Private Parts

Howard Stern makes his film debut in the role he was born to play: himself. Whether or not you believe that, as one character screams, Stern is the antichrist, this adaptation of the self-proclaimed "King of All Media's" outrageous bestselling autobiography is more mainstream than his fans or critics might have expected. The film charts Stern's tumultuous career and his battles with radio executives who futilely tried to reign him in. At heart, though, this is Stern's ode to his long-suffering, but supportive wife, Alison (Mary McCormick). But fear not, Stern fans. The equal-opportunity offender delivers with such profane bits as a scatological version of the "Match Game" and a visit with the sausage- engulfing Kielbasa Queen. My parents, who had never heard Stern's radio show, liked it. Go figure. Recommended. (K. Lee Benson)