Gambling on himself: Limbaugh followed instincts

On March 11, 1987, the Southeast Missourian printed a story in which Rush Limbaugh explained his business secrets. This was after he achieved success in California but before he hit it big nationally.

Limbaugh enjoys life at top in controversial radio show

Early in his life, Rush "Rusty" Limbaugh III rebelled against doing what was expected of him.

He rebelled against his well-known Cape Girardeau family's expectations of going to law school "or-for-heaven's-sake-just-finish-college."

Now, a grown man, Limbaugh is still rebelling against doing what is expected. The result, much to his own surprise, has been one of the most successful radio shows in the nation.

In this Jan. 1, 2010, file photo, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh speaks during a news conference at The Queen's Medical Center in Honolulu.Associated Press

His show, which airs on KFBK in Sacramento, California, not only has people talking -- it has people yelling. It has people phoning his station trying to get him fired.

And Limbaugh couldn't be happier.

"I really don't think I'm as outrageous as everybody thinks I am," says Limbaugh, though he'd never admit it publicly.

He says his show is based on his own philosophy about media.

And that philosophy is that people don't want to be educated, they want to be entertained.

Rush Limbaugh speaks June 2, 1989 at Houck Stadium at Cape Girardeau Central High School's commencement.Southeast Missourian

"EVEN IF IT'S NEWS, people want to have it presented in an entertaining way," said Limbaugh in a recent telephone interview with the Southeast Missourian.

Limbaugh listened to a lot of talk shows over the years, and he consistently found one thing wrong with them -- the hosts are too dependent on their guests for providing the show's entertainment.

"The great rule of talk shows is that you have to have guests and you have to interview them. But I think that's boring. I don't feel comfortable or trusting in that. If you get a bad guest, you're stuck with him for at least an hour. The worst that can happen in radio is for people to tune out. I don't want to take that chance," says Limbaugh.

Instead, he'd rather gamble on himself. And that's what he does every week day from 9 a.m. to noon.

"IT'S JUST ME AND THE PHONES and total spontaneity," says Limbaugh enthusiastically. "Every call is a new excitement."

But callers who phone into Limbaugh's show can't expect that they will be treated with courtesy or even respect for their ideas.

"I see myself as a benevolent dictator," explains Limbaugh. "Nobody has any rights on my show but me. Nobody has the right to be dull and boring and ruin my show."

Limbaugh calls his show "issue-oriented." Critics call him shallow and a stoolie for the Republican Party.

"Really, my purpose isn't to get people mad," says Limbaugh, "Even though that happens. The way I figure it, whatever I say, at least half the people are going to disagree with my anyway. I figure I might as well say what I think."

But even Limbaugh admits that he doesn't say exactly what he thinks.

"I guess I put my tongue in my cheek a lot, to get a response," agrees Limbaugh.

But Limbaugh says he's careful not to make the same mistake that other call-in show hosts have made.

"A LOT OF TALK SHOW HOSTS become phone dependent. They judge the number of people listening by how many calls they get, and they start gearing their show to the caller instead of the listener," said Limbaugh.

But Limbaugh says the problem with that is that statistically only about 1.5% of the audience is actually going to call in.

"I have 48,000 people listening, but a maximum of 30 calls in three hours. The lesson to be learned is to be clear... your empathy has to be with the listeners, not the callers. You can't pander to people just to get them to call you," says Limbaugh.

The Cape Girardeau native began his show in Sacramento two years ago, but he notes that it's been in the last year and a half that it has "really snowballed."

"The first year and a half was a time of people getting used to me," says Limbaugh, noting that meant even his own employer getting used to him.

As it so happens, KFBK radio is owned by the same people that own the Sacramento Bee newspaper, which Limbaugh describes as being very much affiliated with the Democratic party.

NOT A LIKELY FORUM FOR his very Republican political views.

"But the truth is Democrats like money as much as anybody," says Limbaugh. "The show is making money, so (they've) been very fair and open-minded with me."

In radio lingo, Limbaugh's show is rated number one with a 10 share in the adult audience of 18 and over. There are 28 radio stations in his market.

"The closest thing to me is an easy listening station," says Limbaugh, noting he's not quite sure of the ramifications of that fact.

For the radio station, the success of Limbaugh's show has meant that its advertising rates during his time slot have jumped from $40 to $100 per minute.

For Limbaugh, he admits the experience of being number one is both thrilling and scary.

"This has been the greatest opportunity for me. This is the first time I've ever done a show like this, though this is what I always wanted to do," says Limbaugh.

That's not to say he's new at radio.

As a matter of fact he started in radio in Cape Girardeau as a teenager at KGMO-AM. His dad was part owner of the station. From Cape he went on to Pittsburgh, and he's been at several major markets since.

"BUT I GOT TIRED OF BEING A DISC JOCKEY in about 1975. I finally quit radio and went to work with the Kansas City Royals in publicity," recalls Limbaugh.

While in Kansas City, Sacramento's KFBK approached him about heading west and starting a radio show.

Limbaugh says he didn't really have a specific blueprint in his head for the show he wanted to develop, but he had some pretty strong ideas about what he wanted.

"I had a lot of political battles to fight. I had to resist a lot of efforts of those who wanted to get guests on my show. But I always knew the type of personality I wanted to be and this show finally gave me the opportunity to try it," says Limbaugh.

But where does the "radio personality" end and the real Rush Limbaugh begin?

"I hope the public never finds out. That's part of the mystique of radio. It's the theater of the mind. I want people to always be guessing and wondering. The truth is the line between the personality and me is a fine line. I have a performer's ego. That's why I wasn't really a good PR person. PR people stay behind the scenes and make other people look good. I always wanted to make myself look good. To do that, you have to act a little," Limbaugh theorizes.

"SOMETIMES I DO MAKE MISTAKES or go too far. It's instinctive. Mostly I try to make sure I don't go over too many people's heads. I do a lot of tongue in cheek things, and most people get it and think it's funny. The others get mad and call in to the show and entertain the rest of us. There are always neighborhood groups popping up trying to get me fired," he laughed.

To keep control over his show, Limbaugh has calls screened before putting them on the air. But he admits screening isn't always effective.

"Sometimes people will tell downright lies to get on the show. That can make it even more fun once you get them on the spot," he says mischievously.

Being number one isn't all fun, though.

"Being number one is a lot of pressure. Every morning when I wake up I wish I could call in sick. It just lasts for a fleeting second, but I don't want to go in. Luckily right now I've got a lot of self-confidence, and confidence can get you past anything. But for the first time in my life I'm number one. Getting to be number one isn't nearly as difficult as staying there," says Limbaugh.

He says he lives with a lot of self-pressure to keep the show fresh.

"YOU LIVE AT THE TOP for a couple of years normally. And when you slip, you've lost it. The trick will be staying on top," said Limbaugh a bit nervously.

Looking back on his life, though, Limbaugh says it's interesting how everything in a person's life can bring him to a specific point.

"If my father hadn't owned a real small portion of KGMO, things might have turned out differently. If I hadn't despised school so much, things might have turned out differently. My father enabled me to learn the radio business and get my own radio show back then. That was luck. I fell into it," recalls Limbaugh.

But he notes his family had certainly never anticipated that what they saw as just a distraction for their son would ever become his career.

"My parents felt I would eventually grow tired of radio. They never really put any pressure on me to go to law school, but there was a lot of pressure for me to get some sort of a degree. They felt I couldn't provide for myself without a degree. I thought I knew everything and didn't need college," says Limbaugh, still convinced that he was right.

HE TRIED COLLEGE THOUGH, to please his parents, but "got F's."

His life was not without education, though.

"I really consider the greatest education I ever got was from my dad. I never told him that. But I really think I learned more just from the times that we would sit down and talk and argue than I did in any other way," says Limbaugh. He feels for certain that the political discussions he heard around the dinner table while growing up have had a definite impact on his radio career and on his present show.

"I'm basically doing the same thing we did at the dinner table. Throwing ideas out, talking about them, arguing about them. It's maybe just not quite as civilized," says Limbaugh.

What would his family think of his show?

"I think politically, they would agree with it. But they would have a problem with the way people are treated on the show. If this show were on the air in Cape Girardeau, there would be outrage in the community. There's outrage here, too, but I don't think it's nearly as pronounced as it would be in the Midwest," says Limbaugh.

LIMBAUGH IS ALSO EXPANDING his media horizons. He's now writing a weekly newspaper column, and is doing a television show on which he and liberals debate issues.

He says he would like to do a television version of his radio show.

"I think it would be great, doing a show with a live audience and the telephone. It's something that hasn't been done," says Limbaugh, adding that he would also like to see himself with a national show in the next three to five years.

"But that would just about take a network contract, and I don't know if the networks are ready for a show like this yet," observed Limbaugh.

Still, he says, he thinks a network contract is possible.

"Really my show is no more outrageous than David Letterman. It's controversial, but real humor comes from controversy. I'm convinced I could do it," concludes Limbaugh.