RTE unveil memorial to Gerry Ryan

hawley

Our memorial for the late, great Gerry Ryan.

Always missed.

Bard

Was actually wondering how long it'd take, if someone put up a thread here about this, before someone made unnecessary snide remarks about Gerry's drug issues. Not long, as it turns out.

How hard is it really to put aside someone's failings and remember them for the good they did?

This is a nice simple memorial from those who remember him personally and cared about him. He had a lot of friends in RTÉ..- fair play to them for memorialising him in their own way.

bbability

any references to drug taking or subjects or than radio in relation to Gerry. Ryan will receive a one month ban

It's very tasteful, IMO, and it's a good thing to remember the good things about someone. Nobody's perfect, not one of us.

NormanNicetouch

"All in the best possible taste"

Kenny Everett

godtabh

Where is it?

Lucy and Harry

Did my TV licence pay for that?

CountyHurler

I'm bursting with so many jokes here, and not allowed to say anything.. It's like that episode of Friends where Chandler wasnt allowed to crack any jokes... :mad:

Lucy and Harry

I never even listened to his show.I do not care if he did in his private life as he was around the music industry and stuff happens and I do not judge him in any way but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

the dark phantom

Greatest Irish presenter ever..Really liked that man..

skallywag

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

I never even listened to his show.I do not care if he did in his private life as he was around the music industry and stuff happens and I do not judge him in any way but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

See your point, but why have you asked the same thing twice on the same thread within 12 minutes?

mountcisco

Bard wrote: »

Was actually wondering how long it'd take, if someone put up a thread here about this, before someone made unnecessary snide remarks about Gerry's drug issues. Not long, as it turns out.

How hard is it really to put aside someone's failings and remember them for the good they did?

This is a nice simple memorial from those who remember him personally and cared about him. He had a lot of friends in RTÉ..- fair play to them for memorialising him in their own way.

What unnecessary snide remarks are you referring to? Yours is the second post so are you saying the OP is a snide remark?

skallywag

mountcisco wrote: »

What unnecessary snide remarks are you referring to? Yours is the second post so are you saying the OP is a snide remark?

I'm guessing a mod removed some posts before Bard posted.

Lucy and Harry

skallywag wrote: »

See your point, but why have you asked the same thing twice on the same thread within 12 minutes?

No one will answer my question lol too much coffee :pac:

Greatest Irish presenter ever..Really liked that man..

But did we really know him at all or did we just know the front?

the dark phantom

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

No one will answer my question lol too much coffee :pac:


But did we really know him at all or did we just know the front?

But we could say that about a lot of people.Just because he had a drug problem didn't mean he was a monster, Far from it he was a compassionate man.

mountcisco

I was suspicious about this and looking at the OP's previous I'm convinced this thread is a pisstake.

Fresh Pots

mountcisco wrote: »

I was suspicious about this and looking at the OP's previous I'm convinced this thread is a pisstake.

Don't think so.

http://m.rte.ie/ten/news/2014/1003/649854-gerry-ryan-memorial-bronze-tile-laid-in-rte/

mountcisco

Fresh Pots wrote: »

Don't think so.



Thanks Fresh. Apologies to all especially
Hawley

Fr Tod Umptious

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

No one will answer my question lol too much coffee :pac:


But did we really know him at all or did we just know the front?

Yes your license fee did probably pay for it.

But I don't see a reason to get it on your high horse about it, as you seem to be doing.

Taxes go to pay for monuments and memorials all over the country, some to people we like others we don't.

Do you question them all the time too ?

NormanNicetouch

CountyHurler wrote: »

I'm bursting with so many jokes here, and not allowed to say anything.. It's like that episode of Friends where Chandler wasnt allowed to crack any jokes... :mad:

It pretty much writes its own gags. They really shouldn't have made it so easy for us.

Cork_chick_94

If Gerry Ryan was still alive, he would be working for Newstalk now not RTE.

Busted Flat.

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Yes your license fee did probably pay for it.

But I don't see a reason to get it on your high horse about it, as you seem to be doing.

Taxes go to pay for monuments and memorials all over the country, some to people we like others we don't.

Do you question them all the time too ?

If people in their work place feel they have to remember him in such a way, let them contribute to it. The general public should not be forced to contribute, through their licence fee.

Fr Tod Umptious

Busted Flat. wrote: »

If people in their work place feel they have to remember him in such a way, let them contribute to it. The general public should not be forced to contribute, through their licence fee.

But RTE is a public body rather than a private one.

It no different to a memorial to a local politician outside a council office

Don't get me wrong, i was never a fan of Ryan, but I still don't get the outrage over such a simple memorial.

end of the road

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

I never even listened to his show.I do not care if he did in his private life as he was around the music industry and stuff happens and I do not judge him in any way but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

it doesn't matter. get over it.

Fuzzy Clam

It says "The Ryan Line is Open". **** if I can get through!! I'll keep trying......

Busted Flat.

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

But RTE is a public body rather than a private one.

It no different to a memorial to a local politician outside a council office

Don't get me wrong, i was never a fan of Ryan, but I still don't get the outrage over such a simple memorial.

IMO an overrated clown that spoke about masturbating twice a day while his kids were still going to school. I think that about sums his talents up.

scwazrh

Busted Flat. wrote: »

The general public should not be forced to contribute, through their licence fee.

Would my licence fee have been lower if we had not paid for it ?

Irrespective of whether or not you liked him as a presenter , the general public has not in anyway paid any more money in any form for anything relating to Gerry's remembrance.

end of the road

Busted Flat. wrote: »

IMO an overrated clown that spoke about masturbating twice a day while his kids were still going to school. I think that about sums his talents up.

yet he still brought in the listeners and advertisers, so he actually knew what he was doing and actually had a talent. oh, wait, of course i forgot, he worked for RTE so therefore by default he was **** and had no talent what soever. sorry i forgot that.

Busted Flat.

end of the road wrote: »

yet he still brought in the listeners and advertisers, so he actually knew what he was doing and actually had a talent. oh, wait, of course i forgot, he worked for RTE so therefore by default he was **** and had no talent what soever. sorry i forgot that.

How many millions were spent by pravda trying to enhance his career into tv, all went in failure, who paid for that.

Lapin

What a miserable petty piece of cribbing this is -

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

Did my TV licence pay for that?

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

.....but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

No one will answer my question.....

I never had much time for Ryan myself but there is no denying he had a huge presence and will be remembered as one of the most popular broadcasters the counry has ever seen.

I don't begrudge his fans, colleagues and family this modest memorial.

Nor would I begrudge the miniscule fraction of the licence fee it would cost to pay for it. That goes for any presenter who was around as long as Ryan was.

Like him or loathe him (and I fall into the latter category), he made a sizable contribution to Irish radio and had his fans.

Its a not exactly the Wellington Monument we're talking about here. Just a simple plaque.

He deserves that much.

Why don't you write to RTÉ and ask them for a rebate of your portion of your licence fee if you are that petulant about it.

Don't forget to ask them to reimburse you for the cost of the ink you used to write it while you're at it.

It probably cost you more than the proportion of the licence.

SpaceTime

I think what people forget is that during the late 80s and 90s he talked about taboo subjects in a way that cracked open a lot of Ireland's cold, conservative self-censorship and state censorship.

By the 2000s maybe it had gone stale but there was a serious need to shake Ireland out of the 1950s which had remained very much intact well into the 80s.

I still think he was a hugely influential and groundbreaking Irish broadcaster and very much deserves to be remembered for that.

That's also about the most low key, understated and subtle monument I've ever seen for a celeb.

NormanNicetouch

The Ryan Line is open yet we didn't have a whisper from his closest RTE friends and colleagues. Didn't have a clue. Here we come with Gay Byrne and Dave Fanning. Pat Kenny couldn't believe it.

If this is genuine, it's got to be one of the greatest cock ups going. No doubt Gerry himself would get a laugh, but in the name of God, giving what came out in his inquest, what were they thinking?

skallywag

It's petty to have a moan about license fees paying for what anyway looks a pretty low key memorial.

One does have to wonder at the phrasing used though, it is indeed unfortunate.

One way or the other the man was iconic. For me personally his last years represented everything that was rotting in Ireland of the time.

Nody

//MOD

Since some people appear unaware there are a few long standing rules on boards; one of them is do not argue with a mod decision on thread. Anyone who's arguing with a mod decision on thread will be taking a forum vacation; if you got an issue with a mod decision (or don't know which mod did what) you should PM the Mod / Mods and ask (contrary to popular belief Mods don't randomly remove things for the heck of it).

//MOD

constitutionus

CountyHurler wrote: »

I'm bursting with so many jokes here, and not allowed to say anything.. It's like that episode of Friends where Chandler wasnt allowed to crack any jokes... :mad:

now i know how the shinners felt in the 80s !

SpaceTime

The guy is a broadcasting legend regardless of anything else.

I think Irish people (unlike many Americans) are capable of understanding that public figures aren't perfect. The way he died was very sad in may ways and a total waste of what should have been a very long career.

Also, I don't see why people are shocked that his colleagues and friends were not aware of this aspect of his life. That's fairly normal in circumstances like this you don't always know everything about your workmates and friends.

By all accounts he was really liked by his colleagues and was always good fun to work with.

I think we need to be able to just accept that he had his flaws and his baggage and still be able to remember him as a broadcasting legend.

I would hate to see Irish society go back to a situation where everything in public life is fake and squeaky clean. That's what's currently destroying American politics - if you're a candidate you've got to be without bleamish which is resulting in very odd characters standing for office who aren't remotely representative of real American society and it's turned a lot of people off standing and off voting.

I'd hate to see Ireland becoming that moralising and preachy again.

Sometimes you've just got to accept the whole person, he had his good and bad points. Best we can do is learn from his mistakes and celebrate the many positive contributions he made to Irish broadcasting and social change.

Rubberchikken

i always think a person has to earn a memorial.

SpaceTime

SpaceTime wrote: »

The guy is a broadcasting legend regardless of anything else.

I think Irish people (unlike many Americans) are capable of understanding that public figures aren't perfect. The way he died was very sad in may ways and a total waste of what should have been a very long career.

Also, I don't see why people are shocked that his colleagues and friends were not aware of this aspect of his life. That's fairly normal in circumstances like this you don't always know everything about your workmates and friends.

By all accounts he was really liked by his colleagues and was always good fun to work with.

I think we need to be able to just accept that he had his flaws and his baggage and still be able to remember him as a broadcasting legend.

I would hate to see Irish society go back to a situation where everything in public life is fake and squeaky clean. That's what's currently destroying American politics - if you're a candidate you've got to be without bleamish which is resulting in very odd characters standing for office who aren't remotely representative of real American society and it's turned a lot of people off standing and off voting.

I'd hate to see Ireland becoming that moralising and preachy again.

Sometimes you've just got to accept the whole person, he had his good and bad points. Best we can do is learn from his mistakes and celebrate the many positive contributions he made to Irish broadcasting and social change.

All you say is true. However, the wording of the plaque is unfortunate.

SpaceTime

Rubberchikken wrote: »

i always think a person has to earn a memorial.

It's a low key memorial for presenting a long running, very influential and successful radio show at RTE.

Do you seriously think that because of a substance abuse problem someone should be simply erased from history?

History is an account of the past, not a sanitised story.

SpaceTime

[Deleted User] wrote: »

All you say is true. However, the wording of the plaque is unfortunate.

Well it was his slogan and catch phrase but yeah, given the circumstances it was a little bit of an oversight.

Just "Gerry" or something like that might have been safer.

Fr. Ned

As a side issue, how many of Gerry's family are now employed by RTE?

Fr Tod Umptious

Rubberchikken wrote: »

i always think a person has to earn a memorial.

And how has Ryan not earned it ?

Is was extremely successful as a broadcaster.
And the memorial is at RTE.

Its not as if he is replacing O'Connell in the middle of Dublin.

The Muppet

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

I never even listened to his show.I do not care if he did in his private life as he was around the music industry and stuff happens and I do not judge him in any way but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

Post your licence number and I'll check that for you.

NormanNicetouch

hawley wrote: »

Our memorial for the late, great Gerry Ryan.

Always missed.

"The Ryan Lyan is Open" Yet all his best RTE friends and colleagues never heard a whisper, not a thing. Came as a complete shock.

flutered

what will rte do do when the most pompous one departs this life, seen as they were intent upon erecting a bronze in memory of this overbearing git.

Busted Flat.

Rubberchikken wrote: »

i always think a person has to earn a memorial.

Not in semi state bodies, you are entitled to be revered at the peoples expense, it's their self declared right, and get away with it. Especially in an incestuous outfit like RTE.

More Music

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

I never even listened to his show.I do not care if he did in his private life as he was around the music industry and stuff happens and I do not judge him in any way but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

He certainly didn't get it made. I made a donation.

tipptom

flutered wrote: »

what will rte do do when the most pompous one departs this life, seen as they were intent upon erecting a bronze in memory of this overbearing git.

Dobbo is going nowhere baby!!

Bard

skallywag wrote: »

I'm guessing a mod removed some posts before Bard posted.

Spot on.

Chun the Unavoidable

Lucy and Harry wrote: »

I never even listened to his show.I do not care if he did in his private life as he was around the music industry and stuff happens and I do not judge him in any way but I want to know if my licence fee paid for this man who was a stranger to me so he could get this thing made.

Well partly it did of course, and partly paid by advert/sponserhip revenue as those are the only sources of revenue that RTE has.

Rubberchikken wrote: »

i always think a person has to earn a memorial.

he had the highest ratings on the station and brought in the biggest advert money so you cant ask for more than that. indeed the current management have recently stated that the decline of 2FM has been caused by his departure in every way, from his slot. Tubs must have enjoyed that ringing endorsement.

Busted Flat. wrote: »

If people in their work place feel they have to remember him in such a way, let them contribute to it. The general public should not be forced to contribute, through their licence fee.

Well, even if the workers in RTE paid for it, then since their salaries are partly paid for through the licence fee then its the same thing really.

I am not a fan of the afternoon show, in fact, being at work, I never see it. Maybe I should look for a partial refund. I'm far from a fan of the saturday night show and its host, in fact I regard him in much the same way some here regard Gerry Ryan, but that doesnt mean I can look for a partial refund of my licence fee.

In fact I am not even sure how one goes about calculating such things, is there a formula?