Cryin' Bryan Dern

Cryin' Bryan Dern is a shock jock at radio station Odyssey 105. He has no qualms about offending anyone within reach of his microphone. His comedy leans on cruelty - he secretly records people, then splices the tape to make them say whatever gets a laugh. He chases ratings with stunts, from locking himself in the studio rather than play polka to inventing on-air complaints with his intern PJ. Local figures are frequent targets, among them Bart Rathbone and Mayor Tom Riley, whose recall he demands over the airwaves. A professed atheist, he spars publicly with John Whittaker, who treats him as a walking lesson in who not to become. Young broadcasters like Jimmy Barclay learn plenty from Dern - mostly by doing the opposite of what he teaches.