Former Pittsburgh radio host Larry O'Brien, known via 'O’Brien & Garry' show, dies at 81

Pittsburgh radio host Larry O’Brien, who comprised half of the popular morning duo “O’Brien & Garry” for 20 years, has died.

“He was a funny, bright man, and he kept up on Pittsburgh sports until the very end,” his wife, Winkie O’Brien, said from their home in Hilton Head, S.C.

The couple, married for 45 years, retired to a golf course community in 1999, which Mrs. O’Brien said delighted her husband to no end.

“He played three times a week up until nearly the end,” Winkie said. “The Steelers, Penguins and golf: That’s what Larry loved.”

Larry O’Brien died April 3 from complications of pneumonia after suffering from a string of illnesses that included COPD and kidney disease. He was 81.

Social media posts mourning O’Brien’s passing recall his “insane talent” and had people wondering “if Heaven got a new morning show.”

The Toledo native shot to fame in the 1970s with his edgy yet endearing humor on 1250 WTAE-AM and its sister station, 96.1 WHTX-FM.

Together with longtime radio partner John Garry Lindemulder, the pair was dynamic and dominated the airwaves from 5 to 10 a.m. in the late 1970s, ’80s and ’90s.

Lindemulder died in September at 91.

At their peak, “O’Brien & Garry” were known for effortless riffing. Their more well-known skits included “Mr. Science and Little Jimmy” and “Lt. Macho.”

“They really were beloved. They were the funniest thing to happen since Rege Cordic,” Winkie said, referring to a KDKA Radio host.

“You could always tell who was listening in their cars because they would be laughing so hard.”

The pair was often prodded to pen a book, but it never came to be.

Still, they kept in touch after their retirements in 1997.

“They were like brothers,” Winkie said. “They still talked once or twice a week after all those years.”

A native of Washington, Pa., Winkie was an actress who met her husband during a commercial shoot. She said he would continue to hire her for on-air spots over the years until the pair eventually started dating and married.

“It was so wonderful to spend my life with someone who was just so funny,” she said.