Ramona was definitely the wizard behind the curtain in many ways. It was really the Art and Ramona Bell show. She found and booked the guests. She was always there listening to the show. I'm sure they discussed things during breaks and she was there for him after every show. Ramona was his muse and inspiration. The light was gone out of his voice after her passing. I'm sure it wasn't as much fun for him
And he always hated dealing with the Suits
Absofuckinglutely.
Being asthmatic, Art must have had to limit his smoking around Ramona.
I speculate that he hit the cancer sticks hard in the post Ramona/pre-Asia time.
Plus, once PremSuck took over, Art was probably not as well prepared because the guests were booked without his consult. The stress might have had an effect.
Change in compression tools, mixing boards, microphone power supplies, etc. might have had an impact.