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I thought I'd have plenty of time to finish work, crank out something for this page, and relax with some TV this evening, because I assumed, like almost everyone else, that the Sunday Night Football game wouldn't be worth watching.
Stunningly, incredibly, amazingly, that isn't the case. It's about the end of the third quarter right now and it's a game. So I'm going to go watch it.
ShareI'm busy and tired today, so here's a link to a great site that started this year (on my birthday!) and features vintage pictures and biographies for some legends of retail, including -- wait for it! -- Korvette's! Two Guys! Food Fair! Topps/White Front! Acme! Publix! Winn-Dixie!
It's called Pleasant Family Shopping and it's pretty freakin' amazing. Go there and bask in the warm glow of your retail memories.
ShareOkay, so, if Missouri and West Virginia win, then that's your BCS title matchup, but if they lose, then it's possible it could be, say, Ohio State and a two-loss team, because no way does Kansas get back after the loss to Missouri, but then there's Hawaii sitting there undefeated and... and...
And there's only one way to resolve this.
No, not a playoff.
Me.
Really, the college football championship is too important to leave to computers. And it's too important to leave to a poll of writers or coaches or anyone else who might in some way know something about college football. No, what college football needs is an autocrat, a my-way-or-the-highway guy, someone who makes decisions with ruthless efficiency and sticks to them, come hell or high Gatorade.
I can do that.
First, my credentials: I have none. I did not grow up a college football freak. Where I grew up, the mid-Atlantic region, we didn't have college football. (Rutgers, at the time, didn't count) Oh, sure, you had people rooting for Syracuse, or Penn State, or -- horrors! -- Notre Dame, but there wasn't the kind of fervor for the game you'd associate with L.A.'s USC and UCLA fans, or pretty much any state school anywhere else. We didn't care much. And my college gave up football in 1971 when it literally ran out of players. I followed virtually every other sport, but college football was what someone else played on Saturday afternoons on ABC.
Later, after marrying someone who went to the University of Miami (school motto: "Guilty, Your Honor"), I acquired more of an interest in the game. I've even been to the Rose Bowl game, the one when Miami beat Nebraska; that was the Hurricanes squad that featured Jeremy Shockey and Willis McGahee and Frank Gore and at least one of Clinton Portis' personalities. And living in Los Angeles, you can't miss the USC alumni -- they're the ones driving Jaguars and BMWs (with "USC ALUMNI" license plate frames) erratically in front of me while chatting to their brokers on their cell phones -- so it's hard not to know at least a little about what's happening in college football.
A little -- yep, that's what I know. And that makes me ideal for the job of Ultimate Arbiter Of Who Gets To Call Themselves College Football Champions. I'm not a homer. I'm not tainted by favoritism for any particular team. When you really analyze the situation, I don't care. I'm probably watching basketball or "House" or something. But I can cut through the garbage, clear the fog, and leave no doubt who the champion ought to be. Seriously, it would save everybody a lot of time and effort and heartache. I'll take the heat.
It's way too early to make my decision, but I can give you some insight into how I plan to make my decision, besides the coin flip and Magic 8-Ball. Let's look at some of the contenders:
MISSOURI: Pro: Chase Daniel. Shut down Kansas ground game. Con: Would upset the balance of nature. "National Champion Missouri Tigers" just doesn't sound right, like "Oscar-winning Rob Schneider."
WEST VIRGINIA: Pro: Bob Denver was from there. Con: John Denver sang about it.
OHIO STATE: Pro: "National Champion Buckeyes" sounds comfortable. Con: Lost to Illinois -- Illinois? Buckeye mascot is just weird. Lingering resentment from the January 2003 Fiesta Bowl. That whole "THE Ohio State" thing is just annoying as hell.
GEORGIA: Pro: Young, interesting team, almost won SEC. Knowshon Moreno is apparently for real. Con: Two losses. "Knowshon"? Didn't win SEC, either. Mark Richt just rubs me the wrong way. Don't know why.
KANSAS: Pro: Won 11 straight. Con: Got found out.
VIRGINIA TECH: Pro: I always confuse them with West Virginia, and they're always decent. Inspirational after tragedy. Con: Two losses. Points off for Vick-by-association.
LSU: Pro: Dunno, haven't seen them this year. Con: Two losses. Triple overtime. Gotta win that one, guys.
USC: Pro: Even in an off year, they're good. Quarterback named "Booty." Con: Stanford? No, really, Stanford? That's a mistake, right? That didn't happen, did it?
But I'll reserve the right to make my final determination until all the regular season stuff's done. I might even wait until the bowls are over. But I will make my choice, and it will be correct. Just leave everything to me. See? This doesn't have to be difficult.
ShareUpon finding out I happen to be a Philadelphia sports fan, I often got asked by curious folks who'd never been there about the former home of the Phillies and Eagles, Veterans Stadium. Wasn't it horrible, they asked. Wasn't it supposed to be a toilet? And I'd always respond the same way: sure, it was a toilet, but it was OUR toilet. When they imploded the place, it was just a little sad.
That came to mind when the news broke that USC, frustrated by a lack of movement in lease negotiations, is considering a move from the Coliseum to the Rose Bowl. After that hit the wires, I heard a lot of talk about the historic nature of both stadia, how USC shouldn't abandon the Coliseum because it has so much history. And my mind kept going back to the Vet, because, let's face it, they're historic and wonderful and I love them and I want them to stick around, but the Coliseum and the Rose Bowl are, well, toilets.
The first impression you get of the Coliseum from outside depends on how you approach it. If you come in at the "Peristyle End," you see the Olympic torch and that familiar series of arches and it's impressive, except for the utility boxes and trailers and storm fencing and the wartlike, rundown Sports Arena blocking your view. If you come in from any other angle, you'll think, "That's it?" It's grimy, it's dull, it's deceptively low-slung, and it looks about as old as the one in Rome. Inside, it's a mixed bag, too: the seating is awful and uncomfortable, most seats are miles from the action and all on one massive level, getting to any seat means an interminably long, difficult slog up or down long aisles, getting to concessions or the bathroom if you're seated way up top requires a sherpa, the place needs a minimum of new seats, a new video board, and a paint job.
On the other hand, it's the place where the Olympics were held, where the biggest names in football roamed, where the Dodgers drew 90,000 people to a World Series game, where concerts and festivals and soccer were played. When Fran and I finished the Revlon Run/Walk last May, we got to walk through the tunnel and onto the field for the finish line, and it was an amazing experience -- you could feel the history as you emerged from the tunnel.
But actually sitting there for a game is another story. It's... uncomfortable. So is the Rose Bowl, where your back is someone else's knee rest. It would be nice if the Trojans and Bruins played in more comfortable surroundings, and it's weird that two of the few schools that don't have their own stadia on campus are right here. I hope, and kinda expect, that USC and the Coliseum Commission work things out and the team stays right where we expect them to be, but while we're on the subject, guys, can someone kinda fix the place up a little? Maybe a few more escalators, some comfortable seats, a splash of Benjamin Moore on the concrete? The old girl deserves a little makeover once in a while.
ShareOh, Lord, am I setting myself up for failure. This week's All Access newsletter discusses the lack of excitement over radio this holiday season, then sets up a promise of great revelations with a distinct overtone of disappointment:
Did you miss me? Didn't think so. But while I was away, there were several incidents and moments where I thought, hey, this would make a great topic for "The Letter." Then I came back and promptly forgot all of them. Perhaps I should get into the habit of taking notes.
One thing I do remember is this: I was perusing the Black Friday sale circulars last week and it struck me that what I was looking at were this year's hot consumer electronics items, but radios -- regular ol' terrestrial radio receivers -- were conspicuously missing. They had iPods, of course, and HDTVs and Wiis, but no radios. There weren't even many items that include radios as incidental features, like in home theater receivers or the FM tuners they stick in off-brand MP3 players so you can listen to the TV audio at the gym. They had satellite radios, but no AM/FM radios, and absolutely no HD radios. Even clock radios and car radios tout iPod capability, not AM/FM.
That, of course, isn't good news for those of you in "regular" radio, but it's not fatal news -- as long as there's an installed base of close to 100% of cars and all those clock radios, radio will be a major option for audio entertainment. And we've already discussed how important it is for talk radio stations to be where the audience is going, which means gravitating from AM to FM and from AM/FM to podcasts and streaming. You know that, and you gotta hope your bosses know that. If generations are coming of age buying audio devices that don't have radio tuners, and the AM button on the car radio is a mystery left unsolved, you know that you have to do something new to reach them. (You also know that if HD Radio is a no-show in the Black Friday circulars this season, it's not a good sign for that -- this is the year they should have made a big consumer push, and it ain't happening. I know, yes, they signed some new car radio deals, but even if every car manufacturer made HD standard equipment right this second, it would take years for it to make a dent in the market. Meanwhile, where's a low-cost adapter to let me hear HD stations? Why didn't I see it in the stores this holiday shopping season? Why wasn't it in the sale circulars? Where's the compelling argument for me to buy one?)
On the other hand, with all those car and clock radios out there, it's not like people CAN'T access your shows. The trick is to get them to press that button and check you out -- to give them a reason to come back from the iPod or cell phone or whatever else is occupying their time. How do you do that? What do you, as a host, need to do to position yourself to succeed no matter how the medium changes? What should PDs be looking for to compete in this wide-open game? What does radio need most right now?
Find out... next week.
How's that for a tease?
While I scramble to come up with an answer, you can head over to All Access News-Talk-Sports and the Talk Topics show prep column, which will supply you with provocative material every day. This week so far, you'll find items about finding toilets by texting, doomed department store piano players, why working the overnight shift can kill you, giant Lego menorahs, how one guy lost by winning the lottery, the Great Massachussetts Spanking Debate, living in a shopping mall, the smell of Heath Ledger, how Carson Daly suddenly became one of the most controversial people in show business, a credit-card-related riot at a Kmart, transvestites trashing a McDonald's, the tragedy of dead malls, and the woman with a 10 pound hairball, plus real news commentary and links. And in the rest of All Access, there's "10 Questions With..." WTMJ/Milwaukee mainstay Jonathan Green and plenty of news, job listings, music charts, columns, the Industry Directory, and ratings, all free.
That's part one of a Very Special Two Part Episode of "The Letter." Next week, either I tell you what I think will keep radio relevant in the multimedia universe, or Bobby wakes up and discovers it was all a dream.
ShareIt's late Friday, it's raining in Southern California (it pours, man, it pours), and I'm in the mood for the kind of YouTube clips only interesting to an old-TV nerd like myself. So....
Flyers hockey on WTAF-TV 29! Brought to you by Eastern Airlines and PSFS! Gene Hart!
Commercials on the 1987 Mummers Parade telecast, including Joe Niagra for WPEN!
The birth of WKBG-TV Boston, from the debut telecast from 1956, plus other clips!
The inaugural sign-on of WTIC-TV (now WFSB-TV) Hartford in 1957!
The October 19, 1968 sign-on of ATV0 in Melbourne!
Kiddie City commercials from the 80's! Kiddie City! I used to go to the one in Ardmore, PA when I was in college! (Yes, I bought stuff at a toy store when I was in college -- what of it?)
Oh, my Lord, someone has a U68 promo! The truly obscure music video channel in Newark/New York in 1985!
Have a great weekend.
ShareThe sports fans of Southern California were once again abuzz over The Rivalry. The Coliseum was packed, the sports radio stations were all USC and UCLA, and it was the big story in every paper.
I didn't watch it. I had other things to do, like buy a new pair of running shoes and shop at Target.
Now, I did have some interest in the outcome, but I just didn't want to give up my only day off to watch it. Does that mean I didn't care? More like I don't care as much as I would if I actually went to USC or UCLA.
And that's what drives me crazy about this region's college football obsession. There are a lot of people here who are rabid fans of one school or another but don't go there, never went there, and don't even know anyone who could possibly get in there. I don't get it -- I understand why you'd be interested, but the rooting interest is just weird. I didn't go to USC, so I don't wear the cardinal and gold. I can root for my alma maters, one of which has no football team. And I can root for my wife's school, even though it IS Miami. But the rest... well, there is an exception for rooting AGAINST some teams, like growing up building up a healthy dislike of, say, Notre Dame. But rooting FOR someone else's team?
So I'll catch the highlights later. And I would have liked to have been there to enjoy the atmosphere -- there's nothing like a big college football game in person. But if I wasn't gonna be there, it can wait.
(I can explain why it makes perfect sense to root for pro teams with which you're not employed. Just give me some time to come up with something better than "because they play in my home town" or "because I like their uniforms")
ShareThis page contains all entries posted to PMSimon.com in November 2007. They are listed from oldest to newest.
November 18, 2007 - November 24, 2007 is the previous archive.
December 2, 2007 - December 8, 2007 is the next archive.
Many more can be found on the main index page or by looking through the archives.
