Chris Russo
Chris Russo was born in Syosset, New York, United States on October 18th, 1959 and is the Radio Host. At the age of 64, Chris Russo biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 64 years old, Chris Russo has this physical status:
Russo joined WFAN in December 1988 as an overnight, weekend, and fill-in host. Former WFAN Morning Show Host Don Imus brought Russo on board the Imus in the Morning show as the sports reporter. Imus also later helped promote Russo's nickname. By early 1989, his work on Imus led to Russo getting his own regular weekend show on Saturday Mornings. When Pete Franklin's drive time Show from 3 pm to 7 pm was not renewed by WFAN station management, WFAN paired up Russo with Mike Francesa, who at the time was a co-host on the mid-morning show. The show was dubbed Mike and the Mad Dog and officially launched on September 5, 1989, at 3 PM Eastern Time.
On August 14, 2008, Russo reached a mutual agreement with WFAN to release him out of the remainder of his contract. Russo insisted it was solely a personal decision and said, "This has nothing to do with Mike and I hating each other... This is about doing something different. I'm 48 years old and there are not going to be too many more opportunities to break away. It's time to try something else, but it was a tough decision to make." On August 15, 2008, Russo phoned Francesa on the show to say an emotional goodbye.
On October 16, 2009, Russo joined Francesa for a one-hour reunion show at Yankee Stadium, where both were scheduled to broadcast in adjacent booths. Francesa joined Russo on his Sirius XM show later in the day.
On March 30, 2016, Russo joined Francesa for a Mike and the Mad Dog reunion at Radio City Music Hall.
On August 19, 2008, Russo signed a five-year contract with Sirius XM Radio to headline a new sports talk channel called Mad Dog Radio on both Sirius and XM satellite radio. Russo hosts the channel's anchor program, Mad Dog Unleashed, live from Sirius's New York studios every weekday afternoon. Russo brought aboard long-time WINS anchor Steve Torre as the new program director of "Mad Dog Radio" and hired Bill Zimmerman (known on the air as "Billy Z") as the executive producer of his show. The show began airing daily on Sirius Channel 123 and XM Channel 144 on September 15, 2008. The show now airs on Sirius and XM Channel 82.
Russo said there was nothing WFAN could have done to keep him, after Sirius XM provided him his own channel, hosting American sports talk personalities. Russo's 5-year deal was worth approximately $3 million per year and Russo operates the channel himself, and hires the on-air staff.
On July 9, 2009, Russo reacted to his station being ranked outside the Top 100 stations on satellite radio by berating his entire staff, which included bringing on nighttime host Andy Gresh for an in-person dress-down. Russo concluded by firing his program director, Steve Torre. Torre was later re-hired and it is unknown if the incident was legitimate or a radio skit. On August 28, 2013, Russo announced that he had been signed by Sirius XM for three more years, commencing in September 2013.
Russo's Sirius XM deal also included daily hosting of an MLB Network TV show, High Heat, which began on March 31, 2014 (and was simulcast on MLB Network Radio). He signed a new three-year contract, in September 2016. Russo renewed his contract for four more years, in April 2019. On February 15, 2021, Russo announced that the show's producer Bruce Schein, who appeared daily on-air, had been let go by MLB Network.