Friday, January 06, 2017

An Unexpected Ally in the Anti-Media Consolidation World

Long time readers of this blog know that I've been a crusader against further media consolidation. I wrote my first novel ($everance) about the damage and ridiculousness that ensued after the previous consolidation, and I've been a tireless advocate of anyone who helps promote this same cause.

Today I found out something that I'm having a hard time processing. The Time Warner/AT&T merger that has been proposed, and which I assumed would sail through now that the Republicans will once again control the FCC, has an important enemy.

If the enemy of my enemy is my friend, I have a VERY unexpected new friend.

Would you believe it's Donald J. Trump? Variety has the news.

Showing his fingers

The man who famously dubbed Trump a "short fingered vulgarian" is meeting with Trump today.

Graydon Carter, the current editor of Vanity Fair--and a constant subject of Trump's angry tweets, supposedly requested the meeting. I'd love to be a fly on the wall for that one. I suspect Trump will show him the length of at least one finger.

Today's also the day Trump gets his security briefing from the intelligence community. I'd like to hear the conversation in that meeting even more. I suspect the president elect will be seeing the lengths of a few fingers himself.

3-year-old rocks Clementi



When I was a kid and started feeling a little too big for my britches, my father used to say "Mozart was composing concertos when he was five."

Always shut me up. This video will serve the same purpose for my boys.

Wisdom

Thanks to "OG" for this one...

My Favorite Redneck

What he said...

Thursday, January 05, 2017

New PD at WGCI


WGCI-Chicago (107.5fm) has named a new program director. His name is Johnnie D.

All Access has the details.

John Oliver's One Liners About Trump & Putin

These are great...

The Ten Most Uplifting Songs According to Science

This is a really interesting article in Inc. This is a list put together by a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of Gronigen in the Netherlands. How did he come up with it: "The formula I came up with takes the number of positive lyrical elements in a song, and divides that by how much a song deviates from 150 bpm and from the major key."

Gotta admit, it's a pretty uplifting list. The number one song on this list is my middle son Johnny's favorite song in the whole world.

10. Katrina and the Waves--Walking on Sunshine
9. Gloria Gaynor--I Will Survive
8. Bon Jovi--Livin' On A Prayer
7. Cyndi Lauper--Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
6. The Monkees--I'm a Believer
5. Survivor--Eye of the Tiger
4. Billy Joel--Uptown Girl
3. The Beach Boys--Good Vibrations
2. ABBA--Dancing Queen

And this is the number one most uplifting song. It was never released as a single, and it was never a hit, but it really is an uplifting song. Makes you want to go out and do stuff...

Why did CNN air a special about the band Chicago?

I admit that I taped it, and I'm a fan of the band, but I was wondering why in the world CNN decided to air a special about them on New Years Day. Was there something new that happened to the band? Not really. They were inducted into the Hall of Fame...nearly a year ago. Sure, they are about to go on a tour...but they do that every year. Not exactly newsworthy. Are they suddenly popular again? Nope.

So what's the deal?

The Washington Post asked the same question, and their media writer Paul Farhi delved into it.

Outgoing FCC Nomination

From this morning's Tom Taylor NOW column...

Obama re-nominates Democrat Jessica Rosenworcel to the FCC. It’s not unexpected, and its success depends on whether Trump’s FCC policy team thinks Rosenworcel is the most acceptable Dem they can find (and get confirmed by the Senate). She’s certainly got the experience at the Commission, having joined in May 2012 to serve out an unexpired term. That term expired in mid-2015 but she was permitted to stay until the end of the 114th Congress. Jessica literally just packed her stuff and bade farewell on Tuesday – and now she’s on President Obama’s list of nominations submitted to the Senate. Obama also re-nominated Brent Nelsen and David Arroyo to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. For now, the FCC has four members – Republicans Ajit Pai and Mike O’Rielly, and Dems Mignon Clyburn and outgoing Chair Tom Wheeler. Last night, Wheeler said “I applaud President Obama’s reappointment of Jessica Rosenworcel to the FCC, and hope that Congress will act quickly to confirm her nomination.” Among her supporters is the conservative Parents Television Council.

On January 20th when Tom Wheeler steps down, there will be only three members of the FCC. Look for the Republicans to slow walk this nomination (despite her obvious credentials) so that they maintain control of FCC until a new Republican chairman can be named.

Wednesday, January 04, 2017

James Corden's Emotional Tribute to George Michael



At our family Christmas party all the nieces and aunts in Bridget's family launched an impromptu George Michael dance party. That was a pretty cool scene. Michael obviously affected people in many different generations. A great musical talent.

Congressman's Son Grounded for Dabbing

What is dabbing? It's striking a certain pose (popularized by Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton) while dancing.

A Congressman's son tried to do it during a photo op yesterday with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, and Ryan thought he was about to sneeze. Pretty funny. Although not funny to his dad, Representative Roger Marshall (R-Kansas), who grounded the lad.

Story is here.

The only reason I know about dabbing is because every time I try to take a photo of the soccer teams at our club (Green White), the kids try to strike that pose.


Midday change at WLIT


Brooke Hunter was released on Tuesday by WLIT (93.9fm in Chicago). She's being replaced by Robin Rock, who worked here before.

Robert Feder has the details.

A poignant trailer

This documentary debuts on January 7th on HBO. What are the odds of this? Sad that both has passed over the last week.

The Pro-Weed Lobby

This is a pretty good example of why the pro-weed lobby is making such slow progress. We're mobilizing, we're mobilizing, we're mobilizing. Crap, now we're high.

Radio's Top Advertisers

This is one of the more unusual top 5 lists I've seen. It's the list of the top five advertisers on radio (across the country) in 2016...

1. Geico, 46,884 commercials
2. FRIGO, 40,617 commercials
3. Macy's, 36,782 commercials
4. Mastercard, 35,402 commercials
5. Ford, 29,521 commercials

If you don't know FRIGO, it's the revolutionary form-fitting underwear from Sweden.

Tuesday, January 03, 2017

Megyn Kelly is Said to Be Leaving Fox News

This is a big story in the conservative media world. According to this piece in the New York Times, she's not only leaving Fox News. She's leaving to go to NBC--considered to be the devil by many conservatives.

I'm sure she's prepared for a nasty backlash led by the president elect, who already hates her.

Excerpts of Genuflections

Author Robert Herguth

Over the weekend, the Chicago Sun Times ran excerpts of Robert Herguth's brand new Eckhartz Press book "Genuflections: Famous Folks Talk About Growing Up Catholic".

You can read that here.

David Stern in Dubai

Not literally, mind you, but he was featured in the Khaleej Times in Dubai over the weekend. Here's the interview...

Chatting with the (bald) author of a book on - ooh! guess what?

There are a few good men out there, who are willing to speak about hair fall, loss, and even balding. Of course,

David Stern is an exception. He has gone and penned a book called The Balding Handbook: The 5 Stages of Grieving for Your Hair Loss. The book is exactly as its name implies, "I go through all the five stages of grief: denial, anger and rage, bargaining, depression and acceptance, and how it applies to baldness. Excerpts from the interview...


The book is cheeky and irreverent.

"It's a parody of those self-help handbooks. I thought it would be funny to apply the "five stages of grieving" to male pattern baldness. The vast majority of readers have shared the fun and realised its humour. However, I've had a few readers (not many) complain that I'm making fun of something that some people have a hard time dealing with. I think, on some level, the book does help balding people realise that going bald isn't so bad. At least, I hope so." He insists that the book is not great literature.

What are the craziest hair loss myths you've heard?

"The best one I heard was that if you did a lot of hallucinogenic drugs when you were younger, you would lose your hair. Have you seen Paul McCartney lately? The man is in his 70s and has a hell of a head of hair. Also, the stressful job myth is bogus. Former presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush still have great hairlines... although Barack Obama seems to have a few issues!"

Any outrageous hair loss solutions?

"There have been many, but I have a couple of favourites. Dead Sea Mud - rumour has it that if you slather your bald pate with the mud, you'll get your beautiful head of hair back. That's 'hair back', not 'back hair'! A couple of problems with this remedy: first, it's been proven that it doesn't work, and second, haven't they noticed how many bald people there are in the Middle East? Plus, it's pretty ironic that something that has "Dead" in its name will have restorative powers. There's also a ridiculous thought that Emu oil can help with male pattern baldness. Didn't the inventors of this remedy realise that emus are bald?"

Would you ever consider wearing a wig, or opting for a hair transplant?

"I would but I'd have to relocate. If, all of a sudden, I show up to work or family gatherings with a healthy quaff, I would be ridiculed to no end. Do guys that have hair transplants think no one will notice? There should be a bald guy witness protection programme for guys that get transplants and toupees."

The balding Handbook (e-book) can be purchased on Amazon. The paperback is available at eckhartzpress.com.

Obviously we don't *really* hate our kids, but...

The Top 500 Songs of All-Time


No one will ever agree on these lists because music is so subjective, but I admire Rolling Stone magazine's attempt at naming the top 500 songs of all-time.

As a rock and roll fan, I'm on board with the general feel of the top 500.

Their all-time top fifty are...



50. Smokey Robinson--Tracks of my Tears
49. The Eagles--Hotel California
48. Simon & Garfunkel--Bridge Over Troubled Waters
47. Jimi Hendrix--All Along the Watchtower
46. David Bowie--Heroes
45. Elvis--Heartbreak Hotel
44. Ray Charles--Georgia on my Mind
43. Little Richard--Tutti Frutti
42. The Kinks--Waterloo Sunset
41. The Band--The Weight
40. Martha & the Vandellas--Dancing in the Streets
39. Buddy Holly--That'll be the Day
38. The Rolling Stones--Gimme Shelter
37. Bob Marley--No Woman No Cry
36. U2--One
35. The Doors--Light My Fire
34. The Righteous Brothers--You've Lost That Loving Feeling
33. Ike & Tina Turner--River Deep, Mountain High
32. The Rolling Stones--Sympathy for the Devil
31. Led Zeppelin--Stairway to Heaven
30. Johnny Cash--I Walk the Line
29. The Beatles--Help
28. The Beatles--A Day in the Life
27. Derek & the Dominoes--Layla
26. Otis Redding--Sitting on the Dock of the Bay
25. The Beach Boys--God Only Knows
24. The Impressions--People Get Ready
23. The Beatles--In My Life
22. The Ronettes--Be My Baby
21. Bruce Springsteen--Born to Run
20. The Beatles--Let it Be
19. Elvis--Hound Dog
18. Chuck Berry--Maybellene
17. Jimi Hendrix--Purple Haze
16. The Beatles--I Want to Hold Your Hand
15. The Clash--London Calling
14. Bob Dylan--Blowing in the Wind
13. The Beatles--Yesterday
12. Sam Cooke--A Change is Gonna Come
11. The Who--My Generation
10. Ray Charles--What'd I Say
9. Nirvana--Smells Like Teen Spirit
8. The Beatles--Hey Jude
7. Chuck Berry--Johnny B Goode
6. The Beach Boys--Good Vibrations
5. Aretha Franklin--RESPECT
4. Marvin Gaye--What's Goin' On
3. John Lennon--Imagine
2. The Rolling Stones--(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
1. Bob Dylan--Like a Rolling Stone

I would probably have a different #1, and I think Hendrix gets a little too much respect for his songs, but for the most part this is a pretty darn good list. If you don't see a song you think should be in the top 50, it's probably just a bit lower in the top 500.

Check out the full list here.

Not Exactly Draining the Swamp

The first thing the new Congress passed is almost poetic--they took away the independence of the Office of Congressional ethics. From this morning's Washington Post...

Under the proposed new rules, the office could not employ a spokesperson, investigate anonymous tips or refer criminal wrongdoing to prosecutors without the express consent of the Ethics Committee, which would gain the power to summarily end any OCE probe.

Here it's spelled out in detail by Buzzfeed...



Got that? Pfew. Got rid of those pesky ethics. Full speed ahead.

LATE UPDATE: They pulled this measure today after their offices were swamped with phone calls. Don't believe what you hear about them dropping this because of Trump. His only criticism was about the timing of it, not the merits.

Mariah Carey

How bad did Mariah Carey's New Years Eve performance go?

After it was over, she blamed the producers for trying to sabotage her.

Take a look at it, if you can...


ABC Breaking News | Latest News Videos

99 Reasons 2016 was a good year for humanity

This list comes via medium.com and features some great things that happened in the world of conservation, global health, political and economic progress, climate change, and more.

Add in the Cubs World Series and you get 100.

A tribute to those we lost in 2016


This month's Illinois Entertainer is out and features my tribute to some of the broadcasting pros we lost in 2016.

You can read it here.

Monday, January 02, 2017

More Reviews for Gel Strong



They have been coming in over the holiday season, posted on the Gel Strong page on Facebook...

Mark Gelinas, Congratulations on your great book about perseverance, staying positive, and rolling with the punches. It was a great read. I’m sorry that you and Donna have had to endure such shit, but to come through it as you have is incredible. You are both are an inspiration to me and I’m on your team forever. Stay strong and love to you both.
--Bill Fasth

I finished the book, I loved every sentence. I feel like I knew all of it from seeing Donna but I read your version. You are s pillar of strength. Love what you wrote to me when you signed it. You guys are an inspiration. Love you both!!❤️❤️
--Mandy Jackson Gispert

What a wonderful, honest rendition of what you have been through, Mark Gelinas. Your book - and you - are nothing short of amazing. I am so proud and honored to know you and Donna Frederick Gelinas. Thank you for sharing your story. ❤️💚💙
--Chelsie Butler

Hey Mark Gelinas, your book made me laugh and cry all the way through. It was touching and heartfelt and funny and honest, and as hard as I'm sure it was to write, thank you for sharing your journey. I'm a fan!! 💖
--Kimberle Swaak

It really is an inspiring tale. If anyone you know is going through the struggle with chemo and/or radiation or worse, they may find some real comfort in Mark's tale. Find it here at Eckhartz Press.