Thursday, November 15, 2007

Imus goes rural for his TV coverage...

The I-man loves Country music so maybe it's fitting that when he returns to radio in a couple of weeks (Dec. 3 on WABC) his TV coverage will be on "Rural America's Most Important Network" a.k.a. RFD-TV. Imus will share the network with farm reports, tractor pulls and "a little bit country" minus the "little bit of rock and roll". If you choose to pass on all of those fun events and just watch Imus doing his radio show you might have a problem unless you have DirecTV, EchoStar and some other minor satellite companies. Chances are, oh about 100% that Comcast, Time Warner or whatever cable company you pay an exorbitant amount to watch, does not carry RFD. Time Warner doesn't even carry the NFL or Biography as you all know if you've been reading MPR. That's one of the reasons that FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is proposing to re-regulate the cable industry...

That's what RFD's Patrick Gottsch is hoping for. Gottsch is banking on Imus' political clout and loyal urban fan base to help get his network on the air in major markets like New York and Washington, D.C. Tom Eagan, Oppenheimer & Company analyst adds: "Recent FCC attempts at re-regulating the cable industry will make it easier to get carriage for independent networks (like Hallmark Channel and NFL Network)". And Biography???

Both the New York Daily News (David Hinckley) and New York Post (Peter Lauria) were all over this story this morning and for good reason. There's a lot at stake. Gottsch hopes that over the next two years he can add 20 million homes for a total of 50 million. Agreements with Cablevision, Comcast and Time Warner, would give RFD about 40 million subscribers...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1926] Debuted on this date: The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) debuts with a radio network of 24 stations. The first network broadcast is a 4-hour special from the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria featuring big band music and it probably sounded like the music on this video clip, circa 1927: http://youtube.com/watch?v=2TLQewntE1w ...1940] The Midtown Tunnel linking Manhattan and Queens opens to traffic...1956] Elvis Presley's movie career is launched when "Love Me Tender" premieres at the New York Paramount Theater. The film will earn back it's $1 million cost in just 3 days. Over the next 13 years Elvis will appear in 33 movies...1969] Wendy's opens its first restaurant in Columbus (OH). They now have 10,000 restaurants...1990] David Bowie makes his Broadway debut in "The Elephant Man"...
2. 1939] Planting the seed: FDR lays the cornerstone of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C...
3. 1967] MVP...MVP...MVP: The Red Sox' Carl Yastrzemski wins the AL MVP in the best individual season performance by a player I've ever seen (this includes watching Mantle & Maris in New York). Yaz won the highly coveted Triple Crown in '67 and it hasn't been done since. This video clip from the PBS "Baseball" special sums up the season Yaz had. It gave me chills just watching his intensity of play: http://youtube.com/watch?v=RGhcavwAzaE ...
4. 1969] Anti-War: A quarter of a million protesters stage a peaceful demonstration in Washington, D.C., against the Viet Nam War...
5. 1988] Staking their claim: The legislative body of the PLO proclaims the establishment of an independent state. Zionists take a different view...
6. 1992] Not a petty career: Richard Petty's 35-year reign as stock-car king ends in a fiery crash when his famous #43 gets caught in a pileup in his last race. Unhurt, he finishes the race retiring with 7 NASCAR championships and 7 Daytona victories. Both are records...
7. 1993] Guilty as charged: A judge in Mineola (LI) sentences Joey Buttafuoco to 6 months in jail for the statutory rape of Amy Fisher, who shot and wounded Joey's wife, Mary Jo...
8. 1996] "Happy Trails": Alger Hiss, 92, a former State Dept. official who fell from grace in a Communist spy scandal dies...
9. 2004] McGrieved: New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey leaves office 3 months after resigning due to a gay extra-marital affair. State Senator Richard Codey takes over as interim Gov...
10. 2005] Saving face: In Amiens, France, Isabelle Dinoire becomes the first person to undergo a partial face transplant. A mauling by an attacking dog earlier in the year badly disfigured her face...

Music Memories:

• 1965] Appearing on 'Hullabaloo': The Rolling Stones sing "Get Off Of My Cloud"...
• 1969] Released on this date: "I Want You Back" - Jackson Five. This is how I'd like to remember Michael: http://youtube.com/watch?v=sgObIx5bihQ ...
• 1990] Read my lips: A Milli Vanilli publicist admits that Fabrice Morvan and Rob Pilatus never sang a note on their album when they lip-synched, performing live. Here in this video clip is a lip-sync of a lip-sync: http://youtube.com/watch?v=t0qTOkUPlGk ...

Commentary:

Just an observation on the anti-Vietnam timeline from 1969. I heard an explanation on why we don't have similar demonstrations today against a highly unpopular war in Iraq. The explanation was that we no longer have a military draft like we did in 1969 so the stakes are not as high (the U.S. draft ended in 1973). High enough though because of all those who have and continue to lose their lives...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Frida Lyngstad of ABBA (62), Sam Waterston (67), Yaphet Kotto (70), Joanna Barnes (73), Petula Clark (75) and here's the youthful looking and singing Pet singing "This is My Song" live (French and English): http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZVp97USJtZY , Edward Asner (78) and judge Joseph Wapner (88)...

Timeline Countdown: 7 days until Thanksgiving, 20 days until Hanukah, 37 days until winter and 40 shopping days until Christmas...

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

It's time for another UFO investigation...

What do John Lennon, Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, former presidents Reagan and Carter and former Arizona Governor Fife Symington have in common? Correct. All of the above have seen UFOs. The credibility of the first four names pretty much stand up especially if the former Beatle was drug free at the time. As far as the former Arizona Governor, I question whether someone named Fife could pass a credibility test. Is he wife's name 'Drum' and are his kids named 'Bugle' and 'Corps'???

It was Dennis Kucinich, now a presidential candidate who mentioned seeing a UFO during one of the Democrats debates recently that has revived a movement that started in the 40s. In 1947 the Air Force started their Project Blue Book, investigating over 12,000 UFO reports from '47 to 1969. Investigators concluded that the incidents posed no threat and there was no evidence of space aliens or a super technology in operation. This past Monday, an international panel of two dozen former pilots and government officials called on the U.S. government to reopen its 60-year old investigation given continuing reports about flying discs, glowing spheres and other strange sightings...

Here's the statement issued by the Air Force on their website in answer to that panel of pilots: "Since the termination of Project Blue Book, nothing has occurred that would support a resumption of UFO investigations." What's the Air Force afraid of? There are dumber things that money is wasted on than finding out what UFOs really are. UFOs or "unidentified flying objects" exist. There are tons of people who've seen them. Fifty years ago, even Buchanan and Goodman knew they existed: http://youtube.com/watch?v=KRt2l3yKh1M ...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1832] Ding Ding Ding goes the trolley: The first streetcar goes into service in New York. It was horse-drawn with room for 30 and the fare was 12 cents. It ran on 4th Avenue (no longer in existence) between Prince and 14th Streets in Manhattan. Here's what the Brooklyn streetcars looked like in Brooklyn in the 30s: http://youtube.com/watch?v=0Gmxm_xboqk ...
2. 1889] Whoa Nellie: New York World reporter Nellie Bly a.k.a. Elizabeth Cochrane begins an attempt to surpass the fictitious journey of Jules Verne's Phineas Fogg by traveling around the world in less than 80 days. Bly does it in 72 days, 6 hours and 11 minutes in January and records a new song called "Around the World in 72 days, 6 hours and 11 minutes"...
3. 1943] The Maestro: 25-year old Leonard Bernstein makes his debut with the New York Philharmonic, filling in for an ailing Bruno Walter prior to a nationally broadcast concert...
4. 1961] Premiered on this date: : "Blue Hawaii" starring Elvis Presley. Here's a trailer of the movie: http://youtube.com/watch?v=wV2AoExmPGA ...
5. 1972] Wedding Bells: Britain's Princess Anne marries commoner Capt. Mark Phillips at Westminster Abbey. They divorce in 1992 and the Princess will re-marry...1996] Michael Jackson and mother-for-hire Deborah Rowe make it official...1998] Carmen Electra and Dennis Rodman marry but there's some debate over who wore the bridal gown. The marriage ends in 9 days. So what took so long???
6. 1986] A fine day: A record $100 million penalty is imposed on Ivan F. Boesky for insider trading. How exactly do you pay that off???
7. 1986] Keeping it in the family: The Doubleday Publishing Company agrees to sell the Mets to Nelson Doubleday & Fred Wilpon for $80.7 million. The company had purchased the World Champions for a then-record $21.1 million in 1980. Citibank will be paying the Mets $20 million a year for 20 years for naming rights to Citi Field which will open in 2009 at the site of Shea Stadium which will turn into a parking lot...
8. 1990] More than we need to know: The Who's Pete Townshend tells us just a bit too much information, confessing his bisexuality to Newsweek...
9. 1993] The Dolphin swallows the Bear: Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula passes Papa Bear, George Hallas as the winningest coach in NFL history when Miami beats Philadelphia 19-14. It's Shula's 325th victory as a coach. His final coaching career stats are: 347-173-6...
10. 1999] Afghanisanctions: The U.N. imposes sanctions on Afghanistan for refusing to hand over terrorist suspect Osama bin Laden. A lotta help that was...

Music Memories:

• 1961] Number One on this date: "Georgia on my Mind" - Ray Charles... 1972] "I Can See Clearly Now" - Johnny Nash, seen here on "The Midnight Special" in 1973: http://youtube.com/watch?v=NkwJ-g0iJ6w ...1982] "Up Where We Belong" - Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes (the song wins an Academy Award for "An Officer and a Gentleman")...


• 1970] Released on this date: "Black Magic Woman" - Santana...


• 1981] "Roo-mania": Four of the top 10 singles are done by Australian artists: Olivia Newton-John is #3 with "Physical", the Little River Band, Air Supply and Rick Springfield share the rest of the top 10...


• 1987] Reunited and it feels so good: Sonny & Cher reunite to sing "I Got You Babe" on the David Letterman Show and here's the historic clip: http://youtube.com/watch?v=GGdLYdkRoAg ...

Commentary:

Dickie Goodman of Buchanan & Goodman was a real character who would still be doing song parodies if he were alive today. He reminded me of a cross between Danny Bonaduce and Marty Ingalls, personality-wise. He was a typical New Yorker with boundless energy. He was influenced by Stan Freberg and practiced the same craft, producing and starring in his song parodies. Some of Buchanan & Goodman's hits beside "The Flying Saucer" include: "Buchanan & Goodman On Trial", "The Banana Boat Story", "Flying Saucer The 2nd", "Santa And The Satellite", "The Touchables", "Mr. Jaws". There were about 30 in-all. Dickie was sued many times over his use of song snippets without permission of the publishers but most were settled out-of-court. Dickie died of a self-inflicted gunshot in 1989 but son Jon Goodman carries on, promoting and administering his father's works. In 2006, Dickie's estate produced and authorized two albums: "All Time Novelty Hits" and "Dickie Goodman's Greatest Hits"...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Josh Duhamel (35), Curt Schilling (41), Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (53), Yanni (53), Stephen Bishop (56), remember his hit, "On and On"?: http://youtube.com/watch?v=nKyU89WqoNI , Britain's Prince Charles (59), Buckwheat Zydeco a.k.a. Stanley Dural Jr. (60) and Jimmy Piersall (78)...

Timeline Countdown: 8 days until Thanksiving, 20 days until Hanukah, 37 days until winter and 40 shopping days until Christmas...

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Control of the Internet at stake...

A four-day Internet forum is meeting in Brazil to address a wide range of issues such as network security, fighting child pornography, language diversity, privacy and human rights. There are about 1,000 representatives from the governments of many countries, business and the civil society, gathered. I would imagine there are some un-civil members of society in attendance as well. The first surprising announcement from the attendees is that while there are a billion people having access to the Internet, 5 billion have no access. Who knew???

Americans being Americans, U.S. control over how Internet addresses (anything after the dot like 'com', 'org' or 'net') are assigned has already been 'addressed'. To which Brazil's Culture Minister Gilberto Gil says not so fast, "The Internet is transnational. It can't be under the authority of one country or even some countries." Do you get the feeling that things will go downhill from there? Me too!!!

I'm not quite sure why this meeting is being held since the forum has no decision-making powers. Those seeking change can use the conference to pressure the United States to cede control. So why are we there? The United States funded most of the early development of the Internet, not Al Gore?, then went to the nonprofit, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which we have veto power over and said go ahead, knock yourself out and assign Internet addresses...

In answer to my question, 'So why are we there?', here's why. By controlling domain names, the United States indirectly influences much of the Internet. There are those who fear that changing the current system (ICANN) will open the door to the United Nations to allow governments to use the Internet for their own political gain and even impose censorship. ICANN's president and chief executive, Paul Twomey says the organization is already international. Twomey is an Australian and the newly elected chairman is from New Zealand. Only three of its 15 board members comes from the U.S...

Updates will be provided should anything occur during the forum worth updating...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1789] Death and Taxes: Benjamin Franklin writes in a letter to a friend, "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes". This video clip provides more great axioms from Big Ben: http://youtube.com/watch?v=EZf9_g1F-3w ...
2. 1942] 18 with a bullet: The minimum draft age is lowered from 21 to 18...
3. 1960] Wedding Bells: Sammy Davis Jr. and Swedish actress May Britt walk down the aisle. The pair will stay in wedded bliss for 8 years...
4. 1968] Premiered on this date: "Yellow Submarine", the animated movie and here's a clip from it: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZIjZtgyPhS0 ...1997] "The Lion King" opens at the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway...
5. 1974] "Happy Trails": Karen Silkwood, 28, a technician and union activist from Oklahoma who inspired a movie of her life, is killed in a suspicious car crash...
6. 1979] Vote for the "Gipper": Former California Governor Ronald Reagan announces his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination while visiting New York...
7. 1979] 'Chocolate Thunder': 76er Darryl Dawkins shatters a fiberglass backboard doing a monster dunk in Kansas City and starts a new fad that provides ESPN with about a million 'Sports Update' show opens. DD is included in this 'Top Ten in Game Dunks' video clip: http://youtube.com/watch?v=QNid2mHh9Mg ...
8. 1993] Top of the charts: Top-ranked Florida State and #2 Notre Dame (both 9-0) stage a showdown in South Bend with the 'Fighting Irish' prevailing 31-24. The Irish go to number one but lose the following weekend to Boston College and Florida State will win the national championship with a victory over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl...
9. 1998] Hush money: Bill Clinton agrees to pay Paula Jones $850,000 ending the four-year legal battle over her sexual harassment lawsuit against him. Clinton does not admit guilt or apologize. Several years later Paula takes a lie detector test on Fox. The results? Watch this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=PxKA4k_oD5o ...
10. 1999] First Brit champ: Lenox Lewis becomes the first British heavyweight champion of the world by winning a unanimous decision over Evander Holyfield...

Music Memories:

• 1961] Released on this date: "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" - Tokens, seen here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=mwy5uqemp6c ...1965] "Fever" - McCoys (Rick Derringer-lead singer)...1971] "Old Fashioned Love Song" - Three Dog Night...2000] "One Night Only" LP - Elton John (recorded at Madison Square Garden 3 weeks earlier)...

Commentary:

Dick Clark will be making his 35th appearance (his stroke in 2004 prohibited him from attending) on the 36th edition of "Rockin' Eve" on New Year's Eve. Ryan Seacrest will handle most of the hosting assignment featuring live music from Times Square at 10, the actual countdown will start at 11:35 with more performances from TS and Hollywood. The final segment starts at 1:05 a.m. and will feature additional acts filmed on the West Coast (where it will be 10:05 p.m.)..."Happy Trails" to Laraine Day, actress and 'first lady of baseball', who passed away at 87 from natural causes. Once married to baseball manager Leo Durocher, Laraine attended most of the games played by the Giants at the Polo Grounds when Leo managed the 'Jints'...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Jimmy Kimmel (40), life-long football fill-in QB Vinny Testaverde, now with the Panthers of Carolina (44), Chris Noth (51), Whoopi Goldberg (52), Joe Mantegna (60) and Garry Marshall (73)...

Timeline Countdown: 9 days until Thanksgiving, 22 days until Hanukah, 39 days until winter and 42 shopping days until Christmas...

Monday, November 12, 2007

Can FCC successfully squeeze the cable monopoly???

If you live in Manhattan, you carry Time Warner Cable. There are some parts of the 5 boroughs that carry other cable services but Time Warner owns Manhattan. As there is with everything else in life, there is good and bad connected to Time Warner service with the good outweighing the bad. A couple of good examples of the latter would be that we do not have either the NFL or Biography channels, both of which would be viewed in the Phillips household. We have about 1,000 channels but these two have alluded the grasp of viewers of Time Warner. You must have similar cable dilemmas with your service. Everyone does. Is the FCC stepping in to help us???

Under a proposed rule floating around at the FCC, cable companies such as Comcast and Time Warner Cable would be required to slash the price they charge smaller television programmers to lease access on spare cable channels, a move by the FCC that would open up cable viewers to a wider diversity of shows. You mean, like Biography and the NFL channels? One can only hope. The 1984 Cable Act, deregulated cable systems to allow them to compete against the television industry if cable television became available to 70% of U.S. households and 70% of those who can subscribe to cable do, the cable TV industry can once again be regulated. The so-called "70/70 provision" may have been met thanks to Verizon's Fios...

FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin is asking the FCC to vote on the "lease access" rule on November 27th, the commission's next meeting. Martin is optimistic that he has the three commission votes needed for passage. The proposed rule comes as a result of the agency's annual review of competition in the video industry. Down the road, Martin would also like cable subscribers to be able to buy only the channels they want. Amen brother. The hope is that the FCC does the right thing - the only thing that will allow me to watch the Biography and NFL channels...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1920] Here come de judge: Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis is elected baseball's first commissioner which brings a smile to Shorty Long's face: http://youtube.com/watch?v=IQi546UqfT4 ...
2. 1931] A 'Nessie' sighting: The first known photo of the 'Loch Ness Monster' is taken: http://youtube.com/watch?v=lvqeH-z3HVI ...
3. 1940] Premiered on this date: "Fantasia", not the singer, the Walt Disney masterpiece: http://youtube.com/watch?v=N1cEg8NWRvw ...
4. 1948] Guilty as charged: Former Japanese premier Hideki Tojo and several other WWII Japanese leaders are sentenced to death by a war crimes tribunal...1996] Jonathan Schmitz, 26, is convicted of second-degree murder for shooting Scott Amedure, a gay man who'd revealed a crush on Schmitz on a "Jenny Jones" TV show. Schmitz is serving a 20-25 year prison term...1997] Ramzi Yousef is found guilty of masterminding the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center. Yousef is serving a sentence of life without parole...2004] Scott Peterson is sentenced to death for murdering his pregnant wife, Laci, and dumping her body in San Francisco Bay. Peterson remains on death row...
5. 1954] Closed for renovations: Ellis Island closes after processing more than 20 million immigrants since opening in New York Harbor in 1892...
6. 1970] Last Call: The Doors make their last appearance with Jim Morrison in New Orleans...
7. 1987] AIDS ban banned: The AMA issues a policy statement saying it was unethical for a doctor to refuse to treat someone solely because that person has AIDS or is HIV-positive...
8. 1993] "Happy Trails": H.R. Haldeman, a former Nixon White House chief of staff, dies of undisclosed causes at 67...
9. 1998] Wedding Bells: Daimler-Benz, Chrysler and baby Daimler-Chrysler unite...
10. 2001] Belle Harbor hell: American Airlines flight 587 crashes in Belle Harbor, Queens shortly after taking off in perfect weather, from JFK, taking more than 260 lives...

Music Memories:

• 1958] Number One on this date: "Tom Dooley" - Kingston Trio...1985] "We Built This City" - Jefferson Starship's homage to the city by the bay: http://youtube.com/watch?v=TxGGckAc1rs ...
• 1966] Released on this date: "Mellow Yellow" - Donovan...1984] "Like a Virgin" LP - Madonna...

Commentary:

"Happy Trails" to author/celebrity Norman Mailer who passed away Saturday at the age of 84. Mailer, the hard-drinking, party loving, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner died of acute renal failure at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan...If you were a football fan in the 50s, then you remember former New York Giants' defensive back, Dick Nolan. Nolan who would go on to coach the San Francisco 49ers, something his son Mike now does, passed away yesterday at 75. The elder Nolan had been in declining health with Alzheimer's disease and prostate cancer for several years...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Tonya Harding (37), Sammy Sosa (39), Nadia Comaneci (46), Neil Young (62), Al Michaels (62), Booker T. Jones (63), Bryan Hyland (64), Ruby Nash Curtis (68), Charles Manson (73), Bob Crewe (76) and Jo Stafford (90) who had the original version of "You Belong To Me": http://youtube.com/watch?v=9H1Imb6jm0U ...

Timeline Countdown: 10 days until Thanksgiving, 23 days until Hanukah, 40 days until winter and 43 shopping days until Christmas...

Friday-Sunday, November 9-11, 2007

Holiday season blockbuster...

You know the Christmas season has begun when the season's biggest movie opens. "American Gangster" had a monumental opening weekend. It's the most talked-about gangster movie since "Goodfellas" or maybe even, dare I say, "The Godfather"? This movie has already been seen by about 50 million people or roughly 5 Osmond family reunions. Denzel Washington finally made a good movie. He plays real-life Harlem heroin lord, Frank Lucas. Russell Crowe is a good guy (go figure) who plays a detective who brings down Lucas. Others in the cast include Cuba Gooding Jr., Josh Brolin, Armand Assante, Ruby Dee, Joe Morton, Ruben Santiago-Hudson and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (just kidding on that one). Quite the cast!!!

The Soundtrack of the movie on Def Jam contains a great mix of music. It includes a couple of solid gold hits, "Hold On I'm Comin" by Sam and Dave and "I'll Take You There" by the Staple Singers. It also features music by Bobby Womack, John Lee Hooker and Lowell Fulson. "Across 110th Street", seen being played here live by Bobby Womack who starts off singing "California Dreaming" but goes into '110th Street': http://youtube.com/watch?v=hbXzT_OCDBs ...

With the 3-day Veteran's Day weekend upon us, it would be a good time to see this movie - if you can get into the theater that is. Here's a trailer to whet your gangster lean for the movie: http://youtube.com/watch?v=QOSOYSLDuQE ...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1938] Kristallnacht: Nazi troops and sympathizers destroy and loot 7,500 Jewish businesses, burn 267 synagogues, kill 91 Jews and round up over 25,000 in an event known as 'Kristallnacht' or 'Night of Broken Glass'...
2. 1953] The Supreme rule: Somehow the Supreme Court upholds a 1922 ruling that major league baseball did not come within the scope of federal antitrust laws. The Court contained 9 Jurists whose last name was Ito...
3. 1953] "Happy Trails": Dylan Thomas, a heavy drinker, dies from pneumonia at 39...1970] Former French president Charles De Gaulle dies from an aneurysm at 79...1988] Former Attorney General John N. Mitchell dies from a heart attack at 75...2003] Veteran actor Art Carney passes away from natural causes at 85...2006] "60 Minutes" reporter Ed Bradley is a victim of leukemia at 65. At his bedside when he dies is close friend Jimmy Buffett. This is a tribute to Bradley from his friends and colleagues: http://youtube.com/watch?v=rlxo3SKmoew ...
4. 1965] The night the lights went out: The great northeast blackout turns the lights out in 9 states and 2 provinces of Canada (it's dark in here, eh?), affecting 25 million people for more than 13 hours...
5. 1982] Sugar hangs up his gloves: Sugar Ray Leonard retires from boxing. He fights one more time in 1984 before becoming a boxing commentator for NBC...
6. 1984] Fight night at the Garden: Larry Bird of the Celtics gets into a tiff with Julius 'Dr. J' Erving of Philadelphia during a game at Boston Garden, won by the home team 130-119. The fight was a split decision...
7. 1989] Wall? What wall?: Happy Germans dance on top of the Berlin Wall as Communist East Germany opens its borders, allowing citizens to travel freely to the west: The late Peter Jennings narrates events: http://youtube.com/watch?v=wnYXbJ_bcLc ...
8. 1996] And-uh now the end is near: It's the beginning of the end for Mike Tyson as underdog Evander Holyfield batters Tyson to win the heavyweight crown. Holyfield will hear from Tyson in the future though...
9. 1997] Record breaker: The Lions' Barry Sanders becomes the first player in NFL history to rush for over 1,000 yards in 9 straight seasons. Sanders also passes Tony Dorsett to move into 3rd place on the all-time rushing list...
10. 2004] Call him Cy: Houston pitcher Roger Clemens wins his record 7th Cy Young award...

Music Memories:

• 1962] Released on this date: "You've Really Got A Hold On Me" - Miracles...1963] "Louie, Louie" - Kingsmen...1973] "Piano Man" LP - Billy Joel and here's the title track: http://youtube.com/watch?v=rZ1_M_L_RSI ...
• 1966] Number One on this date: "Poor Side Of Town" - Johnny Rivers...1978] "MacArthur Park" - Donna Summer, in action, live: http://youtube.com/watch?v=QfL7Gk7Fpes ...1985] "The Theme From Miami Vice" - Jan Hammer...
• 1967] On the (first) cover of Rolling Stone: John Lennon...

Commentary:

So I can sleep at night now knowing that Miami's legendary Don Shula has recanted from his original statement a bit. He now doesn't favor an asterisk next to the Patriots should they run the table and finish 16-0. What a relief!!!

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Nikki Blonsky (19), Uncle Kracker (33), Nick Lachey (34), Lou Ferrigno (56), Mary Travers (71), Bob Gibson (72), Whitey (the White Rat) Herzog (76) and affected sportscaster Charlie Jones (77)...

Timeline Countdown: 13 days until Thanksgiving, 26 days until an early Hanukah, 43 days until winter and 46 days until Christmas...

Saturday-Sunday, November 10-11, 2007...Sunday is Veteran's Day...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1775] From the Halls of Montezuma: The U.S. Marines are organized under authority of the Continental Congress (11/10)...
2. 1885] Born in the USA: George Patton is born on Veteran's Day (11/11)...
3. 1918] Armistice Day: World War I ends when the Allies and Germany sign an armistice. Hello Armistice Day (11/11)
4. 1921] Unknowns: The Tomb of The Unknowns is dedicated at Arlington Cemetery by President Warren Harding (11/11)...
5. 1954] Dedication day: The Iwo Jima Memorial is dedicated in Arlington (VA) (11/10)...
6. 1969] Debuted on this date: "Sesame Street" on PBS (11/10). Stevie Wonder helps us with the song: http://youtube.com/watch?v=fHiSXfWMrNI ...
7. 1972] "Happy Trails": Berry Oakley (Allman Brothers) is killed in a motorcycle accident one year and 13 days after Duane Allman met the same fate - 3 blocks away. Oakley was 24 (11/11)...1982] Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev strokes out at 75 (11/10)...1994] Jazz great Carmen McRae dies of a stroke at 72 (11/10)...2001] Author Ken ('One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest') Kesey is dead at 66 when his heart stops (11/10)...2004] Yasser Arafat dies from unknown causes at 75 (11/11)...2006] Jack Palance passes away from natural causes at 87 (11/10). Here's a tribute to the veteran actor: http://youtube.com/watch?v=5UBUWypvqjo ...
8. 1975] What a wreck: The ore-hauling ship Edmund Fitzgerald sinks during a storm in Lake Superior with all 29 crew members on board. Gordon Lightfoot writes a song about it called "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" or as WCBS-FM listener Richard used to call it, "The Wreck of the Ella Fitzgerald" (11/10)...
9. 1980] Kenneth the cab fare jumper: Former CBS-TV network anchor Dan Rather claims he was kidnapped in a cab but it turns out that Rather refused to pay the driver (Ahmad Krzchssjkrst) for the ride, leading to the R.E.M. hit, "What's The Cab Fare Kenneth?" (11/10)...
10. 1996] The Healing Wall: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund unveils 'The Wall That Heals', a half-scale replica of the memorial that will tour communities throughout the U.S. (11/11)...

Music Memories:

• 1938] Debuted on this date: "God Bless America" - Kate Smith (11/11) sings it for the first time on network radio...
• 1958] Recorded on this date: "The Twist" - Hank Ballard & the Midnighters (the original version) (11/11)...
• 1963] Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Brian Epstein and Ed Sullivan sign a 3-show contract for Beatles appearances (11/11)...
• 1965] Number One on this date: "Get Off Of My Cloud" - Rolling Stones (11/10)...1974] "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" - Bachman-Turner Overdrive (11/10). Watch this great live version: http://youtube.com/watch?v=oq7HxaAxF78 ...
• 1967] Released on this date: "Nights in White Satin" - Moody Blues (11/10)...1967] "In and Out of Love" - Supremes (11/11)...1973] "Rock On" - David Essex (11/10)...1986] "Live 1975-1985" box set - Bruce Springsteen (11/10)...
• 1969] Gold Standard: "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" - Gene Autry (11/10). It was released in 1949...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

(11/10) Brittany Murphy (30), Shawn Green (35), Ellen Pompeo (38), Tracy Morgan (39), Linda (ESPN) Cohn (48), Mackenzie Phillips (48), Sinbad (51), Ann Reinking (58), Greg Lake (60), Dave Loggins (60) "Please Come To Boston" right off the record: http://youtube.com/watch?v=1PX5t9VJweQ , Donna Fargo (62), Roy Scheider (75) and Russell ('The Professor') Johnson (83)...

(11/11) Leonardo Di Caprio (33), Carlista Flockhart (43), Demi Moore (45), Stanley Tucci (47), Marshall Crenshaw (54) who treats us to "Someday, Someway": http://youtube.com/watch?v=21XNs6uk4iw , Jesse Colin Young (66), Warner Wolf (70) and Jonathan Winters (82)...

Timeline Countdown for Sunday, Veterans Day, November 11, 2007: 11 days until Thanksgiving, 24 days until Hanukah, 41 days until winter and 44 days until Christmas...

Thursday, November 8, 2007

The Eagles soar high with their 1st studio album in 28 years...

Listening to the Eagles transports me to the desert of Arizona. It doesn't have to be a corner in Winslow either. Their music just sounds, feels and smells like the heat of an August day in the desert with the temperature well over the century mark. The last time Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit recorded a complete LP in-studio, Jimmy Carter was president, the cost of a new home averaged $75,000 and gas was less than a dollar a gallon. The year was 1979. And what have the Eagles done since then???

The Eagles broke up in 1980 but reunited in 1994 for "Hell Freezes Over", which featured both live and studio tracks. They toured sporadically and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. I was fortunate enough to witness a reunion of Glenn Frey, Don Henley and I believe either Randy Meisner or Timothy B. Schmit at a Bill Gavin Radio Programming Conference in San Francisco in the 80s. It was simply one of the best live performances I had ever seen. It was that good. But there's more. At the end of the 20th century, "Eagles: Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975" and "Hotel California" were ranked in the 10 best-selling albums according to the RIAA. They are the best selling American group ever with their '1971-1975 Greatest Hits' LP being the best-selling album in the U.S. to-date...

This week the Eagles released "Long Road Out of Eden." The double-CD sold 711,000 according to Nielsen SoundScan. Britney Spears' "Blackout" came in second with 290,000. Billboard which previously had a policy that excluded sales through a single vendor, in this case Wal-Mart and the band's website, changed its policy on Monday, and correctly made 'Eden' their number one LP...

Here's the video of the title track: http://youtube.com/watch?v=J5mbZ5_Szrg . Enjoy...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1895] X-rated discovery: Wilhelm Roentgen while experimenting with electricity discovers the scientific principle involved and takes the first X-ray pictures. When Roentgen's colleagues told him he glowed, he actually did...
2. 1933] A good song title for the Village People: The CWA (Civil Works Administration) is designed to create jobs for more than 4 million unemployed people in the U.S., one of them being my father who worked for the Parks Dept. in New York...
3. 1960] Election Day results: Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy defeats Richard M. Nixon for the presidency. The age of 'Camelot' dawns. Here's one of the ads run by the JFK team: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Jf3r0_AdlEY ..1966] Edward W. Brooke of Massachusetts becomes the first black to be elected to the U.S. Senate by popular vote. The Bay State's first black Governor was elected one year ago, yesterday...1966] Ronald Reagan is elected Governor of California...1988] VP George H.W. Bush wins the presidential election over Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis...1994] Republicans gain control of the House for the first time in 40 years and win a majority in the Senate...2000] A statewide recount of ballots begins in Florida and after conceding the election, Al Gore retracts his concession to await results of the recount...
4. 1965] Premiered on this date: "Days of Our Lives" debuts on NBC-TV...1991] "The Carol Burnett Show", the resurrected version of her original show only runs for one season...
5. 1966] MVP...MVP...MVP: The Orioles' Frank Robinson wins the American League MVP and becomes the first player in baseball history to win the award in both leagues. In 1961 he won the award with Cincinnati...
6. 1968] "D-I-V-O-R-C-E": Cynthia Powell Lennon is granted a divorce from John Lennon after 6 years of marriage...
7. 1970] Dempsey boots his way into the record books: New Orleans place-kicker Tom Dempsey, born without toes on his kicking foot, kicks a record-setting 63-yard field goal. In 1998, Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos tied Dempsey with his 63-yard boot, no doubt aided by Denver's mile-high altitude...
8. 1979] 'Iran Crisis: America Held Hostage': premieres on ABC-TV. While the show was meant to be temporary, it evolves into "Nightline" in March, 1980...
9. 1995] Wedding Bells: Michael Jackson and Sony Corp. of America combine forces to create the world's third-largest music publishing company with more than 100,000 titles...
10. 2000] Closing the door: Waco special counsel John C. Danforth releases his final report absolving the government of wrong-doing in the 1993 siege at the Branch Davidian compound. Case closed...

Music Memories:

• 1964] Like two peas in a pod: Judy Garland and 18-year old daughter Liza Minnelli perform together at the London Palladium...


• 1968] Newest member of The Supremes: Jean Terrell (sister of boxer Ernie Terrell) replaces Diana Ross as lead singer. Jean sang the lead on "Up The Ladder To The Roof" (http://youtube.com/watch?v=E3ZOcJ1Qzjc), "Stoned Love" and "Floy Joy"...

Commentary:

"Happy Trails" to Don Dumont, former founder of Dumont/Bay State Distributors in Massachusetts who passed away at 79 last Friday (11/2) in Naples (FL). Don also worked for Warner Brothers for many years. Thanks to Ernie Campagna who worked for Don back in the 60s for passing along that sad information...Also passing away was legendary Country Music Hall of Famer Hank Thompson. The 82-year old singer played his last concert October 8th in his native Waco (TX) and had cancelled all of his tour dates after being hospitalized. Hank died late Tuesday night (11/6) from lung cancer...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Jack (son of Ozzie) Osbourne (22), Tara Reid (32), Parker Posey (39), Courtney Thorne-Smith (40), Rickie Lee Jones (53) seen here this past summer doing "Chuck E.'s In Love": http://youtube.com/watch?v=W6FCci0rFYo , Alfre Woodard (54), Mary Hart (57), Bonnie Raitt (58) "I Can't Make You Love Me": http://youtube.com/watch?v=wlrXIvMmG3s , Morley Safer (76), Patti Page (80). Here's a medley of 'The Singing Rage's" hits, including "Old Cape Cod": http://youtube.com/watch?v=NuV_KVMoruI , Norman Lloyd (93) and June Havoc (94)...

Timeline Countdown: 14 days (two weeks from today) until Thanksgiving, 27 days until Hanukah (early this year), 44 days until winter and 47 days until Christmas...

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Now you too can endorse a product but why would you???

Who needs Michael Jordan, Ed McMahon or even Wilford Brimley? Now you too can endorse a product for Facebook. Of course you won't be paid as handsomely as those celebrities. Actually you won't be paid at all, but you'll be doing your part to provide product information to the ever-growing social network...

Facebook with 50 million users in the last month is visited by 25 million users every day which is slightly more viewers than MPR has...in 50 million lifetimes. The social network website displays 65 billion pages where ads can be displayed every month. One of the most viewed features of Facebook is the news feed, where members see a list of what their friends are doing. Presumably this is valuable information if you are still young enough to face parental discipline but old enough to rebel. The news feeds can be linked so users can tell friends about what they are auctioning on eBay or something far worse. According to Facebook founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, "Nothing influences a person more than the recommendation of a trusted friend." You have trusted friends at that age???

Here comes the scary part. Facebook will allow advertisers to tap into the vast stores of data that its users provide. The initial roster of advertisers include Conde Nast, Coca-Cola, Travelocity, Verizon and Blockbuster. Can't you just see it now? 'Johnny Fatusi of Hoboken makes his spitballs exclusively out of rolled up Blockbuster circulars, shouldn't you?' I shudder to think about what products I would endorse. It even embarrasses me to think about it...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1874] Election Day Memories: The Republican Party is symbolized as an elephant for the first time in a cartoon by Thomas Nast in Harper's Weekly...1944] Franklin D. Roosevelt wins an unprecedented 4th term as president by defeating Thomas E. Dewey...1962] Richard M. Nixon who fails in his bid to become Governor of California, tells reporters: "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore." 1967] Carl Stokes becomes the 1st black mayor of a major city (Cleveland). He also was a news anchor at channel 4 in NYC, something his daughter now is on channel 7...1972] Richard Nixon is re-elected president in a landslide win over George McGovern...1989] David N. Dinkins is elected New York City's 1st black mayor...1989] L. Douglas Wilder becomes the 1st elected black Governor of Virginia...2000] George W. Bush is elected president over incumbent VP Al Gore...2000] Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the 1st 'first lady' to win public office by winning a Senate seat from NY...
2. 1929] The birth of MOMA: The Museum of Modern Art opens in Manhattan...
3. 1959] Superstar matchup: Bill Russell & Wilt Chamberlain play against each other for the 1st time in the NBA as the Celtics beat Philadelphia 115-106 at Boston Garden. Chamberlain outscores Russell (30-22) but Russell pulls down 35 rebounds to Chamberlain's 30. Here's a highlight video of both players in action: http://youtube.com/watch?v=7ab6Tex4H1Y ...
4. 1962] "Happy Trails": Former 'first lady' Eleanor Roosevelt dies of bone marrow tuberculosis at 78...1980] Steve McQueen dies at 50 from a heart attack following cancer surgery and here's the classic "Bullitt" car chase scene as McQueen flies over the streets of San Francisco: http://youtube.com/watch?v=36MFh4of6lE ...
5. 1963] MVP...MVP...MVP: Elston Howard of the Yankees becomes the 1st black player in the American League to win MVP honors...
6. 1965] Premiered on this date: The Pillsbury Dough Boy, seen here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Y2B2TUiuLo8 ...
7. 1967] PBS is born: President Lyndon B. Johnson signs a bill establishing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and here are all the logos of PBS on video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=M7ey1Sl5Wk8 ...
8. 1975] Blockbuster trade: Two-time Boston MVP Phil Esposito is traded to the rival Rangers for Brad Park, Jean Ratelle and 2 others in a trade that shakes Beantown...
9. 1982] "D-I-V-O-R-C-E": Liz Taylor chalks up divorce number 7. John Warner is the victim...2000] Garth Brooks files for divorce from wife Sandy. The divorce becomes final in 2001, in 2005 he marries Trisha Yearwood...
10. 1989] Guilty as charged: Richard Ramirez, California's "Night Stalker" is sentenced to death...1991] Paul Reubens a.k.a. Pee Wee Herman pleads 'no contest' of indecent exposure in Sarasota (FL). Here's Pee Wee in happier times, on the "Gong Show" with an unidentified partner: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Qn_X-qLGHgY ...

Music Memories:

• 1961] Number One on this date: "Big Bad John" - Jimmy Dean...1972] "I Can See Clearly Now" - Johnny Nash...


• 1995] Marriage renewal on this date: The Captain and Tennille renew wedding vows on their 20th anniversary...

Commentary:

Thanks to Paul Power for bringing this to my attention...You may not know the name of Thomas W. Dawes but you will remember his claim to fame. Dawes died last month following a stroke at 64 but he will be remembered for being a musician, an All-American diver at Lafayette college in Pennsylvania, writer of famous ("plop, plop fizz fizz, the Uncola song, etc.) jingles and also for forming the local PA band, Rhondells (not the Rhondels of Bill Deal and the, fame). Beatles manager Brian Epstein saw the Rhondells perform (Wikipedia says it was assistant Nat Weiss) and it was John Lennon who changed the name of the band to The Cyrkle. In addition to later opening for the Beatles had two major hits, "Red Rubber Ball" (written by Simon & Garfunkel) and "Turn Down Day". Here they are in a rare video clip, doing their first hit: http://youtube.com/watch?v=1Cxx2fvcpWE ...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Keith Lockhart (48), Joni Mitchell (64): "Both Sides Now": http://youtube.com/watch?v=bcrEqIpi6sg , Johnny Rivers (65), Barry Newman (69), Jim Kaat (69), Joan Sutherland (81) and Reverend Billy Graham (89)...

Timeline Countdown: 16 days until Thanksgiving, 28 days until Hanukah, 45 days until winter and 48 days until Christmas...

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

The eye is on Google while the dog wags his tail...

We used to be 'wired for sound' or just plain 'wired'. Not anymore. Today we're 'wireless' but certainly not clueless. Google has announced it's entering the wireless phone generation and will develop new software technologies aimed at turning cellphones into powerful mobile computers. All of this is designed to make it easier to use the Internet on the go. The phones would run on software provided by Google which would be cheaper and easier to customize. Those benefiting would be the Open Handset Alliance, forged between Google and companies like Motorola, Samsung, T-Mobile, Sprint, China Mobile, Qualcomm and Intel. The group expects to start selling the Google-powered phones in the second half of 2008...

At the same time of the Google announcement comes the latest achievement of Sirius Satellite Radio which sent me an e-mail ad that features their two new radios. You don't have to be a 'heel' to own a Stiletto 2, just rich. The new Stiletto 2, which would have been a great name for a new Gillette razor, combines a Sirius radio with an MP3 which, as the ad says, will give you "the ultimate portable audio entertainment experience." It gave me chills just reading that. To get the same chills I just experienced, you can order the S2 for $329.99 or what you'll eventually pay for a flat-screen HD TV. It might sound like a sleek racing car but The Sportster 5 is a radio which can be used "in your home, boat, office or in additional vehicles." The S5 sells for a more affordable $169.99. Of course, on top of the prices for the new radios comes the monthly fee for listening to Sirius Satellite Radio...

No price is given for the new 'Google Phone' but the price of Google stock rose to $725.65, up 2% after the announcement. I don't know about you but faced with a choice of just audio or audio with video, I'll take the latter every time...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1869] Tee for two: Rutgers beats Princeton 6-4 at New Brunswick (NJ) in the first college football game. There were 25 players on each side, touchdowns were worth one point and the game resembled soccer more than football. A couple of weeks ago Rutgers played West Virginia and in this clip you see a statue dedicated to that first game: http://youtube.com/watch?v=c7ArjA2tOq0 ...
2. 1923] A patented shave: Colonel Jacob Schick patents the first electric shaver...
3. 1935] The birth of FM: Edwin H. Armstrong announces the development of FM broadcasting. Bless you Edwin H. Armstrong...
4. 1956] Election Day results: President Dwight David Eisenhower is re-elected with a victory over Adlai E. Stevenson...2001] Michael Bloomberg defeats Mark Green in the New York City mayoral election...2005] Bloomberg is re-elected, beating Fernando Ferrer...
5. 1967] Premiered on this date: Phil Donahue begins his TV talk show in Dayton (OH) and stays on the air for over 25 years with it...
6. 1973] Body snatcher: Singer Gram Parsons' manager Phil Kaufman is fined $300 for stealing Parsons' body from LAX. Kaufman claims it was Parsons wish to be cremated...
7. 1995] Banned in Cleveland: Browns' owner Art Modell announces a plan to move the team to Baltimore. It gets worse when the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl. "The Cleveland Curse" video shows all the lowlights experienced by Cleveland's city teams except for the latest one - The Indians losing their playoff with the Red Sox after being up 3 games to 1: http://youtube.com/watch?v=RCQKOTjVuJI ...
8. 1995] Leaving his Mark in New York: The Rangers' Mark Messier scores his 500th NHL goal against Calgary...
9. 1995] Michael leaves his mark: Michael Jordan scores 50 points for the 29th time in his NBA career...
10. 2002] Gotcha: A jury in Beverly Hills convicts Winona Ryder of stealing $5,500 worth of merchandise from Saks Fifth Avenue. Winona is placed on probation for 3 years...

Music Memories:

• 1965] Premiered on this date: Bill Graham opens Fillmore West in San Francisco with Jefferson Airplane and The Grateful Dead opening the famous venue...
• 1965] Released on this date: "It's My Life" - Animals. George Maharis introduces the group on 'Hulabaloo': http://youtube.com/watch?v=xQMXnYyjWVE ...
• 1965] Live on 'Shindig': The Rolling Stones: http://youtube.com/watch?v=UUBE7RKVibo , Fontella Bass, who made a suit out of her table cloth: http://youtube.com/watch?v=QXSocE_M1G4 and the camera-shy Strangeloves...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Rebecca Romijn (35), Ethan Hawke (37), Maria Shriver (52), Glenn Frey (59), Sally Field (61), P.J. Proby (69), Eugene Pitt (70), Stonewall Jackson (75) and Mike Nichols (76)...

Timeline Countdown: 17 days until Thanksgiving, 29 days until Hanukah, 46 days until the arrival of winter and 49 days until Christmas...

Monday, November 5, 2007

Can you hair me now???

I once traded radios with Paul Drew who was enamored by a 2" Sony radio I had that was actually a key ring. We were both PD's at the time, I think Paul was in Detroit, I was in Boston. Paul in turn gave me a radio that you could pre-set stations on. It was a fair swap although I regretted giving away the smallest radio I had ever seen. Some 30+ years later, comes word of a radio so small that you can't even see it...

The "nanoradio" is one ten-thousandth the diameter of a human hair. Alex Zetti, physics professor at UC Berkeley and graduate student Kenneth Jensen will unveil their tiniest of tiny radios in the November 6th issue of the journal Nano Letters. When tested last year scientists at Berkeley heard their first FM broadcast featuring Derek & the Dominos' "Layla" and "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys transmitted from across a room. In a regular radio, an antenna captures radio waves from different stations. The nanoradio detects radio signals as it vibrates thousands to millions of times per second in tune with a radio wave. An electrode is used that influences the natural vibration frequency just as the tension on a guitar string fine tunes its pitch. An enclosed "nanotube" is turned into an amplifier and the amplified output is enough to drive a very sensitive earphone. Now, why didn't I think of that??? Long story short, you have a radio that could also lead to radio-controlled devices small enough to exist in a human's bloodstream...

I must say I'm disappointed - no, not by this incredible technological discovery but by the choice of music tested by the scientists at Berkeley - "Layla"?, "Good Vibrations"?, although vibrations are used to tune the frequency so I'll give them a pass on that but on something compared in size to one ten-thousandth the diameter of a human hair and not play "Hair"? C'mon guys, where's your creativity???

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1895] Patented: George B. Selden of Rochester (NY) receives the first U.S. patent for an automobile...
2. 1935] Premiered on this date: The game of Monopoly is introduced by Parker Brothers and here's a video trip through the game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx1XMtdYp0I ...
3. 1940] Election results: Franklin D. Roosevelt wins an unprecedented 3rd term but will be the last president to do so by a new law that limits presidents to two terms...1946] 29-year old Boston Democrat John F. Kennedy is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives...1968] Republican Richard M. Nixon wins the presidency over VP Hubert H. Humphrey and George Wallace...1996] Voters return Bill Clinton to the White House for a second term as Clinton beats Dole...
4. 1960] "Happy Trails": Johnny Horton, 33, is killed in an auto accident in Texas...1989] Pianist Vladimir Horowitz dies of a heart attack at 86...
5. 1981] Busted: Former Miami Dolphin running back Mercury Morris is sentenced to 20 years for drug trafficking and possession of cocaine...
6. 1982] Put it in the books: The Nets put the Cleveland Cavaliers in the record books when they hand the Cavs their 24th consecutive loss, 99-91...
7. 1990] Gunned down: Jewish Defense League Rabbi Meir Kahane, 58, is shot to death after a speech in Manhattan. His assassin, an Egyptian, is later sentenced to life in prison. Many believe Kahane was the first victim of Al Qaida. Here's the video coverage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kpCJjhvbOE ...
8. 1994] The new champ is the old champ: George Foreman becomes boxing's oldest heavyweight champ at 45 by knocking out Michael Moorer in the 10th round. Here's the KO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0SONoA5L1g ...
9. 1994] Former presidential announcement: Former President Ronald Reagan discloses he has Alzheimer's disease...
10. 1998] Former presidential offspring: A study shows strong genetic evidence that Thomas Jefferson fathered at least one child by his slave, Sally Hemmings...

Commentary:

John Gorman and Bruce Morrow are busy promoting their new books recently published. Gorman's book is called "The Buzzard: Inside the Glory Days of WMMS and Cleveland Rock Radio -- a Memoir". It tells the story of the legendary WMMS, a.k.a. "The Buzzard" that developed a national presence in addition to dominating FM radio in Cleveland. I've read the beginning of the book and can't wait to finish it. It's an insightful book for any radio student as well as a reminiscent trip back to what makes a radio station tick for those of us who were there...The Cousin's book, "Doo Wop: The Music, the Times, the Era" is a look into the era of the street corner singers who defined Doo Wop but also gives you a capsule look at the styles and times that surrounded that era...The Patriots are writing not only a book but a volume of what great teams are made of, with their exciting come-from-behind win over the Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts. Way to go Pats...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Johnny Damon (34), Tatum O'Neal (44), Bryan Adams (48), Bill Walton (55), Peter Noone (60) seen here introduced by Wolfman Jack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqfyz0r2tZw , Art Garfunkel (66), Elke Sommer (67) and Ike Turner (76). Here's Ike with Tina in happier times: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2cIksqW-Eg ...

Timeline Countdown: 18 days until Thanksgiving, 30 days until Hanukah, 48 days until winter and 50 days until Christmas...

Friday-Sunday, November 2-4, 2007

What a Weekend...

To paraphrase Michelle Branch, this weekend will provide "a little bit of this, a little bit of that". It's a big weekend here in New York with another New York City Marathon which will roll through all five boroughs of the city Sunday morning with perfect weather conditions forecast. The ideal temperature for a marathon is 50 and it will be lower than that at race time with a high of only 53 - perfect. Now you can feel the way some 40,000 runners will feel on Sunday. Here in time lapse is the course : http://youtube.com/watch?v=MnxknAnBVk0 ...

We set clocks back to Standard time at 2 a.m. Sunday, the curse of all-night jocks who get to work an extra hour for the same pay. WABC made it official, Don Imus brings his morning show to 770 starting Monday, December 3rd from 6-to-10. Al Sharpton bought a new tape recorder in anticipation of the I-man's return as the worst kept radio secret of all-time turned out to be true. Don is bringing along lifetime partner Charles McCord - no word on Bernie McGuirk. Good luck Imus. Your former PD knows that you'll be bigger than ever!!!

The Celtics kick off a new season tonight with the playoffs in mind and finally the biggest game of the year in the NFL is a 4:15 Sunday start as the Patriots (8-0) travel to Indianapolis to take on the Colts (7-0). This is the first time since 1921 that undefeated teams with at least 7 wins, play each other. The good thing about this game is that it will be repeated in the playoffs. Good luck to both teams and may the best Patriots team win...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1947] Loose as a Spruce Goose: Howard Hughes pilots his huge wooden (birch, not spruce despite the nickname) plane over Long Beach (CA) Harbor in a flight that only lasted a minute. Here's Hughes piloting the plane: http://youtube.com/watch?v=UIhhrOhDzxA ...
2. 1948] The worst news fit to print: The front page of the Chicago Tribune: DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN...The truth? It was the other way around as Truman becomes our president...
3. 1962] Premiered on this date: "Girls, Girls, Girls" starring Elvis Presley...
4. 1959] The 'Tipping Point' for Payola: "Twenty-One" contestant Charles Van Doren tells a House Subcommittee on Legislative Oversight that he was given questions and answers in advance of his appearances. The committee starts their radio investigations as part of their probe. Payola is uncovered...
5. 1964] Sold...to the highest bidder: CBS Inc. purchases 80% of the New York Yankees for $11 million. They buy the remaining 20% later. CBS actually lost money when they sold the team to the George Steinbrenner-led Cleveland group...
6. 1974] Curtains: The Atlanta Braves trade Henry Aaron to the Milwaukee Brewers assuring that Aaron ends his career in Milwaukee...
7. 1976] From peanut farmer to president: Former Georgia Gov. Jimmy Carter defeats Republican incumbent Gerald R. Ford, becoming the first president from the deep south since the Civil War (Texas is in the southwest so LBJ doesn't qualify)...
8. 1976] Tumbling dice: New Jersey voters approve gambling in Atlantic City...
9. 1979] "D-I-V-O-R-C-E": Mick Jagger and Bianca divorce after 8 years of marriage...
10. 1995] New Manager: Joe Torre (who was named Dodgers mgr. yesterday) is named manager of the Yankees replacing Buck Showalter who Joe should be indebted to for the team he inherited. Torre leads the Yankees to 4 World Championships in his first 7 years...

Music Memories:

• 1963] Released on this date: "Be True To Your School" - Beach Boys. Here's a great live version: http://youtube.com/watch?v=qNuIAXA_BOI ...
• 1968] Number One on this date: "For Once In My Life" - Stevie Wonder. Notice the backdrop used in this live TV version: http://youtube.com/?v=FUAy2EYcG0I ...1971] "Gypsy's, Tramps & Thieves" - Cher...1981] "Private Eyes" - Hall & Oates...1985] "Part-Time Lover" - Stevie Wonder...

Commentary:

Greater Media's Peter Smyth and Emmis's Jeff Smulyan have a bet on Sunday's Patriots-Colts game. The CEO whose team loses will personally write a $1,000 check to benefit the Broadcasters Foundation of America. Greater Media is based in Braintree (MA) while Emmis is in Indianapolis. I hope WRKO alum Peter wins, of course...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

David Schwimmer (41), k.d. lang (46), Maxine Nightingale (55), Stephanie Powers (65), Pat Buchanan (69), David Blatt a.k.a. Jay Black (69) and Earl "Speedo" Carroll (70)...

Timeline Countdown: One day until Standard Time starts, 21 days until Thanksgiving, 33 days until Hanukah, 51 days until winter and 53 days until Christmas...

Saturday-Sunday, November 3-4, 2007...

Note: Be sure to turn clocks back one hour before you go to sleep Saturday night...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1842] Wedding Bells: Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd say "I do"(11/4)...1972] James Taylor and Carly Simon tie the knot in Carly's Manhattan apartment. Sadly they separate in 1982 and then divorce (11/3)...
2. 1955] "Happy Trails": Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young dies of natural causes at 88 (11/4)...
3. 1961] Patriots magic: The Boston Patriots beat the Dallas Texans 28-21 at Braves Field when a fan sneaks on the field and bats away Dallas QB Cotton Davidson's pass into the end zone as time runs out. The play stands. The Patriots win. Remember when that work patrol convict cleared a spot of snow on the field and the Pats won on a field goal. How about the 'tuck' rule resulting in a big win over the Raiders (11/3)???
4. 1964] Election Day results: President Lyndon B. Johnson defeats Rep. challenger Barry Goldwater to win a term in his own right (11/3)...1980] Ronald Reagan wins the White House, defeating Jimmy Carter soundly (11/4)...1992] Bill Clinton is elected our 42nd president, defeating President George H.W. Bush (11/3)...1992] Illinois Democrat Carol Moseley-Braun becomes the first black woman elected to the U.S. Senate (11/3)...
5. 1971] Premiered on this date: "Play Misty For Me", every radio jock's worst nightmare, stars Clint Eastwood and Jessica Walters (11/3). Here's a clip: http://youtube.com/watch?v=XFLwJpW6cDw ...1978] "Different Strokes" which has a successful 8-year run (11/3)...1978] Boston plays Boston (11/4)...
6. 1971] Curtains: NBA great Elgin Baylor of the Lakers announces his retirement because of knee problems (11/4)...
7. 1979] Hostage Crisis: Militants storm the U.S. Embassy in Tehran as the Iranian Hostage Crisis begins. Fifty-two hostages will be held for 14 months (11/4)...
8. 1988] Geraldo gets decked: Geraldo Rivera suffers a broken nose in an on-camera brawl with skinheads. The skinheads win, the skinheads win...thhhhhhhe skinheads win (11/3) and here's a clip of a very ugly scene: http://youtube.com/watch?v=S1KT1QoSCT8 ...
9. 1991] A rockin' tribute: More than 300,000 attend a free concert in San Francisco's Golden State Park in memory of rock promoter Bill Graham. Performers include: Grateful Dead, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Joan Baez, Santana and a reunited Journey (11/3)...
10. 1994] Guilty as charged: Susan Smith is arrested for drowning her two young sons, 9 days after claiming they were kidnapped. She's still serving life without parole (11/3)...

Music Memories:

• 1957] Released on this date: 1957] "Great Balls of Fire" - Jerry Lee Lewis (11/3)...1957] "At The Hop" - Danny & the Juniors (11/3): ...http://youtube.com/watch?v=OauMxtbktrU ...1967] "I Second That Emotion" - Smokey Robinson & Miracles (11/4)...1978] "Take Me To The River" - Talking Heads (11/4). I love this video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=QmEBlrRRMBQ ...
• 1958] Number One on this date: "It's Only Make Believe" - Conway Twitty (11/4) and here's Mr. Twitty in action: http://youtube.com/watch?v=uNik-eKyhYQ ...1969] "Wedding Bell Blues" - 5th Dimension (11/3)...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

(11/3) Phil Simms (52), Adam Ant (53), Kate Capshaw (54), Dennis Miller (54), Roseanne Barr (55), Larry Holmes (58), Lulu (59), Shadoe Stevens (61), Michael S. Dukakis (74) and Bob Feller (89)...

(11/4) Matthew McConaughey (38), P. Diddy (38), Jeff Probst (45), Kathy Griffin (46), Markie Post (57), First Lady Laura Bush (61), Loretta Swit (70), Doris Roberts (77) and Uncle Walter Cronkite (91)...

Sunday, November 4th Timeline Countdown: 19 days until Thanksgiving, 31 days until Hanukah, 49 days until winter and 51 days until Christmas...

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Can relief be on the way???

Scott Muni used to love to tell the story about being asked at a radio panel, how he spells relief? I happened to be watching that panel as I told Scottso which brought a smile to his face but he continued to tell the story anyway. At the time, Scott was voicing that famous antacid spot that started out with, "How do you spell relief?" At the panel, Scott looked directly at the questioner as he spelled out "R-e-s-i-d-u-a-l"...

The two events that transpired in Washington yesterday won't result in residuals but if you live in an apartment you may catch a break with cable-TV bills. Whether you live in an apartment or house, you won't be taxed for using the Internet. Both events go hand-in-hand. Federal regulators ruled that cable companies can no longer sign exclusive pacts with building owners which should free up your choices of service providers. Time Warner (my provider), Cablevision and Comcast now have sole rights to provide service to apartment buildings. How do you spell monopoly? To be sure, cable companies opposed the FCC's decision to cancel out existing contracts. Verizon and AT&T, which are making a big push into TV cable service couldn't be happier...

The other thing that happened that helps all of us using the Internet is the president's signing of an extension on the Internet access taxes ban. With the impending Nov. 1 deadline, that ban will now extend for seven years. Read my lips: "No new taxes". This time it's for real. The ban prohibits assessing taxes on e-mail and instant messaging services "that are provided independently or not packaged with Internet access." ...

It was a good day for the home team...

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1849] Number One with a bullet: Billboard Advertising is published for the first time. The magazine will later become known as Billboard Magazine...
2. 1938] The Match Game: Seabiscuit beats War Admiral in a match race at Pimlico Race Course. 40,000 fans and network radio are on hand when Seabiscuit breaks the track record for a mile and wins a purse of $15,000. Here's a clip of the entire race with Clem McCarthy making a rather inaccurate call of the race: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WVT2MPNCqgM ...
3. 1946] Premiered on this date: WEAF changes call letters to WNBC...1959] WOV changes calls to WADO (New York)...1970] In their first regular season meeting, the Giants beat the Jets 22-10 at Shea Stadium...
4. 1947] "Happy Trails": The legendary racehorse "Man O' War" dies at the ripe old age of 30. Here's the great horse at 24: http://youtube.com/watch?v=P5MuKwAXDUo ...1979] Former 1st Lady Mamie Eisenhower passes away from natural causes at 82...1999] Football Hall of Famer Walter Payton is a victim of cancer at 45 and here's a tribute to "Sweetness": http://youtube.com/watch?v=YOHB0HI0LMA ...
5. 1951] M-V-P, M-V-P: Brooklyn Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella wins the 1st of his 3 MVP awards...
6. 1952] Get the 'H' out of here: The U.S. explodes the first Hydrogen bomb in a test at Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands...
7. 1959] An extended Halloween: Montreal's Jacques Plante becomes the first goalie to wear a mask after being hit in the face with a puck off the stick of the Rangers' Andy Bathgate in a game won by the Canadiens 3-1 at MSG...
8. 1973] Musical prosecutors: Leon Jaworski is appointed the new Watergate special prosecutor...
9. 1988] Wedding Bells: Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis walk down the aisle. Their marriage will last two years...
10. 2001] World Series Memories: Scott Brosius hits a game-tying home run off of Arizona's Byung Hyun Kim, allowing the Yankees to beat the Diamondbacks in game 5 of the WS. Tino Martinez hit one out on Kim the night before. The Yankees take a 3-2 WS lead...

Music Memories:

• 1962] Number One on this date: "He's a Rebel" - Crystals (Darlene Love): http://youtube.com/watch?v=PcnfkL-GxoM ...1969] "Abbey Road" LP - Beatles (will top the charts for 11 consecutive weeks)...1969] "Suspicious Minds" - Elvis Presley...1974] "You Haven't Done Nothin" - Stevie Wonder (backed by Jackson Five)... 1984] "Caribbean Queen" - Billy Ocean makes all the Caribbean Queens swoon: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Qtt-ANSrFVg ...
• 1964] Right here on our shooo: Ed Sullivan introduces The Dave Clark Five who are "Glad All Over": http://youtube.com/watch?v=HO91-Z1QMNE ...

Commentary:

Here we go again...The Red Sox don't know where the World Championship baseball that ended the 4th game is. Jason Varitek says he gave the ball to Jonathan Papelbon but Papelbon's agent says Jonathan has no idea where the ball is. Was Doug Mientkiewicz at the game???

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Jenny McCarthy (35), Lyle Lovett (50), Dan (America) Peek (57), Jim Steinman (59), Larry Flynt (65), Marcia Wallace (65), Bill Anderson (70), Gary Player (72) and James J. Kilpatrick (87)...

Timeline Countdown: 3 days until Standard Time, 21 (corrected number) days until Thanksgiving, 34 days until Hannukah, 52 days until winter and 54 days until Christmas...