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Dennis & Callahan At Odds

Jason Barrett

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The cold war between WEEI morning men John Dennis and Gerry Callahan continued yesterday, but their boss expects that they will kiss and make up and he’s not too worried about the long-term fallout for the station’s highest-rated show.

“I think the temporary tension between John and Gerry is an occasional and natural byproduct of two people in any long-term, working relationship, especially when they have to get up every morning at 3:30 a.m.,” Entercom Boston boss Phil Zachary told the Track. “Having worked with morning teams for the better part of 40 years, I’ve seen this play out time and again, so I’m not concerned. The only difference here is the media scrutiny. Everyone loves a good soap opera.”

Well yes, we do.

A former station insider who worked with Dennis and Callahan said he knows there have been tensions over the years between the two but was surprised to see the feud spinning out publicly.

“They always had their little quirks, but nothing ever got out of the office,” our snitch said. “They always closed the door and hashed it out and nobody ever noticed. This is different because they are both on the record talking about the laundry.”

As we told you yesterday, the longtime on-air partners have been sniping back and forth for a couple of weeks now, first Dennis while Callahan was on vacation, and then Gerry firing back while Dino was away this week.

In a nutshell, Dennis is feeling like the odd man out on the morning show and believes Callahan and co-host Kirk Minihane are freezing him out. He also said Callahan was less than supportive during his recent stint in rehab for alcohol addiction and added that he believes Gerry is threatened by his “likeability factor.” Callahan says it’s all a crock.

In any event, the two are under contract through September 2017, so they are going to have to suck it up and make up, or it’s gonna be a loooong two years.

“They’ll probably have to sit down and have a conversation if they haven’t already,” said our source. “They are both obviously very smart guys and know what’s best for the show. They’ll figure it out. They are too good not to.”

Dennis & Callahan will be together for the first time in weeks on Monday so it will be interesting to see how they handle the situation.

“On Monday, John, Gerry and Kirk Minihane will be professional broadcasters who speak their minds as listeners have come to expect,” Zachary said. “I’m certain they will communicate before then because there are frequent conversations regarding show topics and content before each program.”

As always, do stay tuned …

Credit to the Boston Herald who originally published this article

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Mad Dog: Gus Johnson ‘Bothered The Hell Out of Me’ Saturday

“For crying out loud, Michigan/Ohio State isn’t even better than North Carolina/Duke, who play twice a year. So let’s be careful with the hype machine.”

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A photo of Chris "Mad Dog" Russo
(Photo: SiriusXM)

FOX Sports college football voice Gus Johnson has made no bones about his affinity for Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. However, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo has heard enough.

During his Mad Dog Unleashed program on SiriusXM, Russo shared that not only was Johnson obnoxious for the constant use of a nickname he bestowed up Harrison, but he was also misguided for calling Ohio State/Michigan the greatest rivalry in sports.

“Gus Johnson — the hype machine that he is — please, when you broadcast a ballgame, I don’t need to hear about Maserati Marv, number one. And number two, that’s not the greatest rivalry in sports history. Have you heard of the Yankees and the Red Sox? Giants and the Dodgers? How about Bears/Packers? Have you heard about that?

“For crying out loud, Michigan/Ohio State isn’t even better than North Carolina/Duke, who play twice a year. So let’s be careful with the hype machine. That bothered the hell out of me.”

When a caller pushed back on Russo’s opinion on the Michigan/Ohio State rivalry, he continued by saying “That rivalry’s not Yankees/Red Sox. To compare college football to the Yankees and the Red Sox is ludicrous.”

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Nashville Predators Radio Voice Pete Weber Calling 2,000th Game Tuesday

“I always wanted to be there for the birth of a team. I feel like I’ve been a pretty fair midwife here.”

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A photo of Pete Weber
(Photo: Nashville Predators)

Nashville Predators radio voice Pete Weber is set to hit a career milestone Tuesday, as he’ll call his 2,000th game for the NHL franchise.

Weber told The Tennessean that he has relished the opportunity to be the voice of a team since its inception. He claimed he applied for and was a finalist for the radio play-by-play job when the Carolina Panthers were conceived, before ultimately landing with the Predators.

“I always wanted to be there for the birth of a team,” said Weber. “I feel like I’ve been a pretty fair midwife here.”

Despite missing time late last season due to a rare brain condition, Weber said he has no plans of retiring anytime soon.

“I have not thought about it, other than when I thought about how (former Philadelphia Phillies announcer) Harry Kalas was carried dead out of the broadcast booth in Washington,” Pete Weber said. “I thought, ‘Well, that’s an interesting way to go. I don’t necessarily know that I want to do it like that. But it could happen. I’m not going to say no.”

Weber’s 2,000th game will come as the Nashville Predators play host to the Pittsburgh Penguins. 102.5 The Game is the flagship home of the Predators Radio Network.

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iHeartMedia Ending WEEI Simulcast in Cape Cod

A job opening for a sports talk co-host/producer/programming assistant that says its salary will “be funded by the savings that the market is acquiring from the expiring Audacy/WEEI & Red Sox contracts”.

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A photo of the WEEI 96.3 Cape Cod logo

iHeartMedia is preparing to drop its simulcast of WEEI on its 96.3 WEII-FM signal in Hyannis/Cape Cod.

According to a report from Radio Insight, iHeartMedia has posted a job opening for a sports talk co-host/producer/programming assistant that says its salary will “be funded by the savings that the market is acquiring from the expiring Audacy/WEEI & Red Sox contracts”.

It goes on to state that the contract between the company and Audacy was $300,000 annually and it paid the Red Sox $65,000 annually.

The job posting alleges 96.3 FM will continue to carry sports programming with a local show.

WEEI is currently simulcast on stations in Springfield and Worcester, MA; Providence; Portland, Maine; and on stations in New Hampshire and Vermont, as well. Earlier this year, the station’s offices in Warwick, Rhode Island closed as part of a cost-cutting measure.

WEII-FM is licensed to Dennis, MA and features a 25,000-watt Class B signal.

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