Read More.Every Don Imus radiothon is a little different, and so it is with the one Thursday and Friday on WABC (770 AM), 6-10 a.m.
The cause is the same. The money goes to the Imus Ranch, the Tomorrows Children Fund and the CJ Fund for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
But other things come and go, and this year a big thing will be going: Charles McCord, the newsman and sidekick for most of Imus' nearly 40 years on New York and national radio.
Imus said last month that McCord will leave after Friday's show and, like the song says, going back to Arkansas.
That's about all the details there are, and maybe all the details there will be. In contrast to Imus, McCord has never shared much about his life beyond the fact he is a diligent Bible student and he and his wife, Connie, raise champion Boston terriers.
But privacy is a refreshing trait in this age of oversharing, and McCord's calm, understated approach has always provided balance to the impulsive Imus.
McCord started as a newsman and wherever he has traveled with Imus, he has remained one. He's smart, incisive and skilled with words. Like the best reporters, he can grasp and distill the essence of complex stories.
He has kept that stature even while becoming known primarily as Imus' sidekick - a cornerstone of the disparate team Imus has assembled over many years to do a show that's silly, satiric, informative and fun for grownups.
Like the others, including producer Bernard McGuirk, engineer Lou Rufino and comics Rob Bartlett and Tony Powell, McCord plays his position.
Flashback:
Charles Mccord has a meldown on the air Imus in the morning. (July 2010)
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