HIGH-SPEED FAN
Anyone else got a case of audio whiplash? Once Craig Carton and Evan Roberts hit the three-hour mark of their afternoon-drive debut, Monday on WFAN, the rapid-fire pace of their jabber, a stream of consciousness fiesta tailor made for the short attention span crowd, had the first-time-long-time’s ears burning — and wondering if this odd couple could maintain this vibe for five hours.
Turned out to be a Gasbag’s Paradise, with a big resemblance to William M. Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” In staccato fashion, Carton & Roberts were jamming. Using the plight of Daniel Jones as their bass line, they also grooved on: Celebrity sightings in bathrooms, Uncle Steve Cohen, stuffed ponies, Manish Mehta, Harry Truman, Pizza toppings, Zach Gelb, Trevor Lawrence, Omar Minaya, Norman Julius Esiason, Michael Kay, legalized pot, Mike (Sports Pope) Francesa, Joe Douglas, Richard Kotite and Howard Stern.
About the only cat they missed was Donald J. Trump.
Carton managed to get an early shot in at his sports-talk competition, Kay’s ESPN98.7 show. A caller, Vinny From Staten Island, predicted: “You guys are taking out Michael Kay.”
Carton:
Ouch!
What about some preconceived notions, like would Roberts turn into the Blandy Man when Carton said something he disagreed with — like Jets GM Joe Douglas?
“The early returns on Joe Douglas are good,” Carton proclaimed.
“Based on what,” an indignant Roberts shot back.
Remember, long before Carton was sentenced to a year in jail, he was waving pom-poms for another failed Jets
GM, Mike Maccagnan, who he kissed up to and fondly referred to as “Mikey Mac.”
Roberts pushed back on his new partner when Carton referred to the coronavirus as “the ‘Rona.”
“Don’t call it ‘ the ‘ Rona,” Roberts said. “It sounds very douchey.” Now there’s a word Roberts wasn’t inclined to use while swapping lines with Joe Benigno.
Confirming Roberts characterization, Carton showed his D-Side discussing Washington quarterback Alex Smith. “You can’t tell me that every Giant fan wasn’t saying ‘You mean we can’t sack a guy who already?” is out there playing on one leg?’”
On the flip side, Carton knew when Roberts was reaching and slowing the pace of the show. For reasons known only to him, Roberts tried comparing Harry Truman’s exit from the presidency to Omar Minaya being axed by the Mets. Unfortunately, Roberts stayed with this bit a little too long. Just as he did being faux (we hope) disappointed over new Mets boss Steve Cohen not responding to his DM on Twitter.
If there was any change in Carton’s shtick after his three-year hiatus from WFAN — following his arrest and being charged with fraud for using money invested in a ticket sales business to fund his gambling debts — it was the self-deprecating humor he displayed on Monday’s show.
When the clock hit 6 p.m. Carton said: “We go five hours. There’s one hour left. For some of you it’s a bonus hour. For others — ehhh.”
Carton, who did a solo one-hour show on WFAN late last month, did not dwell on his gambling addiction, but did confront it head on when FanDuel, which is in bed with FAN’s parent company Entercom,
Craig Carton, following stint in prison for role in Ponzi scheme, is back on WFAN, teaming with Evan Roberts on afternoon drive show Monday. commercials aired (Carton did and will not read them).
Carton also said gambling wasn’t his only problem. “I’ve got nothing left to hide. I was the biggest knucklehead on the planet,” Carton said. “I can’t blame it all on gambling. I’m a long way away from being even with the people I hurt… Don’t feel like, ‘ OK, Craig is born again’… No, part of admitting you’re an addict is talking about it.”
Roberts, in an obvious cry for help, also admitted he had a problem. “I used to have an unhealthy obsession with getting to every sporting event I went to on time,” Roberts said. Wow! Where do you go to rehab for that?
Seriously though, will this team find chemistry along the long and winding road to ratings success? There are obstacles, like competition from other outlets and even WFAN management who can’t get out of its own way — going so far as to not address reports Roberts was not their first choice to work with Carton.
Despite management’s bass-akwards approach, despite the Talkies getting next to no reps together, Carton and Roberts, on Monday, presented a rough blue print on what their road to ratings glory might look like. Yes, it’s rough, but their performance showed they are ready.