Howard Stern, The Early Years

Howard Allan Stern was born in New York City on January 12, 1954. He first became interested in radio broadcasting as a child, when he would accompany his father Ben to work at a radio station.

Stern graduated from Boston University, where he worked at the college radio station. After graduation, he worked as a DJ for radio stations in Westchester, NY; Detroit, MI; and Washington, DC.

Stern married Alison, his college sweetheart, in 1978. They have three daughters together.

Howard Stern Invades New York

In 1982, Howard Stern returned to New York to DJ for WNBC-AM. Also working at NBC was David Letterman, who became a Stern fan and invited him to guest on Late Night With David Letterman.

Stern and his crew were fired from NBC in 1985, after causing an uproar with a comedy sketch called "Bestiality Dial-A-Date.? He moved to local rival FM station WXRK in 1985, soon landing in his now-legendary morning drive time slot.

Howard Stern Hits the Big Time

Stern's show was syndicated nationwide, starting in 1986, by Infinity Broadcasting. Howard Stern became a national phenomenon ? reaching #1 in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and other major markets.

In 1992, Stern first became a target of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The FCC fined Infinity Broadcasting $600,000 after Stern discussed masturbating to a picture of Aunt Jemima.

Howard Stern, King of All Media

Stern published his autobiography Private Parts in 1993, followed by the 1995 book Miss America.

In 1994, he ran for Governor of New York on the Libertarian Party ticket. He later withdrew from the race, refusing to comply with the financial disclosure requirements for candidates.

Stern played himself in a feature film version of Private Parts in 1998. The movie did moderately well, earning over $60 million.

Howard Stern's New Girlfriend

Stern was famous for his schtick about staying faithful to his wife, despite his much-detailed attraction to the strippers and porn stars who appeared on his show. But in October of 1999, Stern announced that he and Alison were divorcing.

Stern cited his workaholism as the cause of the split. Alison received a large divorce settlement and remarried in 2001. Stern started dating model Beth Ostrosky, who is 19 years his junior, in 2000.

Howard Stern Makes A Move To Satellite

In 2004, Stern was suspended from six markets because of alleged indecency involving a show featuring Rick Salomon of Paris Hilton sex tape fame. The move was considered to be part of the backlash triggered by the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy.

In October of 2004, Stern announced that he had signed a $500 million deal with the Sirius satellite radio. The deal, which takes effect on January 1, 2006, would enable Stern to broadcast his show without FCC restrictions.