Friday, July 20, 2007

Friday-Monday, July 20-23, 2007

Will Seven "Dirty Words" be reduced to "One" ???

It could happen if the FCC is empowered to take action for just one indiscretion, one expletive, by either a TV or radio broadcaster. The Senate Commerce Committee voted to approve that bill that would give the FCC greater authority then ever to take action against violators. The bill must now be adopted in order for it to be enacted and the NAB won't stand for it...

National Broadcasters Association executive Dennis Wharton will have none of it: "this bill is premised on the notion that broadcasters drop f-bombs and s-words with impunity, that claim is patently false." ...

The FCC policy as it stands now is to not take action against single or fleeting utterances of expletives on the air, as long as those expletives aren't used in a sexually explicit way. The bill will now go to the main Senate floor for further debate and a possible vote...

The poster boy for the way indecency laws are now written is George Carlin. In 1973, a listener complained to the FCC that his son had heard a routine, "Filthy Words" from 'Occupation: Foole' on WBAI, the Pacifica Foundation FM station in New York City. Pacifica received a citation from the FCC which sought to fine Pacifica for allegedly violating FCC regulations which prohibited broadcasting "obscene" material. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the FCC action by a vote of 5-4, ruling that the routine was "indecent but not obscene". From that day on, the FCC had authority to prohibit such broadcasts during hours when children were likely to be among the audience (FCC v. Pacifica Foundation, 438 U.S. 726 (1978)...

As recently as 2003, California U.S. Rep. Doug Ose introduced a bill to outlaw the broadcast of Carlin's seven "dirty words", including compound use of any of the words or phrases. For years Carlin has defiantly used the words but only on HBO specials...

So here we go. Will seven "dirty words" be reduced to one? It could happen. For years all programmers lived in fear that one of their jocks would utter an "obscenity" and it would be all over. It may go back to that again. Stand by...


10 Timeline Memories:

  1. 1858] Play Ball: All-Star baseball teams from Brooklyn and Manhattan play the 1st in a series of 3 games at Fashion Park Race Course on Long Island. For the 1st time admission (50 cents) is charged for watching a game. It will be 11 more years before the 1st players, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, will get paid to play...
  2. 1931] The 1st simulcast: CBS airs the 1st radio and TV simulcast. The show features Kate Smith, George Gershwin and New York City Mayor Jimmy Walker...
  3. 1940] #1 with a bullet: Billboard publishes its 1st "Music Popularity Chart". The 1st #1 hit is "I'll Never Smile Again" by the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra featuring singer Frank Sinatra...
  4. 1958] Curtains: After a decade on the air, the final episode of "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts" airs. Stars that cut their musical teeth on this show include Rosemary Clooney, Pat Boone, Steve Lawrence, Connie Francis and Patsy Cline. Elvis Presley flunked his audition in 1955. Here's a parody clip of Jerry Lester doing a take-off on Godfrey: http://youtube.com/watch?v=12DF6mdx_EM&mode=related&search= ...1968] Jane Asher breaks her engagement to Paul McCartney on a live British TV show...1976] Hank Aaron hits his 755th and final home run off of Angels pitcher Jerry Augustine. With Barry Bonds just 2 away from tying the record, what pitcher will give up home run 756??? 1993] White House deputy counsel Vince Foster is found shot to death in a park near Washington, D.C. His death is ruled a suicide...
  5. 1969] "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind": With that said Neil Armstrong becomes the 1st man to set foot on the moon and here's the landing: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ioN-kyV3V9M&mode=related&search ...
  6. 1984] Vanessa the undressa: Vanessa Williams is asked to resign as Miss America for posing nude in Penthouse. Suzette Charles replaces her. Vanessa became the 1st black woman chosen, Suzette, the 2nd...
  7. 1988] Vote for me: Boston's Michael Dukakis is chosen as the Democrat's presidential nominee. I used to see Dukakis on the same Green line, Riverside train that I used to take, back in the late 60s...
  8. 1997] Busted: Seven are arrested after the NYPD finds scores of deaf Mexicans kept in slave-like conditions and forced to peddle trinkets for smugglers who had brought them into the U.S...
  9. 2004] UN resolution: The U.N. General Assembly passes a resolution demanding that Israel tear down the barrier it was building to seal off the West Bank...
  10. 2005] Happy Trails: Star Trek's 'Scotty' a.k.a. James Doohan, passes away from pneumonia at 85. Some of his ashes are launched into space...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Gisele Bundchen (27), Josh ("Lost") Holloway (38), Carlos Santana (60) "Oye Como Va": http://youtube.com/watch?v=LpPb2cVswlI , Kim Carnes (61), Dame Diana Rigg (69), Nelson Doubleday Jr. (74), Sally Ann Howes (77) and Chuck Daly (77)...

Timeline Countdown: 7 days until BB HOF induction, 10 days until all NFL training camps are open and 15 days until the NFL HOF induction...

Saturday, July 21, 2007...

10 Timeline Memories:

  1. 1925] Scoping it out: The "Monkey Trial" ends in Dayton (TN) with John T. Scopes convicted of violating the state law for teaching "Darwin's theory of evolution". The conviction is later overturned. Scopes was heard muttering "that judge is an ape" as he leaves the courtroom...
  2. 1957] Another 1st: Althea Gibson becomes the 1st black woman to win a major U.S. tennis title when she wins the Women's National Clay Court singles competition...
  3. 1961] Space Race: Gus Grissom becomes the 2nd American to rocket into a sub-orbital pattern around the Earth on the Liberty Bell 7. Alan Shepard was the 1st...1969] Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin blast off from the moon aboard the lunar module...1998] 74-year old Alan Shepard passes away, a victim of leukemia...
  4. 1975] Say it ain't so, Joe: As a member of the Mets, Joe Torre bounces into 4 double-plays. Each time he follows a hit by Felix Millan who wishes Torre would become a manager...
  5. 1976] Outbreak: The 1st outbreak of "Legionnaire's" disease is reported in Philadelphia...
  6. 1983] Don't let the rain come down: Diana Ross and her fans get drenched in Central Park and an unruly crowd riots in an ugly scene. Over 100 arrests are made...
  7. 1987] Check out those legs: Mary Hart of "Entertainment Tonight" has her legs insured by Lloyd's of London for $2 million (her liver for $500,000, her kidneys for $250,000 and her earrings for $100,000)...
  8. 1999] Bodies found: Navy divers find the bodies of John F. Kennedy Jr., wife Carolyn and sister-in-law Lauren Bessette in the wreckage of Kennedy's plane in the Atlantic Ocean off the shore of Martha's Vineyard...
  9. 2000] Innocent: Special Counsel John C. Danforth concludes "with 100% certainty" that the federal government is innocent of any wrongdoing in the Waco siege that killed 80 members of the Branch Davidian sect near Waco (TX) in 1993...
  10. 2002] Chapter 11: WorldCom Inc. files for bankruptcy protection about a month after disclosing it had inflated profits by nearly $4 billion through deceptive accounting...

Music Memories:

[To ensure accuracy of dates and content, multiple reference sources are used in each timeline]...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Brandi Chastain (39), Robin Williams (56), Cat Stevens a.k.a. Yusuf Islam (59), Jon Lovitz (60), Edward Herrmann (64), Janet Reno (69) and Kay Starr (85) seen here with one of her biggest hits: http://youtube.com/watch?v=X3Es-UJepFQ ...

Timeline Countdown: 6 days until BB HOF induction, 9 days until all NFL training camps are open and 14 days until the NFL HOF induction...

Sunday, July 22, 2007...

10 Timeline Memories:

  1. 1916] They forgot the "un": During a Preparedness Day parade in San Francisco, a bomb goes off killing 10...
  2. 1963] A Sonny day: Sonny Liston defends his heavyweight crown with a KO of Floyd Patterson (for the second time) in one round. The fight in Las Vegas was a rematch of a 1960 fight and here's that round: http://youtube.com/watch?v=4AFvKW8Ghg4 ...
  3. 1967] Debuting on this date: The rock group Vanilla Fudge debuts in New York City. Here's VF from a similar 1967 appearance: http://youtube.com/watch?v=8lhIc-ByUmU ...
  4. 1977] Curtains: Tony Orlando surprises everyone, including Dawn, when he announces on stage in Cohasset (MA) that he was retiring from performing...
  5. 1979] It's evil, oooooooooo: The Reverend Richard Penniman a.k.a. Little Richard warns his North Richmond (CA) congregation against the evils of rock and roll music...
  6. 1991] He's busted - we're disgusted: Milwaukee police arrest Jeffrey Dahmer after finding the remains of 11 victims in his apartment. Dahmer confesses to 17 murders and is sentenced to life in prison...
  7. 1994] Guilty as charged: O.J. Simpson pleads innocent to the murders of his wife Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman...1995] Susan Smith is convicted by a jury in Union (SC) of 1st-degree murder for drowning her 2 sons...
  8. 2003] Welcome back: Months after her P.O.W. ordeal, Pvt. 1st Class Jessica Lynch returns home to a hero's welcome in Elizabeth (WV)...
  9. 2003] Saddam's sons: Saddam Hussein's sons Odai and Qusai are killed by U.S. forces when they storm their villa in Mosul, Iraq...
  10. 2004] Grave report: The Sept. 11 commission issues a report saying America's leaders failed to grasp the gravity of terrorist threats before 911...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

David Spade (43), Albert Brooks (60), Don Henley (60) is 60 'The End of Innocence'?: http://youtube.com/watch?v=NnOP1WKTiLc , Danny Glover (60), Estelle (Ronettes) Bennett (63), Bobby Sherman (64), Ron Turcotte (66), Alex Trebek (67), Chuck Jackson (70), Louise Fletcher (73), Oscar de la Renta (75), Orson Bean (79), Margaret Whiting (83) and Bob Dole (84)...

Timeline Countdown: 5 days until BB HOF induction, 8 days until all NFL training camps will be open and 13 days until NFL HOF induction...

Monday, July 23, 2007...

10 Timeline Memories:

  1. 1715] Gotta Light?: The 1st lighthouse in America is authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island (MA)...
  2. 1827] Do the swim: The 1st swimming school in the U.S. opens in Boston...
  3. 1886] Brodie does it: Saloonkeeper Steve Brodie must have been sampling the schnapps. Brodie jumps from the Brooklyn Bridge and survives...
  4. 1904] One scoop or two?: The ice cream cone is invented by Charles E. Menches during the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis...
  5. 1950] Back in the saddle again: "The Gene Autry Show" premieres on CBS-TV and runs for 6 years...
  6. 1986] Wedding Bells: Britain's Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson walk down the aisle at Westminster Abbey in London. They will divorce 10 years later...
  7. 1997] Lost and found: Police find the body of Andrew Cunanan, the suspected killer of designer Gianni Versace, on a houseboat in Miami Beach. Cunanan was believed to be a suicide...
  8. 2000] Baby Tiger: Tiger Woods becomes the youngest pro to complete a career Grand Slam when he wins the British Open at 24...
  9. 2000] Vive le Lance: Lance Armstrong wins his second Tour de France...
  10. 2003] Clergy bust: The Massachusetts Attorney General issues a report citing that members of the clergy and others in the Boston Archdiocese probably sexually abused more than 1,000 people over a period of 6 decades...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Daniel Radcliffe a.k.a. Harry Potter (18), Omar ("House") Epps (34), Philip Seymour Hoffman (40), Slash (42), Woody Harrelson (46), David Essex (60) "Rock On": http://youtube.com/watch?v=j_mzadEFuP4 , Tony Joe White (64) "Polk Sallad Annie": http://youtube.com/watch?v=fRF24LY5pvw , Don Imus (67) and Gloria DeHaven (82)...

Timeline Countdown: 4 days until BB HOF induction, 7 days until all NFL training camps will be open and 12 days until NFL HOF induction...





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