Ladies and Gentlemen
—
The Phil Hendrie Show!
By Lars Trodson
I was googling down the radio dial some months ago —
searching for something, anything, to listen to — and
I only had to briefly and lightly touch upon any show I came
across to know I didn’t want to visit very long.
I
heard the grating voice of Laura Ingraham saying — "…and
that liberal blowhard Ted Kennedy —" Click.
Millionaire Rush Limbaugh saying — "…and what
the liberal media elite won’t tell you about Ted Kennedy
is —" Click.
The subtle voice of Howie Carr wafted over the airwaves,
"… and Ted Kennedy down there in Washington —"
(heard with sound effects of a beer being poured.) Click.
Sean Hannity (who is still upset the verb ‘Hannitize’
never, ever caught on) reminded listeners, "…while
trashing Judge Alito, Ted Kennedy must have taken the time
to forget Chappa-" Click.
I then heard Mike Savage asking people to "…tell
Ted Kennedy that liberalism is a mental disorder…"
Click.
Bill
O’Reilly offered the enlightened position that
"…Ted Kennedy is a pinhead —" Click.
Matt Drudge took the time to tell his listeners that "…Clinton
defender Ted Kennedy fell on the floo-" Click.
Ann Coulter, the lawyer, can never forget that "…Harvard
kicked Ted Kennedy out of —" Click.
Click. Click. Click.
Oh, my God! Really! Ack! Who has time to listen to any of
that? I’ll save you some time: liberals are terrible
people, awful people, with no morals, (if not downright treasonous).
Don’t vote for them. There. I’ve saved you hours
of valuable time this week.
And then something strange happened. I stopped googling.
(I know, I know; I’m just using that word because it
amuses me). As I was about to go on to the next station, I
hesitated in order to listen to the strangest interview I
had ever heard on the radio.
A kid by the name of RC Collins, who claimed to be a military
cadet, was complaining about having to go to a concert in
a classmate’s car, which he considered beneath him when
his own parents had a BMW at home they wouldn’t let him
drive. I could not for the life of me make heads or tails
out of the conversation, but suddenly, inexplicably, I started
to laugh. Not just mild little titters, but body-rocking convulsive
laughs.
What was this?
It was, ladies and gentleman, Phil
Hendrie. And I found him on the dial at 930 AM, WGIN
out of little old Rochester, N.H. at 10 p.m. each weekday.
Hendrie’s syndicated show is based out of California.
Now, after my first initiation to Hendrie, I went back night
after night to further my understanding of this incredible
show, and each night the same, odd thing happened … I
could not stop laughing at these truly odd, twisted interviews
Hendrie was conducting over the airwaves. First, I couldn’t
fathom where he actually found these whackos and second, I
couldn’t imagine why they stayed on the air so long.
Like the guy on an anti-drug crusade who was found with a
pound of pot in the back of his truck — a stash he later
blamed on his own son to get out of the charge. Or the man
who claimed that all men should have the DNA of their children
tested as a way to get back at their wives.
These people stay on the phone with Hendrie long enough to
get some calls from outraged listeners, and the responses
to these callers are truly demented. The conversations are
almost insanely entertaining — and way off-color sometimes,
I must say — and each night I have to take the headphones
off because rather than falling into slumber I tend to be
laughing myself further awake. So I have to quit about 90
minutes in.
It turns out there is a secret to all these interviews. It’s
shtick, for sure, but great shtick, done with heart and soul,
and I was, in fact, even more in awe of Hendrie’s talent
after I found out how he actually pulled these things off.
I won’t tell you what it is — you can find out easily
enough on the Internet — but I suggest you listen in
for a few sessions just as I did before you get too knowledgeable
about the whole proceedings.
I think Phil Hendrie is one of those great and true American
entertainers. He’s the descendant of Edgar Bergen and
Sid Caesar and Red Skelton and Flip Wilson and anybody else
who had the notion that comedy can come in many different
voices and guises. He’s a guy who has obviously honed
his craft over the years, paid attention to what he’s
doing and how he’s doing it (just like those earlier
guys), and is committed to the idea that if you spend any
time at all listening to his show he’s going to give
you your money’s worth. He should be an American institution
and I think in some comedy circles he may be considered as
such.
Give The Phil Hendrie Show a listen (and turn your political
education over to the local issues in your town rather than
listening to those national shows) — and phone in to
tell Hendrie you want to hear ‘We Built this City (On
Rock and Roll’) by Jefferson Starship sometime. I’ll
be listening in, amused to no end, with what he has to say
to that.
Lars Trodson can be reached at larstrodson@comcast.net.
Any and all criticisms about the blandness of radio do not
apply to the great local station WSCA-LP, 106.1 on your immediate
FM dial.