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by Doc, DeansPlanet.Com staff writer
Can I Have Your Autograph... / Vinnie Penn
Vinnie Penn
09-13-06
 

Who is the Howard Stern 9-11 show mystery man???

It was the afternoon of Sept. 12th and I was surfing the Howard Stern fan message boards, while running the best one of them all, www.howardshrine.net ,when an old school sternfannetwork member, frequent contributor to the Super Fan Roundtable, and friend from back in the day (when SFN was cool) contacted me via instant message, and asked me this question: “Who was the person sitting in the Jackie Chair on 9-11?” He went on to tell me that the person is blocked out on the Howard TV show, and he is never acknowledged during the broadcast. “Huh?” Having just listened to the 9-11 replay show, and watching the special on Howard TV the day before, I was stumped too. I don't even remember anyone sitting in the Jackie chair. I quickly went to turn on that episode on Howard TV to see for myself, when Dean from deansplanet.com also contacted me on instant message to tell me how funny he thought the show was that morning. I told him about what I had just heard. Not sure himself, he quickly went to the tape as well and pulled two screen shots. A blond man it looks like. A technical guy? Who is this 9-11 mystery man? I posed that question in my blog, www.howardshrine.com and not long after one of my readers emailed me the answer: "It's comedian Vinnie Penn. He is acknowledged early on in the show."

Dean also quickly found the answer, including the man's website, and sent me the link. Visting his website, I emailed Vinnie to see if we could get a few words from him for the planet, as well as an autograph for the Shrine, my tribute to Howard and the Show.  One day later, the autograph is on its way, and here is my interview with Vinnie Penn.
Doc: You were one of the people who competed for Jackie's “job.” Did you really want to win?
Vinnie: Hell yeah I wanted the job! I had my own morning radio show in CT at the time, and while they were letting me go in and do the show throughout the Summer of 2001, they were also saying, "Don't take it if it's offered to you. You're making more money here, and you'll make half as much there." That might have been true seeing as how it was my own show, and I was making good money, but I was like, "Um, it's Howard Stern. I'll take it just to be near the lesbian strippers. They can pay me minimum wage."
Doc: How disappointed were you when Artie was finally selected? How do you like Artie on the show?
Vinnie: Gary (Dellabate) called me to tell me they were giving Artie the gig like two days after the 9/11 show. Of course, I was disappointed. All I really knew about Artie at the time was that he had done MAD TV.  I figured it made sense to go with someone known from TV instead of an unknown radio guy from CT.
Doc: Of course your most memorable appearance was the 9-11 show. Tell us about that day. Did you stay the whole time? What was going through your mind when that all went down, and how do you feel about that day now looking back?
Vinnie: It was incredible. I was the last one in the room to catch onto the seriousness of it. Gary kept coming back in to give updates, but the show was going on as planned. The first plane hitting seemed like it could be anything so I kept cracking jokes. By the second plane hitting, and the first building coming down, it was obvious it was a terrorist attack. The show switched gears immediately. Gary said Bush was going to be speaking, and I commented that I'd rather hear what Martin Sheen had to say, which got laughs, which I think has since been edited from the show. The show changed my life. I went back to a hotel room alone that night, decided I was going to quit my show, pursue other things, and I got married in Vegas a few weeks later. By the next year I was a father.
Doc: You were just sitting in for Artie that day, right?
 
Vinnie: To my knowledge, no decision had been made yet, but they were narrowing it down, and it felt promising to have been asked back again. The date was decided on a month in advance, especially because i would have to clear the day with my boss at my radio station well in advance. The 9/11 show actually wound up falling on one of my vacation weeks, so I made arrangements to stay in NYC for a few days, which is why I wound up in a hotel room, cut off from family and friends, watching news reports of this thing that was happening literally blocks away. Talk about forcing a guy to really look at his life, what he wants out of it, what he's doing and not doing with it and all that. Goddamn, I couldn't even jerk-off.
Doc: Can you can address the fans that say we didn't hear from you much during that broadcast?
Vinnie: Well, I know that on the first anniversary of the events of 9/11, they played the show in its entirety. All of my wisecracks and Howard breaking my balls about "still being in audition mode" while news reports were coming in. I was on quite a bit--we were all ranking on Howard for admitting to maybe having a shot with Pam Anderson and blowing it. That was kinda the running theme that morning...until the shit hit the fan. When Gary asked me to come on The Wrap-Up Show this past Sept. 11, he told me that they were playing the original 9/11 show on Howard in the morning, but that it would start at 8:50 and was heavily edited. I've heard I wasn't on much as a result--and the fact is from 8:50 on I only chimed in sporadically anyway. The phones were crazy with reports from all over the city coming in.
Doc: How has your career gone since? What new projects are you working on?
Vinnie: Well, I did quit my show at the end of my contract, which wasn't until 2004. I wrote my first book, and have been doing stand-up. Go and request it on the Raw Dog channel!! (Sirius Satellite Channel 104) There's lots of it in rotation there...
Doc: Finally, how big is your penis?
Vinnie: My penis is excellent:  smooth, big and beautiful, but my balls are pathetic.

Doc: You may think they are pathetic Vinnie, but from this angle I would say your balls are very big. Big for hanging in for that whole show, a substitute who could have easily been excused.

Vinnie Penn, the man in the Jackie Chair on the most memorable Howard Stern show ever, is indeed Shrine-worthy. Why he was not worthy for the Howard TV special, while people not even involved like Mutt from SFN for example were interviewed, is beyond me. It was nice that the wrap up show invited you this week Vinnie, in honor of your dedication and involvement that day. Maybe Howard will ask you to the new studio too some day to talk about it as well. Even though many of us True Fans and Super Fans forgot your name or didn't even realize you were there that day, (apparently so did the Show) I think the fans, now that the mystery has been solved ,would love to hear your perspective on a day we all will never forget……………….……. or will we??

Vinnie's Official Site