RICK "GILLY" GILMOUR - RIP

I received a voice message from Mark Buddah telling me that Gilly has passed away this early morning
(May 12 2010). Another call from Ray Car came shortly after. Hosts and staff are mentioning him on WTAM and have some stuff on their website. He was 48 and found out he had cancer less than a year ago.
For those who don't know, he was a frequent caller, than constant guest to WCSB in the 80's. He would appear on Mike Kole's and Steve Wainstead's programs so frequently many listeners thought he was a member. From the mid to late 90's he would appear on the 669 show as well as host other programs he brokered on the AM band on WERE.
He was kicked off of WERE for reading Alan Ginsberg's "Howl" uncensored when a listener complained. I believe this made the national news. In 1997 he was hired on at WTAM replacing Morton Downey Jr's than recently vacated slot. He went though ups and downs enjoying a national audience and marriage. Later a radio war with 669 , a less than nice divorce and losing Gary Schwartz a WCSB alum and his producer (who he claimed was his best friend) in 2001. He broadcast on WTAM until 2004 and was replaced by Art McCoy.
During this post WTAM period he reestablished his presence on the WCSB late night talk shows with a vengeance expressing his opinions about his time as a professional, behind the scenes stuff and anything else he was interested in speaking about whether or not it was on topic. He would usually call in after nights spent at local bars.
Last May he invited people to his house for his birthday celebration. I attended with Keith N. marking the first time I'd seen him in person in ten years. A lot of reminiscing and radio chat ensued through the cigar smoke. He was sitting most of the time and a little off balance which raised slight concern amongst those there.
Some weeks later it was quietly revealed he found out the reason for his declining condition. He didn't want most folks to know. Rick sought treatment and was told he had less than 6 months and still had a semi positive attitude despite the grim news. He was the same Gilly as most knew him when visited this January at a Rocky River nursing home and still going out for smoke breaks. Unfortunately , a month and half later it was evident that his condition had worsened. Despite how some felt about him in the 2000's his place in WCSB history is ensured. RIP GILLY - Dricore

Comments by others are welcome.

Well said, Dricore. When I first started listening to college radio, Gilly was a constant force of originality and entertainment. Perhaps more then any other caller of that time period. It is not a coincidence that more then one late night talk show picked him up as a semi-permanent guest/co-host. As well as being a regular caller on Wainstead All Night, Gilly made frequent appearances on Mitch Greenberg's Under the Influence, Jimmy Wilson's The Day Crack Came to My Street and Gary Schwartz's Virtual Radio and Metal Machine Music shows. He knew a ton of useful and useless information. He hosted Beer Talk as well as Car Talk. He was blessed with extremely quick wit and very good timing. It's a damn shame he couldn't go further in professional radio. He did have other offers out of Cleveland but could not take them because he was taking care of his sick father at the time. His post-WTAM years were consumed with Ginsburg and Hunter S. Thompson inspired writing. He wrote an awful lot and I hope to be able to post some of it online soon. For the record Art McCoy did not replace Gilly. Station management had differences with Rick when he began speaking out about the idiocy of the US being involved in Iraq. WTAM fired Rick after slowly reducing his hours in hopes that he would quit. He was actually fired by "pig vomit", the same guy that fired Howard Stern back in the day. Art McCoy eventually began doing Rick's time slot without any compensation. He's not worth any. His show is terrible.

I'll always remember all of the Fred Voice-Over clips from Wainstead All Night and one late night when, Gilly set down his phone while he was on hold so that he could have sex with his girl friend, only to have his call picked up and his entire love-making session broadcast live on Under the Influence. That was some good radio. I think I have that on tape somewhere. I'm going to have to start looking for it.

I became pretty close to Gilly over the years and I miss him a lot. I hope wherever he is, that the beer is cold and that someone else is buying.

Oh, and if you're going to drink and drive on the way to heaven, stay the hell out of Gilly's lane!

I was also at the birthday party (sadly, I left before Dricore arrived), and I kept in touch with Gilly on the phone while he was living at the nursing home. Although he was very open about his condition, it seems that he was downplaying it as much as he could. He was very brave throughout the process. Rick wasn't perfect, but he was my friend, and I'll miss him a lot.

P.S. Due to working overnight most of last week, I missed 669, Dr. Sinister and Crap over the weekend. Did anyone discuss Gilly on those shows? Does anyone have copies of them?

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"This is No Money Mark. Why are you listening to WCSB Cleveland?"

My show was 100% about Gilly. Send me a PM with an address for you and I'll mail you a copy. Ray Carr, Steve Z., and Pottsy joined me in studio and we received a lot of calls from a lot of people that wanted to express their thoughts. Oh, and Art McCoy still sucks.

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