Radio personality Crackhead Bob, whose love of Howard Stern landed him recurring appearances on the shock jock’s show, has died. He was 56.
Born George Harvey, Crackhead Bob was first noticed by the Howard Stern staff in the mid ’90s.
“He was always first on line at any of the signings,” Stern said in 2007.
The Howard Stern Show posted a heartfelt retrospective Monday about Bob’s time on the show, but did not reveal his cause of death.
A distinctive speech impediment endeared Stern’s audience to the fan-turned-guest who became a recurring feature from 1995 to 2001.
He explained that his appearance and speech were altered by years of smoking crack, which spurred a series of strokes that left part of his body paralyzed, the show said.
He earned his on-air nickname partly because of his past drug use — and because of his speech impediment that left him unable to say his birth name.
That history of drug abuse affected his time with Stern, forcing him to take multiple breaks from the show because he found himself “surrounded” by drugs and alcohol at many paid appearances, the show said.
