Revolver Sessions

From Bob Dearborn's The Olde Disc Jockey Alamac. 45 years ago today...

April 7, 1966…At Abbey Road studios in London, the Beatles recorded overdubs for John Lennon's "Tomorrow Never Knows" and Paul McCartney's "Got to Get You Into My Life" for their forthcoming "Revolver" album.

Love "Revolver." Some say it's the best album of all time. This is how it was received at the time it came out...

Busted!

LeBron's mom; for assault.

Obama's buddy: for soliciting a prostitute

The Today Show

Are both Matt Lauer and Meredith Viera leaving the Today show? Yesterday word leaked that Meredith has had enough.

Today the reports are about Lauer.

The most powerful man in reality television

Every year the Hollywood Reporter comes out with this list, and the man at the top of the list this year is...

Ryan Seacrest

He's more than just a radio host and host of "American Idol." The man is a genuine Dick-Clarkian mogul.

Glenn Beck

I've gotten a few e-mails asking me why I'm not celebrating the news that Glenn Beck's show is ending on Fox News (Here's the story)

I do think it's a great thing for America. Taking away a full-hour of prime time television on a major news network (!) from a guy that says an evil cabal of communists and Muslims are trying to take over this country (and the entire world) is a good thing. Getting the implicitly sanctioned and never questioned rantings of a lunatic off a major news network (!) is definitely a good thing.

But I'm not celebrating because I still can't believe they let him spout these things in the first place. Freedom of speech is one thing. He can rant and rave on a street corner all he wants. That's his right. But responsible broadcasting is something else. Fox News was given a license to broadcast with the understanding that they would do so in the public interest. Every broadcaster agrees to that. It's part of the F.C.C. charter.

Yet, Fox News gave a full hour of air time to a man that was whipping up fear in the public, a man that was screaming "fire" in a theater. And they gave it to him for two years. Every single night. Without disciplining him, without questioning him, without correcting him, without apologizing for him or making him apologize. By not doing any of those things, they implicitly supported every word he said.

I don't blame Beck for that. I blame Fox News.

Carlos Pena

This is a real nice piece in the St. Petersburg Times about Carlos Pena and his wife, and the difficulties of moving to a new city.

It's obvious from the tone of the piece that they loved him in Tampa, and that the Penas miss the city. Sometimes we forget that these guys go through the same things we do, and think about how difficult it would be to uproot your family and move to a new city to start all over again.

The story of the man that was traded for himself

His name was Dickie Noles, and the Cubs once traded him to the Tigers for...Dickie Noles.

That's today's Tale from a Bad Century.

Cubs lose 2 starters in one day

This is so Cubs.

#4 starter Randy Wells and #5 starter Andrew Cashner are both out for at least two weeks after suffering injuries the past two days.

Details are here.

When Harry met Sally, the Sequel

Some funny stuff here...

When Harry Met Sally 2 with Billy Crystal & Helen Mirren from Billy Crystal

The value of education

Thanks to "DTS" for sending me this. I definitely plan on sharing it with my kids later today...

"It’s no surprise that an increasingly sophisticated and competitive U.S. economy seeks those with higher levels of educational attainment. Since January (2011), employment has grown by 521,000 jobs for Americans with a bachelor’s degree or higher…and declined by 318,000 for those with only a high school diploma (USA TODAY)…

…what a powerful statistic

Unemployment for those ages 25 and over with less than a high school diploma was 13.7% in March. For those with a high school diploma and no college, the jobless rate was 9.5%. For those with some college or an Associate’s degree, the rate was 7.4% in March. For those with a Bachelor’s degree or higher the rate was 4.4%…

Use this data wisely when your kids or grandkids say that education is just not that important. Earnings differentials are also enormous."

Let me just also say that anyone claiming that education needs to be cut in this country has got their priorities completely out of whack.

The Beatles on The Simpsons

Twenty years ago today Ringo Starr appeared on "The Simpsons." You can watch the video here. It was probably the funniest of all the Beatle appearances on the show. Judge for yourself...

Here's John (from Heaven)...



Here's Paul (and Linda)...



Here's George...



And the Family Guy managed to have all four of them at once...

As the Tribune Turns

This Tribune bankruptcy case is one of the most ridiculous soap operas running. There was another twist and turn yesterday. Now the Tribune mediator wants another chance at brokering the deal...you know, what they were supposed to be doing before it came to court. And the judge is saying he doesn't like any of the proposals.

Really? After two years. Really?

The word that comes to mind to describe this whole situation begins with the prefix "Cluster."

Strangest Job Interview Questions

This article has a few good examples.

My favorite one they mention is: “If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?”

I've heard a few good ones over the years. I've been asked if I was a tree what kind of tree would I be? (I said Evergreen because I bloom all year round), and if I was a vegetable what vegetable would I be? (That one stumped me--I still don't have a good answer. The best I've come up with is 'soybean because I'd have a future' but that's not that great either. Maybe it's just a stupid question.)

I also had a prospective employer bring me to his house to meet his dog, because he always trusted his dog's first impression. If the dog growled, I was out. Thank God the dog liked me.

Women and Facebook

According to a recent survey, women have a love/hate relationship with Facebook.

85% of women are annoyed by their Facebook friends. Here are the top three peeves...
* Complaining all the time (63 percent)
* Sharing unsolicited political views (42 percent)
* Bragging about seemingly perfect lives (32 percent)

I'm with them on that second one. I've chosen to make my Facebook page a political-free zone this year. I'm not even making political jokes. And I've begun "unfriending" people who constantly use their status updates to preach politics.

As for complaining all the time or bragging about seemingly perfect lives, I honestly don't see a lot of that, but maybe my friends are just not complainers (not likely) or don't have perfect lives (very likely).

Government Shutdown

What will happen if the government really shuts down on Friday?

This article in the Washington Post lays out a pretty grim scenario.

Listen, fellas (and gals). Get your heads out of your rear quarters, cut a deal, and let's go here. We get it, Republicans. You're suddenly fiscally responsible. We get it, Democrats. You're suddenly sticking up for the government programs that people in this country support.

But shutting it down makes both of you look like little kids holding your breath until you get your way. We know that neither of you really believe what you're supposedly fighting for. We've been watching you for years.

Both of you are just trying to score political points. That's what this is really about. I'll say the same thing I say to my boys when they act this way. "Knock it off and act your age."

The 3 Most Popular Musical Artists in the Digital Age

These are surprising if you ask me, but Gracenotes has a way of tracking this worldwide.

The Top 3 Most Popular Musical Artists in the Digital Age are...

1. Michael Jackson
2. Bob Marley
3. Tupac

Incidentally, Michael wasn't on the list while he was still alive. This is a post-death phenomenon. Come to think of it, all three of those guys are dead.

In this country and Europe the Beatles would have made the list, but worldwide they aren't as strong as those three listed above.

Click on the link for further analysis and a discussion of methodology.

F.C.C. updates their website

The FCC is updating their website.

It's the first time it's been updated since Michael Powell was the F.C.C. Chairman. When his F.C.C. updated it, he was overwhelmed with 3 million plus e-mails protesting media consolidation.

Worst Start Ever

The beginning of this season for the Cubs is nothing to get excited about, but it could also be a lot worse.

It could be 1997. That year the Cubs lost their first 14 games. That story is today's Tale from a Bad Century.

The Trick on Rick

My friend Kim Strickland's A City Mom blog today is about me.

It appears I'm freaking her out.

Heh heh. (Rubbing my hands together while cackling with evil glee)

Jeff Greenfield

I always considered Jeff Greenfield one of the smartest TV reporters/correspondents. He worked at ABC a long time, and then CNN, and has been with CBS recently. It looks like CBS is letting him go.

That's too bad. The good news is that it sounds like he intends to keep on writing. He's quite good at that too.

America's Most Popular Mutt Mixes

I found this survey interesting, because I don't really see that many German Shepard mixes.

Here are the top ten mix-breed mutts in the United States...


#1 German Shepherd
#2 Labrador
#3 Chow Chow
#4 Boxer
#5 Rottweiler
#6 Poodle
#7 American Staffordshire Terrier
#8 Golden Retriever
#9 Cocker Spaniel
#10 Siberian Husky

SOURCE: National Mutt Census

My dog Ivy (photo) is a mix of #4 and #7 and at least one more thing (Rhodesian Ridgeback). In case you wondering, #7 is a nice way of saying "Pit Bull."

Smallest Cubs crowd since 2002

Yes it was a Monday afternoon. Yes it was cold. Yes it was only the Arizona Diamondbacks. Yes the Cubs got off to a shaky start in the opening series against the Pirates. But still.

There sure were there a lot of empty seats at Wrigley yesterday.

The smallest crowd since 2002. Maybe reader "BP" was right. After all, the Cubs did raise the price of beer by 25 cents this year.

Maybe Lou really was phoning it in last year

This article on ESPN Chicago certainly makes it sound like Lou was just going through the motions last year.

The comments from Kevin Millar (who was with the Cubs in spring training) and Alfonso Soriano are not exactly complimentary.

The Manship

Meet Jeff Manship, pitcher on the Minnesota Twins, and possessor of one of the great baseball names.

I'm sure he's used all of these lines, but in case he hasn't, here's a few free ones...


"Hey Ladies, anyone want to take a cruise on the Manship?"

"It really is the size of Manship, and not the motion of the ocean."

"The Manship needs to dock, if you know what I mean, baby."

"How would you like to swab the deck of the Manship?"

"The Manship's torpedoes are ready to fire, honey."

"Just grab the tiller, and you can steer the Manship anywhere you want."

I would have had so much fun with that name!

The Long Arm of the Law

This week's Great Nickname at Just One Bad Century is "The Long Arm of the Law."

If you're a longtime Chicago baseball fan (Cubs or Sox), even if you don't remember the nickname, look at it carefully and you'll figure out which player it is.

Bulls Hall of Famers

Two of my favorite Bulls were named to the NBA Hall of Fame yesterday; Dennis Rodman and Artis Gilmore. Both players led the Bulls in rebounding and hairstyles.

Sunrise Briefing

The best producer in Chicago (along with my "Radio Producer's Handbook" co-author John Swanson) is WGN Radio's Jim Wiser. He produces the Greg Jarrett show now, but in the past he has produced for Spike O'Dell (WGN), Bob Sirott (Fox Thing in the Morning), and Jonathon Brandmeier (at the Loop, where he was known as "Jimmy Bud Wiser").

This is really a treat if you ask me, but the Tribune blog is now publishing the memo Jim sends company wide every morning. It contains links to the biggest stories of the day. They're calling it Sunrise Briefing.

I know I'll be checking it out first thing in the morning every day. That memo represents hours and hours of work from somebody with a nose for what matters to the people of Chicago.

It almost feels like cheating to me. But hey, I'm not complaining. It will save me a lot of time and effort.

Charlie Sheen in Chicago

Charlie Sheen performed (?) in Chicago last night. He received a standing ovation when he took the stage.

He called his appearance “the most epic night in Chicago f------ history.”

The Sun Times has the details. Based on this Sun Times article, it sounds like it was as bizarre as you'd imagine. But unlike his show in Detroit, he wasn't booed off the stage. I'm not sure what that says about us.

Fox Expands Presence in Hispanic TV

The New York Times had a story on Friday about News Corp's increased investment in the Hispanic television market.

No word yet on whether they plan on "Foxing" up the Hispanic news coverage, but if they do, I have a suggestion.

Don't use Lou Dobbs.

E-mails, we get e-mails...

"BP" writes...

"Rick, I just finished a book called Scorecasting. It’s Freakonomics for sports. They debunk a lot of sports myths like the hot shooting hand in basketball, why there is a home field advantage and why going for it on 4th down is always a good strategy. The last chapter concerns the Cubs and whether they are cursed. They go off on a tangent on ticket prices and find that while most MLB teams can track ticket sales closely to winning, the Cubs ticket sales are not related to winning. In fact, ticket sales have gone up when the Cubs were losing the most. The one factor that they found that tracks ticket sales is BEER PRICES at Wrigley. Beer goes up, people stay away. Which is why Wrigley has some of the cheapest beer in MLB."

Interesting indeed. I really never considered $7 beer cheap, but now that you mention it, I think it was $9.50 in Colorado when I went to a game there a couple of summers ago. By the way, I went to Wrigley this weekend and had a non-alcoholic beer (yes, they have them). It was only $3.50.

Jerry Garcia

From this morning's The Olde Disc Jockey Almanac...

"April 4, 1996…Grateful Dead leader Jerry Garcia's ashes were scattered in the Ganges River in India by Dead guitarist Bob Weir and Garcia's widow, Deborah."

I've been listening to the Grateful Dead again lately, and this is one of the songs that I'm just starting to appreciate...

Snickering Headline Writer

There's a headline writer at the Christian Science Monitor that thinks he got away with one, but my buddy "DM" is on to him (and yes, I'm guessing it's a "him"). "DM" sent me the link.

The story is about the scientists planning to send a probe to a planet that's never been explored before (Uranus). There's nothing funny about that. The headline, on the other hand is hilarious: "Scientists Plan Uranus Probe"

Kudos to you, Mr. Sophomoric Headline Writer. I salute you on behalf of the rest of sophomoric America. There is no way that was unintentional, even at the Christian Science Monitor.

RIP: The Advertising Column

It's been a staple of the newspaper for generations, in Chicago both the Tribune and the Sun-Times had columnists working the beat, but according to this piece in Advertising Age, it looks like the advertising column in newspapers is dead, and is not coming back.

The Tribune doesn't have an advertising columnist anymore, and the Sun-Times just got rid of Lewis Lazarre recently too. The article linked above explains the reasons for this and quotes people from newspapers across the country.

I hesitate to say it, but I fear the media beat may be next.

Exciting Journalism News

You read that headline correctly. At least I think this is exciting.

The Center for Public Integrity is starting up a new website that will concentrate on investigative journalism. Remember that? For you kids out there, it's what newspapers used to do when they had something we used to call "reporters."

The Masters

The best tournament in professional golf begins later this week. It's probably the only one I watch.

There have been some great ones over the years, but the most memorable Masters of all-time took place 25 years ago. That was the year the 46-year-old Jack Nicklaus shocked the world by winning it.

I don't know what's more personally shocking to me; that it was already 25 years ago, or that I'm now older than Jack was when he did that. I remember watching it and thinking: "Good for the old guy."

Sigh.

Starlin Castro

Sure, it was a rough weekend for the Cubs (losing 2 out of 3 to the Pirates?), but there was one bright spot.

Starlin Castro certainly looks like a keeper, doesn't he?

Harry Caray

This week's Cubs Hall of Famer at Just One Bad Century is the legendary announcer Harry Caray.

Read about Harry, and watch our all-time favorite Harry Caray video here.

Father Knows Nothing

My latest Father Knows Nothing column has been posted at NWI Parent. This week's edition updates my progress (or lack of progress) during my self-inflicted Extreme Lent.

You can read it here.

This week in 1908, 1945

Every weekend Just One Bad Century goes back in time to the last year the Cubs won the pennant (1945) and the last time they won the World Series (1908)

This week in 1945, the Allies liberate the first Nazi concentration camp, Eric Clapton is born in England, and the Cubs are getting itchy to start their season after a very unsatisfying spring training in French Lick Indiana.

This week in 1908, Chicago has 12 daily newspapers, and baseball institutes a new "tidy ball" rule leading up to next week's opening day.

Chicago Radio Spotlight: Megan Reed

This week's Chicago Radio Spotlight is posted. I interviewed WILV's (Rewind 100) Megan Reed.

You can read it here.

The Onion and the Cubs

The Onion has some fun with the Cubbies. Pretty funny stuff.

Coming this weekend

Saturday morning I'll be posting a brand new Chicago Radio Spotlight interview. This week I interviewed WILV Rewind 100's Megan Reed.

I'm also going to the Cubs game on Saturday with my son Johnny. Looks like I'll be drinking coffee instead of beer this year. We're still in the middle of Extreme Lent.

I'll provide an update on how that's been going (Hint: Not so good) in my regular Father Knows Nothing column on Sunday.

Have a great weekend, and don't call me today.

Mr. Kaempfer can't come to the phone right now because it's opening day at Wrigley Field. Please leave a message and he'll get back to you when the Cubs are out of it...probably sometime in late May.

Two Perfect Days At Wrigley Field

I posted this week's "A Suburban Dad" guest column at Kim Strickland's "A City Mom" blog on ChicagoNow. This week's is about...you guessed it...opening day.

I highlighted my two most perfect days ever at my favorite place in the world.

You can read it here.

Wild Thing

This is one of those great rock and roll stories, and it happened exactly 45 years ago today. From Bob Dearborn's The Olde Disc Jockey's Almanac...

"April 1, 1966…In London, the Troggs used 45 minutes of spare studio time to record "Wild Thing."

Obviously it became their biggest hit. It's an absolute classic...

A new question for Obama

President Obama was doing a town hall yesterday for Univision, and he was asked if he has his own computer.

His response was pretty funny.

Peabody Award Winners

The Peabody Awards were announced yesterday. To me, these are the most prestigious of all the awards given to the media because of the exhaustive vetting process involved.

I interviewed Bruce Dumont a few years ago, and he was the chairman of Peabody board for a few years. He told me...

"I found the deliberation process the most enjoyable thing I’ve done in my entire career. It’s not publicly controversial like the Radio Hall of Fame, but there is plenty of controversy behind the scenes. Getting a Peabody award really is a big deal. If people knew the process, they’d appreciate it even more. The winner must be unanimous. The vigor of the debate is brutal. When you get one, you’ve really earned it."

This year NPR won several. I'm sure that will come up in the debate going on in Congress.

Mike and Molly go to Wrigley

I've never seen the show, but I may have to check it out a week from Monday. I got the press release from CBS, and here are the details...

“Opening Day” — Mike breaks tradition and invites Molly to join him and Carl at opening day for the Chicago Cubs, on Mike & Molly, Monday, April 11 (9:00-9:30 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network."

Opening Day 1973

One of the most dramatic opening days in Cubs history had an unlikely hero.

The Cubs were down a run in the bottom of the ninth.

Joe Pepitone led off the inning with a single and was replaced by pinch runner Cleo James. Ron Santo got on base thanks to an error by Expos 2B Ron Hunt, and was also replaced by a pinch runner. Glenn Beckert walked to load the bases.

The Expos brought in their closer Mike Marshall, the best closer in baseball. He promptly walked Randy Hundley to tie the game, but he buckled down and got Don Kessinger to pop out down the line, and struck out Jim Hickman.

That brought up Cubs lead off man Rick Monday. The bases were loaded. The score was tied 2-2. It was the bottom of the ninth. Marshall vs. Monday. Marshall knew he couldn't give Monday anything to hit, but he tried to be a little too fine around the plate, and eventually walked him...to bring in the winning run.

Ron Santo's pinch runner scored that winning run. He was sent to the minors after that and never again appeared in another major league game as a player.

His name was Tony LaRussa.

Donating Goats?

It's not often that the Cubs and Cubs fans make it on TMZ, but today they did. There's a story about Cub fans donating goats to needy families...to try and reverse the curse.

I suppose it can't hurt, but can't we all just agree that this goat curse is a bunch of a hooey?

OPENING DAY!

Yesterday was opening day for a lot of teams in the league, but today is opening day at Wrigley Field.

A few years ago we highlighted previous memorable opening days for the Cubs.


Here are some from the first 50 years of our bad century.

Here are some from the second 50 years.

In April, hope always springs eternal. GO CUBS!