"I'm sickened by all religions. Religion has divided people. I don't think there's any difference between the pope wearing a large hat and parading around with a smoking purse and an African painting his face white and praying to a rock. "

Howard Stern in a radio and television personality, best-known as the host of The Howard Stern Show.

Stern grew up in a Jewish family in Long Island, New York. His father worked as at a local radio station. In 1990 he played recordings of on-air, which confirmed his jokes of being "abused" by his parents. Verbal abuse was evident in the broadcast. He compares his mother's parenting to "the intensity of Hitler." He says that his father was demeaning, often referring to Stern as a moron.

Stern grew up in a predominantly African American neighborhood until his parents moved him in 1969. He graduated from high school in 1972, and attended college at Boston University. During college, Stern volunteered at the college radio station. After graduation he moved back to New York to work as a d.j. at WRNW-FM, which played disco. In 1978, he landed a morning show job in Hartford, CT. The station could be categorized as progressive rock, and help Stern develop his radio personality. When Stern was refused a raise, he left the Connecticut station for Detroit, where he worked at a rock station for better pay. However, when Stern arrived, the station changed from rock to country music.

He only stayed at the station for a year, then moved back to New York in 1982 to work for NBC's AM radio station, WNBC. Also at NBC was David Letterman. Letterman helped Stern gain national recognition by allowing him to appear on his show, Late Night with David Letterman. Stern was fired from the show in 1985 for a sketch, "Bestiality Dial-A-Date." He immediately found a job with a local rival FM station, WXRK. he began a successful morning show that was syndicated nationally in 1986. As of 2004, the show was syndicated on 45 radio stations across the U.S. However, the show in not allowed to be streamed on the internet.

In 1997, Stern's autobiography, Private Parts, was adapted to film. The film brought in over $60 million. Also in 1997, Stern went into an anti-French rant. He said "I've been picking on the French people for 15 years. I don't like the French People. I felt during World War II, France betrayed us. I believe that what they did was the most cowardly act. That when the Nazis marched into France, the French bent over. . . American's are looked at as dirt, as filth. We the the people that liberated them during WWII. They would be Nazis, they would be under the Nazi regime right now. They should be kissing our asses, singing our praises."

In February, 2004, Stern was suspended from six markets of Clear Channel Communications for indecency involving sexual and racist dialogue. The questionable show involved Rick Salomon, who claimed to have a home video of him having sex with Paris Hilton. During he interview, Stern asked questions about anal sex, and used the work "nigger," lightly. Stern claims that because Clear Channel donated over $200,000 to the Republican Party, the company was penalizing him for his criticisms of President George W. Bush. He endorsed John Kerry during his campaign for the U.S. Presidency in 2004.

Stern signed a five-year, $500 million deal with Sirius Satellite Radio in 2004, which took effect on January 1, 2006, and allowed Stern to broadcast his show with FCC restrictions. Stern's last show on AM/FM radio was on December 16, 2005. Much of Stern's final statements were bleeped our on the radio. The statements were animosity towards Clear Channel and the future of Sirius. The Howard Stern Show debuted on January 9, 2006.

On his Sirius Show, Howard admitted to having plastic surgery on his nose and chin. He said he kept it private because he thought plastic surgery was "very gay."

Stern married Alison Berns, his long-time college girlfriend in Brookline, Massachusetts. They have three daughters: Emily Beth, Debra Jennifer, and Ashley Jade. Alison divorced him, due to his "workaholic" attitude, and remarried David Simon in 2001. Since the divorce, Stern has been dating Beth Ostrosky, who is 19 years younger than him. A rumor surfaced that Stern and Ostrosky had married after his final AM/FM radio show. However, he later admitted that he had fooled his broadcast crew, and was not married.