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They Call Me Baba Booey
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Includes all-new ma-ma-material!
ALL NEW CHAPTER:
Baba Booey’s Afghanistan Journal!
and . . . the Shvoogie Buzzer story!
One of pop culture’s great enduring unsung heroes: Gary Dell’Abate, Howard Stern Show producer, miracle worker, professional good sport, and servant to the King of All Media, tells the story of his early years and reveals how hi...more
Includes all-new ma-ma-material!
ALL NEW CHAPTER:
Baba Booey’s Afghanistan Journal!
and . . . the Shvoogie Buzzer story!
One of pop culture’s great enduring unsung heroes: Gary Dell’Abate, Howard Stern Show producer, miracle worker, professional good sport, and servant to the King of All Media, tells the story of his early years and reveals how hi...more
ebook, 0 pages
Published
November 2nd 2010
by Spiegel & Grau
(first published October 26th 2010)
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Apr 09, 2013
Corene
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2013-read,
2013-non-fiction
Several reviewers have stated that you should be a fan of the Howard Stern show to read this book written by his long time producer. I am not a fan, and while I've heard of Howard Stern, and saw the movie "Private Parts" years ago, I have never listened to him on radio. What drew me to this title while looking for a downloadable audio was the fact that it was a memoir, written by someone born around the same time as myself, who grew up Italian American on Long Island, (like Ray Romano's fictiona...more
So one day around ten years ago, I got into the car for a half-hour drive. My husband had been in the car before me, and the radio was tuned to Howard Stern. I don't think I'd listened to the show but once or twice, and only for a few minutes each time. Anyway, it was these random guys commenting on a videotape that Gary, the show's producer, had sent to a girl, I think to get her back. It was one of the funniest things I'd ever heard on the radio. Plus, I'd always had a bit of an obsession with...more
Of the two books I read this week by people in radio and that the New York Times didn't deign to review, this was the more satisfying book though not what I expected. I am a big fan of the Howard Stern show, and I generally have it on unless I need to concentrate on something work-related or the kids are close by. I am also a big fan of radio in general, and The Howard Stern Show is either the pinnacle of this medium or I've just heard Howard say it so many times that I have been brainwashed int...more
So I've lived in the city for almost five years now and have read probably hundreds of books on the subway, and how many times have people asked me what I was reading or commented on what I was reading??? ZERO times. Soooo here I am with the Baba Booey book, trying to be oh so discreet about it because, well, you know... So onto the G train walks a guy, stands next to me and says, "And what are we reading today?" I very reluctantly show him. "Baba Booey? Oh, Howard Stern, right??" Yeeeees. Then...more
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Pulls up short. And understandably so. No need to read this unless you're a Howard Stern fan. So when Dell'Abate glosses over his relationship with Howard, professionally and personally, it's disappointing. But, again, I understand why. The show is still a success and Howard is still his boss. Not much incentive to be candid when you've been the show's punching bag for 20+ years.
However, the first half of the book is well down. Great insight into an Italian family growing up in NY that avoids st...more
However, the first half of the book is well down. Great insight into an Italian family growing up in NY that avoids st...more
There is no way anyone who is not a Howard Stern fan would care at all about this book. So why the four stars? Two reason: I AM a Stern fan, and I love Gary, and this book is the most Gary. More importantly, Gary has made no secret of his love of audiobooks on the show, and it shows in this production. He's a good reader, he elicits real sympathy as well as humor, but more importantly, he made the book stand on it's own. By ad-libbing to the lists, and including interviews with some of the un-fa...more
2 likes · like · see review
I recently took a 2-week vacation and needed a light read while traveling. I chose the recent memoir of minor celebrity Gary Dell’Abate, also known as “Baba Booey,” the producer of the Howard Stern Show. Whether or not you like or watch Howard Stern, it’s hard not to like Gary. In his both humorous and sometimes wrenching memoir, Gary tells of growing up in a working-class Italian family on Long Island in the 1970’s. With a protective, but manic-depressive mother, a World War II vet for a father...more
The much ridiculed and harried radio producer Gary Dell'Abate tells his story here and it is a very nice book. Gary has a nice conversational style, often funny and occasionally moving. This is not just a chronicle of Stern stories, it is mostly composed of his life leading up to joining Howard and the gang at WN-N-N-N-N-BC and some personal stories afterwards. Any Stern fan knows that Gary can't have any privacy in his life, so Gary appropriately spills his guts here very honestly and without a...more
This book was pretty good as far as these dumb biographies go. Gary does an adequate job telling his story, including some painful stuff such as his mother‘s rage infused mental illness. Also, one of his brothers died of AIDS. He is able to laugh at himself and covers even embarrassing issues such as his teeth or old relationships. He was the youngest brother in his of several boys -- that explains why he has always been able to take getting mocked on the H.S. show.
The writing style is just min...more
The writing style is just min...more
Baba Booey, Baba Booey, Howard Stern's penis.
Yup, I'm a Stern fan. While I type this, I am listening to Howard talk to former governor Jesse Ventura and guest announcer George Takei is with them this week. Thank you Sirius XM on teh Interwebz.
Gary has been in the background of the Howard Stern Show as far back as I remember (NOTE: I started listening in the early nineties.) When I heard he was putting out a book, I figured it could make for an interesting read but it wasn't on my "must read" lis...more
Yup, I'm a Stern fan. While I type this, I am listening to Howard talk to former governor Jesse Ventura and guest announcer George Takei is with them this week. Thank you Sirius XM on teh Interwebz.
Gary has been in the background of the Howard Stern Show as far back as I remember (NOTE: I started listening in the early nineties.) When I heard he was putting out a book, I figured it could make for an interesting read but it wasn't on my "must read" lis...more
This wasn't a memoir about being on the Howard Stern show, but about a guy who had a rough childhood and made the best of it. Gary talks honestly about his family and his relationships with them. I had the audio version, and it included interviews at the end of some of the chapters that added a really nice touch. My only complaint is that we never really learned much after his life in the 1980s, and the stuff we did learn was in asides. The book felt a little disjointed because of this.
Still, Ga...more
Still, Ga...more
I am a huge, long time fan and listener of The Howard Stern Show. I've always held a special place in my heart for Gary. He takes tons of crap and keeps on going, like the energizer bunny! I never thought he got enough credit for what he does and he never asks for it. Very humble guy.
They Call Me Baba Booey is not about Howard or a behind the scenes look at the show, it is Gary's book about Gary. I never knew how hard he had it growing up but he overcame all the blocks that were put in his path,...more
They Call Me Baba Booey is not about Howard or a behind the scenes look at the show, it is Gary's book about Gary. I never knew how hard he had it growing up but he overcame all the blocks that were put in his path,...more
NOTE: I listened to this on audio
I can't believe I waited so long to read/listen to this! I have been listening to Howard Stern for almost 25 years and Gary is my favorite person on the show. I understand now how Gary takes the abuse (joking and otherwise) from Howard and the rest of the group - he grew up with a mentally ill, unstable mother, and knows how to deal with chaos. He is also incredibly generous, hard-working, and loved by everyone who knows him. Yay Gary!
Like Bossypants, I think I a...more
I can't believe I waited so long to read/listen to this! I have been listening to Howard Stern for almost 25 years and Gary is my favorite person on the show. I understand now how Gary takes the abuse (joking and otherwise) from Howard and the rest of the group - he grew up with a mentally ill, unstable mother, and knows how to deal with chaos. He is also incredibly generous, hard-working, and loved by everyone who knows him. Yay Gary!
Like Bossypants, I think I a...more
Nov 03, 2010
Lee Anne
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
borrowed-not-bought
If you're looking for behind-the-scenes information on the Howard Stern show, please go elsewhere, as this book is truly just Gary Dell'Abate's life story. There's actually very little Stern show stuff here, relatively speaking, although all Gary's "biggest hits" (Hello, hello!) are covered in detail.
As far as memoirs go, it's a mildly interesting tale of a young Italian boy with a bipolar mother, a gay brother, and a love of pop music. It's a little dull and earnest in parts, but Gary comes ac...more
As far as memoirs go, it's a mildly interesting tale of a young Italian boy with a bipolar mother, a gay brother, and a love of pop music. It's a little dull and earnest in parts, but Gary comes ac...more
I originally got this book for free with an order of cupcakes from Crumbs. Figured the husband would like it so I gave it to him to read. It's one of the (very) rare books that he started AND finished. (He usually quits them halfway through.) So then *I* had to read it too. This is primarily a book about Gary's struggles with his bipolar mother, his gay and ultimately AIDS-stricken brother - when we didn't yet understand anything about AIDS - and coming of age in the 70's and 80's in a particula...more
I recommend this for Stern fans (duh), radio geeks, and anyone with a mentally ill parent. Gary is my favorite "cast member" on the Stern show. I learned a lot about his work ethic in this book. The take-away about his career is that hard work, a positive attitude, and a willingness to overlook slights can get you far in life if you have a goal. That may sound like pap, but if you know someone who could benefit from that message, have them read _They Call me Baba Booey_! I also like his message...more
I've been a stern fan for over 20 years, parts of this book read like the highlight real of the stern show, other parts are deep and make you look at Gary and his big teeth differently. The book is an easy and casual read, but very spacey. There are too many time-jumps, one chapter will start in 1982 and finish with a piece of info from 2002, the next chapter starts on 1983 where the 2nd page of the previous chapter left off.
If your a stern fan, read it. If your not, it will be very confusing a...more
If your a stern fan, read it. If your not, it will be very confusing a...more
As a HUGE fan of the Howard Stern show as well as of Gary, I could not wait to read this. It was an entertaining quick read which gave me insight into why he continues to put up with the abuse he gets on the show. I wanted to hear more though about his early days on the show, favorite moments and what the future looks like for him. His writing was also very remedial (which makes sense for a majority of the audience). I could not help but to read it in the "Gary voice" from the show.
huge stern fan so i have to give it a 5.... I am probably an outcast fan for saying this, BUT, I enjoyed how the book wasnt all about his life on the show and gave some insight into his past. I would have enjoyed a FEW more stories- but it was a good book. I didn't think it read the same way as artie lange's, meaning as I read his book I felt like it was written in the way Artie talked- Gary's book definitely had the undertone of a ghost-writter!
Very good and quick read
Very good and quick read
I wanted to like this book, but alas I can not recommend it. I realize not all biographies need to be linear, but this was beyond ridiculous. The writing was only so-so. It's hard to believe an actual author helped out. It was interesting to read some of the behind scenes, but I also walked away feeling like Gary was kind of a jerk, and didn't even realize it. This was very disappointing since he was one of my favorites on the show.
Self important, self congratulatory and worst of all boring as f**k. I only read this per a friends recommendation and I forcibly trudged through these snooze inducing anti-climatic recollections that read like they were crafted by an eight yeear old. I'm only spitting venom because my time to read has recently been hard to come by and I can't believe that even die-hard Stern fans would enjoy this.
Kind of surprised. I did enjoy this book. I listened to the audiobook while in the car and at work and particularly liked the extra interviews Baba Booey did with personalities in the book. Some of it is boring and it's like "who the hell cares?", and the writing is sub-par at best, but like I said, I did find myself enjoying it. I would recommend it for fans of the show or fans of pop culture in general. I haven't listened to the HS Show for at least ten years, but know the people and some of t...more
Being a big Stern fan, I absolutely had to read this. Of course knowing how Stern operates, he is not going to be keen on anyone writing an expose of the show. So I didn't expect that going in, but I expected better. Gary just hasn't lived the life that a Howard or Artie has and quite frankly, is not the storyteller that those two are either. So don't feel bad if you are a Stern fan and skip this book.
As a former regular listener to the Howard Stern show, I must say this was a very enjoyable read. I always wondered how Gary felt about the constant abuse he receives on the show, and it was interesting to hear how Gary found his way to the show in the first place. Getting the back story on his teeth was worth the read alone. Surprisingly enjoyable read.
This was hard to rate between a 3 & 4 star. I am a Howard Stern fan so some of this book wasn't new information. I did enjoy reading more about his upbringing and family...it gave some good insight into his background. I thought it was a little light on information and stories, but overall, a good quick read.
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I am a huge Howard Stern fan so I had to read Gary's book. It was very good and interesting to see how Gary grew up and how he started on The Howard Stern Show. He has had some hard times in his life that either made me cry or laugh. If you are a fan of Howard then you'll love this book.
I read this book in less than 24 hours. It made me laugh and cry. It was a window into a character on an outrageous radio show. Moreover, the writing is swift and conversational. I appreciated the depiction of Gary's relationships - filled with candor, love and complexity.
Loved the book. Read it because I love the Howard Stern show. However, it is a moving book that tells Gary's life story including his challenges with a mother who suffers from mental illness, and a brother who died of aids. He is a good guy and it comes through this book.
Okay, truth time: years ago I used to occasionally listen to Howard Stern during my long commutes to work. Not so much into the strippers, but the man does celebrity interviews better than anyone. I picked this one up as an audiobook and found it entertaining.
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