As I have said elsewhere on the site, Russell is much more affable in person - face-to-face in conversation - than he appears to be from afar. That is my opinion. He was a blast at the 2004 Mohican Gathering, but as you can probably tell if you read our earlier interview with him, he was somewhat adversarial from a distance.
I will affirm what Rich said. I came to the 2004 Gathering prepared not to like him, and went away exactly the opposite opinion. You need to meet him in person.
"Les deux pieds contre la muraille et la tete sous le robinet"