WEBVTT - Series Finale 0:00:00.040 --> 0:00:02.759 If you missed any episodes of Russia Limbar The Man 0:00:02.800 --> 0:00:06.120 behind the Golden e I B Microphone, you've missed more 0:00:06.200 --> 0:00:10.400 great stories from some of Russia's closest friends, family, and colleagues. 0:00:10.760 --> 0:00:14.720 All previous episodes are available now on I Heart Radio 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:22.600 or wherever you listen to your podcast. Well here we are, folks, 0:00:22.720 --> 0:00:25.040 were at the last episode of Russian Lumbar The Man 0:00:25.120 --> 0:00:28.240 behind the Golden the IB microphone, and I wish, I 0:00:28.440 --> 0:00:30.840 wish we could get to all of the stories that 0:00:30.960 --> 0:00:34.400 still remain out there that we just don't have time 0:00:34.479 --> 0:00:37.760 to do with this series. And this is just a 0:00:37.920 --> 0:00:42.760 small drop in the ocean of what Russia's life was. 0:00:43.120 --> 0:00:47.280 He impacted so many people and so many Americans and 0:00:47.360 --> 0:00:50.800 people around the world. We hope you've enjoyed this series, 0:00:51.000 --> 0:00:54.040 and we hope you'll enjoy this final episode. We've got 0:00:54.040 --> 0:00:55.640 a lot of different people we're gonna talk to on 0:00:55.720 --> 0:01:00.240 this final episode, and we saved our broadcast engineer, Mike Moan, 0:01:00.320 --> 0:01:02.880 who has been the longest serving engineer with the Russian 0:01:03.040 --> 0:01:06.480 VALL program for the last episode. We hope you'll enjoy 0:01:06.560 --> 0:01:08.920 hearing from Mike, who's been one of my friends for 0:01:09.000 --> 0:01:13.759 almost three decades, pretty incredible. In addition to talking with Micromone, 0:01:13.760 --> 0:01:16.160 we're gonna hear from several different people, some guests, host 0:01:16.520 --> 0:01:19.200 some former colleagues, and we've got a few surprises for 0:01:19.240 --> 0:01:23.200 you as well. And that's all coming up in this episode. 0:01:25.319 --> 0:01:27.520 Whether you listened every day you are at the E 0:01:27.600 --> 0:01:30.399 I V Network and the Russia Limball Program heard on 0:01:30.480 --> 0:01:33.440 over six hundred great radio stations for every now and 0:01:33.480 --> 0:01:35.959 then nation's leading radio and talk show, the most eagerly 0:01:36.000 --> 0:01:39.400 into Sumpter program in American the stories you've never heard 0:01:39.440 --> 0:01:41.960 from the people behind the scenes who knew him best 0:01:42.200 --> 0:01:46.040 and loved him most. Rushilyan Ball having more fundly human being, 0:01:46.120 --> 0:01:48.520 it could be allowed to hear Rush Limbaugh, the man 0:01:48.720 --> 0:01:54.560 behind the Golden e IP microphone, hosted by James Golden. Hey, 0:01:54.640 --> 0:01:57.360 James Golden here. You might remember I told you a 0:01:57.440 --> 0:01:59.560 few weeks ago that my pillow had sent me there 0:01:59.760 --> 0:02:04.200 entire higher collection. Well, you know what, it's amazing. They 0:02:04.200 --> 0:02:08.320 are so luxurious, and it's time that you experience some 0:02:08.440 --> 0:02:12.079 of that luxury. To my pillow makes more than pillows. 0:02:12.200 --> 0:02:14.480 I love the pillow, I sleep on it every night. 0:02:14.680 --> 0:02:17.120 But you know what else they have. They have sheets 0:02:17.160 --> 0:02:22.040 that are simply incredible. 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That's my pillow dot Com promo code icon. 0:03:07.120 --> 0:03:09.840 On this episode of Russia Number the man behind the 0:03:09.880 --> 0:03:12.560 Golden E I B microphone, we are pleased to have 0:03:13.040 --> 0:03:18.640 Mike Mamone broadcast engineer, the longest serving broadcast engineer with 0:03:18.639 --> 0:03:22.840 the Russian Lumba program, and welcome Mr. A. Maimon. Well, 0:03:22.840 --> 0:03:26.680 thank you for having me. Yes, now you have the distinction, 0:03:27.000 --> 0:03:31.960 Mike Mamone, of being the only engineer in America that 0:03:32.160 --> 0:03:36.040 is responsible for a billion dollar business that you have 0:03:36.200 --> 0:03:39.080 no part of. I want to kind of go through 0:03:39.160 --> 0:03:41.920 that story for a minute, and that would be the 0:03:42.040 --> 0:03:47.040 story of Snapple. Tell us about Mike Mamone, Snapple and 0:03:47.080 --> 0:03:51.160 the Russia Lumba program. Well, all right downstair. I used 0:03:51.200 --> 0:03:55.560 to take the Long Island Railroad into into the studio 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:58.480 because at that time the Network studio was at Twopen 0:03:58.600 --> 0:04:02.960 Plaza and pen Plaza is you know, is always just 0:04:03.200 --> 0:04:06.080 it's a hole, it's a pit, it's a horrible, horrible 0:04:06.080 --> 0:04:09.880 place to be. But at that time, they sold the 0:04:09.920 --> 0:04:12.320 most amazing, you know, the deli's in there sold the 0:04:12.360 --> 0:04:17.200 most amazing assortment of beverages. So I found Snapple one 0:04:17.279 --> 0:04:20.839 day and it's like, oh, raspberry iced tea, this looks good, 0:04:21.200 --> 0:04:24.680 and they sold cups of ice. So I started, you know, 0:04:24.760 --> 0:04:27.279 I would buy one and you know, bring it to 0:04:27.279 --> 0:04:29.159 work and drink it. And then you know, after like 0:04:29.200 --> 0:04:31.320 a couple of weeks, rush he says, he says, what 0:04:31.520 --> 0:04:33.920 is that? He says, that looks that looks really good. 0:04:33.960 --> 0:04:36.440 And I said, I said, it's Snapple. I said it's 0:04:36.600 --> 0:04:40.280 iced tea. I'll bring you one tomorrow. So I brought him, 0:04:40.360 --> 0:04:41.760 you know, so the next day I brought him one 0:04:41.800 --> 0:04:45.599 and it's like he's like, wow, this is fantastic. So 0:04:45.640 --> 0:04:48.000 he goes down the air and he starts, you know, 0:04:48.080 --> 0:04:51.160 expounding on how wonderful it is. And then so every 0:04:51.240 --> 0:04:53.520 day then I would bring him, you know, I would 0:04:53.520 --> 0:04:56.480 get one and bring one for him. So after, you know, 0:04:56.680 --> 0:04:59.160 after a while, after one of these long spiels about 0:04:59.160 --> 0:05:01.479 how wonderful it was, and he would always make the 0:05:01.480 --> 0:05:04.200 the uh, the big show of sipping it. And it's like, 0:05:04.279 --> 0:05:07.719 oh m, this is what such wonderful stuff. So I 0:05:07.760 --> 0:05:09.680 made it. I taped it one day and I gave 0:05:09.720 --> 0:05:11.240 it to one of the salespeople. I said, why don't 0:05:11.240 --> 0:05:15.840 you go do something with dicks and he did so, 0:05:15.960 --> 0:05:20.039 and that's what happened, and then it went through the roof. 0:05:20.320 --> 0:05:23.599 It went through the roof exactly right now. At the time, 0:05:23.680 --> 0:05:27.560 Snapple was a local beverage. This was a company that 0:05:27.680 --> 0:05:30.120 was a quote, a local company. I don't know whether 0:05:30.160 --> 0:05:32.599 they would New York, New Jersey or Connecticut, but it was. 0:05:32.960 --> 0:05:36.440 They were making Snapple. It did not have a national 0:05:36.520 --> 0:05:39.719 presence at all. And so Rush was talking about this 0:05:39.920 --> 0:05:44.440 amazing iced tea on a national show even though it 0:05:44.480 --> 0:05:47.200 was local. Their phones started ringing. It's like, where can 0:05:47.240 --> 0:05:50.680 we get this? Where can we get this? So then 0:05:50.839 --> 0:05:53.040 it suddenly it was everywhere. And then you know, they 0:05:53.040 --> 0:05:55.920 got they took Wendy the snapp a lady. I mean, 0:05:55.920 --> 0:05:58.279 but the thing that made Snapple different was that it 0:05:58.400 --> 0:06:02.440 also had they had a different that of distributing the product. Um. 0:06:02.480 --> 0:06:05.360 So it's like everything seemed to be very local. And 0:06:05.400 --> 0:06:09.360 then uh, they took the company public. And I know 0:06:09.400 --> 0:06:11.320 that Russia. I know that Russia got stuck in and 0:06:11.360 --> 0:06:16.560 I was thinking, it's like damn and Snapple road rode 0:06:16.600 --> 0:06:18.960 the way for you know, for a good long time 0:06:19.279 --> 0:06:24.240 until they sold out to Quaker Oats. So, Mike mamone, 0:06:24.440 --> 0:06:27.800 you are in a way responsible for the iced T 0:06:28.120 --> 0:06:32.039 craze that has taken America by storm. Okay, so you're 0:06:32.080 --> 0:06:34.920 the broadcast engineer for Russilan Bars program. You are the 0:06:35.000 --> 0:06:39.119 broadcast engineer, the longest serving engineer on the most listen 0:06:39.160 --> 0:06:42.560 to radio program in American history. Tell us what your 0:06:42.640 --> 0:06:47.120 day is like? What do you do? Okay? Um, basically, 0:06:47.320 --> 0:06:52.760 I every element that you hear that is not Russia's 0:06:52.839 --> 0:06:57.880 voice gets mixed in by me. So everything everything that was, 0:06:58.000 --> 0:07:00.560 as you said, that was not Russia's voice in some 0:07:00.600 --> 0:07:05.760 way or another, you touched on that show. You as 0:07:05.800 --> 0:07:08.560 I said, you you're the longest serving broadcast engineer that 0:07:08.640 --> 0:07:10.680 we have had on the staff. What do you think 0:07:10.760 --> 0:07:14.320 Russia's legacy is going to be, Well, the legacy of 0:07:14.560 --> 0:07:19.200 you know, of the man who basically saved, saved a 0:07:19.400 --> 0:07:24.640 M radio and recreated talk radio into a you know, 0:07:24.760 --> 0:07:28.520 into a major political force. I mean, that's that's a 0:07:28.520 --> 0:07:32.400 pretty big one. You know. He will oh well, I 0:07:32.400 --> 0:07:35.360 mean we will remember him as being the kind of 0:07:35.400 --> 0:07:38.720 giving things which you know, not enough people will ever 0:07:38.840 --> 0:07:43.600 know about, you know, his charitable gift giving and the 0:07:43.720 --> 0:07:47.200 organizations that that he is that he is supported throughout 0:07:47.240 --> 0:07:51.400 the years, like you know, likely Leukemian Foma Society, m 0:07:51.480 --> 0:07:54.400 cleff and you know all the other things. It's like 0:07:55.240 --> 0:07:57.960 nobody would ever you know, it's like I know, and 0:07:58.000 --> 0:08:01.200 you've you've told the stories about the you know, the 0:08:01.800 --> 0:08:04.040 things that he has done for people on the condition 0:08:04.200 --> 0:08:08.360 you know, of total anonymity. So you know, I would 0:08:08.360 --> 0:08:11.320 like to see you know, more of that on side. 0:08:11.360 --> 0:08:15.920 But you know the legacy of having you know, saved 0:08:15.960 --> 0:08:23.040 the business, recreated the business, and been responsible for um, well, 0:08:23.560 --> 0:08:26.480 you know an answer answering the mainstream media. I mean 0:08:26.520 --> 0:08:31.680 it's like that, you know, that's enough for anybody. Well, Mike, 0:08:31.760 --> 0:08:33.840 what what do you think? You look back over it 0:08:33.880 --> 0:08:37.959 all and you've had an amazing career. Well, I don't 0:08:38.120 --> 0:08:41.880 don't don't downplay the thing because people have alluded to 0:08:41.920 --> 0:08:45.120 this before. But let's face it, if we had a 0:08:45.160 --> 0:08:48.000 buck for every time someone said there's a real good 0:08:48.000 --> 0:08:51.920 show going on in here, uh, we both have a 0:08:51.960 --> 0:08:58.400 lot of money. I mean that was you know, another 0:08:58.440 --> 0:09:01.160 thing that made it, you know, that made it fun 0:09:02.200 --> 0:09:06.040 because there was a whole another show going on inside 0:09:06.160 --> 0:09:09.280 and you know, mostly you know, being with being with 0:09:09.400 --> 0:09:13.840 you Kit Brett. I've kind of felt like, all right, 0:09:13.920 --> 0:09:16.679 when when he moved to Florida, it was like there 0:09:16.720 --> 0:09:18.960 was still you know, there was still a show still 0:09:18.960 --> 0:09:21.480 going on, you know at my end, because there were 0:09:21.520 --> 0:09:23.280 still you know, there were still people here. But then 0:09:23.800 --> 0:09:28.600 it's like as things went on, it's like you are 0:09:28.679 --> 0:09:31.280 at the screening. Moved to Florida, so you were screening there. 0:09:31.280 --> 0:09:33.640 So then it was just me and Kit. Then Kit died, 0:09:34.400 --> 0:09:40.199 which still you know, still just I still tear up 0:09:40.240 --> 0:09:43.920 thinking about. But then so now I'm in the room 0:09:43.960 --> 0:09:49.000 all by myself, so you know, and I've made the 0:09:49.000 --> 0:09:51.800 illusion before, it's like, um, I feel like Michael Collins, 0:09:52.200 --> 0:09:57.120 you know from Apollo eleven. You guys are down there 0:09:57.160 --> 0:09:59.240 having fun on the moon and I'm you know, it's like, 0:09:59.480 --> 0:10:02.800 all right, I'm major Tom here, you know, a circling here. 0:10:05.040 --> 0:10:08.280 So no, I have I have an entire studio full 0:10:08.280 --> 0:10:11.440 of people again, and I'm actually having to sell people. 0:10:11.440 --> 0:10:13.880 It's like, you know, stop screaming in the phone, because 0:10:13.880 --> 0:10:16.080 it's like you don't. You don't have to scream at 0:10:16.080 --> 0:10:18.920 the callers, you know, So, I mean, who would do 0:10:19.000 --> 0:10:21.720 such a thing? I don't know. It's like you said, 0:10:21.720 --> 0:10:25.559 a very bad example for those people, not because they 0:10:25.640 --> 0:10:28.319 looked at you and it's like, James, stop screat What 0:10:28.440 --> 0:10:33.760 is he screaming at those people for? And that? And 0:10:33.800 --> 0:10:36.320 that you got suspended for doing that? Yes, I did. 0:10:36.520 --> 0:10:38.360 I got you were not the only ones to spend it. 0:10:38.400 --> 0:10:42.080 I got suspended to, yes, But yeah, but they taped 0:10:42.120 --> 0:10:45.880 your phone calls. Yeah they did that. We want to 0:10:45.880 --> 0:10:52.240 find out what's really going on back you're just letting 0:10:52.240 --> 0:10:54.840 out all the secrets. Yes, they did. They wanted to 0:10:54.880 --> 0:10:57.480 find out exactly what was happening on the other end 0:10:57.800 --> 0:11:00.960 of those phone calls. And you know what, they taped 0:11:01.000 --> 0:11:02.880 them when they came back and listened to them and said, 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:07.439 my god, I'd scream at them too, exactly, And after 0:11:07.480 --> 0:11:09.560 they heard what I had to deal with every day, 0:11:09.559 --> 0:11:12.200 it was kind of like that went away. The The 0:11:12.240 --> 0:11:14.280 one regret that I have is that, you know, there 0:11:14.360 --> 0:11:17.440 was never really anything of us doing anything in there. 0:11:17.880 --> 0:11:22.000 So yeah, but it's probably just as well because there 0:11:22.040 --> 0:11:25.080 was a lot of cursing. Yeah that was. Yes, Yeah, 0:11:25.120 --> 0:11:27.240 we were a little naughty with the language. Well, Mike, 0:11:27.720 --> 0:11:30.120 this has just been a real pleasure, real treat to 0:11:30.160 --> 0:11:34.280 have you here. Um, I'm glad you did this interview. Michael. Yeah, 0:11:34.360 --> 0:11:37.080 I was, you know, I wasn't. I wasn't going to 0:11:37.360 --> 0:11:40.560 but after listening to the listening to the Lunar Crew 0:11:40.600 --> 0:11:43.880 do their show, it's like, all right, that changed my mind? 0:11:44.280 --> 0:11:47.680 What about that changed your mind? I really can't can't 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:50.960 put my finger on it, you know, because well, first 0:11:51.000 --> 0:11:53.400 of all, it's like, having been around all this time, 0:11:53.640 --> 0:11:57.880 I thought I knew all the stories, but some of 0:11:57.880 --> 0:11:59.880 the things that you know that Brian and Dawn were 0:12:00.120 --> 0:12:02.840 and it's like I really didn't know that. I remember 0:12:02.840 --> 0:12:05.880 that when he moved down to that when he moved 0:12:05.880 --> 0:12:08.679 down and he was in a room all by himself 0:12:09.760 --> 0:12:14.000 with the you know, with the box that was things 0:12:14.080 --> 0:12:15.600 just like I want to do this from Florida. How 0:12:15.640 --> 0:12:18.600 would do this? I said, We'll build you a box, So, 0:12:19.440 --> 0:12:22.160 you know, I came up with the you know, with 0:12:22.200 --> 0:12:24.040 the you know basically with the box, and there was 0:12:24.080 --> 0:12:27.240 a signaling device that we used which nobody else used. 0:12:27.240 --> 0:12:29.160 And I was telling somebody about it. It's like, my god, 0:12:29.200 --> 0:12:32.240 that's brilliant. It's like, but nobody, as far as I know, 0:12:32.559 --> 0:12:35.360 did stuff like that. So I didn't know that Brian 0:12:35.440 --> 0:12:37.200 was sitting out in the parking lot for half of 0:12:37.240 --> 0:12:42.800 that and I thought, okay, you know, so I was like, 0:12:43.080 --> 0:12:45.920 all right, well, let's give this a go. Did it 0:12:46.000 --> 0:12:49.640 seem did it seem that it all went Yes, it 0:12:49.760 --> 0:12:52.440 went went by incredibly fast, and it was like the 0:12:53.120 --> 0:12:55.760 I mean, even you know, judging by all right, like 0:12:55.840 --> 0:12:57.520 doing the Christmas shows when I said, it's like, you 0:12:57.559 --> 0:13:00.319 know what, nobody's gonna listen to our show on Christmas? 0:13:00.360 --> 0:13:03.080 Why don't we just play Christmas music? So and then 0:13:03.120 --> 0:13:05.080 it's like I'm listening back then I said, my god, 0:13:05.120 --> 0:13:10.240 I've done like twenty five of these and it was like, wow, Mike, 0:13:10.520 --> 0:13:13.160 what a treat I'm glad you decided to do the 0:13:13.200 --> 0:13:17.880 interview with us, me too. I guess the best illustration 0:13:17.920 --> 0:13:20.320 that I can give of this is Snapple. I'd never 0:13:20.400 --> 0:13:22.560 heard of Snapple until I got to New York, and 0:13:22.600 --> 0:13:24.960 I last thing I thought it was was a nice 0:13:25.040 --> 0:13:28.520 tea when I heard the brand name. The broadcast engineer 0:13:28.559 --> 0:13:31.920 one day, who was the same broadcast engineer than his today, 0:13:32.480 --> 0:13:35.959 was in his studio and his broadcast engineer studio complex 0:13:36.000 --> 0:13:38.320 and he was pouring a bottle of this stuff over 0:13:38.360 --> 0:13:40.840 a cup with cracked ice in it. It was the 0:13:40.920 --> 0:13:42.800 hottest heck day in New York. And so what is that? 0:13:43.040 --> 0:13:45.280 Is it? Snapple? It was like raspberry flavor. And I 0:13:45.360 --> 0:13:48.960 tasted it and they said, whoa that was? It was delicious. 0:13:49.440 --> 0:13:51.440 Mine now is better, by the way, but it was 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:54.840 the time. It was the best I've ever tasted. Over 0:13:54.920 --> 0:13:56.920 the course of this series, we've taken you on the 0:13:56.920 --> 0:14:01.320 biographical journey of Russia's life, narrated by his friends and colleagues. 0:14:01.679 --> 0:14:04.400 As this is our final episode, we could think of 0:14:04.440 --> 0:14:07.200 none better to narrate this final piece than the two 0:14:07.240 --> 0:14:10.240 men who now occupy the sacred noon to three pm 0:14:10.320 --> 0:14:15.240 Eastern time slot across America for Premier Networks Clay Travis 0:14:15.280 --> 0:14:19.880 and Buck Sexton. The Life of Russia Limbaugh, Chapter twelve, 0:14:20.600 --> 0:14:26.520 narrated by Clay Travis and Buck Sexton. I have to 0:14:26.520 --> 0:14:28.840 tell you something today that I wish I didn't have 0:14:28.920 --> 0:14:31.600 to tell you. That's how Rush began to break the 0:14:31.600 --> 0:14:36.400 news to you, to us on February that he had 0:14:36.400 --> 0:14:40.040 been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer, and for the first 0:14:40.080 --> 0:14:43.360 time in more than thirty years, we had to confront 0:14:43.440 --> 0:14:46.040 the reality that he wouldn't be there in the middle 0:14:46.040 --> 0:14:48.920 of our day forever. Most people might have walked away 0:14:48.920 --> 0:14:51.680 from their professional life for good at that point, especially 0:14:51.760 --> 0:14:55.520 somewhat of his means, but not Rush Limbaugh determined as ever, 0:14:55.600 --> 0:14:58.120 he dug in for the long haul, no matter how 0:14:58.200 --> 0:15:01.000 painful or difficult it would get. I thought about trying 0:15:01.040 --> 0:15:04.880 to do this without anybody knowing, because I don't like 0:15:05.040 --> 0:15:07.400 making things about me. But there are going to be 0:15:07.520 --> 0:15:09.920 days that I'm not going to be able to be here. 0:15:10.280 --> 0:15:12.400 And you know me, I'm the mayor of real film. 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:16.480 This has happened, and my intention is to come here 0:15:16.520 --> 0:15:19.040 every day I can. But what else would you expect. 0:15:19.640 --> 0:15:22.960 This is a man whose passion for his craft was unparalleled, 0:15:23.320 --> 0:15:25.160 a man who taught us that no matter how many 0:15:25.160 --> 0:15:27.760 times you get knocked down or in his case, even 0:15:27.800 --> 0:15:31.760 fired seven times, you keep getting up and pushing forward 0:15:31.880 --> 0:15:35.600 until you reach greatness. Be humble, grateful, and share your 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:38.800 success with others, helping others, even if you don't expect 0:15:38.920 --> 0:15:42.200 or want credit publicly for it. The legacy of Russian Limbaugh, 0:15:42.200 --> 0:15:44.640 and its surface, might be that he was a groundbreaking 0:15:44.680 --> 0:15:48.600 broadcaster who saved a m radio, or a savvy intellectual 0:15:48.600 --> 0:15:51.760 who knew politics had sided out, both things true he 0:15:51.880 --> 0:15:55.600 surely was, but his bigger legacy will live on even 0:15:55.640 --> 0:15:58.240 brighter behind the scenes with the people who knew him 0:15:58.280 --> 0:16:00.920 best and loved him most. Checking with a mother on 0:16:01.000 --> 0:16:03.800 his staff before asking her to travel to make sure 0:16:03.880 --> 0:16:06.560 her daughter didn't have any events at school she wouldn't 0:16:06.600 --> 0:16:10.000 want to miss. Quietly helping an employee pay off some 0:16:10.120 --> 0:16:14.080 debt or replace a broken down vehicle, sending ten, twenty 0:16:14.160 --> 0:16:17.520 or fifty thousand dollars to someone he'd never met whose 0:16:17.560 --> 0:16:20.200 story he found and touched his heart. You know, I 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:23.520 have a philosophy there's good that happens and everything that 0:16:23.640 --> 0:16:27.680 may not reveal itself immediately, and even in the most 0:16:27.800 --> 0:16:32.720 dire circumstances. If you had just wait, you just remain 0:16:32.840 --> 0:16:38.560 open to things, the good in it, we'll reveal itself. 0:16:38.680 --> 0:16:41.360 And that has happened to me as well. These are 0:16:41.360 --> 0:16:43.760 the lesser known measures of the man behind the golden 0:16:43.800 --> 0:16:47.120 E I B microphone. On the air, it was talent 0:16:47.200 --> 0:16:50.920 on loan from God. But off the air, his character, 0:16:51.040 --> 0:16:56.040 resolve and warm, loving heart. That was all Rush Hudson Limbaugh, 0:16:56.160 --> 0:17:09.080 the third with integrity on loan from nobody, born from 0:17:09.080 --> 0:17:12.720 the tragedy of nine eleven. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation 0:17:12.800 --> 0:17:18.119 supports our nation's fallen and catastrophically injured service members, first responders, 0:17:18.320 --> 0:17:22.720 and their families. Thanks to your generosity the stand Up 0:17:22.760 --> 0:17:26.719 for Betsy Rose campaign, a five million dollar donation was 0:17:26.800 --> 0:17:30.800 made to the foundation to honor dozens of heroes killed 0:17:31.280 --> 0:17:35.680 or injured in the line of duty protecting our communities 0:17:36.040 --> 0:17:40.800 and our freedom. That's shocking, that's disorienting, that's life changing enough, 0:17:40.880 --> 0:17:44.919 But the prospect of losing a home and losing everything 0:17:44.920 --> 0:17:48.119 else and not knowing where to go next. Helping to 0:17:48.200 --> 0:17:52.080 maintain the nest, to maintain the home is one of 0:17:52.160 --> 0:17:59.120 the great offers of security that people in these circumstances need, 0:17:59.240 --> 0:18:03.600 and you've made it. Your help changed lives forever for 0:18:03.680 --> 0:18:07.640 the better. Now, I'm asking you to join Tonne to 0:18:07.640 --> 0:18:11.639 Towers on their mission to do good for America's heroes 0:18:12.119 --> 0:18:17.000 and their families. Donate eleven dollars a month at T 0:18:17.000 --> 0:18:21.720 two t dot org. That's t the number two T 0:18:22.560 --> 0:18:31.600 dot org. Throughout this episode, you're gonna hear from a 0:18:31.600 --> 0:18:34.080 lot of different people. Some of them you probably know, 0:18:34.359 --> 0:18:37.200 some of them you may not. All of these people 0:18:37.480 --> 0:18:40.320 have some kind of connection to Russ with personal stories 0:18:40.320 --> 0:18:43.360 of times they spent with him, or even better, some 0:18:43.440 --> 0:18:46.080 of the things they've learned from him. Among those, you 0:18:46.080 --> 0:18:48.560 will hear from of some of Russia's former co workers 0:18:48.560 --> 0:18:51.160 and friends, plus the many guest host of the Russiland 0:18:51.200 --> 0:18:54.520 Ball Show over the years, like this guy, one of 0:18:54.520 --> 0:18:58.600 our favorite guest host of all time from K T 0:18:58.600 --> 0:19:03.919 T H N. C Ittle. You have often struggled with 0:19:03.920 --> 0:19:07.720 how to explain to people sufficiently the honor it was 0:19:07.800 --> 0:19:09.960 to fill in for Rush for all those years and 0:19:10.000 --> 0:19:14.359 to be a guide host um after Rush died. And 0:19:14.760 --> 0:19:16.720 the best he can come up with this is this, 0:19:16.840 --> 0:19:20.600 if if you were a if you're an animator and 0:19:20.640 --> 0:19:23.360 You've got to fill in for Walt Disney or your 0:19:23.359 --> 0:19:25.280 favorite animator. What what would that be like? Are the 0:19:25.320 --> 0:19:27.639 people who invented your medium, not even your favorite, but 0:19:27.720 --> 0:19:32.640 who invented your medium. That's that's what this is like. Uh. 0:19:32.680 --> 0:19:35.960 If you are a software designer and you got called 0:19:36.000 --> 0:19:37.639 in to fill in on a day at work for 0:19:37.680 --> 0:19:41.800 Steve Jobs, what's that like? I mean, that's the level 0:19:41.800 --> 0:19:44.680 we're talking about here. And in terms of Russia's legacy, 0:19:45.840 --> 0:19:48.560 any time you turn on a radio station and you 0:19:48.600 --> 0:19:51.679 hear an opinion based show, you will be hearing the 0:19:51.800 --> 0:19:55.520 legacy of Rush Limbaugh. Opinion radio wouldn't have survived without Rush. 0:19:55.640 --> 0:20:00.320 It simply wouldn't have. So anytime you hear opinion on radio, 0:20:00.400 --> 0:20:05.320 you're listening to the legacy. America had an extra thirty 0:20:05.640 --> 0:20:11.199 years to try to save itself. That's Russia's legacy, and 0:20:11.280 --> 0:20:15.720 that continues. There are people who understand their country now, 0:20:15.960 --> 0:20:19.639 children who will read Russia's books. That's his legacy. And 0:20:20.359 --> 0:20:22.960 in the last few months of his life he shared 0:20:23.000 --> 0:20:26.720 with us his faith, his status as a Christ follower, 0:20:27.920 --> 0:20:34.600 and of course that's his enduring legacy. Hey, everybody, this 0:20:34.640 --> 0:20:37.280 is Mark Davis. Currently The Morning host at six sixty 0:20:37.320 --> 0:20:40.240 Am The Answer in Dallas Fort Worth, but for almost 0:20:40.280 --> 0:20:44.399 twenty years from the mid nineties until I hosted a 0:20:44.440 --> 0:20:47.320 morning show on w b a P, the proud Rush 0:20:47.440 --> 0:20:51.240 Limbaugh affiliate for North Texas. Now, that alone was an honor. 0:20:51.640 --> 0:20:55.199 But when the opportunity arose in two thousand eight to 0:20:55.280 --> 0:20:58.840 begin to fill in for Rush, well that's an easy yes. 0:20:59.160 --> 0:21:02.840 So I slid into my version of the substitute host chair, 0:21:02.880 --> 0:21:04.760 which in my case was right in my own studio 0:21:05.080 --> 0:21:08.199 in Texas, except for the times when I flew up 0:21:08.200 --> 0:21:11.719 to New York to see the first E I B microphone. 0:21:11.760 --> 0:21:14.919 To sit in the actual genuine chair, it was like 0:21:15.040 --> 0:21:18.960 visiting the Radio Smithsonian. Wherever I did it, the joy 0:21:19.000 --> 0:21:21.800 of filling in for Rush was amplified by the pure 0:21:21.920 --> 0:21:25.720 pleasure of spending time in person with James Golden, a 0:21:25.880 --> 0:21:29.080 k A. Bo Snordly, Mike Mamone, the late Kit Carson. 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:31.479 He was the guy who would always call and and 0:21:31.480 --> 0:21:33.840 then make the ask whenever there was a Rush absence 0:21:33.880 --> 0:21:37.160 that needed filling and I filled that role so gladly 0:21:37.200 --> 0:21:40.720 and so gratefully from two thousand eight to two thousand twelve. 0:21:41.200 --> 0:21:43.919 When I changed radio stations here in Texas, but the 0:21:44.000 --> 0:21:48.440 memories and the friendships live on. His absence is a 0:21:48.600 --> 0:21:52.040 void in my life and an empty space in American 0:21:52.160 --> 0:21:56.560 radio that cannot be filled. But those of us who listened, 0:21:57.160 --> 0:21:59.800 those of us who love him, can continue to be 0:21:59.880 --> 0:22:03.480 in inspired by him. I know I will, So as 0:22:03.480 --> 0:22:06.199 a page turns in radio history, I want all of 0:22:06.240 --> 0:22:09.040 you to know that Rush was the kind of man 0:22:09.160 --> 0:22:13.240 you would want him to be. Kind, devoted to his family, 0:22:13.320 --> 0:22:16.000 devoted to the radio family of people around him, and 0:22:16.119 --> 0:22:19.760 devoted to this great nation which he served so well 0:22:20.040 --> 0:22:23.400 in this chosen calling of talk radio. God bless you Rush, 0:22:23.480 --> 0:22:26.600 and blessings to all of you who listened to him. 0:22:26.720 --> 0:22:29.920 His love for you was obvious every day, and our 0:22:30.000 --> 0:22:35.120 love for him will last forever. It's Kitty O'Neil here 0:22:35.400 --> 0:22:38.160 and back in the eighties at kf b K, my 0:22:38.480 --> 0:22:42.119 job was to screen calls for one of the talk shows, 0:22:42.800 --> 0:22:46.680 and Rush Limbaugh moved into that slot, so I screened 0:22:46.720 --> 0:22:51.960 calls for him. He did a show that was comedic 0:22:52.320 --> 0:22:57.600 in nature, although he expressed a lot of political views 0:22:57.760 --> 0:23:00.840 and different views on society and things that were happening, 0:23:01.280 --> 0:23:04.160 but he did it in a way that was more 0:23:04.240 --> 0:23:07.800 like a an f M radio jock. I think that's 0:23:07.800 --> 0:23:11.920 what set him apart, is that he was conservative in view, 0:23:12.040 --> 0:23:17.280 but very shall we say, irreverent in the way that 0:23:17.400 --> 0:23:23.400 he executed his show. It was full of humorous bits 0:23:23.760 --> 0:23:30.399 and jokes and certainly had a conservative bent, but was 0:23:31.280 --> 0:23:35.399 highly entertaining, so people from both sides of the aisle 0:23:35.440 --> 0:23:39.399 would listen. I remember him as being extremely confident, but 0:23:39.560 --> 0:23:43.600 also very insecure at the same time. Rush was very 0:23:43.680 --> 0:23:50.600 complex and often an enigma to me. He was extremely generous, though, 0:23:50.840 --> 0:23:55.560 and as he became more wealthy and famous, his generosity 0:23:55.640 --> 0:23:58.560 only increased. People often asked me what he was like 0:23:58.720 --> 0:24:02.080 off the air, and he was not one to monopolize 0:24:02.160 --> 0:24:06.159 a conversation or be overbearing with his views. He was 0:24:06.880 --> 0:24:10.720 a very balanced conversationalist and would would listen to all 0:24:10.720 --> 0:24:13.880 sides of an argument. I don't think he ever set 0:24:13.920 --> 0:24:16.440 out to be the voice of the Republican Party, but 0:24:17.040 --> 0:24:21.520 he really became elevated to that position, and I suppose 0:24:21.560 --> 0:24:25.200 felt an obligation to fulfill that. But as famous as 0:24:25.240 --> 0:24:28.520 he became, he never did forget his friends or where 0:24:28.560 --> 0:24:34.800 he started. As we've been recording this series and we've 0:24:34.840 --> 0:24:38.040 talked to so many people in Russia's life, professionally and personally. 0:24:38.440 --> 0:24:41.760 We've had a chance to hear stories that even I 0:24:41.800 --> 0:24:44.720 hadn't heard before. I had the chance to sit down 0:24:44.720 --> 0:24:47.760 and talk with some of Russia's closest personal friends. People 0:24:48.040 --> 0:24:50.119 he spent a lot of time with on the golf 0:24:50.160 --> 0:24:53.199 course and out and about a normal everyday life. And 0:24:53.240 --> 0:24:56.240 they couldn't have been nicer, more generous with their time. 0:24:56.920 --> 0:25:00.440 David and Jennie Rassau. Now Rush came for the middle 0:25:00.480 --> 0:25:04.520 class family in Cape Gerardo, Missouri. You guys came from 0:25:04.520 --> 0:25:07.640 a middle class background as well, But here you are 0:25:07.720 --> 0:25:10.440 friends with russilan Ball, living in one of the most 0:25:10.440 --> 0:25:14.040 exclusive communities in the United States. You played golf together, 0:25:14.119 --> 0:25:17.400 you dined together. How did you become friends with Rush? 0:25:17.680 --> 0:25:21.879 Rush had a great curiosity about everybody he met. He 0:25:23.080 --> 0:25:26.320 he would give dinner parties and we were fortunate enough 0:25:26.400 --> 0:25:29.199 to be invited, and he would go around the table. 0:25:29.400 --> 0:25:32.600 It maybe fifteen sixteen people around the table, to go 0:25:32.640 --> 0:25:37.119 around and have everybody tell their story how they got 0:25:37.200 --> 0:25:40.399 to Palm Beach, and if he knew their story, he 0:25:40.400 --> 0:25:43.119 would then tell the story of the people. So he 0:25:43.320 --> 0:25:47.640 was curious about everyone and how they how they got 0:25:47.640 --> 0:25:50.560 to Palm Beach, how they made their money, what they 0:25:50.600 --> 0:25:53.960 did that was successful, what they did that they were 0:25:54.000 --> 0:25:57.520 most proud of. He loved those stories. He really loved 0:25:58.000 --> 0:26:01.439 American stories, success to American success story. What do you 0:26:01.480 --> 0:26:05.840 think the biggest misunderstanding is about Rush, particularly among people 0:26:05.880 --> 0:26:10.240 on the left. What do people not understand about Rush Limbaugh? 0:26:10.440 --> 0:26:13.159 They think he's an evil person. They think he is 0:26:14.040 --> 0:26:20.200 so right wing and so unwilling to bend his train 0:26:20.240 --> 0:26:26.959 of thought, that he's the enemy. And we saw that firsthand, 0:26:27.040 --> 0:26:30.520 especially in Connecticut, which is not necessarily a bastion of 0:26:30.520 --> 0:26:35.199 of right wing Republican views. And he would come up 0:26:35.240 --> 0:26:37.479 to this golf tournament with they did it for like 0:26:37.560 --> 0:26:40.600 twelve years. It was a three day tournament, and he 0:26:40.640 --> 0:26:43.560 would meet a lot of people who were Democrats, and 0:26:43.600 --> 0:26:47.080 they all approached him with a little wariness. But once 0:26:47.480 --> 0:26:50.399 the ice was broken, whether it was the first t 0:26:50.600 --> 0:26:54.040 shot or the first joke, or he'd hand them a 0:26:54.080 --> 0:26:57.840 cigar or anything like that, all of a sudden they 0:26:57.840 --> 0:27:00.240 opened up and they found out he was jed New 0:27:00.240 --> 0:27:03.959 only a nice man. He was a teddy bearer. He 0:27:04.160 --> 0:27:07.280 loved everyone. He didn't have a hurtful thing to say 0:27:07.280 --> 0:27:11.040 about anyone, and I think that's the most misunderstood thing 0:27:11.040 --> 0:27:14.720 about him. We were proud to introduce him to my brother, 0:27:14.840 --> 0:27:19.040 for example, who is very left wing, and his wife. 0:27:19.680 --> 0:27:22.480 We had a dinner party and they were both very, 0:27:22.600 --> 0:27:25.680 very nervous about having dinner with Russia Limball because they'd 0:27:25.720 --> 0:27:30.120 heard all these stories, and he just wiled them over. 0:27:30.600 --> 0:27:36.639 They ended up exchanging gifts. They just could not believe 0:27:36.840 --> 0:27:40.000 how nice a man he was. So that that was 0:27:40.040 --> 0:27:45.600 the mystery. The man and the myth. Rush could walk 0:27:45.640 --> 0:27:49.920 into a room and people would that's Rush Limball, and 0:27:50.119 --> 0:27:53.439 they were. They gravitated to him. I mean, it's just 0:27:54.760 --> 0:27:58.960 it's bigger than life. Now you also got both of you. 0:27:59.040 --> 0:28:00.760 Of course, been a lot of time with the miss 0:28:00.880 --> 0:28:02.760 As you said today, what do you think is the 0:28:02.800 --> 0:28:07.200 thing that you most want people to know about him 0:28:07.240 --> 0:28:11.600 that maybe they don't know, including those of us who 0:28:11.720 --> 0:28:16.840 love him. His heart said it all. He looked at 0:28:16.880 --> 0:28:23.080 you with sincerity, with understanding. He wanted to talk to you. 0:28:23.640 --> 0:28:27.639 He wanted to find out all about you. And it 0:28:27.760 --> 0:28:33.080 wasn't just at a at a dinner party. He didn't 0:28:33.119 --> 0:28:38.840 talk much. He asked the questions and wanted to hear 0:28:38.920 --> 0:28:44.920 other people talk about themselves Russian speak about himself. Yeah, 0:28:45.160 --> 0:28:47.800 I think that's fair. I think you know there, we 0:28:47.840 --> 0:28:51.840 have a lot of Democrat friends, were not solely Republican, 0:28:52.560 --> 0:28:55.560 and we have Democrat friends here in Palm Beach. A 0:28:55.600 --> 0:28:58.600 couple of them come to mind who we played golf with, 0:28:59.160 --> 0:29:02.040 and he knew that they were Democrats, and they knew 0:29:02.120 --> 0:29:05.760 he was Russia. Limbaugh the lead Republican, the leader of 0:29:05.760 --> 0:29:08.320 the Republican Party and all that sort of stuff. But 0:29:08.400 --> 0:29:11.440 they loved playing golf with him. They loved having lunch 0:29:11.480 --> 0:29:14.600 with him. We'd have breakfast together on Saturday mornings. They 0:29:14.640 --> 0:29:17.800 loved having breakfast with him because he wouldn't talk politics 0:29:17.840 --> 0:29:19.840 all the time. You talk about life, you talk about 0:29:19.880 --> 0:29:24.880 football games. He talked about golf, he talked about golfers, 0:29:24.920 --> 0:29:28.280 He talked about all sorts of things other than politics. 0:29:28.760 --> 0:29:32.480 If somebody brought up politics, he would be grudgingly asked 0:29:32.600 --> 0:29:35.200 answer the question. But you knew he didn't want to 0:29:35.240 --> 0:29:38.520 be involved in politics. In some of his free time 0:29:38.640 --> 0:29:42.120 that he did that fifteen hours a week on the 0:29:42.200 --> 0:29:46.200 air and another fifty hours a week in preparation. So 0:29:46.280 --> 0:29:50.520 this was downtime for him. He appreciated it, and everyone 0:29:50.640 --> 0:29:55.520 who met him really loved and respected him. Another great 0:29:55.520 --> 0:29:58.920 story of Russian. He gave the best super Bowl parties 0:29:59.200 --> 0:30:03.719 and Masters parties you could ever imagine. Everybody wanted an 0:30:03.720 --> 0:30:07.240 invitation because he served great wine, and he served it. 0:30:07.560 --> 0:30:10.040 You didn't go, and he went around, poured the wine. 0:30:10.200 --> 0:30:12.920 He went around and gave everybody that something to eat. 0:30:13.280 --> 0:30:15.800 He went on this one woman who was ninety years old, 0:30:15.840 --> 0:30:18.719 the mother of somebody, was there. He doated on her 0:30:18.760 --> 0:30:21.040 to make certain she was comfortable, she had a good seat, 0:30:21.160 --> 0:30:24.360 she could see the tournament, whatever, and he would just 0:30:24.440 --> 0:30:28.920 do it. So this one Super Bowl weekend, it's a 0:30:28.960 --> 0:30:32.840 Saturday morning and I was arranging some of the golf games. 0:30:33.480 --> 0:30:36.120 And he gets to the club and he sees that 0:30:36.160 --> 0:30:38.880 I don't have my golf shoes on. He said, when 0:30:38.880 --> 0:30:40.320 are you gonna put on your shoes. I said, I'm 0:30:40.320 --> 0:30:42.600 not playing. He said, what do you mean you're not playing? 0:30:43.240 --> 0:30:45.640 But this I said, I'm going back to Connecticut today. 0:30:45.680 --> 0:30:48.360 I gotta call at two o'clock this morning our grand 0:30:48.560 --> 0:30:50.840 We had a granddaughter born this morning at too. So 0:30:51.040 --> 0:30:54.520 we're flying up there. And he said, you can't fly 0:30:54.680 --> 0:30:57.080 up there I said why. He said, because I've got 0:30:57.080 --> 0:31:00.520 the Super Bowl party. And I said, I'm sorry, going 0:31:00.560 --> 0:31:03.800 up to see my new granddaughter. And he said so. 0:31:03.880 --> 0:31:05.960 He walks out of the locker room. He comes back 0:31:05.960 --> 0:31:08.640 about two minutes later. He said, at the time, we 0:31:08.720 --> 0:31:10.800 had our own plane. He said, wait a minute, your 0:31:10.800 --> 0:31:13.320 plane is in for maintenance. How are you going? I 0:31:13.360 --> 0:31:17.120 said commercial, No, you're not. He went to the phone booth, 0:31:17.560 --> 0:31:21.400 called up Mike, and he said, can you be at 0:31:21.440 --> 0:31:23.560 the airport at ten o'clock. He's going to take you up. 0:31:24.240 --> 0:31:28.680 So Brush flew Jeanie and I up to Bridgeport, Connecticut. 0:31:29.040 --> 0:31:31.560 We've rented a car. We went from there to the hospital. 0:31:31.560 --> 0:31:34.800 We saw our granddaughter before she was twenty four hours old. 0:31:35.080 --> 0:31:38.760 And that's the way he was. He just his generosity, 0:31:38.880 --> 0:31:42.400 knew no bounds. Well, let me close by saying this 0:31:43.280 --> 0:31:45.680 and thank you for spending so much time with me 0:31:45.800 --> 0:31:50.680 and with us. We're glad. I'm glad that Rush had 0:31:50.760 --> 0:31:55.320 friends like you, David and Eugenie in his life and 0:31:55.400 --> 0:31:58.520 his other close friends. Because he had to endorse so 0:31:58.680 --> 0:32:04.680 much bullshit from people that didn't know him, from people 0:32:04.720 --> 0:32:09.560 that lied about him, from a media that was filled 0:32:09.600 --> 0:32:14.360 with people that were jealous of his success and knew 0:32:14.480 --> 0:32:17.720 that some of the things that were reporting about him 0:32:17.720 --> 0:32:23.200 we're not true, and so I am glad that he 0:32:23.840 --> 0:32:30.479 You guys were able to help Rush have a normal 0:32:30.600 --> 0:32:33.680 life as he could, especially on the weekends and with 0:32:33.840 --> 0:32:37.240 family and with friends, and to take away from some 0:32:37.360 --> 0:32:41.120 of that madness that he had to put up with. Well, 0:32:41.160 --> 0:32:43.960 thank you. It was our You know, I feel more 0:32:44.040 --> 0:32:47.640 rewarded than anyone Jeanie and I do. We just getting 0:32:47.720 --> 0:32:51.360 to know him and be with him and enjoy his company. 0:32:51.480 --> 0:32:55.800 It was a blessing. It was nice to be able 0:32:55.880 --> 0:32:59.400 to say to our friends, he's just as normal as you, 0:32:59.480 --> 0:33:03.040 as you with you. You know, he gets up in 0:33:03.080 --> 0:33:06.840 the morning, he does what he does, does what you do. 0:33:06.880 --> 0:33:10.480 You know, he's a human being, but he's a human 0:33:10.520 --> 0:33:15.800 being with a huge heart. Yeah, I know you miss him. Well, 0:33:15.840 --> 0:33:18.640 I will say this, the last year and a half 0:33:19.880 --> 0:33:22.720 Rush was playing the best golf I've ever seen him play. 0:33:23.240 --> 0:33:28.320 He was amazing. I used, I'll drive him. All of 0:33:28.360 --> 0:33:32.240 a sudden, he's twenty to fifty yards ahead of me. Um. 0:33:32.320 --> 0:33:35.880 He had an albatross on a par five, which means 0:33:35.920 --> 0:33:40.840 he sank his second shot on a par five Yeah, 0:33:41.720 --> 0:33:45.240 he was just beside himself. He was so excited. He 0:33:45.400 --> 0:33:50.040 just loved the competition. He was If he hit a 0:33:50.040 --> 0:33:52.080 bad shot, he didn't care about the score, he dropped 0:33:52.080 --> 0:33:56.600 another ball and hit it again. He just he was 0:33:56.880 --> 0:33:59.200 fun to be with. We just had We had so 0:33:59.280 --> 0:34:03.000 much fun to go there and all. Now we have 0:34:03.080 --> 0:34:08.080 a lot of great memories. Now, yeah, don't say he 0:34:08.200 --> 0:34:10.800 never made his bed anywhere when he came to visit. 0:34:13.520 --> 0:34:16.480 But a friend of mine, Lord Rosso of Cross Harbor, 0:34:17.080 --> 0:34:20.440 has got this friend is it's a shaft manufacturer. I 0:34:20.480 --> 0:34:22.120 don't know a few people who don't play golf. The 0:34:22.200 --> 0:34:28.760 shaft is particularly in um long shafted clubs like the Driver, 0:34:29.120 --> 0:34:31.600 Fairway medals and so forth, and longer. Well in every 0:34:31.600 --> 0:34:34.600 club back the shaft is the engine. Anyway, Lord Rosso 0:34:34.719 --> 0:34:37.279 had this new shaft in his driver on Sunday, and 0:34:37.360 --> 0:34:40.480 I'm not kidding. He was hitting the ball ten twelve 0:34:40.560 --> 0:34:44.359 yards farther than he normally does. And I was kind 0:34:44.400 --> 0:34:48.360 of in disbelief because to get that kind of a 0:34:48.400 --> 0:34:54.320 differentiation you need more swing speed. But a shaft can 0:34:55.440 --> 0:35:00.600 compensate for a slower swing speed if it's good. So 0:35:00.840 --> 0:35:02.759 I got this new shaft and I was gonna go 0:35:02.840 --> 0:35:04.600 try it yesterday to see if I could get an 0:35:04.600 --> 0:35:07.600 inditional tent tralve large yards like Lord Russo of Cross 0:35:07.640 --> 0:35:13.319 Harbor was, and I got. I got rained out to 0:35:13.440 --> 0:35:15.480 say that if you knew Rush Limbaugh, you were left 0:35:15.560 --> 0:35:19.040 with an unforgettable impression of the man. That's an understatement. 0:35:19.440 --> 0:35:24.040 Everybody who knew him remembers how when where they met Rush, 0:35:24.320 --> 0:35:28.600 and also what they've learned from Rush, how he impacted them, 0:35:28.680 --> 0:35:31.839 just like he impacted all the rest of us who 0:35:31.920 --> 0:35:34.680 worked at the E I B Network. There's so many stories, 0:35:34.760 --> 0:35:36.520 and here's more of them from a couple of the 0:35:36.520 --> 0:35:39.239 guests host that sat in and a good friend of 0:35:39.280 --> 0:35:43.719 mine and Russia's Congressman Louie gomer but first from w 0:35:44.080 --> 0:35:48.640 HP in Harrisburg and w p HT in Philadelphia, Ken Matthews. 0:35:49.239 --> 0:35:52.320 So I started guest hoasting for Rush in the summer 0:35:52.320 --> 0:35:57.880 of and then I did my final show as a 0:35:58.040 --> 0:36:04.000 guide host. It was also the final Rush show. And 0:36:05.000 --> 0:36:06.800 the thing that sticks out to me, there's so many 0:36:06.840 --> 0:36:11.840 things and we we don't have twenty six hours for 0:36:11.880 --> 0:36:15.600 me to explain it. But um I started out as 0:36:15.600 --> 0:36:18.440 a listener, like millions of other people that I ended 0:36:18.480 --> 0:36:23.960 up as a guest toast, and Rush made me a 0:36:24.040 --> 0:36:26.800 better guest toast. But he also made me a smarter 0:36:27.920 --> 0:36:31.080 person and a better thinker, and a lot of that 0:36:31.160 --> 0:36:36.200 came from being a Rush listener because Rush was an 0:36:36.239 --> 0:36:42.239 intellectual giant, but he wasn't a snob about it, and 0:36:42.320 --> 0:36:44.160 he had fun and he liked to laugh, and he 0:36:44.239 --> 0:36:46.759 was a smart alec and I think a lot of 0:36:46.760 --> 0:36:51.920 those characteristics appeal to the American people. So we always 0:36:51.960 --> 0:36:54.120 have to bring our a game when we're guest toasting 0:36:54.200 --> 0:36:57.600 for him. But the nice thing about it is the 0:36:57.840 --> 0:37:01.880 entire team is at the level. Everybody brings their a 0:37:02.040 --> 0:37:08.760 game because their patriots, they love America, and they love Rush. 0:37:08.960 --> 0:37:12.479 So it was a wonderful environment to work in. And 0:37:12.960 --> 0:37:17.919 the listeners are outstanding, and why wouldn't they be. Rush 0:37:18.080 --> 0:37:22.080 loved the listeners, So it was a blessing and a 0:37:22.080 --> 0:37:26.800 wonderful opportunity. My name is Brett winter Ball. I was 0:37:26.880 --> 0:37:31.080 a member of the E. I. B Family from until 0:37:31.360 --> 0:37:34.440 two thousand six and then brought back again in the 0:37:34.560 --> 0:37:41.520 year that fateful year. I had such great, amazing memories 0:37:41.560 --> 0:37:44.840 of my time with the folks here at the IB Network, 0:37:44.880 --> 0:37:47.920 But most importantly of Rush Limbaugh. I came into the 0:37:47.920 --> 0:37:51.600 IB network as a as a kid, really five years old, 0:37:51.960 --> 0:37:53.800 kind of a wise guy. I thought I knew it 0:37:53.880 --> 0:37:56.640 all until I ran at a kid Carson and James Golden, 0:37:57.040 --> 0:38:00.239 Mike Maimon, and of course the Boss Rush Limbaugh. Then 0:38:00.280 --> 0:38:03.120 I realized I didn't know anything. But over the course 0:38:03.120 --> 0:38:06.279 of my years on the program, I learned so much. 0:38:06.719 --> 0:38:09.879 I learned about generosity, I learned about humor. I learned 0:38:09.920 --> 0:38:14.880 about the brilliance of a broadcaster performing day after day 0:38:14.920 --> 0:38:20.439 against all sorts of adversaries, both professional and sometimes even 0:38:20.440 --> 0:38:23.880 on a personal level. You know, Rush Limbaugh is a 0:38:24.000 --> 0:38:28.160 once in a millennium talent, really is. When you consider 0:38:28.239 --> 0:38:31.239 the amazing work he did in the different parts of 0:38:31.320 --> 0:38:33.840 his life and over the course of thirty three years, 0:38:34.360 --> 0:38:38.160 you have to be struck by the genius. But it 0:38:38.200 --> 0:38:40.359 was also due in large part to the amazing team 0:38:40.360 --> 0:38:47.040 behind the scenes. My friend James, Kid, Carson, Cookie Coco, Joe, 0:38:47.440 --> 0:38:51.000 Ali Mayman, you go down the list, it goes on 0:38:51.040 --> 0:38:53.440 and on, including the people who helped run the Limbaugh 0:38:53.520 --> 0:38:56.960 Letter as well. This was truly a family, and a 0:38:57.080 --> 0:39:00.520 family it remains to this day. I'm still in touch 0:39:00.600 --> 0:39:02.959 with everybody on the program, and everybody's still in touch 0:39:03.000 --> 0:39:06.279 with me. It's a profound mark that was left in 0:39:06.320 --> 0:39:10.080 my life. You can't ever forget where you were when 0:39:10.120 --> 0:39:13.799 you heard your wedding, your birth of your first or 0:39:13.800 --> 0:39:16.919 second child announced on a radio program by a guy 0:39:16.960 --> 0:39:20.200 who genuinely cared about you as a person. And to 0:39:20.239 --> 0:39:23.960 this day, I remain indebted to the experiences I had 0:39:24.600 --> 0:39:27.759 for the better part of a decade. Those memories will 0:39:27.800 --> 0:39:31.440 live on forever in my heart, and I look forward 0:39:31.920 --> 0:39:36.440 to sitting with Rush one day show prepping together up 0:39:36.440 --> 0:39:42.320 there in the big, beautiful broadcast studio in the sky. 0:39:42.320 --> 0:39:45.320 Thank you, Rush Limbaugh for all you did, and thank 0:39:45.440 --> 0:39:49.040 you to the listeners who made this all possible. May 0:39:49.080 --> 0:39:52.399 God bless and keep all of us that will one 0:39:52.440 --> 0:39:59.560 day be reunited. This is Louis Gobert, a dear friend, 0:39:59.560 --> 0:40:03.040 and each Texas asked have you heard Rush Limbaugh? And 0:40:03.080 --> 0:40:05.840 I said, I've heard off him, but I had not 0:40:06.000 --> 0:40:08.799 heard him. He said, his sense of humor is a 0:40:08.840 --> 0:40:12.640 bit like yours, and I think you'd really like him. Well, 0:40:12.680 --> 0:40:15.279 I didn't just like him. I loved him. During the 0:40:15.280 --> 0:40:17.839 rest of nineteen ninety one, and from then on. I 0:40:17.880 --> 0:40:21.680 was listening to Rush all I could. After being elected 0:40:21.719 --> 0:40:24.040 to be a judge in one of our highest trial 0:40:24.120 --> 0:40:26.840 courts in Texas, I had to allow the jury to 0:40:26.880 --> 0:40:29.200 take a lunch break so I would go to my 0:40:29.280 --> 0:40:32.839 office and work while I was listening to Rush. By 0:40:32.920 --> 0:40:36.640 nineteen ninety four, he had so many Americans listening to 0:40:36.760 --> 0:40:41.279 him it was no wonder that the freshman Republicans in 0:40:41.360 --> 0:40:45.120 Congress named Rush as an honorary member of their class. 0:40:45.600 --> 0:40:50.160 He really did make that much difference. Then, over the years, 0:40:50.200 --> 0:40:55.239 his amazing dissection and explanation of our country's problems had 0:40:55.360 --> 0:40:59.200 many of us saying, yeah, he's right. But as Rush said, 0:40:59.280 --> 0:41:04.320 it wasn't he was brainwashing anyone. He was just expressing 0:41:04.480 --> 0:41:07.680 so well what we all were feeling. So after I 0:41:07.719 --> 0:41:10.840 got elected to Congress, I met became dear friends with 0:41:11.000 --> 0:41:15.520 James Golden a ka bo Snerdley, who became a virtual 0:41:15.680 --> 0:41:20.200 brother from another mother. Also getting to know David Limbaugh 0:41:20.239 --> 0:41:24.279 because of Rush was another huge benefit. Yet, getting to 0:41:24.320 --> 0:41:27.799 watch Rush and James and their other two staff in 0:41:27.840 --> 0:41:31.560 the studio Palm Beach was like seeing a finely honed 0:41:31.560 --> 0:41:37.200 machine that was poetry, emotion, looking back, just being able 0:41:37.280 --> 0:41:40.880 to email and hear back from Rush, usually during the 0:41:40.880 --> 0:41:44.160 show while he was talking. Was such an honor. He 0:41:44.239 --> 0:41:48.720 was an anomaly among men who took what God loaned 0:41:48.840 --> 0:41:51.720 him and made the most of it for the benefit 0:41:51.760 --> 0:41:54.880 of all the people of this country. That's why my 0:41:55.040 --> 0:41:58.200 last time to see him was an emotional moment. The 0:41:58.320 --> 0:42:02.920 night he had President Trump announced the Presidential Medal of 0:42:03.080 --> 0:42:07.080 Freedom in the House Chamber, we knew Russia was dying 0:42:07.120 --> 0:42:10.200 of cancer, might not have too much longer to live. 0:42:10.960 --> 0:42:15.760 Outside the gallery of the House Chamber upstairs, I rushed 0:42:15.840 --> 0:42:18.640 up there to see him, and I saw others come 0:42:18.719 --> 0:42:21.600 by and shake his hand while I was walking toward him. 0:42:21.920 --> 0:42:25.480 But it was too emotional moment. A handshake would not 0:42:25.600 --> 0:42:28.880 do for the person who had been in my car, 0:42:29.880 --> 0:42:34.280 but in my home, been in my heart. I opened 0:42:34.320 --> 0:42:39.080 my arms and said Rush, and he smiled, and he 0:42:39.160 --> 0:42:45.080 opened his arms and said Louis. Then we hugged. As 0:42:45.080 --> 0:42:49.520 I said in the last email, sitting before he left 0:42:49.520 --> 0:42:54.320 the air for the last time, Russia, Beetles were wrong. 0:42:55.520 --> 0:43:01.560 You've multiplied exponentially the love you make Rush, my friend, 0:43:01.840 --> 0:43:09.200 You're missed. A few episodes ago, we played a vignette 0:43:09.200 --> 0:43:11.560 that was voiced by Scott Bayo. You might have thought 0:43:11.600 --> 0:43:14.480 when you heard it, wait a minute, Scott Bale. Well, 0:43:14.520 --> 0:43:16.879 after the episode was released, we got a note from 0:43:16.920 --> 0:43:20.520 one of our executive producers, Craig Kitchen. He reminded us 0:43:21.080 --> 0:43:25.120 of how Scott Bayo actually came to know Rush, and 0:43:25.160 --> 0:43:26.839 we thought it might be nice to put it in 0:43:26.920 --> 0:43:31.399 context for you. Back in two thousand seventeen, I got 0:43:31.400 --> 0:43:35.080 a call. It was Scott. He was calling in from California. 0:43:35.160 --> 0:43:39.080 Put up the call and Scott, just like everybody else, 0:43:39.360 --> 0:43:43.960 called into our number one eight to two. I screened 0:43:44.040 --> 0:43:47.480 him the way I would screen any other caller. What 0:43:47.560 --> 0:43:50.520 he was saying made sense. Well, he got on the 0:43:50.520 --> 0:43:54.680 air with Rush and lo and behold it was revealed. 0:43:55.239 --> 0:43:58.400 It wasn't a Scott from California. He was a Scott 0:43:58.600 --> 0:44:02.600 that most Americans. Here's a portion of that telephone. Okay, 0:44:02.600 --> 0:44:05.520 here we go to the phones. We're starting in Los Angeles, Hig, Scott. 0:44:05.560 --> 0:44:07.360 Great to have you with us in the EIB network. 0:44:07.360 --> 0:44:10.239 IM out, Thanks, Rush. You know I'm a hardcore conservative. 0:44:10.360 --> 0:44:12.960 Tomp gave them power by winning and by and by 0:44:13.000 --> 0:44:17.239 implementing his agenda. Or you think they should be grateful, Absolutely, 0:44:17.960 --> 0:44:23.640 they'll win more. Isn't Washington, d C? Great? Alright, Sorry, 0:44:24.239 --> 0:44:26.400 I'm in Hollywood, so it's the same thing. Sorry, Benda, 0:44:28.239 --> 0:44:31.279 you're in Hollywood. Okay, let me see the Scots that 0:44:31.360 --> 0:44:33.640 I know in Hollywood. It's not tom My Hand Scott, 0:44:33.719 --> 0:44:35.480 Scott Scots. No, I don't. I don't know you. I 0:44:35.520 --> 0:44:37.520 know people you know I know, but I'm trying to 0:44:37.560 --> 0:44:43.480 do names. You are, Scott Bayo. I am Well, it's 0:44:43.520 --> 0:44:45.319 an honor to meet you. I'm happy that you're in 0:44:45.320 --> 0:44:47.879 the audience. It's great that you've been the audience every day. 0:44:47.920 --> 0:44:49.920 I'm a huge fan and I'm dying to play golf 0:44:49.920 --> 0:44:52.879 with your Rush. Well, look, when we finish here, if 0:44:52.880 --> 0:44:55.040 you'll stay online, if you can give an email address 0:44:55.080 --> 0:44:59.200 to Mr Snirtley the next time I'm out there, will play. Absolutely. 0:44:59.239 --> 0:45:02.000 I absolutely love the So there you go. That's how 0:45:02.040 --> 0:45:05.399 Scott Bayo and Rush Limbaugh are connected. And we thank 0:45:05.480 --> 0:45:08.040 Scott and the many others we've had over the course 0:45:08.080 --> 0:45:11.160 of this series that narrated the life of Rush Limbobb 0:45:11.200 --> 0:45:14.400 and yets that you've heard in each episode. So in 0:45:14.400 --> 0:45:19.280 addition to Scott, our thanks also to Rudy Giuliani, Mark Stein, 0:45:19.680 --> 0:45:25.520 Sean Hannity, Mark Levine, Megan Kelly, Glenn Beck, Neil Boortz, 0:45:25.800 --> 0:45:29.640 Mary Madlin, George Nori, Nick Sercy, who you will hear 0:45:29.680 --> 0:45:32.000 from again in his own words in a few minutes, 0:45:32.200 --> 0:45:38.040 and of course Clay Travis and Buck Sexton. Now the 0:45:38.080 --> 0:45:40.480 thoughts of a couple of more guests, host and longtime 0:45:40.520 --> 0:45:43.759 friends of Russia's first from w i s N in Milwaukee, 0:45:44.080 --> 0:45:49.799 guest host Mark Belling. Rush didn't invent talk radio. I 0:45:49.880 --> 0:45:51.839 mean it was there and a lot of people were 0:45:51.880 --> 0:45:54.480 doing doing it. What he did was he was the 0:45:54.520 --> 0:45:59.640 first to really tap it's potential, and all of us 0:46:00.040 --> 0:46:03.080 who do talk radio will be forever grateful for the 0:46:03.120 --> 0:46:04.799 fact that he was able to tap it to the 0:46:04.800 --> 0:46:07.600 extent that he did, because it put all of these 0:46:07.640 --> 0:46:11.160 stations all over America on the map. And here they 0:46:11.160 --> 0:46:12.880 had this show or the Rush Show, that was getting 0:46:12.960 --> 0:46:15.399 great ratings, but it's on for three hours a day 0:46:15.400 --> 0:46:18.080 and they had to program the rest of the day. 0:46:18.080 --> 0:46:20.720 And it gave opportunity for all sorts of other people 0:46:21.360 --> 0:46:24.160 to not only get jobs, but beyond stations that had 0:46:24.320 --> 0:46:27.840 huge listenerships, so we could all be exposed to the 0:46:27.880 --> 0:46:31.840 same audiences in our local communities that you know Rush 0:46:32.000 --> 0:46:35.680 was being exposed to the greatest talk show host of 0:46:35.680 --> 0:46:38.480 all time. It's obviously Rush Limbaugh. But here's the thing. 0:46:38.560 --> 0:46:40.880 He will always be the greatest talk show host of 0:46:40.880 --> 0:46:44.200 all time. It's impossible for anybody to be greater than 0:46:44.280 --> 0:46:47.520 him because he invented the art form and he'll always 0:46:47.520 --> 0:46:51.080 be the standard by which everybody has measured, kind of 0:46:51.120 --> 0:46:53.400 like Babe Ruth and baseball. He will always be the 0:46:53.400 --> 0:46:56.000 greatest baseball player who ever played the game, and Rush 0:46:56.040 --> 0:46:59.680 will always be the greatest talk show host ever. I 0:46:59.760 --> 0:47:03.279 get hosted the program for I don't even know. It's 0:47:03.320 --> 0:47:06.239 over twenty years, a long time. I still remember the 0:47:06.320 --> 0:47:09.520 first time. It's late nineties, I think that I did 0:47:09.600 --> 0:47:11.840 the program. And the day before I was to go 0:47:11.880 --> 0:47:15.640 to New York in Milwaukee, I was unbelievably sick. I 0:47:15.680 --> 0:47:18.400 was deathly ill. In fact, I was so sick I 0:47:18.440 --> 0:47:20.880 couldn't even drive myself to the airport. I had to 0:47:20.920 --> 0:47:23.120 have a friend drive me there. But I had to go. 0:47:23.640 --> 0:47:24.960 This was the first time I was going to do 0:47:25.040 --> 0:47:27.520 the program. And if you if I would have said 0:47:28.239 --> 0:47:30.719 I'm sick, I can't do the show, everybody would have 0:47:30.760 --> 0:47:32.520 assumed that I chickened out, I would have been the 0:47:32.520 --> 0:47:35.840 biggest laughing stock on radio. So I dragged myself in 0:47:35.880 --> 0:47:39.480 to do the program, filled myself with as many your 0:47:39.520 --> 0:47:42.239 preference as I possibly could, and survived the whole thing. 0:47:42.239 --> 0:47:45.040 People thought it was really good. In retrospect, it was terrible, 0:47:45.080 --> 0:47:48.200 probably the worst one that I did, but I survived it. 0:47:48.280 --> 0:47:51.000 I had to do it. The opportunity to do the 0:47:51.080 --> 0:47:53.160 Rush program, your first chance to do it. To turn 0:47:53.200 --> 0:47:57.040 it down would have been suicidal. Such a platform. Over 0:47:57.080 --> 0:47:58.799 the years that I did the show, I'd hear from 0:47:58.800 --> 0:48:01.399 people that I hadn't heard him in decade, somebody living 0:48:01.400 --> 0:48:04.799 in New Mexico, somebody living in Nebraska, people even in 0:48:04.840 --> 0:48:07.120 my own state of Wisconsin who weren't familiar with me 0:48:07.280 --> 0:48:10.600 from Milwaukee. The reach of the show was incredible. One 0:48:10.640 --> 0:48:13.520 other thing I want to talk about is the staff. 0:48:14.160 --> 0:48:16.279 When I come in to do the program. Of course 0:48:16.280 --> 0:48:18.960 I wouldn't see Rush. I'm doing the program on days 0:48:19.000 --> 0:48:21.120 that he's off. I dealt with the staff, and the 0:48:21.120 --> 0:48:23.480 thing that I noticed over the years was the incredible 0:48:23.520 --> 0:48:26.759 loyalty that the staff had to Rush. I mean, many 0:48:26.800 --> 0:48:30.000 people were with him for decades. I think of people 0:48:30.080 --> 0:48:33.880 like James Golden Bulls post nearly, Mike Mamona's broadcast engineer, 0:48:34.200 --> 0:48:37.160 The Lake Kick Carson, who like me, is from Milwaukee. 0:48:37.600 --> 0:48:43.120 These people were there forever and they always had Rushes back. Now, 0:48:43.160 --> 0:48:45.400 part of it is who wants to leave a winner? 0:48:45.440 --> 0:48:48.960 Nobody wants to leave a program that's it's phenomenally successful. 0:48:49.040 --> 0:48:51.719 Is this? But it was beyond this. There was clearly 0:48:52.080 --> 0:48:54.279 a deep pride that the people who worked on the 0:48:54.320 --> 0:48:58.000 Rushes Brush program had in the show. They knew that 0:48:58.040 --> 0:49:03.279 what they were doing was changing communication forever. From WSB 0:49:03.560 --> 0:49:07.640 in Atlanta, guest host Eric Ericsson the very first time 0:49:07.680 --> 0:49:09.560 I ever filled in for Rush Limball, they flew me 0:49:09.600 --> 0:49:11.719 up to New York City. I'm in there and I mean, 0:49:11.800 --> 0:49:14.920 it is it's maman, it is Carson, it is both 0:49:14.920 --> 0:49:17.680 Snrdly himself. I'm looking at all that. The light goes 0:49:17.760 --> 0:49:20.440 on and I'm like, what on earth have I just done? 0:49:20.880 --> 0:49:23.759 And I freak out, uh And there's silence there for 0:49:23.800 --> 0:49:26.120 just a second, and then I start and it gets 0:49:26.160 --> 0:49:28.160 a little natural until halfway through the show and I 0:49:28.239 --> 0:49:32.600 look and they're Snurdly flailing his arms pointing towards me, 0:49:33.200 --> 0:49:37.080 pounding his fist on the desk. I'm like, I've just 0:49:37.520 --> 0:49:39.960 lost the opportunity to ever do this year. I had 0:49:39.960 --> 0:49:41.839 no idea what I had done, and I run in 0:49:42.000 --> 0:49:44.879 very apologetically during breaking I'm very sorry what did I do? 0:49:45.239 --> 0:49:46.719 And kick Carson looks at me and says, what do 0:49:46.800 --> 0:49:49.440 you mean? I said, well, I mean Snurdley. He's in there. 0:49:49.640 --> 0:49:51.760 And this is before I even really connected both Sturdy 0:49:51.840 --> 0:49:55.200 James Golden, same person, and he's how that's just James 0:49:55.280 --> 0:50:02.080 talking to a caller. I was fine. I learned more 0:50:02.160 --> 0:50:04.160 from Rush though, by not being able to fill in 0:50:04.239 --> 0:50:06.640 for him when I didn't support Trump in twenty sixteen, 0:50:07.360 --> 0:50:10.640 very deviated from where the audience was, and Rush reached 0:50:10.640 --> 0:50:14.440 out regularly to see how I was doing. He called me, 0:50:14.480 --> 0:50:16.120 it's like, look, you got to build a relationship with 0:50:16.160 --> 0:50:21.319 your audience. And I started very mindfully, deliberately, maybe over 0:50:21.400 --> 0:50:24.080 sharing my life with him, connecting to them on on 0:50:24.360 --> 0:50:27.040 faith and culture and not just the raw politics of 0:50:27.080 --> 0:50:29.759 the day, finding areas of conversation we could agree on 0:50:29.840 --> 0:50:32.319 and talk about and laugh at. In particular, that was 0:50:32.320 --> 0:50:34.520 one thing Russia always told me, is find stuff you 0:50:34.520 --> 0:50:37.800 can laugh at with your audience. And it worked, and 0:50:38.080 --> 0:50:40.560 my audience is now bigger than it ever was. Even 0:50:40.640 --> 0:50:43.600 before jumping into syndication, it was one of the largest 0:50:43.600 --> 0:50:46.080 local talk shows in the country, in large part because 0:50:46.160 --> 0:50:48.160 Rush was a great mentor and gave great advice. And 0:50:48.200 --> 0:50:53.360 I listened around October of last year before Rush passed away. 0:50:54.000 --> 0:50:56.440 He reached out to me, and usually it was me 0:50:56.520 --> 0:50:58.800 reaching out to him, and if it was him reaching 0:50:58.800 --> 0:51:01.960 out to me first, I always paid attention and just 0:51:01.960 --> 0:51:03.719 want to know how radio was going. I was doing 0:51:04.520 --> 0:51:09.120 two shows at the time, and he knows he knew 0:51:09.239 --> 0:51:12.920 I was not good at with business and wanted to 0:51:13.239 --> 0:51:16.000 give me some advice on the radio business and how 0:51:16.000 --> 0:51:20.279 it works. And then he just told me, I said, 0:51:20.360 --> 0:51:22.680 you need to get up every day and make sure 0:51:23.200 --> 0:51:25.160 that behind the microphone is where you want to be, 0:51:25.680 --> 0:51:27.520 and if it is, you need to keep doing it. 0:51:27.719 --> 0:51:31.400 Don't ever not do it. And I would never have 0:51:31.600 --> 0:51:34.480 gotten behind the microphone had he not told me that 0:51:34.520 --> 0:51:37.839 I needed to do it. I genuinely, truly. I mean, 0:51:37.840 --> 0:51:40.200 everybody in radio talk radio is their career to Rush, 0:51:40.239 --> 0:51:42.160 but I really do owe my career to Rush. I 0:51:42.200 --> 0:51:44.799 would have said no to a job he told me 0:51:44.840 --> 0:51:47.239 I needed to say yes to. And a decade later. 0:51:47.760 --> 0:51:51.160 Now I'm suddenly finding myself in syndication and continuing to 0:51:51.160 --> 0:51:53.919 grow my show. Thanks Rush. My name is Larry Iron. 0:51:54.160 --> 0:52:00.200 I'm the president of Hillsdale College. I met Russland eighty eight, 0:52:00.239 --> 0:52:01.920 I think was the year in which he became a 0:52:01.960 --> 0:52:05.520 sort of national figure and moved from Sacramento, California, to 0:52:05.640 --> 0:52:08.440 New York and launched this mighty radio show that then 0:52:08.520 --> 0:52:12.560 went on from nine until his death this year. He's 0:52:12.560 --> 0:52:15.719 a galvanizing man. He came to my notice because I'd 0:52:15.760 --> 0:52:18.719 be in taxi cabs in Sacramento, California, and if it 0:52:18.840 --> 0:52:22.520 was in the morning, Russia Lim Boss show was always on, 0:52:22.840 --> 0:52:24.719 and every time there was a break, the cab driver 0:52:24.960 --> 0:52:26.919 turned around and say to me, this guy is great. 0:52:27.200 --> 0:52:28.960 And I listened to him, and I thought, boy, this 0:52:29.040 --> 0:52:32.839 guy's something, you know, because that mixture of an analyst 0:52:33.400 --> 0:52:38.440 and an entertainer was deliberate in him, and he took 0:52:38.480 --> 0:52:40.800 it to the highest state. I met him in a 0:52:40.880 --> 0:52:43.200 hotel somebody pointing about to me, and I went and 0:52:43.280 --> 0:52:45.560 I said, love your show, which you know, everybody ever 0:52:45.600 --> 0:52:47.920 made him and probably said that time. Then later he 0:52:48.120 --> 0:52:51.160 became a big national figure and I would have contact 0:52:51.239 --> 0:52:53.520 with him from time to time he got the idea 0:52:53.560 --> 0:52:57.160 that we should advertise on his show, and he had 0:52:57.200 --> 0:53:00.359 a backlog people wanted to advertise, so I I, yeah, 0:53:00.440 --> 0:53:02.439 we'll give it a whirl. And then the point about 0:53:02.440 --> 0:53:07.200 the world is he was great. He uh understood what 0:53:07.400 --> 0:53:10.600 our college was about. He wanted me to explain it 0:53:10.760 --> 0:53:13.560 to him, and I did many times, and uh, he 0:53:13.719 --> 0:53:17.200 just turned it into gold. So I admired him. I 0:53:17.320 --> 0:53:19.160 liked him a lot. You know, he was on the 0:53:19.280 --> 0:53:22.520 radio three hours a day, five days a week for 0:53:22.760 --> 0:53:25.840 thirty some years. It was essential to the success of 0:53:25.920 --> 0:53:28.480 Russia Limbaugh that he was an entertainer. He was funny, 0:53:28.760 --> 0:53:31.359 he would just make you laugh. But more essential than 0:53:31.440 --> 0:53:34.319 that is that he represented some big things that are 0:53:34.360 --> 0:53:37.960 rooted deeply in America, and he defended those things consistently 0:53:38.040 --> 0:53:41.160 for his whole career. And of course those things cannot die. 0:53:41.640 --> 0:53:44.759 They are eternal, and he has helped to sustain them 0:53:44.840 --> 0:53:50.560 so far, and we should carry on. Trump doesn't care. Uh, 0:53:51.160 --> 0:53:55.120 he's not politically corrective. He's fearless. He's not afraid to 0:53:55.200 --> 0:53:59.000 tell people what he actually thinks about other people or things, 0:53:59.520 --> 0:54:03.080 and he's not worried about the reaction that people have 0:54:03.320 --> 0:54:05.279 to it. He's just gonna go ahead and be who 0:54:05.320 --> 0:54:09.200 he is. He's one of these people that really he 0:54:09.640 --> 0:54:13.720 embodies the idea that you attract the kind of people 0:54:13.920 --> 0:54:16.800 you are, and that you should not be a phony 0:54:17.160 --> 0:54:19.000 to try to attract certain people, trying to be like 0:54:19.239 --> 0:54:21.239 the people you want to attract. It never works. He 0:54:21.360 --> 0:54:24.000 just is who he is, and whoever doesn't like him 0:54:24.120 --> 0:54:27.520 their problem. Whoever does find there in the inner circle, 0:54:28.480 --> 0:54:30.640 We're so glad to have with us, if only for 0:54:30.719 --> 0:54:33.480 a few moments, one of the busiest men in America 0:54:33.760 --> 0:54:38.840 to share his thoughts about Russia. Lim Law President Donald J. Trump, Mr? President, 0:54:39.160 --> 0:54:41.600 What do you think Russia? Limbaugh's legacy will be across 0:54:41.640 --> 0:54:45.759 America and the world more than anything else. Freedom encourage. 0:54:45.880 --> 0:54:48.800 You know, he had guts. Rush would talk about anything 0:54:48.920 --> 0:54:53.440 that was appropriate to talk about. These other people, even 0:54:53.520 --> 0:54:55.480 the good ones. They're good people, but they want to 0:54:55.520 --> 0:54:58.919 be politically correct. They don't want to say anything that's 0:54:59.040 --> 0:55:02.920 too controversial. And that's what made him successful. Bow. You 0:55:03.000 --> 0:55:05.520 know that you don't other than anybody. You may be 0:55:06.080 --> 0:55:09.720 one guy that does it better than I do. Rush 0:55:10.239 --> 0:55:14.520 was a He was a man who had tremendous courage, 0:55:14.840 --> 0:55:18.360 and he had tremendous principle and if he believed in something, 0:55:18.440 --> 0:55:20.680 he talked about it. And who had an audience like him? 0:55:21.080 --> 0:55:23.479 You know, Sean Hannity is great and he's a great 0:55:23.560 --> 0:55:27.560 guy and a great person in every way. And Sean said, 0:55:27.840 --> 0:55:31.320 it's a voice that can never ever be replaced. And 0:55:31.640 --> 0:55:33.839 you know, for Sean to say that, who's so big 0:55:33.920 --> 0:55:36.200 in his own right and he's a massive audience. But 0:55:36.520 --> 0:55:40.120 and Sean openly says, Nope, Rush was the voice. It 0:55:40.239 --> 0:55:43.239 can never be replaced. You cannot because I used to say, well, 0:55:44.000 --> 0:55:47.759 who can replace Rush? And the fact is nobody will 0:55:47.800 --> 0:55:51.640 ever replace him. He was a courageous person and he 0:55:51.760 --> 0:55:54.920 loved our country. Well, Mr President, on behalf of all 0:55:55.040 --> 0:55:58.000 of us who worked with Rush and his millions of fans, 0:55:58.080 --> 0:56:01.279 we want to thank you will bestowing the Medal of 0:56:01.360 --> 0:56:04.320 Freedom upon him at that time, only you could do 0:56:04.480 --> 0:56:07.960 that and make all of the elected Democrats in Washington 0:56:08.080 --> 0:56:10.680 show up for the ceremony. Thank you for that. It 0:56:10.840 --> 0:56:13.919 was such a beautiful night. One will never forget. Thank 0:56:13.960 --> 0:56:16.560 you for doing that, Mr President. That was a great 0:56:16.640 --> 0:56:19.160 evening and I've never seen anything like it. One side 0:56:19.320 --> 0:56:21.799 was going crazy in a positive way, and the other 0:56:21.880 --> 0:56:24.920 side was dead and silent. But you know what, you 0:56:25.040 --> 0:56:27.680 looked at the eyes of the other side. They knew 0:56:27.760 --> 0:56:31.719 he deserved it. They knew it, they respected They respected 0:56:31.840 --> 0:56:34.480 him as much as they may be disliked him. And 0:56:35.040 --> 0:56:37.759 I don't know disagreed with him for whatever reason. I 0:56:37.800 --> 0:56:40.040 don't know why you would. He wants a strong military 0:56:40.160 --> 0:56:43.439 once slow texts, you know, all of the common sense things. 0:56:43.520 --> 0:56:46.359 But but they got it and giving it to him 0:56:46.480 --> 0:56:49.480 was his greatest honor. And giving it there and I 0:56:49.640 --> 0:56:51.640 was just an idea that I had and I said, 0:56:51.760 --> 0:56:54.960 let's go for it. And uh, that was quite a night. 0:56:55.320 --> 0:56:57.399 That was quite a night. Thank you for your time, 0:56:57.480 --> 0:57:00.680 Mr President. We so love you. Thank you for joining 0:57:00.719 --> 0:57:04.360 Thanks keep up the work very much. He is the 0:57:04.440 --> 0:57:09.280 greatest fighter and winner that you will ever meet. Rush Limball, 0:57:09.880 --> 0:57:14.680 thank you for your decades tireless devotion to our us. 0:57:28.920 --> 0:57:32.800 In recognition of all that you have done for our nation, 0:57:33.600 --> 0:57:37.240 the millions of people a day that you speak to 0:57:37.400 --> 0:57:40.800 and that you inspire, and all of the incredible work 0:57:41.640 --> 0:57:44.720 that you have done for charity, I am proud to 0:57:44.800 --> 0:57:48.320 announce tonight that you will be receiving our country's highest 0:57:49.240 --> 0:58:04.760 civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. So this is 0:58:04.800 --> 0:58:07.320 our last episode of Russilan by the man behind the 0:58:07.400 --> 0:58:09.919 Golden the IB microphone. We've heard from a lot of people, 0:58:10.000 --> 0:58:13.360 but I wanted you, ladies and gentlemen to hear from 0:58:13.400 --> 0:58:16.800 the two men that helped me produce this podcast series. 0:58:17.240 --> 0:58:21.120 Phil Tower Chris Kelly. Welcome to your podcast of Whom 0:58:21.160 --> 0:58:25.680 with Me? Hello James, Well, Chris, let's start with you. 0:58:25.800 --> 0:58:29.040 What have you learned? You came into this, as I 0:58:29.240 --> 0:58:31.320 understand that, correct me if I'm wrong. You came into 0:58:31.400 --> 0:58:34.160 this not so much a political guy. Tell me what 0:58:34.240 --> 0:58:37.160 you've learned from this series. You know, listen, I'm I am. 0:58:37.720 --> 0:58:41.680 I'm a radio guy, right, so having been around radio 0:58:41.800 --> 0:58:45.320 for a long time and having worked for radio stations 0:58:45.400 --> 0:58:48.960 that were rush lingall affiliates for a long time. Um, 0:58:49.400 --> 0:58:53.080 obviously you know you you revere somebody of his stature, 0:58:53.920 --> 0:58:57.680 uh and his success level politically speaking. No, I'm not 0:58:58.000 --> 0:59:01.400 overly interested in a lot of politics in general, right, 0:59:02.280 --> 0:59:04.800 but I am interested in somebody that knows how to 0:59:04.880 --> 0:59:08.200 communicate and somebody who does it at the level that 0:59:08.320 --> 0:59:10.960 he did it for so long. And I gotta tell 0:59:11.040 --> 0:59:15.400 you Honestly, the stories that I've been privy to behind 0:59:15.560 --> 0:59:18.720 the scenes, is we've recorded this thing, it's kind of 0:59:18.760 --> 0:59:20.440 blown me away. He reminds me a lot of a 0:59:20.480 --> 0:59:23.640 guy that I used to work for for a long time. Uh. 0:59:23.720 --> 0:59:26.280 And hearing hearing people like Brian say he was like 0:59:26.360 --> 0:59:30.240 another father to me, or hearing just your emotion in 0:59:30.360 --> 0:59:32.920 talking about him, and getting the chance to know some 0:59:33.080 --> 0:59:35.880 of these other people that have interacted with and and 0:59:36.000 --> 0:59:38.400 been part of Russia's life for so long has been really, 0:59:38.480 --> 0:59:41.880 really special, and I'm really really proud to have been 0:59:41.960 --> 0:59:46.600 part of this project. This podcast has been about, you know, 0:59:46.680 --> 0:59:49.040 at the end of the day, no matter what you 0:59:49.120 --> 0:59:51.280 watch on TV, no matter what you listen to on 0:59:51.320 --> 0:59:54.479 the radio, no matter what you read online, there's another 0:59:54.600 --> 0:59:57.520 human being on the other end of that content. And 0:59:58.560 --> 1:00:00.920 what I have been really sted in over the course 1:00:00.960 --> 1:00:03.040 of this series, and I hope others have paid attention to, 1:00:03.920 --> 1:00:07.640 is laying down all political ideology and laying down all 1:00:07.880 --> 1:00:11.440 what you read in the newspaper, online or whatever, is 1:00:11.520 --> 1:00:15.640 that there's this guy and there was so many more 1:00:15.880 --> 1:00:20.040 layers to him than you ever really got to hear 1:00:20.080 --> 1:00:23.240 on the radio, or that anybody ever really knew that 1:00:23.480 --> 1:00:26.200 to me is the whole purpose of why we've been 1:00:26.240 --> 1:00:30.920 doing this podcast. It's been an absolute pleasure to produce 1:00:31.160 --> 1:00:34.280 this and and especially I have to say James, to 1:00:34.480 --> 1:00:36.920 get to know you and work with you. You are 1:00:37.200 --> 1:00:39.760 a prose pro and I know just in reading some 1:00:39.840 --> 1:00:43.920 of the comments from um people that have left reviews 1:00:44.000 --> 1:00:48.000 on the podcast, and uh, just getting feedback from people 1:00:48.240 --> 1:00:51.680 in my own orbit, the level at which people speak 1:00:51.760 --> 1:00:55.040 of you, Uh, they couldn't be couldn't be more right. 1:00:55.200 --> 1:00:58.680 You are truly a gentleman and a professional, and it's 1:00:58.720 --> 1:01:01.400 been an absolute pleasure to work with you. I'm blushing 1:01:01.640 --> 1:01:04.080 and that's hard to see, by the way. Thank you, 1:01:08.680 --> 1:01:13.760 Thank you so much. Chris Kelly our other producer, Phil Tower. Phil, 1:01:13.800 --> 1:01:15.880 I'm gonna ask you the same question, well in a 1:01:15.880 --> 1:01:17.880 different kind of way, what have you learned from from 1:01:18.000 --> 1:01:21.520 from producing this podcast series about the life of Russian Lumball, 1:01:21.600 --> 1:01:25.200 the guy behind the Golden IBY microphone. Well, I'm going 1:01:25.240 --> 1:01:27.000 to give you a quick, simple answer, and that is 1:01:27.480 --> 1:01:33.520 have a dream, never give up on it. Rush decided 1:01:33.600 --> 1:01:36.520 that radio was his calling. We knew that as a 1:01:36.600 --> 1:01:39.800 young kid he hated going to school and that was 1:01:39.920 --> 1:01:42.920 his vision. He was fired from his first seven jobs, 1:01:43.800 --> 1:01:46.000 and in the end he was successful because he had 1:01:46.040 --> 1:01:48.560 a dream. He had a vision, and he kept to it. 1:01:49.360 --> 1:01:51.280 And along the way he met some great people and 1:01:51.360 --> 1:01:54.840 he stayed humble and grateful until the end. And what 1:01:55.000 --> 1:01:58.360 in a great American success story that is James and 1:01:58.520 --> 1:02:02.200 you were You had an inside seat to the whole thing, 1:02:02.440 --> 1:02:06.280 So I mean, what an incredible honor um. In the end, 1:02:06.360 --> 1:02:08.520 he was just a guy who loved what he did. 1:02:09.000 --> 1:02:12.600 And we've heard that from our parents and mentors along 1:02:12.640 --> 1:02:14.520 the way. You gotta love what you do in life. 1:02:14.600 --> 1:02:18.400 And Rush loved radio and he loved his show. He 1:02:18.600 --> 1:02:21.040 loved being with his audience. He was there until the end. 1:02:22.040 --> 1:02:25.920 And I need to make Chris and you blush because Chris, 1:02:26.480 --> 1:02:30.120 when I received a call from Craig Kitchen, the godfather 1:02:30.240 --> 1:02:33.480 of this whole project, if you will, I told him, 1:02:33.520 --> 1:02:38.600 I said, we need a masterful audio guy, and introduced 1:02:38.680 --> 1:02:42.240 Chris Kelly, my co producer who makes these podcasts. Sing 1:02:42.440 --> 1:02:44.959 James and you know that the way the music has mixed, 1:02:45.000 --> 1:02:49.520 everything's together. And you, James, a storyteller who gave each 1:02:49.560 --> 1:02:51.520 of us chills as we heard some of these stories. 1:02:52.080 --> 1:02:54.280 Oh my gosh, Well, I'm gonna say this. You know, 1:02:54.280 --> 1:02:56.680 I've been in radio all my life, almost as I 1:02:56.760 --> 1:02:59.360 look back on it now, almost all of my life, 1:02:59.400 --> 1:03:02.840 I've been in this radio business, and of course we're work. 1:03:02.920 --> 1:03:07.560 Working with Rush Limbaugh was an amazing blessing. It was 1:03:09.280 --> 1:03:13.840 a chance of a lifetime that has made my life. 1:03:14.840 --> 1:03:18.520 And working with both you Phil and you Chris has 1:03:18.640 --> 1:03:22.600 been such a delight. You Rush used to say, you know, 1:03:22.680 --> 1:03:25.600 the job of Colors was to make make the host 1:03:25.720 --> 1:03:28.200 look good, not to suck up or anything, but but 1:03:28.320 --> 1:03:31.120 to bring out the best. And working with two people 1:03:31.480 --> 1:03:35.800 who are the very best at what they do makes 1:03:35.840 --> 1:03:37.800 you up your game. And that's what both of you 1:03:37.880 --> 1:03:40.120 have done for me. You've made this a pleasure. You've 1:03:40.240 --> 1:03:44.080 made this a remarkable experience that I'll never forget. And 1:03:44.320 --> 1:03:47.560 I cannot thank you enough for the hard work and 1:03:47.720 --> 1:03:49.400 energy you put in. People that are not in this 1:03:49.560 --> 1:03:52.920 business don't understand the time that it takes just to 1:03:53.040 --> 1:03:58.040 produce one episode, and you guys have now both of 1:03:58.120 --> 1:04:02.000 you have spent so many hours going through this podcast 1:04:02.120 --> 1:04:05.440 with me and going through Russia Llanbaw's life with me, 1:04:06.040 --> 1:04:10.960 and the way that you produced this we hope brings 1:04:11.040 --> 1:04:15.280 all of us hope. Those that listen to Rush, those 1:04:15.400 --> 1:04:18.080 that knew Rush, and those that didn't know Rush will 1:04:18.560 --> 1:04:24.440 find appreciation for what an incredible man he was based 1:04:24.480 --> 1:04:27.800 on the production skills that you guys brought to the table, 1:04:27.840 --> 1:04:31.560 and I just can't thank you enough. So just this week, 1:04:31.720 --> 1:04:34.120 you know, in one of the previous episodes, I mentioned 1:04:34.160 --> 1:04:35.640 the dream that I had of Russia. I was trying 1:04:35.640 --> 1:04:37.320 to figure it out. So just this week I had 1:04:37.360 --> 1:04:41.040 another dream. Um, as we sit here with the final 1:04:41.080 --> 1:04:43.320 episode of RUSSI Lana the Man behind the Golden Knee, 1:04:43.320 --> 1:04:46.400 I'd be microphone and in this dream, Dawn, Brian and 1:04:46.440 --> 1:04:48.320 I were sitting in the control room and Rush was 1:04:48.400 --> 1:04:50.040 doing the show. And let me tell you, this was 1:04:50.160 --> 1:04:54.480 so vivid. It was such a vivid dream that at 1:04:54.640 --> 1:04:59.360 some point I looked at Dawn and said, how is 1:04:59.400 --> 1:05:03.080 this possible? Bowl, How are we here listening to Rush 1:05:03.600 --> 1:05:06.440 in the studio with us? This has to be a dream. 1:05:07.520 --> 1:05:11.760 And then I woke up. Well, my life with Rush 1:05:11.880 --> 1:05:16.040 was kind of like a dream. It happened all so quickly. 1:05:16.440 --> 1:05:19.000 Now when I look back on it, when you look 1:05:19.080 --> 1:05:22.000 back over three decades of your life, and and and 1:05:22.160 --> 1:05:25.040 you've spent three decades with someone who's had an amazing 1:05:25.120 --> 1:05:28.040 impact on your life. What can you say. It's hard 1:05:28.080 --> 1:05:30.600 to believe that we're at the stage now where where 1:05:30.840 --> 1:05:33.520 we're talking about it in the past tense. But here's 1:05:33.560 --> 1:05:40.080 the thing. Rush will never be past tense. For three decades, 1:05:40.720 --> 1:05:45.800 he connected with millions of people. He didn't just connect 1:05:46.000 --> 1:05:50.800 with their brains with ideas, he connected with their hearts. 1:05:51.920 --> 1:05:56.160 He connected with people in a way that no other 1:05:56.360 --> 1:06:02.440 media personality in our history has connected with people. And 1:06:02.560 --> 1:06:07.800 that is evidenced by the stories that people tell among themselves, 1:06:07.960 --> 1:06:09.960 some of the stories that you'll see in some of 1:06:10.000 --> 1:06:13.280 the reviews of this podcast, and and if you're fortunate 1:06:13.400 --> 1:06:15.560 enough to read in some of the emails or other 1:06:15.640 --> 1:06:19.160 communications that people send with each other. Rush impacted people 1:06:19.320 --> 1:06:22.600 in a way that most broadcasters could only dream of. 1:06:23.600 --> 1:06:27.440 He loved what he did. He loved this country, he 1:06:27.600 --> 1:06:33.480 loved his family, He loved what he did. Russell Lambas 1:06:33.600 --> 1:06:35.720 said he was born to talk and we were born 1:06:35.800 --> 1:06:38.200 to listen. He was so right. He was born to 1:06:38.320 --> 1:06:41.640 do what he did, and he did it well. That 1:06:41.920 --> 1:06:44.960 talent has been returned to God, but thank God we 1:06:45.120 --> 1:06:49.760 had that talent. For thirty years. More than thirty years, Rush, 1:06:50.080 --> 1:06:54.640 We love you, we miss you, and will never ever 1:06:55.280 --> 1:06:59.480 forget you. One final guest host we haven't heard from yet, 1:07:00.160 --> 1:07:02.680 or at least not in his own words, He narrated 1:07:02.840 --> 1:07:04.760 a life of Russi Lymbob and Yet for us in 1:07:04.800 --> 1:07:07.720 our last episode, but also sent us a little bit 1:07:07.760 --> 1:07:11.000 more of his own story and insight on how Rush 1:07:11.120 --> 1:07:15.560 impacted him and inspired his life. In liberal Hollywood, of 1:07:15.640 --> 1:07:19.440 all places, actor Nick Sarcy was a fan of Russia Limbaugh, 1:07:19.760 --> 1:07:22.440 but what he didn't know was that Rush was also 1:07:22.560 --> 1:07:26.120 a fan of his work until one day he mentioned 1:07:26.200 --> 1:07:28.360 him on the air and the rest was history. So 1:07:28.560 --> 1:07:32.040 now here's Nick Sercy, one time guest host of the 1:07:32.080 --> 1:07:35.439 Russi lan Bar Program, but more importantly, a long time 1:07:35.520 --> 1:07:40.120 listener just like you and me. And this is nick story. 1:07:44.680 --> 1:07:46.960 I was living in North Carolina with my wife and 1:07:47.040 --> 1:07:51.280 newborn daughter and driving long distances for auditions trying to 1:07:51.360 --> 1:07:54.800 get my acting career started. Many of my trips were 1:07:54.840 --> 1:07:58.640 from western North Carolina to Wilmington, North Carolina, at four 1:07:58.720 --> 1:08:01.720 hundred miles six and a half hour drive one way. 1:08:02.440 --> 1:08:05.240 There was nothing but the radio to keep you awake 1:08:05.560 --> 1:08:09.560 and alive. And then one day, flipping through I came 1:08:09.640 --> 1:08:15.960 upon this voice, this warm, jocular, joyful, sonorous, pleasant voice, 1:08:16.960 --> 1:08:22.599 bragging about his talent on loan from God and tying 1:08:22.680 --> 1:08:24.720 half his brain behind his back to make it fair 1:08:24.800 --> 1:08:28.280 to the callers, talking about politics, the news of the day, 1:08:29.000 --> 1:08:32.880 playing funny song parodies, and he was making fun of Democrats. 1:08:33.560 --> 1:08:36.880 And at that time this simply was not done, And 1:08:37.040 --> 1:08:40.120 I thought, who the hell is this guy? For you 1:08:40.280 --> 1:08:43.640 young whipper snappers out there, it is hard to understand 1:08:43.840 --> 1:08:48.000 what life was like before Rush. There was no one, 1:08:48.200 --> 1:08:51.479 and I mean no one like him. There was no 1:08:51.680 --> 1:08:55.280 Fox News, no Sean Hannity, not really even a talk 1:08:55.439 --> 1:09:00.200 radio format, not on a national level. Rush started it all. 1:09:01.520 --> 1:09:04.519 He showed us all that the left did not define 1:09:04.600 --> 1:09:09.479 him and by extension us, and he talked to us 1:09:09.960 --> 1:09:13.040 like every single one of us was a dear friend, 1:09:14.240 --> 1:09:20.240 and in our hearts we made friends with Rush. It 1:09:20.400 --> 1:09:22.680 is nearly impossible for me to put into words how 1:09:22.760 --> 1:09:26.519 much Rush has meant to me over the years working 1:09:26.560 --> 1:09:29.560 in Hollywood amongst the leftists in power, Rush was the 1:09:29.720 --> 1:09:33.360 thing I organized my day around. I even bought a 1:09:33.400 --> 1:09:37.439 short wave radio from Radio Shack Google that kids, so 1:09:37.680 --> 1:09:40.960 I could hear Rush from anywhere on earth, even if 1:09:41.000 --> 1:09:45.000 he was preempted by current events. Because as a small 1:09:45.080 --> 1:09:48.680 town kid pursuing the seemingly impossible goal of making a 1:09:48.760 --> 1:09:53.320 living as an actor, I saw myself in Rush when 1:09:53.400 --> 1:09:55.559 he talked about wanting to be on the radio from 1:09:55.600 --> 1:09:58.479 a very young age and knowing that radio was what 1:09:58.600 --> 1:10:01.120 he wanted to do with his life. When he talked 1:10:01.160 --> 1:10:03.439 about the jobs that he had been fired from and 1:10:03.479 --> 1:10:06.720 all the setbacks he had encountered along the way, and 1:10:06.840 --> 1:10:11.200 how he had still persevered, he gave me hope. He 1:10:11.320 --> 1:10:14.840 made me believe, perhaps more than any other single person 1:10:14.920 --> 1:10:17.640 in my life besides my mom, that I could do 1:10:17.800 --> 1:10:21.200 it if I just kept going. He sustained me through 1:10:21.240 --> 1:10:24.960 all the disappointments and the triumphs, and most of all, 1:10:25.360 --> 1:10:27.400 he let me know that I was not alone in 1:10:27.520 --> 1:10:30.960 being a conservative, even while I was in the thick 1:10:31.080 --> 1:10:35.120 den of leftist thieves, bullies and vipers that he is 1:10:35.200 --> 1:10:39.360 Hollywood in I was cast his art Mullen and the 1:10:39.439 --> 1:10:43.160 TV show justified a role that perhaps came the signature 1:10:43.240 --> 1:10:46.800 role of my career. And Rush said repeatedly on the 1:10:46.880 --> 1:10:49.800 air how much he liked to show which thrilled me 1:10:49.920 --> 1:10:53.320 to no end. I was so proud that my friend Rush, 1:10:53.960 --> 1:10:56.840 who had never met at that time. Like some of 1:10:57.000 --> 1:11:01.280 my work, nothing makes me feel like I had made 1:11:01.360 --> 1:11:05.240 it more than that fact. And then one day it 1:11:05.400 --> 1:11:10.240 happened Rush mentioned me by name on the air. My 1:11:10.400 --> 1:11:13.120 phone blew up with my friends calling me to tell me. 1:11:13.680 --> 1:11:17.160 I couldn't believe it. And by then Twitter had arrived 1:11:17.200 --> 1:11:19.559 on the scene, and I was already friends with Russia's 1:11:19.640 --> 1:11:22.760 brother David, and I tweeted him and one thing led 1:11:22.800 --> 1:11:26.519 to another, and then the next day I got a 1:11:26.640 --> 1:11:30.800 call from Bo Snerdley himself asking me if I would 1:11:30.840 --> 1:11:33.720 like to come on the show and be interviewed by 1:11:33.760 --> 1:11:37.600 the Maha Rushi himself. And since then I've had the 1:11:37.680 --> 1:11:41.560 privilege of meeting Russian person, of introducing him at a 1:11:41.600 --> 1:11:45.599 speech he gave to that top secret Hollywood conservative group 1:11:45.720 --> 1:11:49.360 that had no name and in fact never existed. And 1:11:49.479 --> 1:11:51.679 towards the end of Russia's life, when he talked about 1:11:51.720 --> 1:11:54.160 how blessed he was to live the life he had, 1:11:55.040 --> 1:11:58.280 I saw myself and him again. There's no question that 1:11:58.320 --> 1:12:01.320 I have been a very fortunate I've been able to 1:12:01.400 --> 1:12:04.479 forge a living for myself and my beautiful family by acting, 1:12:05.080 --> 1:12:08.360 which is a miracle in and of itself, but still 1:12:08.960 --> 1:12:14.360 perhaps the most incredible, preposterous thing that has ever happened 1:12:14.360 --> 1:12:19.599 to me occurred on December when I had the honor 1:12:19.840 --> 1:12:24.280 of guest hosting the Rush Limball Program. It was a 1:12:24.400 --> 1:12:26.960 gift to me in so many ways. I'm not a 1:12:27.120 --> 1:12:30.240 radio guy. I was dragged across the finish line that 1:12:30.360 --> 1:12:33.879 day by the great boats Nerdly and the amazing Mike Mammone, 1:12:34.439 --> 1:12:38.200 and it remains to me the single most surreal event 1:12:38.560 --> 1:12:42.160 in my life. It's an honor that I still can't 1:12:42.200 --> 1:12:45.839 believe I received when Craig Kitchen passed along a message 1:12:45.880 --> 1:12:48.759 to me from Rush the day before I guest hosted. 1:12:49.520 --> 1:12:52.880 Rush had said to ask me why I wanted to 1:12:52.920 --> 1:12:57.759 get into radio, and I told Craig to tell Rush 1:12:57.840 --> 1:13:00.640 that I wasn't really sure if I did, but I 1:13:00.960 --> 1:13:03.639 knew that I just wanted to know what it felt 1:13:03.720 --> 1:13:08.960 like to be Rush for one day, and it gave 1:13:09.040 --> 1:13:11.559 me even more of an appreciation of how great Rush 1:13:11.800 --> 1:13:15.439 was when I experienced exactly how hard it is to 1:13:15.479 --> 1:13:19.960 be on the radio for three hours just once, let 1:13:20.040 --> 1:13:23.360 alone fifteen hours a week. Fifty weeks a year for 1:13:23.560 --> 1:13:26.840 thirty years at the very top of the mountain, with 1:13:27.120 --> 1:13:32.560 no one else ever even cloaks. Over those years, I 1:13:32.680 --> 1:13:36.600 have so many memories laughing with him at his song parodies, 1:13:37.280 --> 1:13:39.879 crying with him when he had his pain killer issues, 1:13:40.439 --> 1:13:43.880 praying for him when his hearing went, and of course 1:13:44.680 --> 1:13:48.880 sobbing when he announced that he had the cancer that 1:13:48.920 --> 1:13:53.800 would ultimately end his life. And when that sad day came. 1:13:55.080 --> 1:13:57.679 I was just like everybody else that was in Russia's 1:13:57.720 --> 1:14:03.160 thirty million plus audience. We grieved not just because we 1:14:03.240 --> 1:14:07.320 agreed with his politics, not for the validation and courage 1:14:07.360 --> 1:14:10.640 he modeled for us, not just because we would miss 1:14:10.800 --> 1:14:15.360 hearing his inimitable take on the day's events. We grieved 1:14:16.280 --> 1:14:19.400 like he was part of our family and we were. 1:14:21.000 --> 1:14:24.800 We grieved because we loved him, and we knew he 1:14:24.920 --> 1:14:29.960 loved us. If it can ever be said about someone 1:14:30.120 --> 1:14:33.160 that he did not live in vain, then his life 1:14:33.280 --> 1:14:38.200 made a difference that someone is rush. He showed us 1:14:38.240 --> 1:14:42.479 the way. May we have the same courage that he 1:14:42.600 --> 1:14:46.479 had to laugh in the face of hatred, to defend 1:14:46.560 --> 1:14:49.479 this country and what it stands for, and to do 1:14:49.680 --> 1:14:58.360 so with intelligence and humor and love. God bless Rush Limbaugh, 1:15:00.000 --> 1:15:02.800 and God bless the United States of America, and God 1:15:02.880 --> 1:15:06.120 bless the United States. I'm never going to be able 1:15:06.240 --> 1:15:11.559 to adequately think the people who are responsible for one 1:15:11.640 --> 1:15:15.360 of the greatest lives anybody could have had. Anybody. Mega 1:15:15.439 --> 1:15:18.600 dittos megal prayer, Mega love for Rush. That man is 1:15:18.640 --> 1:15:21.840 in heaven and he's being right there by the throne, 1:15:22.040 --> 1:15:24.840 and I thank God for them. You will be remembered 1:15:24.880 --> 1:15:28.439 as a man who on air changed the course of 1:15:28.520 --> 1:15:31.960 conversation in America. The more you can be your real, 1:15:32.240 --> 1:15:35.800 authentic self, the better you're going to be. And that's Rush. 1:15:37.920 --> 1:15:41.800 Rush encouraged so many of us to think for ourselves, 1:15:42.320 --> 1:15:46.280 to learn and to lead. He often said it did 1:15:46.360 --> 1:15:49.240 not matter where you started or what you look like. 1:15:49.640 --> 1:15:54.960 As Americans, we all have endless opportunities like nowhere else 1:15:55.040 --> 1:15:58.960 in the world. I have met the goals I set 1:15:59.040 --> 1:16:02.160 for myself, and I have been able to do it 1:16:02.320 --> 1:16:04.519 all for the most part on my terms. I just 1:16:04.920 --> 1:16:08.719 cannot get any better. And to be able to share 1:16:08.800 --> 1:16:11.479 all of this with you and tell you how grateful 1:16:11.520 --> 1:16:15.040 I am makes me happy. You didn't have to know 1:16:15.280 --> 1:16:17.040 Rush to love him all. You had to do was 1:16:17.160 --> 1:16:20.120 listen to him. He was a historian, he was a comedian. 1:16:20.720 --> 1:16:23.560 He was a brilliant, brilliant man, and he will be 1:16:23.680 --> 1:16:26.720 greatly missed, and there'll not be another Russian law in 1:16:26.760 --> 1:16:28.960 this world. People try to figure out why he was 1:16:29.040 --> 1:16:31.439 so successful you did, You just can't put it in 1:16:31.720 --> 1:16:35.439 in an easy define herble box. His love of his audience, 1:16:35.520 --> 1:16:38.360 his love or what he did, his intelligence, his wit. 1:16:38.560 --> 1:16:41.200 Rush was like a second father for me because I 1:16:41.280 --> 1:16:43.439 probably spent more time with him than anybody in the 1:16:43.520 --> 1:16:46.000 last twenty years. I know now that God needs him 1:16:46.040 --> 1:16:48.120 for something up there. Now he's got a new job, 1:16:48.280 --> 1:16:50.599 and he did his part here and now we all 1:16:50.680 --> 1:16:56.320 have to, you know, continue his legacy anyway we care. 1:16:56.320 --> 1:16:58.840 There was nobody that ever was in the presence of 1:16:58.960 --> 1:17:03.120 the man, liberals or conservatives or a political people who 1:17:03.200 --> 1:17:08.639 didn't think he was the most gentlemanly, humble person they've 1:17:08.720 --> 1:17:11.200 ever met. Here's the all knowing, all seeing, all caring 1:17:11.680 --> 1:17:15.040 Maha Rushing, and it was America's anchor man and truth detective. 1:17:15.080 --> 1:17:17.920 And he was also a brother and an uncle, and 1:17:18.040 --> 1:17:21.280 his son and a grandson. I'm just trying to give 1:17:21.439 --> 1:17:24.360 thanks every day for all of the blessings. I have 1:17:24.520 --> 1:17:27.160 had a blessed life I have. I have had so 1:17:27.320 --> 1:17:31.360 many great friends I had and still do. Um that 1:17:31.680 --> 1:17:36.479 it's it's uh, there's nothing negative for me. There's there's nothing, 1:17:37.120 --> 1:17:40.280 nothing that i have deep regrets about because I've been 1:17:40.360 --> 1:17:44.720 too blessed, because I've been to He would give so 1:17:45.040 --> 1:17:48.400 generously to taste so many organizations and so many people, 1:17:48.520 --> 1:17:51.560 and would do so many things anonymously, so much that 1:17:51.720 --> 1:17:54.639 people will never know the amount of stuff that he's done. 1:17:55.080 --> 1:18:00.280 Russia's voice isn't going anywhere, so you need not have 1:18:00.479 --> 1:18:04.200 any care of that. On behalf of the Limbaugh family, 1:18:04.760 --> 1:18:07.760 I would personally like to thank each and every one 1:18:07.840 --> 1:18:12.200 of you who prayed for Rush and inspired him to 1:18:12.320 --> 1:18:16.920 keep going. He loved you, and he loved this radio 1:18:17.080 --> 1:18:21.160 program with every part of his being. You have to 1:18:21.280 --> 1:18:24.720 give every day, you know. I've love to point out 1:18:24.760 --> 1:18:28.280 we all only get one life. We don't get to 1:18:28.320 --> 1:18:31.000 do over againness, Well we do. Actually we gotta do 1:18:31.120 --> 1:18:34.000 over every day if we choose to look at it 1:18:34.120 --> 1:18:37.080 that way. Once we're old enough on the tour enough 1:18:37.120 --> 1:18:40.200 to understand what life is and that there is only one, 1:18:40.720 --> 1:18:45.200 then you do get do overs. Far more optimistic than pessimistic, 1:18:46.000 --> 1:18:51.800 focusing on the goodness that exists each day, and there 1:18:52.080 --> 1:18:55.400 is goodness and everything that happens. It may not be 1:18:56.360 --> 1:19:00.759 immediately a parent, but it's there and it will eventually 1:19:00.840 --> 1:19:04.639 reveal itself. It always does reveal itself. It always does. 1:19:08.080 --> 1:19:10.240 A russlan Ball The Man Behind the Golden E I 1:19:10.360 --> 1:19:13.240 B Microphone has been produced by Chris Kelly and Phil Tower, 1:19:13.280 --> 1:19:16.799 two of the most brilliant producers in America. Folks production 1:19:16.840 --> 1:19:21.240 assistants Mike Mamone, the executive producers Craig Kitchen and Julie Talbot. 1:19:21.520 --> 1:19:24.560 I'd also like to thank everybody from the E I 1:19:24.680 --> 1:19:28.240 B staff who participated in this program. It could have 1:19:28.400 --> 1:19:32.120 just as easily been you as me hosting this. We 1:19:32.320 --> 1:19:35.880 all had the same love for RUSSI lan Ball. Our 1:19:35.960 --> 1:19:39.640 program is distributed worldwide by Premiere Networks, found on the 1:19:39.720 --> 1:19:43.160 I Heart Radio Apple wherever you listen to your favorite podcast. 1:19:43.680 --> 1:19:46.360 This is James Golden, This is both Snertling, This is 1:19:46.680 --> 1:19:49.000 James Golden, and I'm honored to be your host for 1:19:49.080 --> 1:19:52.240 this and every single episode of Russia land Ball The 1:19:52.320 --> 1:19:54.880 Man Behind the Golden E I B Microphone. Thank you 1:19:55.600 --> 1:19:56.360 for being with US