Howard Stern Says Bill Maher Should ‘Shut His Mouth’ After ‘Sexist’ and ‘Nutty’ Dig on His Marriage

“I think I’m no longer friends with him,” Howard Stern concluded after Bill Maher made comments about his marriage to wife Beth Stern

Howard Stern at the SiriusXM broadcast facilities in Hollywood, California in October 2019 (left) and Bill Maher during an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”. PHOTO: KEVIN MAZUR/GETTY; RANDY HOLMES VIA GETTY

On Tuesday’s episode of The Howard Stern Show, the 69-year-old radio personality revealed that things between him and the political commentator were tense after Maher, 67, made comments about his marriage.

The remarks were made on an episode of Maher’s Club Random podcast, where he criticized Stern for outwardly expressing his love for his wife of nearly 15 years, Beth Stern, and alluded that his comments were at the detriment of his first wife, Alison Berns.

“How does this gushing about the second wife — how does that make the first wife feel? Could we just not gush about the person while the other person can still hear it?” the Real Time with Bill Maher host asked.

Stern and Berns tied the knot in 1978, but separated in 2000 and finalized their divorce in 2001. He and Beth, an animal rights activist, began dating shortly after meeting at a dinner party in 2000 and tied the knot in 2008. They’ve been together ever since.

Howard Stern and Beth Stern. KEVIN MAZUR/GETTY
Howard Stern and Beth Stern’s Relationship Timeline

The media personality didn’t take kindly to Maher’s comments about his relationships and claimed on Tuesday’s episode of The Howard Stern Show that he “ought to shut his mouth.”

“What a sexist thing to say! Like, what a convoluted, nutty thing to say,” Stern said, firing back. “It’s assuming that he knows something about my first marriage. That, of course, the man must be leaving the woman and the woman must be devastated and be sitting around pining away for her famous man.”

Howard Stern and Alison Berns.STEVE EICHNER/GETTY

He continued, “He ought to shut his mouth! I mean, I don’t think I come on the air every day and say, ‘I love my wife.’ But I thought it was a pretty positive message, to — especially with my audience — to say to guys: ‘Instead of like ragging on our wives, how about talking about that we appreciate them and love them?'”

Arguing that Maher seemed “very worried about my relationship,” Stern revealed that he reached out to him via email and asked him to be honest about his opinions about his life.

“I wrote in an email, I said, ‘Why don’t you give me a phone call? Why don’t you tell me what you think about my life and my marriage since you’re, you know.’ But of course, he never wrote me back,” the America’s Got Talent alum claimed.

“I just wanted to see how brave he was,” he continued. “If he was brave enough to call me and actually get on the phone with me and zero response. I don’t care, though. He can think what he wants.”

“I think I’m no longer friends with him,” he added.

Reps for Maher and Stern did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Howard and Beth Stern.
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Stern got remarried to Beth back in October 2019 in a surprise wedding on The Ellen DeGeneres Show a week after he re-proposed to her during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

With Bachelor alum Colton Underwood officiating the ceremony, Stern shared his vows, “I vow if I marry you, I promise for the rest of my life to watch The Bachelor with you in bed every single night and Bachelor in Paradise.”

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The pair sealed the deal with a kiss and the radio host broke a glass with his right food, per Jewish tradition.