Mancow drops lawsuit against Loop boss

Erich Mancow Muller

Veteran Chicago radio personality Erich Mancow Muller has dropped the lawsuit he filed against his boss, saying the two had agreed to put past differences behind them and work together amicably.

On his first day back from vacation as morning host at Cumulus Media classic rock WLUP FM 97.9, Muller confirmed Wednesday that he withdrew the suit after meeting last month with Marv Nyren, vice president and market manager of Cumulus Chicago.

“I’m excited about our relationship in 2018,” Muller said. “Our relationship a decade ago was awful. But people change, and I really believe he’s a sincere cat who’s looking after my best interests.”

Marv Nyren

Shortly after Nyren was hired in November, Muller sued him in Cook County Circuit Court, claiming he had “suffered emotionally and physically with the prospect that Nyren will continue his efforts to retaliate against him.” The suit sought unspecified monetary damages.

Muller’s court filing recounted numerous incidents around the time Nyren fired Muller from WKQX FM 101.1, when Nyren was regional vice president and market manager for Emmis Communications, then owner of the alternative rock station. In 2007 Muller sued Nyren and Emmis for $6 million for allegedly making false and disparaging statements as part of a “pattern of malicious acts” against Muller. That suit ended with an undisclosed settlement in 2011.

The latest suit was intended to “prevent the pattern of retaliation that has occurred in the past from continuing in the future,” according to Muller's attorney. But now it’s just a memory.

On Wednesday Nyren said he was “glad to be working with Mancow again and appreciating his talents and all he means to Cumulus Chicago without any distractions,” adding: “No one is a bigger fan of his show today more than me.”

Muller described Nyren as “very gracious” in their meeting, saying: “I was brought up to believe that when somebody says they’re sorry, that’s it. He said we’d had a bad relationship before, and if I’d give him a chance he’d be my biggest advocate. We’re all a little bit wiser hopefully. I shook his hand and said, ‘Let’s go to work.’

“To me it’s a very beautiful story,” Muller added. “I get very choked up by it.”