The Transformation Of Howard Stern From 18 To 68 Years Old

This article contains references to suicide, hate crimes, racism, and miscarriage. 

He built an entire career upon indecency, offense, and humor so dark his punchlines could blow the light out of the sun. But during the gradual transformation of Howard Stern, radio's most infamous and indelicate shock jock seemingly sealed a lid on his lewdness. To some, Stern's newfound ability to listen to his guests, rather than get lecherous with them, was a breath of fresh air. To others, the most offensive thing the pied piper of pornographic incivility has ever done is to reject his very own bawdy brand of comedy. 

Growing up as an outsider in Roosevelt, Long Island, Stern described himself as being "one of about ten white kids" at his school, where he was constantly "getting beat up" for standing out, per Rolling Stone. At home, however, he found solace in comedy. According to "Howard Stern: A Biography," the future radio star would use puppets to act out "dirty performances" for his friends in a bid to make them laugh. 

It worked. And while he no doubt lapped up the attention, Stern was likely also awakened to the great cathartic quality of laughter. To Rolling Stone, for instance, he shared how he was inspired to take his comedy to talk radio after watching his dad's dull work commutes, where "he'd just sit and listen to CBS News." He realized, "Wouldn't it be great if he was laughing?" Thus, he made it his mission to tickle every "miserable bastard on the parkway in his car."

If you or a loved one has experienced a hate crime, contact the VictimConnect Hotline by phone at 1-855-4-VICTIM or by chat for more information or assistance in locating services to help. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.

When he left Boston University in 1976, Howard Stern grappled with the same struggles of every young creative graduate: inadequate jobs for minimal pay. Per Rolling Stone, his first job for WRNW in New York paid just $96 a week. His next, for WCCC in Connecticut, amounted to $12,000 a year. In the midst of it all was the "depressing" sight of "all these old disc jockeys walking around" like "they'd been put out to pasture." The airwaves needed a hit of energy — and Stern's indecent voice was an unrefined sugar high for the ears.

Having "gained notoriety for his naughty-boy japery," as City Journal put it, Stern's profile had risen to the point where he became the voice of "afternoon drive-time" for WNBC-AM in New York. There, Stern began his career-long professional relationship with Robin Quivers, his beloved radio sidekick. He also began his mainstream ascent into America's most controversial radio host. 

After marrying Alison Berns in 1978, the disc jockey served his first major cultural shock by turning his wife's miscarriage into a pitch-black punchline on-air. Stern told listeners that he and his wife had given the late embryo a name and planned to "take him to the zoo next weekend," per Los Angeles Times. Berns, understandably, "flipped out," per Rolling Stone. In "Private Parts," she wrote that she "wanted to climb under a rock" because she was "so embarrassed" by his performance. "That was the turning point," she wrote, "I knew that nothing was off bounds."

By 1990, Howard Stern's reputation for humor that Rolling Stone suggested had "sometimes fairly" been described as homophobic, racist, and tasteless had apparently struck a chord with millions. Per Los Angeles Times, the star's "outrageous morning show" was now set to broadcast in Los Angeles. Within a year, he became the first radio personality to score a No. 1 show simultaneously in both New York and L.A.

Still, with great popularity comes great scrutiny, and in 1992, the Federal Communications Commission slapped "a record $600,000 fine" on the broadcasting corporation behind Stern's show. According to Los Angeles Times, the penalty was triggered by a "19-page complaint" against the host's "raunchy, sexually oriented broadcasts," with a concern that young people were listening to the show. 

One such youth appeared to confirm those concerns to the outlet, stating that most teens tended "to worship" Stern, whom they described as "a 14-year-old at heart." It was a fair observation, considering that for his next act, the King of All Media flew onto the stage at the 1992 MTV VMAs as "Fartman" — a spandex-clad, windy warrior with exposed butt cheeks, which he requested a reluctant Luke Perry to touch "for power." Should there be any doubt as to Stern's legitimate "power" at this time, it can be found in the fact that New Line Cinema once optioned "The Adventures of Fartman" as a feature film aimed at the very same teenagers the FCC was hoping to protect.

By the mid-'90s, Howard Stern had hit his peak era of provocation — one that showcased the anarchic darkness at the heart of his show. His jokes could be tasteless and cruel, but in Stern's opinion, his show was as much about him "trying to be funny" as it was him "trying to tell the truth," per Rolling Stone. His bare-all approach to talk radio meant nothing was off-limits. For better or worse, it resulted in a show of extremes.

In 1995, for instance, Stern chose to follow up the death of iconic Tejano singer Selena by playing excerpts of her music "with gunshots in the background" and cracking jokes targeting Mexican-Americans, per UPI. He apologized, but the damage was done — in South Texas, a warrant was issued for Stern charging him with disorderly conduct. 

A year earlier, however, Stern saved a man from suicide live on-air after he decided to "keep this man laughing ... until the cops" could arrive, as reported by Los Angeles Times. Both extremes demonstrated Stern's immense power as a broadcaster. The question was, how would he continue to use this power? For now, one answer was simply: Make a lot more money. In 1995, Stern released his second book, "Miss America" — another best-selling tome that Los Angeles Times called "raunchier" than his first book. During promotional duties, Stern maintained his signature style — hiding beneath shades and hair. 

If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline​ at​ 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.

In 1999, it finally happened: Howard Stern split from his wife, Alison Berns. Described as "an amicable separation" by the couple's spokesman, the New York Post reported that the shock jock had "always vowed he would never cheat on his wife," in spite of how his on-air antics with female guests might have suggested otherwise. Instead, the outlet suggested that Stern's "workaholic ways" had caused the split. In later years, he appeared to confirm this theory. 

"I was totally neurotic and ... consumed with work," he told Rolling Stone, "I took work as the most important thing and the only thing." Adding to the problem was the fact that his work also involved putting his private life on the line in the name of entertainment. In 1994, Stern had acknowledged to the outlet that sharing everything with his audience was a problem for his wife and three daughters. He added, tellingly, "Within the last year, it's started getting to my wife." 

For a year, he enjoyed an "unhealthy ... feeding frenzy" of sex in his newly single life, which he reasoned was "childish" and which left him feeling "empty," per Rolling Stone. In 2000, Stern would remove his face from the bachelor trough and find a stable, monogamous relationship once again — this time with model and animal rights advocate Beth Ostrosky, whom fans of Stern's would come to know as "the lovely Beth O," per MTV.

In 2004, Howard Stern received another "record fine for on-air indecency" courtesy of the Federal Communications Commission, which The Guardian reported as being "as large as $1.75m." Thus an end to the comedian's time on terrestrial radio was ushered in, and Stern made a lucrative jump to satellite radio instead. Per People, the star moved to Sirius XM and signed a massive "five year, $500 million contract" in doing so. 

The move to satellite radio opened Stern's show up to all manner of infantile, explicit content, which could now be aired with total impunity. Today reported that within the first year of being on Sirius XM, a comedy writer "had his genitals waxed on air," while adult star Jenna Jameson "inaugurated the in-studio Sybian, a saddle-like sex toy since utilized by many female guests" live on-air. It was, they suggested, "the best radio on the airwaves."

Now in his 50s, Stern was dressing a little more like the multimillion-dollar mouth he was. For the most part, he was still burying himself in a monotone of funeral hues, but there was also a roguish elegance to his look: This was a man who was perhaps learning how to accept himself, flaws and all. It likely helped that he was a bonafide Somebody now. In 2006, Stern filed a trademark for his nickname, "King of All Media," and was also listed in both the Time 100 and the Forbes Celebrity 100. 

Should anyone have had any doubts as to whether Howard Stern had been fully embraced by the establishment or not, they were likely cleared when he was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame. Having been excluded by the Hall for decades, he wasn't exactly grateful or impressed with his sudden addition, however. On his radio show, Stern questioned the "credibility" of the Hall and the people who decide "who should go in" and who shouldn't (via Boston.com).

Considering the size of his bank account, you'd think he wouldn't much care either way. In 2015, Forbes listed him as America's highest-paid media personality, raking in an impressive $95 million from his radio and TV host gigs. That same year, having achieved everything he wanted to on the show, Stern left "America's Got Talent" to refocus on radio. In a farewell segment, he shared how being "on a family show" was likely "the most shocking" part of his consistently controversial career (via The Hollywood Reporter. 

It may also have been healing for him, based on his own difficult beginnings. "I was told over and over again that I had no talent," he said, adding that he wanted to be a judge so he could "take someone who was struggling and seriously give advice." Having admitted to Rolling Stone that he'd done a lot of work on himself in therapy to keep his narcissism "in check," a new and improved Stern stepped into the limelight.