WEBVTT - Life of Rush Limbaugh Vignettes 0:00:00.600 --> 0:00:05.119 The Life of Rush Limbaugh, Chapter one, narrated by America's 0:00:05.160 --> 0:00:10.360 Mayor Rudy Giuliani. I knew what I wanted to do 0:00:10.400 --> 0:00:14.640 when I was eight years old. How did I know? Well, 0:00:14.880 --> 0:00:17.520 you know the story. I hated school. It was prison. 0:00:18.280 --> 0:00:21.200 I just hated it. Here I'm locked in this place. 0:00:21.239 --> 0:00:24.000 I'm having to learn about whatever you learn about in 0:00:24.120 --> 0:00:27.040 first grade, you know how to pace things instead of in 0:00:27.000 --> 0:00:30.000 in the last place I wanted to be. So every morning, 0:00:30.040 --> 0:00:33.720 getting ready to go to this prison, this school, my 0:00:33.800 --> 0:00:35.920 mother had the radio one and she's listening to the guy, 0:00:36.720 --> 0:00:39.040 a local jock. And this guy sounds like he's having 0:00:39.159 --> 0:00:44.120 fun doing whatever he's doing. He's playing records, he's doing commentary, 0:00:44.159 --> 0:00:46.400 a little weather forecast. It's sound like he's having fun. 0:00:46.520 --> 0:00:48.960 That's how I want my day to be. I don't 0:00:48.960 --> 0:00:51.280 want to begin my day in drudgery and something I 0:00:51.280 --> 0:00:53.640 don't want to do. But I had no choice. You 0:00:53.680 --> 0:00:56.080 have to go to school. If ever a man was 0:00:56.120 --> 0:00:59.800 born for radio, it was Rush Hudson Limbaugh, the third. 0:01:00.400 --> 0:01:04.280 He entered this world in January of n right in 0:01:04.319 --> 0:01:08.960 the heartland of America, Cape Girardo, Missouri. He was born 0:01:08.959 --> 0:01:12.759 into a family of lawyers who enjoyed success at nearly 0:01:12.920 --> 0:01:16.440 every level, and he almost seemed destined to be the same. 0:01:16.840 --> 0:01:20.640 His paternal grandfather, Rush Hudson Limbaugh the First served as 0:01:20.640 --> 0:01:24.720 a United States ambassador. His father, Rush Hudson Limbaugh the Second, 0:01:25.040 --> 0:01:27.920 was a lawyer, as was his uncle, and even his 0:01:28.000 --> 0:01:30.720 younger brother David was also since gone on to becoming 0:01:30.720 --> 0:01:35.400 a best selling author. But no Rush had different plans. 0:01:36.000 --> 0:01:39.240 As you can imagine, a deviation from the family business 0:01:39.600 --> 0:01:42.480 wasn't received all too well. Even Rush would have said later, 0:01:42.880 --> 0:01:46.199 there's no way my dad could have anticipated that Rush 0:01:46.240 --> 0:01:49.640 would break all odds and being phenomenally successful, not going 0:01:49.680 --> 0:01:52.480 the conventional route. So in the end it just worked 0:01:52.520 --> 0:01:55.640 out for the best. Though Russia's family initially frowned upon 0:01:55.680 --> 0:01:58.720 his aspirations for a career in radio, they didn't completely 0:01:58.760 --> 0:02:01.680 ignore his passion for broad guest the age of nine, 0:02:02.120 --> 0:02:05.960 Rushwood broadcast from his own bedroom using a toy radio 0:02:06.480 --> 0:02:09.840 given to him by his parents that could only transmit 0:02:10.040 --> 0:02:13.800 throughout his house. There was a device called a Rimco 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:17.680 carat Vlle and it was the most amazing thing. My 0:02:17.760 --> 0:02:20.360 parents got it for me for Christmas one year, and 0:02:20.480 --> 0:02:24.560 my mother actually dutifully put a radio on her lap, 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:28.359 and I would go upstairs where the bedroom was, and 0:02:28.400 --> 0:02:31.520 I would have my photo. And you had to have 0:02:31.600 --> 0:02:34.040 an external microphone to put into the speaker of the 0:02:34.080 --> 0:02:36.919 phonograph that you were playing records on. You had to 0:02:36.960 --> 0:02:39.240 move the microphone to your mouth when you were doing 0:02:39.400 --> 0:02:42.320 DJ stuff, and then you'd hould the microphone near the 0:02:42.320 --> 0:02:44.920 speaker for the phonograph to play the record. And my 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:47.200 mother would dutifully sit down there and listen to this, 0:02:48.120 --> 0:02:51.600 and that the quality was just was was horrible, but 0:02:51.800 --> 0:02:57.080 it allowed me to get started on on living out 0:02:57.160 --> 0:03:03.680 my my dreams. As time passed, Rush came to believe 0:03:03.720 --> 0:03:06.280 that his family had a change of heart about his 0:03:06.400 --> 0:03:09.840 pursuit of broadcasting. Even though the family didn't understand it, 0:03:11.360 --> 0:03:13.480 the fact that I hadn't quit it was enough for 0:03:13.520 --> 0:03:16.760 them to encourage me to stay in it, and I did, 0:03:18.040 --> 0:03:24.080 and all that happened happened, and it's it's been so rewarding. 0:03:24.160 --> 0:03:28.120 It has been so so meaningful to me, and there 0:03:28.120 --> 0:03:30.200 have been so many people that have made it possible. 0:03:30.240 --> 0:03:34.639 Among them all of you, thankfully for the rest of us, 0:03:35.040 --> 0:03:38.720 my friend Rush Hudson Limbo the third spent the next 0:03:38.800 --> 0:03:43.840 seven decades in his relentless pursuit of broadcast excellent, and 0:03:43.960 --> 0:03:48.280 he set the standard that will be very, very hard 0:03:48.440 --> 0:03:56.920 to beat. The Life of Rush Limbaugh Chapter two, narrated 0:03:56.920 --> 0:04:02.240 by Mark Stein. Rush Hudson Limbo the Third Land as 0:04:02.320 --> 0:04:05.640 his first job when he was just thirteen shining shoes 0:04:05.680 --> 0:04:08.800 at a Cape Gerardo barbershop. And our Betty was a 0:04:08.800 --> 0:04:11.800 pretty good shoe shine boy. But what he really wanted 0:04:11.800 --> 0:04:14.920 to be was that guy on the radio. For us, 0:04:15.120 --> 0:04:18.880 being a disc jockey represented more fun than a junior 0:04:19.000 --> 0:04:21.960 human being should be allowed to have. My wildest dreams 0:04:21.960 --> 0:04:24.800 when I was a young kid pretending to be a 0:04:25.000 --> 0:04:28.200 DJ on the radio. When I was eight years old, 0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:32.599 he fell in love with a toy radio transmitter that 0:04:32.720 --> 0:04:36.160 allowed him to broadcast inside the house two members of 0:04:36.240 --> 0:04:38.720 his family. Any kid who's wanted to be on the 0:04:38.839 --> 0:04:41.760 radio will know the thrill of making your own cassette 0:04:41.800 --> 0:04:45.960 tapes of you doing voiceovers over Frankie Avalon and the 0:04:46.040 --> 0:04:50.440 McGuire sisters or whoever's singles it was back then. But 0:04:50.560 --> 0:04:53.000 as one of those gazillions, it would be boss jocks. 0:04:53.080 --> 0:04:57.080 I certainly envy rushed that transmitter gizmo some kids have 0:04:57.200 --> 0:04:59.840 to make do with bringing an old baby monitor down 0:04:59.839 --> 0:05:03.920 for the attic was the most amazing thing. It's plastic. 0:05:04.520 --> 0:05:07.559 It was about three ft long and two feet high, 0:05:08.160 --> 0:05:12.719 and it transmitted over a m within the confines of 0:05:12.839 --> 0:05:17.080 a I don't know, a small house. The quality was horrible, 0:05:17.320 --> 0:05:20.800 but it worked. At sixteen, Rush, with a little help 0:05:20.839 --> 0:05:24.200 from his dad, advanced from the toy transmitter to the 0:05:24.240 --> 0:05:29.839 real thing. He got an internship at KGMO fifty a m. 0:05:29.880 --> 0:05:34.560 And then the intern realized his childhood dream and got 0:05:34.760 --> 0:05:39.279 on the s spinning classes under the name Rusty Sharp. 0:05:39.800 --> 0:05:44.000 That's a fabulous radio monica, but only half true. In 0:05:44.120 --> 0:05:49.799 this case, Brush was always sharp and never rusty. Gerda 0:05:49.880 --> 0:05:51.520 was very steven. It's my hometown. How are you, sir? 0:05:51.680 --> 0:05:54.680 Good greetings from the city of Roses. Thank you, Thank 0:05:54.680 --> 0:05:57.320 you sir very much. It was six years behind you 0:05:57.400 --> 0:06:01.239 in school, but I used to listen to you on KGMO. 0:06:01.800 --> 0:06:03.800 I was the one that called every day and say, man, 0:06:03.920 --> 0:06:06.479 play in a got a davida? Will you? Once he 0:06:06.560 --> 0:06:09.279 was on the radio, he never looked back, working mornings 0:06:09.320 --> 0:06:13.839 and afternoons at KGMO. And then ed happened. Rusty Sharp 0:06:13.960 --> 0:06:17.039 got fired and kicked off the air, the first too 0:06:17.080 --> 0:06:19.800 many firings for Rush over the years, all of which 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:23.560 setbacks he overcame and learned from on his way up 0:06:23.560 --> 0:06:27.000 to the One Gig, the third of a century engagement 0:06:27.520 --> 0:06:31.880 that ultimately only God could terminate him from. He wasn't 0:06:31.880 --> 0:06:35.320 your typical nineteen sixties teen age, didn't need and never 0:06:35.400 --> 0:06:38.640 sought the approval of the high school in crowd. He 0:06:38.720 --> 0:06:42.520 preferred to socialize with older, more mature friends. Although he 0:06:42.520 --> 0:06:46.559 won the admiration of his school's upperclassman with his quick 0:06:46.600 --> 0:06:51.000 wit and sharp mind and fearlessness in debate, he wasn't 0:06:51.040 --> 0:06:55.200 afraid to stand out to be contrarian. He refused, for example, 0:06:55.880 --> 0:06:59.120 ever to wear blue jeans. Come on, let's face it, 0:06:59.120 --> 0:07:01.000 it's looks like a b of ore, a sab. It's 0:07:01.040 --> 0:07:04.440 it's it's it's a prius. It's it's a liberal status symbol. 0:07:04.480 --> 0:07:06.960 Genes are liberal status symbols. At least they were. I 0:07:06.960 --> 0:07:10.040 know everybody wears them. Now it's another battle we've lost. Absolutely. 0:07:10.080 --> 0:07:14.200 They used to be a status symbol, carbalized our startorial splendor. 0:07:14.280 --> 0:07:16.320 That we run around looking like a bunch of hippies, 0:07:16.920 --> 0:07:18.920 And I'm not gonna do it. He had yet to 0:07:19.000 --> 0:07:22.480 finish high school, but already there was a Rush Limbaugh 0:07:22.600 --> 0:07:26.680 style and a Rush Limbo brand. After graduating from Cape 0:07:26.680 --> 0:07:30.720 Grado Central in nineteen nine, Rush was expected by his 0:07:30.800 --> 0:07:34.320 father to go to college, so he enrolled at nearby 0:07:34.520 --> 0:07:41.400 Southeast Missouri State University, but after only two semesters, Rush 0:07:41.800 --> 0:07:47.200 dropped out for good. Radio was calling, and Rush chose 0:07:47.320 --> 0:07:51.920 to pursue his dream, confident that it was about to 0:07:51.960 --> 0:07:59.640 become reality. The Life of Rush Limbaugh, Chapter three, narrated 0:07:59.640 --> 0:08:04.200 by On Hannity. After enduring a painful year of college 0:08:04.240 --> 0:08:08.800 at Southeastern Missouri University, young Rush Limbaugh he bid farewell 0:08:08.920 --> 0:08:12.960 to college life and then immersed himself into his next 0:08:13.000 --> 0:08:17.119 big radio job. After loading up his nineteen sixty nine 0:08:17.160 --> 0:08:20.840 Pontiac Leman's Rush headed east with dreams of making it 0:08:20.880 --> 0:08:23.800 big in the Iron City, and d J. Rusty Sharp 0:08:23.880 --> 0:08:28.880 from Cape Toronto, Missouri was soon reborn as Bachelor Jeff Christie, 0:08:29.280 --> 0:08:32.160 first hosting an afternoon drive shift and later holding down 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:36.240 the morning show on Wixie thirteen sixty, known as one 0:08:36.240 --> 0:08:45.400 of Pittsburgh's premier top boardy radio stations, continues Rock and 0:08:45.520 --> 0:08:47.959 Goal seven three in the morning. I wish he silent 0:08:48.360 --> 0:08:51.440 God Bachelor Jeff Radio Network from just want to have 0:08:51.440 --> 0:08:53.760 a big hand for Mr and Missus Arnold PELUSI a 0:08:53.800 --> 0:08:56.160 couple of new members of Christy Radio Network this morning 0:08:56.720 --> 0:09:04.439 celebrating refrigerators. Jeff Christie lasted barely eighteen months on w 0:09:04.760 --> 0:09:07.599 i X before he was fired. I was in the 0:09:07.679 --> 0:09:11.680 fall of nineteen seventy two over what were described as 0:09:11.880 --> 0:09:17.280 quote differences over format. His departure from Wixie thirteen sixty 0:09:17.400 --> 0:09:20.439 quickly led to a bigger opportunity for Rush. S k 0:09:20.679 --> 0:09:24.080 H Jeff Christie and in early nineteen seventy three, Crosstown 0:09:24.160 --> 0:09:27.800 Top forty competitor k q V Radio Well, they hired 0:09:27.920 --> 0:09:31.160 him to be their new nighttime DJ. That afforded Rush 0:09:31.400 --> 0:09:35.800 an even bigger platform and another opportunity to further develop 0:09:35.920 --> 0:09:46.480 his on air persona q v V three g K 0:09:46.679 --> 0:09:50.160 Jeff Christy Rocky Radio Sean Friday Night justin minutes away 0:09:50.200 --> 0:09:53.679 from forteen not stop right now of statistics, Jeff Christie 0:09:53.800 --> 0:09:57.600 was beginning to hone future on air skills would eventually 0:09:57.679 --> 0:10:02.520 become the trademarks of Rush Limbaugh was excellence in broadcasting. Now. 0:10:02.640 --> 0:10:05.480 Rush would soon learn success in radio is kind of fickle, 0:10:05.840 --> 0:10:09.360 especially a station ownership change his hands and a dramatic 0:10:09.440 --> 0:10:12.840 turn of events the lame duck KQUB management will They 0:10:12.920 --> 0:10:15.920 pushed the new program director to fire Rush, and ninety 0:10:16.040 --> 0:10:19.080 days later Rush Limbaugh Jeff Christie was out of work. 0:10:19.200 --> 0:10:23.079 When I got fired, I thought I was finished. I'd 0:10:23.080 --> 0:10:25.600 give it my best shot. D J didn't work out. 0:10:26.720 --> 0:10:29.840 I didn't want to do anything else. This has been 0:10:30.920 --> 0:10:33.960 my one passion. And in a stinging rebuke that Rush 0:10:34.000 --> 0:10:37.160 would remember for decades, the station's general manager told the 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:40.400 twenty something Rush Limbaugh that he would quote never make 0:10:40.440 --> 0:10:42.360 it in radio as an air talent, and that he 0:10:42.400 --> 0:10:45.760 should strongly consider the sales end of the radio business. 0:10:45.960 --> 0:10:50.280 I had an interview with a sales manager at a station. 0:10:50.320 --> 0:10:53.360 To the guy was a genuine lunatic. He's I'm just me. 0:10:53.600 --> 0:10:55.800 I'm interviewed for the job, and he's yelling and screaming 0:10:55.840 --> 0:10:58.400 at me about what his demands will be and what 0:10:58.640 --> 0:11:01.319 they are. And since he's I gonna face this every day. So, 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:03.719 after three years of trying to make a go of 0:11:03.800 --> 0:11:06.680 it in Pittsburgh, while Rush was out of another radio gig, 0:11:06.840 --> 0:11:10.160 feeling defeated and dejected, the return to the security and 0:11:10.280 --> 0:11:13.720 comfort of his home in Cape Girardo, Missouri. Rush was down, 0:11:13.840 --> 0:11:17.280 but as we all know, far from out. His determination 0:11:17.400 --> 0:11:21.160 for success far outweighed the idea of failure. The long 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:24.439 version here of telling you that this has been That's 0:11:24.480 --> 0:11:27.560 why I'm so fortunate I've I was able to end 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:29.400 up doing what I think I was born to do. 0:11:29.640 --> 0:11:33.960 I've never had passion for anything else, I mean, career 0:11:34.040 --> 0:11:39.680 wise like I've got for this unforgettable. That's the impression 0:11:39.760 --> 0:11:43.480 that you, the Russia Limbaugh audience made with your support 0:11:43.800 --> 0:11:48.240 for Russia's last charitable effort while Rush was still with us, 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:52.559 through the Stand Up for Betsy Ross campaign. Your generosity 0:11:52.720 --> 0:11:56.920 resulted in a five million dollar donation to the Tunnel 0:11:56.960 --> 0:12:01.360 to Towers Foundation. Rush said it best. We chose Tunnel 0:12:01.400 --> 0:12:05.280 to Towers to be the beneficiary of the campaign because 0:12:05.320 --> 0:12:09.440 we love the work they do and the story about 0:12:09.520 --> 0:12:13.640 how they started. When a family experiences significant loss the 0:12:13.760 --> 0:12:17.079 mother or father passes while serving our country, Tunnel to 0:12:17.160 --> 0:12:22.680 Towers steps in freeze that family of a major worry 0:12:22.960 --> 0:12:26.560 during their time of crisis. Tunnel to Towers pays off 0:12:26.720 --> 0:12:31.679 mortgages in full for these families and provides them with 0:12:31.800 --> 0:12:35.120 the comfort of a home when their world has literally 0:12:35.240 --> 0:12:38.400 been turned upside down. The foundation does the same for 0:12:38.559 --> 0:12:42.439 first responders and also build smart homes for our most 0:12:42.800 --> 0:12:48.560 catastrophically injured veterans and first responders. More heroes need your help. 0:12:49.040 --> 0:12:53.280 Do good by donating eleven dollars a month to Tunnel 0:12:53.360 --> 0:12:58.839 to Towers at T two t dot org. That's the 0:12:59.000 --> 0:13:03.559 letter T, the number two the letter T dot org. 0:13:04.800 --> 0:13:09.400 The Life of Rush Limbaugh, Chapter four, narrated by Mark Levine. 0:13:10.520 --> 0:13:13.520 Despite being fired from his first three jobs in radio, 0:13:14.200 --> 0:13:17.360 Jeff Christie a k A. Rush Limbaugh didn't stay down 0:13:17.480 --> 0:13:21.040 for long. He worked aggressively to return to the airwaves, 0:13:21.160 --> 0:13:24.600 and by nineteen seventy five landed the afternoon show at 0:13:24.679 --> 0:13:30.640 top forty k u d L in Kansas City. Still, 0:13:30.720 --> 0:13:33.360 Russia's time at k U d L was short lived, 0:13:34.920 --> 0:13:39.319 listening barely two years before he was let go. For 0:13:39.440 --> 0:13:42.600 the first time in his life, Russia had become disenchanted 0:13:42.640 --> 0:13:46.080 with radio. After serious thought, he chose to temporarily walk 0:13:46.160 --> 0:13:49.640 away from his dreams of a successful radio career. In 0:13:49.760 --> 0:13:53.400 nineteen seventy nine, Rush set a new career course major 0:13:53.480 --> 0:13:57.320 League Baseball. Remember my father when I when I quit radio, 0:13:57.480 --> 0:13:59.800 was the happiest he ever was. I quit radio age 0:14:00.000 --> 0:14:01.920 of ye because I figured it burned out. That was 0:14:02.040 --> 0:14:04.360 playing records the son what does that mean? I mean, 0:14:04.400 --> 0:14:06.600 where's that gonna take you? When I got that job 0:14:06.640 --> 0:14:10.319 of the Cantony Royals, making thirteen thousand dollars, he was 0:14:10.480 --> 0:14:13.640 happier than he had ever been. Russia's four years with 0:14:13.720 --> 0:14:16.600 the Royals were successful. I had led to a lifelong 0:14:16.679 --> 0:14:20.000 friendship with Hall of Famer George Brett. After baseball, Rush 0:14:20.120 --> 0:14:23.440 returned to radio in three as the afternoon news and 0:14:23.560 --> 0:14:30.280 sports anchor at k m b Z Radio. The first 0:14:30.320 --> 0:14:33.480 time in his career used his given name on the airwaves, 0:14:33.680 --> 0:14:37.240 Rush Limbaugh. But he even boasted to his general manager quote, 0:14:37.560 --> 0:14:39.600 it's only a matter of time before you're going to 0:14:39.680 --> 0:14:43.560 fire me. Russia's prediction became his reality, and after less 0:14:43.600 --> 0:14:47.440 than a year at camb Z, he was out by four. 0:14:48.040 --> 0:14:51.200 Rush replaced Morton Downey Jr. In mid days on kf 0:14:51.320 --> 0:14:55.000 b K and Sacramento. Kf K was a perfect fit 0:14:55.120 --> 0:14:57.760 for Rush, and he was soon dominating the market in 0:14:57.840 --> 0:14:59.800 his time slot. I finally got to do a radio 0:14:59.800 --> 0:15:01.720 show of the way I wanted to do it the 0:15:01.880 --> 0:15:03.880 things that I cared about, the things I thought people 0:15:03.920 --> 0:15:07.560 would listen to, and it was basically just sharing my passions. 0:15:07.640 --> 0:15:10.120 I love sharing my passions. I come up with things 0:15:10.240 --> 0:15:12.000 or passion and I want everybody to know about it 0:15:12.040 --> 0:15:14.760 and want everybody experience it. I want everybody to agree. 0:15:15.360 --> 0:15:18.400 And it finally all came together for me in Sacramento, California. 0:15:18.480 --> 0:15:22.160 After three years of ratings success in Sacramento, Rush left 0:15:22.240 --> 0:15:25.760 KFBK to become part of Ed McLaughlin's newly formed e 0:15:26.040 --> 0:15:30.320 f M Media Network. Still, his departure from kf b 0:15:30.480 --> 0:15:32.680 K was better. Sweet. I'm just the guy on the radio. 0:15:32.720 --> 0:15:36.440 When I started this thirty years ago. I never envisioned 0:15:36.640 --> 0:15:39.880 any of this happening. What I wanted to become was 0:15:39.960 --> 0:15:41.840 the best radio guy in the country, and I had 0:15:41.880 --> 0:15:45.960 this great opportunity. I could be me, I could be honest, 0:15:46.120 --> 0:15:48.440 I could talk about whatever I wanted to talk about, 0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:50.640 and there was nobody that could tell me I couldn't. 0:15:51.080 --> 0:15:53.040 And I have, folks, I have to tell you it 0:15:53.200 --> 0:15:56.480 is the greatest blessing that I've ever had, is to 0:15:56.560 --> 0:16:00.160 have the opportunity I do each and every day. The 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:04.720 life of Rush Limbaugh Chapter five, narrated by Megan Kelly 0:16:06.280 --> 0:16:11.200 In A retired radio executive named Edward F. McLaughlin decided 0:16:11.240 --> 0:16:14.480 to use his golden parachute from ABC Radio Networks to 0:16:14.560 --> 0:16:18.120 form his own brand new talk radio network apt LEE 0:16:18.200 --> 0:16:23.240 titled e FM Media. After meticulous planning for a successful launch, 0:16:23.600 --> 0:16:26.560 McLaughlin knew he needed more than just a talented host, 0:16:26.840 --> 0:16:29.480 but a force behind the mic and cast a wide 0:16:29.560 --> 0:16:33.000 net in his search. A hot tip led him out west, 0:16:33.320 --> 0:16:35.920 where a thirty eight year old talk radio host was 0:16:36.200 --> 0:16:40.240 burning up the airwaves of Sacramento, California. There are any 0:16:40.360 --> 0:16:43.520 number of people Ed McLaughlin could have chosen, but I've 0:16:43.640 --> 0:16:47.000 fortunately met some people along the way after moving the 0:16:47.080 --> 0:16:51.280 Sacramento that Ed McLaughlin knew and trusted implicitly and when 0:16:51.360 --> 0:16:53.480 he was looking unbeknownst to me, I don't know any 0:16:53.520 --> 0:16:55.400 of this is going on. My name is in the 0:16:55.480 --> 0:16:59.280 list of people he should look into. He could have 0:16:59.360 --> 0:17:02.800 picked any This was his guy, and McLoughlin made him 0:17:02.800 --> 0:17:06.520 an offer leader described as impossible to turn down. Rush 0:17:06.600 --> 0:17:09.800 Limbaugh created the capital of California for the bright lights 0:17:09.840 --> 0:17:12.280 of the Big Apple. He relocated to New York City 0:17:12.480 --> 0:17:15.880 and established first a local ten am to noon show 0:17:16.080 --> 0:17:18.800 on w ABC Radio, Rush Limball in New York. Twenty 0:17:18.840 --> 0:17:21.600 minutes after ten back to the Fallows, we go, Vinny, Hello, 0:17:21.600 --> 0:17:24.000 I'm glad you're with us, all right. I wanted a 0:17:24.119 --> 0:17:28.400 California Beats name. Go no No, I'm originally Beach Names 0:17:28.680 --> 0:17:32.160 in New York. Limbaugh's early days were an unqualified success, 0:17:32.560 --> 0:17:35.640 even with the challenge of a meddling program director who 0:17:35.760 --> 0:17:38.480 unsuccessfully tried to get Rushed to change what would become 0:17:38.640 --> 0:17:43.280 his signature on air style, Rush being Rush dug in 0:17:43.440 --> 0:17:46.679 and ultimately prevailed. After his first shows on w ABC 0:17:46.880 --> 0:17:50.480 Radio went off without a hitch. Rush's mentor and new boss, 0:17:50.600 --> 0:17:53.879 Ed McLaughlin proudly recalled after hearing his first show the quote, 0:17:54.000 --> 0:17:57.400 I knew he could handle it. Ed McLaughlin never wavered 0:17:57.560 --> 0:18:01.440 a single time. He never asked me to tone it down, 0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:04.920 to change things, to do whatever to accommodate this complaint 0:18:05.040 --> 0:18:08.000 or that safe to say, Rush Limbaugh more than just 0:18:08.240 --> 0:18:12.119 handled it. He crushed it. People credit me with this, 0:18:12.359 --> 0:18:14.359 but I couldn't have done any of this if it 0:18:14.440 --> 0:18:18.320 hadn't been for Ed McLaughlin. Ed McLaughlin saved DAM Radio 0:18:18.640 --> 0:18:22.359 by investing in it. Fast lane to nationwide syndication for 0:18:22.440 --> 0:18:25.359 the Rush Limbaugh Show was just around the corner. It 0:18:25.480 --> 0:18:29.880 really hit me how damn lucky I am and have been. 0:18:30.920 --> 0:18:37.080 I try to never ever forget it. The Life of 0:18:37.240 --> 0:18:43.840 Rush Limbaugh, Chapter six, narrated by Glenn Beck. The landscape 0:18:43.880 --> 0:18:49.040 of national syndication of daytime talk radio shows was lonely 0:18:49.359 --> 0:18:53.399 compared to the daytime syndication space of today. The idea 0:18:53.400 --> 0:18:57.080 of the time was bold and full of risk. But 0:18:57.320 --> 0:19:01.320 Ed McLaughlin knew intimately the power of spoken word radio, 0:19:01.520 --> 0:19:04.480 and he knew the time to strike was then you 0:19:04.520 --> 0:19:07.760 have a giant in the radio business. Ed McLaughlin, who 0:19:07.920 --> 0:19:11.800 retires from ABC, is given two hours of satellite time 0:19:11.880 --> 0:19:15.119 to fill as he wishes. He could have chosen to 0:19:15.160 --> 0:19:17.560 do anything with these two hours. He could have played music. 0:19:17.640 --> 0:19:21.560 He could have done you know, polka, he could have 0:19:21.600 --> 0:19:24.720 done Chinese opera. But he believed in the power of 0:19:25.000 --> 0:19:30.879 spoken word radio. He believed it could win. So on 0:19:31.000 --> 0:19:37.040 August one, nationwide syndication of the Rush Limbop program began. 0:19:38.720 --> 0:19:41.960 The initial offering was two hours a day, and fifty 0:19:42.040 --> 0:19:46.359 six brave stations stood with Rush as true believers and 0:19:46.560 --> 0:19:50.720 loyal affiliates. On day one. It took off. It took 0:19:50.760 --> 0:19:57.120 off faster and bigger than anybody had expected. It took 0:19:57.200 --> 0:20:02.880 off and exploded the way you dream about. The flagship 0:20:02.960 --> 0:20:06.000 station of the Rush Limbaugh program was seventy W a 0:20:06.119 --> 0:20:09.280 d C in New York. In the beginning, Rush also 0:20:09.400 --> 0:20:12.840 hosted a local show from ten till noon, and then 0:20:12.920 --> 0:20:16.880 his national radio program from noon to two pm Eastern 0:20:17.160 --> 0:20:20.880 every day on the inaugural affiliates scattered all across America. 0:20:21.240 --> 0:20:23.080 The reason I had to do that was that we 0:20:23.160 --> 0:20:26.240 started with fifty six stations. That's not enough stations for 0:20:26.400 --> 0:20:30.359 national advertisers to care. And I faced for a year 0:20:30.440 --> 0:20:33.800 and a half derision and criticism and mockery and all 0:20:33.840 --> 0:20:37.000 after what I was trying to do and the way 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:38.720 we did it. The reason I had to do that 0:20:38.760 --> 0:20:41.600 in New York show is because that's where we were 0:20:41.680 --> 0:20:45.040 given three minutes an hour to sell national advertising. So 0:20:45.560 --> 0:20:48.520 we were able to tell advertisers their commercials would be 0:20:48.680 --> 0:20:51.399 heard in New York City. Because if you couldn't do 0:20:51.640 --> 0:20:56.360 that back then, you couldn't have a nationally syndicated program. 0:20:57.840 --> 0:21:00.399 In a matter of months, the program expan ended to 0:21:00.560 --> 0:21:04.520 three hours of daily national syndication, airing noon to three, 0:21:04.920 --> 0:21:08.879 and the program's rapid growth demanded more attention and focus 0:21:08.960 --> 0:21:12.280 from Rush, ultimately leading to the end of his local 0:21:12.359 --> 0:21:17.280 midday program on w ABC. ED McLaughlin's brilliant bet on 0:21:17.440 --> 0:21:22.399 daytime syndication paid off, exceeding even the wildest expectations of 0:21:22.560 --> 0:21:28.040 his now superstar host Rush Limbaugh. The show's growth was unstoppable, 0:21:28.440 --> 0:21:33.720 reaching an unprecedented five hundred national affiliates in only three years, 0:21:34.400 --> 0:21:36.920 and that's a number that only continued to grow in 0:21:37.040 --> 0:21:40.960 the thirty that followed. Hey, James Golden here. You might 0:21:41.040 --> 0:21:43.280 remember I told you a few weeks ago that my 0:21:43.400 --> 0:21:47.000 Pillow had sent me their entire collection. Well, you know what, 0:21:47.920 --> 0:21:52.080 it's amazing. They are so luxurious, and it's time that 0:21:52.240 --> 0:21:56.080 you experienced some of that luxury. To My pillow makes 0:21:56.160 --> 0:21:58.639 more than pillows. I love the pillow. I sleep on 0:21:58.760 --> 0:22:00.680 it every night. But you know what else they have. 0:22:00.840 --> 0:22:05.639 They have sheets that are simply incredible. They're smooth, they're soft, 0:22:06.040 --> 0:22:08.960 they're comfortable. I look forward to getting to bed every 0:22:09.119 --> 0:22:12.680 night under these sheets. Get yourself a set of these. 0:22:12.800 --> 0:22:16.040 They're called Geza sheets. They come with a sixty day 0:22:16.119 --> 0:22:19.919 comfort guarantee. You get pillows, you get sheets. Oh did 0:22:20.000 --> 0:22:23.840 I mention the slippers. They're incredible slippers. There is a 0:22:24.040 --> 0:22:27.400 level of comfort from My Pillow products that you simply 0:22:27.520 --> 0:22:30.880 have to experience low. Going to my pillow dot Com, 0:22:31.359 --> 0:22:34.639 click on the new radio listener specials. Use the promo 0:22:34.840 --> 0:22:39.399 code icon. That's I C O N. You'll find lots 0:22:39.440 --> 0:22:43.560 of incredible office there right now. That's my Pillow dot 0:22:43.680 --> 0:22:50.320 Com promo code icon. The Life of Rush Limbaugh, Chapter seven, 0:22:50.920 --> 0:22:55.720 narrated by Neil Vortz. When you think about what it 0:22:55.880 --> 0:22:58.600 means to be inducted into the Paul of Fame, you 0:22:58.720 --> 0:23:02.560 might think first of legendary names like Ruth Aaron, maybe 0:23:02.680 --> 0:23:07.960 Montana Marino. Here's a few more for you, Freed Harvey Limbaugh. 0:23:08.200 --> 0:23:10.680 That's right, members of the Radio Hall of Fame, and 0:23:10.800 --> 0:23:15.639 Rush Limbaugh is obviously right there a member. But unlike 0:23:15.720 --> 0:23:18.280 the others who typically have to wait until the end 0:23:18.400 --> 0:23:21.080 of their careers, it was clear early on that the 0:23:21.160 --> 0:23:24.280 Hall needed to make room for Rush. After only five 0:23:24.400 --> 0:23:29.359 years of syndication and overwhelming record breaking success, he became 0:23:29.480 --> 0:23:34.560 part of a prestigious class of inductees in nineteen For 0:23:34.640 --> 0:23:38.000 a guy from Cape Girardo Missouri, fired from his first 0:23:38.359 --> 0:23:43.080 seven radio jobs before finding any sort of success behind 0:23:43.160 --> 0:23:48.240 the microphone. The entire experience was nothing short of humbling. 0:23:48.440 --> 0:23:52.440 So many standards of excellence have been set by previous inductees, 0:23:52.480 --> 0:23:55.359 including tonight's, that all I can hope to do is 0:23:55.760 --> 0:23:58.120 try to approximate them as I go through my career, 0:23:58.200 --> 0:23:59.800 and if I am one day judged to have done 0:24:00.119 --> 0:24:01.639 and I will consider it to have been worth it. 0:24:01.720 --> 0:24:03.560 In the success, I say what I say to the 0:24:03.600 --> 0:24:05.560 American people, and any chance I have a chance to 0:24:05.560 --> 0:24:07.880 speak to them, I do, and I am so grateful 0:24:07.920 --> 0:24:10.440 and so honored. Regardless what I mean to them, I 0:24:10.520 --> 0:24:12.960 am certain that I will never mean as much to 0:24:13.040 --> 0:24:16.120 them as they mean to me. After patiently waiting through 0:24:16.160 --> 0:24:20.920 a critical introductory speech from Sally Jesse Raphael based on 0:24:21.000 --> 0:24:24.960 their political differences, Rush confidently strolled up to the podium 0:24:25.000 --> 0:24:29.320 and delivered an acceptance speech full of class, grace, and gratitude. 0:24:29.359 --> 0:24:32.840 Into speech, he offered his thanks to the American people, family, 0:24:33.080 --> 0:24:36.960 and colleagues, and ironically, enough is competition and those who 0:24:37.040 --> 0:24:39.159 disagreed with you. When I came to New York, there 0:24:39.240 --> 0:24:41.080 was one man I said, here's the standard. That's what 0:24:41.160 --> 0:24:43.639 I'm up against. Here's who I consider my competition to be. 0:24:44.200 --> 0:24:47.400 If Larry King had not shown that syndicated talk programming 0:24:47.440 --> 0:24:49.520 would work, I wouldn't have had the chance. I thank 0:24:49.640 --> 0:24:51.480 Larry King as well. I thank all of you, Thank 0:24:51.520 --> 0:24:54.760 you so much for allowing you to run along. No 0:24:54.920 --> 0:24:57.760 matter if you're an athlete, a musician, or a broadcaster, 0:24:58.040 --> 0:25:00.840