THE FORECAST looks like unemployment for John Bolaris.
The Fox 29 meteorologist, who two years ago survived an encounter with a Russian and Eastern European organized-crime group, could not survive the storm winds of office politics.
Bolaris had been suspended since Dec. 22, but yesterday a Fox spokeswoman confirmed: "We mutually agreed that it was time to part ways." She declined to comment further on the parting.
As we reported on PhillyGossip.com on Dec. 23, Bolaris was suspended indefinitely just days after Playboy magazine published an article about his being drugged and scammed by two European hotties in Miami Beach in March 2010, a story first reported by the Daily News last May.
In Playboy, Bolaris was quoted as saying that he had gone with the women because "I'm a guy. There was the thought I might get laid," and he discussed his reputation as a ladies' man. He also shared nude photos of women on his cellphone with writer Pat Jordan.
Station sources told us that Fox 29 management was upset at how Bolaris came across in the story - the latest occasion in which he upset them - and that he had clashed with GM Patrick Paolini.
Several months ago, sources say, Bolaris came to work, argued with management, then announced that he was sick and went home. The spat stemmed from management not wanting him to interview his friend Lenny Dykstra. Bolaris had offered an exclusive interview with the disgraced ex-Phillie.
Sources close to Bolaris said that the station had accused him in May of leaking the Miami story to the Daily News and that management was upset that he was participating in the Playboy profile about his Miami saga.
The Playboy profile didn't paint Bolaris in a positive light. The article described him as saying that he has "some girls I call filler" to keep him from being lonely.
Bolaris, 54, also was quoted by Playboy as saying that he liked to do "regular blue-collar things" like "watch football naked with my lady and a bottle of wine. Then, the next morning, make breakfast for her, turkey Hot Pockets with egg whites in the microwave."
When the naked football quotes were mentioned on Twitter by Daily News Assistant City Editor Josh Cornfield on Dec. 27, Bolaris tweeted that he "never said that period, that's ridiculous."
"Don't sit back, read and assume, that is the problem with journalism today," he added in another tweet. "You guys can say anything, w/o a clue, lazy."
