He's funny, smart, highly informed, knows his sports and is, occasionally, a pain in the ass too, which automatically makes him a legend in NY, which he is.
And the highest paid, at that. And while he sometimes slips off the curve and is needled for it, the fact remains Francesa still, for the most part, delivers knockout punches and gets plenty of attention.
I bring this up because every now and then some alien from another planet says the morning Radnich program on KNBR "is the best sports-talk show in the country." Not even close. No comparison. Granted, Radnich's enterprise is vastly different than Francesa and the Bay Area, obviously, is a far cry from New York City--still, Francesa, if you're a sports fan, is meat and potatoes while Radnich is more scrambled eggs.
For starters, Francesa doesn't need to pull the Don Rickles act every day like Radnich does--irritating as all get go and flush with repetitious bullshit; how many times can you stomach this: You have to have kids to be something; For the 99th time; Got the Bentley out to get the brakes checked, and on and on...Do we see a pattern here? Same old shit. Does Gary think you're a moron? No, but he insults and dumbs down his audience like they're a pack of Fremont idiots. Of course, the bulk of KNBR's beer and boobs demo is men, I get it, but the constant Raddy cackling with the two side-by-side Neanderthals is mostly empty.
On the other hand, Francesa is brick and mortar. Interviews galore, the best guests and engaging commentary and opinion spiced up with his own kvetching and yes, while he kvetches, he's still funnier than hell, all the while engaging also and best yet, doesn't lecture you on the importance of having kids and being responsible in life. Sometimes when I'm listening to Radnich it's as if Dr. Phil hijacked the program. Funny, I thought it was a sports program.
Give me conversational girth, mix it up a notch, don't do the same thing over and over, most of all, cut all the Shecky Green shit--every now and then, sure, it's funny, real funny in fact, but not when you know it's coming and becomes all too predictable and Raddy's act has become a stale rye bread with loads of baloney and velveeta.
I'm a steak guy. And Francesa is a
42-ounce Porterhouse with plenty of broccoli and hollandaise sauce. Solo too. It's an acquired taste but if you like simple, basic, yeah--again, --meat and potato-style sports-talk radio then Francesa's daily presentation is the very best.
Radnich has his advocates --including me at times when he does an interview, say with a controversial guest with a controversial topic, he shines, and for that is to be complimented. When he goes off the trail and meanders into the having kids bullshit, he loses me.
Yes, Francesa is king. In my opinion.
*Follow me on Twitter
it's not even close. WFAN (and WEEI & WIP) are shop much better than knbr.
ReplyDeletelisten to wfan for one hour. tell me how many promos you here work some paid voice guy. I'll bet the number is close to zero. turn on knbr and i bet the number is close to 10. yesterday i heard 4 knbr VO promos in 5 minutes.
station is terrible.
every show on wfan is better than every show on knbr. there's no comparison.
ReplyDeleteone station is professional and the other sounds like it might be top 50 market, minus the teams.
Nice post; I think Radnich is great BUT I also agree with many things you say. The guy has got to be the most insecure media person in Bay Area history [sure, many more could be/could have been worse; however, they never mention[ed) it.]...the shtik is very old. 30 years though, what should anyone expect? He's like a comfortable pair of shoes...there might be a hundred guys on the air, who, on a pure sports level could best him but thats not what he's ever been about.
ReplyDeleteI guess any two things can be compared, but WFAN is sui generis, and Francesa easily outpaces Radnich, other than in a footrace.
ReplyDeleteFor that matter, throw in WFAN's Steve Somers, though he's a night time fellow.
If you need a comparison that Radnich would win, compare how much entertainment and personal fluff he blurts with the similar talk that either MF or SS engage in. Why is that key to roundly-praised sports radio talk so elusive in the Bay Area? Most hosts out here do "The Raddy" to a great degree, IMHE...
Boomer & carton are also better than radnich.carton runs circles around radnich himself.hes not an west coast east coast thing, hes a just know more than you guy.
ReplyDeleteFrancesa is awful, simply awful. Radnich is interesting, no matter what folks here may think. God, I'd rather listen to Bob Fitzgerald than Francesa...
ReplyDeleteGet treatment for your disorder, please!
Delete...just kidding, sorta...
Can't comment on how Radnich is recently; I gave up listening to him and his cohost years ago when he said "just two white guys flapping their lips". I don't mind if a show host coasts every so often, but they should put forth effort more often than not.
ReplyDeleteAlso agree with the comment about Radnich being extremely insecure.
Was the first wife African American as well?
ReplyDeleteRich is "a steak guy", that's funny.
ReplyDeleteThe bloated Raddy is a tired act to listen to, and you're right Rich; he uses the same stock and trade, tired and worn out expressions and comments day after day after day. When I turn on KNBR and hear his voice, I immediately switch stations because I know I'm going to get cross-cultural BS instead of the straight sports talk I want to hear. For some reason, Raddy thinks that such talk is "boring" and that, in his words: "nobody cares!" The problem with Radnich is that he's really not much of a sports fan. I don't think he goes to but a handful of games all year, and yet some of the lame brained fools in the bay area consider him some sort of an expert. At least Krueger spends time paying attention to what's happening and actually KNOWS SPORTS. Raddy's act would never fly in a more sophisticated sports area such as NY or Philly. He's be run out of town
ReplyDeleteRich, I think we're on the same page.. After tuning in and out of the Radnich show for years I have finally figured out why I cannot listen to him. No, it's not the "Rickles Act" No it's not Gary verbally bleeding all over his cohorts or callers... It's Gary either trying to make a point or ask a question than digressing for five fucking minutes then circling in on the point/question only to discover he's forgot the fucking point/question leaving all in a rambling abyss.... Terminal Digression......
ReplyDeleteforget francesca comparisons. that's insulting to mike. one guy works hard and practically created the medium. the other is more clownish. the entire wfan lineup kills knbr.
ReplyDeletethe 'fan' doesn't need the teams to succeed. knbr success because of them. there's no comparison.
end of day its simply cumulus vs cbs. you know who wins thst every time.
pros vs idiots.
True lol
DeleteAs a native San Franciscan I've noticed a growing trend in the last 15 years or so especially among transplants or people from the suburbs - San Jose and the South Bay particularly. It's this annoying habit of proclaiming something not even indigenous to San Francisco as being the "best" in the USA. This used to be the domain of assholes from New York "you can't find good pizza, bagels. Chinese food, glory holes, steak etc... outside of New York". However, as Rich pointed out, so many folks from outside our City limits but still attached have taken this obnoxious habit to heart. Do we do a few things better than other parts of the USA? Absolutely! One of the things I always thought we did better was walking the walk. People from Chicago, LA, DC, Boston and NYC were always better at running their mouths but true San Franciscans just ignored the diatribe and let our superior performance speak for itself. With the South Bay "emerging" from it's status as gangland, farmville, the armpit of the Bay Area the residents seem to still possess a sad inferiority complex. They feel the need to follow their big brother around and take credit for our accomplishments and loudly boast about what is best. I've travelled across the USA frequently on business since the 80s and have listened to local radio and watched local TV in markets from sea to shining sea. Now with the interweb YOU can too! If you took the time to surf iHeart Radio you'd realize that Raddy is far from the best especially with the deadweight of the RACIST Krueger and empty nothing Scott but he's not at the bottom either. Of course we are blessed to have enough college and professional teams that filling the air for a few hours each day with interesting content should be easy but somehow Sadnich and his merry crew often fail.
ReplyDelete...empty-suited arrogance..
DeleteUh, wat?
Delete"With the South Bay "emerging" from it's status as gangland, farmville, the armpit of the Bay Area the residents seem to still possess a sad inferiority complex"
DeleteI think you're mistaking a south bay "sad inferiority complex" for a narcissistic complex from SF. Why is it that the vast majority of San Franciscans, rarely native, always feel the need to shit on anywhere in the bay that isn't SF? You think SF doesn't have gang issues? You're terribly ignorant if that's the case. Both cities have good and bad. But if SF is fucking awesome, why do the residents have to shit on other cities to make themselves feel better?
One reason Francesa is better than anyone out here is he is held to a higher standard by the callers, who are more knowledgeable and better speakers than the ones that call KNBR.
ReplyDeleteGary often gets irritated by callers, showing contempt towards them. He treats with respect knowledgeable and articulate callers.
DeleteOh come on man. The Bloated One has been a joke for years. I'm surprised people even take the guy seriously after all this time. He couldn't hold a candle to Tony Bruno for knowledge and comedic timing which is why he always hated on Bruno when he was on a roll back in the day. To compare him to a Francesca is like comparing an infant's poo to a Rembrandt. The Bloated One for years has said he didn't have to work hard in the Bay Area because: "we have sun, we have outdoor activities, we have natural beauty. If our teams don't win it's not the end of the world. We have a life".
ReplyDeleteThis explains the Don Rickles act for several decades. It is not hard to imagine a senile 100 year old Ratsnitch telling Sinatra Vegas stories as if they are still funny and/or relevant. Rich, I'm puzzled as to how or why you reached detente with that asshole.
I used to like Radnich...but he hasn't been worth listening to in at least 15 years...in my mind he's been toast for at that long...he doesn't go to games...and couldn't care less. He's just trying to hang on to cover his huge monthly nut...Gary is an old man still driving kids to pre-school...in a used Bentley...sad...pathetic...oh and Francesa sucks too
ReplyDeleteI just loathe it when Media Personalities just drip with bias, and are nothing but shills for one of our sports franchises...And trust me, there are sooo many of those types (shills) in the Bay Area its pathetic.
ReplyDeleteApples and Oranges, Lieberman. Two totally different markets and the hosts play to their market. Would Francesa last here in SF? No. Would Radnich last back east? No. Listen to WEEI or WIP or any NY based show - its a totally different fan, and show.
ReplyDeleteTry something else other than bashing Radnich, for a change.
false.
Deletethe person commenting on the callers has nailed this. wfan fans/callers demand better than what knbr gives. I've lived here since 2002 and spend at least a week of summer back east with family. when I listen to FAN in the car or anywhere else even though I've ceased being a ny fan I never turn it off. no matter what the show is I listen the entire time. it is a far better product and it's a serious product.
ReplyDeleteI get the whole complaint about east coasters moving here [their pizza and bagels are far superior - we have other stuff] but this has nothing to do with that.
KNBR is something I listen to passively. if it ceased to exist I wouldn't care. WFAN is an institution. you can tell how much harder they work, and it's why they have 2 shows on a national platform. beningo and Roberts is soooo east coast but it's probably the best show of all of them.
there's no comparison. between any aspect of the 2 stations. knbr does nothing better.
Two words: Pete Franklin....
ReplyDeleteUnfair to GR, who is nothing more or less than a sentient representation of what this particular sports market demands. The man is right, sports is less important here than it is on the east coast. The most obvious evidence of this can be found in the contributions of callers: shut-in mentality, short bus analysis, borderline lunacy -- this, from one of the most intelligent local populations on the planet. Can't blame the lousy callers on Gary, as I've heard them (and cringed, cursed, and switched stations) on every sports show. Compare their input to that of the callers who were once heard regularly on KGO (before the putsch) and it becomes clear that the Bay Area is serious about its issues, but about its sports, Radnich is on the mark.
ReplyDeleteDan Patrick's show is better. No BS histrionics, people say stuff on his show that makes news, and it's fun.
ReplyDeleteDepends on what you're looking for. If you take your sports seriously, Francesca. If sports is just a entertaining distraction and all you're looking for is a few laughs, Radnich. Dan Patrick seems to do a pretty good job of mixing the two.
ReplyDeleteAre you talking about the same Francesa who recently fell asleep on the air during the simulcast of his show? The guy is boring! His show is nothing without the "Mad Dog" who now has his own channel on Sirius/XM. Give me a break!
ReplyDeleteHow is this false?
ReplyDeleteI remember CBS having him on their college football pregame show years ago. He seemed to know his stuff, but he had so little charisma/personality it was very awkward and painful to watch. I could definitely see him playing best on east coast radio giving just the facts to sports junkies.
ReplyDeleteShow is on TV every day. Much better than anything KNBR has.
ReplyDeleteWhy state the obvious? Fatnich sucks. Period. NOTHING to see here.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the saying? Never hope for what you wish for?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.newsday.com/sports/media/mike-francesa-says-cbs-radio-threatens-lawsuit-for-simulcast-talk-1.9327519