Friday, April 22, 2016

Radio Comes Out For Prince

From coast to coast, radio stations dropped their formats yesterday to pay tribute to Prince. From this morning's RAMP newsletter...

To pay proper tribute to an artist that has contributed a sizeable chunk to the soundtrack of our lives, hundreds of radio stations from coast to coast -- frankly, far too many to single out in this limited space -- broke from normal programming, updated their websites and billboards and cranked up nothing but Prince. And it sounded awesome. By last night, Prince's catalog had exploded on iTunes, occupying all ten of the Top Songs chart and nine of the Top Albums chart with "Purple Rain" at No. 1 on both

What Prince songs charted in Chicago? Courtesy of historian Ron Smith...

Prince's chart appearances in Chicago on WLS/WYTZ (alphabetically).
(Peak date, Peak position, Title)

9/10/1983 - 6 - 1999
7/2/1988 - 11 - Alphabet St.
11/24/1984 - 46 - Darling Nikki
11/12/1983 - 10 - Delirious
1/23/1988 - 10 - I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man
3/1/1980 - 21 - I Wanna Be Your Lover
1/19/1985 - 5 - I Would Die 4 U
4/19/1986 - 1-3 wks - Kiss
9/22/1984 - 3 - Let's Go Crazy
6/25/1983 - 4 - Little Red Corvette
6/28/1986 - 15 - Mountains
8/31/1985 - 11 - Pop Life
11/3/1984 - 2 - Purple Rain
7/20/1985 - 4 - Raspberry Beret
5/2/1987 - 17 - Sign 'O' The Times
3/23/1985 - 31 - Take Me With U
10/17/1987 - 1-2 wks - U Got The Look
8/20/1988 - 22 - When 2 R In Love
7/7/1984 - 1-4 wks - When Doves Cry

Remember when Prince played at the Super Bowl? That was the last time the Bears were in the big game, but nobody remembers that. They only remember this...



As for how television handled his death, after a rocky start, both CNN and MSNBC did well. And MTV went all-Prince. Although as Screengrabber reports, that wasn't without a hiccup...

MTV suspended all scheduled programming today to air an all-day Prince marathon in wake of the musician’s passing, but it looks like searching for “prince” in the network’s video database didn’t work so well. Sandwiched between videos for “New Power Generation” and “Controversy” turned up “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble” by Fresh Prince & D.J. Jazzy Jeff.

Whoopsie Daisy.

One more Prince tidbit. I really enjoyed this interview with his bus driver in Billboard Magazine.

Great Sports Night in Chicago

First this incredible Jake Arrieta pitching performance. He threw his second no-hitter in his last eleven regular season starts. Oh, and by the way, the Cubs also scored 16 runs.



Then, in a game that probably should have been won by the St. Louis Blues (they were the better team for most of the night), the Blackhawks stayed alive in a double overtime game. Guess who scored the game winner with an amazing individual play?

RIP Lonnie Mack

The whole world mourned the loss of Prince yesterday (including me), but we lost another great guitarist yesterday. Rock historian Ron Smith posted this on his facebook page...

Guitarist Lonnie Mack, best remembered for the 1963 instrumentals “Memphis” (#5) and “Wham!” (#14), died Thursday at a medical center near his home in Smithville, Tennessee. The Harrison, Indiana native (born Lonnie McIntosh) was 71. Known for his pioneering style (helped by the tremelo bar on his instrument), he not ony charted seven times on his own, but played on sessions for such music royalty as James Brown, Freddie King, Hank Ballard and-- most notably on the Doors’ “Morrison Hotel” (where Jim Morrison can be heard yelling, “Do it, Lonnie!”) He retired from 1971 to 1985 before being rediscovered by a new generation of musicians and fans, including Stevie Ray Vaughn. Lonnie was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2005 and the International Guitar Hall of Fame in 2001.

Thursday, April 21, 2016

RIP Prince

Shocking news. Big loss. Prince is dead. He was only 57.

He was one of the true giants of the music business.

Joe Walsh at the Republican Convention?

I heard that Joe Walsh was appearing at the Republican Convention in Cleveland, but assumed it was the blowhard former Congressman turned radio host Joe Walsh. I was mistaken. The real Joe Walsh (the guitarist) was actually booked for the kickoff concert. The only problem was that Joe was told it was a non-partisan concert for veterans.

When he found out the truth, he immediately pulled out, and released this statement...
"I am very concerned about the rampant vitriol, fear-mongering and bullying coming from the current Republican campaigns. It is both isolationist and spiteful. I cannot in good conscience endorse the Republican party in any way. I will look at doing a veteran related benefit concert later this year."
That sounds more like the Joe I know.

Around the Publishing World (April 21)

At Chicago Author Solutions (a division of Eckhartz Press), we stay on top of happenings/trends in the publishing world to help out busy writers who are spending their time doing what they should be doing: writing.


1. Tips from author Jennifer Brown
Who is Jennifer Brown? She's the author of the book "Modern Girls", a novel set in 1935. This is a great Q&A with her. We especially recommend you read the portion about researching.

2. How to promote your book politely
There are some very good Dos in this piece, but even better Don'ts. Take this advice seriously. As soon as you become a pain in the butt to people, they won't pay attention to a thing you say.

3. Writing Tips from Famous Authors
As a non-famous author, I'm always interested in what those who made it big have to say. I especially like this quote from Kurt Vonnegut: “The most damning revelation you can make about yourself is that you do not know what is interesting and what is not. Don’t you yourself like or dislike writers mainly for what they choose to show or make you think about? Did you ever admire an empty-headed writer for his or her mastery of the language? No.”

4. Kurt Vonnegut's Writing Tip
Speaking of Kurt Vonnegut...

5. 20 tips for writing a captivating short story
Well thought out and presented. We present it for you in two parts...
Part 1
Part 2

6. The newest book from Eckhartz Press: Ranting of a Bitter Childless Woman
This book is available for pre-order now. Here's the description: Kids sucking on restaurant salt shakers—and parents nonchalantly putting them back on the table. Pregnant women driving alone in the carpool lane. Overtly sexy Halloween costumes for third-graders. Random strangers making unsolicited judgements about her reproductive status. These are just a handful of the situations Chicago native Jeanne Bellezzo comically explores in Rantings of a Bitter Childless Woman. Written from the witty, unapologetic perspective of a childless (and far from bitter) woman in a fiercely child-centric society, this collection of entertaining essays will have readers with and without children laughing, nodding, cringing — or throwing a tantrum.

Jeanne Bellezzo began writing Rantings of a Bitter Childless Woman as a blog and was surprised to find many like-minded fans across the country, including numerous parents. A Chicago native who relocated to Southern California because she was cold, Jeanne is a successful writer and editor who has co-authored several non-fiction books. She lives in northern San Diego County with her significant other, Joe, and two cats, Jake and Elwood. When she is not writing, Jeanne can be found in or near the ocean with friends (and sometimes even with their children).

And please keep your kids off her lawn.

Bill Faul and Joe McCarthy



Two of the more interesting characters in Cubs history are celebrating birthdays today. Here are their entries from our Every Cub Ever feature at Just One Bad Century...

~Bill Faul 1940 (Cubs 1965-1966)
Some players are known as characters. Some are known as eccentrics. Still others seem to have come from another planet. Bill Faul was one of those guys…and he wasn’t even a lefty…or a Californian. Faul pitched for the Cubs in 1965 and 1966. It’s safe to say that he had a quirk or two. For instance…

*He hypnotized himself before games and talked to his arm. Opposing players would make fun of him by swinging watches and saying ‘tick tock tick tock’ while he was pitching.

*He used to rip the heads off parakeets with his teeth (according to Bill Lee).

*He swallowed live toads, claiming they put “extra hop” on his fastballs.

*He liked to hold guys off the third or fourth floor hotel balcony by their ankles…upside down.

*His jersey number was — you guessed it — 13.

Former Detroit Tigers manager Chuck Dressen once said: “You watch him for a while, watch how he acts, talk to him, spend some time with him, and you figure either he’s the dumbest guy in the world or the smartest one you’ve ever met.” As wild and unpredictable as Faul was, he was cool as a cucumber on the field. He had to be awakened in the clubhouse only thirty minutes before his first major league start. Faul shook out the cobwebs, grabbed the ball, warmed up, and pitched a three-hitter. Faul always seemed to be in the middle of a lot of excitement. He was one of only a handful of pitchers to be involved in fielding a triple play, and one of only two major league pitchers in history to have three triple plays in one season while he was on the mound. He claimed the secret to his success was his hypnosis therapy, his background as a karate instructor in the Air Force (his hands and feet were both registered as dangerous weapons), and his spiritual consciousness (he was a Doctor of Divinity for the Universal Life Church). Unfortunately for Faul, the league figured him out in 1966. When his ERA climbed over 5, he was sent down to the minors and never returned to the Cubs. He kicked around the minor leagues for a few seasons before turning up for a cup of coffee with the Giants in 1970. Bill Faul died in 2002, at the age of 62. (Photo: Topps 1965 Baseball Card)

~Joe McCarthy 1887 (Cubs Manager 1926-1930)
Joe McCarthy was given the nickname of “Marse Joe” by sportswriters. “Marse” is a Southern English rendition of the word “master,” and from the moment he took over the Cubs in 1926, Marse Joe let it be known that he was in charge. He led them to the National League pennant in 1929, and never had a losing season as Cubs manager, but they fired him after the 1930 season because they didn’t think he had what it took to get to the next level. Unfortunately for the Cubs, they never got to that next level without him, and he got to the next level with Yankees seven times. Two of those times he beat the Cubs. Marse Joe is in baseball’s Hall of Fame.

Maybe the Sky Really Isn't Falling?

From this morning's Daily Beast...

The number of Americans filing for first-time state unemployment benefits last week dropped to the lowest point on record since the Nixon administration. Labor Department data released Tuesday show claims for the week of April 16 fell 6,000 to an unexpectedly small 247,000—a level not matched since late November 1973. Analysts say the drop reflects an increasingly strong job market and a relative lack of layoffs, despite broader worries about the strength of the U.S. economy.

RIP Chyna

The former wrestling star known as Chyna (Joanie Laurer) has passed away at the way too young age of 45. No word on the cause of death, but it should be noted that she once appeared on the television show "Celebrity Rehab".

Country Nirvana

Very odd cover of Nirvana's "In Bloom" done by Sturgill Simpson on the Daily Show last night...

Rich King on WLS


Yesterday morning Eckhartz Press author Rich King made an appearance on the Big John Howell Show on WLS.

You can listen to it here.

ESPN Fires Curt Schilling

They fired him for a social media post about transgender bathrooms.

I'm torn on this one. I think Schilling is a tool, and I disagree with his politics. Also, he was previously suspended for a different social media post (about Muslims), so it's not like he didn't know this was going to happen.

On the other hand, I don't think someone should be fired because of their politics. I know ESPN says that's not the reason he was fired, but it sure smells like it.

Should he have posted what he did? Of course not. Does this have anything to do with analyzing baseball (which is his job)? No. He's still pretty good at that job, by the way. And politics never comes up.

Michael Strahan & Kelly Ripa

I've always marveled at the quick and easy chemistry that Michael Strahan and Kelly Ripa shared on their morning chat show. But, apparently, that has been tested by Strahan's announcement that he is leaving the show to join Good Morning America full-time.

According to this piece, Kelly wasn't notified until a few minutes before the official announcement.

She hasn't been on the air with Michael since, and isn't on the schedule for the rest of the week.

RizzOs cereal a big hit


The Daily Herald has a story about the suprising success of Rizzo's cereal today. Several local Jewels have sold out.

I admit I bought a box for Sean. He hasn't tried it yet. Just wanted the box.

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Channel 5 Wins a Peabody

From TV Spy...

NBC-owned WMAQ began its probe of the Chicago Police six months before an officer was charged with first-degree murder in the McDonald case. The judges said “WMAQ’s relentless, unrivaled reporting brought to light a host of police procedural infractions, official disinformation and outright lies, and contributed to a police department shake-up.”

RIP Milt Pappas

Former Cubs pitcher Milt Pappas was found dead in his home in Beecher, Illinois yesterday. RIP Milt. He was a very good pitcher and a very complicated man. The following is Milt's entry in our EVERY CUB EVER feature at Just One Bad Century...


~Milt Pappas 1939 (Cubs 1970-1973)
Pappas had some of his best seasons as a big league pitcher with the Cubs at the tail end of his career. In 1971 he became one of only ten pitchers in big league history to strike out the side on nine pitches. In 1972 he came just one out away from pitching a perfect game (and still hasn't forgiven the umpire for calling ball four on the 27th batter). He did pitch a no-hitter in that game. One of his other claims to fame is that he pitched the last day Elvis Presley ever appeared in Chicago. Though he was a two-time all-star and won more than 200 games in his career, Pappas was often embroiled in controversy. While he was with the Orioles, he admitted to grooving one to Roger Maris during his quest for 61 homers. He was traded to the Reds for Frank Robinson--who went on to win the triple crown for the Orioles. Milt got into a fight with Reds teammate Joe Nuxhall and was traded to the Braves. His Cubs career wasn't without controversy either. He was in the middle of the fight that may have led to Leo Durocher losing his team once and for all. The date was August 23, 1971. The Cubs were in the clubhouse before a game against the Cincinnati Reds. They were 11 games over .500 and only 4 1/2 games behind the first place Pittsburgh Pirates, but Leo was still upset with Milt. The previous game he had allowed the winning run in a 4-3 loss when Doug Radar hit an 0-2 pitch for a double. He called a club meeting and ripped Pappas for his stupidity. After his little speech he opened the floor for comments. Joe Pepitone was the first one to defend Milt. He said: "He didn't want to do it. Why are you always blaming people?" Ken Holtzman and Pappas also spoke out, ripping Durocher. That's when Leo lost it. He tore into every player on the team in a legendary expletive filled tirade. Among those he ripped was team captain Ron Santo. He said that Santo was a malingerer who played politics with the front office. Santo had to be physically restrained by his teammates. The Cubs somehow went out and won the game, but afterwards they spiraled into a deep losing streak. They lost 16 of their next 21 games. Durocher had lost the club forever. (Photo: Topps 1972 Baseball Card)

Umpire Bruce Froemming discussing Milt and that no-hitter...

Werner Landecker


Love this headline in the Laporte News: Before Landecker spun stacks of wax, his dad typed historic links of ink.

Of course this story is told in the pages of John's book "Records Truly Is My Middle Name", but it's still worth a read.

Mel Brooks Coming to Chicago for Blazing Saddles Q&A

This sounds like something you don't want to miss. The event is June 12th and the tickets ($70) go on sale on April 25th...

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Geezer Fest

The biggest stars in rock and roll history are appearing at a music festival together October 7-9 in California. Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Roger Waters are all supposed to be on the bill. (Count me in)

The WXRT website has the scoop.

Best Fans in Baseball?

According to this piece in the New York Daily News, Cardinal fans were yelling the N-word at Cubs outfielder Jason Heyward last night during the Cubs victory.

Every city has morons (and racists)

But not every city claims to have "the best fans in baseball"

The Strangest Place You've Ever Made Whoopie

That was and probably still is a staple question on the Newlywed Game. Timeout Chicago decided to ask it in a rather different way. They asked people to confess via sticky notes.

Among the locations listed...

*UIC Men's public bathroom
*A stairwell at the Merchandise Mart
*Adler Planetarium
*On the Metra Train tracks
*On the red line during rush hour
*On a college football field (in the endzone)

And the most shocking...

*During Sunday Mass

Trump is Honored to Vote for Himself

Ten Years of Blogging: The Eric & Kathy Show Interviews

This is my tenth year of blogging and I've been going through the old archives of 30,000+ posts to highlight a few of my favorites. One of the best parts of this gig has been the chance to interview some of Chicago's radio pros. The top-rated personality radio show in Chicago for the past decade has been the Eric & Kathy show. I've interviewed everyone on that show mulitple times, and here are a few highlights...


The stars of the show...

Eric Ferguson: I’ve always believed that you should find out what people are good at, and then get out of their way and allow them to do it. That’s how we approach the show. We’re actually, believe it or not, one of the least structured shows out there, in terms of everyone knowing what is coming up next. I do the lion’s share of the show prep, Swany has a lot of organizational duties, and Kathy does too—she’s got a good eye for it. But once the show starts, somebody has to be driving the bus, and that’s my role. I like it that I’m getting real reactions from people that way, and I think it’s one of the reasons the show sounds so authentic and unscripted. It took awhile for everyone to buy into this approach because they’ve all been taught not to do it this way, but it’s the way I’ve always done it. Kathy had a hard time with it at first, but if you’re too prepared, you sound too prepared. I pointed out to her how great she was at reacting when she was just having a conversation. “Do you realize when you talk with your friends you don’t prep?” This is the same thing. We’re friends talking to each other on the radio.

Kathy Hart: The program director fired the morning show (Patterson and Faulkenberry) while I was doing PT/vacation fill-in. They put me in mornings while they looked for a replacement. They decided I “would do” in the meantime, but eventually I asked for a partner. I got into radio because it wasn’t a lot of work. Doing mornings by myself, I was waking up at 2:50am. That’s STUPID early. I was thrilled when Eric came on board because it meant less work for me and he grew up in Chicago. Bringing on a local boy meant not having to ‘explain’ Chicago to him. As much as I would like to take credit for our talent being the reason for our success, I believe our early success was a result of good timing. When we were finding our groove, Brandmeier and Wendy & Bill left the airwaves. It seems we got a few listeners ‘by default’ early on but eventually it was our incredible talent that kept them around. (Laughs) The sarcasm doesn’t translate on paper, does it?! In all seriousness, I believe it was as simple as our ability to relate to the audience and include them in the show.

Melissa does the traffic on the show...

Melissa McGurren: The Chicagoland area, which includes Northwest Indiana, has the most dedicated listening audience, which keeps me employed. Thank you, everyone!! I grew up in the Portage and Valparaiso area. Now I get to come to work and embarrass my friends and family from these cities by talking about them on the air. That means many people in the region walk around knowing I’ve shared some of their private moments. Okay, okay, so I haven’t been that bad. I at least ask before I tell! I’ve found everyone has a funny story.

Swany is the show's Executive Producer (and yes, the co-author of the Radio Producer's Handbook)

John "Swany" Swanson: I love all of our shows in front of live audiences. We've had some incredible ones. I totally dig meeting the people that listen to the show. That's the best. Probably the most memorable moment for me, though, was the time we appeared on the Today Show. They were doing a segment about "work spouses"--people who are together so much at work that they actually spend more time together than they do with their spouses. It was great exposure--Matt Lauer interviewed Eric and Kathy live on the air. Overall though, I have to say that building a morning show from the ground up, bringing it to the top, and keeping it there has been the greatest highlight of my career. Now, I just hope I can keep doing it so Eric & Kathy can make enough money in this business to retire.

Whip is the current newsman on the show...

Brian "Whip" Paruch: I really just try to write the news the way I speak, and try to think in terms of what our listeners would care about when I select stories. When there's an obvious lead story, like the elections, for example, I'll do that; but on other days, I'm not afraid to lead with, say, Charlie Sheen....while giving the "important" stuff its due, too.

Barry was the newsman on the show for the first decade. He sadly passed away last year...

Barry Keefe: I told our then-PD Barry James on the Friday of Eric’s first week that this thing was going to blast off. I still remember walking into the traffic office and seeing him and making sure he knew that. When Eric arrived, he and Kathy ignited the phones. And the targeting of women over and above what people had ever imagined before! What the hell did your average radio programmer out there THINK women talked about everyday? Purses, lipstick, cosmetic surgery, celebs and goofy domestic stuff. That’s especially true pre-parenting.

Mark Suppelsa did the news for a few years while also doing television news. It finally became too much for him, but he still appears on the show often...

Mark Suppelsa: My favorite part of the job is uncovering new information for a story you’re working. The chase is the challenge. The least favorite is the concept developed by consultants of selecting news story topics that supposedly attract a particular audience demographic. I’ve always felt, a good story, told well, will attract anyone.

Barry James is the man who put the show together, and served as the program director as it grew...

Barry James: A half-dozen people can take some credit for Eric & Kathy? So, that's where my share of the kitty went! I was their PD or Station Manager for their first 8 or so years. I've been asked a number of times about their success. My answer remains true to this day; they are where they are first and foremost because of their talent. My part in the process was to (a) identify talent, (b) nurture that talent through support and guidance and (c) step back and watch it grow. "C" is the hard part. Most program directors can't do that. It was the most difficult aspect of the process, but the one that reaped the greatest rewards.

Todd Cavanah

Just arrived in my e-mail box. CBS Radio in Chicago has a new programming boss...

Todd Cavanah has been named Vice President of programming for CBS RADIO Chicago, it was announced today by Tim Pohlman, Senior Vice President and Market Manager, CBS RADIO Chicago. In this new role, Cavanah will work closely with the market’s six brands including WBBM-FM (Top 40), WJMK-FM (Classic Hits), WUSN-FM (Country), WXRT-FM (Adult Alternative), WBBM-AM/WCFS-FM (News), and WSCR-AM (Sports). Cavanah will focus on long-term programming strategy and identifying opportunities that will continue to drive station ratings for the CBS RADIO Chicago stations.

Cavanah has been the PD of at least two of those stations (WBBM & WJMK), so he does seem like a natural choice.


RIP Doris Roberts

She was best known as the mom on Everybody Loves Raymond, a show I consider one of the top five comedies of all-time. She passed away yesterday at the age of 90.

I had one encounter with Doris during my radio days. My writing partner Dave and I wrote a script for Everybody Loves Raymond, and during a CBS media tour in Los Angeles, tried to give it to her to see what she thought. She reacted like she was being given something radioactive. That's when I learned the Hollywood rule about scripts. No one will take an unsolicited script like that for fear of being sued if they came up with something similar. (I still have that script somewhere...I should dig it out and post a scene or two. It obviously doesn't matter anymore--the show has been off the air for more than a decade.)

Other than the radioactive horror, she was actually very nice. And quite funny. Her character in the show was simply tremendous...

The 2016 Pulitzers

Here's the whole list...The 2016 Pulitzer Prize Winners

JOURNALISM

Public Service - Associated Press

Breaking News Reporting - Los Angeles Times Staff

Investigative Reporting - Leonora LaPeter Anton and Anthony Cormier of the Tampa Bay Times and Michael Braga of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Explanatory Reporting - T. Christian Miller of ProPublica and Ken Armstrong of The Marshall Project

Local Reporting - Michael LaForgia, Cara Fitzpatrick and Lisa Gartner of the Tampa Bay Times

National Reporting - The Washington Post Staff

International Reporting - Alissa J. Rubin of The New York Times

Feature Writing - Kathryn Schulz of The New Yorker

Commentary - Farah Stockman of The Boston Globe

Criticism - Emily Nussbaum of The New Yorker

Editorial Writing - John Hackworth of Sun Newspapers, Charlotte Harbor, FL

Editorial Cartooning - Jack Ohman The Sacramento Bee

Breaking News Photography - Mauricio Lima, Sergey Ponomarev, Tyler Hicks and Daniel Etter of The New York Times

and

Photography Staff of Thomson Reuters

Feature Photography - Jessica Rinaldi of The Boston Globe


LETTERS DRAMA AND MUSIC

Fiction - The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (Grove Press)

Drama - Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda

History - Custer's Trials: A Life on the Frontier of a New America by T.J. Stiles (Alfred A. Knopf)

Biography - Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life by William Finnegan (Penguin Press)

Poetry - Ozone Journal by Peter Balakian (University of Chicago Press)

Nonfiction - Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS by Joby Warrick (Doubleday)

Music - In for a Penny, In for a Pound by Henry Threadgill (Pi Recordings)

Chicago 1975

This is B-roll and street scenes from a WGN report in 1975. Dig the old movie theaters showing the trashy films, including X-rated fare.

Monday, April 18, 2016

Rich King Approaching Retirement



Great piece in today's Chicago Tribune by Ed Sherman. It's all about the impending retirement of Eckhartz Press author WGN-TV sportscaster Rich King.

You can read it here.

Of course, there are even more stories in his book "Back in the Game".

Axl Officially Joins AC/DC

From this morning's RAMP Newsletter...

The worst-kept rumor in the music biz was finally converted into reality over the weekend -- Guns N' Roses lead singer Axl Rose will indeed be joining AC/DC -- temporarily -- to help the band fulfill the remaining European dates on their Rock Or Bust Tour. Rose will replace longtime AC/DC lead vocalist Brian Johnson, who was forced to quit touring with the band or risk "total hearing loss." According to Rolling Stone, AC/DC made the official announcement on Saturday, shortly before Guns N' Roses performed at Coachella. "AC/DC will resume their Rock Or Bust World Tour with Axl Rose joining on vocals," the band said in a statement, which continued, "AC/DC band members would like to thank Brian Johnson for his contributions and dedication to the band throughout the years. We wish him all the best with his hearing issues and future ventures. As much as we want this tour to end as it started, we understand, respect and support Brian's decision to stop touring and save his hearing. We are dedicated to fulfilling the remainder of our touring commitments to everyone that has supported us over the years, and are fortunate that Axl Rose has kindly offered his support to help us fulfill this commitment." Giving fans a sneak preview of what they can expect from this partnership, Rose brought AC/DC's Angus Young onstage at Coachella and together, they tore through a couple of early AC/DC cuts: "Whole Lotta Rosie" and "Riff Raff."

Why Don't Americans Trust The Media?

According to this AP story, it's mostly because the media is wrong so often.

That seems like a pretty good reason not to trust them.

Jon Lester Bounce Pass

Not sure what is up with Jon Lester and his throwing to first base, but after seeing this, I think I'd bunt every single time....

Larry David & Julia Louis Dreyfus on SNL