Toucher and Rich was a radio show hosted by Fred Toettcher and Rich Shertenlieb, airing from 6 to 10 AM on WBZ-FM, in Boston, Massachusetts. Following an audition, Toettcher and Shertenlieb debuted on alternative rock station WBCN on June 5, 2006. Beginning August 13, 2009, the show transitioned to sports talk station WBZ-FM. From August 17, 2015, until July 13, 2018, the show was simulcast on NBC Sports Boston. The show was later streamed live on Twitch and YouTube. On September 24, 2016, Toucher & Rich received the Marconi Award, the highest award in radio for Major Market Personality of the Year. Until mid-2007 the show's opening theme was "Fuck All Y'all" by Saliva. Thereafter, the opening theme was "Honey Bucket" by Melvins. Toucher and Rich entered regional syndication on October 25, 2021. The program's inaugural affiliates consisted of four Townsquare Media stations: the trimulcast of WCYY in Portland, Maine, WPKQ in North Conway, New Hampshire, and WJZN in Augusta, Maine; and WEZQ in Bangor, Maine. In October 2023, the show reverted to broadcasting exclusively on WBZ-FM and Twitch. Following longstanding tensions between Shertenlieb and Toettcher, as well as Beasley Broadcast Group corporate management, Shertenlieb exited the show on November 10, 2023. On December 19, Beasley Broadcast Group announced that Rob "Hardy" Poole would join Toettcher for a new Toucher & Hardy morning show, debuting January 4, 2024. Poole was best known as the third mic on the midday show on The Sports Hub, having previously worked with Toettcher at WBCN as the production director and afternoon/evening host.

History

Toettcher and Shertenlieb met at WNNX in Atlanta, GA in 1999. Shertenlieb worked on the station's morning show alongside Leslie Fram, Steve Barnes, Jimmy Baron, and Crash Clark. Toettcher, meanwhile, started at the station as a receptionist before hosting evenings. Shertenlieb later exited WNNX, joining the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show at KHKS in Dallas-Fort Worth as a producer. In 2003, Toettcher replaced Barnes in mornings at WNNX, joining Fram, Baron, and Clark for "The Don Miller Morning Show," later renamed "Toucher, Jimmy, and Leslie." In December 2005, Shertenlieb exited KHKS, expressing a desire to start his own show. In March 2006, following Cumulus Media's acquisition of Susquehanna Radio Corporation, Toettcher requested to be released from his contract at WNNX with intentions to join Shertenlieb's venture. Together they auditioned at KZON Free FM in Phoenix, AZ, hosting a week of overnight shows. They also auditioned at WBCN in Boston, where they were eventually hired in April of that year. While plans initially called for them to serve as local replacements for the recently canceled David Lee Roth show, Toettcher and Shertenlieb were instead assigned to afternoon drive, as the New York-based duo of Opie & Anthony would instead helm mornings. Upon signing with WBCN, the duo recruited Crash Clark, who had been released from WNNX following an incident at a station event where two listeners engaged in a public sexual act at Clark's encouragement. Also brought on was Adolfo Gonzalez, a 20-year-old fan of Kraddick's whom Shertenlieb befriended at KHKS, whose personal life and quirky personality fascinated Shertenlieb. The group formally debuted on WBCN on June 5, 2006. Following the launch of WBZ-FM on August 13, 2009, the show transferred from WBCN following the latter's format change. At this point, the show was airing in morning drive, having transitioned from afternoons in December 2008. The move from WBCN to WBZ-FM was widely questioned within the broadcast industry; many insiders wondered if Toettcher and Shertenlieb, otherwise inexperienced in sports talk radio, were transplanted from an alternative rock station merely to finish out their contracts, which had approximately one year left following their move. While increasing their focus on local and national sports and adjusting their target demographic from males 18-34 to males 25-54, the show's content was largely unchanged from its run on WBCN. Several segments from the WBCN-era, such as "Drunken Recaps," were transferred over, while new bits were created with involvement from local athletes and sportscasters. For the show's launch on WBZ-FM, Jon Wallach was added to the cast as a contributor and to provide "Sports Hub headlines" every twenty (later thirty) minutes; Wallach previously served a similar role on the midday program at competitor WEEI-FM. Also around this time, Gonzalez was moved to a largely off-air role, though he was still featured for regular on-air segments and was utilized for "man on the street" bits. On April 2, 2010, Crash Clark exited the show after his contract was not renewed by station management. He has since made numerous guest appearances, either via telephone or during on-location events. On May 23, 2016, Adolfo Gonzalez announced his exit from the program, expressing a desire to return home to Dallas, TX and attend college. With Gonzalez's exit, former intern Nick Gemelli was recruited to work alongside producers Dan O'Brien and Mike Lockhart, screening listener phone calls, collecting street audio, and later operating the show's Twitch/YouTube feed.

Departure of Shertenlieb

On October 25, 2023, Beasley Broadcast Group announced that Toettcher signed a new contract "to continue to serve at the helm of 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston’s Award-winning morning show for years to come." On November 10, Shertenlieb's departure from the show was announced after he refused to sign a multi-year contract extension "on terms better than his existing contract." Toettcher discussed Shertenlieb's departure during the opening segment of the November 10 broadcast. Toettcher said that he learned of the change from the station's management while he was driving home after the previous day's show. He also discussed problems that had developed between him Shertenlieb. Toettcher then described a prolonged period of estrangement between the two. He also said that Shertenlieb didn't tell him of his planned departure, which came as a surprise. Despite this, Toettcher revealed that he and Shertenlieb had exchanged cordial, parting text messages. Out of respect for Shertenlieb, Toettcher announced that the show would retire his production elements and segments, such as "What Happened Last Night" and "Fart Court." While he also stated the name of the show would remain until January 2024, there was no direct reference to "The Toucher and Rich Show" by on-air hosts or in production pieces, only referring to it as "the morning show." On May 20, 2024, Shertenlieb began hosting an eponymous morning show on iHeartMedia's WZLX in Boston, replacing longtime hosts Pete McKenzie, Heather Ford, and the late Kevin Karlson. Due to low ratings and conflicts with station management over the direction of the program, Shertenlieb's show was canceled after less than six months. Following his program's debut and subsequent cancellation, comments made on-air by Toettcher suggest his and Shertenlieb's relationship has completely deteriorated.

Show Members

Former Show Members

104.1 WBCN

Contributors

Popular segments

98.5 The Sports Hub

Past / Present Popular segments

Former Station Affiliates