Don Imus is a well-known host of an American talk show host who became popular for his irresistible style of insult humor. This notorious way of radio show hosting was a concept that was introduced by him. His sneaky comments have drawn both sneer and snickers. The big step that boosted Don Imus into the path of fame and limelight was his radio talk shows that ran for 37 years; named ‘Imus in the Morning.
This show started in 1971 and was canceled in 2007 following a series of offensive comments that he passed a controversial comment mortifying the Rutgers women basketball team for their hairstyles and tattooed body.
Don Imus’s net worth has been reviewed to be somewhere around $40 million.
Early Life
Don Imus is a renowned American talk show host who is known for his infamous sense of humor. He swayed into the limelight and gained worldwide recognition with his talk show ‘Imus in the Morning’ which aired in 1971 for the first time. This show is broadcasted across the country by Cumulus Media Networks.
Don Imus was born on July 23rd, 1940 in the Riverside, California to John Donald Imus Sr. and Frances E. (nee Moore). He has one younger sibling named Fred and he just like Don Imus was a talk show host. Don Imus grew up in Kingman, Arizona on a cattle ranch.
Don Imus is of American nationality and white ethnicity. Don Imus has a messy hairstyle in white and gray color. He has a wrinkly face but he as a young person, he is known to have quite a handsome man.
Don Imus claims to be a mediocre student during his school years. He received his elementary school education from various schools during his student life. His parents’ divorce resulted in a rough childhood for the boys. When Don Imus was 15 years old, his parents separated.
In 1957, he dropped high school and signed up for Marine Corps and worked there till 1960. Don Imus has struggled with alcohol abuse for a really long period of time.
Career
After dropping out of school, in his tough adolescence rage, at the age of 19, he went on to pursue a music career in rock and roll. He also worked as a brakeman for a short while because he was unable to find career options due to lack of skills and education.
Don Imus continued with many odd jobs till he landed and gained a talent show gig at Johnny Otis’s nightclub. His first proper job was as a disc jockey and started that job in 1968. This job was a radio station named KUTY, located in Palmdale, California.
He quickly shifted and started working with KJOY which was a small size radio station situated in Stockton, California. This is the first time he received fair recognition for some of the controversial statements that he made while being on-air. He acknowledged the fact that he enjoyed the fame he was receiving, but his comments got him into controversies, leading to trouble.
Following this, in the year 1971, Don Imus was selected by New York’s radio station WNBC, and he got his own show ‘Imus in the Morning’ from December in the year 1971. This show quickly became one of the most loved radio talk show because of Imus’s style of a sense of humor. This unconventional style which Don Imus is hugely credited for is insult humor, to the audience, this concept was completely new.
In his talk show, he used to mock celebrities and real personalities and made comments on their actions and motives. This is the prime quality that made Don Imus a household name which took his show to new heights of ranks and received many successful radio ratings. The show ran for a stretch of 36 years till 2007, the MSNBC network used to broadcast this show for 11 years.
Don Imus is also a renowned author, philanthropist, and photographer.
Personal Life
Don Imus married his married his first Harriet Showalter and became step-father to his wife, Showalter’s daughters Toni and Nadine. The couple has two daughters together named Ashley and Elizabeth. The couple separated, and their divorce was finalized in 1979.
In 1994, he again got married to Deirdre Coleman. With her, he has a son named Frederick Wyatt. Reportedly, Coleman and Don Imus have turned in vegan.
In March 2009, Don Imus proclaimed that he was analyzed with a stage two prostate cancer. He presently resides on a ranch, just like his childhood, in Brenham, Texas.
Don Imus holds one social media account which he uses to connect with the world; his Twitter handle is @IMS.
Quick Summary
Name: Hon Donald ‘Don’ Imus
Date of Birth: July 23rd, 1940
Birth Place: Riverside, California
Age: 77 years
Profession: Comedian, Radio personality, writer, TV personality
Height: 1.88m
Weight: N/A
Net worth: $40
