Every once in awhile, on the Howard Stern show, they will play a clip of Stephen Hawking praising the show and saying how much he really loves Howard and he even ends with the famous Howard Stern caller ending: “F Jackie”. Is this really Stephen Hawking?
Serious doubts here. Never heard the clip.
If it was in a computer generated voice at a rate of 15 to 20 words per minute it would become at least a litle less far fetched.
The motor neurone disease that forces him to use a voice synthesiser has aflicted him for quite awhile now.
Would Hawking really waste his time with Stern? I think it more likely that he would be posting at SDMB.
Interesting thing about Stephen Hawking’s voice: As it is completely artificial, anyone with a cheap text-to-speech program can reproduce it exactly. You could have it say things Hawking would never say, simply by typing in text and running the program. I’d imagine that the speech is just one of Stern’s jokes. Take it with a grain of salt.
Well, yea, ummm, everyone knows about his voice and yes it was in a computer generated voice at around 15-20 wpm.
-Of course, the title of this thread was supposed to be “The Mighty Stephen Hawking?” not “The Might…” 
I was in a subway somewhere recently (can’t remember where), and Stephen Hawking was announcing the stations. At least that was my first thought. Then I realized that they must be using the same computer program that generates his voice to generate the announcements. I guess I’ve just heard Hawking enough that I think of the computer as “his” voice.
Well since I’ve realized over a long period of time that i am virtually the only Stern fan on this board I should have known better than to think this question would get answered…BUT, on the other hand, I’ve also realized over time that there are a SHITLOAD of Simpsons fans on this board, so…Was it really Hawking when he was on the Simpsons? (And don’t say they NEVER use fake voices because they do…they fake presidents voices and on an episode (rerun) last night i noticed they faked Lorne Michaels’ voice)
Yes, Hawking was a real guest star on the Simpsons. He was listed in the credits and everything.
Hawking’s name was in the credits at the end of the Simpsons episode. That makes me think that it was indeed him.
If http://www.mchawking.com can do it, a professional radio show can certainly duplicate a computer-generated voice.
That was actually Hawking on The Simpsons. He’s also done Futurama. Also, I think a few of those “faked” voices are simply uncredited ones, for whatever reason. The only uncredited actual famous person’s voice I know of, though, was Michael Jackson’s, in that early Cuckoo’s Nest-esque episode.
I really don’t think it’d be him on Stern, though, and if they’ve only been using his voice for the last six months or so, it’s possible they got the idea from http://www.mchawking.com
Pfft. Previewing this, I see most of what I’ve just typed has been said in the last ten minutes or so. Oh well.
Did some quick web searching and the only serious connection between the two I could find was that they are both “famous atheists”.
Didn’t find any mention of a fake Stephen Hawking promo, either. So it isn’t contraindicated either.
Where would Stephen Hawking even get a chance to listen to Howard Stern? Is his show broadcast in the U.K.?
Also, Dustin Hoffman used a fake name.
Hawking is also (supposedly) a fan of… well… nekkid girls. In the eighties, he bet Kip Manley (another physicist) that no black holes would be discovered by such-and-such a time. The wager was a year’s subscription to Penthouse.
I’ve no idea whether this is apocryphal, but I don’t think it is. The original source was somethign like Time. But that’s certainly another similarity with Stern. 
As to the OP–perhaps the people at Snopes could help you out?
LL
You’re not the only guy who appreciates satire in it’s more prurient forms, Cisco. I also listen when driving to work. I have since about 1987. I do adore the brilliance of the Simpsons…but there is a good time and place for Stern, Quivers & Co.
Cartooniverse
This is kinda true. In A Brief History Of Time Hawking talks about a bet between him and Kip Manley. The wager was a year’s subscription to Penthouse for Kip or a year’s subscription to Popular Mechanic (I think) for Stephen.
Stephen conceded the bet and gave Kip the year’s subscription to him, much to the dismay of his wife.
slight hijack-
Yes, Hawking was a guest star on the Simpsons. Erroneous, your name befits you, but have no fear. It’s a popularly held misconception that Jackson did the voice for that Simpsons episode. The listing was one John Paul Jay (I’m pretty sure), who also was given a credit in the Flaming Moe episode, as the singer of the fake Cheers theme “Flaming Moe’s”.
And yes, Dustin Hoffman was indeed the infamous “Sam Etic”. With jokes like that, how could the simpsons have gone wrong?
Commonly held misconception my right buttock (not to sound confrontational or anything).
This from the guide to the episode in question on snpp.com:
Also, about a year ago, Harry Shearer was in Australia for a couple of weeks and appeared twice on the Tv show, The Panel. Of course, he was asked if it was really Michael Jackson, and instead of being all ambiguous about it, he simply said “yes, it was.”
Back on topic, and I may well be erroneous about this one, but doesn’t Hawking live in England? Would he even be able to listen to Howard Stern over there?
The bet was with Kip Thorne, at CalTech, about whether Cygnus X-1 was a black hole. Hawking’s claim was a subscription to Private Eye magazine, against Penthouse for Thorne.
Hawking conceded the bet.
Two notes:
Hawking also played himself in an episode of StarTrek TNG.
Stern’s show is available in the UK as part of the Sky Broadcasting System.