Well, I guess the SI cover jinx works even for regional covers. And if the Cubs were going to be sunk by the 1-2 punch of a jinx and a curse, I guess so were the Red Sox.
It's been one hell of a fall for the SI cover jinx, though. Working backwards from the past few weeks:
-- The Cubs and Red Sox lose in the LCS.
-- Jake Plummer loses and then gets hurt.
-- Oregon goes into the tank (and Priest Holmes was even slowed down).
-- Mia Hamm loses twice via the U.S. soccer team and then Nomar (plus Michigan falls to Oregon).
-- The Bills would win the week after they appeared on the cover, but they're 1-3 after that.
-- Ohio State struggled against San Diego State, but did win. It would take a few weeks later for the Buckeyes to lose.
-- The NFL preview had two retroactive cover jinxes as Chad Pennington and Michael Vick both had length photo sessions for the cover before being replaced by Kurt Warner, who got hurt and then lost his job.
All of this bodes well for Missouri, who faces cover darlings Oklahoma this weekend.
However, I wonder if the jinx would extend to the Web site? To think how much I power I might actually wield.
Friday, October 17, 2003
And for crazy baseball non-sequitirs ...
-- Does it add to the misery or is it just plain irony that John Henry Williams was diagnosed with leukemia?
-- Will the Steve Bartman movie be as rushed as either the D.C. Sniper, or even worse, the Pennsylvania miners, movie?
-- Speaking of Bartman, it wasn't the greatest of nights for the 6 p.m. SportsCenter after being duped by a Howard Stern fan. How long has Stern's influence on public prank calls been lasting, anyway? I remember one of my friends in high school spoofing a Donahue show, and that had to be at least 10-11 years ago.
-- What other former Oriole (other than Cal) is going to interview for the vacant managerial job? Eddie Murray, Rich Dauer and Rick Dempsey have interviewed so far. I guess Lenn Sakata, John Lowenstein and Tippy Martinez are next.
-- Does it add to the misery or is it just plain irony that John Henry Williams was diagnosed with leukemia?
-- Will the Steve Bartman movie be as rushed as either the D.C. Sniper, or even worse, the Pennsylvania miners, movie?
-- Speaking of Bartman, it wasn't the greatest of nights for the 6 p.m. SportsCenter after being duped by a Howard Stern fan. How long has Stern's influence on public prank calls been lasting, anyway? I remember one of my friends in high school spoofing a Donahue show, and that had to be at least 10-11 years ago.
-- What other former Oriole (other than Cal) is going to interview for the vacant managerial job? Eddie Murray, Rich Dauer and Rick Dempsey have interviewed so far. I guess Lenn Sakata, John Lowenstein and Tippy Martinez are next.
From the time the Cubs lost in Game 7 until somewhere around the time Jason Giambi hit his second homer, my interest in the playoffs waned. Then the roof caved in, and now I'm rejuvenated again after the Yankees' amazing comeback.
I suppose the way this series had gone, the way the whole playoffs had gone, this was the way to end it -- an extra-inning thriller.
I'm sure Fox was happy for such a dramatic Game 7 of the ALCS, but also realized that the World Series could be a real snoozer on the surface, but I think the Marlins have a talented team and are motivated enough to push it to the brink. I'm still not sure I'd go completely out of my way to watch the games if I'm not around, but we'll see.
I suppose the way this series had gone, the way the whole playoffs had gone, this was the way to end it -- an extra-inning thriller.
I'm sure Fox was happy for such a dramatic Game 7 of the ALCS, but also realized that the World Series could be a real snoozer on the surface, but I think the Marlins have a talented team and are motivated enough to push it to the brink. I'm still not sure I'd go completely out of my way to watch the games if I'm not around, but we'll see.
Thursday, October 16, 2003
Well, I guess Judgment Day will be avoided for another year, although I think Fox Sports would rather bump up the premieres of 24 and Joe Millionaire than show the Marlins in the World Series, at least after what could've been. In fact, I'm sure many will treat Yankees-Red Sox Game 7 as the de facto World Series game. It will have a lot more drama, intrigue, interest than either Yankees-Marlins or Red Sox-Marlins will have. Even as a Yankees fan, Marlins-Yankees doesn't do a lot for me. It either becomes like the '98 whooping of the Padres or the '01 stunner against the D'backs -- a lose-lose situation, in my opinion.
Hell, this year's baseball playoffs is turning into the NBA playoffs where the championship series is so anti-climactic after great series leading up to it. I guess it would make even more sense if the Yankees are in it since they own the Nets (at least for now).
And do the Marlins have the worst sense of timing for their successes? In 1997, they played a great World Series but knocked off an Indians team that hadn't won in ages (like the Cubs, or the Red Sox if they make it this far) and were sort of a sentimental favorite. Sure, the Marlins were an expansion team, but they fattened up with so many All-Stars that it seemed like a mercenary squad. The dismantling afterward helped to advance that point of view. There wasn't much of an identity to the team.
Fast forward to 2003. This team now has a great identity. Lots of young, up-and-coming players. A wise old manager. A spunky way of playing ball. Beating the Giants added to their likability, but they had to beat this year's "America's team." And now they enter the World Series being viewed as one of two things: an upstart who will continue another team's misery or the team that many fans will root for by default because they're playing the Yankees. I think I have a number of friends who would root for a team of serial murderers against the Yankees.
As for the Cubs, not much to say except that they choked. They probably took it easy against Josh Beckett, figuring they had a Wrigley clincher in their back pocket. Steve Bartman's unfortunate play on the foul ball just added to rattle a tired Mark Prior. And Kerry Wood didn't have it. But if you believe in curses, then the Cubs got a double, if not a triple whammy (if you want to consider the Bartman) -- there's that Billy Goat thing, but there's also the SI cover jinx back in action. The question is: Does the cover jinx work on a regional cover? If so, the Red Sox are screwed.
One last Cubs note, was having Billy Corgan the right choice for Take Me Out to the Ballgame on a night like this? It's cool and all, but this is one that screamed out for a Bill Murray or Michael Jordan -- someone with Chicago ties but more widespread appeal.
Hell, this year's baseball playoffs is turning into the NBA playoffs where the championship series is so anti-climactic after great series leading up to it. I guess it would make even more sense if the Yankees are in it since they own the Nets (at least for now).
And do the Marlins have the worst sense of timing for their successes? In 1997, they played a great World Series but knocked off an Indians team that hadn't won in ages (like the Cubs, or the Red Sox if they make it this far) and were sort of a sentimental favorite. Sure, the Marlins were an expansion team, but they fattened up with so many All-Stars that it seemed like a mercenary squad. The dismantling afterward helped to advance that point of view. There wasn't much of an identity to the team.
Fast forward to 2003. This team now has a great identity. Lots of young, up-and-coming players. A wise old manager. A spunky way of playing ball. Beating the Giants added to their likability, but they had to beat this year's "America's team." And now they enter the World Series being viewed as one of two things: an upstart who will continue another team's misery or the team that many fans will root for by default because they're playing the Yankees. I think I have a number of friends who would root for a team of serial murderers against the Yankees.
As for the Cubs, not much to say except that they choked. They probably took it easy against Josh Beckett, figuring they had a Wrigley clincher in their back pocket. Steve Bartman's unfortunate play on the foul ball just added to rattle a tired Mark Prior. And Kerry Wood didn't have it. But if you believe in curses, then the Cubs got a double, if not a triple whammy (if you want to consider the Bartman) -- there's that Billy Goat thing, but there's also the SI cover jinx back in action. The question is: Does the cover jinx work on a regional cover? If so, the Red Sox are screwed.
One last Cubs note, was having Billy Corgan the right choice for Take Me Out to the Ballgame on a night like this? It's cool and all, but this is one that screamed out for a Bill Murray or Michael Jordan -- someone with Chicago ties but more widespread appeal.
Sunday, October 12, 2003
Do the Stipe shimmy
Victoria will have a much better wrap-up, but here are some quick thoughts from tonight's R.E.M. tour closer:
-- The sound system at Philips Arena leaves a lot to be desired, but our crappy seats (upper deck at an extreme angle to the stage) may have had something to do with it. Maybe it was my hearing, but I had problems picking out a lot of lyrics and a bunch of what Stipe had to say. The scary part is that the songs have become more intelligible as the years go by, but a lot of it seemed garbled from my perspective.
-- It's a much different crowd compared to the last time I saw them in 1995. It's definitely an older crowd, with the youngest group being in their early-mid 20s. You don't have the young crowd just picking them up off the most recent album. The greatest hits doesn't come out for a couple of weeks, and if you first picked up the band off Reveal, I'd be shocked.
-- Along those same lines, with a slightly older crowd who's had more time to digest a lot of the catalog, there was a greater appreciation for the "older" hits (i.e. stuff before Out of Time or Automatic for the People). I remember seeing them in '95 and hearing the whole crowd go nuts for stuff like Losing My Religion or What's the Frequency, Kenneth? But the ovation dying for things like Fall on Me. Not so this time. The biggest cheers came for the stuff that's played the most (Losing My Religion, Fall on Me, Radio Free Europe, Man on the Moon) regardless of year.
-- The Athens/Atlanta fan base from years back definitely were appeased as a bunch of the 28 songs on the list were from Chronic Town or Murmur. At times, we felt like they were just playing the track list from Eponymous.
-- I enjoyed myself, but a lack of cramming before the show got me a bit thrown off as to what was being played, and the sound system didn't help. There were a couple of tracks from Reveal and Up in the mix, but New Adventures in Hi-Fi got the most play of the recent albums. Automatic for the People also got a lot of play, but we couldn't find a single song from Monster on the set, which is a bit surprising, although that was the focus of the last big tour.
-- Still, the show seemed to appeal to all different levels of fans (minus those really wanting to hear Stand or Shiny Happy People): the big hits were mostly there, lots of underrated tracks for those who like things outside of the singles, plenty of older songs for the more hardcore fan. I'm not as much into the band as I was the last time I saw them, but it was still an entertaining show.
-- One last note: We see Mick Jagger continue to preen in his shows even though he's in his 60s. What will Stipe look like doing his goofy flailing dancing around if the band is still touring in like 10-15 years?
Victoria will have a much better wrap-up, but here are some quick thoughts from tonight's R.E.M. tour closer:
-- The sound system at Philips Arena leaves a lot to be desired, but our crappy seats (upper deck at an extreme angle to the stage) may have had something to do with it. Maybe it was my hearing, but I had problems picking out a lot of lyrics and a bunch of what Stipe had to say. The scary part is that the songs have become more intelligible as the years go by, but a lot of it seemed garbled from my perspective.
-- It's a much different crowd compared to the last time I saw them in 1995. It's definitely an older crowd, with the youngest group being in their early-mid 20s. You don't have the young crowd just picking them up off the most recent album. The greatest hits doesn't come out for a couple of weeks, and if you first picked up the band off Reveal, I'd be shocked.
-- Along those same lines, with a slightly older crowd who's had more time to digest a lot of the catalog, there was a greater appreciation for the "older" hits (i.e. stuff before Out of Time or Automatic for the People). I remember seeing them in '95 and hearing the whole crowd go nuts for stuff like Losing My Religion or What's the Frequency, Kenneth? But the ovation dying for things like Fall on Me. Not so this time. The biggest cheers came for the stuff that's played the most (Losing My Religion, Fall on Me, Radio Free Europe, Man on the Moon) regardless of year.
-- The Athens/Atlanta fan base from years back definitely were appeased as a bunch of the 28 songs on the list were from Chronic Town or Murmur. At times, we felt like they were just playing the track list from Eponymous.
-- I enjoyed myself, but a lack of cramming before the show got me a bit thrown off as to what was being played, and the sound system didn't help. There were a couple of tracks from Reveal and Up in the mix, but New Adventures in Hi-Fi got the most play of the recent albums. Automatic for the People also got a lot of play, but we couldn't find a single song from Monster on the set, which is a bit surprising, although that was the focus of the last big tour.
-- Still, the show seemed to appeal to all different levels of fans (minus those really wanting to hear Stand or Shiny Happy People): the big hits were mostly there, lots of underrated tracks for those who like things outside of the singles, plenty of older songs for the more hardcore fan. I'm not as much into the band as I was the last time I saw them, but it was still an entertaining show.
-- One last note: We see Mick Jagger continue to preen in his shows even though he's in his 60s. What will Stipe look like doing his goofy flailing dancing around if the band is still touring in like 10-15 years?
Wednesday, October 08, 2003
Fall brawl
Despite the Cubs' loss in Game 1, the NLCS looks to be a lot of fun, even if most people would rather not see the Marlins in the World Series, or else take away a lot of the luster of the Fall Classic. You know Fox would love to see Cubs in the World Series, and either AL team would be a huge jackpot.
With that said, what in the world is up with the split telecast of Game 1 of the ALCS and Game 2 of the NLCS? Wouldn't a situation like this call for the NLCS to be an afternoon game and the ALCS getting prime-time attention or vice versa?
Granted, it's one night, but this is the time for both series to have the spotlight on their own. I can flip back and forth between Fox and FX at home (or have two TVs going at work), but what about places without cable or without FX? And the list of cities getting each telecast on the local on-air Fox station is a bit random as well.
It's anecdotal evidence ...
But one of the better things so far from the playoffs was this amazing and scathing piece from Tom Verducci on Oakland's collapse. For all the Moneyball talk, it's hard to dismiss nine straight losses in clinching games, especially when there's a huge dismissal of "clutch" hitting by Beane and friends. But I guess "choke" hitting, pitching, defense, baserunning, etc. does exist -- you can quantify that just by taking the A's stats in those nine games.
To put this in a quizbowl context, I wouldn't be surprised if Beane and his disciples would want to ditch the playoffs altogether and just award the championship to the team with the best overall record at the end of the regular season, since all those models for creating a great team supposedly go out the window in a playoff tournament format (we'll save the discussion of best-of-5 and best-of-7 for another day).
Despite the Cubs' loss in Game 1, the NLCS looks to be a lot of fun, even if most people would rather not see the Marlins in the World Series, or else take away a lot of the luster of the Fall Classic. You know Fox would love to see Cubs in the World Series, and either AL team would be a huge jackpot.
With that said, what in the world is up with the split telecast of Game 1 of the ALCS and Game 2 of the NLCS? Wouldn't a situation like this call for the NLCS to be an afternoon game and the ALCS getting prime-time attention or vice versa?
Granted, it's one night, but this is the time for both series to have the spotlight on their own. I can flip back and forth between Fox and FX at home (or have two TVs going at work), but what about places without cable or without FX? And the list of cities getting each telecast on the local on-air Fox station is a bit random as well.
It's anecdotal evidence ...
But one of the better things so far from the playoffs was this amazing and scathing piece from Tom Verducci on Oakland's collapse. For all the Moneyball talk, it's hard to dismiss nine straight losses in clinching games, especially when there's a huge dismissal of "clutch" hitting by Beane and friends. But I guess "choke" hitting, pitching, defense, baserunning, etc. does exist -- you can quantify that just by taking the A's stats in those nine games.
To put this in a quizbowl context, I wouldn't be surprised if Beane and his disciples would want to ditch the playoffs altogether and just award the championship to the team with the best overall record at the end of the regular season, since all those models for creating a great team supposedly go out the window in a playoff tournament format (we'll save the discussion of best-of-5 and best-of-7 for another day).
Monday, October 06, 2003
Quadruple whammy
Could it be a worse sports night in Atlanta? I'm sure everything is going haywire over at the AJC with all the sad news.
First off, the Falcons lost again, although Peerless Price finally woke up.
Then, the Cubs ended the Braves' postseason hopes for another year, although that was fun for me to watch. We're getting that much closer to a Cubs-Red Sox World Series where I totally expect either Jesus to throw out the first pitch or, "Game postponed on account of locusts." (Granted, my dream matchup is close to coming true of Cubs-Yankees is also close to coming true.)
And when it couldn't get much worse, in comes the news of Dan Snyder's death in the Dany Heatley car wreck last Monday.
If you're looking for the fourth bit of sad news for this area, how about the U.S. women's team falling at the World Cup? First WUSA goes under, and now the tournament that might've helped to resurrect some interest in the sport ends with a big thud. I hardly watched the tournament since it was lost in the shuffle of the NFL, college football and baseball playoffs. Even a big event like this gets lost among the Cubs and NFL action (or the death of a hockey player in Atlanta's case).
The only pro team to escape unscathed Sunday was the Hawks, but they're so pathetic anyway, that it's hardly worth mentioning. They did pick up a couple of serviceable free agents over the weekend in Lee Nailon and Stephen Jackson, but they're still looking at lottery balls come next May.
Could it be a worse sports night in Atlanta? I'm sure everything is going haywire over at the AJC with all the sad news.
First off, the Falcons lost again, although Peerless Price finally woke up.
Then, the Cubs ended the Braves' postseason hopes for another year, although that was fun for me to watch. We're getting that much closer to a Cubs-Red Sox World Series where I totally expect either Jesus to throw out the first pitch or, "Game postponed on account of locusts." (Granted, my dream matchup is close to coming true of Cubs-Yankees is also close to coming true.)
And when it couldn't get much worse, in comes the news of Dan Snyder's death in the Dany Heatley car wreck last Monday.
If you're looking for the fourth bit of sad news for this area, how about the U.S. women's team falling at the World Cup? First WUSA goes under, and now the tournament that might've helped to resurrect some interest in the sport ends with a big thud. I hardly watched the tournament since it was lost in the shuffle of the NFL, college football and baseball playoffs. Even a big event like this gets lost among the Cubs and NFL action (or the death of a hockey player in Atlanta's case).
The only pro team to escape unscathed Sunday was the Hawks, but they're so pathetic anyway, that it's hardly worth mentioning. They did pick up a couple of serviceable free agents over the weekend in Lee Nailon and Stephen Jackson, but they're still looking at lottery balls come next May.
Friday, October 03, 2003
Curses, foiled again
I think I will hear the screams of ThrasherGirl from Iowa when she hears this news about Dany Heatley. And she says there is no EA Sports curse ...
I would imagine EA Sports will avoid featuring any Braves on the cover of their baseball game next year given their track record with Atlanta athletes this year. Thankfully, they don't have to worry about jinxing any Hawks, they've taken care of that already, although I wouldn't be surprised if Jason Terry or Shareef Abdur-Rahim suffer a major injury playing NBA Live.
I think I will hear the screams of ThrasherGirl from Iowa when she hears this news about Dany Heatley. And she says there is no EA Sports curse ...
I would imagine EA Sports will avoid featuring any Braves on the cover of their baseball game next year given their track record with Atlanta athletes this year. Thankfully, they don't have to worry about jinxing any Hawks, they've taken care of that already, although I wouldn't be surprised if Jason Terry or Shareef Abdur-Rahim suffer a major injury playing NBA Live.
Living for the '90s
I guess it was inevitable that someone would go public with our nostalgia for the '90s, although The Onion did warn about the drying up retro gap six years ago.
What struck me was the supposed shock or surprise that one of the retro lunch hour shows was getting more requests for early '90s "obscure" few-hit wonders than for Nirvana or Pearl Jam.
First off, Nirvana and Pearl Jam is still in the regular rotation on the station. You can still hear "Smells Like Teen Spirit" or "Jeremy" on regular basis. Why bother requesting something that you can hear in a few hours. Secondly, this being a "retro" show, it's the perfect time to be nostalgic for stuff that just doesn't get the airplay anymore. Those shows drove '80s music back into public consciousness and even its own stations. It's now doing the same for '90s alt-rock (or in my case, literally "college" rock since I listened to most of this while at college). And thirdly, for a lot of listeners, I think it's just a lot more fun listening to Urge Overkill, Better Than Ezra or Dinosaur Jr. than the continuous assault of Linkin Park, Staind or Limp Bizkit that now comes with the format.
I guess it was inevitable that someone would go public with our nostalgia for the '90s, although The Onion did warn about the drying up retro gap six years ago.
What struck me was the supposed shock or surprise that one of the retro lunch hour shows was getting more requests for early '90s "obscure" few-hit wonders than for Nirvana or Pearl Jam.
First off, Nirvana and Pearl Jam is still in the regular rotation on the station. You can still hear "Smells Like Teen Spirit" or "Jeremy" on regular basis. Why bother requesting something that you can hear in a few hours. Secondly, this being a "retro" show, it's the perfect time to be nostalgic for stuff that just doesn't get the airplay anymore. Those shows drove '80s music back into public consciousness and even its own stations. It's now doing the same for '90s alt-rock (or in my case, literally "college" rock since I listened to most of this while at college). And thirdly, for a lot of listeners, I think it's just a lot more fun listening to Urge Overkill, Better Than Ezra or Dinosaur Jr. than the continuous assault of Linkin Park, Staind or Limp Bizkit that now comes with the format.
Fill up the tub
Along with getting geeked about baseball again, the hockey switch started turning on, although a lot of it had to with the first ever sale at Distant Replays where I snagged this and this for $35 each. And I could've loaded up even more on jerseys or retro hats, but I did have to pace myself a little bit.
Unfortunately, I was also thinking about the ice because of Dany Heatley's scary car wreck just a couple of miles up the street from my apartment. As chilling as it was to me when I heard it on the radio the morning after, it was worse for ThrasherGirl, who was working the hockey beat that evening and whose two favorite players are Heatley and Snyder.
I can't figure out how he could go 80 in that stretch of road, even in a Ferrari. It's a narrow, winding, hilly two-lane road with a few plates in the road. I struggle to get old Camry to 40 or 45 through that part of the road.
But out of all the wild things coming out of that story, I'm not sure anything can top the fact that Sanjay Gupta performed the surgery on Snyder.
Along with getting geeked about baseball again, the hockey switch started turning on, although a lot of it had to with the first ever sale at Distant Replays where I snagged this and this for $35 each. And I could've loaded up even more on jerseys or retro hats, but I did have to pace myself a little bit.
Unfortunately, I was also thinking about the ice because of Dany Heatley's scary car wreck just a couple of miles up the street from my apartment. As chilling as it was to me when I heard it on the radio the morning after, it was worse for ThrasherGirl, who was working the hockey beat that evening and whose two favorite players are Heatley and Snyder.
I can't figure out how he could go 80 in that stretch of road, even in a Ferrari. It's a narrow, winding, hilly two-lane road with a few plates in the road. I struggle to get old Camry to 40 or 45 through that part of the road.
But out of all the wild things coming out of that story, I'm not sure anything can top the fact that Sanjay Gupta performed the surgery on Snyder.
Batter up
It's fun having baseball top of my mind again. It really hadn't been that way since maybe June or so, but with the playoffs now going, and a few of my favorites in the running, it's been a rush.
I got to see the first two games of the NLDS in what amounted to a neutral field as Turner Field was approximately 50 percent Cubs fans -- many making the trip from Chicago since it would be cheaper than actually buying tickets to a game at Wrigley, while others were carpetbaggers, bandwagon jumpers or just WGN watchers (before it was whacked from the main cable provider here).
I don't think Turner Field has seen this type of electricity in a long while. The presence of the Cubs fans energized the Braves fans as well. It's a bit unfortunate that it took a huge contingent of opposing fans to create a real atmosphere in the stadium, but that can happen among a complacent fan base. But hey, Braves officials can be happy that they got a huge gate thanks to the matchup and didn't have to give away lots of tickets like they did last year (for Barry Bonds and the Giants, no less).
What was amusing was one of the local sports radio guys here (one of the few I actually respect) trying to pin the blame on the lack of attendance/atmosphere at Turner in the past was 1 p.m. starts for playoff games, and saying that it would be the same at Yankee Stadium this year for Game 1, which was an afternoon game. While the Yankees lost, they did have a packed house (save for some dumbasses who couldn't tear tickets out of a book correctly).
I won't comment too much on the games, since that would go on forever knowing my writing style. Instead, I must point out that ESPN now has a commercial featuring this song advertising this.
It's fun having baseball top of my mind again. It really hadn't been that way since maybe June or so, but with the playoffs now going, and a few of my favorites in the running, it's been a rush.
I got to see the first two games of the NLDS in what amounted to a neutral field as Turner Field was approximately 50 percent Cubs fans -- many making the trip from Chicago since it would be cheaper than actually buying tickets to a game at Wrigley, while others were carpetbaggers, bandwagon jumpers or just WGN watchers (before it was whacked from the main cable provider here).
I don't think Turner Field has seen this type of electricity in a long while. The presence of the Cubs fans energized the Braves fans as well. It's a bit unfortunate that it took a huge contingent of opposing fans to create a real atmosphere in the stadium, but that can happen among a complacent fan base. But hey, Braves officials can be happy that they got a huge gate thanks to the matchup and didn't have to give away lots of tickets like they did last year (for Barry Bonds and the Giants, no less).
What was amusing was one of the local sports radio guys here (one of the few I actually respect) trying to pin the blame on the lack of attendance/atmosphere at Turner in the past was 1 p.m. starts for playoff games, and saying that it would be the same at Yankee Stadium this year for Game 1, which was an afternoon game. While the Yankees lost, they did have a packed house (save for some dumbasses who couldn't tear tickets out of a book correctly).
I won't comment too much on the games, since that would go on forever knowing my writing style. Instead, I must point out that ESPN now has a commercial featuring this song advertising this.
Wednesday, September 24, 2003
Taking out the SP
My friend Sean warns that ESPN is becoming more like MTV every day, and for all the wrong reasons. Oddly enough, some of the stuff that ESPN can and might do to re-invent the network is or has been on ESPN Classic. Those old episodes of Home Run Derby used to be staples of Classic in the pre-ESPN days and even appeared from time to time after that. And if they want a good competition, they should either bring back 2-Minute Drill, which was reasonably compelling before they buried it in various time slots. Better yet, how about the Super Bowl of Sports Trivia, played at the now deceased Boardwalk and Baseball amusement park outside Orlando, hosted by the svelte and not-so-bald Chris Berman?
My friend Sean warns that ESPN is becoming more like MTV every day, and for all the wrong reasons. Oddly enough, some of the stuff that ESPN can and might do to re-invent the network is or has been on ESPN Classic. Those old episodes of Home Run Derby used to be staples of Classic in the pre-ESPN days and even appeared from time to time after that. And if they want a good competition, they should either bring back 2-Minute Drill, which was reasonably compelling before they buried it in various time slots. Better yet, how about the Super Bowl of Sports Trivia, played at the now deceased Boardwalk and Baseball amusement park outside Orlando, hosted by the svelte and not-so-bald Chris Berman?
Playing catch-up
Guess it's time to do an update, don't you think?
I went over home the weekend, and having the hurricane only alter my flight plans slightly Thursday night, for my 10th high school reunion. Unlike my fifth college one last year, this one was pretty much a bust. In a class of about 180 or so, only six or seven showed up, and only one was someone I actually knew well -- and I was grateful for that. The sad thing was the numbers were about the same for all the other 3s and 8s classes invited for the party. I want to be surprised by the turnout, but I'm not. Oh well, it was nice to see all the impressive changes to the school building, including a kick-ass gym and a bunch of new classrooms; and I did talk to my old quizbowl coach, who was somewhat surprised to see I'm still involved in the game.
Otherwise the trip was pretty quiet, which is the way I wanted it, although with my work schedule, I had to get up at 5 a.m. for my flight back to Atlanta and then work until about 1/3 of the way through the Emmys (instead of my 11 p.m. Sundays I had been pulling).
The award for greatest rotting of your brain goes to ...
Speaking of the Emmys, I guess "it's an honor just to be nominated" is the best way to describe most of the shows I actually like. I think I'd be surprised if something I do like actually wins an award. There seems too many bones thrown out there for the "critical/too-smart-for-their-own-good" audience to get them to care about the Emmys and then pull the rug from under them. That definitely would've been the case had Buffy ever gotten real consideration. Still, the show was entertaining enough but nothing memorable.
My imaginary job
I usually don't talk about fantasy football here since there's enough of it here, but it's interesting to note that in three leagues where I started out 0-2, I pulled out amazingly fraudulent victories, and in my experts league, I remained undefeated thanks in part to Marques Tuiasasopo playing mop-up duty on Monday night. So as much as we all try so hard to put together the best team each week, sometimes it just comes down to blind luck.
Guess it's time to do an update, don't you think?
I went over home the weekend, and having the hurricane only alter my flight plans slightly Thursday night, for my 10th high school reunion. Unlike my fifth college one last year, this one was pretty much a bust. In a class of about 180 or so, only six or seven showed up, and only one was someone I actually knew well -- and I was grateful for that. The sad thing was the numbers were about the same for all the other 3s and 8s classes invited for the party. I want to be surprised by the turnout, but I'm not. Oh well, it was nice to see all the impressive changes to the school building, including a kick-ass gym and a bunch of new classrooms; and I did talk to my old quizbowl coach, who was somewhat surprised to see I'm still involved in the game.
Otherwise the trip was pretty quiet, which is the way I wanted it, although with my work schedule, I had to get up at 5 a.m. for my flight back to Atlanta and then work until about 1/3 of the way through the Emmys (instead of my 11 p.m. Sundays I had been pulling).
The award for greatest rotting of your brain goes to ...
Speaking of the Emmys, I guess "it's an honor just to be nominated" is the best way to describe most of the shows I actually like. I think I'd be surprised if something I do like actually wins an award. There seems too many bones thrown out there for the "critical/too-smart-for-their-own-good" audience to get them to care about the Emmys and then pull the rug from under them. That definitely would've been the case had Buffy ever gotten real consideration. Still, the show was entertaining enough but nothing memorable.
My imaginary job
I usually don't talk about fantasy football here since there's enough of it here, but it's interesting to note that in three leagues where I started out 0-2, I pulled out amazingly fraudulent victories, and in my experts league, I remained undefeated thanks in part to Marques Tuiasasopo playing mop-up duty on Monday night. So as much as we all try so hard to put together the best team each week, sometimes it just comes down to blind luck.
Sunday, September 14, 2003
'Tis a silly place
Every classic TV show is destined to be turned into a movie, and every movie is destined to become a Broadway show, although I think this does lend itself for some stage work. The question is will Robert Goulet show up in some fashion?
Every classic TV show is destined to be turned into a movie, and every movie is destined to become a Broadway show, although I think this does lend itself for some stage work. The question is will Robert Goulet show up in some fashion?
Saturday, September 13, 2003
When comedy becomes reality
Somebody is taking up Homer's offer of making Skittlebrau.
But at least that's someone keeping up with a joke. It's even stranger when the son of the guy who played Huggy Bear turns out to be a notable person (and I've gone nuts about this since his days at Michigan).
Somebody is taking up Homer's offer of making Skittlebrau.
But at least that's someone keeping up with a joke. It's even stranger when the son of the guy who played Huggy Bear turns out to be a notable person (and I've gone nuts about this since his days at Michigan).
Friday, September 12, 2003
OK, so I just picked up the first two seasons of 24 on DVD. I wonder if I can pull watching all 48 episodes in one sitting?
Zoom zoom
Blogging for the first time with the new cable modem connection, although for the time being, I'm probably going to keep the Mindspring accounts active, however.
The relevance of death
Mark has already pointed out the interesting juxtaposition of the deaths of Johnny Cash and John Ritter. However, the news coverage on CNN this morning was a bit intriguing.
While The Man in Black is the top story right now on CNN.com, he was somewhat shunted coverage on American Morning in favor of Ritter. It was especially more evident on the ticker, where there was plenty of stuff about Ritter, even though Cash got top billing, so to speak.
Surprisingly, I can see how and why the coverage slanted the way it did. The amount of stuff on Cash written, produced, etc. over the years seems to be much easier to digest in the online medium where you can get both immediacy and depth/background. Cash's failing health also seemed to make it easier to have something ready just in case; however, it is interesting to note that he was just released from the hospital on Tuesday for an ailment that caused him to miss the MTV Video Music Awards.
In Ritter's case, the suddenness of his passing, not to mention that it happened overnight and didn't make most morning papers on the East Coast, seemed to play into the hands of the morning news show, or at least the way CNN runs theirs. They trotted out a lot of entertaiment reporters who could either think fondly of him or wonder what the future holds for his TV show that he was in the middle of shooting at the time of his death. Since he was still in mid-career and was at least a moderate star, his death got a lot of coverage and almost on par with Cash. Otherwise, it may not have been a
Cash was a music legend and icon, and was even relevant to today's youth thanks to his recent video. In some ways, I think CNN may have been a bit light on covering his death, especially you'd think they'd have as much stuff in the can as the online folks did. But, the morning show is a lot about the hosts, so the more people they can find to talk about this stuff live, the better for the show. It's probably not as easy trying to find other country legends for a TV interview that quickly. So out goes the prerecorded stuff, and in comes a roundtable discussion of entertainment news editors/reporters who happened to be on their way to work.
One bit I did catch at the end, though, that was a unique, if strange, angle to both deaths was bringing out Dr. Sanjay Gupta to explain the ailments that led to both men's deaths. It made for a solid explainer for some medical issues few would've been able to understand (especially in Ritter's case).
Blogging for the first time with the new cable modem connection, although for the time being, I'm probably going to keep the Mindspring accounts active, however.
The relevance of death
Mark has already pointed out the interesting juxtaposition of the deaths of Johnny Cash and John Ritter. However, the news coverage on CNN this morning was a bit intriguing.
While The Man in Black is the top story right now on CNN.com, he was somewhat shunted coverage on American Morning in favor of Ritter. It was especially more evident on the ticker, where there was plenty of stuff about Ritter, even though Cash got top billing, so to speak.
Surprisingly, I can see how and why the coverage slanted the way it did. The amount of stuff on Cash written, produced, etc. over the years seems to be much easier to digest in the online medium where you can get both immediacy and depth/background. Cash's failing health also seemed to make it easier to have something ready just in case; however, it is interesting to note that he was just released from the hospital on Tuesday for an ailment that caused him to miss the MTV Video Music Awards.
In Ritter's case, the suddenness of his passing, not to mention that it happened overnight and didn't make most morning papers on the East Coast, seemed to play into the hands of the morning news show, or at least the way CNN runs theirs. They trotted out a lot of entertaiment reporters who could either think fondly of him or wonder what the future holds for his TV show that he was in the middle of shooting at the time of his death. Since he was still in mid-career and was at least a moderate star, his death got a lot of coverage and almost on par with Cash. Otherwise, it may not have been a
Cash was a music legend and icon, and was even relevant to today's youth thanks to his recent video. In some ways, I think CNN may have been a bit light on covering his death, especially you'd think they'd have as much stuff in the can as the online folks did. But, the morning show is a lot about the hosts, so the more people they can find to talk about this stuff live, the better for the show. It's probably not as easy trying to find other country legends for a TV interview that quickly. So out goes the prerecorded stuff, and in comes a roundtable discussion of entertainment news editors/reporters who happened to be on their way to work.
One bit I did catch at the end, though, that was a unique, if strange, angle to both deaths was bringing out Dr. Sanjay Gupta to explain the ailments that led to both men's deaths. It made for a solid explainer for some medical issues few would've been able to understand (especially in Ritter's case).
Thursday, September 11, 2003
Setting the record straight
Sometimes you'll see corrections to stories made via the letters to the editor, but I dare you to find something as good as this retort (top entry), which then had me thinking of these guys.
Sometimes you'll see corrections to stories made via the letters to the editor, but I dare you to find something as good as this retort (top entry), which then had me thinking of these guys.
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