Steve Somers, WFAN’s last original remaining host, retired this past weekend after 34 years with the New York City all sports talk radio station. His last regular night show was last Friday, 11pm-2am, November 12th, and he fully said goodbye, Monday, November 15th with a 90 minute special. He was with WFAN, 660AM & 101.9FM, from its launch in July 1987. Over his career, he had a major impact on New York sports radio.
Though I occasionally listened to
Steve Somers in 2019, it wasn’t until the spring and early summer of 2020 that
I became a serious listener and sometimes caller. It was during these months, some of the worse
for the Covid19 pandemic in the Northeast, that I turned to Steve for solace --
after most of my favorite sports were either cancelled or postponed. Unable to watch my favorite sports on TV, I
began listening to the radio more; specifically, to Steve Somers on WFAN sports
radio New York. I would listen before I
went to bed, and Steve’s quiet voice and sense of humor would make me feel
better and help me to relax enough to get a decent night’s sleep. He was more laid back than many sports talk
hosts, and he wasn’t a flamer, loudly ranting and trying to pick a fight with
his callers. Steve’s show worked well
for me because at the end of the day, all I wanted to do was relax.
I called in to Steve’s show many times
and was always treated with respect. We
spoke about the Knicks, Nets, Rangers, and even the NBA Champion Milwaukee
Bucks, but we most often spoke about the Yankees hitting and pitching and
winning. Steve didn’t always agree with
me, like when I suggested the Rangers should get a new coach, but he still was
nice to me.
My motivation for calling Steve was
that I, one day, would like to be a sports talk radio host and have my own
podcast, so I wanted to get on the air.
I would call in to Steve's show two or three times a week, and couldn’t always get
through if there were too many callers ahead of me. After all the listening and calling, I
actually, and regretfully, couldn’t get through to wish Steve well in his
retirement. I did wish him Good Luck in
his retirement in a Tweet. I’m really
going to miss listening and calling in to speak with Steve. He really became like a long distance friend
to me, and I am sad that his show is over.
Maybe he will do a podcast or be back on WFAN every once in a
while. I certainly hope so.
Steve was lovingly known as the Schmoozer and stuck to the original meaning of the word which means to have a warm conversation, to pass the time chatting. He was also known as “Captain Midnight” working until 2 am most of his career at WFAN. Steve is from the West Coast and did TV sports in San Francisco, Sacramento, and Los Angeles for many years, so it is odd that he became the voice of sports talk radio in New York. He sometimes opened his shows with funny mix-ups of music and audio clips. He was quirky and often spoke with his engineers on the ‘other side of the glass’, and had many catchphrases such as “me here and you there”, “overnight, under the covers”, and “schmoozing S-P-O-R-T-S”. Some of his other quirks were referring to the Mets as the “New York Metropolitans”, the Knicks as the “Knickerbockers”, the NY Islanders as the “Ice Landers”, and the Oakland Athletics as the “Anabolics”. He would open his show with “Good Evening to you and how you be? Steve Somers here, and you there”.
On his last two on-the-air appearances, last Friday and Monday, Steve received tributes from ESPN Monday Night Football voice Steve Levy (who started at WFAN), former WFAN radio stars Mike Francesca and Chris “Mad Dog” Russo, and famous comedian, Jerry Seinfeld, who called into Steve’s regular show as “Jerry from Queens”. He also received other tributes. Chris Oliviero, Senior Vice President at Audacy, which owns WFAN, said “He never took his audience for granted. He was a genuine fan of the fans”, and The New York Post called him the soul of WFAN; and WFAN, the sports soundtrack of New York for more than three decades.
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| Last Day - Steve Somers, Carton, Giannotti |
Over his last two shows, Steve thanked
his audio engineers, callers, and listeners when he said “thanks for giving me
the chance, for giving me a breath, for giving me a life, and giving me a
career, right here where I wanted to be, at a brand new radio station with 24
hour sports”.
Steve,
if you should read this blog, I want to wish you a Happy and Healthy retirement! I will sorely miss your sports knowledge,
humor, and quirkiness. And of course, I
will miss listening to and speaking with you.
You have made getting through the pandemic a little easier for me. I hope you will be doing a podcast, or maybe
guest appearances on WFAN, so I can hear you once again. Best Wishes, from your over-the-air friend!
😊
Please view and listen to the videos and audio clips below to better know Steve Somers and his WFAN radio show. For other audio clips from Steve's last shows with guests Mike Francesa, Bernie Williams, Steve Levy, Jerry Seinfeld, Sweeny Murti, Ian Eagle, Chris Russo, and Howie Rose go to the WFAN Website and scroll down.
LINK: Twitter Video - Break Room Dedication - Last Day, Nov. 15
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