Friday, March 14, 2014

End-of-Spring-Break Quick Hits


(1) Having some problems with Blogger lately.  If I vanish for awhile it may be for technical reasons.  Will leave a comment if there are further issues.

(2) Craig "Junior" "the Joonze" Miller reported on his favorite websites in the 5:30 segment this morning.  "My Ticket Confession" was not among them.

(3) Jeff "The Pan-American Catman" Catlin is really cutting into his host's extra promotional income.  First it was Pat Lobb Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep, now he's flogging a Chevrolet dealership.

(4) I remarked in a comment to the last thread that TC had made himself a Ticket "immortal."  Some readers took that as an endorsement of his entire body of work.  No -- I meant he has made himself a Ticket character that people will remember long after he's gone.  Someone mentioned Rocco Pendola, who, in my book, is also a Ticket immortal.  I never heard a single syllable he ever uttered, being long gone before I arrived in the area.



(5) Pretty cool that Gordon was runner up for the Royko Award from the American Society of Newspaper Editors for his Dallas Morning News column.  Congratulations, and best of luck to him as he's also been submitted for consideration for a Pulitzer.

(6) Anyone else find the "Between Two Ferns" thing with Galifianaklis/POTUS about 17% as amusing as a couple of Ticket hosts did?  Actually, I thought the President did a good job -- he's a natural performer -- but it just didn't move my yuk meter.  Probably didn't help that it gave off the fragrance of just another Hollywood shill for Obamacare.

7 comments:

  1. Danny just teased Bieber deposition audio for E-news. This is four days old already.

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  2. (2) I can assure you Junior, as are all of the hosts with the exception of Norm, are more than aware of MTC.

    (3) Cat is like the music promoter, manager, or booking agent who, while successful in his own right, got into that side of the business because being a musician either never happened or he just couldn't do it but wanted to be around it. In short, he wishes he was on air talent, isn't, but is in a position to, and does, get on the mic as much as possible. Including, if some remember, cooking up his own Sat. afternoon horse racing show with Norm several years back.

    (4) TC will not be remembered long after he's gone. No one really remembers or even recalls MaSS. Only old timers remember Expo. Ditto Psycho Dave. Hell, even the memory of the greatness that is Grubes is fading. TC was a JV who was, fairly or unfairly, made into a punchline for the listener. The "fuh fuh fuh fuh" drops will long outlive the memory of TC. Rocco is a Ticket Immortal. He lost his job calling into The Rant and having an on air meltdown. I wish TC luck and hope he makes it. I hope he learns something from his experience at The Ticket and uses it to his advantage. Sadly, the "soft" scorched earth way in which he is leaving (toward the CTO and all "doubters") would say he has not.

    (5) I'm happy for Gordo. He's been trying to shake his hard earned and totally self induced moniker as class clown for years now. I must say that his op-ed pieces belong in the Metro or Lifestyle sections, not the op-ed page proper. Neither do I care for his self confessional, self deprecating, one size fits all solution in the guise of sensitive nuance to every problem style. I find it not to be a refreshing vulnerability or much needed humbleness, but rather a cover for a lack of substance, a way to fill up a word count requirement. But that's what passes these days for insight. The days of Mencken, Safire, Trilling, Lippmann, etc., are long gone. No matter what you thought of their politics, only a hack would've denied their depth, sincerity, and cogency. So, uh, you go, Gordo.

    (6) Surely you're aware of where the majority of the hosts' political views lie? Then their reaction ought to be no surprise to you.

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  3. Anon 5:58

    I agree on all counts, except I must take a small backward step on Cat. I just don't know enough of that particular area and/or situation to reply knowledgeably on that issue.

    FWIW - Brad Calhoun has changed the location of his blog / website. Now that RW is pretty much out of the picture I think LWS.com will take Richie's place in the rotation.

    www.lukewarmsports.com

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  4. Totally agree with the Galifianakis/Obama "bit". Mike's thoughts on it summed it up perfectly. Don't listen to to the hardline much. Seems Corby is still as easily impressionable as ever, with Danny's usual, "yeah, whatever Corby says" attitude.

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  5. beauty school dropoutMarch 15, 2014 at 5:04 PM

    @558
    (2) Absolutely true.

    (3) Dead on analysis

    (4) Only thing I can add is that 4 years from now BaD will be doing one of their What's the Origin of This Drop Segment. The drop in question will be Fuh Fuh Fuh Fuh.

    (5) I agree with you to a point. I too am glad for Gordo. I also believe his now unwanted rep was not only entirely self-inflicted but also done so with great zeal. I'm also right there with you about what section of a paper his columns belong, as well as not being a fan of either his style of writing, subject matter, or the literary and rhetorical devices he uses to make his point. I'd also add that his columns smack of self-help, I'm OK, You're OK, Moral Therapeutic Deistic claptrap undergirded by an outmoded and proven time and again to be false Freudian anthropology. Yet I disagree with your inference that Gordo thinks his writing, thoughts, and subject matter is either on a par with or aiming to be like the luminaries you list. I don't care for his work or for the most part his line of thinking. But I do believe he knows his limitations. I believe he's very much aware of them. I think he knows the scope of his audience and the breadth and depth of his own education and knowledge in relation to the bigger picture. It's why he tackles mostly the trivial, and it's why when he does go outside the realm of the superficial he swings and at best hits a foul ball or a weak grounder. I also reckon that this bothers him greatly. In this way he is the tortured comic that he at times tells us he is. The tortured comic that many claim is a mere act. Moreover it seems to me that Gordo has indeed gone out of his way over the past 5 or so years to make amends to others, to get a broader view of the world, to find himself in a meaningful way. For that I applaud him. And for all his shortcomings, he keeps at it, he's DOING it. I'm sure he'll only get better, wiser, and eventually leave the gimmicky stuff behind. I wish him nothing but success.

    (6) Absolutely true. I can't believe Pman even asked the question.

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  6. So TC said that there would be people trying out for the top 10 this week. Any idea who would be qualified to do the top 10?

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  7. Uh, a computer programmed to do as such? Pretty much anyone who wants to work those hours?

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