Pete Franklin

He is widely credited with pioneering the more aggressive, acerbic and attention-grabbing form of the genre, which has since been adopted by generations of sports media personalities, and bringing it to a multinational listening audience.

"I worked 70 hours a week, and my main job was to get to the station early and kill the snakes with a baseball bat," he said of his Louisiana assignments.

[9][10][11] His caustic personality was a primary reason why "3WE" lost its status as the flagship station of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers in 1981 when he feuded with team owner Ted Stepien.

Franklin and Cavaliers' radio voice Joe Tait openly questioned Stepien's ability to operate the team after multiple poor trades and unwise free agent signings leading to a depletion of talent.

In August 1987, Franklin announced he had been hired by upstart all-sports station WFAN in New York City to be its afternoon host starting the following month.

[16] New York Times columnist George Vecsey wrote that Franklin was a "so-called big name ... whose specialty was hurling insults at fans who knew vastly more than he did.

"[17] After much controversy and dismal ratings, he resigned in July 1989 two months before the end of his contract, and was replaced by the Mike and the Mad Dog program.