| Gary Dell'Abate | |
|---|---|
| Born | Gary Patrick Angelo Dell'Abate March 14, 1961 Uniondale, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Radio producer |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse | Mary Dell'Abate |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | |
| www.bababooey.com | |
Gary Patrick Angelo Dell'Abate (born March 14, 1961), also known as "Baba Booey", is an American radio producer, known for being the executive producer of The Howard Stern Show. His autobiography, They Call Me Baba Booey, was released on November 2, 2010.[1]
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Dell'Abate was born in Uniondale, New York, on Long Island. He comes from a large Italian-American family. His father, Sal Dell'Abate, was an ice cream salesman. He attended Adelphi University, receiving the Richard F. Clemo Award at the end of his senior year,[2] where he interned at several radio stations. While interning with Roz Frank, a traffic reporter on WNBC, he came into contact with Howard Stern.
Dell'Abate has worked on The Howard Stern Show since September 4, 1984: originally on 66 WNBC, then syndicated through K-Rock in New York City, and later broadcast on Sirius XM Radio.
Previously nicknamed "Boy Gary" (Howard called his college roommate Dr. Lew Weinstein "boy" when giving an order; preceded by "Boy" Lee Davis at WNBC), Dell'Abate's "Baba Booey" moniker originated on The Howard Stern Show on July 26, 1990, after telling a story of his prized collection of animation cels. In the course of discussing a Quick Draw McGraw cel he might purchase, he misstated the name of McGraw's sidekick Baba Looey as Baba Booey. As is typical of the show, the rest of the cast "goofed" on his mistake, becoming especially merciless since he was mulling the purchase of a cel of a character without even knowing the character's correct name. Dell'Abate said something to the effect that they would forget the name by the next day, yet it has remained to this day. Eventually he named his autobiography They Call Me Baba Booey.[3]
"Baba Booey" as a term has become a mantra for fans of The Howard Stern Show and is often used during crank calls to live network television or radio broadcasts. For example, a call made to ABC News during the low-speed police chase of O. J. Simpson's Ford Bronco through the streets of Brentwood, Los Angeles, California, signed off with "And Baba Booey to y'all!" Sportscaster Al Michaels explained to anchor Peter Jennings the significance of that phrase.[4]
Dell'Abate has two sons.[5]
After Dell'Abate's brother, Steven, died of AIDS in January 1991, Dell'Abate became a supporter of LIFEbeat The Music Industry Fights AIDS[6] and serves on the charity's Board of Directors. Dell'Abate has had struggles with his weight, and is known for yo-yo dieting.
He was featured in the May 2007 issue of Sound and Vision magazine where his home theater was profiled. In the article, he revealed that his favorite album is Aja by Steely Dan.[7]
Dell'Abate is an avid New York Mets fan, and, on May 9, 2009 he threw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Mets game. His effort resulted in a toss that almost hit the umpire, who was standing about four feet up the third-base line. This pitch was widely mocked not only on The Howard Stern Show but also on various television programs and news publications.[8][9][10][11]
On Monday, March 14, 2011, Dell'Abate was elected to the Greenwich, CT Board of Parks and Recreation on a 119-64 vote margin. [12]
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