Yes.
Though I do like George Noory, I’m sure this news triggers in him a huuuuuuuge relief for his ratings and career.
While he has great fences and a good security system, Art is just too accessible.
Part of the magic of his show was his No Caller Screening arrangement —yes, you often had total kooks call in, but often Art could magically weave fine gold thread out of a lot of it.
But then that is also the factor that made the “You’re a MOLESTER..!”-neo nazis feel they could harass Art for so long with such impunity.
Can you imagine being falsely accused like that and REPEATEDLY having to carry the show on, in exactly such a way as if such calls had NEVER come in...?
I don’t think even 3% of hosts could manage that, especially if their son had been recently molested by an HIV+ guy.
Thank G_d for the tape delay, right?
Long John Nebel, who did a similar type of radio show, was one of the first to use a tape-delay system in radio.
-JT
I think Larry King took unscreened calls on his radio talk show in the 1980s. (I called him once about Sandy Koufax, a classmate of his.)