Da Bears

I must say, I've never seen this before. The Bears draft got one of the highest grades of all the teams. Can this really be true? This is what CBS Sportsline said...

Chicago Bears: A
The Bears knocked it out of the park with their first three picks. They landed linebacker Roquan Smith in the first round, and he will immediately become a big part of their defense. In the second round, they hit on interior lineman James Daniels, who will play left guard for them, and then hit big on receiver Anthony Miller, who has star potential. He might end up being the best receiver in this class. If they get a little out of the rest of the class, it's a bonus. They had an impressive first two days.

Rick and Dave on the Radio

Dave and I appeared on WCGO Radio (1590 AM) yesterday afternoon to discuss our publishing business. We brought along author Beth Jacobellis, who talked about her book "Cameo". Thanks to Playtime with Bill Turck and Kerri Kendall for having us on!

Another Chilly Day at the Ball Game

Bridget and I made the trek out to Wrigley on Friday afternoon. Really cold. But the Cubs won! I'm not taking full credit because the players on the field probably had a little something to do with it, but I have been wearing my lucky Cubs shirt for a little while every day during the streak. You're welcome. I'm not a hero. Just doing my part.

Eckhartz Press Bloggers

I know I've mentioned these bloggers before, but I just have to mention them again. Eckhartz Press is proud to have a full stable of great writers, but Lee Kingsmill and Brent Petersen really go the extra mile--writing often on their blogs in an entertaining fashion.

Here are a few more examples..

Lee Kingsmill's: "The Passing of the Bucks"

Brent Petersen's: "The Watts Tower"

Keep it up fellas. You are making Dave and I look like geniuses for publishing your excellent novels (Safe Inside and Truffle Hunt)

Take Your Daughter to Work Day

Minutia Men Update

You may have noticed that we didn't have Minutia Men episodes the past two weeks (including this one).

We did actually record one last week (and it was a good one too, dammit), but the levels were so bad that our producer opted not to air it, and came out to fix my equipment this week. It's still not 100% ready to go. He's coming out again tomorrow.

So...we will be back NEXT week with another episode of...Minutia Men.

Et tu, Tom Brokaw?

Just read the report from Linda Vester in Variety.

Sadly, it sounds totally believable to me.

Another hero fallen. Another creep revealed.

Paul Ryan fires the House Chaplain

Yesterday Paul Ryan asked the House Chaplain to resign. A reason wasn't given, but both Dems and Republicans think it was because of the chaplain's prayer during the tax debate when he reminded lawmakers to keep in mind the less fortunate Americans.

You can't make this stuff up. It's almost cartoonish.

(Photo: Paul Ryan)

Radio's Best Friend

Great piece about Radio's Best Friend Art Vuolo in Eastern Magazine (he's a Eastern Michigan grad).

He also was named the recipient of Talker Magazine's prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.

Good for Art. He's a good man.

Beth Jacobellis on WGN Radio

Eckhartz Press author Beth Jacobellis ("Cameo") appeared on WGN radio with Patti Vasquez this week.

You can listen to it here.

It starts around the 40 minute mark.

Is Don on the Phone?

From this morning's NOW Newsletter...

Don Bustany, a key figure in the development of “American Top 40” and “American Country Countdown,” died Monday, says the RAMP Newsletter. Don preferred to let stars like Casey Kasem take the spotlight, but he’s mentioned in that famous tape where Casey throws a tantrum while reading a “long-distance song dedication” from a man in Cincinnati whose dog died. As Casey warms up to his rant about how you can’t come out of an up-tempo record into a downer-message like a dead dog, he asks “Is Don on the phone?” – meaning Don Bustany. Don was the business-man who made AT40 and ACC go in their early days. Bustany went on to work on the TV sitcoms of Bob Newhart and Mary Tyler Moore as a camera coordinator and director. He died in Santa Barbara at age 89.

One last spin of the dog dying tantrum...

Germany Cancels Their Grammy Awards

German society has changed quite a lot since I lived there in the 1970s. Over the last twenty years or so, there has been a flood of Muslim immigrants, which has led to an increase in anti-Muslim sentiment. It's been a real problem.

But in addition to the anti-Muslim issue, one unexpected problem with the rise in Muslim immigrants has been the rise in anti-Semitism...from those immigrants themselves. As you might expect, Germany does not want to be known as anti-Semitic. There's a bit of a problematic history there that cannot and will not be allowed to return.

So, when a popular Muslim rap group won the nation's Grammy award for an album that included a line about "starting a second Holocaust", the nation was aghast. The record company was unapologetic at first (it was a huge hit, after all, and they were making lots of money), but eventually the outcry became too much. Not only did the record company drop the band, the industry decided to completely drop their Grammy Awards.

Not everyone agrees with this approach. Just like in this country, there is a backlash against political correctness and multi-culturalism. In fact, one of Germany's conservative politicians is running on a platform of a "cross in every public place" to reclaim Germany's Christian identity. That doesn't really sound like a solution either, does it? With giant century-old Christian churches in literally every single German city, town, or village there's no shortage of signs that Germany is essentially a Christian nation.

But Germany, like the US, has freedom of speech and freedom of religion according to their constitution, and one never is supposed to trump the other. In this case, Germany has decided that 'hate speech' against a religion is not protected by your religious beliefs. In our country, we've decided the opposite, in the famous 'I won't bake a gay wedding cake' case.

Not sure which approach is better. Both seem wrong to me.

Diana Steele

From this morning's Robert Feder column. An old U of I friend of mine is coming to Chicago...

Diana Steele, a prominent voice-over artist and former announcer for “The Arsenio Hall Show,” is joining WBMX 104.3-FM as midday personality. Starting today, she’ll be heard from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Entercom classic hip-hop and R&B station. Steele, who grew up in Elk Grove Village and graduated from the University of Illinois, previously worked for rhythmic/urban stations in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Until a permanent midday host is named later this year, Steele will broadcast for 104.3 Jams from her studio in the Bay Area. “We’re thrilled to welcome this legendary voice and mother of two boys and two dogs to the new 104.3 Jams,” said program director Todd Cavanah. With mornings, middays and evenings filled, the station is expected to announce an afternoon host soon.

I've run into Diana a few times over the years since we graduated, and followed her radio career from afar. Happy for her success.

This could have been me

"How's your 2018 going so far?"

Me: pic.twitter.com/WY99bzctvi

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 24, 2018

My Favorite Planet

It's such an easy question to answer. What is your favorite planet?

Why it's Uranus, of course. (tee hee)

That's probably why I giggled when I saw this headline: Scientists confirm Uranus smells terrible

Bob's Book Selection

Thanks to Bob Sirott for contributing to our book Cubsessions, and thanks to Marianne Murciano for taking this picture for us...

How Joe Maddon Stays Young at Heart

Nice piece about the Cubs skipper by Jesse Rogers.

I always root for the old guys.

RIP Schoolhouse Rock Musician

Sad news...

Bob Dorough, who taught a generation math, grammar, civics and more with his Schoolhouse Rock! classics, has died at 94. https://t.co/FRVBrIPgkk

— Twitter Moments (@TwitterMoments) April 24, 2018

Beat Tom & Bill

For the past few years I've been helping out the folks at this incredibly worthy charity fund raiser, Beat Tom and Bill. They really helped out my cousin's son Caleb a few years ago--and this year they'll be helping more families going through cancer treatment. What I love about their approach is that they make it fun, and put a little sunshine in lives that are in desperate need of some.

My job is to gather prizes for the silent auction. So far I've gotten Foo Fighters tickets, Cubs tickets, autographed Fergie Jenkins photos, and more. If you could donate anything at all that might garner a bid, please e-mail me as soon as possible (rick@eckhartzpress.com). My final date for accumulating these prizes is May 8th. The event is May 18th.

Thanks again for all of your generous support! I'm still looking for someone to golf with that day too. Let me know if you'd like to trudge around White Pines with me. I'm not a good golfer, but I do enjoy the experience.

The Most Popular Trump

Can you blame her for this reaction? Melania is far and away the most popular Trump in America.

She REALLY didn’t want to hold his hand... pic.twitter.com/CWUeDlN6RE

— UnsilentMajority 🌹 (@The_UnSilent_) April 24, 2018

Another All-Sports Station in Chicago

From this morning's Radio Online...

WCKG/Chicago flips to Sports/Talk on 1530 AM and 102.3 FM with a line-up of national and local talent, including several FOX Sports Radio programs. Effective April 23, "Outkick The Coverage with Clay Travis" (5-8am), "The Dan Patrick Show" (8-11am), "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" (11am-2pm) and "The Rich Eisen Show" (4-7pm) will anchor the new lineup, with additional FOX Sports Radio programming at nights and on weekends.

WCKG is licensed to the city of Elmhurst in Chicago and also simulcasts on a low power FM translator from Elmhurst on 102.3 FM. The FCC recently granted WCKG a construction permit to move 102.3 FM to the top of Trump Tower in downtown Chicago, as well as increasing power of 1530 from 760 watts to 4kW.

How is Comey's Book Tour doing?

I'm a publisher, and to me, there is only way to judge how successful a book tour is doing. How many books has he sold?

In James Comey's case, a crap-ton. 600,000 copies in the first week. That's twice as many as Hillary sold in the same time period, and three times more than Michael Wolff's Fire & Fury sold in hard cover in the same time period.

In other words, it has been a mega-success.

Peabody Winners

The following news programs won Peabody Awards this week. Congrats to them all...

News, Radio/Podcast, and Public Service
“Big Buses, Bigger Problems: Taxpayers Taken for a Ride” (NBC5/KXAS-TV Dallas-Fort Worth)
“Charlottesville: Race & Terror” (Vice News Tonight on HBO)
“Fall of ISIS in Iraq and Syria” (CNN)
“Inside Putin’s Russia” (PBS, WETA)
“Plight of Rohingya Refugees” (BBC News)
“The Whistleblower” (CBS)

Radio/Podcast
“Lost Mothers: Maternal Mortality in the U.S.”(NPR)
“S-Town” (Serial and This American Life)
“The Pope’s Long Con” (Louisville Public Media)
“Uncivil: The Raid” (Gimlet Media)
“74 Seconds”(MPR News)

Public Service
“The Cut: Exploring FGM” (Al Jazeera)

Rick in New Orleans

I was in New Orleans the past five days with my lovely bride. She visited with her family there, and I pitched our Eckhartz Press book "Cameo" to the many psychics and jewelers in town. Had some success too.

In Jackson Square...


He told me to listen to the women in life more...


It was crawfish season...


Fitting...a jewelry store that sells cameos


No, I did not open my own cabaret


At the world famous Cafe Du Monde

Taking a few days off

I'm actually going to be working--getting new outlets for one of our books in New Orleans--but I won't be able to do any blogging until next Wednesday.

Pray for me. I've got a window seat on Southwest Airlines.

I was already a white-knuckle passenger. Adding one more thing to worry about on an airplane shouldn't affect me too much.

Making America Great Again

It's come to this...

Yes, this is a genuine official comment from the Kremlin: Putin did not tell Trump Russia has the most beautiful hookers in the world, says Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. “President Putin could not say such things and did not say it to President Trump," Peskov said.

— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) April 20, 2018

Happy 4/20

Elizabeth Vargas

Former ABC newscaster Elizabeth Vargas has been named as the face of the new show A&E Investigates. Good for her! You may remember Elizabeth from her time here in Chicago at WBBM-TV.

I remember her as my classmate and fellow Heidelberg High School student. This is her picture from our 1980 yearbook...

Study of First Born Children

I'm the oldest sibling in my family, so whenever I see a study about first born kids, I read it. The latest one concludes the following...

They found that first-born children performed better on psychometric intelligence tests, which corresponded to a higher level of intellect when compared to their later-born counterparts who took the same tests. Sulloway’s findings also noted that first-borns showed a higher level of conscientiousness. He hypothesized their increased level of conscientiousness was a result of first-born children often being delegated to act as surrogate parents to their younger siblings. This also instills a certain level of maturity and responsibility first-born children will carry with them well into adulthood.

Let me just say that in my family, this was definitely not true. Then again, my sister (one year younger) was treated more like the first born and she fits this description to a tee.

Surprise Guest

Brandwidth (second printing)

A few years ago Kipper McGee wrote a great book about the media called Brandwidth. It was widely praised throughout the industry and Kipper has since created a podcast (co-hosted by Dave Martin) that shares a name with his book.

For this year's NAB, Kipper went back to the book, and updated his classic. The Second Printing of Brandwidth debuted at the National Association of Broadcasters conference in Vegas.

And now it's also available at Eckhartz Press. Pick up your copy today.

Colbert & Comey

Cool Uniforms

1968 is the year I discovered baseball and collected my first baseball cards. This is what the Oakland A's and Chicago White Sox wore that year. (The Sox had blue hats, though. Not black)

Good-looking 1968 throwbacks tonight for A's and White Sox. pic.twitter.com/VscpDdtaYS

— Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) April 18, 2018

A change at the FCC

To tell you the truth, I'm just becoming numb to the terrible decisions that have been coming out of the FCC. This month, for instance, they are going to change ownership rules to allow for MORE consolidation. They've already done it once (for Sinclair), and now they're going to do it again. This is coming on the heels of the Net Neutrality travesty. And now, one of only two Democrats on the board is leaving. From Tom Taylor's NOW column...

Mignon Clyburn to step down as FCC Commissioner. The September 15, 2017 NOW Newsletter story about the long-serving Democrat potentially resigning was headlined “Empty chair at the FCC?” At yesterday’s FCC Open Meeting, Clyburn removed the question mark – she’s leaving, months before she needs to. That shocked the room, apparently even her fellow Commissioners. Quite properly, she’s not revealing her plans. (D.C. observer Leslie Stimson at Inside Towers says Clyburn “did not name an end date and said her future plans are not set.”) But Clyburn’s still got time – barely – to mount a run for her father Jim Clyburn’s House seat, representing South Carolina’s Sixth District. When he won in 1992, he was the first African-American to represent South Carolina in the House since 1897. He’ll be 78 at the end of this term. Jim Clyburn’s attained important leadership positions in the House – and no doubt relishes the possibility of a change back to Democratic control this Fall. But it might be his daughter’s best shot at succeeding him, during a potential Democratic wave. She’s said she’ll remain “in public service” – a change from many recent post-FCC Commissioners. They’ve often turned to private-sector jobs, often running trade groups.

RIP Barbara Bush

Words of wisdom...

“At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, winning one more verdict, or not closing one more deal. You *will* regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend, or a parent.” @CBSThisMorning pic.twitter.com/C9Sth8rhPh

— Norah O'Donnell🇺🇸 (@NorahODonnell) April 16, 2018

Caddyshack Restaurant

The Murray Brothers are opening a Caddyshack restaurant in Rosemont today. The Sun Times has the story...

Brian Doyle-Murray said the menu is all about comfort food, the stuff he and his brothers and sisters grew up eating. “It’s not fine dining, but it’s gonna be consistently good,” he said. “You’ll go away happy and full. … I grew up eating everything. My eight brothers and sisters and I ate everything and anything my mom cooked. … [The restaurant’s] basically an extension of my living room.”

Cubsessions on the South Side

Some people believe there aren't any Cub fans in the southern suburbs of Chicago. Eckhartz Press authors Randy Richardson and Becky Sarwate-Maxwell hope to prove them wrong this Sunday in Orland Park. They'll be signing and selling their great new book "Cubsessions" there. Details below.

We Have Company

With Mother's Day and Father's Day coming up, Bobby Skafish's book is on sale now at Eckhartz Press for only $15. If Mom or Dad loves rock and roll, they'll love this book.

Get your copy today.

Not sure what this song is about

It's very subtle.

Colbert Reacts to Hannity News

RIP Harry Anderson

The actor/comedian/magician and former star of Night Court passed away yesterday at the age of 65. Sad news. He was a talent.

Pulitzer Prizes

The age of Trump, while being derided as a time of Fake News, may actually go down in history as the golden age of journalism. Outlets like the New Yorker, New York Times and the Washington Post are doing amazing work, and they were recognized yesterday as Pulitzer Prize Winners.

The entire list is here.

Kendrick Lamar also won a Pulitzer for his music.

Congrats to all the winners.

Chicago Radio Ratings

From Tom Taylor's NOW column...

Chicago has a clear 6+ leader (urban AC “V103”) and a bunch of ties, further down. iHeart’s WVAZ wins (5.8-6.6-6.1) and wins all the dayparts except the 6am-10am shift. The first tie is between Entercom’s news WBBM/WCFS (4.7-5.3-5.1) and Hubbard’s hot AC “Mix” WTMX (5.4-4.9-5.1). “Eric in the Morning with Melissa & Whip” is #1 in mornings for Mix. Fourth overall is Entercom’s classic hip-hop/throwbacks “104.3 Jams” WBMX (4.8-4.0-4.5, and second on weekends). Fifth place is another tie, between Hubbard’s classic rock “Drive” WDRV (3.3-3.3-4.2) and Univision’s regional Mexican WOJO (3.5-3.7-4.2, and second place middays/afternoons). The country leader remains Entercom’s “US 99” WUSN (3.4-3.0-3.9, and up in rank from a fifteenth-place tie to eighth). iHeart’s “Big” WEBG is twenty-fourth (2.0-1.7-1.5). The owner just changed out PDs, importing Lance Houston from Boston. Finally, three stations score 3.5-shares – Cumulus classic hits WLS-FM (3.1-3.4-3.5), Entercom’s adult alternative WXRT (3.2-3.1-3.5) and Weigel-run easy oldies-on-a-low power TV audio signal WRME (2.4-3.6-3.5). Chris Huff says “This is the largest share for SBS’ regional Mexican WLEY-FM since January 2009, 2.6 to 2.6 to 3.0.” How about the station Cumulus just agreed to buy for $18 million, after LMAing it since 2014? Alternative WKQX is steady (3.0-2.8-2.8). Tough book for Tribune’s talk WGN. It’s #22, down 3.3-3.1-2.2. For Chicago’s 97.9, the month is split between classic rock “Loop” WLUP (until March 10) and EMF’s not-for-profit “K-Love” as WCKL. Nielsen shows the frequency going 2.9-3.2-1.3. Chicago’s leading cume station is iHeart CHR “Kiss” WKSC (1,775,900). In the share rankings, it’s tied for tenth (3.4-3.0-3.1).

Rock & Roll Hall of Famers Praise Radio

From this morning's Radio Ink, great to hear that people didn't forget what made them popular. During their Hall of Fame introductions...

Bon Jovi credits the now defunct WAPP in New York City for giving him the break that record labels were unwilling to give him. “After sending that cassette to every label and manager I could think of, I thought, ‘Who is the loneliest person in the music business? … the DJ. There was a new station in NYC called WAPP. It was so new, that there even a receptionist, so I was able to walk in and get the attention of John Lassman and the DJ Chip Hobart. I told them about the songs on the cassette and the frustration of not getting any label to listen to it. Chip did listen to it, and he told me he thought it should be included on their ‘Homegrown’ record of local original music.”

John Lodge and Justin Hayward from The Moody Blues also heaped praise on radio and spoke about some of the personalities that helped the band succeed. “I’d like to thank American radio for supporting us for five decades. And the belief in us has just been tremendous and has given us encouragement to keep going, and doing everything we love to do, and that’s make music. We’d like to thank also some of our friends at radio, Howard Stern. And the great Scott Muni (of WNEW and later, Q104.3) in New York. Hawyward said, “I would also just mention, like John and some of the radio personalities, Scott Muni and Howard, and Alison Steele (WNEW FM). She was a wonderful, wonderful DJ.”

The Cars also thanked radio when they were inducted. The Cars thanked WBCN in Boston and Maxanne for discovering and playing “Just What I needed” in heavy rotation, before they even had an album.

A Trade That Helped Everyone

Love this little moment...

Baseball bringing people together.

A young Colorado fan caught a Nationals home run, and a young Washington fan caught a Rockies home run. So they swapped souvenirs. pic.twitter.com/MNWaW0Pciy

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 15, 2018

RIP R Lee Ermey

Lost one of the acting greats from Full Metal Jacket over the weekend...

Good news, bad news

Michael Ferro has sold his shares of Tronc (the Chicago Tribune), and is now officially gone (other than a consulting agreement that the company must pay him). That's good news. He has been a train wreck there.

The shares were bought by Col. McCormick's family, the original owners of the Tribune. That's good news too. At least they appreciate the history.

But Ferro is walking away with a profit of more than $100 million...after inflicting untold damage.

That doesn't seem fair or right.

Comey on Trump

Like the rest of the country, we were watching last night. This quote made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I agree with every word of it, too...

“I don’t think he’s medically unfit to be president. I think he’s morally unfit to be president. A person who sees moral equivalence in Charlottesville, who talks about and treats women like they’re pieces of meat, who lies constantly about matters big and small and insists the American people believe it, that person’s not fit to be president of the United States, on moral grounds. And that’s not a policy statement… Our president must embody respect and adhere to the values that are at the core of this country. The most important being truth. This president is not able to do that. He is morally unfit to be president.”

70 Years of Cubs Baseball on WGN-TV

From this morning's Robert Feder column...

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the first Chicago Cubs baseball broadcast on WGN-Channel 9. The Tribune Broadcasting station will celebrate by featuring classic Cubs memories and moments throughout tonight’s coverage of the Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals game, starting with the “Leadoff Man” pregame show at 5:30 p.m. “There is no relationship in TV sports we are aware of that compares to this partnership,” Bob Vorwald, executive producer and director of production at WGN, told the Tribune. “We broadcast more games over the air than all other teams combined.”

It's the 70th anniversary on WGN, but the Cubs were on TV two years earlier. Here's the description from Just One Bad Century...

April 20,1946

The first televised Cubs game airs. WBKB-TV broadcasts that first game with famous bowling announcer Whispering Joe Wilson (photo) behind the microphone. It’s a memorable day at the ballpark for a few other reasons too. It’s the 30th anniversary of the Cubs playing in Wrigley Field, and the National League Pennant is raised up the flagpole for the fifth time since the Cubs started playing there. As everyone who follows Cubs lore knows, it’s also the last time that happened until 2017. In addition, this game marks the first game back at Wrigley Field for returning soldiers Stan Musial and Enos Slaughter. Slaughter knocks in Musial for the only run the Cardinals would need that day, as the Cardinals beat star Cubs pitcher Hank Borowy. The defending NL champs will finish in 3rd place that year, 14 1/2 games out of first; a finish that wouldn’t be topped for another 20 years.

Incredible Comeback

Sean and I were there on Saturday, freezing our butts off. What a comeback!

You can watch it all right here.

It's one for the ages.

RIP Art Bell

The nationally syndicated UFO-believing radio host has passed away at the age of 72. Radio Ink has the details. His show aired locally in Chicago overnights on WLS for years.

A Rare Funny SNL

The whole episode was funny, including this opening bit...

Robert Mueller (Robert De Niro) has a few questions for President Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen (Ben Stiller). #SNL pic.twitter.com/Qt395ORCAn

— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) April 15, 2018

One of the great albums

#RecordStoreDay 2018 Beatles album pic.twitter.com/fTWmXMFe99

— Zugzwang Records (@Zugzwang_Record) April 12, 2018

Friday the 13th

Some explanations from alltimelists.com...

*some contributing factors to the avoidance of the 13th which are both historical as well as biblical. For example, the number 12 is considered as a whole in numerology - the twelve tribes of Israel, the 12 apostles of Jesus and then the 12 successors of Muhammad in Shia Islam. Anything that is over is considered unwhole by numerologists.

*Another theory is mentioned by the author Dan Brown in his book about the crusaders and the Knights Templar. On Friday the 13th, 1307 hundreds of Knights Templar were arrested in Paris and throughout Europe. On October 13, 1307, France’s King Philip IV ordered the arrest of the Knight Templar for speculative reasons and many were murdered throughout Europe. Another reason, bound in blood, to avoid and fear Friday the 13th.

*Much paranoia for this day actually started in the 18th century. Henry Sutherland Edwards wrote in the 1869 biography of Gioachino Rossini, that: “He was surrounded with friends to his last day. He considered (the number) 13 to be unlucky until his last day and he also passed away on Friday the 13th.”

*Later, a novel published in 1907 titled Friday, the Thirteen by Thomas W., popularized the idea of this day. It used the superstition to wreak havoc throughout American culture.

In other words, it's a bunch of hooey. Fear not!

The Cohen Tapes

Need ANOTHER comparison between this current Trump scandal and the Watergate scandal that took down President Nixon?

There are tapes.

And the prosecutors have them.

Minutia Men, Episode 91

EP91 – Rick and Dave discuss a story that will make you cringe, the worst excuses ever, a really inappropriate t-shirt, bad luck hooky at Wrigley Field, and Rick’s brush with the Dixie Chicks.

Listen to it here.

Schneider Farewell

Had dinner at the Edelweiss restaurant last night with my co-author of "Gruen Weiss Vor!" Todd "Fritz" Schneider. He and his family are moving to California. It's a big loss for the soccer club, but it's also a big loss for my family. We'll really miss them.

Beth Jacobellis on WGN Radio

If you missed Beth's appearance on Steve Cochran's show, we now have the audio.

Click here to see some pictures and listen to the audio.

Seth Meyers says wife gave birth to their baby 'in a pair of sweatpants'

This was my worst nightmare when Bridget was pregnant.

Seth Meyers wife couldn't make it to the hospital. In fact, she couldn't make it out of their building.

All of the details are here.

Big Changes at Big 95.5

From this morning's Robert Feder column...

The long-anticipated shakeup of iHeartMedia Chicago’s country music station Tuesday didn’t end with the exit of Steve Stewart as program director and midday host. Also out after three years at WEBG 95.5 FM is the morning team of Mason Schreader and Zach “Remy” Hoesly. The lone holdover is Amber “Alabama” Cole, who’ll now host mornings solo. The native of Pinson, Alabama, who joined Big 95.5 as afternoon personality in 2015, had been co-hosting mornings with Mason & Remy since 2016. Incoming as program director and midday host is Lance Houston via iHeartMedia in Boston. From Chicago, Houston will continue to program WBWL in Boston as well. Underperforming ratings were cited for the shakeup. In the latest Nielsen Audio survey, Big 95.5 ranked 25th with a 1.7 percent audience share. It fared no better in the 25-to-54 revenue-generating demo.

Peabody Nominees

The Peabody Award is one of the most prestigious awards in the entertainment world, and the list of nominees was released yesterday.The full list is here.

John Oliver, SNL, Star Trek, and Bryant Gumbel are among the nominees.

Rupert Gets Raided Too

It didn't happen here in America, but Rupert Murdoch's empire was raided by law enforcement in England on the same day Michael Cohen got it here.

From the Daily Telegraph...

The British offices of the Murdoch entertainment empire 21st Century Fox have been raided by investigators from the European Commission, The Daily Telegraph can reveal.

It is understood that competition watchdogs gained access to the company’s offices in Hammersmith, west London, early on Tuesday to seize documents and computer records.

The full details of the confidential investigation, which is believed to be in its early stages, have yet to be revealed. The building is home to Fox Networks, the company’s channels business.

Loop special

I spent the afternoon in Naperville being interviewed by this fine lad Brandon Herman on WONC Radio. He is doing a whole special on the history of the Loop, and he asked me to be a part of it. It's going to be a star studded special with the likes of Kevin Matthews, Chet Coppock, Mitch Michaels, Larry Wert, and more.

I was impressed that he knew so much about an era that happened before he was born. He asked good questions and had obviously done his homework. I'll post a link when the podcast is done.

It was an incredible honor for me to finally sit down and talk with @RickKaempfer today at @requestWONC. Our conversation will be featured on a very special broadcast. An announcement is coming soon... pic.twitter.com/HiY4lhdVrP

— The Herman Show (@thehermanshow) April 10, 2018

From Robert Feder's column today, a few more details...

The Loop may be gone from Chicago’s airwaves, but its legacy is hardly forgotten. The latest tribute comes from WONC 89.1 FM, the radio station of North Central College in Naperville. Starting at 4 p.m. Saturday, host Brandon Herman will welcome veterans of The Loop to reminisce. Herman’s guests will include Chet Coppock, Terry Gibson, Rick Kaempfer, John “Byrd” Kempf, John Records Landecker, Kevin Matthews, Jimmy McInerney, Mitch Michaels and Wendy Snyder.

Investigating Google

Child advocacy groups are asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate YouTube (which is owned by Google). There's a law that says it's illegal to target children with ads (without parental permission), and anyone who knows a kid, knows they spend all of their time on YouTube. Those YouTube users have their data mined, and ads are clearly being targeted to them. I know it's not Google's intent, but I think this is a case that may just have a point.

Cat got your tongue?

Another example of why we can never be friends with the Russians. (Although this group was popular with the Russian ladies for some reason.)

Credit Where Credit is Due

This video that I posted last week has gone viral. It was retweeted and shared on twitter and facebook a gazillion times, and even aired on television here. It's not hard to understand why it is spellbinding people.

Once I start watching it, I can't stop. I find myself wondering what the participants were thinking at the time. Was anyone saying..."Um, this is a little weird fellas"...or were they high-fiving each other because they were so...damn...cool.



Well, I'd like to thank Suzanne Plunkett Photographs (on Cullom) for turning me on to this. I don't know Suzanne (she's friends with my friend Lynee), but that's how the video came to me.

Full plug alert: Suzanne does head shots. I looked at her website. If you're in Chicago and you're looking for a photographer, you might want to give her a jingle. She's clearly got an eye for unique visuals.

Fleetwood Mac Fires Buckingham

From this morning's RAMP newsletter...

Big news for the fans of Fleetwood Mac -- yesterday it was announced that longtime lead guitarist and musical collaborator Lindsey Buckingham was leaving the band; that news was quickly followed by the announcement that Mike Campbell, longtime lead guitarist for Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Neil Finn, frontman for Crowded House would join the band for a fall tour.

"Fleetwood Mac has always been about an amazing collection of songs that are performed with a unique blend of talents," Mick Fleetwood said. "We jammed with Mike and Neil and the chemistry really worked and let the band realize that this is the right combination to go forward with in Fleetwood Mac style. We know we have something new, yet it’s got the unmistakable Mac sound."

Lindsey is not a small part of the band. He wrote "Go Your Own Way", "The Chain", "Monday Morning", "Second Hand News" and "Tusk" (to name a few). I'm guessing he's a bit of a pain in the ass, or there is no way Fleetwood Mac would do this. (Note that it does take two people to replace him)

Dane Placko

My buddy Dane Placko got the following mention in today's Robert Feder column...

Dane Placko, the veteran investigative reporter for Fox 32, has a harrowing vacation story to tell. While in London with his daughters over spring break he suffered a detached retina and lost vision in his left eye. After undergoing emergency surgery, he was warned not to fly home for at least four weeks or the gas jelly holding his retina in place could explode. “I went to London and became a middle-aged pirate,” Placko told Facebook friends. “How to describe the experience? I felt like the astronaut rushing through the tunnel of psychedelic lights in the movie ‘2001.’”

Ed Lover

A new morning man in Chicago. From this morning's RAMP Newsletter...

Hip-Hop Hall of Famer Ed Lover just arrived in Chicago, hired by Entercom to host the debut morning show on Classic Hip Hop WBMX (104.3 JAMS). The Ed Lover Morning Show, co-hosted by market vet Jennifer "Jen BT" Farina, premieres Thursday, April 12 at 6am CT.

"Ed Lover is as smooth as his name and we're looking forward to having him take the helm of mornings on Chicago's No. 1 station for Throwbacks," said Jimmy de Castro, SVP/Market Manager, Entercom Chicago. "His deep connection and knowledge of Classic Hip-Hop and R&B, along with his energy and drive will help Chicagoans start their mornings on the right note."