OT: RIP Mike Clark
I've never really listened to the show, but Mike Clark of Drew and Mike passed away unexpectedly in his sleep. I know that their radio show was a staple in the Detroit Metro area.
https://www.wxyz.com/news/mike-clark-of-the-drew-and-mike-show-dies
October 16th, 2018 at 2:55 PM ^
My guess it was related to his smoking. You could always hear it in his voice. Drew really ran the show and when Mike was on his own, he wasn't as good. Same with Drew. They really worked well together and that's when they shined. Mike had some hilarious shows with Drew and I miss their work. Still remember Drew asking Mike what the weather was and Mike said: "Oh, I don't know, it's dark outside". LoL....Still have their "Oh For God's Sake" CD and listen to it from time to time. Mike was fairly young to pass away.
October 16th, 2018 at 2:55 PM ^
Drew and Mike were a Detroit institution. RIP.
October 16th, 2018 at 4:13 PM ^
Agree - it was low brow humor (for the most part) but I don't know how many hours I spent in the morning listening to them in the 90's and 00's. Life has moved on from that kind of radio (for the most part) but they made the commute entertaining. RIP Throaty Bowie....
October 16th, 2018 at 2:59 PM ^
Hard living. RIP, Mike.
October 16th, 2018 at 3:01 PM ^
*Pours one out*
Cheers, bitch.
October 16th, 2018 at 3:03 PM ^
Ironic that this should happen this week. Mike Clark was a big MSU fan and one of their best bits over the years was Mike Clark's ranting voicemail messages he left on the producer's phone after State lost to Michigan (a regular occurrence up until about a decade ago). What made it funnier was that he really didn't understand sports at all so it was just blind emotion and desperation.
Mike was just a blue-collar guy who somehow found himself as a local celebrity and he could never really believe it. He was funny in the best way, not because he was trying to be, but because he just had a unique and outrageous point of view on things.
October 16th, 2018 at 3:13 PM ^
It faded in the later 2000s, but that was a great show from the mid-90s to mid-2000s. I liked Mike better than Drew: the common every-day guy, whereas Drew would be a bit smug & arrogant.
I was among the people who first heard about 9/11 on WRIF - they did a good job on that stunning day.
October 16th, 2018 at 3:26 PM ^
I listened to these guys for many years. Still recall when it was Drew and Zip, when they both first came in together to Detroit from Phoenix I think it was. Mike was a frequent guest doing skits, such as Bob Boner and Mr. Stress. I think they realized that he was funnier than Zip and they canned him and replaced him with Mike.
"Butt Mike" was awesome. Donut Shop Terrorism ("Belfour blows"). Harris Polls (which led to regular weekly calls to Delbert Harris). Mr Methane (guy farted on command). Cliff Notes Theatre. Stump the Staff. Calling hotels to talk their way into connecting to bother visiting athletes and actors in their rooms. Calling anyone live on air that they think is funny. The list goes on. Never played music except to review an LP, then they’d fast fwd through the CD.
I guess he had too many coffees and Pall Mall cigarettes, to relax. RIP, Mr. Stress
October 16th, 2018 at 4:22 PM ^
Loved Cliff Notes Theater.
Also, travelling Detroit area on 9/11 listening to them. In my little world, they will always be a part of that fateful day. Did as well in retrospect as could be expected.
October 16th, 2018 at 5:03 PM ^
I recall the CNT for Titanic was great.
Drew Blows. RIP BITCH
October 16th, 2018 at 5:44 PM ^
A tape of their 9/11 show is out there on the net (starts at the 2:51:45 mark) --- I listened to it a few months ago. Strangely fascinating to listen to in retrospect.
At 8:45, they were talking about a guy who had just flown around the world. Go to commercial, come back just before 9 AM, the bumper music (because of who they just talked to) was Steve Miller's "Jet Airliner." Oops.
https://drewandmike.org/2017/09/11/september-11-2001-drew-and-mike-show/
October 16th, 2018 at 10:36 PM ^
Great summary. I remember the very first Delbert Harris call ("smashed it") and the Belfour Blows call.
My favorite was the sign off at the end of each show - "bye bye, son of a bitch"
RIP Mike
October 16th, 2018 at 3:27 PM ^
Wow rest in peace Mike I started listening to their show in the mid-90s, they got away with a lot more back then. they always said it was the Janet Jackson thing the basically ruin the show. Does anyone know what he was up to after the show ended?
October 16th, 2018 at 4:05 PM ^
After Drew's sports show failed, I thought did a podcast. I never listened to it though.
October 16th, 2018 at 3:40 PM ^
So much sads.
October 16th, 2018 at 3:46 PM ^
I recently started to listening to the podcast and was hoping Mike would come back. Gone too soon
October 16th, 2018 at 4:06 PM ^
Mike had had some serious vocal cord problems a few years ago and almost completely lost his voice. He had surgery and it slowly got better and he even called in to the podcast occasionally. This sounds like it was sudden so it was likely his heart or a stroke.
The Cliff's Notes Theater bits were great--basically condensed spoofs of popular films. The one they did on Rudy was fantastic and should get a few laughs around here.
https://drewandmike.org/cliff-notes-theater/
October 17th, 2018 at 3:12 PM ^
Thanks for posting this site, I was perusing and noticed they have posted "The Best of Mike Clark Audio".
October 16th, 2018 at 4:02 PM ^
That's too bad. They had some very funny bits over the years. In reading the announcement where it mentions "he's flying high now" references the fact he was a pilot, which he often talked about on the air.
October 16th, 2018 at 4:08 PM ^
I listened to them at their peak roughly 15-20 years ago, but I had heard precious little about what happened after the show was discontinued, possibly because it was around the time I more or less gave up on Detroit sports radio. Very sad news indeed though - their show had some very funny moments that I still recall clearly all this time later.
October 16th, 2018 at 4:26 PM ^
My senior year of high school is when Drew and Zip began on WRIF, and Mike took over for ZIP soon after. I remember listening to them all through college and beyond. They still hold the record for attendance at the Token Lounge for bringing in a guy from England named Mr. Methane; who makes his living farting. They could bring in an audience with anyone in the 90's.
I still catch the Drew and Mike Podcast when I can (even though it's Drew and Marc now).
Thanks for the memories, Mike. You'll be missed.
October 16th, 2018 at 5:14 PM ^
Rip gave me years of entertainment. Sad day in detroit
October 16th, 2018 at 6:08 PM ^
For years, Mike woke me up, got me ready for work, then drove me to work. Same with grad school, being engaged, getting married, having kids...what a bummer.
October 16th, 2018 at 7:17 PM ^
“Sometimes...you just gotta KNOCK IT DOWN!!”
October 16th, 2018 at 9:02 PM ^
I listened to Bob and Tom then Drew and Mike.
October 16th, 2018 at 9:21 PM ^
I listen to podcasts now (mostly Fantasy Footballers and Joe Rogan), but Drew and Mike were the the first real "talk radio" guys I listened to. They weren't as good as what's available now, but they were the best Detroit had to offer at the time.
October 16th, 2018 at 10:18 PM ^
I started listening to them around 1995 and then on through until they went off about 5 years ago, it was always so entertaining. RIP.