He was half of the morning team on WABC 770 in New York City. For many years, he was one of the enablers on the Don Imus show. We met briefly, once, and Bernie seemed like a decent chap.
Yes, I laughed at Bernie's outrageous Cardinal John O'Connor impression. Bernie's job, beyond "The Cardinal," was to get racist, homophobic and sexist comments on to the air, with Imus' blessing. Imus would chastise Bernie, keeping his hands clean, but you know Imus was okay with every mean spirited word Bernie uttered.
It eventually caught up with Imus and crew, fired from WFAN and MSNBC. They drifted over the WABC and a couple of unknown cable networks. The ratings never improved. Even in the glory days, one of my favorite sayings was "You know a station is in trouble if it runs 'Imus in the Morning.'"
I'm not sure if Bernie actually believed all that stuff he said, or if it was just a character he played.
Regardless, my sympathy to family, friends, and fans.
