OT: Man in Cathedral-Sex Radio Stunt Dies

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:30 pm

I can't help but find this funny.

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NEW YORK (Sept. 30) - A man who was to appear in court Tuesday on charges of having sex with his girlfriend inside St. Patrick's Cathedral as part of a radio show stunt has died at his home in Virginia, his lawyer said.

Brian Florence, 38, died last Thursday of a heart attack in Alexandria, said the couple's lawyer, Maranda Fritz. She said the funeral was Monday, and his co-defendant and girlfriend, Loretta Lynn Harper, 36, is "still in a state of shock."

The judge adjourned the case until Nov. 6. Fritz said her clients had expected to plead guilty to a minor charge and not receive any jail time.

A third man involved in the case, radio producer Paul Mercurio, 43, pleaded guilty earlier in the day to disorderly conduct. The judge ordered him to perform seven days of community service.

Authorities said a police officer was listening to the "Opie and Anthony Show" in August 2002 when he heard Mercurio say on the air that he was speaking on a cell phone while watching the couple in the cathedral. The officer arrested Florence and Harper shortly afterward in a vestibule a few feet from worshippers.

The stunt had been part of a regular feature in which couples could win prizes for having sex in public places.

The couple's alleged antics inside the landmark cathedral resulted in WNEW-FM firing DJs Greg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia.

<a href="http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article ... c=news%2e6">• source</a>

Redwolf · Post by **Redwolf** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:36 pm

Funny that he died or funny that he'd been caught attempting to do something so crass? Personally, I think both are rather sad. The man must have had serious problems, both physically and emotionally.

Redwolf

U2 · Post by U2 » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:37 pm

Which part did you find funny?

Celtoid · Post by **Celtoid** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:40 pm

Maybe it was ironic and a bit amusing that he had the hutspah to have sex in church but appears to have died at the thought of appearing in court?

mjacob · Post by **mjacob** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:42 pm

The death is sad, I feel bad for his girlfriend and loved ones. The cathedral act is pretty funny, that is if you appriciate offending people that take themselves too seriously. He was awfully young for a heart attack though...

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:47 pm

Quote @ Celtoid

Maybe it was ironic and a bit amusing that he had the hutspah to have sex in church but appears to have died at the thought of appearing in court

Yes.

mjacob · Post by **mjacob** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:49 pm

That seems like a pretty minor crime to me. Actually I don't even see how its a crime at all, but what do you expect from a country founded by puritans?
Hell, that's the best use of a cathedral I've heard of in a long time.
Just teasing...

Redwolf · Post by **Redwolf** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 2:55 pm

Do you people seriously find the thought of someone profaning the sacred space of another so amusing? Would it be so funny if, say, one of our soldiers in Iraq were to urinate on the side of a mosque? Or would it be so absolutely hilarious if someone were to grill steaks and fan the smoke over at the local Hindu temple on Diwali?

What these people did (or attempted to do) was highly offensive. It doesn't, however, detract from the fact that it's terribly sad that a man is dead at the young age of 38.

Redwolf

pthouron · Post by **pthouron** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 3:01 pm

mjacob wrote:That seems like a pretty minor crime to me. Actually I don't even see how its a crime at all, but what do you expect from a country founded by puritans?
Hell, that's the best use of a cathedral I've heard of in a long time.
Just teasing...

I am not a prude and I am not a practicing catholic (or anything, for that matter), but I did take exception to this when it happened. It seemed to be indicative of a trend in our society: the increasing consumption of schlock as entertainment. I don't have a moral or philosophical problem with it, I just don't think it is funny. By and large, Opie and Anthony (and other hosts of similar shows) cater to the more moronic tendencies, which is no demonstration of talent. Howard Stern was marginally funny at one point but now does schlock by rote. The more alarming fact is the number of people who buy into this "corporate sponsered" subversion: oooh, we're being so daring!... Meanwhile, Clear Channel Entertainment rakes in the bucks. It is not OK to say f... or s... on the radio, can't see any nudity on TV, but it is fine to promote shows that tell our kids: "it is OK to lie about who you are in order to get the girl (or guy)". Or shows that let you believe it is funny to have a pair of intellectually challenged people screw in a church...

antstastegood · Post by **antstastegood** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 3:20 pm

I'll bet he died of a mysterious lighnting strike or something like that.

glauber · Post by **glauber** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 3:22 pm

Maybe he died of shame.

mjacob · Post by **mjacob** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 3:36 pm

The aspect of it that's really just the desecration of a special place to some people is offensive to me as well. Then there's the part of it that's just silly and worth a snicker or two. So for me I feel both ways about it.

Maybe this kind of thing reflects how bored people in this country are getting?

Soineanta · Post by **Soineanta** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 3:44 pm

what is going on?? it won't let me post my new topic!! it says I need to email the webmaster. ?!

Soineanta · Post by **Soineanta** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 3:47 pm

...errr...nevermind.

must've been a temporary glitch.

RonKiley · Post by **RonKiley** » Wed Oct 01, 2003 4:02 pm

Now 38 is not young to die from a heart attack. In my rehab class the youngest bypass surgery patient is 29. My daughter's friend died at 29 of a heart attack. The average age is coming down every year.

Ron

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OT: Man in Cathedral-Sex Radio Stunt Dies

OT: Man in Cathedral-Sex Radio Stunt Dies

Funny?