Rating: 
Summary: And Baba-Booey to y'all...
Review: People can put him down left and right about this book (as well as countless other things), but I have yet to encounter another novel that is as funny and entertaining as Howard Stern's "Miss America". With this literary effort, Stern manages to top his earlier work, "Private Parts". I feel that Stern should have adapted THIS book into a movie, rather than his first one. But, what can you do? My favorite chapter is Stern's morning radio takeover of the Philadelphia market, his first foray into national syndication. I've found his story of the taking down- and humiliation of- the "Zookeeper" John DeBella, Philly's top morning man, to be the novel's zenith. Also recalled are the antics of Captain Janks, the first Stern-fan phony phone caller, whose first phone attacks were against DeBella. Most of the time when I pick this book up, I read just this one chapter over and over again, and rarely looking at the rest. Another chapter I like to peruse repeatedly is "News Stories of the Century". None of them had much coverage, nor were they particularly ground-shaking moments. In fact, until you read the chapter, you've likely never heard about these events before. The top story has to do with a woman who found some, um, extra toppings in her sloppy joe sandwich. But my personal fave is about "Uncle" Ed, a rather disturbed elderly "gentleman" whose little fetishes were some of the sickest sexual perversions I've ever read about. I can't really describe it any further... you'll have to read it to believe it. But I'm not saying I don't enjoy other parts of this literary find. Stern's secret "meeting" with Michael Jackson, as well as his battle with obsessive-compulsive disorder were also interesting additions to this tome. This is mainly because until this book came out, he never discussed either of these things on the air. Just when I thought he told me everything about him, Stern still surprises me. The hardcover edition includes color pages in the center of the novel. One segment, "Rejected Book Covers", displayed some examples of what Stern wanted to name his second work, but was turned down by the publisher. My favorite cover is "Mein Kampf", featuring a photo of Stern (sporting his goofiest facial expression ever) saluting Hitler. Also shown in the color insert is a four-page comic book adaptation of the opening to "Fartman", the King of All Media's first attempt at a movie. It never got produced because of merchandising disagreements. Sigh... what could have been... Stern also devotes a chapter to his radio comrades. Not one to sugar-coat anything, he lets you know the things he likes and dislikes about each person, as well as how he met each one. He also considers each one to be an invaluable contributor to the show's success. One particular character, the infamous Stern show hit-and-run interviewer "Stuttering John" Melendez, has an entire chapter devoted to him and some of his most memorable celebrity interviews. But, there are many more chapters, many more stories, each one entertaining in its own way. Howard's cybersex chats, his riff on the Kennedys and stuck-up celebrities, his campaign for governor of New York, his favorite phony phone callers... there's so much more to see. Take a look! 'Late...
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