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Warner Wolf Sues WABC-AM/Cumulus for age discrimination

Y2kTheNewOldies

Y2kTheNewOldies

https://nypost.com/2018/02/15/warne...medium=site buttons&utm_campaign=site buttons


Wolf is suing WABC-AM management for allegations of emotional distress and age discrimination misconduct and over his removal in 2016. Note Don Imus is also included in the lawsuit along with Cumulus New York management.

For a retirement present, one New York broadcast legend has filed a lawsuit against another.

Warner Wolf is taking Don Imus and three others to the New York State Supreme Court, alleging Wolf was let go from WABC’s “Imus in the Morning” show at the end of 2016 because of age discrimination and is owed severance, as well as damages for “severe mental anguish, emotional distress, humiliation,” among other maladies.

Imus is scheduled to retire from his show at the end of March. He regularly makes fun of everything and everybody.

In the suit, Imus is the first one named as a defendant, along with WABC GM Chad Lopez, Cumulus senior VP Mike McVay and WABC program director Craig Schwalb. The claim was filed late Thursday morning, and a copy was obtained by The Post.

Wolf’s lawyer, Douglas H. Wigdor, writes, “Imus routinely made inappropriate comments about the Plaintiff’s age, including stating that it was ‘time to put [Mr. Wolf] out to pasture’ and ‘shoot him with an elephant dart gun.’”

In 2016, the suit says, Imus replaced Wolf, then 78, because of his age and hired Sid Rosenberg, who was 30 years younger. Wolf claims that Cumulus refused to honor severance for 26 weeks of pay, amounting to $97,500. There seems to be a disagreement between the two parties on whether a deal had been officially consummated.
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RadioPatrol said:
https://nypost.com/2018/02/15/warne...medium=site buttons&utm_campaign=site buttons


Wolf is suing WABC-AM management for allegations of emotional distress and age discrimination misconduct and over his removal in 2016. Note Don Imus is also included in the lawsuit along with Cumulus New York management.
Click to expand...

Gee, I hope he lives long enough to see the resolution of this lawsuit. At his advanced age, it better be settled pretty darn quick. [Tongue planted firmly in cheek. Hope I don't get added to the lawsuit. :p]
 
Ran into radio-related age discrimination twice.

Us three guys from Long Island, two of whom were looking for radio work, decided to drive to Florida to find our fortunes. A motel owner in Clearwater and his wife saw us unpacking and throwing around a football in the parking lot before registering. One guy looked like a Hell's Angels bodyguard, one looked like Goldfinger, and well, the skinny long-haired kid was me, age 20.
I don't know which apparition affected the motel owner's decision most. We were told that the establishment considered us undesirable. We shrugged and took off for another place.

The last station where I worked (gainfully F/T employed) seemed to have some sort of alert system when employees approached age 40. I was one. The overnight gal DJ was another. The news director was a third. Within a year, all of us were let go. I'm guessing the slashes had something to do with medical insurance coverage and/or employees who were in a family way.
Either which way, the three of us just shrugged. Okay. Bye.
We all found other jobs in top ten markets rather quickly.

I've always enjoyed Warner Wolf, with that lopsided Ted Kennedy face on the TV screen. But I doubt he has a cleat to stand on vis-a-vis the age thing. That's probably attorney-generated smoke, along with the mental stress stuff. This is all about his severance pay. It would be nice having something like an extra $90,000 in your bank account well into your Seventies.
 
RadioPatrol said:
Wolf is suing WABC-AM management for allegations of emotional distress and age discrimination misconduct and over his removal in 2016. Note Don Imus is also included in the lawsuit along with Cumulus New York management.
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Imus had said previously that he, not WABC, paid other personalities on his show. Since Imus had the right to hire and fire, plus he was the one who did the abuse, I'd expect a judge would remove the station from the suit.
 
In 2016, the suit says, Imus replaced Wolf, then 78, because of his age and hired Sid Rosenberg, who was 30 years younger. Wolf claims that Cumulus refused to honor severance for 26 weeks of pay, amounting to $97,500. There seems to be a disagreement between the two parties on whether a deal had been officially consummated.
Click to expand...
So he was making 6 figures to be a sports reporter.
Not a bad gig.

Wasn't Imus the one who revived this guys career ?
 
https://www.showbiz411.com/2019/03/...scrimination-case-against-radio-host-don-imus

Apparently an appeal is being reported

Famed sportscaster Warner Wolf has lost his appeal of age discrimination against Don Imus in the Appelate Division of New York. Wolf will not want to “go to the video tape” once he get this ruling.

Last year Wolf sued Imus after the radio host refused to give him a new contract after Wold moved to Florida. Imus also made nasty comments about Wolf on the air. Imus lives in Texas, where his radio show may still be coming from. (No, it’s not. Imus went off the air a year ago.)
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