Rush Limbaugh

Rush Limbaugh is a conservative political commentator and has, since 1988, been the radio host of the Rush Limbaugh Show, syndicated nationally by Premiere Radio Networks.

From the popularity gained from his radio show, Rush Limbaugh expanded his scope to include publishing and television in the early 1990's.

Limbaugh is the best selling author of two books, The Way Things Ought to Be (1992) and See, I Told You So (1993).

Limbaugh had a 30 minute nationally syndicated television show, which attempted to emulate his radio success, but it was only in production from 1992-1996.

It was reported by various news outlets, that on June 5, 2010, Rush Limbaugh marrieed Kathryn Rogers at the Breakers Resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Limbaugh, aged 59, and Rogers, aged 33, retained the services of singer Elton John, who was reportedly paid the sum of $1 million dollars, to sing at their wedding reception.

This is Limbaugh's fourth marriage. In 2004, he finalized the divorce with his third wife, Marta Fitzgerald.

On Wednesday, December, 30, 2009, Rush Limbaugh was hospitalized for reported chest pains while vacationing in Hawaii.

On the morning of December 31, 2009, the official Rush Limbaugh web site, rushlimbaugh.com, and the guest host for Limbaugh's radio program, Walter E. Williams, have reported that Limbaugh was resting comfortably at a Honolulu hospital. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34637684/ns/entertainment-celebrities/ http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html

On January 6, 2010, Rush Limbaugh returned to the air waves. On his radio program, Limbaugh told his audience that the exact cause of his chest pain episode may have been attributed to collateral effects from a spinal epidural taken received earlier for back pain or due to an arterial spasm.http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_010610/content/01125106.guest.html

On October 15, 2009, it was announced that Rush Limbaugh had been dropped as part of a group attempting to purchase the NFL St. Louis Rams.http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4559454

It had been confirmed on October 6, 2009, that Rush Limbaugh was part of a group bidding to purchase the St. Louis Rams NFL franchise. Another member of the group is NHL St. Louis Blues owner Dave Checketts.

Once the bid to purchase the team was publicized, the following statement was released by Rush Limbaugh, "Dave and I are part of a bid to buy the Rams, and we are continuing the process. But I can say no more because of a confidentiality clause in our agreement with Goldman Sachs. We cannot and will not talk about our partners. But if we prevail we will be the operators of the team."http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/06/rush-limbaugh-in-bid-for_n_310850.html

On October 13, 2009, Indianapolis Colts owner, Jim Irsay, stated that he would not vote to approve Limbaugh as an NFL owner if he were successful in his bid to purchase the Rams. Irsay cited the comments made by Limbaugh as an analyst on ESPN in 2003 regarding Donavan McNabb, classifying them as divisive.http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2009/10/colts-jim-irsay-says-he-would-not-vote-for-rush-limbaugh-as-nfl-owner/1

Limbaugh has made no official comment regarding his withdraw from the group bidding for the Rams.http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4559454

On October 9, 2009, the Miss America Organization announced in a press release that Rush Limbaugh will be its celebrity judge at the 2010 Miss America Pageant, to be held in January of 2010 in Atlantic City, NJ.

In 2008, Limbaugh renewed his contract with Premier Radio Networks through 2016 for $400 million dollars. It included a $100 million signing bonus and $38 million a year for eight years. http://www.businessinsider.com/2008/7/rush-limbaugh-gets-400-million-to-rant-through-2016

Rush Limbaugh's actual net worth is not publicly released, as he is not part of a public corporation or any other entity which requires public disclosure. He has never voluntarily released his net worth publicly.

Limbaugh started doing radio as a teenager, broadcasting under the name "Rusty Sharpe." Through most of the '70s, he worked as a DJ on music radio, before taking accepting the position of director of promotions the Kansas City Royals baseball team.

In 1987, the FCC ended the policy known as the "Fairness Doctrine," which required that media utilizing the public airwaves (such as radio) to air editorials must provide time for contrary opinions.

This meant that Limbaugh, currently working in talk radio at KFBK in Sacramento, California, could introduce his personal opinion and style into his show. His audience grew quickly, and soon he was broadcasting the nationally-syndicated Rush Limbaugh Show out of New York City.

Because Limbaugh's style is purposefully aggressive, many of his on-air statements have sparked controversy. During the 2006 midterm elections, he mocked a political ad featuring Parkinsons-afflicted actor Michael J. Fox, touting Claire McCaskill's support for stem cell research, and implied that Fox was faking symptoms to engender sympathy.

Limbaugh's personal life is not without scandal as well. The National Enquirer reported on October 3, 2003 that Limbaugh was addicted to prescription painkillers (a charge Limbaugh confirmed to listeners a week later), and in April of 2006, he was arrested for "doctor shopping" to obtain the pills. Later that year, he was detained at Palm Beach International Airport after Viagra pills prescribed under another name were found in his luggage.

Just days prior to the inauguration of President Barack Obama, Limbaugh told listeners that he was asked by a "major American print publication" to write a 400-word statement on his "hope for the Obama presidency." Limbaugh then went on to say "...I don't need 400 words, I need four: I hope he fails."Official Site: "I Hope Obama Fails" (January 16, 2009) Limbaugh reiterated this theme during his keynote speech at the 2009 Conservative Political Action Conference. Limbaugh stated later in the event, "What is so strange about being honest and saying, I want Barack Obama to fail if his mission is to restructure and reform this country so that capitalism and individual liberty are not its foundation? Why would I want that to succeed?...Did the Democrats want the war in Iraq to fail? Well, they certainly did. And they not only wanted the war in Iraq to fail, they proclaimed it a failure."http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/28/limbaugh.speech.cpac/