Sunday, March 29, 2015

Sorry, It's Just Quick Hits


Sorry I've been away.  It's going to continue for awhile.

I teased a coming Scorching Ticket Disquisition in the comments to the last thread.  This is not it.  I'm rethinking it.

I had heard something that made me a little angry but mostly sad and I shut off the radio and didn't turn it back on.  It was a Hardline segment a couple of weeks back.

But I found myself agreeing with one of the later comments on the last thread that there's been a lot of Hardline-bashing on MTC lately.  Too much, probably.  Mostly deserved, in my judgment, but yeah, I am getting a little tired of it.  Although THL seems to be bouncing back in the ratings -- not back to its previous lofty position compared to the competition, but doing better.  However, I have to agree -- while THL has its moments, and it's still my go-to PM drive diversion, overall it is a show in noticeable decline.

So I'm thinking crud-a-mighty, if the show is irritating me to that degree, what's the point of listening?  Who's going to be interested in a blog called "My Muser Confession, with Intermittent Mentions of Norm and BaD?  Not even me.

Having said all that, I decided not to pile on just yet.  And I'm not making any rules about "no Hardline/Mike/Corby shots," but let's try to find something else to talk about.

You can post about T.C. if you want, or Jake, but that's getting pretty tiresome too, unless you have a specific point to make.  I reserve the right to decide that something's just a naked shot or the same jamoke saying the same thing over and over and not worth the pixels.

So for now, I'll just quick hit some notes I've made over the past little while, some Ticket-relevant, some not very, some falling into the "listening/watching too hard" category, which tendency of mine seems to upset this site's Reddit critics.


(1)  For you Twitter followers:  Apologies once again for the hack.  I got infected through a message from one of the founders of this site's success, former Ticket Traffic Twist Barb Smith.  It was a message that some post about me or this site on a linked page was "nasty."  Although it was somewhat surprising to hear from Barb again, it was not a crazy thing to imagine considering the bile directed our way lately on Reddit and elsewhere.  So I took the bait clicked on the link.  And I'm guessing some of you did, too.  Thus completing the hack.

(2)  I love Gordon's Troy Aikman imitation when George's Fake Michael Irvin calls him up.  Very dry, very understated, very Troy-like.  Witty in an understated way, love it when Gordon gets less Keithly and lets the gag emerge from the character rather than the writing.   There are probably some interesting politics there, after Gordon's ill-advised interrogation of Troy on one of his call-ins that got him in trouble.  In any event, it's really good, as is George's Irvin.

(3) As if The Hardline didn't have enough trouble, it is the Musers' car-leasing pals at, of course, D&M Auto Leasing that have won the DealerRater Dealer of the Year Award in Auto Leasing.

(4)  WATCHING TOO HARD:    There's something disturbingly off about that Mark Cuban AT&T ad with the adorable Lily Adams (portrayed by Milana Vayntrub).  I don't think they shot that scene together.  He towers over her and doesn't seem to be looking at her when he's speaking to her, but instead something off in the middle distance.  Could be cue cards, I suppose.  But then at the end, where she tells him what a swell negotiator he is, they reach out to shake hands -- as if to establish, awkwardly, that they are having a real conversation in a single filmed scene.  But before they touch hands, the shot cuts away to behind and to the right of Cuban -- or is it?   It does look something like his profile, but it is far from clear.  Also, in the shots framed from directly in front of them, they're standing much further apart than they are in the shots from behind the Cuban figure.  I'm guessing they shot their parts at different times.  I need a hobby.  Other than this one.

(5)  LISTENING TOO HARD:   There's a Ticket ad where Conrad uses a word that gets beeped out, and the word is "assholes."  But they've screwed it up -- Conrad uses a long "a" before the beep is edited in, and then after the beep you hear the "s" sound.  The problem is that, if The Hardline is any indication, "ay-holes" is permissible, but "assholes" is not.  But the latter has a short "a" sound.  So it makes no sense to pretend to censor "ay-holes."  The beepout would only make sense if the first vowel sound you hear is a short "a."

(6)  George Dunham now mispronounces the names of two shows on The Ticket.  Norm Hitzges (George has said "Hitchges" for as long as I can remember, and I believe we have established that this is not a bit), and now he's calling Mike and Cash's show "Cirque de Sirois."  He's not the only one, but come on -- learn now to pronounce the names of the hosts and shows on your station.

(7) Gordon no longer maintains his blog.  I'm not sure when he quit.  But I clicked over to it the other day.  There's a nice photo of him after the "you are loved" screen.  Check out the threads.  Very interesting that he labels himself "writer, broadcaster," in that order.    And that fountain pen in one hand and some hard copy under his arm.  He's been writing!  And increasingly, I think that's the way he sees himself and where he sees himself ending up when The Musers pull the plug.  He was short-listed -- very short-listed -- for a Pulitzer for one of his News columns, and I'll bet he's thinking that journalism, not performance, is where he'll make his name for the ages when the Ticket run breathes its last.

(8)  All-Pro Foundation Repair is once again claiming it is mathematically impossible for its piers to fail.  This gives me the opportunity to say once again how this concept terrifies me and to link to a post that is one of my personal favorites:  All-Pro and the End of the Universe

(9)  Can Applebee's possibly think that its bar menu has, or will ever, inspire rounds of friendly betting on bar-menu-related games, or that it can persuade consumers of it?

(10) I don't want to get to heavily into the Cowboys cynical signing of Greg Hardy, but I will share this one thought:  Smacking women around is really, really bad.  And something we should all be worried about and condemning.  But if you were a Niffle owner, wouldn't you be a trifle more worried about the fact that the victim testified that Hardy threw her on a bed covered with 30 loaded guns, "assault weapons and shotguns"?  The judge made him produce those weapons, which included a Tavor SAR, L1A1 Sporter, POF P-415, ISSC MK-22, SSAR SBS, ISSC MK-22, Highlander, Century Arms Inc. AK 149, Mossberg 590, and Benelli M-4.  I would be less worried about having hired another Ray Rice than a future Aaron Hernandez. 


There's just something about those old Chevy pickups.



(11)  Anyone else get sad listening to those Dallas Stars ads talking only about Tyler Sagan "putting the league on notice," etc.?  Putting the league on notice of what?  That the Stars only have one notable player and remain pretty much beneath notice as a serious professional franchise?


[Comments to this site are moderated.  

Before posting, please read Rules of the Confessional.  Thank you.] 
ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com
@Plainsman1310  

And look, guys:  If you wonder why your comment didn't make it through, you MUST send me an email.  There is no way for me to respond to comments other than on this site, because I don't have your email.  I will tell you what my answer is likely to be:  Read The Rules of the Confessional.  You probably took a shot at a commenter or group of commenters, probably accused some Confessor of being some other Confessor, or something equally transgressive.  

 

105 comments:

  1. "The judge made him produce those weapons, which included a Tavor SAR, L1A1 Sporter, POF P-415, ISSC MK-22, SSAR SBS, ISSC MK-22, Highlander, Century Arms Inc. AK 149, Mossberg 590, and Benelli M-4. I would be less worried about having hired another Ray Rice than a future Aaron Hernandez."

    All of those are semi automatic weapons, not "machine guns" as the Hardline(Corby) keeps saying. For those who don't know, a semi automatic fires ONE round per pull of the trigger. A fully automatic fires multiple rounds per ONE pull of the trigger. By the .gov's definition of an "assault rifle" it must be capable of "selective fire" between the two modes of fire. Don't let the MSM fear of evil black rifles cloud this issue.

    That being said a conviction of DV and he will lose his ability to own a firearm. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domestic_Violence_Offender_Gun_Ban

    Just trying to keep that hysteria out of this discussion.

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  2. It's spelled Seguin and pronounced the way you have it written.

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  3. Great quick hits Plainsman.
    As much of a beating Corby can be at times I still think his pterodactyl/dolphin laughs are some of the most stop down listening moments on the Ticket. Seems as though his laugh intensity is off the charts lately

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  4. I haven't been a long time or first time reader, but I have come to know MTC as a literary savant. So when I read sentences such as "I don't want to get to heavily into..." and "learn now to pronounce the names..." I think to myself, "Your usually better than that." (pun intended)

    I could not agree more with your take on Gordon's Troy Aikman imitation. I didn't know how interested I was going to be in point #10 until I saw the Chevy pickup picture. And I'm glad you got your Twitter scene under control. I was beginning to wonder if you were going to shove some wings in my face.

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  5. A certain host that will go unnamed has some hilarious drops speaking in a Mexican accent. Since he is a child of affluence, using his own argument, that must be behavior that he learned from his parents. Don't try to prove me wrong, I know he learned it from his parents.

    And I have learned from the gun experts in the media that any black gun is a machine gun or an assault rifle.

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  6. Ha. I'm going to leave my "Tyler Sagan" error as is. Whenever I want to use the name of a player I don't know, I always look it up. Last night after midnight, I asked myself if I had done that way back when when I was making notes on that particular Quick Hit, and decided, incorrectly, that I had.

    So I do appreciate the correction and apologize to Mr. Sagan, the big star on one of our big teams that I know nothing about, except that he's spoze to make people take notice of something.

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  7. There's something terribly wrong with the fonts in this article. Blogger really does suck. I'm trying to fix this, without much luck.

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  8. I hope the Plainsman will grant me a little latitude in getting something off my chest. Having listened to both of Danny’s oratories on the Levi Pettit apology (part 1 on THL, part 2 on the Orphanage) I would like to make some observations.

    Let me say first of all that I am not defending what Levy Pettit and the rest of his group on that bus did. Pretty much indefensible. But in the interest of full disclosure, I will say that I think David Boren is guilty of a double standard because of the way he handled Joe Mixon’s case.

    Danny was very critical of the staged event orchestrated by a high priced PR firm. Danny wanted him to stand up on his own in front of media that were prepared to nail him to the cross and just say whatever he thought appropriate. It would have been a public execution. If you have the means, you would be crazy not to have advisors who would make sure you didn’t inadvertently say the wrong thing and make matters worse. Hell, someone as rich and powerful as Jerry Jones gets raked over the coals every time he opens his mouth, with Danny and his Ticket brethren (and Dale Hansen) leading the charge. I suspect it really wouldn’t have mattered to Danny, because if all he got was the kid being chewed up and spit out by the press, that wouldn’t have been enough for him. Or he might have said he had it coming.

    Perhaps it is a poor comparison, but the whole time I listened to Danny work this guy over, all I could think of was Danny’s reaction when no matter how much he explained or how much he apologized, he couldn’t satisfy John in Plano. And we know how that ended.

    I think it’s also telling that after spending two segments taking Levi Pettit to the woodshed, when Davey mentioned that they were getting tweets from “the Republicans” pointing out David Boren’s double standard when it came to Joe Mixon, Danny had nothing to say. Either he was tired of talking, or he can’t handle that much grey being introduced into his black and white world, or possibly something else. I guess we can all decide for ourselves.

    So I have a hot not-sports opinion about where Danny may be coming from. And I will use the very words that Danny used Saturday morning (talking about the Pettits buying support for Levi from the black participants). “Don’t discount it as a non-possibility.” Given what we know about Danny’s upbringing, I wonder if he harbors a little resentment for kids from money and privilege. You say, what about Corby? I say, through working at the Ticket, Danny got to know Corby. If Corby was just some casual acquaintance, he would possibly be the very type of person Danny despises. Add to that, Danny has probably had a snootful of drunk frat rats in his capacity as a performing musician. There’s not much he can do about it when they are paying customers and he is hired labor, but he is not restricted from his bully pulpit on the little Ticket.

    As an aside, I noticed Mike lingering on the sidelines when Danny and Corby have had their say on this matter. Is Mike concerned about alienating that revenue stream for his little twist combo?

    OK, I’ve had my say. I doubt many, or any, will agree with me. That’s OK. I’m just a guy with a computer and an opinion.

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  9. I published the 1119 Anon comments on Danny's serial rants on the SAE situation. Thought long and hard about it, but in the end I thought the points were of interest and sufficiently reserved in tone.

    But I really don't want to turn this thread into one on race, fraternities, rich v less rich.

    So if you respond to 1119 and don't get through, that's the reason. I'm not saying I absolutely won't publish any more of them, I'm not saying your rejected comment is transgressive, I'm just saying I don't want to turn this site into something other than a Ticket/sportsy/guyish site.

    And remember the Rules of the Confessional -- comments on the quality of my editorial discretion get bounced.

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  10. Love it when Doocy fills in. He's great. His 8:40 bit of reading his diary is hillarious. First 8:40 bit I've laughed at in a long time.

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  11. I was listening to IJB on Friday, and in their opening banter, they made a referene to the ratings, alluding to Nielsen and their small sample size. Curious to hear that expanded upon in light of the recent dip. Any insiders have some light to shine upon that line of thought? Has Nielsen changed their methodology? Or just sour grapes?

    Personally, I dig the Ticket and don't enjoy the Fan. I like B and S, but rarely listen beyond commercial breaks. GBag is terrible - I'd rather listen to Race Week (and I'm not kidding!). I don't really care about the ratings other than I know they are important to the hosts of shows I enjoy.

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  12. Anon 1119 - You may be onto something. I was really put off by Danny's crucifixion of Pettit. Pretty rich coming from a guy who created that "Michael Irv-een Show (from San Anton-ee-o)" song.

    Of course what those kids did was terrible, but I feel like you should take the effort to apologize at face value unless given reason to believe otherwise. Real reasons, not speculative ones like Danny threw out (he's faking it, his parents made him do it, the PR firm made him do it). I think the kid is genuinely sorry. Yeah, he read his statement, but that's not unusual for someone who's not an experienced public speaker. What's to be gained by continuing to pile on this kid? This thing's already going to follow him the rest of his life.

    And for the first time in forever, I found myself agreeing with a lot of what Corby said. What parent wouldn't do everything they could to help their kid in this situation?

    I also found it interesting that regular churchgoers like Bob & Donovan were also squarely against Pettit's apology attempt. Forgiveness is a pretty central tenet of Christianity. I'm willing to acknowledge that Donovan may have much different feelings about this than me since he's black.

    Don't know if this will get through the filter. If not, I understand.

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  13. Did anyone hear Corby's segment on Susan Hawk? I had to turn it off just as it got starte. What was the general gist?

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  14. The whole time I was listening to THL break down the apology I was just wondering how much of it was an act. Did Danny really feel that strongly? Heck did Corby really feel like that was a courageous act?

    Or was it really just a, "you take one side, I'll take the other" type of deal. It's not 'must listen' radio if they all agree or are middle of the road. Maybe they just flipped a coin and argued as hard as they did on their side.

    Maybe I'm way off base here, I just always wonder how often we're hearing honest opinions or just manufactured arguments meant to support both sides that let the listen decide where they stand.

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  15. I would just add respectfully that I think a more centered opinion on Mr. Pettit may exist somewhere in between Corby's talk of bravery and Danny's the kid's life should be terminated stance. Both Corby and Danny are products of their upbringing as we all are and see the world through their world view lenses. Sounds like they could benefit from an audit like Tom Cruise and John Travolta.

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  16. pk...

    I have to applaud him somewhat. He started off by referencing their history, then he went into all craziness about the DA office currently, from pain med addiction to paranoia to "compromising" photos taken from her home. He didn't inject much personal opinion at all except for how screwed up her tenure has been, and how the former DA must be laughing his ass off.

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  17. Danny didn't say the guy's life should be terminated. Ridiculous. He just didn't think the guy should be treated as if he had done something "brave" as The Snake made it out to be.

    Totally on board with Danny's opinion.

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  18. I might be pulling this out of my bottom but has THL started distancing from their "race-y" drops the past few weeks? Seems like they no longer want to call it "Mexican" dracula and seem to all of the sudden get touchy when that or the Corby karate drop is played. Did something happen that I missed?

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  19. If you're gonna knock George for pronunciation, how about we give Donovan crap for still not managing to include the 96.7 FM part in his BaD Radio intro speal, even though it's been what, two years?

    Ticket guys, even ones who can barely go 15 seconds without mangling something, managed to get that down in about two days after the launch of the FM signal.

    In fact, the whole overly-long repetitive BaD intro needs a fresh coat of paint to me, but I bet I'm in the minority on that HSO.

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  20. CONFIDENTIAL to Unpublished Anonymous at approximately 433: Nice post, some good thoughts, I know you spent a lot of time on it, basically positive, but just too personal about a host in his spare time. See Confessional Rule 5.5.

    Sorry. -- P

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  21. Elmer Wayne = not funny
    tired bit

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  22. Could we start by spelling Tyler SEGUIN's name correctly?

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  23. Already handled, 1058.

    Best MTC Practices include skimming the thread.

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  24. Responding to anon1219 from 3/29 - I think calling Corby a "child of affluence" is a little extreme. His upper-middle-class upbringing is certainly lampooned on the show when comparing it to Danny's food stamp childhood. But Corby is not Grubes. Dirk did not buy Corby's parents' house.

    Canal talk can be funny though.

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  25. I've heard the knocks on Ben and Skin, and get many of them...but the whole "G-Bag is terrible" thing is curious to me...no one ever elaborates. Would any one care to say why they think the show currently beating BAD is terrible?

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  26. Looks like Grubes is going to get a shoutout on Justified tonight.

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  27. We've all taken some swings at Corby recently. As I have said, he's also made me laugh out loud more frequently than any other host (possible exception = Joonze), which is one reason I can't be out on The Hardline. Not for long, anyway.

    I was able to catch a little of WTDS yesterday. Near the end of the segment, Mike R was talking about his close encounter with Secretariat, which occasioned great hooting and hilarity among the WTDS crew. Then (and my inability to recall exact wording makes this less funny in black and white than it was live):

    Dan: "Is it stupid to ask was Secretariat a guy? A girl horse?"

    Corby: "If it was a girl horse it would have been named SecreTARy."

    Hey, when you're not expecting it, it was really funny and I really larfed. As did his colleagues. Don't ask me why, but the way he emphasized that third syllable added to the funniness of it.

    So there you go -- fair and balanced -- there's something positive about Corby.

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  28. 7. Gordo's blog has been dead for at least a couple years now, probably several. I did enjoy is content, though, especially in the early days when it was like an Internet mind-dump version of the Rant.

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  29. I always enjoy the Terri Shiavo song. Simply hilarious. But would be even better sung by Mexican Dracula.

    BTW, no Hardline at spring training this year?

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    Replies
    1. My understanding is a few years ago the "bitch" drop was played when speaking with the wife of a Royals player. THL got punished for it, resulting in the past few years' lack of spring training emphasis and no trips.

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  30. Nice to hear the formerly outraged white boys having a good laugh at people using the N word.

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  31. Texas Health Resources has tweeted a confirmation that Ticket names on their billboards is no coincidence.

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  32. Gordo's blog was especially enjoyable on days like Surfboard Friday.

    https://web.archive.org/web/20110203092247/http://gordonkeith.wordpress.com/

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  33. MAJOR STATION ANNOUNCEMENT THURSDAY MORNING!!!

    George hinted this morning that more people have asked him this question over the years pertaining to if the Ticket was ever going to do this again than any other question. Guesses? Compound? Camp out? Great game? Something is up.

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  34. Charity Challenge on Ice is my guess.

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  35. The Musers will announce on Thursday that all hosts regularly read My Ticket Confession and the perceptive comments to the trailblazing articles.

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  36. @anon 1:24 - I just dont enjoy the personality of GBag at all. The only one I think has anything of interest to me is the sidekick guy (Jeff maybe?). From Gavins over the top "bro-ness" to Chris Arnolds over the top "suave-ness" and even Bacsik's "jock-ness" - I dont enjoy any of it.

    Obviously others enjoy it and thats fine, but i'll stick to BaD.

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  37. The Hardline doesn't know who the Koch brothers are. How embarrassing.

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  38. Major station announcements have a history of being underwhelming. It's often the first notice of something that they do every year.

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  39. They've done all 4 major sports with varying degrees of success, my bet is on Soccer with the FC's. It would be great humor, anyway.
    I've circled April 11 on my calendar - no more No limits Texas a-hole. Sweet Jeebus, I will not race y'all there. Besides, why should I be impressed with going in circles in a pack of 43? I go straight line up I-35 in Austin in a pack of 1000! Should be illegal.

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  40. @Anon 4/1/15 8:53AM
    I echo your thoughts. I too was really shocked to hear that nobody on air could correctly pronouncing the name properly.

    In retrospect, the last seven hours of shows did illustrate how rudderless they are numerous times during the week.

    1- Bob rips the writer/blogger from Pro Football Talk for taking Dallas and Cleveland newspaper chat rooms thoughts to make stories for page hits. Meanwhile his THL counterpart has made his career of misinformation and half reading stories.

    2- THL did segments on: Silvercar; Bieber Roast; Rangers Spring Training; Lindy Ruff interview; Texas Coach search; E-News focus on The Rolling Stones.

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  41. I'm pretty sure THL went back to Arizona after the "stupid bitch" episode, they were just restricted on who they could approach with the wireless.

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  42. The Unticket has been shut down for copyright infringement.

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  43. Major station announcement... about time to start plugging Summer Bash right? The only thing major to have ever been spoke of on the airwaves was what...Greggo's deal? And that came months later with Mike reluctantly wanting to talk about it.

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  44. WHOA! That's f'n serious stuff, folks. I ask you to go the the Unticket site. It's been shut down by the government. I really really hope those boys aren't in serious trouble. It looks like they might be. Anyone in contact with DWPP or ap (or those guys themselves), let us know how they're doing/what's up. Sheesh. Scary.

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  45. I'm thinking the Unticket fellas are partaking in what's called an APRIL FOOLS JOKE.

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  46. The Unticket is shut down? Darn! Now we won't be able to go back and listen to what Mike said today about wishing the Hammer were back!

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  47. Donovan's hosting a special "Top 20 BaD Radio Songs" countdown tomorrow at 7.

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  48. Looks like ICE has melted and allowed noted intellectual property infringer The Unticket back on the Internets.

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  49. Shaggy:

    Dear Lord, that will be some must miss radio.

    Not one of my favorite bits.

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  50. Yeah, it's either the campout of the compound. I'm thinking compound, but since that was a Greggo idea, it won't surprise me if it's the campout. Personally I prefer the compound. The guys are more comfortable, there's no leaving early or rule breaking by certain entitled hosts (looking at Norm, Rhyner, and Gordon), and there's less personal space, which makes for good and uncomfortable radio as the week goes on.

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  51. Am I missing something or did they skip a ticker about 30 minutes ago? I listen in tune in and I hate tickers so I noticed when I skipped ahead they went from traffic to Musers.

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  52. Major Station Announcement?
    Truth in advertising violation

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  53. MUSERS MAJOR STATION ANNOUNCEMENTS:

    (1) Week of April 13-17, The Musers will be broadcasting from college campuses throughout the area.

    (2) "Musers/Ticket CampPound" -- May 6-8. Remote location, "middle of nowhere," but living in a bunkhouse rather than in the elements. Unclear why this is a Muser-sponsored item, since all the hosts are supposed to be participating, but that is the way Craig is making it sound.

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  54. I'm guessing indoor sleeping arrangements was the only way they could get Mike onboard.

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  55. Number 1 - Meh

    Number 2 - interesting concept

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  56. I'm happy to hear it's a campound. I think it's being introduced as a Muser thing because it was probably Joonz that was driving it.

    Okay, so we know so far that it's a place with a "bunkhouse" and a lake. Let the location speculation begin.

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  57. Very excited for the "campound". Campout and compound are when the boys are at their best. Some great memories created during these events. Good stuff.

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  58. It's probably Muser-titled so they can sell it to advertisers better.

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  59. Hmmm. Let's see: Cat/Dan Bennett mandated show cross pollination, "special" off hours programming, and now a revisiting of both The Ticket comes to the P1, and the camp out/compound. Yep. The CTO and Muskateers know the old grey mare she ain't what she used to be and it's time to try yo get some of that old Ticket magic back. Whatever the case, I'm digging it.

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  60. The Ticket will be whooping butt in the ratings once the campound happens. I remember more radio gold happening at campouts than the compounds. I'll be a podcast dl'ing fool when it's over so I don't miss a thing.

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  61. If Junior does another C2C and has Hawkeye from 96.3fm back on for more discussion of the militarized bigfoot, I will consider the campound a gigantic success. I'm interested to see how they get the campus involved next week. They need to create some new inside jokes with this crowd. It may be a good indication as to how the next generation connects now and in the future.

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  62. Interesting thought, blergoyen. I have a feeling the Courage Boys are going to find out that, excepting the handful of college aged P1s, there is going to be a lot of indifference and/or looks of "what's this? who are these dudes?" at each stop. I'm employed at one of their stops, and I can guarantee you the overwhelming majority of students have never listened to sports talk radio (or even terrestrial radio other than in their parents'/grandparents' car), much less heard of The Ticket. And that goes for young men demo they desperately crave. Ought to be interesting. Can't wait until they hit my campus. I'll try to give a report or some such.

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  63. A 5 am to 10 am radio show on a college campus will not get a big crowd no matter how popular they actually are. When I was in college towards the end of the spring semester I was not getting up that early for anything. BAD or the hard line would work better for that audience.

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  64. Mike Sirois tweeted out he was on this podcast so I gave it a listen. I honestly don't know who the hosts are but they are tangental Ticket employees of some sort. https://deadairsports.wordpress.com/2015/03/27/episode-16-mike-sirois/

    Around 43:00 one of them mentions that tickers are going to twice an hour.

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  65. 1122, great catch. Gotta love the Confessor. Where else can you get this information? Other than podcasts, Reddit, ShaggyBevo, and other Internet assets, I mean?

    I think the Musers Campus Tour will be lively enough, except for the crack-of-dawn hours. If word gets out, those campus listeners will show up and although it won't be a large percentage of the student body, it will be respectable: WILDCARD: Since they're doing one campus per day -- no way for the word to spread after the shows start -- on-campus advance promotion will be critical, and The Ticket's promotion efforts are almost nonexistent.

    I'm still buried, no prediction as to when I'll get something up.

    I'd be happy enough if they went to one ticker per show. However, I do worry about the future of the Tickerman, especially since we've got some good new ones. Justin, Eli, a couple of guys whose names I can't recall.

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  66. @ 7:59 - yes, please report back. That feedback will be very interesting.

    I suppose they'll do SMU, UNT, TCU, and then UTA and UTD? I didn't see anything on the website about it.

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  67. The promo table will need to have lots of refrigerator magnets and energy drinks.

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  68. I told you guys about this during the holidays.

    Fewer Tickers means fewer Ticker Men, which means less JV development, which means when the Varsity begins to retire or whatnot, replacements will come from without. Mo corporate, mo ESPN-lke, mo cruddy radio. Enjoy it while it's here. It sure isn't what it once was, it won't be like it is now for too much longer, and it's only gonna get worse.

    You have been warned.

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  69. @Anon April 2, 2015 7:59PM:
    You nailed it, part of it was from observation of the Millenial. I have been on MTC for a long time and telling The Plainsman this issue ... there are less and less kids who have heard of either: AM radio or The Ticket.

    Think about how much of a student body will actually be awake and listen to a sports AM drive show?
    If they are inside the Union/Student Center, those students will be quickly waking between classes, thus neither “Muse N The News” nor “Gordo's Corner” is relevant. Who really cares before 8AM, and after 8AM, it is just a fishbowl which The Ticket enters once a day for a week around area campuses.

    Will any older “key demographic” listeners stop by these campuses and pay parking (from 8-10) to just stop by? Not many school employees will stand/sit and/to watch/listen to the show since their jobs are active, so those who know the bits may actually be assisting students who don't.

    Those who are 18-21 who may like The Ticket, also have a decade of knowing that what they want to listen to is available online, not just a six minute segment. They just move on. They opportunity to reach the Millennial left around 2007.

    Barry Horn will continue to cut/paste stories with Neilsen data telling you all in the Metroplex about “the key demo”, but circa 2002 with the invention of the iPod, satellite radio and podcasting came, that “key demo” has shrunk and because they care about terrestrial radio even less. That demo and radio is essentially in a coma. Heck, I have said prior that America is getting “browner”, and Horn still fails to consider that fact.

    This Musers college trip is starting soon after the Rangers season begins too. So Rangers talk is something they must do before those kids wake up, because Millennials really don't give a $hit about baseball. As an aside, I have wondered how far the Diamond Talk ratings have fallen not just since Mike/Greggo were hosts, but also since listeners have iPod adapters in cars and since the Rangers hit FM.

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  70. I honestly never pay that much attention to how often there are tickers. I was just listening to an old BAD Radio Audio Grab Bag from 2011 and Bob made a joke comparing the hype for the audio they were listening to to one of the "Major Station Announcements" that was just to say they were going to do 3 tickers an hour. That made me wonder if that had in fact been a real announcement and if it was, how many tickers had they been doing before. Were they adding tickers or eliminating one? Maybe there is a better Ticket historian out there that remembers.

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  71. I don't disagree with your point but being good at Tickers does not translate to being a good host.

    Yes, The Ticket needs to develop its JV, but that needs to be done in the evenings/late hours not through tickers. Or, as you've probably seen, many of the JV have started their own podcasts -- thats what they need to do to refine their skills.

    But yeah, I agree, if the station doesn't start helping develop some of the younger guys, then they are going to be in trouble later on down the road.

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  72. I kinda like Danny participating in WTDS.

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  73. I'm thrilled about the ticker news. They're so repetitive and usually screwed up during some shows. I know one employee who should be trembling with this news. Bravo Cat, step in the right direction

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  74. I've said it before and I'll say it again - this whole JV thing is a non-issue. Bob, Dan, and later Donnie were never part of a JV. The Ticket can always hire outside if the host fits the culture. Think of all the ticket guys who were never meant to be hosts, with the exception of Followill who could definitely do it now. He and Ryhner are outstanding together, but even he failed with his own show with Doogie. I think it's more how a host has a rapport with another host rather developing someone inside the station. They can always hire from outside. Always.

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  75. Werewolf of FriscoApril 4, 2015 at 11:57 AM

    Listening to The Orphanage this morning with Robert Wilonsky with Davey, I'm reminded of what a tremendous asset he is to Dallas. His deep knowledge of this town and its history is really outstanding, and he has a nice self-deprecating sense of humor. I'd love to someday see him in a weekday midday show in the future... Lots of remotes from places that we all should know about but don't. He'd make a great ambassador for The Ticket and Dallas.

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  76. I have no idea if you're talking about Davey or Robert. Either way, they both have very steady M-F gigs that they certainly wouldn't give up for a weekday midday show on an AM sports station.

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  77. hold on to your butts and you might have to hold onto them for a week or more but when you hear the news it wont be hard to know what i meant

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  78. Anon wrote: "Fewer Tickers means fewer Ticker Men, which means less JV development, which means when the Varsity begins to retire or whatnot, replacements will come from without."

    The last replacements that came from without were BaD and Norm. They've done ok the last 15 years.

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  79. Corby, jv now HL host. Danny, jv now for all intents and purposes HL host. Jake, jv now host. Sean, jv now host. Machine, jv now host. I can go on but you get the message. JV matters. A lot.

    Hope you're for real, So Anon. I think you are...

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  80. Yeah, I think hanging around the station, finding your voice, popping on if you dare, getting a fill-in gig on a weekend, all of that can serve as an extended audition. Doesn't meant that it's inevitable that that's where the CTO will hire for a prime-time host (or host team), but I do think it's at least a leg up.

    And it might land you a gig a competitor.

    Oh, yeah, So Anon is an good old Confessor.

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  81. How are people feeling about the 2 tickers per hour?

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  82. Honestly, Justin, I think not only was it inevitable, but it's a good thing. I really think you, Eli, Sean, Ty, and a few others do a fantastic job. I truly do. Love your soccer updates, btw. But. Unless there is breaking news, the internet connected listener (which means every listener) has no need for a ticker every break. And even breaking news has almost always been broke, known about, before it's been announced. Still, the ticker has its place. My hope is, which is probably being dashed/has already been dashed, is that no ticker man loses his job due to lack of work, moves on because of the lack of work, or that the position itself is dissolved due to the lack of work--leaving the two tickets to the producer or board op.

    TSJ: It can be really good and it can be really bad. Today, the latter is in full effect. Jake's self confidence and "knowledge" accrued via survivalist t.v. shows, and his Corbyesque superlatives and proclamations are as unintentionally comical as they are stomach churning. Sean's chuckles and sniffs before every opinion are annoying. And his desperate, ongoing, on air, interview for a fulltime position with the Rangers is not only opaque, but also insulting to the listener. For Sean, there is no bad Ranger personnel move, there is no poor player. And both guys need to stop saying "I think," "I just think," "I don't know, I just think."

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  83. I've asked before and I'll ask again.

    How many of the "hold onto your butts" predictions have actually amounted to anything?

    I see them with some frequency, but never have really seen anything that has been earth-shaking that has followed them. Seems like any goober can come on here ANONYMOUSLY and say "Hold onto your butt. Something big is going to happen". Easy to do. If something did happen, then you're viewed ANONYMOUSLY as a Ticket savant and if nothing, oh well.

    So, I guess I'll throw out a "Hold onto your butts" message.

    Hold onto your butts folks. Something huge is coming down and it will be the biggest change that you've ever seen at the Ticket. This one rivals anything that you've seen at any of the DFW radio stations in the past 15 years.

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  84. 9:53..totally agree on TSJ. Use to be good strong radio, but it's pretty obvious Jake could care less with whatever Sean is bringing and frankly I don't blame him..SBass is either putting the Rangers on the pedestal or offering zero stances in regards to the rest of Sports.

    Team Jake/Machine/JustinM/Fahey/Sirios/Mino/Cray/ChrisJones/EliJ/KyleI

    BTW, did you guys know Seabass has kids? He should definitely sign up for the 7pm slot and make it "Toddler Talk w/ Papa Sean"

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  85. Before Christmas '15, the Ticker, and thus many a JV position, will be no longer. Plus. So Anonymous has advised you all well.

    That is all. You have been warned.

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  86. Easy... Sean has some positive attributes as does Corby, THL, Jake, et al.. Seems as though this site gets a lot of traffic and comments from people that hate the station so much they just cant stop listening. Here is to hoping you continue in your desperate suffering while listening to the little one.

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  87. It makes perfect sense to be an all-day listener and complain about what you hear.

    We're not hearing the station that got us hooked. And we all have our thoughts on where they have gone astray and what needs to be done to right the ship.

    It's part of being a good strong P1.

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  88. No one has a problem with constructive criticism from time to time but daily ripping on one small component of the radio day is tiresome. Also, telling us you're out on BADD or THL regularly only to come back the next day to repeat the edict because of another segment you didn't like is similarly boring and unhelpful.

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  89. I'm 4/5/15 953am. I just want to clarify that I also said TSJ can be really good, as well as really bad. I was saying how yesterday was a prime example of the really bad. The worst aspects of Jake and Sean were on display yesterday. For balance, I'll say what's good about TSJ.

    When they talk NFL football, especially teams other than the Cowboys, they are great. Jake's Mavs and NBA thoughts are not sometimes on the fringes, but are never boring; nor are they ever presented without some sense of support--by either stats or another's expert opinion. When Sean is firing on all cylinders, he provides a nice counterbalance to some of Jake's more fringy opinions. He reels him back in a bit. Sean also has a clearer perspective on how the world actually works--probably a byproduct of having 2 kids, going through some of the stuff he has, etc.. This also reels in the overly utilitarian Jake when he starts to sound like a Maoist, ready to "clear the fields" in order to make room for the big leap forward. And Sean is also more than capable of good sports talk.

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  90. Saw over on the Reddit ticket site that both Junior and Gordo now have an entry in celebritynetworth.com They are listed at 3.5 million and 3.0 million respectively.

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  91. Still think the JV thing is overblown. Yes, Corby and Danny could be considered on time JV-ers, but they joined a highly rated show. It wasn't like they had a show on their own and moved to prime time. Think any of the JV shows could make it in a prime time slot? I have a chance at times to listen a little on Saturdays and it just doesn't move the needle to me. Feels like outside shows trying to copy the Ticket.

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  92. Well, pk, like them or not, Ben and Skin seem to be doing alright--not sure how they do it, but they do.

    The reason why Danny and Corby have worked out so well is because they were JVers. Not "could be considered," they were. Their JV and prior to that P1 statuses shaped their prime time abilities. It's why and how they fit in seamlessly, it's why they are Ticket material. The ONLY reason it worked out for Bob and Dan is that they made a most concerted effort to fit in. They've gone over this very fact many times. Besides, Bob cut his teeth late nights and got the Ticket feel before Dan arrived, showing Dan the ropes early on. There have only been two outside hires: BaD and Rocco Pendola. If you've been a long long time listener then you know the story. If not, the short of it is that Rocco decided he wasn't going to roll the way of The Ticket. He was going to do it his way. He failed about as miserably as possible. It was epic to say the least.

    The JV isn't the end all be all to the station's future. That much I'll give you, pk. But it sure has been a major part of its success. And if you think replacing hosts with outsiders is no big whup, etc., fine, but I think you are both sadly mistaken and might not be as careful a listener as you think--or perhaps you're a relatively newish listener, definitely not around in the old days. Stay hard, pk, and keep jammin'.

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  93. Would be pretty happy if the ticker and a certain tickerman left the station for good. Positive changes from what I can tell lately.

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  94. Is the FM signal getting worse? What's the point of going to FM if your FM signal isn't any better than AM? I would gladly hold onto my butt for a better FM signal.

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  95. Ok "Gonk Ragonk" may be my new favorite segment. The theme song is brilliant. Noticed a certain ticker man was completely silent during the segment. Guess he didn't like the new name of the segment and the new theme song. Love it!!!!

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  96. Gonk Ragonk isn't really a new segment just a rebranding of Gay/Not Gay which was one of my favorite Ticket segments until it got canned for reasons I assume have to do with political correctness. I'm glad they found a way to bring it back and branding it under the greatness of Ragonk is genius.

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  97. Does anybody know what got dumped during WTDS today?

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  98. I think it was a norm drop that they can't air. One of the shows recently mentioned that grubes made a bunch of norm drops that are unairable.

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  99. April 5, 2015 at 9:53 AM, I have been wondering why Sean has been challenging Tom Grieve to be the biggest Ranger homer on the Ticket airwaves. If he is aiming for a Rangers gig it all make sense.

    In regard to tickers, I hate them as much as anyone else, but I really like most of the ticker guys. I hope a cutback on tickers does not mean a cutback on jobs, but we know how the suits can be.

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  100. Would NOT bother me one bit if we never hear Pants Finigan again. Not a funny bit.

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  101. You can listen to the unedited WTDS from 4/7 via the WTDS podcast.

    I posted what got dumped but I guess it got dumped here too :-D

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