Neal Boortz

Early life and education Boortz was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, his mother's home. His father, Neal Adolph Boortz Sr., was a Marine Corps pilot, who served in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War. Describing himself as a "military brat", Boortz lived in many locations throughout the country (including the small community of Thrall, Texas). He spent his first two years of high school at Tustin Union High School in Tustin, California. The family then moved to Florida. Boortz graduated from Pensacola High School, in 1963. He attended Texas A&M University, but did not graduate. Boortz later attended John Marshall Law School, in Atlanta, Georgia, graduating in 1977 and passing the Georgia bar. == Careers ==

Law school and radio in 2008 Rally in February 2008 Boortz began his radio career in College Station, Texas, in the 1960s at WTAW, under the name of Randy Neal, while attending Texas A&M University. In 1967, after leaving Texas, Boortz moved to Atlanta and landed a sales job. For two years, he worked at Rich's Department Store, where he sold jewelry and carpeting. He later recollected that one of his customers was Martin Luther King Jr. During that time, Boortz was an avid listener of AM 680 WRNG (now WCNN). The station called itself "Ring Radio", as in the ring of a telephone. It was Atlanta's first talk radio station. Boortz listened to morning talk-show host, Herb Elfman, and soon became a devotee. "Boortz bombarded Elfman with calls, reading him little scripts he'd scribbled." While watching the news one evening, he heard that Elfman had committed suicide. The next morning, Boortz showed up at the front door of WRNG and announced that he was ready to take Elfman's place. Though the management told him, "they were going to search for a 'qualified' host to take his place," Boortz was offered the role of temporary two-week replacement. In the interim, the evening host was moved to mornings and Boortz hosted the evening time slot. Two weeks later, Boortz was moved to the morning show, embarking on an Atlanta talk radio career that spanned more than 40 years. In 1999, his show became nationally syndicated through WSB's owner Cox Radio. The show continued to be based in Atlanta. The Neal Boortz Show featured Boortz, producers Belinda Skelton and Royal Marshall, interviews, and callers. On the air and on his website, Boortz admonished his listeners to take no heed nor place any credence in anything he said, presenting himself as merely an "entertainer." In 2007, Boortz and his radio show were awarded "Best Radio On-Air Personality" and "Best Radio Program, Any Type" by The Georgia Association of Broadcasters. He was also a recipient of the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame 2007 Career Achievement Award. The Neal Boortz Show originated from the nation's ninth largest radio market and was ranked the sixth overall most listened to radio program in the country. In 2008, Boortz was a finalist for the National Association of Broadcasters "Marconi Award" as the nation's best syndicated radio personality. (The award went to Glenn Beck). Boortz was inducted in the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2009. Boortz retired from full-time radio work in 2013. Author Boortz's first foray into authorship was in 1997 with The Commencement Speech You Need To Hear, in which he delivers his opinions on various topics in the form of a commencement speech he would give to new college graduates, if ever invited to do so. The hardcover version held the number-one nonfiction spot on The New York Times bestseller list for the last two weeks of August 2005, and remained in the top 10 for seven weeks. The paperback released in May 2006 contains additional information, an afterword, and several revisions of misstatements made in the hardcover edition. It also spent several weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. His fourth book, ''Somebody's Gotta Say It, was released on February 20, 2007, and debuted at number two on The New York Times'' bestseller list, second only to Barack Obama's Audacity of Hope. He occasionally writes columns on the Internet news/commentary site Townhall.com and other online magazines. His 2008 book, FairTax: The Truth, attempts to answer the critics of the Fair Tax proposal and claims to correct some of its myths and misrepresentations. It achieved number four on The New York Times bestseller list for the week of March 2, 2008, for paperback nonfiction. After Boortz retired from talk radio on January 21, 2013, Maybe I Should Just Shut Up and Go Away! was published in hardcover by Carpenter's Son Publishing in Franklin, Tennessee. Retirement After Boortz retired from full-time radio work in 2013, he hosted commentaries for WSB for six more years, until they were discontinued by the station. == Political beliefs ==

Boortz is a self-described libertarian. He advocates a complete overhaul of the U.S. tax system and the release of all nonviolent drug offenders who are currently in prison. He has supported Republican candidates and Republican tax policy, though he occasionally clashes with Republicans on social issues. Boortz disagrees with the Libertarian Party platform on several key issues, including his firm support of the war in Iraq, He sides with liberals on some social issues, such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and civil liberties. Prior to the 2006 midterm elections, Boortz opined that perhaps it would be a good thing to have the Republicans lose power in Congress, forcing them to wake up and stop taking their base for granted. Boortz told one disgruntled caller: I am happy about it [the defeat]. It's the only way to get these Republicans to wake themselves up and say, 'You have abandoned what you were put in office for.' Boortz creates controversy among conservatives for his support of abortion rights (on which Boortz does not allow calls), for his refusal to condemn homosexuality or gay marriage, and for his negative comments regarding Baptists and the biblical story of creation. Although he calls himself a Christian, he keeps his religious views private. == The Neal Boortz Show ==

The Neal Boortz Show was a nationally syndicated talk show, which ended in January 2013. It aired live from 8:30 am to noon, weekdays. His attempts at controversy included referring to homeless people as "urban outdoorsmen" on air, and called public education "taxpayer-funded child abuse". He also expressed a negative opinion about the lack of Muslim outrage for the actions of Muslim terrorists and the riots that erupted in response to the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. Islamic extremism was a favorite topic. Some of his remarks caused controversy. After the Virginia Tech shootings, Boortz criticized the media, saying, "When the history of this event is written, we will have 25 students standing meekly waiting for this guy to execute them." When public outrage resulted from his comments, members of the Virginia Legislature tried to have Boortz's show removed from local radio stations. In March 2008, Boortz attracted controversy by playing an audiotape of a nine-year-old where he repeatedly ridiculed the child's speech, leading to an unsuccessful FCC petition to deny Boortz's employer the right to purchase five local radio stations. On June 4, 2012, Boortz announced that he would retire from radio by the end of the year. His last live show aired on January 18, 2013. Boortz's regular fill-in host, Herman Cain, replaced him on January 21, 2013, in what amounted to a swap of seats, as Boortz became Cain's fill-in host. Boortz hosted commentaries for WSB for six more years, until they were discontinued by station. == Notes ==