J. R. Gach

Jay Robert "J.R." Gach (born April 2, 1952) is a controversial talk radio host and shock jock from Schenectady, New York.

Gach was born Jay Robert Gach on April 2, 1952 to Joseph Harry Gach (1917-2007), a retired army colonel, and Dorothy Louise Shive (1921-2004). He got his start at a couple of stations in Chester, Pennsylvania as "Jay Roberts" in the late 1960s. [ [http://www.oldchesterpa.com/wvch.htm WVCH ] ]

From the summer of 1992 through 1995, Gach worked as a talk radio host on WGR and later WWKB in Buffalo, New York. He would then go to WWL in New Orleans after that, and after WWL he hosted a show from 1998 to 2002 on WGY in Schenectady, the region that he would call home for the next several years. During this time, he briefly held (for a few weeks in February 2001) the late-night host's position at one of America's top news/talk stations, WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio, from which he was fired for referring to Japanese people as "yellow monkeys." [cite news|url=http://www.cincypost.com/2001/feb/22/broad022201.html|title=WLW pulls the plug on J.R. Gach after slur|author=Rick Bird|first=Rick|last=Bird|work=The Cincinnati Post|publisher=E. W. Scripps Company|date=2001-02-22|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20041029154333/http://www.cincypost.com/2001/feb/22/broad022201.html|archivedate=2004-10-29] As his behavior became increasingly erratic starting in 2001, Gach mysteriously disappeared from the airwaves in August 2002; two months later, his then-wife (Suzie Gach, a radio veteran with whom J.R. would often co-host his shows) announced that he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had attempted suicide. [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20030515150940/http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=58726&category=FRONTPG&BCCode=HOME&newsdate=10/4/2002 'Mental illness strikes J.R' - timesunion.com ] ]

After undergoing heavy doses of antidepressants, Gach would later resurface on WRCZ/WBOE "The Bone" (now WYKV) in Albany as that station's afternoon and later morning host; paired with Shawn "Pi" Bolts [ [http://www.fivedollarfreakshow.com Bio of Shawn Bolts ] ] , he continued to unapologetically make many controversial racial comments and jokes including the harassment of one individual, referring to a restaurant in which she was working as a "genetic mutant restaurant" during a February 15, 2006 broadcast. [ [http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=645268&category=REGION&newsdate=12/7/2007 Cruel words have a price - Page 1 - Times Union - Albany NY ] ] . Said individual sued Galaxy Communications, then owners of WRCZ/WBOE, and the lawsuit was settled for $1,000,000 in December 2007. Gach had been released by WBOE in August 2006.

Gach is also credited as being the first person to voice a radio commercial with a profanity, describing Sinus Buster cayenne nasal spray as "the best shit that ever was" for a commercial on Sirius Satellite Radio. [ [http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/9/prweb444486.htm Sirius Airs First Ever Radio Commercial with Profanity ] ]

For most of 2007, Gach hosted his own talk show on Internet radio, paid for by sponsors. It included local advertisements, announcements by nationally-recognized voiceover personality Jim Culter (also known as the voice of ESPN Radio and many other stations), and weather forecasts for the Albany/Schnectady area, even though the show was based (by Gach's own admission) from a home studio in Florida. Like his previous shows, Gach prominently featured his significant other, although Suzie had long since divorced him and this time, he was with his girlfriend Erica. The show was completely uncensored and frequently used language and euphemisms that would not be allowed on traditional radio. The show aired live on weekdays from 2 PM to 4 PM Eastern Time and looped the rest of the time.

In December 2007, Gach's father and aunt both died. Gach decided to pull his show and his Web site offline, at first listing a tribute to his parents and his late aunt, and later only a black screen, with the words "Stay Tuned..." in the center of the screen in yellow lettering. By the end of 2007, the "jrshowonline.com" and "jrgach.com" domains had been taken offline or allowed to expire.

Gach's most recent work is as a commercial voice-over artist.

Gach is an avowed libertarian, supported the campaign of the late Harry Browne in 1996 and most recently supported Ron Paul for President.

JR's old sidekick Pi has since started his own live internet show completely devoid of any advertising called "The Five Dollar Freak Show" and can be heard on Sunday afternoons on the station's Web site, [http://www.fivedollarfreakshow.com/ FiveDollarFreakShow.com] .

References

External links

* [http://www.jrgach.com/ JR's official Web site] (offline)
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20070609213948/http://www.jrshowonline.com/ JR's Web site as seen in June 2007]
* [http://mc1.madcasternetworks.com/caster/496/info.php Selected podcasts]
* [http://www.fivedollarfreakshow.com/ Pi's official Web site]