Sunday, May 4, 2014

A Few Muser and Random Quick Hits


Sorry I've been away.  Running like mad.

(1)  I think it was Junior who announced that he had discovered the perfect deodorant -- Old Spice Classic.  I laughed out loud.  I was tired of the heavily promoted sticks I'd been using and thought "hey, I used to like the smell of Old Spice aftershave [those torpedo-shaped bottles with the grey plastic cap], I'll give this a try." Got home, took off the cap, and about passed out.  It was the most potent sweet fragrance I'd ever experienced; it would stun Mike R's proverbial mastodon.  It almost embarrassed me to glide it on, but I did.  When I got out to the field, the receptionist told me I smelled nice.  So it either works or doesn't, depending on your point of view, but I imagined myself trailing vaporous hydrocarbons for the rest of the day.  I'm still using it.

(2)  A long time ago I made a note of a novel that Junior said was his favorite:  One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.  He mentioned it again on the occasion of Marquez's death on April 17.  I was also very moved by the novel; I read most of it lounging on a chaise on my uncle's patio in California one summer.  It's a wonderful read, even in translation, and I commend it to you.  Its first line is widely quoted:  "Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Areliano Buendia was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice."  (Trans. Gregory Rabassa.)  And you're off and running.




(3)  I was tired of people, including sponsors, saying "well played" or "nicely played" as though every praiseworthy act were nothing more than a game stratagem, the first time I heard them.

(4)  The consultants may be back at The Ticket.  The Musers were making great fun of something or other in the show being an "activation event" or "event deck" or "activation event deck."

(5)  Calling Gordon Keith, calling Gordon Keith:  You, like I, am a large P1 of McDonald's coffee.  Have you found lately that stores no longer allow you to take your black coffee and go to a little stand where you may select the proper number of Splendas and half-and-half cups and complete the final preparations on your own?  They ask you what you need and put it in themselves, or give you the packets and cups which you must specify at the time the purchase is negotiated.   Come to think of it  .  .  .  I've actually encountered some bad McDonald's in the last year, orders wrong, spotty service.

(6)  In the last thread, a commenter drew our intention to a Reddit subfile dedicated to The Ticket:  www.reddit.com/r/theticket.  It's pretty cool.  I confess, it made me wonder whether this site is any longer of value.

(7)  Why are these Muser quick hits?  Because, well, it's like this.  I mean, it doesn't really mean anything, much, and I don't really have a good explanation, to be perfectly honest with you (as Corby might say a few times), but:  I've been listening to a lot more of Cowlishaw & Mosely's Afternoon Show on ESPN lately.  They finally got Cowlishaw's mic situation fixed so he's mostly audible.  Like the chemistry, like the topics, like the talk.  Like the shorter ad breaks.



68 comments:

  1. 1. I'll keep that one in mind. I'm about to kick my aerosol to the curb because I feel very non green when I use it with all of the spray going everywhere.

    6. I've checked out the site and enjoyed it. I've only been there once though. The sites I check out every day are usually this one and (being an Android geek) XDA.

    7. Gotta say I enjoyed Tim Cowlishaw when he was a +1 back when Ben and Skin were on the Fan. He's got a decent sense of humor. I've just forgot he was back on the radio. I'll have to try and remember to check him out.

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  2. Really? Cowlishaw and Mosely, Plainsman? Just proof that you'll cuddle up like a beaten dog to anything that's tied to the Ticket household. That show is so goddawful. Really, really bad. Meanwhile, the rest of DFW is catching on to G-Bag Nation, Russ Martin, and Ben & Skin and you're talking Cowlishaw and Mosely. Give me a break.

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  3. The times I've flipped over to Cowlishaw's show I've heard what sound like generic blowhards blowing hard about SPOOOOOOOOOOORRRRTS and quickly turned away. I can't stand a generic blowhard.

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  4. I gotta say about 2 years back you couldn't find a person who despised The Fan as much as me. From their stealing of bits to their hokey "Fan Fan" reference....I would listen just to bash it later.

    Fast forward to today... I listen to their morning show between Muser commercial breaks and even stay with them a few segments.

    Midday I'm with the G-bag nation ( as much as it pains me to admit). BAAD radio has just gotten stale for me and my annoyances with their weekly segments causes me to tune out.

    Afternoons, It's a grab bag of all three stations. B&S have improved their their IMO and I find them more listenable now.

    About a year ago I was a true P1 all day and wouldn't even think about changing the dial. But I gotta say...the other stations are putting out better shows than what they did in the past.

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  5. I'm one of the moderators at reddit.com/r/theticket and I love reading MTC. Don't think that your site doesn't serve a purpose. The Ticket subreddit just has a different function. Love ya, pal.

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  6. 1. Glad to see you've come around on Cowlishaw and Mosely. I've been flipping over to them in bits and pieces since their debut. I too find myself staying longer these days. Yes it's been said ad nauseam, but THL is flat out played out. The market is ripe for a show to unseat it. It's become so formulaic, so lazy, so rife with host-self-involvement/insularity, it's embarrassing at times to listen to. I honestly feel embarrassed for them at times. No, I don't think Cowlishaw and Mosely is the show that will "kill the king." Neither is B&S. Half-Cat is right about B&S, but not for the reason s/he most likely thinks. B&S do seem better not because they've stepped up their game, but rather because THL has fallen so far from where it once was. Perhaps that's the reason why C&M seem pretty good to my ears (?). These other shows, by comparison to the current day HL presentation, seem light years better.

    2. I've tried, I really have tried to grasp the appeal of the Gbag Nation. I can't. Getting past the painfully stupid Chris Arnold (sorry, he really is a dumb person) alone is a deal-breaker. The rest of the crew and the presentation reminds me of Russ Martin's show. I guess if RMS scratches your itch, then so too would/does Gbag.

    3. Speaking of Gbag and RMS. Lately there have been a few comments in each thread that claim Gbag had this number and/or RMS was 1 point behind THL, among other like claims. I tried to find support for these claims via published ratings. I could not. The closest thing I could find was that RMS was one full point off THL, which is a huge deficit. So I can only surmise that this person hasn't a clue as to how to go about reading the ratings data. As far as Gbag goes, I couldn't find the data to support the claims. If this person or persons have the supporting data, it would be awfully sporting of you to provide the data when you make such claims. As much as THL now turns me off, it still is top dog. Same goes with BaD (I'm with you Half-Cat in thinking the weekly segments have gotten out of control-I guess they're following their leaders, THL, in that regard). The ratings show them to be dominant in their time slot. Not as dominant as THL, and certainly not akin to The Musers, but dominant as far as ratings are concerned nonetheless. My point is that I think Anon 5/5/12:31 and others like him/her are too bullish on these alternative shows. Like I said above, the environment is ripe for a show to come along and unseat THL. But that show is not as yet on air. One interesting, related, aside. Have any of you noticed the promo that asks the P1 to keep listening and to spread the word about The Ticket because it's better than hearing the same old classic rock tune over and again? If you have, then you know who the CTO deems their actual competition. It's not The FAN; it's surely not 103.3, as they're a sister station. No. It's KZPS. KZPS is KTCK's biggest competitor in the market. Same demo. KTCK is directly below KZPS in the overall market ratings. It's who the CTO is aiming its sights at. This tells you all you need to know about what DFW is catching onto and whatnot.


    4. Can we now, finally, put TC to bed? It seems like someone brings him up, usually in a negative context (look, I'm bringing him up!). He's gone, he's not coming back. Not to The Ticket, at least. Can we let the guy live his life and do his job? Good luck and goodnight to him.

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  7. I'll never understand why a guy who barely listens to The Ticket writes a blog about it, attracting commenters who hate the station. This place is absurd.

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  8. 7. ESPN and The Fan took off after I left, so I have been slow to come around to listening to any of them. I usually just turn on my app, internet stream, and leave it there. But point #7 intrigued me enough to link up the other two stations and flip to them during commercial break.

    As annoying as the G-Bag nation anon's seem to be, I did enjoy listening to them, though Chris was a little too over the top sometimes.

    As I type this, I have on Ben and Skin. It makes me think that while the Ticket is still #1 for me, the others are good options for commercial breaks. And often today, I would stick with another show until they went to commercial, even though I knew the Ticket should be back from break.

    What blew my mind what that two or three times all three stations were on commercial break at the same time.

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  9. I'll never understand why a person who dislikes a blog and its commenters would bother to post a comment on, much less visit, such a blog. Such a person is absurd.

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  10. @Wes...what is your source?...mine is the actual ratings
    M25-54
    THL finished the March book with a 6.0 at #1
    RMS finished the March book with a 5.9 at #2

    That is no "huge deficit." Neither would being "one point behind" by the way. That's RMS right at THL's damn tail.

    G-Bag Nation finished March tied for 7th with a 3.7...for The Fan, that's a hell of a statement.

    And unless you count Bo & Jim Vs. The Musers, KZPS is not a top competitor for KTCK. Formats are everything. KTCK's format can do much more for an advertiser than KZPS. So can Fan and ESPN's. Maybe for a national buy, KZPS would get more consideration...but not for the money maker, which is direct local business. Even if KZPS was a "huge deficit" of one point ahead of KTCK, business would still go to KTCK.

    Try harder Wes.

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  11. Anon, 5/5/5:28
    My source, also, is actual ratings. .1 percentile difference is not a huge deficit. You're right. One full point, on the other hand, is. I just re-checked the March ratings, and unless I've forgotten how to read numbers, it shows THL with a 6.0 and RMS with a 4.9.

    Rhyner himself said as much about KZPS in a recent long form Twitter post. I'm not following you on why KTCK's format can do much more for an advertiser than KZPS. How so? They have every bit as many commercials as any of the sports stations. They also have the same demographic of listener. Please explain.

    You know that it is OK to have a dispute with someone without resorting to snark, yes? Perhaps you ought to "try harder" in that regard, Anon. It's called having a fruitful dialogue. You know, we all, including yourself, might learn something.

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  12. IMO most of you have a severe case of good ole day syndrome. We always remember the good from the past and forget the bad and/or mediocre. I think all 4 Varsity programs on the ticket are as good as ever. I also like the addition of Jake as a regular contributor and producer on BaD. Cant stand to listen to caller based sports radio on the other stations. What a horrible format

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  13. I've listened to K & C Masterpiece and they're decent. Basically a B & S starter kit but you can tell them apart vocally. If the Ticket went away, I'd be sad but I wouldn't have a hard time listening to the Fan for the most part.

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  14. Hey T4 Rockwall,
    I find K & C Masterpiece segment "Am I better than..." to be perhaps the most annoying segment on any local sports radio show. I don't recall the last time either one of them were actually better than those they compared themselves to. Good lord that sucks.

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  15. I have a radio at my desk that stays on constantly. I may turn it down at times, but it stays on and set to the Fan. Might be because of the strong signal. I have become a listener to a lot of their shows. I hear ya Wes, but I actually enjoy the sane voice of Chris Arnold. [where was he today?] I laughed at Ben & Skins basketball fight story today. I switched to THL long enough to hear something about Corby going wireless. I can't tell you how fast I got outta there. Nothing more boring than Corby going wireless and trying to be funny.

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  16. @Anon 11:11. You obviously listen to them more than I do because I couldn't name any named segment they have. I listen randomly and rarely.

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  17. T4,
    I do listen a lot at night when the THL signs off at 7. I sometimes roll the Fan from 7 to 11pm. Last week they had Fish filling in which was kind of fun for a short stint. I pretty much roll sports radio 24/7 with the exceptions of my brief forays into nostalgic 80s rock such as the Giuffria video I posted last week. Glad you enjoyed.

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  18. Pman, don't shut this down. One toss at a thread a week is fine. We'll get by. You serve a purpose here. Don't quit now.

    The commentariat must realize that we are but that. There are silent readers unspoken. And those of us that do listen to the littlest of tickets do not necessarily defend them at all costs.

    Tried listening to the others, more than once. It wasn't Coleslaw's microphone that made me change the channel. It was probably yet another Cowboy's beat down. I can only take so much Jerry insanity and then I gotta go somewhere else. The other 2 are wedded to the NFL. I don't mind tales of the road. In fact I gained a good read on this here blogistinian empire when THL met Bruce Elliott Geriatric Genius. That was on the trip to Chicago if I need remind you.

    Russ Martin never had any appeal for me. Zero. Tried it, didn't like it and haven't been back since.

    No matter how absurd the world might be, it persists.

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  19. I don't know about the rest of you P1s but I am as excited as heck about the Draft Thursday night. The Ticket does a great job with Norm's seriousness and prep peppered occasionally with good Ticket humor by the likes of Corby and even Bob. Good stuff.

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  20. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  21. Anon 9:54

    What happens is that we compare the quantity of today to the quality of yesteryear. That is why many always think that it used to be better. Sometimes they are right, but sometimes their metric is off.

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  22. @Wes
    Here's your answer...The reason the talk format is so much more viable than the music format is because of CONTENT inventory. That's the point, music stations don't have much more than commercial inventory, talk have a lot more than that. Clients can advertise with segment sponsorships, name and claims, adjacent spots to couple with live reads, and here's the kicker...often times the talent are running a live spot for a client, within content, that you can't even tell is an advertisement, it's woven into the conversation. This is why the talk format continues to be viable, while the music formats are having to find new ways to make money. KZPS could be a whole point (not that big of a deficit in this market) ahead of KTCK and the money would still be better spent on KTCK. See, now YOU'VE learned something.
    As far as this 6.0/5.9 business, I'm looking at M25-54 Share 3-7, which is the industry standard for afternoon drive. I have the real tools, I don't dig this stuff up on a website that may have typos or leave out info,so I would suggest you check again.
    I don't mean to be snarky, it just kills me when those at the MTC think they know everything about radio b/c they listen to the ticket. "oooh Rhyner said this so it's gotta be true."

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  23. 5/6/9:29am

    I understand there are those out there who have to be smartest guy in the room, regardless of whether its true or not. The upshot is, we've all learned something about you.

    I never said I knew everything about radio. Nor did I say that if Rhyner said it, it must be true. I was only trying to let you know where I was getting my information. It's obvious that you're in the business, or at least like to come off as if you are. So is Rhyner. It seems to me that he would be in the know even more so than yourself - assuming your not a CTO; and if you are, what are you doing wasting your time here; which leads me to believe you are not. So why would he make such a claim?

    I appreciate your explanation as to why KTCK is more desirable for sponsors. Frankly it doesn't seem to comport to who has the highest ratings. Are you claiming that KISSfm or KKDA, both in the top 5 in the overall market, are less desirable for an advertiser than KTCK, which is far below them? That doesn't make sense. I'd like to hear DA's take on this.

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  24. Can someone tell me where The Hardline is broadcasting from today? I know they are in Denver & I want to go see them. Thanks!

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  25. http://www.lodosbarandgrill.com/

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  26. @Wes
    Not CTO...but some type of O...
    I don't waste time here, I'm interested on what you all think,which is pertinent to my day.

    As for your KHKS and KKDA aside...KHKS is a different kind of monster, similar to KTCK, b/c it's nationally known and has a huge brand...but the fact of the matter still remains...less and less people are listening to full commercial breaks. KHKS gets a lot of national $, but I would still contend that KTCK is more valuable to the local advertiser looking to reach the M25-54. KKDA listener tends to spend less money than a KTCK listener, regardless of ratings.

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  27. 5/6/1:24

    Some type of "O" as in "Officer of the Drops"? Whatever the case, it doesn't matter. Thanks for your further thoughts on advertising. It's something to think about. And thanks too for dropping the snark, seriously.

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  28. i listen to full commercial breaks exclusively, turning the dial only when the shows return.

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  29. BTW: If you are going to use Old Spice try the "Pure Sport." It's not quite as "loud" as the original fragrance.

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  30. I love Danny, but shades at a night baseball game?

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  31. I've tried to like Cowlishaw, because his actual opinions are solid and well-informed. However, he has this way of talking that drives me nuts. It's sort of a stutter, but not really. It goes like this:

    "The Mavs really need to..to..figure out the direction they want to take in the...in the offseason"

    It's hard to explain why this bothers me, but it just comes across as a kind of false humility, or a genuine lack of confidence. I want to hear a guy who has opinions, and proclaims them boldly.

    Sadly, Cowlishaw is merely the worst offender in what has become a trend of this type of sorta-false-humility-sorta-stutter-talk. even Goerge Dunham will slip into it from time to time.

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  32. "Coleslaw"...funny! Whats up with Corby's voice the last few days? Is he taking voice lessons from ol Follerwill? Whats he tryin to do...become a respectable talk show host? Ain't gonna happen buddy!

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  33. Sorry @Wes, I have been busy with my own work, my own draft analysis, and the Chris Russo story on http://www.theshadowleague.com/articles/radio-legend-chris-mad-dog-russo-says-blacks-can-t-cut-it-in-sports-radio.

    While Russo's were botched in relation from audio to print, in that working alone in NYC is something which a monority could deal have issues dealing with, his thoughts are sonething to think about.

    *-know that theshadowleague is supported by ESPN and that site owner Keith Clinkscales, was the (former) ESPN employee who had happy pants under a blanket next to former ESPN employee Erin Andrews.

    The Golden State firing of Mark Jackson has not helped me either in the last 12 hours, but good for a Classic BMW diesel actually do what is advertised.

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  34. I love The Ticket. I love sex. Both are very nice.

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  35. I've gone back and through a number of TheUnticket Hardline posts. Lots of music, guy stuff, and ragging on each other. Probably a few more pre-recorded bits per year a decade ago than now. But what is it that was so different then than now? Even the chemistry, to me, hasn't changed minus the awkwardness of Greggo. Corby was still front and center and Rhyner has always seemed disinterested (with notable exceptions, then and now). Danny's of course more a factor now. Serious question: am I the only one who sees little difference?

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  36. -Excited to see my comment about the P1 subreddit got some front page attention at the great MTC.

    -The Plainsman, I echo everyone else: this site is MUCH needed! We need a place to vent and theorize and postulate on the beloved little Ticket's "goingson."

    -Old Spice P1 right here my friends.

    -Honestly, concerning other stations: I HATE commercials! So, I just HAVE to change the channel. For me this is my commute: I tune in every morning to Muse in the News, flip to Newschool (FAN) before Junior's 7:40 segment, then back to FAN before 8:00 segment when I arrive at work.

    Going home, I tune in just to catch E-News (can't miss for me), then over to B&S before THL's throwaway 5:00 segment, then arrive home just as 5:10 segment gets rolling.

    I'm an "average" sports fan so ESPN is too sportsy for me. I used to tune into Galloway just to hear him yell at Moseley, but now, I just turn it to the Fan to avoid commercials. My only interest in B&S is hearing KT and cheering him on, and beyond that, the Fan is merely "something-that's-not-commercials" for me.

    I will say though: I wish The Ticket did those 2-min. breaks once in a while. Those are a nice change of pace and usually keep me by the channel a time or two.

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  37. @9:43 hmmmm I wonder why danny might not want the world to see his eyes whilst visiting a state that has legalized marijuana. Just a guess.

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  38. @ dook, you need to go back before Corby got on the show, when was the "Hardline". After Corby's big mouth joined the show, I think Greggo kind of took a back seat. Sucked ever since!

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  41. 1. I'm with P1Dan, I'm with you on your listening habits. Shout out to Cumulus for your awesome FM signal. I get Tejano until 7am if I stay on 96.7. The power of radio?

    2. PMan, keep this thing around, I enjoy your HSO's, you keep it in moderation, this is not a blog to bash but to discuss.

    3. I haven't posted in a while, but is there no one that has access to the Ticket hosts during the show that can contact them and tell them their mic is too low? I found it annoying when they iv'd Lindy Rupp and you couldn't hear the interview, and then it seems like Corby's mic is at 50% a lot. This wouldn't happen at the Fan, they read their text comments.

    4. B&S..does anyone like their silly prank calls? Yesterday they're calling a new girl in sales, pretending to be a Donald Sterling type. If I wanted to hear that, I'd go to prankdial.com and send out prank calls to people. To add on to this, they prank calls they do to sports personalities in other markets is overplayed. Seriously, weak. KT's doing a good job, B&S have just really let me down in terms of quality.

    5. I'm now a big P1 of IJB. It's weird to find out that TC has so much personality. He must have really disliked working at the Ticket.

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  42. @Wired - I don't know about liking B&S' prank calls as a rule, but it just so happens that I got to hear yesterday's. I wish I could remember what Mike and Corby were doing at the time to make me jump over there, but I left just for a bit to see what else was going on and wound up staying for the whole thing.

    I thought it was hilarious, albeit very Syndicated-Top-40-FM-Jock-Let's-Prank-Somebody-ish. He wanted the sales girl to come over and watch him lift weights and then eat lasagna, for crying out loud.

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  43. Danny mentioned earlier he was stoned on gummy bears at the game. Says he forgot he had his glasses on. I'm sure he just got ridiculously high, therefore paranoid/insecure, and just decided to keep them on.

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  44. @151anon
    Exactly. You gotta go back to THL proper days to understand. It was a different feel. Mike was in a lot of ways different than the dude he's become. A lot more sportsy and serious back then. Way more callers. Which probably means most of you younger P1s wouldn't have dug it. Things were different back then.

    @anyone
    I'm not a B&S fan but I understand what they're trying to do. I was around during the early Ticket days. I remember how DnM used to prank call other stations and THL as bits. It's a bonding thing between the audience and show. I get it and I don't begrudge them for it.

    @DA
    Did you write that stuff on NyQuil or something? That's some Salvador Dali lines you were laying down. Surreal.

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  45. I guess comments about hosts' and exes' personal lives are out of bounds?

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  46. @Shaggy...I didn't see your comment but that's about how it's been here as a rule since I've been shopping at the 'ol MTC.

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  47. What happened to the days that Rhynes used to say "the squid" when referring to his kid? What happened to the days when he used to be more contemptuous of Corby?

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  48. Remember back in the old days of thl when Mike and greggo would rail on "the liberal media"?? I just remembered that the other day and an now wondering if that was just a bit with Mike. I have no idea what his political leanings are, he certainly doesn't advertise it like Corby and Danny have been known to, but it seems like he would be a center of the road kind of a guy and not one to bash any kind of liberal'esk agenda. Maybe he's changed as he's aged?

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  49. I feel that Jake is going to go HAM on The Bob Sturm Show one of these days. I still can't believe he replaced Max Miller back in the day. BTW, I dump out immediately after WTDS is over for the next 15 minutes from 3:21 to 3:36 and tune into Sirius/XM.

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  50. Deezy, I caught the prank of the rookie sales girl. It was pretty funny. I think B & S have gotten a little better. Sometimes they're just a little more fun to listen to, but they're not beyond a beating at times either.

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  51. Shags, lay them goods out on the reddit page my man.

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  52. Old Spice Pure Sport and Swagger are my go-to fragrances.

    This is Kige Ramsey for YouTube hygiene.

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  53. Corby's best bit is what I will hereafter refer to as "floozy-voice". Poor Kim Kardashian (not really).

    P.S. "KanYAY" for the win.

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  54. We've discussed here before that Mike was more engaged with Greggo and clearly controlled the segments. But as time has passed and he has grown more disinterested, he is willing to sit back and let Corby steer the ship. There are occasional segments where you hardly hear Mike at all except for formatics.

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  55. Did anyone catch KT live on the CBS 11 weather coverage this afternoon? He was on via telephone. The storm blew out one of their studio windows. I almost thought it might've been a B&S bit. Don't THINK it was, though.

    5/8/5:03pm
    You are correct. Basically what you have now is a Rhyner who does nothing more than goes through the motions unless he's discussing something he's at the present very much into. Other than that he can't be bothered except for, as you rightly put it, the formatics. The same goes for Corby and Danny. In short, THL is on cruise control, and has been for many moons now. I guess on some level I say "why not?" Contrary to what others might say, THL is untouched and in no danger of being touched in the ratings. As I've said before, I think the environment is prime for a show to put up a serious challenge; but that show isn't out there. If you can show up, do no prep, and basically head rattle for what really amounts to 2-1/2 hours per day, 5 days per week. And the rest of your time is taken up with going to shows, playing in bands, taking cool vacations (and doing so quite often when compared to the rest of us schmoes), and (in Rhyner's and Danny's cases-especially Danny) live like your 20s never ended. . .and again, still be #1 without trying, at all, in a top 6 market. . . Like I said, why not go into and stay on cruise control. Who can honestly blame them? I sure don't.

    One thing I can promise: if that show ever comes along that does offer up a real challenge, THL will sink fast and sink without a fight. They no longer have the stomach for the fight, they no longer even know how to step up their game.

    On a positive note, I think Dan's 1:30 News segment is great.

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  56. I think Rhyner could totally step up his game if he had to. All he has to do is be engaged every day for every segment. He used to. If some show challenged them for real he'd take over the helm like he used to in the old days. When he's running things, THL is as awesome as it ever was. Problem is that he rarely does it anymore.

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  57. Gordon's piece about his mother in today's Dallas Morning News is wonderful.

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  58. @2:02 couldn't agree more. The more pieces we get from Keith, the better he gets.

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  59. Disappointed to hear how much Mike is "ashamed" for ever enjoying Hunter S. Thompson. Yes, everyone knows of the larger than life, drug riddled reputation Thompson had, but his writing is fantastic and uniquely stands on its own two legs as well as anyone of the past half century, IMO. Granted, I am a young man, so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised someone of Mike's age taking that kind of stance. Still, disappointing to hear.

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  60. Mike's dismount from the draft-shortened Hardline should be an E-brake candidate next week.

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  61. @ anonymous 2:02 and anonymous 3:15:
    hi, gordon

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  62. Rounds 2-3 of the NFL draft and Corby..."the college football blowhard" is not working again. He still sucks at the teat of TCU/OU only.

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  63. @Anon 9:17

    Great point on Corby the self-professed college blowhart He was absolutely useless with Sturm on Day 1 of draft. Bob Sturm did all the heavy lifting and Corby just piped in periodically with some comedy. His knowledge isn't nearly as deep as the sports bully sturm nor does he have the stomach to put in the research work that both Norm and Sturm do. Jake puts in far more research than Corby for the draft. Corby is good at what he does - yucking it up and doing E news type stuff but his sports knowledge really is as thin as an onion skin.

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  64. Isn't being like Corby sort of second nature to a lot of us? Basically guys in general are sarcastic and when working in that environment which is THL, it's easy to be that way 80% of the time. I crack jokes and try to be funny with my coworkers all the time, but I don't get one dime for it. These guys at the Ticket (most, not all) get paid for doing what comes natural to guys 25-54.

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  65. Following up on Danny's S-bomb from last month, Rick dropped one today that didn't get dumped.

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  66. @Wes
    It wasn't a bit, and DFW is a top 5 market, not a top 6.

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