At 6 o'clock this morning Charles McCord's introduction of Don Imus was drowned out by loud applause when they saw the I-man getting ready for the biggest comeback of his career. Coming back to WNBC after his time-out in Cleveland in the 70s doesn't compare to this. That was small stuff, this is major. When Imus spoke this morning he was repentant for his racial slur about the Rutgers women's basketball team, made on April 12, 2007 that made headlines around the world. Don Imus met with the Rutgers team in Princeton that night for four hours. He had already been fired by Les Moonves earlier in the day so this was not a meeting to save his job as some have thought. He explained how he refused to appear on national shows, mentioning Larry King as an example, because anything he would have to say would be "lame"...
Don spoke for a quarter of an hour about the Rutgers meeting and its aftermath. He said he feels like a better person for being fired, not ever denying that this was a racial slur that was hurtful and inexcusable. The I-man introduced his staff by mentioning the hometown of each person which reminded me of a football game introduction of players, but added a homey touch. The staff starts with Charles McCord. Others include Rob Bartlett (see my Commentary), Karith Foster, Larry Kenney and "in the studio": Lou Ruffino, Tony Powell and Bernard McGuirk. After the introduction, Imus brought in Levon Helms who played live at Town Hall with proceeds from ticket sales going to Imus's Children's Ranch in New Mexico...
If you're wondering about the content of the new "Imus in the Morning", it will be politics as usual. One of Don's guests this morning was Arizona Senator John McCain and there will be more to come with the presidential primaries around the corner. If you're thinking that this is a kinder and gentler Don Imus, think again. Ending his 20-minute dialogue, Imus followed with this: "Dick Cheney is still a war criminal, Hillary Clinton is still Satan and I'm back on the radio." Welcome back I-man, we missed you...
10 Timeline Memories:
- 1833] Boys and girls together: Oberlin College (OH) opens as the first co-educational school of higher education in the U.S...
- 1931] Debuted on this date: Plop-plop, fizz-fizz: Alka Seltzer makes its debut. Enter 'Speedy': http://youtube.com/watch?v=bxjb2UJZ-5I&feature=related ...1950] Paul Harvey begins his national radio broadcast. Here's the greatest communicator I've ever heard: http://youtube.com/watch?v=AD1MQUPC8bE ...
- 1949] Lucky and good: Notre Dame stretches its unbeaten streak to 4 seasons and 38 games by beating the Kyle Rote SMU Mustangs 27-20. The Irish win their 7th national title...
- 1961] How do you do: The Beatles meet Brian Epstein for the first time in his record shop in Liverpool...
- 1967] Have a heart: Dr. Christian Barnard performs the first human heart transplant. Patient Louis Washkansky lives for 18 days with his new heart...
- 1967] Curtains: The famed 20th Century Limited luxury train, completes its final run from New York City to Chicago...
- 1968] How low can you go?: The major league pitching mound is lowered from 15 inches to 10 to get more offense in the game. It works...
- 1979] Concert catastrophe: 11 fans are crushed to death at Cincinnati's Riverfront Coliseum before a concert by The Who. Laws will change to prevent "first-come, first-served" seating in the future...
- 1994] "Happy Trails": AIDS activist Elizabeth Glaser, wife of actor Paul Michael Glaser, dies at 47 after she and her two children were infected after a blood transfusion. Daughter Ariel will also succumb to the disease but son Jake survives...
- 2002] You can run but you can't hide: Thousands of files show that the Archdiocese of Boston protected clergy after sex and drug charges are released...
Music Memories:
- 1965] Released on this date: "Rubber Soul" LP - Beatles...1973] "You're Sixteen" - Ringo Starr. Here's the video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=76O6tuJPe3w ...
- 1966] Debuted on this date: The first Monkees concert is performed in Hawaii. Aloha Monkees...
- 1968] Elvis Sighting: Elvis Presley launches a new phase in his career with his "Elvis" TV Special...
Commentary:
On Friday, I did a feature on the writers strike, mentioning MyDamnChannel.com but mistook the founder of the comedy website. About a half hour after MPR posted I got the following e-mail: "Hello Sir. Thanks for the push on My Damn Channel! But...you've confused me with a much funnier Rob: Mr. Bartlett. We met when I went to see Imus after getting the CBS Radio President gig and that's another long and fairly funny story for next time. Best to you...Rob Barnett...Sorry Rob but I have added MyDamnChannel.com as a link in the right-hand column to make amends...
The Bar-Kays trumpet player Ben Cauley, the lone survivor of the plane crash that killed Otis Redding and other members of the band on December 10, 1967 is returning to Lake Monona today to mark the 40th anniversary of the tragedy. Cauley, now 60, was able to survive in freezing water for 20 minutes after unbuckling his seatbelt and grabbing a seat cushion and was rescued by a boat. A few hundred people will attend the free event that will feature local musicians at Monona Terrace convention center overlooking the lake in Wisconsin that was the crash site. 'Otis Redding Day' has been proclaimed for December 10th. "(Sittin On) The Dock of the Bay" was recorded just three days before the crash and would go on to top the charts: http://youtube.com/watch?v=wzrXc68gNjQ ...
"Happy Trails" to Evel Knievel who passed away over the weekend. The legendary daredevil was in failing health for years, suffering from diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis. Evel was 69...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Holy Marie Combs (34), Katarina Witt (42), Daryl Hannah (47), Julianne Moore (47), Ozzy Osbourne (59), Jaye P. Morgan (76), Andy Williams (80). This is a great version of "Winter Wonderland" by Andy and his brothers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=8hkUpW9ZCBQ&feature=related and Ferlin Husky (82)...
Timeline Countdown: 2 days until Hanukah (tomorrow at sundown), 19 days until winter, 22 shopping days until Christmas, 28 days until New Year's Eve and 33 days until the NFL Wild Card Playoffs...
