Sal The Stockbroker

The Smoking Gun usually takes aim at bigger fish than Salvatore Governale, but the Howard Stern Show regular is such a pompous, colossal ass that he merits our special attention. Known on-air as "Sal the Stockbroker," the 29-year-old Governale delights in ridiculing and harassing Stern producer Gary "Bababooey" Dell'Abate via a barrage of prank phone calls and parody songs. And while Dell'Abate doesn't need us defending him, well, we just can't help ourselves.
So, Sal, this is your life:

*Before he became the odious "Sal the Stockbroker," Governale was "Sal the Sandwich Maker" and "Sal the Paperboy." Those are just a couple of the amusing entries on Governale's resume, according to documents he has filed with the National Association of Security Dealers. Because Sal works for a brokerage firm (Millennium Security Co., 150 E. 58th Street, NYC), NASD regulations require him to disclose his prior employment history (10 years' worth). Click here for Governale's sorry resume, so that you can marvel at: Sal's stellar education (Suffolk County Community College); his work as a waiter (Houlihan's in Smithtown and Gilbert & Robinson in Lake Grove); his paperboy position with the Daily News; and his stint making subs (J&J Heros in West Islip).

But we are interested in three of his more recent gigs, all of which surely involved Sal's highly refined telephone talents:

*According to the NASD records, Governale worked for almost four years (January 1990 to October 1993) at American Interconnect, a notorious Long Island telemarketing firm. He claims that his employment there ended on October 1, 1993. A month later, in November 1993, American Interconnect's offices were raided by federal agents as part of a large telephone fraud investigation. As this search warrant excerpt shows, criminal probers charged that American Interconnect ran a fraudulent "boiler room" operation where employees solicited donations by falsely claiming they were DEA agents and police officers.

Governale was not charged in the probe, which led to the criminal conviction of American Interconnect's six top officials (the scam's two ringleaders were found guilty at trial in late-1998, according to New York federal court records). We'd wager that Sal was still working at American Interconnect when the feds kicked in the door. But that wouldn't look so hot on his resume. And we're sure Sal claims that he had no idea that the firm was engaged in such rampant criminality--all of which involved duplicitous telephone tactics.

*Not long after Sal left American Interconnect, he landed at Investors Associates, Inc., a sleazy stock brokerage. The now-defunct firm was charged with improper sales practices by several states (Florida and New York to name a few) and was sanctioned by the NASD. We're sure Sal had no idea what was going on at Investors Associates. And he would never have used the kind of deceptive telephone script described in this December 1998 Harper's Magazine story. Poor Sal must have been an innocent bystander as telephone scams flourished around him--again.

*Governale then landed at Duke & Co., a New York brokerage firm that--amazingly!!--was also involved in a wide variety of questionable business practices, including high-pressure telephone sales. Some guys just have the worst luck. After fining a Duke principal $5 million in 1997, the NASD last year suspended the brokerage company.

*Sure, that's a tawdry employment trail. But here's something even more troubling: Sal turns 30 on October 8th and remains a proud member of the Kiss Army (we're not sure if he wears makeup to shows). Click here or here for some pathetic Governale prose on two Kiss performances. But if you want some real douche chills, check out this bizarre game Sally Boy invented.

*Finally, Governale is running a side business selling rock video bootlegs on eBay, the online auction site. Sal, that shit is illegal! Frankly, we think Kiss and Beastie Boys would be mighty pissed were they to find out. Click here to check out Sal's eBay offerings (his handle is salstkbkr@aol.com).