And the winner is...JERRY RECCO!
Perhaps an upset in the minds of those who think the Pulse of the People Award is all a figment of one person’s imagination, but indeed, Jerry “Rello” Recco is YOUR winner of the 2021 Pulse of the People Award!
Craig Carton, a six-time winner of the Award (who was ineligible this year), made the announcement just as Carton & Roberts joined their SNY simulcast shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday, ending weeks of speculation in a year where finalists were eliminated one by one.
Jerry beat out fellow final finalist Evan Roberts, as well as a final group that included his own partner in Al Dukes, morning show colleague Gregg Giannotti, and New York icons Steve Cohen, Matt Martin, and James Dolan…and his win ends weeks of controversy, mostly stemming from how he and Al were originally nominated as a pair before Al was eliminated solo.
“Thank you…for weeks I’ve been saying it’s an honor to be nominated, but who are we kidding, I wanted to win!” Jerry said, joking he was at the orphanage (but was really cutting the grass at the field where he will be coaching some baseball tonight). “I’m glad we did this at 4 p.m., and I’d like to thank all the important people in my life, including Sonny, Lucky, and Anthony Carton.”
That last one led to a remembrance of a time Jerry flew home from San Francisco with the Carton boys on a Super Bowl weekend, and how Mark Chernoff never liked him.
“Mark never liked me, but you always had my back. I will represent the award beautifully, and I plan to be a back-to-back winner!” Jerry said, before confirming he couldn’t lose the award, and then yelling “get away from me you little bastard!” likely at some unruly child nearby.
And, despite not winning an award he was a finalist for that was given on his show, Evan was a gracious runner-up to the man who LITERALLY SAVED A LIFE in the newsroom.
“He deserved it, he saved a man’s life! And one thing I’ve learned in years of listening to and working at this radio station, is the value of Jerry Recco,” Evan said. “I consider him a dear friend, and I believe the committee got it right.”
No one on the Carton & Roberts staff had a vote, but in a polling, Chris McMonigle would’ve voted for Evan, while Sonny and Anthony Carton were Team Jerry (obvi) and Tom Lugauer was non-committal.
The committee wasn’t non-committal though, so congratulations to Jerry Recco, Pulse of the People (he hates most of the time) and recipient of the latest Jbird Jrawing!
And congrats to Craig Carton, who had absolutely nothing to do with the award, but hopes to be back in the running next year for his seventh thumb.
“I hope this puts an end to all the false accusations that I am part of the committee, or somehow involved,” Craig said, denying any responsibility for an award that has only been won twice by non-WFAN affiliated people, one of which was a salute to all the Frontline Workers in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
Follow the Pulse of the People Award winner on Twitter: @JerryRecco
Follow WFAN's afternoon team on Twitter: @CartonRoberts, @EvanRobertsWFAN, @TommyLugauer, and @CMacWFAN
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch