December 16, 2025 • 10 mins
Curtis reflects on his experiences and adjustments since losing the NYC mayoral election, sharing insights into his personal and professional life. He discusses Andrew Cuomo’s continued presence in the political arena and reveals that he will be filling in for Mark Simone for two weeks on 710 WOR beginning December 22nd.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's more Mark Mark Simone on seven ten.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Well, ladies and gentlemen, the man who should be the
mayor of New York right now. Curtis Lee Well, of course,
also one of the great radio hosts of the last
few decades, had the number one morning show for many, many, many,
many many years. And he'll be filling in for me.
I'll be off the last two weeks of the year.
Next week and the week after, Curtis will be filling
in ten to noon every weekday. And he's with us. Now,
(00:27):
Curtis sliwa, how you doing?
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Oh great now that you've given me an opportunity to
let my voice be heard on my favorite radio station,
w R. Nope, he doesn't get any better than this, Mark,
because obviously you lead and everybody else follow So I
know you've got a huge following because all during the campaign,
(00:50):
people would stop me wherever I was going and says, well,
Mark's talking about you. Now, I didn't get that from
any other radio station or any other talk program.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Hey, now that it's all over, let me ask you
about this campaign. First of all, Now, obviously you could win,
You could out talk everybody in the race. You got
a much longer career resume than Mamdani. But they started
this mantra, he can't win, Curtis can't win, Curtis can't win.
They just drilled this into people. I heard people start
repeating it like it's true. It was ridiculous. How did
(01:22):
that ever get started?
Speaker 1 (01:25):
But actually got started right after Andrew Cuomo tossed in
the towel because he got so badly beaten in the
primary that if you remember Mark, when he entered the
race on March first, he was at forty percent in
the Democratic polls, Zorhan Mandami was last at one percent.
By the time of June twenty four, they hadn't even
(01:47):
counted the rank choice votes yet he lost by thirteen percent,
and it was mos no mos Now. The big savior
then was going to be Eric Adams. They were gonna
somehow resurrect the crook out of the way and put
you know, put a new set of clothes on him
and say, oh no, he's a new Eric Adams. And
(02:07):
the people didn't buy it. And then every day thereafter,
the masters of the universe, the billionaires, the influences, the
insiders kept this dropout game. Drop out, you got to
drop out. He became very difficult Mark to engage in
any kind of conversation because the first question I'd have
to ask every day, answer every day was no, I'm
(02:29):
not dropping out. They bribed me, people were threatening to
kill me, my wife, do harm to my staff, and
I said, no, I'm not dropping out. And I lived
up to that until November fourth, where clearly Johan Mandami
was elected mayor of the City of New York by
the people of New York.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Yeah, now here's a better question. You knew Andrew Cuomo
can't win. I knew he can't win. He was a
terrible governor. He did awful things as governor. Everybody can't
stand the guy. But he went around for the three
or four years to every big donor, every big Upper
East Side Southampton, all this craw and he convinced them
that only he could win. And these are otherwise very
(03:05):
smart people. How did they fall for this nonsense? They
actually convinced themselves only he can win.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Look, Mark, there's nobody better connected than you with all
the heavy hitters in New York, whether it's the Hamptons
or in New York City or around America. They may
be good on Wall Street, but they know nothing about
the streets in New York City. And by the way,
they know nothing about politics, as was evidence. They backed
Clomo in the primary, he lost, then they backed Derek Adams,
(03:33):
then they went back to back in Clomo. Look, they
may invest your money well in a hedge funt. You know,
acmen actman every day. This guy would tweet out ten
hundred and fifty two words in his mid life crisis.
But they couldn't have been more hopelessly wrong and clearly
they At first they disparaged Cuomo when he lost the Jarmandami,
(03:54):
then they revived him, and all they kept doing was
supporting Democrats. So I guess what you got what you wanted,
Johai Mondami. You just strengthened him and Mark. What was
that love clash between Donald Trump the President and Monday
at the White House? Come on, they played us. We
were played all during the campaign.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Yeah, uh so what do you think Mondannie? I somehow
I still think maybe he was counting the socialists, maybe,
and maybe he's not as bad as we think. What
do you think?
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Well, look, he is what he is. He has not surrendered,
he has not retreated. He is an idea log everybody
who gets elected mayors entitled to a grace period. He'll
have his grace period. But unlike everybody else who in
fear frightened Stereos said, I'm selling my pristiners are moving
the Florida Hey where they go? Mark is still here?
Are you kidding? Having backdoor meetings with Sohai Mondami? So
(04:49):
the fact is I'm the improved o't movement. And by
the way, Matt compliment you for a second, Mark, because
you're going on this well deserved vacation. What are they
gonna do in your competition? You realize that Greg Kelly
for years would listen to your program before he would
come on in the twelve o'clock hour. Basically you would
(05:09):
do his show prep for him. Like comedians up in
the Borsch Belt that used to steal jokes from one another.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
Well, but Greg does a great show.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
They do what you away.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
But we all listen to each other, we all take
from each other. It's so but.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
Now your mom, Mark, But you're the best. That's why
they do it from you. They know that.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Then you got to you gotta do a good job.
In the next two weeks, Curtis will be filling in
for me. The next two weeks. Now you have done.
They used to make fun of how many hours you'd
be on the radio, twenty hours a day, fourteen hours
a day six Will you be able to fit it
into just two hours a day?
Speaker 1 (05:40):
Yeah, Oh, there's no doubt about it. Hey. Look, there
was a time at WABC, as you know, because you
and I we were together there doing the morning show
with Ron Koopy, whose mommy is at comedy who is
the predecessor to Johann Mondami. Yeah, I mean you wanted
to know what Joran Mondami was. Look, that was Don Coopy.
Three of us would sit in that room doing the
(06:02):
morning show. That was total chaos.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Oh that's right.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
I don't know how you. I don't know how you
survived that much.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
I forgot you. Yeah, you two weren't talking for about
six months. I had to like host the uh or
be the moderator of the show. You two were there.
But it's it's much better doing the show by yourself,
isn't it. It's always much better?
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Oh? Yeah, and I and I insisted on that I
had always done shows that partners, and I insisted that no,
if I'm the do talk radio anymore, it's gonna be solo.
I will either sink or swim based on what I say,
not based on what my partners say. But boy, you
deserved the Nobel Peace Prize. Every morning for four hours
(06:44):
Mark Simone the referee between Ron Koby, who was Jorhan
Mondomi before he was even born, and Curtis Sleewer, and
I mean it got hey, it got pretty hot and
heavy there. You almost had to put in a nine
to one one call sometimes.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
So well, next week will be you'll have fun here.
If you've come up, you've seen the studio, you've visited,
you've in fact, a lot of your old coworkers were
here when you came. Right.
Speaker 1 (07:11):
Well, let me let me tell you something for people
who don't know. Because War was the first radio station
I was ever interviewed on. I was the newspaper Boy
of the Year. I had gone to Washington, DC, got
an award for Richard Nixon and my first interview was
with Arlene Frances Whoad afternoons mid mid days, and I
got the bug. You know what it's like. You had
(07:33):
the bug for years, I've had the bug. And then
when Bob Grant went to War, I mean it was
a continuation and by the way. I remember when I
transported all of his items from WABC where they exiled
him to wr and then he kicked off bucks over
at WABC. You remember that you worked with him at WBCA,
back with r Peter Strauss and Ellens.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
That's true, although Bob Grant and I didn't get along.
So Bob Grant was a a complicated guy. I think
you'd agree off the air, no.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Doubt about it. But let me tell you something. He
was magic on the radio, and that's all it counts. Yeah,
that's all accounts. And that's what you've been for so
many years, Mark Simone. So to be able to substitute
for you a while away, I mean, it doesn't get
any better than that. And I listened to wo R.
Now you've got a lot of great shows. I have
no reason to listen to anything else, including always blaming
(08:28):
Curtigs WABC, the other station.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
But since you announced you're going to be here, did
they contact you? Have you heard from anybody there?
Speaker 1 (08:36):
Oh? They're worried, aren't They're worried? Because remember I haven't
told the true story of what went on there, all
that drop out. You got to drop out? Where do
you think it started? Mark. It started at WABC, and
there are a lot of bones buried there. And the
question is, in the two weeks that you've given me
the opportunity of management at WOR and iHeart the substitute
(08:58):
for you, will I dig up any of those bones
and air they junk to what went on during the
most historical and unprecidented mayor old campaign in the history
of New York City politics.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Well, I wouldn't go after them, but I can't just
blame them. I heard this from every Upper East Side idiot,
every Hedge fund idiot. Curtis can't win. Curtis knit that
was ridiculous. He's got to drop out. It was ridiculous.
And as you say, these guys made billions at what
they know and have never made a penny given political
advice to anybody.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
So, by the way, where's their friend Andrew Cuomo? Where he.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Wait?
Speaker 1 (09:37):
You go as he fled to Florida like he said
he would do if Joran Mondommi got elected. Man, come on, Mark,
you know everything where is into?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
I think they now realized we were right. This guy
couldn't win anything anymore. And I don't think we're done
with him. He'll try and come back again, but hey,
we're out of time. But everybody listened. Next week, for
the next two weeks Curtis Ly will be filling in
for me ten to noon. Curtisly with ten to noon,
be listening, and of course follow him on Instagram and
Twitter and all of that. So well, Curtis, good luck.
(10:08):
Next week I'll be listening, have a good time.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
Well, thank you. I know where all the boats are
buried them to bury them, and I may be digging
them up for the two weeks that you're away.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
All right, we'll talk to you again soon. Thanks, take care,
Thank you Mary. Thanks, yeah, make sure next week. I'll
be off next week, in the week after I've been
taking the next two weeks off, final two weeks of
the year by Christmas break. Curtis will be here every morning.
This should be really interesting stuff. Curtis every morning for
the next two weeks ten to noon here on seven
(10:40):
to ten WR
It's more Mark Mark Simone on seven ten.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Well, ladies and gentlemen, the man who should be the
mayor of New York right now. Curtis Lee Well, of course,
also one of the great radio hosts of the last
few decades, had the number one morning show for many, many, many,
many many years. And he'll be filling in for me.
I'll be off the last two weeks of the year.
Next week and the week after, Curtis will be filling
in ten to noon every weekday. And he's with us. Now,
(00:27):
Curtis sliwa, how you doing?
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Oh great now that you've given me an opportunity to
let my voice be heard on my favorite radio station,
w R. Nope, he doesn't get any better than this, Mark,
because obviously you lead and everybody else follow So I
know you've got a huge following because all during the campaign,
(00:50):
people would stop me wherever I was going and says, well,
Mark's talking about you. Now, I didn't get that from
any other radio station or any other talk program.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Hey, now that it's all over, let me ask you
about this campaign. First of all, Now, obviously you could win,
You could out talk everybody in the race. You got
a much longer career resume than Mamdani. But they started
this mantra, he can't win, Curtis can't win, Curtis can't win.
They just drilled this into people. I heard people start
repeating it like it's true. It was ridiculous. How did
(01:22):
that ever get started?
Speaker 1 (01:25):
But actually got started right after Andrew Cuomo tossed in
the towel because he got so badly beaten in the
primary that if you remember Mark, when he entered the
race on March first, he was at forty percent in
the Democratic polls, Zorhan Mandami was last at one percent.
By the time of June twenty four, they hadn't even
(01:47):
counted the rank choice votes yet he lost by thirteen percent,
and it was mos no mos Now. The big savior
then was going to be Eric Adams. They were gonna
somehow resurrect the crook out of the way and put
you know, put a new set of clothes on him
and say, oh no, he's a new Eric Adams. And
(02:07):
the people didn't buy it. And then every day thereafter,
the masters of the universe, the billionaires, the influences, the
insiders kept this dropout game. Drop out, you got to
drop out. He became very difficult Mark to engage in
any kind of conversation because the first question I'd have
to ask every day, answer every day was no, I'm
(02:29):
not dropping out. They bribed me, people were threatening to
kill me, my wife, do harm to my staff, and
I said, no, I'm not dropping out. And I lived
up to that until November fourth, where clearly Johan Mandami
was elected mayor of the City of New York by
the people of New York.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Yeah, now here's a better question. You knew Andrew Cuomo
can't win. I knew he can't win. He was a
terrible governor. He did awful things as governor. Everybody can't
stand the guy. But he went around for the three
or four years to every big donor, every big Upper
East Side Southampton, all this craw and he convinced them
that only he could win. And these are otherwise very
(03:05):
smart people. How did they fall for this nonsense? They
actually convinced themselves only he can win.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Look, Mark, there's nobody better connected than you with all
the heavy hitters in New York, whether it's the Hamptons
or in New York City or around America. They may
be good on Wall Street, but they know nothing about
the streets in New York City. And by the way,
they know nothing about politics, as was evidence. They backed
Clomo in the primary, he lost, then they backed Derek Adams,
(03:33):
then they went back to back in Clomo. Look, they
may invest your money well in a hedge funt. You know,
acmen actman every day. This guy would tweet out ten
hundred and fifty two words in his mid life crisis.
But they couldn't have been more hopelessly wrong and clearly
they At first they disparaged Cuomo when he lost the Jarmandami,
(03:54):
then they revived him, and all they kept doing was
supporting Democrats. So I guess what you got what you wanted,
Johai Mondami. You just strengthened him and Mark. What was
that love clash between Donald Trump the President and Monday
at the White House? Come on, they played us. We
were played all during the campaign.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Yeah, uh so what do you think Mondannie? I somehow
I still think maybe he was counting the socialists, maybe,
and maybe he's not as bad as we think. What
do you think?
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Well, look, he is what he is. He has not surrendered,
he has not retreated. He is an idea log everybody
who gets elected mayors entitled to a grace period. He'll
have his grace period. But unlike everybody else who in
fear frightened Stereos said, I'm selling my pristiners are moving
the Florida Hey where they go? Mark is still here?
Are you kidding? Having backdoor meetings with Sohai Mondami? So
(04:49):
the fact is I'm the improved o't movement. And by
the way, Matt compliment you for a second, Mark, because
you're going on this well deserved vacation. What are they
gonna do in your competition? You realize that Greg Kelly
for years would listen to your program before he would
come on in the twelve o'clock hour. Basically you would
(05:09):
do his show prep for him. Like comedians up in
the Borsch Belt that used to steal jokes from one another.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
Well, but Greg does a great show.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
They do what you away.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
But we all listen to each other, we all take
from each other. It's so but.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
Now your mom, Mark, But you're the best. That's why
they do it from you. They know that.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Then you got to you gotta do a good job.
In the next two weeks, Curtis will be filling in
for me. The next two weeks. Now you have done.
They used to make fun of how many hours you'd
be on the radio, twenty hours a day, fourteen hours
a day six Will you be able to fit it
into just two hours a day?
Speaker 1 (05:40):
Yeah, Oh, there's no doubt about it. Hey. Look, there
was a time at WABC, as you know, because you
and I we were together there doing the morning show
with Ron Koopy, whose mommy is at comedy who is
the predecessor to Johann Mondami. Yeah, I mean you wanted
to know what Joran Mondami was. Look, that was Don Coopy.
Three of us would sit in that room doing the
(06:02):
morning show. That was total chaos.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Oh that's right.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
I don't know how you. I don't know how you
survived that much.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
I forgot you. Yeah, you two weren't talking for about
six months. I had to like host the uh or
be the moderator of the show. You two were there.
But it's it's much better doing the show by yourself,
isn't it. It's always much better?
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Oh? Yeah, and I and I insisted on that I
had always done shows that partners, and I insisted that no,
if I'm the do talk radio anymore, it's gonna be solo.
I will either sink or swim based on what I say,
not based on what my partners say. But boy, you
deserved the Nobel Peace Prize. Every morning for four hours
(06:44):
Mark Simone the referee between Ron Koby, who was Jorhan
Mondomi before he was even born, and Curtis Sleewer, and
I mean it got hey, it got pretty hot and
heavy there. You almost had to put in a nine
to one one call sometimes.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
So well, next week will be you'll have fun here.
If you've come up, you've seen the studio, you've visited,
you've in fact, a lot of your old coworkers were
here when you came. Right.
Speaker 1 (07:11):
Well, let me let me tell you something for people
who don't know. Because War was the first radio station
I was ever interviewed on. I was the newspaper Boy
of the Year. I had gone to Washington, DC, got
an award for Richard Nixon and my first interview was
with Arlene Frances Whoad afternoons mid mid days, and I
got the bug. You know what it's like. You had
(07:33):
the bug for years, I've had the bug. And then
when Bob Grant went to War, I mean it was
a continuation and by the way. I remember when I
transported all of his items from WABC where they exiled
him to wr and then he kicked off bucks over
at WABC. You remember that you worked with him at WBCA,
back with r Peter Strauss and Ellens.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
That's true, although Bob Grant and I didn't get along.
So Bob Grant was a a complicated guy. I think
you'd agree off the air, no.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Doubt about it. But let me tell you something. He
was magic on the radio, and that's all it counts. Yeah,
that's all accounts. And that's what you've been for so
many years, Mark Simone. So to be able to substitute
for you a while away, I mean, it doesn't get
any better than that. And I listened to wo R.
Now you've got a lot of great shows. I have
no reason to listen to anything else, including always blaming
(08:28):
Curtigs WABC, the other station.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
But since you announced you're going to be here, did
they contact you? Have you heard from anybody there?
Speaker 1 (08:36):
Oh? They're worried, aren't They're worried? Because remember I haven't
told the true story of what went on there, all
that drop out. You got to drop out? Where do
you think it started? Mark. It started at WABC, and
there are a lot of bones buried there. And the
question is, in the two weeks that you've given me
the opportunity of management at WOR and iHeart the substitute
(08:58):
for you, will I dig up any of those bones
and air they junk to what went on during the
most historical and unprecidented mayor old campaign in the history
of New York City politics.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Well, I wouldn't go after them, but I can't just
blame them. I heard this from every Upper East Side idiot,
every Hedge fund idiot. Curtis can't win. Curtis knit that
was ridiculous. He's got to drop out. It was ridiculous.
And as you say, these guys made billions at what
they know and have never made a penny given political
advice to anybody.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
So, by the way, where's their friend Andrew Cuomo? Where he.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Wait?
Speaker 1 (09:37):
You go as he fled to Florida like he said
he would do if Joran Mondommi got elected. Man, come on, Mark,
you know everything where is into?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
I think they now realized we were right. This guy
couldn't win anything anymore. And I don't think we're done
with him. He'll try and come back again, but hey,
we're out of time. But everybody listened. Next week, for
the next two weeks Curtis Ly will be filling in
for me ten to noon. Curtisly with ten to noon,
be listening, and of course follow him on Instagram and
Twitter and all of that. So well, Curtis, good luck.
(10:08):
Next week I'll be listening, have a good time.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
Well, thank you. I know where all the boats are
buried them to bury them, and I may be digging
them up for the two weeks that you're away.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
All right, we'll talk to you again soon. Thanks, take care,
Thank you Mary. Thanks, yeah, make sure next week. I'll
be off next week, in the week after I've been
taking the next two weeks off, final two weeks of
the year by Christmas break. Curtis will be here every morning.
This should be really interesting stuff. Curtis every morning for
the next two weeks ten to noon here on seven
(10:40):
to ten WR
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