Rick Kaempfer

Book Clubs

2012-02-01T12:32:00.000-06:00

We're proud to say that "The Living Wills" has been chosen by several Chicago area book clubs. Thank you!

For those of you considering "The Living Wills" for your book club, keep in mind that Brendan and/or I would happily come to your book club to join in the discussion (schedules permitting). Brendan is already going to a book club on the North Side of Chicago, I'm going to one in Des Plaines, and both of us will be going to another one in Beverly.

There is no additional cost involved. (Although, both of us will not reject your free alcoholic beverages, if offered). If you'd like more information, you can e-mail me at rick@eckhartzpress.com.

Pinewood Derby

2012-02-01T10:12:00.001-06:00

This weekend is Pinewood Derby time, so it's time to once again pull out my Pinewood Derby essay. This year I'm contributing it to the City Mom blog at ChicagoNow. If you haven't read it before, or you'd like to read it again, it's here.

By the way, this is going to be our 11th (!) Pinewood Derby.

It's WAR!

2012-02-01T09:38:00.000-06:00

Between book sellers.

As I learn more about the publishing business, I find it more difficult to pick sides between the two feuding giants Barnes & Noble and Amazon.

Barnes & Noble just announced they will not sell any books published by amazon.com because the Web retailing giant has "undermined the industry" by trying to sign exclusive agreements with publishers, agents and authors.

That's totally true. Amazon is actively trying to become a monopoly by getting rid of the middle man (the bookstore). That's pretty obvious.

On the other hand, and I can tell you this as a publisher, Barnes & Noble already is a bookstore monopoly and they are demanding outrageous discounts from publishers.

We chose not to have the hard copy of "The Living Wills" available at either place, because we would actually lose money on each book sold (once shipping costs were factored in). That didn't seem like such a great business idea.

For the time being, both of these behemoths are still allowing publishers to make money on e-books (which is why the e-book of "The Living Wills" is available at both places), but trust me, once one of them succeeds in crushing the other, those same ridiculous discounts will be demanded.

Hence my dilemma. I'm rooting for both of them to stay alive to keep each other in check, but I don't like either one of them.

Colbert's Super-PAC

2012-02-01T09:06:00.000-06:00

Stephen Colbert started up his Super-PAC as a comedy bit to show how ridiculous the whole electoral system has become since the Citizens United Supreme Court ruling, but I'm guessing he never really believed it would raise this much money: More than a million dollars and counting.

30 Years of Letterman

2012-02-01T08:56:00.000-06:00

Tonight is David Letterman's 30th anniversary of doing late night television.

The New York Times has the story. Don't expect any big deal from Letterman himself.

Global Warming and the Wall Street Journal

2012-02-01T08:52:00.000-06:00

The Wall Street Journal is getting a lot of heat for publishing an op-ed signed by 16 scientists that said global warming is no big deal. The week before, The National Academy of Sciences sent them an essay signed by 255 scientists claiming exactly the opposite. And it was ignored.

I don't claim to understand global warming and what causes it, but one thing I think is ridiculous is the belief that a worldwide cabal of scientists are engaged in a massive conspiracy to create an imaginary crisis, and that only a handful of "brave truth tellers" should be believed. Especially when those "truth tellers" are funded by major oil companies.

Let me put it slightly differently.

What are the motives of those scientists at the National Academy of Sciences? The Wall Street Journal theory is that they obviously created this nonsense so they could secure funding for future studies. On the other hand, they claim that the scientists that have already secured funding from the people who may have their profits cut if we move away from fossil fuels are to be believed because...

Hmmm. Anyone else see a flaw in this logic?

Layoffs, Sabotage & Suicide

2012-02-01T08:05:00.000-06:00

What does that headline describe?

Would you believe, life at the Los Angeles Times?

When you read this story remind yourself that the company inflicting this on their employees is the same company that has paid lawyers over $200 million in their bankruptcy proceedings. The LA Times is owned by the Tribune company.

Why Am I Hearing An Echo?

2012-02-01T07:27:00.000-06:00

From this morning's RAMP Newsletter...

"A new study from integrated marketing company 11mark reports that an alarming three-quarters of Americans admit to using their mobile phones in the bathroom. After surveying 1,000 cell phone users in October for its IT in the Toilet report, 11mark found that 74% of men and 76% of women used their phone while, ahem, otherwise occupied -- and not just to catch up on Facebook or Twitter. The company also discovered 63% of respondents actually answered a phone call while in the bathroom, and 41% actually initiated a call themselves. "The writing is on the stall," says 11mark Principal Nicole Burdette, being all punny. "This study confirms what we all know -- that the last private place is no longer private."

Please, Verizon, Please. Do not do a commercial there with the "Can you hear me now" guy.

Bain invests $300 in Seacrest

2012-02-01T07:17:00.000-06:00

Still think Ryan Seacrest isn't a media mogul?

His investment holding company (Ryan Seacrest Media) just made a deal with Bain "designed to drive business growth across multiple media platforms."

He's not just a radio guy and the goofy host of American Idol. He's Dick Clark, Jr.

Cubs 365, February 1

2012-02-01T07:08:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 2007, the Cubs signed outfielder Cliff Floyd as a free agent. The native Chicagoan is typical of the kind of free agents the Cubs have signed over the years. He was 35 years old (in his 15th season in the big leagues) and was coming off an injury plagued year with the Mets.

The Cubs got exactly what you'd expect under the circumstances. Floyd managed only 322 at bats that year, and though he hit a respectable .284, he was clearly not the player he once was. He hung around for parts of two more seasons (one with Tampa and one with the Padres) before calling it quits after the 2009 season.

Ahab the Arab

2012-01-31T08:23:00.000-06:00

50 years ago today Ray Stevens released this song. I think it's safe to say it was a different time...

Rupert's PR Person Quits

2012-01-31T07:58:00.000-06:00

From the New York Observer...

"Teri Everett, News Corp’s top PR person, is leaving. The reason given? From the News Corp press release...“The past decade has, without a doubt, been the highlight of my career,” commented Ms. Everett. “News Corp. executives are a peerless group and I will miss them immensely. I will always be grateful to Rupert and Chase for their support over the years and am thrilled that Julie will be succeeding me. While it may be a tired cliché, I am ready for something new.”

I would be ready for something new too, if my job was to try to spin the news coming out of England these days. Imagine if every morning you picked up the newspaper, there was a story about one of your company's employees getting arrested.

A Lucrative Bankruptcy

2012-01-31T07:42:00.000-06:00

Who says that bankruptcy doesn't pay? Tell that to the lawyers working on the Tribune bankruptcy case. Their current bill, just for the legal bills, is $231 million.

You read that correctly: $231 million.

But to be fair, it's not like they are gouging the Tribune. Only $212.9 million of that is for actual legal work. The other $17.8 million is for expenses. Oh, and by the way, for that money, they still have no resolution.

Gee, I wonder why?

Cubs 365, January 31

2012-01-31T06:51:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1931, Mr. Cub, Ernie Banks was born. 22 years later he became the first African American player to play for the Chicago Cubs.

The way he became a Cub is almost a fluke. At the end of the 1953 season, Gene Baker was called up to be the first African-American Cubs player. Ernie was signed shortly thereafter from the Kansas City Monarchs. They signed Ernie strictly because they needed another black player to room with Baker. If they didn’t have Baker, they wouldn't have signed Banks. They honestly had no idea what they were getting in Banks, either. One of the Cubs coaches, Ray Blades, gave Ernie a book called "How to play baseball" even though he had hit .380 for the Monarchs.

Banks only got in the lineup first because Baker was hurt (he got into a game three days later). At the time, inserting Banks into the lineup was a very controversial move, because shortstop was considered a "thinking man's" position, and Banks was the first African-American in Major League history to play shortstop on a regular basis.

Needless to say, it worked out just fine.

Waveland Bowl

2012-01-30T09:12:00.000-06:00

Ever since "The Living Wills" was released in December, we've been hearing from Chicagoans who love all the Chicagoland locations in the book. One of the main locations is an actual bowling alley on Western Avenue in Chicago. It's called "Waveland Bowl".

Well, no one was more excited to have a novel taking place at Waveland Bowl than the owner of the establishment. He has given us free bowling coupons to give out with every new purchase of the hard copy (not e-book) version of "The Living Wills".

Thanks so much Waveland Bowl! And, of course, get your hard copy of "The Living Wills" exclusively at eckhartzpress.com

A Fine Mess

2012-01-30T08:20:00.003-06:00

The good people at SHORE Magazine have given me my own column. Beginning with this current issue of SHORE, there will be a Rick Kaempfer column in every issue. They asked me to come up with a name for the column that describes my "everyman" attempts at slogging through life.

It will be called "A Fine Mess".

There are no restrictions to what I can write about, although it won't be about the kids (I already have a column for that). I'm generally going to tie in to the theme of each issue. This first issue's theme is food.

Here is the debut column of "A Fine Mess"

Cubs 365, January 30

2012-01-30T08:20:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1904, Andy Frain was born. Frain's first job was in the stockyards, but he quickly discovered that he had the skill of keeping peace. He approached the owner of the Blackhawks first, and after he did a good job for them, he pitched his services to William Wrigley, the owner of the Chicago Cubs.

The year was 1928, and Wrigley Field was known as a place that ushers would take bribes to allow people into the good seats. Frain offered to give back Mr. Wrigley's money if he wasn't completely satisfied with his performance as an usher. Wrigley was so impressed he hired Frain to run the entire show, and gave him $5000 for uniforms.

Those uniforms became his company's trademark.

In the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, the Notre Dame blue and gold Andy Frain uniforms were on hand at every major sporting event in Chicago, including football, baseball, and hockey games. They also kept the peace at political conventions, the Kentucky Derby, and more.

Here are a few tips for keeping the peace, directly from the mouth of Andy Frain...

*"Never trust a man with a mustache or a man who carries an umbrella"

*"No muscle is gonna clip me. I never had a nickel. Finally after a lot of hard work I made something of myself. They're gonna take that away from me?"

*"Ninety percent of the public wants somethin' for nothin'. When you run a big sports event, every one of those seats is there to be cracked. They throw every gimmick in the book at you."

*"The only color I'm interested in is the color of the customer's ticket."

*"There's nothing like a six-footer in uniform to control a panicky crowd. Besides that, a tough guy isn't so likely to give you an argument if you're lookin' down on him. That's psychology."

*"Never let a standee sit down. Once they sit down, you can't get 'em up."

Andy died in 1964. His sons carried on the company until 1982 when they sold it to a group of investors from Cleveland. The people that bought it went belly up a few years later and the Frain brothers repurchased the company once again. They finally sold it off for good in 1991.

Will the Nook save Barnes & Noble?

2012-01-30T08:10:00.000-06:00

That's the question the New York Times is asking.

I have another question: If you have a Nook, have you checked out this page?

Rupert's in Even Deeper Doo Doo

2012-01-30T07:08:00.000-06:00

You may have missed this story over the weekend, but it's getting even deeper for Rupert Murdoch in England. Five more people were arrested in the police bribery investigation, including a police officer and four journalists from Rupert's tabloids.

Yesterday police searched the offices of Rupert's headquarters in the UK, and the homes of all those arrested. (The New York Times has the details)

This story is not going away, even if he settles with the aggrieved parties of the phone hacking (which he has been doing quietly). This scandal goes much deeper than that.

Jean Shepherd, part 2

2012-01-30T07:02:00.000-06:00

Last week I wrote a post about a tribute to Jean Sheppard, the late writer/narrator of the movie "A Christmas Story", and I got this e-mail from another Jean Shepherd fan, "KR"...

Rick, here are some links to Jean Shepherd CD's & DVD's: flicklives.com and sheptapes.com. I have 6 VHS tapes that I got from this guy about twenty years ago. "The Great American Fourth of July and other Disasters" and "The Phantom of the Open Hearth" are really funny. Matt Dillon is Ralph in The Fourth of July. It was made in 1982 and was on PBS. It's a great website about Jean Shepherd."

There you go, Jean Shepherd fans.

Facebook IPO

2012-01-30T06:48:00.001-06:00

A Facebook IPO is supposedly on the docket for this week. The company is currently being valued at $100 billion. You read that right, $100 billion. A hundred thousand millions.

You buyin' it?

Father Knows Nothing

2012-01-29T11:18:00.000-06:00

This week's Father Knows Nothing has been posted. It's called "The Joy of Defeating Dad".

You can read it here.

Cubs 365, January 29

2012-01-29T11:16:00.000-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1915 one of the best pitchers of the Cubs dynasty, Big Ed Reulbach, hung up his MLB spikes so he could sign with the new upstart Federal League. After starring in the Federal League, he came back to the National League with the Boston Braves (1916 and 1917), but wasn't nearly the pitcher he once was.

During his years with the Cubs, Ed was a superstar. It seemed that Ed always saved his best performances for the most crucial games. He pitched a one-hitter in the 1906 World Series against the White Sox (one of only 5 one-hitters in World Series history). In 1907 he won another World Series game for the Cubs. In 1908 he did something truly remarkable; he pitched two shutouts in one day! Those late September games against Brooklyn were crucial to the Cubs pennant hopes. He was rewarded for his heroic performance by being given the ball for Game 1 of the 1908 World Series, which he also won.

His final World Series appearance for the Cubs came in Game 3 of the series against the Philadelphia Athletics in 1910. Big Ed's luck run out that day, as the A's beat the Cubs 12-5 at West Side Grounds.

Ed was the last surviving member of the last World Series Champion Cubs team when he passed away at age 79 in 1961.

Chicago Radio Spotlight: Brendan Sullivan

2012-01-28T08:56:00.000-06:00

This week's Chicago Radio Spotlight interview is with former Brandmeier producer/writer Brendan Sullivan. You can read it here.

Coming next week: Captain Whammo!

Cubs 365, January 28

2012-01-28T08:53:00.003-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1967, the Chicago Cubs had the first pick in the amateur draft. Most of the teams in the league agreed the top two picks were outfielder Ken Singleton and catcher Carlton Fisk. The Cubs disagreed with most teams.

They chose a pitcher instead; an 18-year-old high schooler from California. His name was Al Distaso. The Cubs considered him the second coming of Don Drysdale. He didn't have Drysdale's size or fastball, but he did resemble him physically. And at first, he showed some promise. In his first two minor league seasons he struck out 225 in just over 300 innings.

But he also hurt his elbow, and by the time spring training rolled around in 1969, he wasn't the same pitcher. Leo Durocher took a chance he could rediscover the magic, and named him the 10th man on the pitching staff going into the season. Al debuted on April 20th against the Expos and pitched two scoreless innings.

He came in again on April 22nd, but this time he wasn't facing the Expos. He was facing the fearsome Pittsburgh Pirates. Richie Hebner, Matty Alou, Roberto Clemente, and Willie Stargell all got hits against Al in what turned out to be his final major league appearance.

He was sent down to the minors after that and never returned.

But Al found a higher calling after leaving baseball for good in 1970. He became a police officer; a decorated homicide detective in the roughest neighborhood of Los Angeles. Al retired from the force in 1994, and as a gift for the other guys in his unit, he presented all of them with a copy of his 1969 Cubs Rookie card.

Al Distaso passed away in 2009.

RIP Epstein

2012-01-27T09:46:00.000-06:00

I'll admit that I had a moment of panic this morning when I heard on the radio that Epstein died unexpectedly. I thought they were referring to Theo.

Nope. It was Robert Hegyes, who played Epstein on Welcome Back Kotter.

Here's the final "Welcome Back Kotter" reunion...

Rupert History

2012-01-27T09:11:00.000-06:00

This is an excellent piece about Rupert Murdoch from "The Age" in Australia. The title of the article is "How an unpretentious charmer became fixated on a conspiracy of liberals"

It's a great summary of how Rupert became who he is today, and what that means to the world's media landscape.

Highly recommended.

Cubs 365, January 27

2012-01-27T07:03:00.000-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1982, the Cubs acquired veteran shortstop Larry Bowa from the Philadelphia Phillies for Ivan DeJesus. The Phillies also threw in a minor league infielder to sweeten the deal. (Photo)

His name escapes me at the moment. I need to check how his career turned out.

Jean Sheppard

2012-01-27T07:01:00.000-06:00

The only thing I knew about Jean Sheppard is that he was the writer and narrator of one of my all-time favorite movies "A Christmas Story".

I didn't know he was from Indiana, or that he was a major radio star in New York, or that he inspired the likes of Jerry Seinfeld and Keith Olbermann. I also didn't know that he died in 1999.

I only know it now because I read this story in the NWI Times about him, and the tribute that was done for him in New York.

Sounds like he led a fascinating life.

The Ronnie Wood Show

2012-01-27T06:47:00.000-06:00

A new syndicated radio show is coming to America, and this time it's coming from across the pond. Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood has got his own radio show. From this morning's RAMP newsletter...

"Premiere imports The Ronnie Wood Show to North America. Already an award-winning series over in the U.K., this new-to-us offering stars the famed musician, known for his time with The Birds, The Jeff Beck Group, Faces and The Rolling Stones, as he plays some cool tracks, has some musical friends stop by and shares some stories from his career -- and given his history, those tales definitely should be entertaining. Plus, he might just break out his guitar and strum a few chords while on the air! "I'm so excited to have my own radio show in America," Wood said in a cool English accent. "I love going down the archives every week playing some of my favorite music of all time while reminiscing and taking a trip down memory lane. It's more than a music show, it's an education, so sit back and enjoy the ride!"

Ronnie Wood was a guest on the Loop way back when I worked there, and I remember one thing about that interview. I couldn't understand a word he was saying.

The American Breed

2012-01-26T09:23:00.000-06:00

I already mentioned (a few items below this) that today is the 45th anniversary of that 1967 blizzard in Chicago. What I didn't realize, until I read Bob Dearborn's The Olde Disc Jockey's Almanac, was that the blizzard is responsible for something else...

January 26, 1967…The American Breed was signed by ACTA Records after the label president saw them perform while he was stuck in Chicago during a blizzard.

Remember the American Breed? They had one hit, but it was a big one. Check out the drummer in this video. I've seen bad lip-synching before, but never such atrocious fake drumming. He's not even coming close to the drum kit.

Why not Chicago?

2012-01-26T09:09:00.000-06:00

Reader "BP", a HUGE Springsteen fan, answers my question about why Bruce Springsteen is not coming to Chicago on his upcoming tour...

"Funny you mention the bypassing of Chicago on the first leg of Bruce’s latest US Tour. There has been this “Bruce hates Chicago” conspiracy theory floating around for a few years now.

I can say, as a veteran of at least a dozen Chicago Springsteen shows dating back to 1981, that this is nonsense. I’ve seen Bruce in Chicago, Wisconsin, and Indiana as well as New Jersey, Boston, New York, Rhode Island and North Carolina. The Chicago shows have been every bit as good as the others. That said, Springsteen’s popularity has waned in the Midwest and South over the last two decades (one of the reasons I have made trips to Boss hotbeds like Jersey and, believe it or not, North Carolina to see him with the rabid fans). In Europe, however, Bruce is more popular than ever. For proof, check out the Hyde Park DVD or better yet, Live in Dublin, where the crowd sings along to songs with the passion of an 80s Springsteen stadium concert.

By the way, it looks like the reason Chicago is not on the first leg is because Springsteen is saving Chicago for a Wrigley Field show in September. If Springsteen does play Wrigley in the fall, it will be the most important event at the Friendly Confines in September since 1984.

Here is the story in the Sun Times. Can someone ask the good folks at the Sun Times to update their stock photos of Springsteen?"

Ooh. Springsteen at Wrigley. Now that sounds like a good idea to me.

Newt's Truth

2012-01-26T07:56:00.001-06:00

Remember when Newt Gingrich went off on the media for daring to ask him about the "open marriage" claim of his second ex-wife?

In his moment of sanctimony he even suggested that this was a hit job on ABC's part because he had offered witnesses to rebut the ex-wife's testimony, but ABC wanted no part in telling his side of the story.

Well, it turns out he didn't offer witnesses at all. His campaign quietly admitted that yesterday.

Whoops. Easy mistake. Anyone could have made it during a moment of completely fake anger.

Bruce on Tour Again

2012-01-26T07:43:00.000-06:00

Bruce Springsteen has a new album coming out on March 6, and is going on tour with the E-street Band shortly thereafter (without Clarence Clemons for the first time).

Unfortunately, the first leg of the tour does not include Chicago. The closest he's coming to Chicago is Detroit. Full details are here. Hopefully after he returns from Europe, he'll make another tour of the U.S. that will include a date in this little inconsequential city in the middle of our country.

The Blizzard of 1967

2012-01-26T07:28:00.000-06:00

It happened 45 years ago today, and it's still the most legendary blizzard in Chicago history because it took us all by surprise.

The full story is here.

RIP Dick Tufeld

2012-01-26T06:58:00.000-06:00

You probably don't recognize his name, but you do recognize his most famous phrase: "Danger Will Robinson". Dick was the voice of the Lost in Space robot.

His obituary is in the LA Times this morning.

Cubs 365, January 26

2012-01-26T06:43:00.000-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1932, Cubs owner William Wrigley Jr. passed away. It was a great loss for the Cubs, not only because Wrigley was a savvy businessman. He was also the last owner before Tom Ricketts that LOVED baseball. This is William Wrigley in his own words, in Time Magazine in 1930...

"Outside of school hours, when I was a boy in Philadelphia, I worked for my father. This seemed to me a cruel conspiracy of the fates. He was a kind man, but he belonged to a generation which was work-minded. Baseball was nothing to him. My work took me directly past the ball park of the Nationals (the Phillies). That was the trouble! I hadn’t a chance in the world to get away to the ball game on any of the familiar alibis. The near relatives of my boy friends were buried regularly on ball game days. No use to tell my employer of the imaginary funeral in my family, for he was my father and had the death statistics of the family down to the minute. No other excuses worked. Whenever I came to the ball park and heard the wild cheering within, I was in a state of rebellion. One day when the cheering was particularly wild in the park, I resolved that one day I would own a ball team and a ball park. My interest in the game has never relaxed for one instant from that moment to this.”

On his deathbed, William Wrigley made his son Phillip promise never to sell the team. Even though Phillip didn't much care about baseball, he honored his father's wish, and held on to the Cubs until his own death in 1977.

Under the son, the Cubs atrophied and became the worst team in baseball, but they still played, and continue to play in the stadium that is named after his father; baseball lover William Wrigley.

Eddie & Jobo: The Movie

2012-01-25T11:39:00.000-06:00

More inspired brilliance from Jeff Hoover and Mike Toomey at the WGN-TV Morning News.

Eddie & Jobo, the Movie.

In Defense of the Suburbs

2012-01-25T10:39:00.000-06:00

My weekly Suburban Dad contribution to the City Mom blog at ChicagoNow has been posted. This week's is called "In Defense of the Suburbs".

You can read it here.

Cubs Prospects

2012-01-25T08:25:00.000-06:00

When was the last time the Cubs had four prospects ranked in the top ten in all of baseball (at their positions)?

Right now, we've got the #1 first base prospect Anthony Rizzo (and the #10 1B prospect, Dan Vogelbach), the #5 outfield prospect Brett Jackson, and the #8 shortstop prospect (Javier Baez). And, thanks to our crappy 2011, we'll have a very high draft choice this year too.

It's going to take some time, but I really think these new guys are doing it the right way.

Is Rupert Really Tweeting?

2012-01-25T08:08:00.000-06:00

It seems like the tweets are real to me, but I have to admit I'm a Twitter novice.

This writer from PC World has looked at the tweets, and claims there is no way that Rupert is doing the tweets himself.

Are all of Rupert's Twitter followers (including me) being duped?

Cubs 365, January 25

2012-01-25T07:00:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1983, the Cubs made a rare blockbuster trade with the crosstown White Sox. The Cubs gave up Scott Fletcher, Randy Martz, Pat Tabler and Dick Tidrow and received Steve Trout and Warren Brusstar in return.

This was one of those rare good trades for the Cubs. Fletcher became the starting second baseman for the White Sox, but the Cubs had another youngster at that position named Sandberg. Tidrow was a serviceable reliever for the Sox, but he was near the end of his career.

Meanwhile, Steve Trout, the son of a man who had beaten the Cubs in the 1945 World Series, somehow became a fan favorite at Wrigley Field. In 1984 he was part of a great rotation that led the team to the brink of the World Series. In his only postseason start, Trout even won Game 2 of that series in Wrigley Field.

Apple Doesn't Miss A Beat

2012-01-25T06:54:00.000-06:00

Yes, they lost Steve Jobs, but they didn't lose their magic touch. Apple had an unbelievable fourth quarter, and now according to the LA Times, they have $97.6 billion in the bank.

That's cash. $97.6 billion. Did I mention it was cash?

Making the Rounds

2012-01-24T10:59:00.000-06:00

When Brendan and I did our interview on WGN-TV last week we had no idea it would make the rounds like it has. It hasn't just aired here in Chicago, it's all over the country including Fox 59 Indianapolis, WTVR Richmond, KCPQ-Seattle, Fox 17 Grand Rapids, KTXL Sacramento, WPIX New York, KTUU Alaska , WGNO New Orleans, WPMT York/Harrisburg/Lebanon/Lancaster, KWCH Kansas City, KDAF Dallas Fort Worth, KTVI St. Louis, My Fox 8 Greensboro/Winston-Salem, WPHL Philadelphia, KDVR Denver, WJW Cleveland, KTSU Utah, Fox 6 Milwaukee, WHNT Huntsville Alabama, Fox 5 San Diego, and many more.

Please disregard everything I wrote in my novel "$everance". This media consolidation thing is better than I thought.

Reader Reviews for "The Living Wills"

2012-01-24T10:24:00.000-06:00

We've literally received hundreds of responses from people who have read and enjoyed "The Living Wills". Here are a few of them...

"I downloaded a copy of the book on my e-reader (NOOK), and I just finished reading it. This is one of the best books I read in an awfully long time. I lived 1/2 block from Waveland Bowling Alley. I bowled in 4 leagues every week for about 3 years and traveled that neighborhood for 11 years. It brought back so many memories, people I bowled with, things that happen after bowling, having coffee in their coffee shop, etc. You did a great job in taking us around the northwest side of the city via the various street names. The way the individual stories came together and, of course, the last chapter. My only regret is that I bought it as an e-book and therefore can't get it autographed."
--John S.

"I absolutely loved this book! I enjoyed everything about it - the characters, the storylines, and how it all fits together in the end. It took a few chapters for me to really get into it, and then I didn't want to put it down. I cried when I finished it, but mostly because it was over. The story illustrates how connected our lives really are to so many other people, and in ways that we may not even realize. I read Rick Kaempfer's first novel, "$everance", and I liked that one too, but this one was even better! I would love to see more books from this team of authors - keep it up, guys!!"
--Chocoholic mom

""The Living Wills" is a wonderful story of the meaning of family and friendship in life. This book especially strikes a chord if you're from Chicago, but I would think that any reader would identify with at least one of the main characters, their problems, joys and relationships. Highly recommended!"
--Dina S.

"I am an avid reader across many genre. I enjoy taking diverse ideas and rubbing them together to see how I might surprise myself and learn something new, feel something different. The Living Wills is a terrific story that does the same thing between its covers. I laughed, I cried, I thought deeply, and I have taken action based on the wonderful and realistic story. This is a magnificent book for adults and particularly those of us who are into the second half of our lives or who know someone who is. It gives new insights into how to measure the meaning of one's life - whether in its entirety or just two seconds."
--Gil H.

"I absolutely loved this book! I loved the characters, the storylines, and especially how the stories all came together at the end. I also laughed and cried, and was sad when I finished the book. I would love to read more books by these two authors. Keep writing, guys!!!"
--Carol R.

Beatles Anniversary

2012-01-24T09:45:00.000-06:00

Exactly 50 years ago today, the Beatles took it to the next level. From Bob Dearborn's The Olde Disc Jockey's Almanac...

"January 24, 1962…Brian Epstein signed with the Beatles as their manager. George and Paul's fathers had to sign for their sons, who were still minors. According to the terms of the agreement, Epstein was to get 25 percent of the group's earnings, provided they made more than $400 each per week."

I think they did manage to eclipse that $400 mark once or twice.

Analyzing the Content of CBS Comedies

2012-01-24T08:32:00.000-06:00

This AP piece makes the claim that CBS comedies have become quite raunchy. Maybe it's just me, but I got a kick out of this description...

"There was a strip club visit on "How I Met Your Mother," lap dance included. The stars of "2 Broke Girls" mistakenly believed an upstairs neighbor ran a brothel. "Two and a Half Men" included jokes about masturbation, oral sex, sex with moms, trading cigarettes for sex and two scenes with loud noises of passion from behind closed doors. A quick count found 53 sex jokes on the network's four comedies, which includes "Mike & Molly." There were also nine jokes about flatulence or bowel movements, and two scenes where marijuana use was clearly implied — one with a teen-age boy and the other with an older woman."

I don't really watch those comedies, but just reading the descriptions of them made me laugh. Isn't that what comedy is supposed to do?

And the nominees are...

2012-01-24T07:57:00.001-06:00

They were announced early this morning.

Complete list is here.

Looks like I need to get to the movies. I haven't seen any of them.

E-Readers

2012-01-24T07:43:00.000-06:00

According to this piece at paidcontent.org, ownership of tablets and e-readers doubled over the Holiday season this year.

That's incredible.

There must be quite a few people out there looking for something to read on their e-readers. Luckily for you, I've got a suggestion for every kind of e-reader. If you've got a Kindle, I heard this book is an excellent choice.

If you have an iPad, this one may be more your style.

I understand that Nook readers might prefer this book.

And finally, I'm not 100% sure about this one, but based on the five star reviews I've been reading, this is probably your best option if you own a Sony e-reader.

No charge for the tip.

Only $3.99 for the book. That's really almost stealing it, isn't it?

Bloodiest Campaign Ever

2012-01-24T07:29:00.000-06:00

New York Magazine used Photoshop to represent the bloody nasty presidential campaign we're in the midst of, and will surely see until November.

Click here to see it.

At that link you'll also see a Bloomberg Business Week cover that they decided not to use. It's the same general concept.

Cubs 365, January 24

2012-01-24T06:50:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1916, Hall of Fame Cubs broadcaster Jack Brickhouse was born. Jack was the man that had to describe the play of play of a Cubs team that went twenty seasons in a row without being in the upper division.

There were bright spots, though, and Jack was always able to find them. Just like his favorite player on the Cubs during that era, Ernie Banks...

The Catalyst Ranch

2012-01-23T10:53:00.000-06:00

I've mentioned this event a few times before, but I'm publishing the entire write up from the Catalyst Ranch's website here one more time, because the event is tomorrow...

Don't Miss Our Match Books Event
THE LIVING WILLS by Brendan Sullivan & Rick Kaempfer
Tuesday, January 24th from 6pm-8pm

One novel, two authors!? Creativity coach Brendan Sullivan wants to show you how he used the same techniques he brings to clients like Kelloggs, PepsiCo, GE and Harley-Davidson (think improv, mind mapping and other ideation processes) to create a new novel with co-author Rick Kaempfer. Much of the work was done during sessions right here at the Ranch! Join us as Brendan & Rick share these techniques with you and demonstrate how you can incorporate them into your life and work to be more creatively productive. Rick Kogan of the Chicago Tribune calls THE LIVING WILLS "rollicking and real on so many levels." This Match Books session is not to be missed!

Date: Tuesday, January 24th from 6pm-8pm
Location: Catalyst Ranch
Cost: $15 or 2 new children's books (all proceeds donated to Open Books). Light refreshments will be served. (Eckhartz Press note: We're bringing beer)
RSVP from our Happenings Page. If you are bringing books please RSVP to amber@catalystranch.com.
Click here to visit our blog: Interview with Brendan Sullivan & Rick Kaempfer on their new book The Living Wills.

Rupert's Successor

2012-01-23T10:17:00.000-06:00

With all the problems being faced by Rupert and his sons, the talk over who will replace Rupert someday soon (he is in his 80s) is focusing on a man named Chase Carey.

Carey is already running the day to day operations of the company (according to this New York Times piece), and he has one thing going for him that no-one else in the company has.

A world-class hall-of-fame-caliber mustache.

Cubs 365, January 23

2012-01-23T08:51:00.003-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1927, Cubs radio announcer Jack Quinlan was born. He was the radio play by play man for the Cubs for nearly a decade, starting in the mid-1950s. When he first began there were several stations covering the Cubs, and he handled the honors for WIND-AM.

Beginning in 1957, he moved over to what became the exclusive flagship station of the Cubs, WGN. Jack was at the microphone during both of Ernie Banks' MVP seasons, and was the first Cubs radio announcer to mention the names of future Hall of Famers Billy Williams, Lou Brock and Ron Santo.

Jack Quinlan was a master of painting a picture with his words, and when he died in a car crash after a golf outing during Spring Training 1965, the Cubs lost one of the best. Since 1967 a charity golf tournament in his name is staged every year to benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago.

JRL on WLS

2012-01-23T08:49:00.000-06:00

This news came out on Friday, and I posted it on my Facebook page, but not here: John Records Landecker has been named the full-time night host on WLS-FM. He'll be doing the 6-11pm shift.

Unfortunately, giving John that shift also means moving Dick Biondi to the 11pm-2am shift. That has gotten quite a few people upset. The radio message boards at Radio-Info.com and at Larz' Chicagolandradio and media (and the comments section at Robert Feder's column) are full of people complaining about the treatment Biondi is receiving--and a lot of them are blaming John.

To me, that's totally unfair. When John was let go by WLS a few years ago, there was no uproar against Greg Brown for taking his job. (Even John wasn't upset with Greg...that wouldn't have made sense...Greg needed a job at the time.) In this case, John is the one that has been sitting on the sidelines for several years. And he's returning to the shift that made him famous, saying the call letters that made him famous. Is he really supposed to turn that down?

I understand people being upset that Dick is being moved to a different shift...especially at his age (nearly 80). But I truly don't get why people are mad at John for that.

Rick & Brendan on "The Sunday Papers"

2012-01-22T10:07:00.002-06:00

Thanks so much to Rick Kogan (photo) of WGN for having us on the show this morning to discuss "The Living Wills"

Kogan has obviously endorsed the book previously (his blurb is on the book jacket), but he had much more to say about it during the interview this morning.

You can hear that interview here.

Father Knows Nothing

2012-01-22T09:24:00.000-06:00

This week's Father Knows Nothing column is called "Shopping List Revenge".

You can read it here.

Cubs 365, January 22

2012-01-22T09:20:00.000-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1945, future Cubs pitcher Jophery Brown was born. The story of Jophery Brown's Cubs career is a short one. He pitched exactly two innings of one game on a Saturday afternoon, September 21, 1968, at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.

Joe Niekro started that game for the Cubs against the Pirates, but he simply didn't have it. He gave up four runs in the fourth inning, so Cubs manager Leo Durocher sent Brown out to start the 5th inning.

The first batter he faced was Maury Wills. Wills singled to center. Freddie Patek batted second, and he sacrificed Wills to second base. Brown must not have felt too comfortable on the mound with Matty Alou, Roberto Clemente, and Don Clendenon due up next, but he buckled down, and got Alou to fly harmlessly to left field.

That brought up future Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente. There was no question what had to be done in this situation. Cubs catcher Randy Hundley held up four fingers, and Brown intentionally walked the fierce Pittsburgh slugger to face Don Clendenon.

If you mention the name Clendenon to Brown today, it would probably still elicit a groan from him, because Clendenon singled to left, driving in Maury Wills. That run turned out to be the only one given up by Jophery Brown in his big league career.

Brown pitched one more year in the minors after that, developed arm trouble, and retired from the game at the ripe old age of 24.

But Jophery Brown certainly didn't go quietly. Even during his minor league career he had dabbled in Hollywood, working as a stuntman for the television series "I Spy" (starring Bill Cosby). When his baseball career was officially over, he returned to Hollywood and was soon working steadily.

Among his 117 feature films and television shows, Jophery Brown has done stunts for "Live and Let Die," "Papillon," "Smokey and the Bandit," "Convoy," "Foul Play," "The Blues Brothers," "Vacation," "Scarface," "To Live and Die in LA," "Die Hard," "Speed," "Get Shorty" and all three "Lethal Weapon" movies.

In 2006, he was interviewed about his stuntman career by the Las Vegas Review Journal...

Jophery Brown worked during the time before computer-generated graphics came along or before greater emphasis was placed on stunt safety. Working in the early 1970s meant, as a stuntman, you had to rely on your physical abilities more than anything else, he says. "You're an athlete. You couldn't be a stuntperson without being an athlete," he says. "You've got to have a degree of insanity to do this. But you didn't want crazy stuntpeople. They get you hurt." Still, "something hurts me every day," says Jophery Brown, who is semiretired and will double only for Morgan Freeman these days. In the past, he has doubled for dozens of actors, including Danny Glover, Gregory Hines, Mr. T and Denzel Washington.

The many famous people on Jophery Brown's "Brushes with Greatness" list are truly astounding, but if you asked him which celebrity impressed him the most, would it be one of those Hollywood legends with stars on the Walk of Fame, or would it be one of his teammates with plaques in Baseball's Hall of Fame?

Hall of Famer Billy Williams played left field behind him and threw the ball back to the infield after Clendenon's RBI hit. Ron Santo was at third base. Fergie Jenkins was a fellow member of Brown's pitching staff. Mr. Cub himself, Ernie Banks, was the heart and soul of that 1968 team. Even the manager of the Cubs, Leo Durocher, was a future Hall of Famer.

That's not to say that Brown's Hollywood career hasn't been remarkable, because it surely has. But how many players in MLB history managed to play only two innings in the big leagues, and can still say they played for a Hall of Famer, played with four Hall of Famers, and pitched to another Hall of Famer?

I'm betting Jophery Brown has told that story to his Hollywood friends more than a few times, and even they were impressed.

Chicago Radio Spotlight: Steve Cochran and Brian Noonan

2012-01-21T07:37:00.001-06:00

They used to work at the same radio station, but not any more. This week I interviewed WIND's Steve Cochran and WGN's Brian Noonan.

You can read the interviews here.

Cubs 365, January 21

2012-01-21T07:34:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1899, Lew Fonseca was born. Fonseca went on to become a major league player and manager. In 12 big league seasons he played first base, second base and left field for the Reds, Phillies, Indians, and White Sox. As a manager, he led the White Sox to one of their worst seasons of all time in 1932. They finished that year 49-102.

After his playing/managing career ended, he settled in Chicago and became one of the early radio announcers for the Chicago Cubs.

Listen for his play-by-play in this montage of very early Cubs announcers.

Lew Fonseca is buried in the same cemetery (All Saints in Des Plaines) as another famous Cubs announcer, Harry Caray.

Coming this weekend

2012-01-20T09:26:00.001-06:00

This weekend I'll be re-interviewing Steve Cochran and Brian Noonan for Chicago Radio Spotlight, Cubs 365 will chronicle a Cubs announcer from the 1930s and a Cubs reliever that made it in Hollywood, and a new Father Knows Nothing column will be a surprise to both of us.

Rick and Brendan on the Radio

2012-01-20T09:26:00.000-06:00

If you're up early on Sunday morning, tune in to WGN-AM 720. Brendan and I will be appearing on Rick Kogan's show at 7:30. Rick is quoted on the front cover of The Living Wills ("Rollicking and real on so many levels"), so we're excited to be on his show to thank him for that in person.

News Corp Scandal Grows

2012-01-20T08:38:00.001-06:00

A judge in the case has received "startling e-mails" from a whistleblower, about an attempt at News Corp to destroy all e-mail evidence.

Senior Employee Laptops have been ordered searched.

That's never a good thing.

Then there's this. Now that News Corp has admitted hacking Jude Law's phone while he was in the United States, the FBI is officially opening an investigation.

That's really never a good thing.

Newt Gingrich Appalled at Despicable Media

2012-01-20T08:30:00.002-06:00

Did you see the debate on CNN last night? John King opened with a question about Newt's ex-wife claiming he asked for an open marriage, and Newt went off on him. The audience loved it. They gave him a standing ovation.

Newt called it "as close to despicable as anything I've ever heard". Notice he didn't say "as close to despicable as anything I've ever done". That's what the question was about in the first place.

Obama sings

2012-01-20T08:01:00.000-06:00

The Reverend Al Green was in attendance at a speech President Obama gave last night, and the president launched into a very respectable version of Al's most famous song.

Watch it here.

The dude can sing.

"The Artist"

2012-01-20T07:48:00.000-06:00

I found this article pretty hilarious.

Apparently, some people attending the film "The Artist" have been asking for their money back because they didn't know it was a silent film.

I know where the film producers made their mistake here. The last silent movie I saw in the theater was done by Mel Brooks. His fans weren't caught off guard, probably because of the title he chose for that film: "Silent Movie"

Here's a scene from that movie...

Cubs 365, January 20

2012-01-20T07:00:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1983, Cubs general manager Dallas Green acquired a player that he thought would be the cornerstone of a Cubs World Series team. His name was Ron Cey, and he holds the distinction of being the last Cub to sign a contract that included an attendance clause. (It's hard to believe that was ever necessary, but those of us who lived through those dark days remember it well)

He had a couple of good years with the Cubs in the mid 80s (including 97 RBI in the division winning season of '84), but he really didn't have much range anymore at 3B. By this stage of his career, his squatty body and bushy mustache got in the way of any ball hit directly at him, but anything else was ticketed for left field.

After the 1987 season he was traded for a lesser bat with a lesser mustache, Luis Quinones.

Fergie Speaks

2012-01-20T06:57:00.000-06:00

He was in Canada, being honored by the Canadian Hall of Fame (did you know they have a Fergie Jenkins stamp in Canada?), and was asked about Theo Epstein and the Cubs.

He said: "I really don't know what to take of him yet. I tried to get a meeting with him and he was really busy. He's young. He's never put a jockstrap on though. See that's the thing."

The whole article is here. He did go on to say nice things about Theo too, but I suspect that one quote will make it to the desk of Theo.

Modern Family cussing

2012-01-19T09:09:00.000-06:00

I know the show "Modern Family" is not everyone's cup of tea, but I'm a big fan. We've been watching it together as a family even though some of the subject matter is a little racy at times. I figure that my boys will not be damaged...they're 16, 13, and 9 (and the 9-year-old is the most mature of the bunch).

I thought last night's episode was particularly funny, but apparently not everyone agrees.

The show has been receiving complaints because a toddler on the show last night was swearing. It was bleeped and pixilated, but that wasn't enough for anti-profanity crusaders. (That's someone's #1 issue? There's such a thing as anti-profanity crusaders?)

It was such an innocuous story line, I'm shocked that people are upset. Is there a parent in America that hasn't faced a similar issue in real life? When Tommy was a baby, his gibberish routinely involved a smattering of the 'f' sound. There were several occasions when the fully formed 'f' word just happened to spill out--at family gatherings or in public.

We were horrified. Everyone else thought it was hilarious.

Good thing we don't hang with any anti-profanity crusaders.

Leslie Gore on Batman

2012-01-19T08:14:00.000-06:00

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

January 19, 1967…Lesley Gore appeared as Catwoman's sidekick, Pussycat, singing "California Nights," on ABC-TV's "Batman."

I remember this episode well. I think I may have experienced some of my first impure thoughts when I saw this the first time a few years later. Between Leslie and Julie Newmar...yikes.

President Clinton

2012-01-19T08:01:00.000-06:00

Awesome interview in Esquire Magazine with former President Clinton.

He gives a great history of why we are where we are in this country, and does a pretty fair dissecting of the way the media works.

Highly recommended.

The Rick and Brendan TV interview

2012-01-19T07:37:00.000-06:00

This is what I love about appearing on WGN-TV this week. The interview has now been posted at places like...

The Tribune

CLTV

Central Kentucky News

Pennsylvania's Fox News

Lehigh Valley, The Morning Call

and

Fox 59 Indianapolis

Cubs 365, January 19

2012-01-19T06:52:00.001-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 2000, the Cubs signed a slugging free agent third baseman to finally, once and for all, solve their long 3B woes.

His name was Willie Greene.

He batted .201 in more than 300 at bats and never played in the big leagues again.

When You Keep Blaming The Media...

2012-01-19T06:51:00.000-06:00

...the media will bite back.

ABC News will air an interview with Newt Gingrich's ex-wife tonight, just a few days before the South Carolina primary.

Time to grab some popcorn.

Timing is Everything

2012-01-19T06:46:00.000-06:00

Just a few weeks ago I appeared on a talk station in Waukegan called WKRS. I had a nice chat with a lady named Kristin Tews about my book "The Living Wills" (and "The Radio Producer's Handbook" which she had also read). Enjoyed it very much.

If I had waited a few weeks to do the interview, it would have been in Spanish. WKRS is becoming ESPN Deportes, a Spanish sports-talk station.

Green White Soccer Club

2012-01-18T13:06:00.000-06:00

One of my many writing projects is putting together the history of the Green White Soccer Club, a club co-founded by my father in 1956.

I've been writing this history year by year, posting a new entry every month. Today I posted 1960, if you're interested.

You can see the following previous years at the site too...

1959

1958

1957

1956

Kids That Are Impossible to Impress

2012-01-18T10:29:00.000-06:00

My weekly Suburban Dad contribution to the City Mom blog has been posted. This week's is called "Kids that are impossible to impress"

You can read it here.

Behind the Scenes at the GOP Debate

2012-01-18T08:21:00.000-06:00

This is a fascinating article in the New York Times. Debate moderator Brett Baier allowed a NY Times reporter to sit in on the debate preparation of Fox News. If you've ever wondered why certain questions were chosen, or how the "sausage is made", this is a great piece.

I would have liked to read more about the behind the scenes discussion of Juan Williams' question to Newt about his racist comments, but that's not in the article. It's mostly about questions for Mitt.

I'm guessing the Juan Williams discussion wasn't considered too controversial by the Fox team before the debate. They certainly weren't preparing for the crowd reaction (booing Juan, standing ovation for Newt), because I'm sure they thought Newt would try to walk those comments back...it was Martin Luther King day after all.

I was surprised that Newt went there too, but I wasn't surprised by the audience reaction. I was in South Carolina this summer and took a tour of Charleston, and they still referred to the Civil War as the "War of Northerly Aggression".

When you travel in that state, you don't go north, south, east or west. You go back in time.

Rupert's Twitter Account

2012-01-18T07:51:00.001-06:00

I've been finding Rupert Murdoch's Twitter account extremely illuminating, and I'm sure I'm not alone. For one thing, I honestly wondered how a bill that nobody wants and nobody is calling for (SOPA) has been making it's way through Congress. That's a bill that will regulate content on the internet and allow the media giants to have more control over it.

Based on these two Rupert tweets, I now know.

"Nonsense argument about danger to Internet. How about Google, others blocking porn, hate speech, etc? Internet hurt?"

"Seems blogosphere has succeeded in terrorizing many senators and congressmen who previously committed. Politicians all the same."

That last line there says it all, doesn't it?

Our Congress is bought and paid for by the likes of Rupert unless the people get angry and make them accountable. It's good to see that at least it still works when people pay attention.

Cubs 365, January 18

2012-01-18T07:06:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1901, the Cubs acquired a catcher/infielder/outfielder named Dirty Jack Doyle. His colorful life story, including his stint with the Cubs, and the origin of his nickname, is told wonderfully by the Baseball Biography Project.

You can read it here.

Lin Brehmer's 20th anniversary

2012-01-18T07:02:00.000-06:00

From this morning's Radio Online...

"CBS' WXRT (93.1FM)/Chicago is proud to announce a special live radio event, Great To Be Alive: Celebrating 20 Years of Lin Brehmer's Morning Show on XRT, airing this Saturday, January 21, 2012 at Noon. This two-hour retrospective will be hosted by a triumvirate of Lin's XRT colleagues: midday DJ and National Radio Hall of Famer, Terri Hemmert; Lin's morning co-host and news anchor, Mary Dixon; and veteran XRT personality-interviewer-festival correspondent, Marty Lennartz.

During the course of Great To Be Alive, we will share insights and excerpts from the past two decades of Lin's daily program, as well as reactions and reflections from noteworthy musicians, celebrities, politicians, and others with whom Lin has crossed paths. Of course, no XRT celebration would be complete without a spirited live set from Chicago's Waco Brothers."

Lin and I were both featured in the book "Cubbie Blues", and I interviewed him once a few years ago (You can read that here), but believe it or not, we've never actually met in person.

I consider him to be a local Chicago treasure.

Celebrity Apprentice

2012-01-18T06:49:00.000-06:00

The lineup for this season's Celebrity Apprentice actually includes a few celebrities this year, which let's face it, doesn't happen that often for this show. (Although, they usually do have more recognizable names than "Dancing with the Stars")

Here's the list: Star Trek's George Takei, podcast king Adam Carolla, Lou "The Incredible Hulk" Ferrigno, Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider, illusionist Penn Jillette, '80s icon Debbie Gibson, singer Clay Aiken, former talk show host Arsenio Hall, Orange Country Choppers' owner Paul Teutel, Sr., comedienne Lisa Lampanelli, original '70s supermodel Cheryl Tiegs, singer Aubrey O'Day, actress Tia Carrere, former Indy car driver turned owner Michael Andretti and a couple of reality TV stars I don't know.

I've heard of 12 of them. That's got to be a new record.

The season begins Sunday, Feb. 19 on NBC.

"The Living Wills" on TV

2012-01-17T13:53:00.002-06:00

You can watch the Rick and Brendan interview at WGN here.

Thanks to Dina Bair from the WGN Midday News for her kind words about the book, and her nice job of interviewing us. It's nice to be interviewed by someone who has actually read the book.

Rick & Brendan on TV

2012-01-17T07:48:00.000-06:00

If you're home today or near a television, click on the WGN Midday News with Steve Sanders at 11:30 or so, and you may see Brendan and me discussing "The Living Wills".

Remember this though, the camera adds up to 30 pounds.

Cubs 365, January 17

2012-01-17T07:14:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1931, future Cubs player and manager Don Zimmer was born. Most modern day Cub fans know the tale of his managing days in Chicago, but not many know about his interesting stint as a Cubs player. In April of 1960, the Cubs made a trade with the reigning World Champion Dodgers to acquire one of their backup infielders. That backup infielder's name was Don Zimmer.

It was one of those moves that caused everyone in the league to scratch their heads. Although Zimmer was a competent enough player (he managed to stay in the majors for twelve seasons), he was coming off a season in which he hit only .165 in nearly 250 at bats. He had very little power, very little range in the infield, and his best days were behind him. Plus, the Dodgers didn't really have a place to play the 29-year-old Zimmer. He clearly wasn't going to crack the lineup in 1960. They had all-star infielders like Charlie Neal (2B), Maury Wills (SS), and Junior Gilliam (3B).

Nevertheless, the Cubs traded promising young minor league pitcher Ron Perranoski (and two other players) to get him.

Plus, the Cubs said they acquired Zimmer to play him at 3B--and they already had a rookie phenom poised to take over the position...a youngster by the name of Ron Santo. Santo was furious when the trade was announced, and threatened to quit. Rather than upset the youngster, the Cubs put Zimmer at Second Base, and traded their fine young second baseman Tony Taylor to the Phillies.

How did this trade work out for the Cubs? Perranoski ended up becoming one of the premier relief pitchers in baseball for the next decade. He pitched in two league championship series, and three World Series, winning two rings with the 1963 and 1965 Dodgers. He also led the league in saves twice, and saved a total 179 games between 1961 and 1971.

Tony Taylor, who was only 24 years old at the time of the trade, played another sixteen years in the majors with the Phillies and the Tigers. When he retired after the 1976 season he was the oldest player in baseball (40 years old). Don Zimmer was the manager of the Boston Red Sox at the time.

Zimmer's Cubs career is probably best remembered for his very public criticism of the ridiculous "College of Coaches" system, which he claimed was stunting the growth of budding superstars Ron Santo, Billy Williams, and Lou Brock. His candor was rewarded with being left unprotected in the expansion draft of 1962.

He was drafted by the New York Mets, and played on the worst team in baseball history.

New Feature at Wrigley

2012-01-17T07:13:00.000-06:00

A patio will be added to Wrigley Field in 2012. It will be in right field, but I can't picture exactly where they are going to put it. Here's what the Tribune article says...

"The patio will seat up to 150 people and have LED signage with the capability to display detailed game information. The Cubs unveiled the new 75-foot LED board during the Cubs Convention over the weekend. The patio will accommodate groups of 50, 100 or 150 people. It's called the Budweiser Patio. Packages will be available for all-inclusive food and beverages. Wally Hayward is a marketing officer for the Cubs. He says the patio will give fans a rooftop experience inside the ballpark."

A rooftop experience inside the ballpark? I thought the rooftop experience was the next best thing to actually being inside the ballpark.

Then again, I'm easily confused.

Approval Ratings

2012-01-17T07:07:00.000-06:00

This new Washington Post poll is an eye opener. These kind of disapproval numbers are unbelievable. The Congress now has a 84% disapproval rating. 84%!

And people wonder why Obama is looking so good for re-election. His disapproval rating is only 47%. That's practically Prom-Queen-popular by comparison.

Then again, if you watched the GOP debates last night and saw the crowd boo the black Fox News moderator for questioning some of Newt's obviously racist statements (like saying that blacks don't appreciate work) on MLK day, and then boo Ron Paul when he mentioned the Golden Rule in applying foreign policy, maybe it's not such a bad thing to have the American public disapprove of you.

If that crowd in South Carolina is indicative of what Americans really want, I wouldn't want them approving of me.

Chicago Writer's Association Awards

2012-01-16T11:08:00.000-06:00

On Saturday night I went to the Chicago Writer's Association Awards at the Book Cellar on Lincoln Avenue in Chicago. Congrats to the winners; James Finn Garner, Christine Sneed, Pamela Ferdinand, and Krista August.

Gaper's Block was there to chronicle the event.

A good time was had by all. You gotta love a place that sells Belgian beer and books; including a certain book co-written by a certain author/writer/blogger. Only five copies of "The Living Wills" were left, by the way. Good to see that it's selling well.

"American Pie" is 40

2012-01-16T10:23:00.000-06:00

New York Daily News writer David Hinckley takes a closer look at the song you couldn't escape during the first few months of 1972: "American Pie" by Don McLean.

It's an interesting article, a good history lesson, and a more critical look at the song than I expected.

Of course, I'll always believe the best analysis of the song was done by my friend (WCFL disc jockey) Bob Dearborn back in the day. You can read his analysis here.

What the World Needs Now

2012-01-16T08:50:00.000-06:00

I post this every year on Martin Luther King Day. This was put together by Detroit disc jockey Tom Clay in 1970. It's very powerful...

Cubs 365, January 16

2012-01-16T08:48:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1910, Dizzy Dean was born. Dean was given his nickname by his sergeant in the army, where he picked up the basics of pitching. He was colorful, exciting, cocky, and the best pitcher in baseball. Unfortunately, that last description only applied to his years before he joined the Cubs in 1938.

His best years were with the Cardinals, where he led the league in strikeouts 4 times, wins twice (including 30 wins one year), innings pitched three times, complete games three times, and even saves once. In 1934, he won the Most Valuable Player award when he led the Cardinals to the World Championship. During those years he was undoubtedly the cockiest player in the game. He once bet he could strike out Vince DiMaggio four times in one game. He struck him out his first three at bats, but when he hit a popup behind the plate at his fourth, Dean screamed at his catcher, "Drop it!, Drop it!" The catcher did and Dean fanned DiMaggio, winning the bet.

He suffered an arm injury, however, and by the time Cubs owner P.K. Wrigley ordered his scouts to acquire Dean at any cost, he was just an ordinary pitcher. They signed him for $185,000 in 1938, which was a huge contract for the time. Dean helped the Cubs win the 1938 National League pennant, and pitched pretty well in Game 2 of the World Series before losing to the New York Yankees in what became known as "Ol' Diz's Last Stand."

After that, he was done. He tried to pitch for the Cubs until 1941, but he just couldn't do it anymore. He retired after that season. That's when he started his second popular career: radio broadcaster. His malapropisms were legendary, and fans loved it. In 1950 he began doing baseball's Game of the Week on national television. He remained in sportscasting for more than 20 years.

Father Knows Nothing

2012-01-15T12:39:00.000-06:00

My latest "Father Knows Nothing" column is entitled "Snow Music".

You can read it here.

Cubs 365, January 15

2012-01-15T12:34:00.003-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1998, the Cubs signed free agent closer Rod Beck. They called him "The Shooter" because he was like a gunslinger out there, and he didn't waste any of his bullets. Rod Beck was the Cubs closer during that wild card season of 1998, saving 51 games in truly scary fashion. His fastball was in the mid-80s at the very best—but he somehow still got the outs. Without him, the Cubs wouldn't have made the playoffs that year.

Chicago fans embraced him and his blue collar attitude. But after more arm problems the following year, he was traded to the Boston Red Sox. He managed to stay in the majors until 2004, and had a few more good seasons in Boston and San Diego, but he died tragically in 2007 from an apparent drug overdose.

Rod Beck was only 38 years old.

Chicago Radio Spotlight: John Landecker, Robert Murphy & Spike O'Dell

2012-01-14T08:57:00.000-06:00

I was lucky enough to speak with three legends this week. Each of them have had big changes in their careers since I last spoke with them, and that was the subject of this week's Chicago Radio Spotlight.

You can read it here.

Cubs 365, January 14

2012-01-14T08:53:00.002-06:00

Every day in 2012, the Just One Bad Century blog will feature a story about this day in Cubs history. We're calling it Cubs 365.

On this day in 1984, Ray Kroc passed away. He is one of the most famous entrepreneurs in history, the man who made the golden arches famous around the world, and he grew up in Oak Park--a die-hard Cubs fan.

When he became a multi-millionaire he tried to rescue his favorite team from Wrigley family ownership, which he felt was ruining the team. He asked his good buddy George Halas to serve as intermediary with the Wrigley Family, to convince them to sell.

At the time (this was the early 70s), Phillip K. Wrigley was a disinterested owner, barely paying attention to his team. Nevertheless, he refused to sell the Cubs to Kroc because he had made a deathbed pact with his father never to sell the team.

Frustrated by his inability to buy his favorite team, Kroc settled on buying the San Diego Padres in 1974. He spent a fortune on the team and transformed them into a winner.

When he died in January of 1984, the Padres pledged to dedicate the season to their beloved owner. If memory serves, that team did manage to make it all the way to the World Series that season.

Unfortunately, the team they discarded on the side of the road on the way to that pennant was the team of Ray Kroc's childhood: The Chicago Cubs.

Rick and Brendan on video

2012-01-13T22:59:00.000-06:00

Maybe it's just me, but I kind of like the aging fat guy with thinning hair and a tie that was tied in 1995 (on the left). To me, just watching him makes me think: "gravitas".

The links we refer to in the video, by the way, are here....

The event at the Catalyst Ranch

The best place to buy the book

Rick & Brendan on TV

2012-01-13T10:56:00.000-06:00

Tune in to WGN-TV on Tuesday (Jan 17) morning, and you might see two familiar faces on the 11 AM News. Brendan and I will be on with Steve Sanders discussing our book "The Living Wills".

Set the DVR if you can't watch it live.

(And then, after the fact, please help your favorite technical idiot figure out how to post the video on my site.)

Tebowie

2012-01-13T10:51:00.000-06:00

Via Jimmy Fallon...

MTV Veejays Sign A Book Deal

2012-01-13T09:20:00.000-06:00

Not the current crop, if there still is such a thing, but the original group from 1981 (the four surviving VJ's are Mark Goodman, Martha Quinn, Alan Hunter, and Nina Blackwood). As someone that watched waaaaaaay too much of that channel when it first came out, I have to admit I'm interested.

This is supposed to be an uncensored look at those days, and promises: "the veejays will talk about everything from partying with Van Halen to a disastrous "Paint the Mutha Pink" contest with "Pink Houses" singer John Cougar Mellencamp."

Of course, if I may be cynical for a moment, I feel obligated to also point out that the publisher (Atria) is owned by Simon & Schuster, which is owned by Viacom/CBS, which owns MTV. So, when they say it's "uncensored", let me translate that for you: "No bosses will be criticized in this book."

Colbert is Running for President

2012-01-13T09:07:00.001-06:00

He's really doing it in his home state of South Carolina (as a Republican), and he's already polling ahead of Jon Huntsman.

On Thursday he handed over control of his Super-PAC (created to point out how ridiculous the concept is) to run in the Republican primary (to point out how ridiculous this year's collection of Republican candidates are).

The Colbert Report
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Should be interesting to see what happens. His Super-PAC, now called "The Definitely Not Coordinated with Stephen Colbert Super PAC" has tons of money, and can seriously damage the real candidates.