Although the confrontational and abrasive conservative media host is nothing novel now, in the days before talk radio became the major format for conservatives, Joe Pyne (1924-1970) made this approach novel on his radio shows and later TV show.
Pyne, like many men of his generation, served in World War II. His heroic service earned him three battle stars and a leg injury, the complications from said injury resulting in amputation in 1951 (The New York Times). His wooden leg, incidentally, was not considered a subject to be brought up around him. Pyne got his start early in radio and in 1949 as a host he invented the radio call-in show when he put a phone receiver to the microphone when dealing with a ranting caller. Before then, radio hosts would simply report on air what the caller was telling them. With this format he became known for his insults of difficult or disagreeing callers. Among his signature lines were, “Go gargle with razor blades”, “Take your teeth out, put ’em in backwards and bite your throat”, and “If your brains were dynamite, you couldn’t blow your nose” (Time Magazine; Halper, 185). His fans called him “Killer Joe”. He would grow more conservative over time in his radio career, and in 1953 he celebrated the executions of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg for treason, “we finally incinerated those commies. I hope it was slow and painful” (Cook).
In 1965, Pyne’s format moved to television, and there he became one of TV’s foremost conservatives, railing against the welfare state, communists, anti-war protestors, hippies, gays, and feminists. His approach was distinctly emotional and not analytical or intellectual by design. Pyne held, “The subject must be visceral. We want emotion, not mental involvement” (The New York Times). One of his most controversial moments was when during the 1965 Watts Riot, he was interviewing a black militant, and Pyne opened his coat to reveal a handgun, and his guest reciprocated. This resulted in a suspension for a week and the FCC considering revoking broadcasting licenses from any station that carried his show (Timberg & Erler, 272). However, he did speak against racial discrimination and Governor Lester Maddox’s appearance got heated to the extent that he walked off with Pyne refusing to shake his hand. Pyne hosted a number of controversial figures, including Klansmen, Black Power activists, American Nazis, and the Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey. To the latter he said at the end of his 1967 appearance, “I’d like to tell you where to go, but you’d enjoy it” (Goransson). He also brought in a number of people who were simply bizarre and kooky. Pyne said of giving these people a platform, “If I bring kooks on, it’s to expose them” (The New York Times). His detractors criticized him as a “bully” and as a caterer to bigots. Author Harlan Ellison said of him, “Joe Pyne was a hustler and a bully. And he was sharp. I thought I’d go on his show and beat him at his own game, but I blew it. I spent my time talking about the issues, civil liberties and all that, and he talked about America. The trouble with Pyne was that he was really good at what he did” (Cook). Pyne didn’t make his money through being nice. He even admitted he wasn’t on his show, stating, “I’m not a nice guy, and I don’t want to be” (The New York Times). This was indeed fundamental to the enjoyment of his audience, but he could be quite shocking. A particularly notable instance of his lack of niceties was when he asked an epileptic, “Just why do you think people should feel sorry for you?” (Time Magazine)
Although Pyne was really good at what he did as Harlan Ellison put it, once in a while a guest got one over him. There’s a legend that Pyne once said to Frank Zappa, “I guess your long hair makes you a hippie” to which Zappa responded, “I guess your wooden leg makes you a table” (Cook). Although Pyne did have Zappa on the show in 1966, the episode may be lost, as many of his episodes were taped over by the network, thus until a copy is found, this story is unverifiable. At his peak in 1968, Pyne had over 10 million viewers a week, enviable numbers especially when one considers that the US population was smaller in that year and that it is equivalent to the numbers Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly, and Megyn Kelly got weekly combined in 2016 (Cook). Perhaps he could have been on top even longer had it not been for his fondness for cigarettes.
Premature Demise
Pyne was a heavy smoker, and he claimed he would never quit despite knowing that a risk of cancer existed and referred to them jokingly as “coffin nails”. This came back to bite him sooner than he probably thought; in 1969, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Although he quit cold turkey it was far too late…Pyne would slowly die and continue to host his show, even from his bedroom when he proved too weak to drive to work (Cook). He died on March 23, 1970, only 45 years old. Pyne is a forgotten figure today, but he was the prototype for Rush Limbaugh and other media hosts we see today in the field of conservative political entertainment.
References
Broadcasting: Killer Joe. (1966, July 29). Time Magazine.
Retrieved from
https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,899296,00.html
Cook, K. (2017, June). Joe Pyne Was America’s First Shock Jock. Smithsonian Magazine.
Retrieved from
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/joe-pyne-first-shock-jock-180963237/
Goransson, A. Anton LaVey Joe Pyne Show (1967). YouTube.
Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AALDuMTmk6w
Halper, D.L. (2009). Icons of talk: the media mouths that changed America. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group.
Retrieved from
Joe Pyne, 44, Dies; Abrasive TV Host. (1970, March 25). The New York Times.
Retrieved from
https://www.nytimes.com/1970/03/25/archives/joe-pyne-44-dies-abrasive-tv-host-his-talk-show-was-devoted-to.html
Morris, R. (2023, January 19). The big mouth who started it. Auburn Villager.
Retrieved from
https://www.auburnvillager.com/opinion/the-big-mouth-who-started-it/article_89933614-9816-11ed-8cf6-5756e8602bf6.html
Timberg, B.M. & Erler, R.J. (2004). Television talk: a history of the TV talk show. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press.
Mad Politics: The Bizarre, Fascinating, and Unknown of American Political History 