Jr.” actually did a little prep before shooting his mouth off he might have avoided the whole mess. But really, he never is prepared. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard him spout erroneous information, or like last Friday, just out right blow it. Make no mistake, he blew it. And he HAD to apologize because he’d been confronted by the very people he was making fun of. And you can spin it that this is his act and part of his charm when he comes up empty and gives his “I don’t really know, maybe a listener can enlighten me” disclaimer, but I’m not buying it. He doesn’t do his homework, plain and simple. I've always liked his dad, still do, but I can’t give him a pass here because he's his son, not this time. I’m sure Robin will, because everyone thinks he’s brilliant and oh so cute and cuddly that they just have to let it go, and that’s exactly what happened I’m sure. Now if he had been filling in for John & Ken and done this, he may have gotten bit, but it’s a whole different audience, so he gets away with it. I think the new poster, von nupkins has been listening a while and decided he’d had enough, and I understand and he does seem to have a grasp of what's going on.

I will give "Jr." credit in one area, if I want to know about card rooms and horse racing, he’s the man, but I don’t.

 

[von nupkins]

Re: Appreciate all responses !

Just want to say THANKS to robnokshus06 for the clarification of what Simi-dude was trying to say.. I understand your explanation, 5 X 5. For some reason, it wasn't clear in previous posts.

As far as "piling on" goes, one guesses that ANY accurate information relayed about jr's nightly performance, wall of mistakes and foot in mouth disease is now considered "piling on?" Once again, interesting.

Maybe my posts are not really for "jr. sniffers" or "jr. apologists." So be it.

As far as I can reckon, THIS is a free speech (yes, within limits) board. The expression of thoughts and ideas, along with ackowledging someone on the air who is in over his head is NOT against the law. Please feel free to let me know when I break whatever law I'm not aware of. Will be more than glad to take a step back, apologize or re-think anything this journalist has written, in order to come into line with present day guidelines.

As far as jr. goes, let's get the latest blunder out of the way, so we can turn to what seems to be tolerated on air behavior from the KFI programming dept. See: good for the goose, not good for the gander.

Monday night within the 1st half hour, jr. mentioned in some semi coherent attempt at knowledge that the late TV news anchor Tom Snyder, was probably not even in Los Angeles in the mid 60's. Wrong again, jr! Mr. Snyder was with KTLA and their news dept. in 1963. Nice research, again. Mr. Snyder was reporting on a Saturday afternoon about the Baldwin Hills Dam disaster. That would've been in mid-December, I believe.

Yeah, we know. You were just a "country bumpkin from the flats in the Valley." We know. We hear it all the time. Doesn't make any sense, but we hear it all the time. That A-D-D of his should really be checked professionally. Yeah, you were still in diapers in '63, so no one would've expected you to know about the dam breaking, Mr. Snyder reporting on it, or the first use of a news helicopter showing actual rescues.

There's this thing called the internet, maybe you've caught wind of it? And if not, maybe a bio somewhere in a BOOK or another place re: Mr. Snyder's career would've helped out. Just a thought. I could keep you from making a fool out of yourself on a daily basis, but listening to you drone on about what YOU THINK you know, without so much as a fact-check is really more amusing!

Then, to add insult to injury, jr. proceeds to tell the audience that he likes everyone over at KNBC TV News, and proceeds to TRY and name everyone, and misses. BIG TIME! Hey, jr., I know you're just a country.... never mind.. You mentioned Connie Chung being over there. So unless you were stroking out from those fake ciggys you keep talking about, you'd HAVE to know that Connie Chung was NEVER at Channel 4, but WAS at Channel 2 in the 70's. Unless that was your attempt at humor, which like most of your stuff, misses the mark, while people are thinking you don't really know what you're talking about. Nothing new here. People (on or off the air) who continually enjoy talking about things they know very little or nothing about are folks who just enjoy hearing the sound of their own voice. And they're rarely wrong. Right?

We'll address the difference between suspending J + K and my calling for jr's suspension in another post. They are two different items entirely. Just don't want to offend the "jr. sniffers" and "jr. apologists" in one onslaught. Don't want to seem like I'm "piling on" just for pointing out what a hack he is or has become.

People make mistakes. I get it.. Made many of my own, and don't mind being held responsible for them. But, as jr. is so fond of reminding us (again and again) that the whole joke about "What the H____ did Jesse say" is the fact that Jesse is a "public speaker" with seemingly NO public speaking skills. That's the irony, eh, jr?

And the person making that statement about one of his own (one of his ONLY) original bits, is a guy who nightly, has a problem with public speaking and in turn, stumbles all over himself with almost EVERY sentence. Listen closely if ya don't believe me.

We're just pointing out the obvious to those who haven't noticed. That's what we're here for.