Thursday, June 6, 2013

It's a Muser Thursday


We haven't had a Muser column for a while, so here goes:

(1)   Craig believes that he could no-hit an average peewee league team of nine-year-olds. He has accepted a challenge to that effect, which he intends to perform as soon as he gets around to it sometime in the indefinite future. The notion is that he would be throwing adult-speed hardball pitches past, or at, these little intimidated weenie kids.

Maybe; maybe.  I happened to see a group of nine-year-olds playing league baseball a few weeks ago, and I could not believe how completely incompetent they were. I guarantee you, when I was nine years old, I could catch a hardball thrown to me.  We used to play something called "500" where one kid would throw the ball on the ground, on the line, or up in the air, and the one kid would either get or lose points for catching or muffing the ball. We would do this for hours, so we had some facility – not a lot, but some -- in fielding when we got to the diamond. These days, the only practice these kids get is in the leagues, and it's not enough.  They're terrible. It's not even cute, it's agonizing to watch.   

So the question I have for Junior is:   What happens in the case where a kid gets some wood on the ball, resulting in some kind of a fielding play?  Will incompetent fielding, even if it is not a booted ball, count as an error, keeping the no-hitter intact? This will happen most of the time, especially since a batted pitch thrown at high-speed will come off the bat faster than most peewee league hits.  It is entirely possible that a roller that a competent human would field will escape the infield completely innocent of any glove leather, which in the bigs would be a hit.

So I see two possible outcomes: either a sure loss for Junior in his challenge, or a run-hit-error line that looks something like 0-0-47.

Oh, by the way: make sure The Ticket's liability insurance is fully up to date in anticipation of the possibility that even from 40 feet away, Junior will plunk some kid in the melon.

(2)  I was very interested in George's discussion of how someone – in particular, a sports-talkshow host – can be a fan of a team, but still critical of certain aspects of it. He was responding to lamebrained correspondents who get all accusatory when they hear any negative talk about their favorite team.

Which, of course, made me think about My Ticket Confession. I have certainly done critical pieces in this space, and when I do I will frequently get exactly the same reaction: "You claim to be a big Ticket fan, but you seem to have a hard time with [whatever the topic happens to be]."  It's a dumb criticism for the same reason George points out. You can have a strong rooting interest in a team or radio show, but it's your very expertise on that subject that qualifies you to speak up when something isn't quite right to your way of thinking. As long as you have reasons and convey them in a civilized tone, you shouldn't have to defend yourself against charges of disloyalty.

This does sometimes affect what I publish. I am a big admirer of Gordon Keith, but I heard something of his back a few months ago that I really, really disliked, and I wrote an article about it.  Strongly negative.  But I never ran it because I felt that it would leave the impression that I had a big problem with Gordon generally, and that would have been a false impression.  I suppose the unsatisfactory solution is to load up a piece like that with disclaimers, but that looks insincere if the real purpose of your piece is to smack someone around.  So it's in the MTC boneyard.

(The fact that this site is anonymous also sometimes inhibits some of my more incendiary STDs.  Especially as this site has come more popular, I'm sensitive to the unfairness of taking potshots at Ticket guys from the bunker of anonymity.)

This is the actual photograph promoting a Musers appearance at
the Grenada.  But it actually works, because
when I think Musers, I think "comical breast enhancement."
http://granadatheater.com/category/americana/


(3)  CONFIDENTIAL TO GORDON KEITH [this is not the article I was talking about]:  Consider abandoning your irrational terror of creating drops. You select numerous sex-related news stories for your broadcast, but stop so frequently to shift into a disguised-and-sometimes-incomprehensible voice to say the naughty words that Muse in the News is starting to sound like one long hiccup. Even Craig had had enough this morning. You had paused over the story about the dispatcher who threw up some ill-considered phrases on her Facebook page to say "I'm not quite sure how to say this," and The Joonz snapped at you with what sounded like sincere impatience:  "You're a newsman – just read the story." 


Kind of have to agree with that.  Sorry!  Sorry!

ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com
@Plainsman1310

95 comments:

  1. I umpire little league, and believe me, if Junior finds the right team, there are some kids out there who can hit the ball really well for 9 year olds. I don't think that they could catch up to an adult fastball (assuming Junior could hit 60-70 mph) but if they make contact, it could go a ways. If he puts the call out to find a really good 9 year old team, it could be a challenge.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The assumption upon which Junior based his challenge was that it be an "average" team of 9-year-olds -- not select or all-star.

    ReplyDelete
  3. If you go out and find a YMCA 9 year old team, most good 9 year old pitchers could no hit them. I didn't hear the segment, so one more question...is he pitching from the 9 year old distance or 60ft 6inches? The 9 year old pitching distance is incredibly close for an average adult. They wouldn't stand a chance.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Can somebody please make the Jason Kidd promos stop?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yes, the 9 yo distance (40 feet)? That's the whole idea -- the kids would be blown away and probably scared to death. My notation re injury to the kid wasn't snotty -- I think this would be a risky proposition if Junior were just off by a little bit, or if the kid swung and the pitch hit the kid's arm.

    This ain't gonna happen. I don't see Cumulus sponsoring an event whereby an athletic adult spends 3-5 innings humiliating little kids in a high-risk manner, nor do I see Junior wanting to do it, when it came right down to brass tacks.

    ReplyDelete
  6. @Dave Hoekstra--you're telling me you consistently see no hitters? What league is this in? We play PSA and PBA and I've yet to see a no hitter. It's not that the pitchers aren't good, but out of 9-13 kids that bat, at least half of those kids are consistent hitters.

    1. I'm not sure about Jr. no hitting 9 year olds simply from what Pman said about a kid actually putting a ball in play. Some kids will put the ball in play, I have 4 8 year olds on the team I coach that can hit consistently 50 mph pitches from that distance. With aluminum bats, all they have to do is get the barrel around and the ball will go. We're not a select team by the way and practice once a week, but they've played together a couple years now. As long as he can get past the good hitters, he'd be fine. Is he expecting to have to go 5 innnings or 7?

    2. I'm with you on this one. It seems like more negative things are posted about than good things, right? That's just news in general, we don't necessarily want to hear about the good stuff, so the nightly news generally starts off with murders or something else. I can empathize with these guys if they get their feathers ruffled from someone blogging about them negatively and pointing out a single segment of 12-15 of the day and 60 of the week. Does anyone do 100% good job at work?

    In regards to your Gordon article, sometimes it just helps to write it and stash it, I've done that many times about work and life and I wish more people would do that on facebook before saying something that could be taken the wrong way.

    Have you written an article about anonymity? How critical would people be if their real name was used? I definitely think that when a news site requires someone to log on with their facebook account, that it tempers a majority of the audience from saying what they really feel. Honestly even though I'm anonymous here, I try not to say something that I wouldn't say to the person it's in regards to.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I manage a 9-yr-old LL team in Arlington. The distance is 46 feet at that age. It's called 46/60 because the bases are 60 feet. Older ages move to 50/70, then 60/90.

    ReplyDelete
  8. COMPLETELY agree with the comments about Gordon Keith and his aversion (I think it's ego, not fear) to drops created from his personally selected stories in Muse in the News.

    As I've learned (by accident) more about his private life, I get increasingly annoyed by his infantile and sometimes creepy faux on-air persona.

    Maybe I've just outgrown his style of humor. Or maybe he's no longer as funny as he used to be - or still thinks that he is.

    One of the two.

    ReplyDelete
  9. @Autocorrect No, what I meant was if you take a select level 9 yr old pitcher and pitch him against a lower than rec level YMCA team, there wouldn't be much contact made. It all just comes down to how good the team that Junior would play. If you took a high-level club team of 9 year olds, that is a HUGE talent level difference than what you would see from a rec level team. As with anything (as you probably know well), it all depends on the level that the kids play at. I have seen 9 year old teams that could beat most 12 year old teams, as well as 12 year old teams who couldn't get the ball out of the infield against an average 9 year old team. It is an interesting experiment, but I agree with Plainsman that Cumulus probably won't go for it. Too much risk.

    ReplyDelete
  10. As someone who was in his early twenties when The Ticket went on the air, I'd like to think that I grew up--in many senses of the term--with one Todd Gordon Keith.

    My "relationship" with Gordo has been rocky. During the first handful of years of The Ticket, Gordon was my hero. To me he was the smartest and funniest guy in the room, hands down. Anyone who thought otherwise was either a fool or jealous of the man, or both. And I was certain that SNL or some other big time gig was just around the corner. I used to record both The Musers and THL on cassettes each day. Almost solely for the sake of Gordon. (Back then he did a lot of bits for THL, some exclusively, like Microphone Johnson.) I see my early admiration for Gordo in many of the (mostly) younger commenters here at MTC who extol the greatness of Jake and a few others. Even though I might not always agree with those opinions, trust me, I get them. However, once I hit my early 30s things began to change.

    Whether it was a case of getting older, a bit wiser, or due to the fact that I had returned to college seeking a graduate degree that required several intensive seminars in philosophy/logic and psychology, I don't know. But I do know that it was at this time I began to see some serious chinks in what heretofore I had thought to be golden armor. I started to notice how a lot of his humor was predicated on the tearing down, and at times the emotional destruction, of others. A tearing down that involved finding the weakest spot on the weakest individual who happens to be around. I also began to find his knowledge of certain topics lacking and his way of argumentation uncharitable, unfair, and at times fallacious. In short: much of what made Gordo my hero I now saw in a negative light. I now saw more of a bully and pseudo-intellectual, and less a brilliant comedic mind who also has a more serious, intellectual side. Sure, I still loved the characters; I still laughed out loud at a lot of what Gordo would say; but now with reservation. When he would start to talk philosophy, psychology, and especially politics, I would get angry and/or turn the dial until the segment was over. It was barstool buzz talk trying to pass itself off as meaningful conversation.

    Now entering into my early 40s, I have found a middle-ground. But part of my finding a middle-ground is due to Gordon himself appearing to have discovered some of his own inconsistencies and his inclination to treat others as a means to his comedic/egotistical ends. Gordo seems to have grown up over the last two years. I've no idea as to why. Natural maturation? Epiphany? Personal matters that opened his eyes? Who knows. The only times he bullies these days is when he's in an all-skate situation--e.g., a GNO or a Ticketstock roundtable or when he joins in on The Orphanage at the Greenville Ave St. Patty's Day Parade remote. Even then he is openly and immediately remorseful when he does pounce on some unwitting person, some innocent bystander. We now get a Gordo who is, at least in my opinion, open and honest in relating his insecurities and regrets. In these admissions, he has touched on his tendency to attack the weak, the passive; he has also (and more often) spoke of his regrets; and there has been an owning up or two of seeing things through a rather narrow lens, while erroneously believing the lens to be wide. I've come to realize that for all of his faults, all of his contradictions, his life being off limits but others decidedly not, and all the rest, Gordo is a special talent; he is an honest seeker of what makes humans tick; he is a gifted mimic (no easy feat); he does have a wicked and quick wit; and while a bit too unbridled for its own good, a sound thinker. In short, he is the guy I first "met" in 1994, only grown/growing up. While I don't have his skill set or gifts, when I reflect back, I too have grown up with him. Once I began to look at it in this way, I realized it was time to revisit my thoughts on the man and put them aright.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Very nicely said, birdie. My feelings on the Gordon are similar to yours. You've piqued my interest in reading Plainsman's as of yet to be published Gordo HSO.

    Plainsman, I hope you rethink your position and publish said article. Perhaps you might temper it some if you think it's too incendiary or edit it if it no longer wholly reflects your position? I think I can safely speak for a lot of us in saying we'd really like to read it.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Corby has lost it but having a iPhone/twitter bailed him out quickly when talking about the NBA finals. Threee Finals in three years is a failure?

    And Cuban used the old luxury tax model to just get to two Finals in more years to just win one?

    WTF? Sorry it is out of your Sooner football/Blake Griffin thoughtbox.

    His commentary/thoughts on the best written TV shows illustrates he is all a Wikipedia. You can do better. When the list is openly on the net, you cannot soft-pedal it.

    The diminishing radio audience deserves better.

    ReplyDelete
  13. The only ones up there that have any clue whatsoever when in comes to being current on things -and by current I mean up to the minute- are the JVers like Jake, TC, Machine, Sirois, and some others. Mostly because they are young and single (sorry, girlfriends don't count) and stay glued to Twitter and all the pertinent media outlets. The hosts do not. As the years roll on and technology and its immediacy becomes a bigger and bigger player, the lack of the hosts wiredness (MAYBE excepting Bob, of all people; he seems glued into it all -to some extent Danny as well) and interweb savvy becomes not only more glaring, but also a detriment to the -especially younger- listener. Most of the hosts recognize this and try to work around it. Not the arrogant Corby. He thinks he can slip on by. Much like he probably did throughout his academic career. It's that 'eh it's not really cheating' mentality.

    ReplyDelete
  14. The JKidd promos are much better than the Popping Tags promo where Jake gets cut off and sounds horrible. I personally love the Fake JKidd songs by Gordo

    ReplyDelete
  15. Grubes did a AMA at GIML. It was awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Once again, Your Plainsman confesses that he's not up on all the Internets acronyms. I even looked up Internets acronyms websites (I like websites) with no luck. What does "AMA" stand for, and what was awesome about it, and do you have a link? Michael's Internets excursions are always worth consulting.

    ReplyDelete
  17. ausgang: The Gordon article was about something that was on months ago and is now stale.

    And, as I said, after I wrote it, I felt it was too harsh, not really reflective of my overall view of Gordon.

    birdie: Fascinating take on Gordon. I may not even need to do my own, although I have a somewhat different view on some things.

    I will say that I share your view that Gordon has shifted his approach somewhat in the past couple of years, and I also agree that it's a positive change.

    Emails, he gets emails.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I think AMA stands for Ask Me Anything.

    ReplyDelete
  19. "Emails, he gets emails." What does this mean, Pman? That we ought to send email to Gordo? To you? That you've sent Gordo emails? Or something different?

    ReplyDelete
  20. Sorry, didn't mean to be so obscure. I meant he probably gets an earful from the P1. And maybe he pays attention.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Thanks for the kind words, Plainsman. Would you mind giving a bit of detail as to your differences? I'm always curious to hear other views; especially when the subject at hand is something I'm invested in.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Ok Ok Ok Ok. So I kill the last hour at work today by perusing Greggo's blog and skimming his podcasts. I kept thinking to myself "Alright, he seems to admit to a lot of his shortcomings and failures and eccentricities, but something about it all seems amiss. It rings hollow. How am I supposed to trust this guy? Why should I and why would I want to for that matter" Then it hit me. One of my favorite writers and thinkers nailed people like Greggo when he said the following:

    "The 'frankness' of people sunk below shame is a very cheap frankness."

    --C.S. Lewis

    That sums up perfectly what bothers me about Greggo and those of his confessional ilk.

    ReplyDelete
  23. @terry tynesdale
    Great quote. Very fitting. I too had the same feeling about Greggo's "candor." I put candor in quotation marks because I wonder exactly how candid he actually is. I've grown very tired of today's WYSIWYG culture. The whole "Oh hey, yeah, I'm a real nasty piece of work. But at least I admit it. So you know what you're getting. And by the by, I love me being me, so deal with it or get out of my way" attitude boggles my mind. Greggo personifies this 'tude.

    ReplyDelete
  24. @terry@600 There's something to what you 2 say. I'm trying to give GW the benefit of the doubt and one last shot. So far it's a mixed bag. Very vile in places. Some nuggets that scream classic GW. The contributors he's signed on absolutely suck. Podcast is in its infancy but it's hit or miss. I do think it's funny how he acts like he's in a studio with a crew. Like he's trying to recreate THL. All in all it's misguided and foul. There are some bright spots though. Just don't know how much more of my time I'm willing to give to it. It's probably something I'll sniff around every now and again. More like if and when I remember to.

    @birdie Never thought of Gordo like that. Been a long time P1 but I've always seen him as a class clown that you shouldn't take seriously. Same goes with the whole station. I love The Ticket. I also know it's not a credible news source or a place for serious topics for serious thinkers or for that matter deep sports talk. It's a clubhouse where there's every dude you knew from high school, college and today that you hang with or have to be around. That's why I love it.

    ReplyDelete
  25. If you are looking for a sports/guy-talk radio blog where you might come across a lesser-known quote from C.S. Lewis, you have got, absolutely got, to come to My Ticket Confession.

    Clive Staples Lewis died on November 22, 1963.

    So, for that matter, did Aldous Huxley.

    No one much noticed.

    Bravo, terry tynsedale. I believe I spelled your name incorrectly when I welcomed you a few weeks ago.

    My personal favorite quote applicable to this situation is:

    "When someone repeatedly feels the need to advise you that he is telling you the truth, you come to believe that perhaps it is not his customary mode of expression." -- The Plainsman

    ReplyDelete
  26. I'm using that one of yours, Pman. Giving you full credit of course!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Did Danny say during the Concert Calendar that he was taking a break from the King Bucks?

    Can't imagine why . . .

    ReplyDelete
  28. YoYo: You are welcome to it, although I can't imagine when you might find it useful.

    ARon: I saw a recent comment where our correspondent reported that Danny was going to be working with a different band for awhile. Okay, here's the story:

    http://www.fwweekly.com/2012/05/03/the-tickets-danny-balis-joins-calhoun/

    ReplyDelete
  29. George DiGianni did a whole show on sinusitis today and pronounced it incorrectly throughout. He pronounced it "sin you SIGH tis" but every source I've consulted, including Mrs. Plainsman, who suffers from it, pronounces it "sin us SIGH tis."

    I did learn, however, that sinusitis can cause fungi to enter your brain. I did not know that.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Danny has been with Calhoun for a while now, I guess a year according to that article. That's an awesome band.

    ReplyDelete
  31. I flipped on the radio to catch the last hour of The Orphanage but CdS was already on. Did The Orphanage air today? Is it a goner or just taking a vacay?

    ReplyDelete
  32. The Orphanage bailed last minute so The Teebox and Cirque did 3 hours each.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Huh. So they bailed at the last minute. And Danny is taking an extended hiatus from the King Bucks. And Danny has just opened a bar and already has a full time job producing THL. And Danny is in another band. Sounds to me like he's beginning to make some time/priority based decisions. Sounds to me like The Orphanage might be on its last legs. That's a win for the listener. Whether it's more Tee Box, more Cirque, or a shot for some of the other guys, it's tiiiiiime, buddy. It's tiiiiiiiiime.

    ReplyDelete
  34. The Teebox was making it clear they had no interest in a regular 3-hour gig.

    ReplyDelete
  35. If Dan Bloodcock needs to take some time to go to Hangout Fest, adopt a boy from Central America, walk around Middle Earth, or play Tom Petty songs, well, I say he's earned it. Maybe there was a last minute opening at a koi pond (and you can't, in good conscious, give that up) I came on here to see what the skinny is at the Unticket so i could listen to the Orphanage; Oh well, i guess it just wasn't meant to be this week.

    "who can give a high five,
    but can not make a fist.
    who can wear a mickey mouse watch on his little wrist.....
    The babyarm,
    The babyarm can,
    The babyarm can cause he's here to spread some love and make the world feel good."

    ReplyDelete
  36. I was hoping this would be a babyarm-free site, but guess not.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Is "The Teebox" not wanting another hour because I wonder if their show is "brokered".

    I wonder if George and "The Teebox" buy the airtime on Saturday morning and then sell themselves or share a portion of the ad sales they create.

    ReplyDelete
  38. While we're doing a Muser thing here, I am wondering:

    The story about the sale of the Oswald rooming house at 1026 North Beckley has been around about a month. $500,000 takes it.

    http://www.dallasnews.com/news/jfk50/explore/20130531-lee-harvey-oswald-s-rooming-house-in-oak-cliff-can-be-yours-for-500000.ece?ssimg=1040557

    That's something of a premium.

    http://www.trulia.com/homes/Texas/Dallas/sold/20974524-1026-N-Beckley-Ave-Dallas-TX-75203

    Have The Musers explored this investment with Gordon? I don't remember it. I do remember Gordon's serial visits to pick up treasures from the demolition of the apartment building at 600 Elspeth where he lived with Marina until March 1963.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/14/lee-harvey-oswald-apartment_n_2473876.html

    But nothing on the Beckley property.

    I haven't seen any followup on it having been sold. I would think Gordon might have arranged for a visit with the agent. Pub for the agent and listing, hair-up-on-spine audio for Gordon.

    ReplyDelete
  39. @DA
    Yes, both shows are brokered.

    Geez, pDub, please take that baby arm stuff somewhere else. Please.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Yes, George and Craig talked about the house with Gordo. Gordon claims to not be a buyer.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I'm sorry, dudes; I am a young, and most definitely don't know a bunch about the history of the Little Ticket. I've always thought of baby a. as more an "Aloha" type word, but in no way did I mean to offend or provoke.

    Actually, the reason I'm so partial to the song is because I love the Sammy Davis Jr. song, and I love the Ticket. Like like peanut butter and chocolate.

    Anyways, I really dug the musings on the Musers. Peace be the journey: Cool Runnings

    ReplyDelete
  42. C.S. Lewis and Baby Arm in the same thread, greatness.


    I like the fact that younger and older listeners mix in the MTC. I doubt that The Plainsman will let this place devolve into a series of baby arm replies, but they do serve their purpose at times.
    Frivolity.

    Norm blows a gasket every now and again. He did nothing that the rest of us haven't done on more than one occasion; a full throated screed at one Jerry Jones. Whether or not he heeds it is immaterial. He apparently doesn't listen to his own chosen advisers, why would we expect him to listen to Norm? Nevertheless, it allows us to hear someone saying what we have been thinking. I feel sorry for J. Garrett more often than not. He has signed on to this ship of fools and there is no port in sight.

    If Danny is gone from Saturdays and the Orphanage is no more then so be it. I will miss them, but life goes on. The Tee box should remain in the same slot as before. 2 hours is plenty of those two. Yeah, sure give TC and the Machine a run at Saturday mornings or whoever else on the JV squad that might be willing and available. It will certainly be better than any network feed.

    ReplyDelete
  43. Well put, cactus.

    pDub, no worries, man. The "oh no" isn't so much directed at you personally (you've become a regular and meaningful contributor) as much as it is the possibility that the GIML mentality of commenter as a comedian/wannabe board-op begins to invade the comboxes.

    I've been listening to The Shake Joint regularly for over a month now. Impressions: Solid but, contrary to what some have emphatically and often stated, some disconnect with some of the things Jake claims. For example. I really dig the deep stats segment. I find that stuff fascinating. But today Jake went into the debate over being clutch or not. How there's no such thing. The only thing that comes close to it is if whether the player accepts the challenge and attempts the shot or whatever. Sean pointed out that many times that is a product of scheme, and that the player has nothing to do with it. The counterargument being Lebron in the 2011 Finals, who clearly didn't want the rock come crunch time. Such thinking doesn't apply to sports like tennis or golf where there is nowhere to hide. If there's no such thing as being clutch, then there's no such thing. Jake's (and others) stance requires special pleading to stand. What I found most intriguing and contradictory was later in the show, while discussing the Cowboys, Jake was making purely speculative psychological arguments for the failure of certain players. It can't be both ways. Well, it can't be both ways when put into the terms Jake holds (regarding stats, clutch, and whatnot). So as much as I dig Jake's work, he's not the overpowering intellectual that some here have claimed. Nor is he the intellectual impostor that others have claimed. He's a smart dude who has a lot to learn, seems more than willing to learn it, and IMHO has a bright future ahead of him.

    I also am digging the local musician in-studio interviews. Cool stuff. I'm a bit surprised that Sean seems to have a better grasp of what the musicians are about than Jake. Would've thought it the other way around. Jake's Chris Farley sort of style of talking to the musicians is endearing. He sounds like a kid talking to his heroes. Kind of stumbles some, gets tongue tied, but you can tell he's really stoked for them to be there and to be speaking with them. Like I said, cool stuff.

    Shake Joint. Two big thumbs up.

    ReplyDelete
  44. pDub, 2:05 has it exactly right. As a relative newcomer there is no way you could have known that this site has identified"babyarm" with a certain kind of flame-war mentality, not entirely sure how I got started with that. I guess it was when I saw how futile it was to post much of anything in the existing Ticket-related message boards and it seemed to me like there was an inordinate number of references to "babyarm." But it's OK to like the song and Dan's parody. But if you see reference here from time to time to "the babyarm people," you'll know who I mean.

    In a way, then, "babyarm" had a role in inspiring this site. Perhaps I should treat it with more respect.

    ReplyDelete
  45. Mike Sirois rates all the chicks in Game of Thrones. It's NSFW but it's also freaking awesome.

    http://tinyurl.com/n8rqgws

    ReplyDelete
  46. Thanks for the kind words, Confessors.

    I love the Jake/Chris Farley Show comparison!

    WTDS: 1. Fake Bill Simmons (and I LOVE the real Bill Simmons)

    2. fighting over who gets to be Django and who gets to be Stephan

    3. NBA Announcer Buffalo Bill

    ReplyDelete
  47. @ 11:57
    Sirois has definitely done it again. That will keep me warm while north of The Wall til next season.

    ReplyDelete
  48. From May 14th cumulative ratings:

    KTCK-AM 2.7 2.8 2.8 2.6 Sports Cumulus Media Inc.
    KRLD-AM 2.6 2.3 2.6 2.5 News/Talk CBS Radio Inc
    KESN-FM 1.3 1.2 1.6 2.2 Sports ESPN Internet Ventures
    KMVK-FM 2.1 2.2 2.4 2.2 Spanish CHR CBS Radio Inc
    KERA-FM 2.3 2.3 2.5 2.1 News/Talk North Texas Public Broadcasting
    KLIF-FM 1.8 2.0 2.0 2.1 CHR Cumulus Media Inc
    KEGL-FM 2.1 2.4 1.8 1.9 Active Rock Clear Channel Communications Inc.
    KSOC-FM 2.4 2.5 2.0 1.9 Urban AC Radio One Inc.
    KCBI-FM 1.0 1.0 1.5 1.2 Christian CHR First Dallas Media Inc.
    KESS-FM 1.0 1.3 1.2 1.2 Rhythmic CHR Univision Local Media Inc.
    KRLD-FM 1.4 1.2 1.0 1.1 Sports CBS Radio Inc
    KKXT-FM 0.9 1.0 0.9 1.0 AAA North Texas Public Broadcasting Inc.
    KFZO-FM 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.7 Regional Mexican Univision Local Media Inc.
    KSKY-AM 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.5 News/Talk Salem Web Network
    KDXX-FM 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 Hot AC Univision Local Media Inc.
    KLIF-AM 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.4 News/Talk Cumulus Broadcasting Inc.
    KFLC-AM 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 Spanish News/Talk Univision Local Media Inc.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Many thanks, 855. I hope you cut-and-pasted that. Any results in the 25-54 demo? The guy/slacker demo?

    ReplyDelete
  50. If Sirois ever loses his Ticket gig, he can write summaries for CarFax.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Blogger giving me some tsuris in creating new posts. Hope to have a new item up soon.

    Thank You for Shopping at My Ticket Confession.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Only the cumulative was posted. The ratings periods are from Feb. 14 to May 14 (left to right). The ESPN bump jumped out at me. The leap between April to May is pretty significant. Though I'm not sure what would've caused such a spike. The FAN is barely breathing. I honestly wonder how much longer it can go on? At least in its current configuration. Seems like there must be something big in the works. Surely CBS won't keep pissing away those kinds of dollars forever.

    ReplyDelete
  53. The ESPN cumulative ratings are only up because of the Rangers. The Fan cumulative ratings will go up in the fall when the NFL starts. It's been this way the last couple years.

    ReplyDelete
  54. KESN's Rangers bump is only in the after 6pm though right? It wouldn't be a bump across the board. I'm not an expert at reading this things of course.
    In regards to the Fan, if their only big thing was to land B&S and put them in, wouldn't it have been smarter to fire RAGE when the ratings period ended? Or is it smarter to fire them beforehand so the ratings get worse, then make B&S look better if they move the needle even a .3 or .4?

    ReplyDelete
  55. @Autocorrect:

    It can be an across the board jump because if the listener has KESN on the last thing at night, it is the first thing they will listen to in the AM.

    Think of it as the same theory why The Ticket has post game shows for every local home game.

    ReplyDelete
  56. There are also day games, and obviously weekend games as well.

    ReplyDelete
  57. Where's that new article, Pman?

    ReplyDelete
  58. In the interest of equal opportunity here is the link to RW's new blog address. It appears he has managed to hold onto the Sportatorium name.

    All that is there at the moment is a countdown clock to...
    The Death of Rage.

    http://www.dfwsportatorium.com/p/countdown.html

    ReplyDelete
  59. Am I the only one that thinks these guys putting up blogs is really half ass? I mean, spend some money on a good layout design.
    That being said, I'm ready to see what kind of holes are punched into Greggo's story. It's pretty telling if the two guys don't talk any more that things didn't end well.

    ReplyDelete
  60. Needs a bigger banner! I count 8 Richies on the banner, can anyone top that?

    ReplyDelete
  61. Well, the only holes getting punched, are that Richie sucked the life out of RaGE! From the daily BEATING Richie took on his last blog, he might want to re-think it!

    ReplyDelete
  62. Man this Profar "interview" on BaD is pretty painful. He is giving them almost nothing.

    ReplyDelete
  63. I had a feeling that was how it would probably go... glad to hear I didn't miss anything. The Wash interview was greatness though.

    ReplyDelete
  64. @Anon352

    Yeah, the Warsh interview was a really good one. I was glad to hear them ask about what S. Bass called on twiterville once, "expert level grab ass" and that it was Elvis that talked him into the attempt to grab Beltre's lid as he went back in the dug out from a homer. I was also glad to hear him asked about CJ. He talked more about that event in general terms of how he talks to players, but it was good to hear him be willing to discuss it.

    ReplyDelete

  65. KLIF-AM 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.4 News/Talk Cumulus Broadcasting Inc.

    My how the mighty have fallen.

    Used to split my radio time between KLIF and KTCK in the early days of the station. I went full time to the Ticket when Norm came on board.

    It appears WBAP is headed down that same road. Sad to see such Legendary stations on the rocks these days.

    ReplyDelete
  66. i go one way my wayJune 13, 2013 at 2:28 AM

    Uh, so where's that new article, Plainsman?

    RW's Sportitorium blog will get massive hits for 1 week beginning June 17. His side of the story will come out and then there'll be the comments. After that, no one will care. I'm sorry, that's the way it is. Just like the whole Greggo Cafe thing will fade away within 4 months. At one time Gw was, but is no longer is a compelling personality, but hey man....RW is absolutely not a compelling personality. Never was. The only thing anyone wants to know is his side of the RaGE story. Which, I will guarantee you parrots Greggo's utterly false Cowboy mandate we aren't shills bulsh fantasy story that throws all their supposed friends still left on the station under the bus...but in RW's case done in a more refined, professional, 'hey, I ain't gonna burn bridges cuz my out of my league fiance that I got from having the job I was fired from ain't cheap and needs to be every bit the local c list celebrity as I think I am even though I'm not perceived as such if I'm gonna keep her for the long haul' air about it.' Now please let me deliver you pizza and beer to your house and come down and visit me and Jas as we peddle this creepy local realtor who also happens to be DNC shill.

    No. You're not gonna hear the 'unvarnished' truth from either RW or GW. What you're gonna hear is the difference between a delusional idiot (GW) and a lost in the wilderness of a lifestyle that he can neither afford nor personally deal with much longer douche who used to be a pretty good writer.

    ReplyDelete
  67. Enjoying the Musers' Dad Show, at least that part of it I can hear through the terrible signal.

    @I go one way my way: I dunno. Maybe never. Doncha sometimes just get Ticketed out? Really. Prolly in a couple days.

    ReplyDelete
  68. @I go one way my way

    Richie's blog is much more interesting than anything Greggo will put out there. I like his quick hit local sports focus (and fight through the bragging). Even all the people who "hated" him over at the Observer Sportatorium kept coming back day after day after day. He puts something out there that no one else really does (that I'm aware of) as far as DFW sports goes. I think his blog has much more staying power than GW's... everyone knows what their getting into when going there, it's not just a curiosity.

    ReplyDelete
  69. Unlike Greggo, Richie doesn't have a history of being a complete liar.

    ReplyDelete
  70. Richie blatantly lied on the air about running the White Rock Marathon twice (he only did it once) and his time he claimed was way below his actual time.

    ReplyDelete
  71. I never paid much attention to RW prior to Rage nor while he was on air with GW .
    My curiosity about (RW) has lead me to familiarize myself with his work so I could better grasp the " concept " of RAGE and its demise .
    I am not a Radio guy , but it is clear to me that RW is a big bag of nothing and GW needs serious counseling , combining the two on Air was a Class A violation of basic business practices . I consider myself lucky to have only wasted about 1 hour of my life trying to listen and like RAGE .
    My point is , Forced chemistry never works in any industry , The KTCK's success is maintained by their innate ability to package their on air product and improve upon it " on air " .
    I am sure i will read RW blog out of curiosity , which I will , Then I will package all the GW/RW nonsense , throw it in the Trinity and move on .
    As far as Jr. Millers challenge to dominate a 9 year old YMCA Team , I will take any 9 year old team in the Coppell YMCA system and bet heavily that Jr. gets taken to the woodshed .
    I also endorse the " NO baby arm " fly zone the Plainsman maintains on MTC .
    AM/FM radio will not go away , it is and will continue to morph into whatever it will be as the world around us changes . How many of you remember the " Radio Free Europe " Ads on TV ? It was a player in stopping the spread of communism !
    I also predict Major failure for Jason Kidd as a Coach , a successful leader must have the capacity to communicate his message in some way shape or form . Jason Kidd has never shown the ability to communicate via the media or in print . And as a matter of fact , use the English Language properly .
    I would like to be in the first Nets management meeting with the Russian guy , Jay-Z and Kidd . WOW !

    ReplyDelete
  72. Ryan P1 in Fort WorthJune 13, 2013 at 6:25 PM

    No one has anything to say about the Muser's Fathers Day Show? I've been a Muser's/Hardline P1 for a long time and I think this morning may have been the best show either show has ever produced.

    I am not normally a sap and things don't usually touch me, but this morning I was overcome with emotion. It was great listening to Junior and Gordo's dads talk about them growing up and their relationships, George playing a song he wrote about his late father, and all the funny stories they shared about their dads.

    I lost my dad about 5 years ago and haven't been to his grave in a few years. I cut work early today to go pay him a visit. Who knew a sports station could have this sort of effect? Bravo Musers...this is why they are the best in the business. Who else would have the courage to do a show like this?

    ReplyDelete
  73. Ryan, that's why they're called (among other things) The Courage Boys. They're the best thing on The Ticket, hands down. Unlike THL, they embody what made The Ticket the juggernaut it is today. For any of you out there, Pman included, who weren't around during the first 3ish years of The Little One and want to know what it was like. . . .whenever you listen to The Musers, you ARE listening to it. They have evolved, but they haven't changed. You, the listener, are still a part of the clubhouse when you tune in to D&M. You're not looking in from the outside. You are a part of the show, literally so with the Ebrake and other call in segments, and you are made to feel like you're a part of their family. THL used to be that way. A long long time ago. Don't you dare blame Corby for that, either. Yes he's an a-wipe, but they began to become too big for themselves long before Corby became a co-host.

    Long live The Musers! (What's sad, is that I'll guarantee they are the first heritage show that either loses a member and/or calls it quits.)

    ReplyDelete
  74. Anon 7:09,

    Do you see the whole show calling it quits together or one of them leaving? I see Craig leaving first. He's talked about wanting to move to New Mexico before he gets too old. What a sad sad day that will be. None of them can be replaced.

    ReplyDelete
  75. @744
    Totally agree with you about Craig. I used to think it would be Gordo leaving for some TV gig or something, but as the years pass I think that's less and less likely. My bet is that one day we wake up and Craig says I have an important announcement to make at 9:40. . . .and that'll be all she wrote.

    ReplyDelete
  76. The levels were a disaster for the morning show. The Staubachs were barely legible while Gordo was at 11.

    ReplyDelete
  77. Great stuff, everyone. A few thoughts:

    Shaggy, I'm sure it's very difficult to get levels right on a remote. The last two Hardline remotes have been unlistenable. I had written a pretty scathing post on the sound of The Hardline before one of you advised me that it was a remote. Almost unlistenable. Today's Muser showgram wasn't nearly as bad as those 'Line remotes.

    I have no scoop for you on Craig, but all these speculations sound pretty well-founded to me. These guys are very well paid and have been for a long time. Astute management of that money can easily buy an early retirement. George has a family and a stately manor. Gordon is cheap (may be a bit) so he may be set, but Gordon won't retire from radio unless he finds a TV gig he can make a go of. Sounds like Craig lives modestly close to downtown (I think), and to my knowledge has not purchased a Kevlar-coated vehicle.

    I believe that the Musers signed up for a new term around the beginning of this year. I may be off about that, but that's rattling around in the old noodle. I do not have any certain of knowledge of this, but since these guys are younger and the show very stable -- recall that when THL was doing their deals, it was in the shadow of Greg's departure(and Mike is older) -- I believe the Musers' deal MAY be longer than the three-year deal we were mulling over when Mike's deal ran out awhile back.

    In any event, it will be a sad day indeed when (radio) retirement breaks up the Morning Musers. Hell, I worry about their morning commute. How many stories have we heard about close calls on the expressway? And Gordon hangs around firing ranges and arrow-shooting places. Craig pedals flimsy velocipedes on busy roadways.

    I also loved the Salute to Fathers and regret I couldn't stay tuned in for the tag-team interviews. Hoping they'll be up on The UnTicket soon.

    GJW, do not throw your packaged RaGe take down into the Trinity. Throw it up here.

    ReplyDelete
  78. Mike took off 30 minutes early again today, I assume for band practice/gig.

    ReplyDelete
  79. Shaggy - Petty Theft was playing at the Thursday night concert series at the Harbor in Rockwall.

    Downbeat was at 7:30

    ReplyDelete
  80. @ Plainsman
    The podcast are up online and they have Gordo's and Craig's father. Good segments.

    I went and saw Petty Theft for about an hour last night (I was by myself and couldn't drag the family down there') and was pretty impressed with their presentation. They play really well and Rhynes does a pretty good job on the lead vocals too.

    ReplyDelete
  81. Ooops, I typed in the captcha incorrectly by one letter, but it didn't matter, it posted anyway...WTH is it for anyway if it can't keep out spammers.

    ReplyDelete
  82. Really, T4? Man, I saw Petty Theft a few years back and I thought the band was god, but I thought Mike was terrible.

    ReplyDelete
  83. @i go one way
    There is something to some of what you say, unfortunately, your thoughts are too cohesive. I'm thinking that post bar closing time-stamp might have something to do with it.

    I for one am very skeptical of either GW or RW. Though I do get the sense from RW's Tweets that his version of things and GW's are rather different. Then again, he's a journalist, and journalists know how to tease and make things seem like they're going to go one way, only to read the article and realize the tantalizing hint was only bait set out to reel you in. I guess we'll find out Monday (he's doing a 5-part series on the end of RaGE--pretty smart way to ensure he'll grab some attention for more than one day). Honestly, I find both RW and GW to be attention whores. I don't think RW used to be one, but he tasted the public life and very much liked what it offered, and now he's where he's at. While I can see RW's blog being around for some time to come, I can't say the same thing for GW. And that podcast gets worse each day. I'm giving it one more week. If he doesn't improve the content and delivery, I'm out. I think GW's going to find out pretty soon that dirt and yellow journalism are what sells. He's got plenty to dish and seems to enjoy throwing others under the bus, so perhaps there's at least a few more months left in the tank. Other than that, I can't see it going on much further. First off, he comes across as rather lazy. There always seems to be an excuse for why things are late or some such. Typical GW, I guess.

    ReplyDelete
  84. Shoot, I meant to say not too cohesive!

    ReplyDelete
  85. @Anon1018 and 9

    Back in the day when he wrote for the Startlegram I found him worth a read. I liked him when he was a third wheel and fill in on the Ticket. It wasn't until RW got the offer over at CBS that he went full douchemeister. It was sad really.
    If he can find something of what he had back when he was running out of downtown FW he might claw his way back. If I have any hope at all for either of them I put it on RW as douchey as he can be sometimese. I swear, tennis? really? and no hockey!@ effin a

    sigh again

    thought about this some
    this stooge, this worst of employees

    which of them has something left to offer?

    if nothing else, I would like to hear his side of the story. If he milks it for 5 days that is good planning on his part.

    Greggo seems to be doing a publick meltdown. Grab some popcorn and your preferred beverage.

    yeah the extra k just for elizabethan flair.

    ReplyDelete
  86. Another late night for the cactus . . .

    Glad we can be company to all sleepless Confessors.

    ReplyDelete
  87. Richie personifies "douchebag"! From his "50 going on 20" attitude. His frosted tipped gelled hair [whats left] His 3 hundred dollar True-Pigeon jeans, Affliction shirt!! My god! The douche-dom never ends!

    ReplyDelete
  88. If I ever buy hundred dollar jeans promptly take me out to the woods and shoot me in the head. I will have lost my faculties entirely and you might as well put me out of my misery.

    ReplyDelete
  89. The Shake Joint had a great interview with CNN's Ed Lavandera this morning. They did an awesome job. I really enjoy listening to theses guys. They keep getting better every week.

    ReplyDelete
  90. RW's blog is up now, and GW's story is pretty much blown to shit now. I'm looking forward to the other parts of the story, but chapter 1 really puts Greggo in the spotlight. I wonder how many more apologists will spring up for Greggo? RW had no reason to blast the guy, he's the one that got him the gig.

    ReplyDelete
  91. I want to see what else Whitt says before forming a final opinion on this charade.

    Somehow, I am not surprised that Whitt totally blames Greggo for that crappy show. Yes, Greggo is to blame for the mysterious absences. What does Whitt blame his having a big bag of nothing on? He wanted Greggo and the station gave Greggo another chance.

    Whitt should have known what he was getting into with Greggo.

    It appears Whitt thought he could boost his radio cred by bringing Greggo back even though Greggo was washed up.

    I wonder if Whitt will mention sorry ratings as a reason for the demise of the show?

    ReplyDelete
  92. I'm guessing that maybe he'll write about the fact that no one will unseat the Ticket in drive time. His blog looks a lot better than Greggo's, and even has advertisers? I haven't watched a full podcast, it's painful IMO.
    I'm wondering if Greggo thought Richie would just stay quiet about it all or?
    Regardless of how people feel, one of them is probably right and if you had to, right now, put everything you own on the line, who would you believe?

    ReplyDelete
  93. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  94. @slinky
    I'm guessing your post(that was deleted) was pretty articulate and full of grandiose like the other posts on this page bashing Richie Whitt.
    It's always funny for me to read one person calling another a douche. Doing it once in a post, ok. Twice, pushing it, more than that and it's just evident you have something deeper against the person.
    What I enjoy about Pman's blog is the underlying thing that got me into sports radio in the mid to late 90's when I was living in San Antonio and listening to Jim Rome. "Have a take and don't suck." Your takes suck, give me more than "he's just a douche". Using that word over and over doesn't make you anything other than annoying. My apologies if this seems like a personal attack against you, but I enjoy this blog and you coming on and attacking a person over and over is ... douchey.
    I am in no way saying Richie Whitt is a great radio personality, maybe there's a blog on this subject on its own that Pman made a few years ago. Good writer but being on the radio too much exposed him.

    ReplyDelete