The Ten Best Phil Hendrie Guests

Phil Hendrie is a living legend of the airwaves. His radioshow, The Phil Hendrie Show, has ruled the California airwaves for nearly twenty years. What makes his show unique is the vast assortment of "guests" he has calling in to the show with their bizarre stories, all of whom are characters created and voiced by Hendrie himself. The effect is amazing, Hendrie switching between his dual roles of host and guest with a speed and fluidity that makes him sound like he talking over himself. And when unknowing listeners call in to argue with the incendiary guests, the results are hilarious.

Of the dozens of characters Hendrie has featured on the show, I'll outline my ten favorites:

1. RC Collins - R.C. is, or more accurately was, a sixteen year old Goth kid from Chatsworth, California. He was known for his rebel attitude as well as his satan-worshipping attire: a cape with "RC" embroidered on it, that he would wear during gym class or when he was working at Dairy Queen, with a matching hood and scepter. R.C. suffered many maladies in his life. He had kidney cancer, and turned to Satan after praying to Jesus didn't save his kidneys. Because of medical complications from it, he lost his left testicle, which itself led to a problem he labeled "Phantom Nut." He's known on the show for being one of Phil's brashest and highest-pitched critics. R.C. was later sent to a strict military academy. He had high hopes of joining the prestigious 101st Airborne unit upon graduation.
2. David G Hall - Named after Phil's real-life program director but with few other similarities, David Hall is a brash, gravel-voiced PD who would often call in to tell Phil what he's doing wrong with his show. Mr. Hall would hang Phil's career over his head every chance he could, and would at times threaten to fire him for not putting out an interesting show. Few "guests" could get callers as fired up as the mercurial Hall.
3. Jeff Dowder - A California stoner, Dowder was anything but a stereotype. While he claimed to hold a Mechanical Physics Degree from Cal Tech, Jeff would often expound on such bodysurfing techniques as his trademark move, "The Armadillo," and getting fired from his job at the Los Angeles piers for drinking too many "frosty ones." He rafted the LA River in an inner tube, prompting many accomplished paddlers to call in and question the validity of his claims. As a drummer and "backup lead singer", Jeff played for his band Darque Horse, and once tried joining Van Halen. Phil had little patience for Jeff's on air antics and when he would stop talking to "spark the owl".
4. Bobbi Dooley - Bobbi Dooley is a soccer mom who lives in the Western Estates gated community with her husband Steve and sons, and is a member of the Parents Association there. She calls in to the show with many complaints, and is one of the Phil Hendrie Show's wildest (and most prolific) callers.
5. Ted Bell - Ted Bell thinks very highly of himself. A self-made millionaire businessman, he is the proprietor of Ted's Of Beverly Hills, a steakhouse with an exclusive clientele. The restauranteur tells Phil that handicapped children may not be allowed in, even for charity events. He answers his cell phone in movie theaters. Ted came up with a scheme to give "commoners" rides around Beverly Hills in his BMW Convertible for a hefty ticket price. Ted also refused to remove his sunglasses when he told his wife he wanted a divorce, because they were Oakleys, and he was running to a business meeting afterwards anyways. Ted claims to have invented the rum and coke (he calls it The Ted ) and he was the first person to wrap a baked potato in foil.
6. Jim Sadler - Jim Sadler proclaims on Phil's show that he is a doctor. And sometimes he is a veteranarian who hates animals. He once kicked his daughter's cat out into traffic, and defended his actions by saying cats aren't as smart as dogs. Dr. Sadler has had a life of bad luck. He calls in to tell Phil about his new books, and callers get furious with his blase attitude towards the hard times others may be having.
7. Chris Norton - Chris Norton is a guy in his late-twenties who considers himself to be a ladies' man. He regales Phil with advice on how to live with women, and his views are always outrageous. He has a sizable lisp, and thinks women are "sessy" and loves the music of "Jimi Hendrix Essperienss".
8. Jay Santos - Jay is a member of the Citizen's Auxiliary Police, and he takes this "job" extremely seriously. Although he is constantly being reminded by callers that he has none of the legal powers to arrest that real police do, Jay tells everyone that he has the right to citizen's arrest. but it never stops there, and Jay is always seeming to stretch the law to his side. For instance, he set up road flares with the rest of his team one day and held a belt sander to people's cars, checking the paint.
9. Lloyd Bonafide - Lloyd is a crotchety old man. He was in the Korean War, and clearly suffers from PTSD. He is an advocate of hitting children (and pretty much everyone else) and he withholds donations to youth centers. Lloyd calls in with dirty jokes, and has been called sexist and racist innumerable times by callers.
10. Steve Bosell - Pronounced Bo-zell, Mr. Bosell is a successful construction contractor who lives in Corona, CA with his wife and kids. He is a very, very sensitive man, and is always feeling humiliated by his colleagues at work. Steve threatened a lawsuit against a neighbor's minah bird that spouted expletives at him. He also yelled at a Furbie toy after he felt it tried insulting him. Steve wears cowboy boots to Olive Garden.

Honorable Mentions: Margaret Grey, Mavis Leonard, Doug Dangger, Austin Amarca, Bob Greene, Pastor William Reddick, Roland Schwinn, Art Griego, Brad Rifkin, Dave Oliva, Colleen Kristen Brewster.

These characters are all much more multi-faceted than I've described, for sure. They are all creations of one man's imagination, and it is astonishing to hear the end results in real-time as Phil Hendrie gives each character unique emotion and inflection. Hendrie is a certain kind of genius, and everyone should give a listen to at least one of his shows.