Longtime Boston radio host Fred Toucher has come under fire once again, this time for taunting Bill Walton a day after the NBA legend lost his battle with cancer.
Toucher has been a host on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s morning show in Boston since the station launched in 2009. He has been no stranger to controversy over the years, which has produced great ratings while also creating plenty of uncomfortable moments for his bosses. We saw another example of that on Tuesday.
The NBA announced on Monday that Walton has died at the age of 71 after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. During Tuesday’s edition of “Toucher and Hardy,” a caller suggested that the show play the clip of the time Toucher hung up on Walton when Walton called into the show as a guest after the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals.
Rob “Hardy” Poole, Toucher’s co-host, said it was probably inappropriate to play the clip the day after Walton died. Toucher disagreed and began mocking Walton for being a “phony hippie” before telling the show’s producer to play the clip. You can hear the exchange.
“I don’t know, why not? It happened,” Toucher said of the clip. “He called in and was acting a fool about his son on the Lakers and (saying), ‘Oh you know, first of all you gotta buy a Jeep Wrangler.’ While he was selling cars … like, make up your mind ya phony hippie. Are you really selling cars or are you all about peace and love? … Just go ahead. He’s dead. I didn’t kill him. Go ahead, play it.”
You can hear the exchange:
Boston sports radio host Fred Toucher offers the worst Bill Walton eulogy after a caller asked him to pay tribute with the clip of Toucher hanging up on him.
"Just go ahead; he’s dead. I didn’t kill him.”
He also referred to Walton as a "phony hippie." pic.twitter.com/4j30WXqPf7
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 28, 2024
Those who have listened to Toucher over the past 15 years were not surprised. He thrives in a “shock jock” role and loves pushing the envelope. He has also been open about his struggles with alcohol addiction and had some bizarre on-air rants that sparked concern among fans.
It was certainly entertaining when Toucher hung up on Walton, who is a Celtics legend. Toucher said at the time that 98.5 The Sports Hub listeners did not want to hear Walton gushing about the Lakers and his son Luke Walton, who was a member of the team. The question is whether it was appropriate for Toucher to rag on Walton a day after Walton’s death. Plenty of people feel it was not.
