Gregg Hughes | |
|---|---|
 Hughes in 2007 | |
| Born | (1963-05-23)May 23, 1963 (age 61) New York City, U.S. |
| Other names | Opie |
| Alma mater | State University of New York at Geneseo |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Career | |
| Previous show(s) | Opie and Anthony (1995–2014) Opie with Jim Norton (2014–2016) The Opie Radio Show (2016–2017) |
| Website | www |
Gregg Hughes (born May 23, 1963)[1] better known by hisair nameOpie, is an American radio personality and podcast host. He is best known as the former co-host of theOpie and Anthony radio show that aired from 1995 until 2014 withAnthony Cumia, as well as comedianJim Norton beginning in 2001. Following Cumia's firing fromSiriusXM in July 2014, Hughes and Norton stayed on as co-hosts ofOpie with Jim Norton. In October 2016, Hughes became the host of his own show,The Opie Radio Show, which lasted until his firing, for filming an employee in the men's room as he used the toilet, on July 7, 2017.[2][3]
On May 8, 2018, Hughes launched his new podcast,The Opie Radio Podcast on theWestwood One network. In June 2019, Westwood One terminated the relationship, but the podcast continued.
Hughes was born in New York City[1] and raised in anIrish-American family inCenterport, New York, onLong Island.[4] He has described his mother as "pretty strict". He gained the nickname "Opie" because of his childhood resemblance toOpie Taylor, a fictional character fromThe Andy Griffith Show portrayed byRon Howard.[5][6]
In 1981, Hughes graduated fromHarborfields High School inGreenlawn, New York; his yearbook lists basketball, theNew York Islanders hockey team, skiing, and films as his interests.[7] He wished for a career in radio, and graduated fromState University of New York at Geneseo with a degree in communications.[8] During his time studying, Hughes worked air shifts at the university radio station.[5]
After graduating from college, Hughes landed a job in the promotions department atWCMF inRochester, New York, but soon moved to work on the station's morning show then hosted byBrother Wease. Hughes credits Wease as a mentor in developing his on-air personality and furthering his career.[5] Hughes left WCMF to work the midnight to 6:00 a.m. shift atWUFX inBuffalo, New York. As the station was unsupervised during his shift, Hughes was able to develop his style further by performing more outrageous bits, like broadcasting from the roof of the station's building and interviewing passers-by on the street.[5]
Hughes's next job was atWBAB on Long Island as the host ofThe Nighttime Attitude, a rock music show from 8:00 p.m. to midnight. In August 1994, Hughes held anO. J. Simpson song parody contest for listeners surrounding the outcome of Simpson'smurder case. One of the participants was from a local band named Rotgut that featuredAnthony Cumia as lead singer with his brother Joe on guitar. The two performed "Gonna Electric Shock O. J." sung to the tune of "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" byOtis Redding.[9] The song became a hit on Hughes's show, and the two made their first appearance in September 1994 to perform the song live.[10] Cumia made several more appearances soon after; in early 1995, he and Hughes decided to become a radio team.
After Hughes produced anair check and had sent it to several radio stations, he and Cumia accepted an offer fromWAAF inBoston to host afternoons. The show launched asOpie and Anthony on March 13, 1995.[11] They remained in Boston until they were fired in April 1998 from WAAF for anApril Fool's Day prank involvingMayorThomas Menino. Opie and Anthony told their listeners that Menino had been killed in a collision with asemi-trailer truck oninterstate 95 while traveling with a young female Haitian prostitute inJacksonville, Florida.[12]
In June 1998, Hughes and Cumia were back on New York stationWNEW-FM, where they became a top 10 afternoon drive show in New York by 2000.[13] In 1999, Hughes considered leaving the show; however Anthony convinced him to stay, and bring Jim Norton on full-time as a go-between for their off air troubles.[14] Anthony attributed these issues to his divorce and off-air personal troubles.[15]
In 2001, Opie and Anthony signed a syndication deal with Infinity to syndicate their show on 22 stations nationwide, includingWBCN in Boston, longtime rival of WAAF.
On August 15, 2002, during "Sex for Sam 3", comedianPaul Mecurio encouraged Brian Florence and Loretta Harper, aVirginia couple visiting Manhattan, to have anal sex in avestibule atSt. Patrick's Cathedral. Intense media scrutiny led to many demanding that Opie and Anthony be fired. Opie and Anthony broadcast the next day, but the show went into reruns the following week. On August 22, Infinity suspended Opie and Anthony for the duration of their contract and canceled the show.
Opie and Anthony returned to the air on October 4, 2004, exclusively forXM Satellite Radio.
On April 24, 2006, Opie and Anthony announced that they had signed a deal withCBS Radio in which the first three hours of the show would be broadcast on nine of CBS's rock stations, the first official show airing April 26.[16]
On May 15, 2007, XM suspended Opie and Anthony for 30 days, in response to a broadcast featuring a homeless man brought into the studio. Opie and Anthony dubbed the man, who mentioned the possibility ofrapingCondoleezza Rice andLaura Bush, "Homeless Charlie".[17] After the suspension they returned to their normal split schedule.Later on the same year, Opie gave a cake to a homeless person as a reward for a competition on his show. However, Opie decided to record himself stomping on the homeless man's cake after he offered Opie a part of the cake.
On March 9, 2009, Opie and Anthony were heard on FM for the last time, and spent much of the time discussing the impending format change, and how their services were "no longer needed" at the station. Their executive producer for the FM portion, Michael "Stuntbrain" Opelka, was fired the following day. Following their removal from FM, they returned to being exclusively heard on Sirius XM until Anthony's firing in July 2014.
On July 3, 2014, Cumia was fired by SiriusXM, after making a series of tweets following an alleged off-air incident with a black woman on the street. Cumia tweeted that he was punched by the woman while attempting to take a picture in Times Square. The tweets were described by Sirius XM as "racially-charged and hate-filled".[18]
At the time of Cumia's firing SiriusXM made no comment as to Hughes's possible future with the company. Cumia gave his blessing for the Sirius XM show to continue without him, acknowledging Hughes and Norton's obligation to fulfill their contract with SiriusXM.[19] A relaunchedOpie with Jim Norton Show resumed on July 14, 2014, with Hughes and Norton discussing the incident and noting that The Opie and Anthony Channel was renamed Sirius XM Talk, along with various other alterations by the company in light of the firing.[20] In October 2014, Hughes and Norton signed a new contract to continue the SiriusXM show,[21] and the channel was re-branded toOpie Radio which was kept until January 2017.
On October 3, 2016, Hughes announced his new weekday afternoon show on the Opie Radio channel from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.The Opie Radio Show launched on October 4, 2016.[22]
The final broadcast ofThe Opie Radio Show aired on June 29, 2017. During the broadcast, Hughes got into a heated on-air argument with one of the show's producers Paul Ofcharsky over an incident several weeks prior where Hughes was video taping SiriusXM's talent booker Roland Campos while he was defecating in the SiriusXM restroom, with Hughes and frequent guestSherrod Small both harshly criticizing Ofcharsky for supporting Campos when the incident was reported to SiriusXM's Human Resources department. On July 6, 2017, a week after the show's final broadcast, Hughes was fired over the restroom incident, as reported online. It came almost three years to the day of Cumia's firing.[23][24][25][26] Later in the day, Hughes tweeted: "I can honestly say I have no idea exactly what's going on as I tweet this. More when I know."[27] On July 7, Hughes confirmed his firing via a YouTube video, stating that he had not been allowed to say "Your mom's box", a phrase fromOpie and Anthony, on the air on his last shift, so he wrote it in the sand on the beach where he shot the video.[28][29][24]
On March 19, 2018, Hughes said that he had signed a contract withWestwood One to develop a podcast and a traditionally syndicated radio show for the network.[30] On May 2, it was announced that the podcast would debut the following week[31] with the first episode airing on May 9.[32] In June 2019, Hughes announced that although his relationship with Westwood One had ended, the podcast would continue.[33]
In February 2001, Hughes and Cumia hostedXFL Gameday, a half-hour pre-game show forVince McMahon's startupfootball league that aired nationally on Saturday nights on selectNBC affiliates prior to the evening's games. The show was taped on Wednesdays at theWWF's theme restaurant inTimes Square and was open to the public. It featured analysis byWNBC sportscasterBruce Beck andNew York/New Jersey Hitmen head coachRusty Tillman, but also featured plenty of raunch. One segment featured the hosts as chefs, inserting a cucumber in between two melons. The pair were almost banned fromGiants Stadium for life during the filming of one episode when they imitated a proposed XFL rule where first possession was determined by placing the ball at midfield and having two opposing team-members attempt to get it. They did this as "God Bless America" began to play before a game.[34] They said that the $100,000 cost of making each new show was the cause of its demise, though no official reason was given for its cancellation.
The pair released a compilation of segments from their show that aired on WAAF on a CD entitledDemented World in November 1997.[35]
The Traveling Virus was a comedy tour headlined by Hughes and Cumia, as well as friends of the show, that had shows in various cities during2006,2007, and2008.
On the morning of March 26, 2008, Hughes and Cumia revealed they had taped a pilot for Comedy Central. The show was titledSearch & Destroy and features teams of comedians performing various tasks throughout New York City.[36] Comedy Central did not pick the show up; the two believed that it may have been too graphic even for cable television.[36]
In 2004, Hughes began to date Lynsi Smigo.[37] The two met during an event in Philadelphia to promote the return ofOpie and Anthony on XM. On September 5, 2007, Hughes announced their engagement; the two married on November 22, 2008. They have two children[38] and the family lives inNew York City.[39]
In 2008, the couple suedSteppin' Out magazine columnist Chaunce Hayden for $10 million. Hayden had claimed in his column to have become aware of the existence of a sex tape of Smigo andBam Margera, a claim he later retracted.[40] On March 16, 2010, the lawsuit was dismissed as the judge ruled that the original news story was newsworthy, noting that all parties had agreed that no sex tape actually existed.[41]
Born May 23, 1963 in New York, NY.
