Artie Lange Resigns from Howard Stern Show

Howard Stern Show fixture Artie Lange walked out of the studio after an argument and subsequent outburst at his personal assistant on the air.

Lange, who became a part of the show’s daily routine in October of 2001, was spotted disputing with his assistant in the hallways off the air. When it was brought up to Stern, he asked the assistant Teddy to come into the studio and discuss the situation on the air.

Lange began to express his disdain for his assistant of nearly two years because of recent money issues. Teddy retorted by implying there’s more to the job than meets the eye.

The two are slated to travel to Amsterdam this evening and the squabble began over setting up Lange’s travel accommodations. However, the in-studio dispute quickly escalated into a discussion about how much Lange finances Teddy, who is affectionately called “Teddy Microphone” around the studio.

As the argument continued, Lange became enraged and physically lashed out at Teddy, but the physical confrontation was apparently defused by other members in the studio.

When Lange returned, he said Teddy would be “dead” had he reached him and he would be in jail.

Stern then expressed his feelings on the situation, saying he cannot condone Lange’s actions. The comedian, who has had a similar outburst on the air in the past, said he cannot guarantee he can refrain from acting out in the future. Upon hearing that, Stern said he cannot have Lange around with the potential of such actions looming.

Artie then offered his resignation; Stern accepted, but told Lange to leave and cool off. Just before Lange left he told Stern: “I’m not a good person … I gotta leave … I love you”

Teddy returned to the studio several minutes later and said there was overreacting from everyone, but did not downplay the seriousness of the situation.

Show producer Gary Dell’Abate came in to analyze the situation, but he and Stern admitted they “did not know what to make of it all.”

Stern does not host a live show on Fridays and the crew is on vacation next week.

Article by Adam Abramson, NewsDay.com

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