I miss Ray Taliaferro. I know a lot of you think I'm nuts for saying this, but I do.
I miss the theatre, the distinct Ray-ness, for Ray was like nobody else. Literally and figuratively.
Ray was serious. Ray was unique. Ray was crude. Ray was funny. Political, hell yes, of course, but that was the least of the brilliance of Ray Taliaferro. Moved the needle? Damn right.
NOW SIR, HOLD IT!
Actually, Ray at his worst, was really, in essence, Ray at his best. The capacity to make a very mundane-sounding racist caller hilarious takes a lot of talent and patience. One time, in the really wee hours in the morning, I heard Ray being Ray with a certain caller, bigot really, and I literally laughed myself crazy out of bed. You had to, uh, be there. There were many situations like this--far too many, and you know what? It was highly entertaining and borderline insane genius.
UH, SIR, YOU'RE A DAMN RACIST!
Ray was an acquired taste. He drove you crazy. He made you feel, uh, uneasy. Ray again, being Ray. I miss him because he was a character without trying to be a character. Oh sure, it was dumb at times, but damn, it was funny, whether he intended it to be or not. It sure as hell beats the heck out of wannabees like Tim Montemanor, Monte-whats his name? See, that's the point, who cares. Who exists over there now?
HOLD IT HOLD IT HOLD IT HOLD IT
Stop me--I mean, dang, stop me--am I really saying this? Yes, of course I am. Ray pissed me off a lot of times and yet, I still loved listening to him. A slight addiction? Yes. For all the wrong reasons? Well, no really, for there was the political Ray that said a lot of curious things, but, dammit, he got me. The bastard! I mean, get a load this: It's 3 o'clock in the morning and I'm seriously laughing my ass off listening to an insane man do radio with an insane guy in some rural town in Washington state who sounds as if he's in a truck and saying really weird, bizarre, racist stuff and Ray goes, what?, about 20 minutes with this guy and makes him sound like an idiot, which he is, but it's funny. There's a point here, somewhere. Those of you that listened to Ray know what I'm talking about and therefore can explain the deliciousness of Ray Taliaferro.
I say this now because of what I hear on the radio. I've gone to satellite, the Internet, and continue to torture myself with terrestrial because someone has to and yet, Ray, still manages to move me, stop, I'm really being serious, quit trying to nag me and say move on. I have, and that's just the point.
UHH, SIIIIIRRRRR, YOU'RE JUST A BIG ASS!
You miss the stories. The monologues were mostly classic. The politics? Come on, right-wingers, lefties, whoever, whatever, did it really matter? Hell no. I'm not trying to undercut Ray for there were times he was serious and damn, pay attention, SIR!, ya damn idiot!, and well you listened. He drove you nuts, sure, again, but he had you, admit it, moron, (a little LOL is inserted here). He had you mostly because it was brilliant radio, yes, brilliant because it was unique, (again), it was effing, matter-of-fact, distinctive and stand-alone. So perfect and apt in the middle of the night. So classic, old-time KGO before KGO went the way of KGONE. Ray transcended satellite. Who the hell needed to listen to anybody but Ray.
He had shit like "Poetry night" which didn't do anything for me. I'm not that much into people doing poems on the air, but he had me when he did his rants on racist guys in Idaho. Or the crazy woman in Foster City who said some really wacky things and then Ray went into Ray-mode. I think the laughter began when Ray asked if the woman made love recently. It was crude, it was sort of mean and it was funny. Original too. Better yet, what made it funnier was that it was not an act. Come to think of it, that's what was so good about Ray.
Now I'm sure there are many of you who thought/think that Ray is a complete a-hole. Fine. I get it, but really, I don't. Admit it, even you guys miss Ray now. You do. And if you don't, fine, but he had you. He did. He had you many times even at the moment when he was acting like an ass, but even then, he had you and that's what makes it all the more nagging. Call it the Ray addiction.
The Ray addiction is hard to kick. We miss the zany, the bizarro in the middle of the night. We are a special club. We could care less about the politics. That's just the opening act. We're waiting for Springsteen. I'm not comparing Ray to Bruce, obviously but I think you get my point. It was damn compelling radio--OK, maybe I'm going overboard here, (NOW SIR, GET YOUR DAMN HEAD OUT OF YOUR ASS AND THINK FOR A MOMENT!--SIIIIR?)
Ray, my e-mail box is loaded with where-is-Ray? notes. I know you're on Facebook now. I know you were writing a book and I'm hoping as a critic of the craft, you can resurface somewhere. Even if you don't I know there's a helluva lot of people out there who miss you, part of the Ray addiction club.
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Good article. I never thought I'd miss Ray until he was gone... Hope he's doing well and wish him the best.
ReplyDeleteIf not for Ray, I wouldn't have volunteered to spend 23 years on the grave shift. EXTRA pay for those hrs too.
ReplyDeleteyou're up at 3 am, shocking information. you must be busy during the day
ReplyDelete"you don't know what you've got till it's gone, they've paved paradise and put up a really crappy second rate radio station" or something like that. I, too, miss Ray. In fact I just stumbled on some of his audio rants on You Tube and really had a great laugh. It was perfect middle-of-night, no-holds-barred radio. Sometimes his grip on current events was pretty shallow and barely-informed but as you say, the theatre of it all made it hilarious. He also had incredible taste in jazz. I wouldn't mind hearing him spin records on some left of the dial station. Great voice for it as well.
ReplyDeleteGotta hand it you, Rich. You may be the only person in the known universe that admires both Ray Taliaferro and Michael Savage!
ReplyDeleteNO NO NO, NO NO, ANSWER THE QUESTION, SIR. ARE YOU GOING TO ANSWER THE QUESTION? GO TO HELL, SIR. NEVER CALL THIS SHOW AGAIN. I'M SICK AND TIRED OF WASTING MY TIME WITH IDIOTS LIKE YOU.
ReplyDeleteMr T was an entertainer and did a good job of keeping his audience awake during the wee hours. Didn't agree with many of his views but would tune in on occasion to hear him rip some clueless caller.
SIR. SIR. I'M TRYING TO ANSWER YOU BUT YOU WON'T STOP TALKING. SIR, OKAY I'M GOING TO HAVE TO PIPE YOU DOWN SO THAT I ANSWER YOUR DAMN QUESTION. GOD, WHAT AN IDIOT.
I really miss Ray say those statements occasionally. Shame on Cumulus Radio!
DeleteUnfortunately, it is folks like Ray T who "cry wolf" at every drop of the hat (i.e., racism), who in fact water down the serious topic. This detracted from his knowledge about music and Northern California history. He could keep me awake at night!
ReplyDeleteIn fact, Ray used to call George Bush Jr. a "cracker", a blatant racist comment. Ironically, aimed at a President who exploded social spending, and who saved tens of millions of African lives. Talk about an utter ignoramus!!
I'd call him every few years. When a caller said that Hollywood studios were primarily run by Jewish CEOs or owners, Ray called him "racist"! I called up, waited an hour, and then told Ray that I had listened to Ronn Owens one day, and a book was written on the founding of Hollywood, and 3 of the 4 major movie studios were founded by Jewish-Americans. Is the statement of fact racism, Ray? Lots of mumbling on Ray's part thereafter! To his credit, he did back away from his claim of racism.
Likewise, a friend had a date one night, 20 years ago, and the woman he went out with had recently had a date with - Mr. Ray Taliaferro! She had some intresting asides, like how he only slept 3 hours a night. (Supposedly.) She also found it interesting that he apparently preferred to date primarily white women. So my friend calls up Ray, and asks him if being African American is so important, why does he live with a white woman (on Nob Hill), and why primarily date white women?
I howled as Ray hung up on my friend, and he then spent 10 minutes talking about how beautiful black women were, how their bodies were so gorgeous, and how great black women were in bed... how a white woman could never match a black woman in the sheets, etc., etc. It was hysterical, and I wish that I had it on tape... an all-time KGO classic. And the objectification of women, and stereotypes, were quite appaling... very un-PC, but also quite humorous.
Ray also used to refer to God as a "she" who also happened to be black. Btw, I heard Michael Krasney several years ago state that Taliafero slept less than 4hrs a day. A true freak of nature. I do miss him at night
Deleteyes, i remember the call...as i remember it, Ray seemed to be in stunned silence as the caller was revealing his very personal information on 50K watts. it was a powerful call. not only for the inside glimpse of Ray's personal life, but because of the loquacious one's silence as the riot act was being read.
DeleteOne of the problems with Ray is that he's a throwback.
DeleteThe country is changing. We seem to be increasingly defined by a lack of resources across the board whether it's financial, intellectual, natural. Everything seems to be in short supply. Ray's reflexive screaming of racism or sexism or whatever new kind of ism he can come up with is sort of ridiculous...and I think that's part of why Cumulus parted ways with him. Yes, they were realigning the station with their business model but they did keep a few others around who knew how to keep their mouths shut and do their jobs. Ray isn't that type of person and they knew it. Out he goes.
That was a great call! I think his girlfriend was (is) Italian. After that silence... I forgot that... Ray went on and on about how great black women were in bed, how they girated (sp?) their hips, what they could do with their hips.. and I had to wonder if his girlfriend had heard the call!
DeleteMy friend said that this woman who had had a date with Ray also said that he walked everywhere in the city, and part of the reason he only slept 3 hours a night was that he wanted to see every sunset and sunrise.
Funny how most of the black leaders (men) in the Bay don't marry, or don't marry black women.. Willie Brown, Cecil Willaims, etc.
Yep, showed his hypocrisy.
Perhaps you are unaware, but when Ray's longtime girlfriend suffered a debilitating stroke, guess who took care of her day in and day out for many years? That's right, Ray. He is a man who actually lives the principles he speaks of.
DeleteSpeaking of Christine, caught the tail end of one Christine Craft subbing for Karel when I accidentally hit an old radio preset last weekend. I owe no loyalty to any particular station, I'll Listen to any frequency that gives me good radio. Christine's show was the best I've heard in a long time. Why she doesn't have a regular show is beyond me. KGO ought to redeem themselves by putting her on between 10pm - 1am. What do they have to lose? She's stayed loyal throughout all the trauma of the last few months and she's just as talented as Big Ronn.
DeleteChris Craft may be smart, but she doesn't know when to pipe down. She talks over her callers, interrupts and then goes on a long monologue. At least Ray used to allow callers to get their words in, before cutting in. Chris needs to learn the art of making her point with just a few words.
DeleteI remember when Ray was berating someone that he thought was a racist and he asked him what color his anus was. Was it brown??? LOL Yeah, I loved hating Ray. When KGO sent me that listener survey yesterday, I even commented that as much as I hated Ray, he was a HELL of a lot better than the "trucker radio" or "money talk" shows they've had since. I never thought in a MILLION years that I would miss him, but I do. I do not, however miss "Dr." Bill. Now he's here on our local radio station now & then and he has got to be the dumbest "Dr." I have ever heard. Especially since he likes to call himself "The smartest man on Earth". I'm getting tired of the God Talk guy just reading from his transcripts too!!
ReplyDeleteTaliafero was no Al Jazzbeaux Collins or Robert Trebor. Those guys were "broadcasters", Ray was little more than an agitator - which constitutes good radio for some, but not my cup o' tea at 2am on a Thursday morning.
ReplyDeleteI was never a fan, Mr T pissed me off too much over the years. BUT what I DO miss is not having him available to piss me off, not having the CHOICE let me get pissed at him. He (IMHO) was wrong more than right but his arguments supporting his positions were intelligent and thoughtful. And the verbal beatdowns of racists were awfully good. What we're left with is bad sports talk radio (if they were good they wouldn't be on in the middle of the night) and UFO/conspiracy crackpots preaching to the already converted.
ReplyDeleteToo much false charges of racism.
DeleteRay lost his edge after Obama was elected. Wouldn't it be nice if he resurface after Romney is inaugurated? But even if he were interested it is highly unlikely the Corporate owners of this country would allow him the 50,000 watt blowtorch. We'll never see the likes of Burns/Ward/Ray T again. Alan Colmes is the only thing going these days. It's semi-entertaining listening to him eviscerating those hayseed callers from the midwest and south.
ReplyDeleteI will never forgive Ray for the way he treated Sheldon. It was unforgivably cruel.
ReplyDeleteSheldon was a regular caller to several of the shows and I never heard his voice anywhere on KGO after that.
I remember Sheldon from Oakland, his was usually the first call of the show. What happened that Ray treated him badly?
DeleteRay Taliaferro - Jungle Fever? hahaha
ReplyDeleteAnd how about his niece / cousin?
SFGate.com
"2003-02-20 04:00:00 PDT San Francisco -- A former head cashier at UC San Francisco has pleaded guilty to charges that she embezzled $4.5 million to bankroll a now-defunct New Age magazine and angel-theme gallery run by her daughter.
"Marie Taliaferro, 57, who worked at UCSF for 17 years, was arrested in December 1999 at her home in Moraga and was subsequently indicted on charges of embezzling public money, grand theft, money laundering and tax fraud.
"She pleaded guilty Tuesday to 21 counts on the eve of trial, with San Francisco Superior Court Judge John Stewart indicating that he would sentence her to seven years in prison. She will serve half that time with good-conduct credit. ..."
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/UCSF-cashier-admits-embezzeling-She-pleads-2669202.php
And she only got 4 years? What!!?? No racism there!
Let me see. Our President is Black, not Engaln's or France's.
ReplyDeleteOur Attorney General is Black.
Oprah, and several other African Americans are BILLIONAIRE's.
There are thousands and thousands of black MILLIONAIRE's.
On top of this, Ray probably couldn't get past this basic FACT: Ethiopian-Americans - who are BLACK - have an average income *higher* than the average American.
Same for "British Blacks".
Same for "East African Blacks". (Read Economist Dr. Thomas Sowell.)
So how did they get ahead? They have "traditional" values - they get married, they don't join gangs (generally speaking), they go to college, they don't do drugs.
It was always too hard a topic for Ray to swallow why 70% of Blacks don't get married (but have children), and that, in fact, the gov't may have helped to create that problem, not cure that problem!! (I don't know if Ray had any children.)
Of coarse, that ties back to Ray Taliaferro dating the white devil! hahah
Why the racist post? What is your point?
Deletethere's a reason they call Thomas Sowell,"uncle".
Delete1:53, you sound just like a tried-and-true Uncle Ray race hustler!
DeleteYes, Dr. Sowell, a professor at Stanford, has authored wll over a dozen books on economics, economic history, and more. A true legend who deals in *facts*.
Boy, I bet this thread drives Ray crazy! He can't shut it down, like callers he couldn't handle / debate! (He'd hang up or just mike them down and call them names.)
Didn't Ray T get a gig at KSCO??? Is he still there???
ReplyDeleteWasn't his born name Ronnie Thomas? ahhah And now its Raphael Taliaferro?
ReplyDeleteI miss Ray so much! Good job, Rich! You have the balls to like Savage and admit you miss Ray when you wrote otherwise frequently.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, due to an illness, I can't sleep at night. Ray made me smile and I loved hearing his history. His book is going to be amazing. I loved his passion for everything. I especially enjoyed when he talked about the birds on his deck. The only thing I could figure out he didn't know everything about was computers. However, he made himself a student of that and learned an incredible amount. He was the original life-long learner and showed the rest of us how to do it.
He was tenacious, dramatic, and passionate about what living really means.
I'm hoping to see him pop up somewhere once he finishes his book. He certainly must have had to add a chapter when he got fired along with all the other talented people.
Thanks for writing this, Rich.
Ray has a good face for radio.
ReplyDeleteWhat a ratface.
While I seldom agreed with Ray, he and his callers provided me late night / early morning entertainment for at least 20 years. When I was a young pup and worked screwy hours, the radio line-up that would keep me awake was Coast-to-Coast with Art Bell followed by Ray T.I could listen and enjoy with no need to judge the content. Both hosts (Art and Ray) are consummate radio professionals and I'd never take anything away from either of them just for their point of view or politics.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you Rich. I miss Ray (and Art, too)
Is Taliaferro A black Queen of Spades?
ReplyDeleteI miss the little game I played through the Bush years. I would get up to use the toilet at 3:00 am. when I get back into bed I'd turn on Rays show. I would stay awake until Ray said "BUSH". than turn it off and go to sleep. It took longer to take a leak than it took Ray to say "BUSH". I really miss Ray. Thanks Rich
ReplyDeleteIn the olden days, someone like Ray would have dated and married Rosie Allen. But it sounds like Ray might be a little bit of a player.
ReplyDeleteCurious. Did he ever have children?
BTW, even though I am not crazy about flowers, when Ray T. would talk about his passion for flowers, it was a breadth of fresh air.
P.S. Ray, Ray.. Martin Luther King was a REPUBLICAN! So was Abraham Lincoln! And "BUSH" saved millions of African lives with his PEPFAR initiative.
"...Bill Clinton's legacy in Africa was the debacle of Somalia and the abandonment of Rwanda's Tutsis to the 1994 genocide. But with Pepfar, Bush's primary contribution will be greatly extending millions of lives even though the programme has been criticised for emphasising abstinence in Aids education and using religious organisations to deliver care."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/15/georgebush.usa
*Ray Taliaferro hurls out the window.*
I remember listening to Ray back when he was on KNEW and they had people like Pat Michael, Joe Dolan, Hilly Rose and Van Amberg and Steve Somers all doing their talkshow thing as 'Communicasters.'
ReplyDeleteRay was young and full of life then. He had a great run.
I'm amazed at Ray's desire to participate in local government. He's done so for years in an area that some consider a shee-shee nice-to-have -- the arts. Yet he's been able to champion it in a way that it is considered a valuable aspect of San Francisco. Plus, he's not above volunteering his time to the arts, spending his time with both The Monterey Blues and Monterey Jazz festivals (among other things). That attitude has lead to a scholarship in his name.
ReplyDeleteRay was that voice in the middle of the night that kept me company for over 24 years...we didn't always agree, but he was like a friend to me. Sheldon from Oakland was...is a racist and proud of it, for some strange reasons Ron loves to have him on?
ReplyDelete@ Anonymous (you know who you are)
RAY WOULD HAVE EATEN YOU ALIVE...YOU SOUND BITTER AND TRULY SAD.
To those like me and those who really miss the real KGO, Ray is truly missed.
I remember listening to him back in 1985 when I worked on the graveyard shift--one night he spent the entire program talking about MLK Day and the history of race relations in this country--it was the single greatest night of radio I've ever heard...absolutely mesmerizing and incredibly informative.
ReplyDeleteRay was the best. i especially love him calling GWB the names that he deserved. GWB was and always will be a criminal. Thanks Ray for telling it like it is.
ReplyDeletewe miss that.
KGO really does suck now. dull news people, its the worst.
Wish he would come back. late nights are not the same without him.
As a former 30 year, Nationwide radio broadcaster myself, I must say, Ray ranks as my favorite Talk Show Host... period! He embodied everything it takes to be a successful broadcaster, and I sorely miss him! I listened to him on the way to my Morning Show Host job at the former KDIA Radio, for almost 2 decades! I wish you well Ray, and I KNOW, you'll be good at whatever you do in the future, because you are full of wisdom, and wouldn't make silly mistakes! lol Oh, and I also enjoy your work Rich!
ReplyDelete