by Jack ( I had to do something different. This is a much needed departure from politics)
For many years the king of the late night radio was Art Bell, who hosted the Coast to Coast show. Bell built this show from nothing. He was sharp and seemed to be able to carry on an intelligent conversation with any guest on any subject. Then at the top of his career, Bell suddenly pulled the plug and retired. He does an occasional show from his new home in the Philippines, but that’s very rare.
Bells successor was George Noory who really didn’t seem to understand what Bell’s show was all about, sure he understood that Bell built his success on UFO stories and nutty callers that claimed to be Satan or from another planet, but behind Bell’s inquiring mind there was a subtle skeptical that sometimes melded into a humorous sarcasm as Bell would probe the caller’s credentials.
That was Bell’s schitk and he was good at it, Noory on the other hand behaves like the character Gomer Pyle, if you are old enough to remember his? Old George has never met a guest he didn’t agree with, be they from the Planet Zargon or a time traveler from the 5th dimension. No caller is too preposterous and no guest too crazy, even if they are totally fruit loops George never questions their authority to tell us about life on Zargon. Noory just plays along, not once does he cry BS! He’s all ears, acting the part of suck up who can’t wait to agree or add in his own ignorant exclamation point on the absurd commentary. I swear…your average 6 year old doesn’t behave as gullible as Noory and on top of that act and I do mean act, because I still can’t believe anyone is that gullible and not wearing a straight jacket, Noory says the stupid things almost nightly. His fans even have a name for these doosies, they’re called Nooryisms, here check it out: George, “I would guess your mind is part of who you are.” July 19, 2007. Good call George! Yes your mind is part of who you are alright. How about this one…
George: “It would be great if Saddam just left Iraq, don’t you think?”
Guest Hal: “Yes, but he’s not going to do that. Like last time, he’s going to put his citizens in harm’s way, use them as human shields, and wreak destruction on the oil fields.”
George: “That’s kind of selfish, isn’t it?”
Noory’s intellectual prowess really gets exposed when he’s hosting a really accomplished guest like Astrophysicist Michio Kaku. Bell and Kaku could carry on an entertaining conversation, but not Noory. Paraphrasing now, George will cut into the professor’s comment because he thinks he has to interject something to show he’s actually following along, “And that would be a bad thing then, huh?” A dumbfounded, Michio would pause, and give Noory a gratuitous, “Yes, blowing up the world would be a bad thing…” I bet I can guess what he was thinking…”I can’t believe you just said something that childlike, Noory you’re an idiot.”
Bell was not very political, but he was obviously conservative, in that context I mean he was logical and reasonable on when rare political issues would come up he was well balanced and thoughtful. Noory on the other hand and I include his occasional substitute host George Knapp, also try to avoid politics like Bell. However, neither can resist taking an occasional shot at the right. Knapp refers to the 100 million plus republicans as simply right-wing boobs. I get the strong feeling both a die-hard Obama supporters, which figures given their bumbling ineptness. But, apparently there’s a lot of stupid listeners that love this show. The ratings say Noory has about 15 million listeners now…pretty amazing and a real indictment of the typical voter/listener.
Art Bell built a great show that you could enjoy just before you nodded off, but not anymore, not with Noory. The entertainment value has plummeted, well, at least in my eyes anyway. I won’t listen to Coast to Coast anymore, it’s just way too dumb. Hey KPAY, isn’t there something else out there you could play after 10 pm?
Mar 4, 2013Had to chuckle at the “Nooryisms” reminds me of “Smilin’Joe Biden”.
As I understand Art Bell went to the Phillipines to get married, he intended to bring his wife back but she was not allowed entry not sure why , so he stayed.
Apr 11, 2013I agree. I can’t understand how George got to sit in Art’s seat. I disagree about George’s interjections though. I really think he isn’t listening to the guest during the interview, he’s thinking about tomorrow’s schedule or something. Here is a typical example that happens over and over again. The guest will answer a question that George asks, then explain, how he got into his research, and the next question George asks is “so how did you get into your research?” George reads off a list (made by Tommy) of questions all the time no matter what the guest is talking about. It drives me insane along with all his “witty” comments AND all his mumbling. He mumbles incessantly. I didn’t realize how unqualified George was until I went back and started listening to old Art Bell shows. Oh and another thing that makes me insane. George always interrupts his guests when they are making an important point. That then throws the show off so much that we never get to hear the important points.
Art, come back!
Apr 16, 2013He must have blackmailed his way into this position. He tries to use this show for his quirky ideas like the search for aspiring music artist who are really bad. He must choose them himself.Another joke is the TV show “Beyond Belief” which stinks.Of course he charges for all this mindless crap. John Wells is 100 times better
May 12, 2013I occasionally have listened to the show since Art Bell left, but generally the show doesn’t do much for me these days. I agree with your assessment of Noory. Wells annoys me as well for other reasons. However, I would disagree about Bell being a conservative. He seems to be a socially progressive or at least a socially liberal libertarian, maybe even more of a left-libertarian. He supposedly voted for Obama, although he did support Ron Paul in the past (the same for me). Also, he supports the scientific consensus about global warming and has been righteously critical of Fox News. I wouldn’t call him a liberal, maybe generally liberal-minded, but certainly not conservative.
May 12, 2013Ben, I’m going to restate my feelings that he (Bell) is a conservative, I like your assessment better. Bell does have conservative issues, but on the whole he is more a libertarian and left of center, but at least he wasn’t pro-democrat!
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The listeners are often people who are stuck on the road at night, like coast to coast truckers. Not much radio of any kind to tune in at that late hour but it’s company even if it is nutty.