A true classic. Those conniving kids Bobby and Cindy contrive a scheme to meet Joe Namath. Is Bobby really sick?
Joe initially thinks so, but Mike and Carol eventually catch on. Oh, those wacky Brady kids.
Monthly Archives: June 2012
Why? Charlie Sheen to join Buck, McCarver tonight
Why? An easy answer. He’s hyping a show on FX.
I bet Tim McCarver is thrilled. I don’t see Sheen being McCarver’s kind of guy. Oh, the things we do for network TV.
From Michael Hiestand in USA Today:
Charlie Sheen will be alongside Tim McCarver and Joe Buck on Fox’s Mets-Yankees Saturday (7 p.m. ET) at least briefly. Or, in case of emergency, to take over: “I’m not going to do any color. But if they go down, I’m their man. I sit at home and do color.”
Sheen will plug his sitcom Anger Management, which debuts June 28 Fox’s FX cable channel and, he says, will be his last TV show. But not giving up on this on the idea of again playing pitcher Ricky Vaughan of the Major League movies.
Sheen there’s a “masterpiece” script for a fourth Major League and “we’ve been busting our (expletive) the past year trying to get it made.” The problem, he says, is that “foreign presale money” is key to financing films and a baseball movie isn’t sure-fire “when soccer is trying to take over the world.”
Sandusky coverage: Ganim video and front page reaction.
A video report from Pulitzer Prize winner reporter Sara Ganim of the Harrisburg Patriot-News.
Saturday flashback: Interview with LeBron James at 16; check out the hair
Before all the hoopla, LeBron James was just a high school kid with an earring and a big mound of hair.
Actually, he never was a normal kid, given all of his talents that were noticed early on. But a Fox Sports Ohio interview with Kerry Sayers (now in Chicago) gives an interesting early glimpse of a young James as he entered his junior year. He talks about prom and his friends. And he had plenty of confidence.
Latest Sports-Casters podcast features yours truly
I highly recommend the Sports-Casters podcast if you enjoy hearing interviews with the top folks in sports media. They have a good lineup every week. Since I started tuning in, I’ve heard interviews with Frank Deford, Jane Leavy, Tom Verducci, and Sports-Casters regular Richard Deitsch, among others.
This week, the Sports-Casters hosts Steven Bennett and Don Russ lowered their standards and had me on the show. I appear at the 1:17:57 mark.
As you can see, their podcasts are long. However, they do a good thing and mark when the guests are slated to appear. It allows you to pick and choose without having to wade through the entire show.
Also on this week’s podcast are Alan Shipnuck and Joe Lemaire of Sports Illustrated.
Thanks to Steve and Don for having me on. Look forward to trying to catch Deitsch for most appearances.
ESPN exec responds to criticism about Berman: We recognize that his work will never be praised universally
The Chris Berman detractors came out in full force again last week after his performance in the U.S. Open. Giving him such an extensive role on Thursday and Friday is wrong on so many levels, and it just magnifies all of his excesses that the critics hate.
Dan Levy of the Bleacher Report wrote a piece with this opener:
Chris Berman has lost his fastball.
Once the ace of the ESPN announcing crew, Berman—who has been with ESPN since the network first went on the air in 1979—has become the TV equivalent of a junk-ball pitcher, throwing the same stuff at audiences for years in hopes that something still works.
I say he hasn’t lost his fastball as much as he can’t control it. He goes too over the top with too much of his schtick.
John Wildhack, Executive Vice President of Production at ESPN, did respond to the criticism. Naturally, he defended Berman, although he did allow that the big man isn’t universally beloved:
Chris has been in this business for more than three decades. We recognize that his work will never be praised universally.
It seems that at times, criticizing Chris has become a pastime for some, as opposed to presenting an actual review of the work he does. What’s important is he works hard, he’s prepared, he’s extremely passionate about it and he is a huge sports fan which allows him to connect with the sports fans we serve.
Regarding his misplaced role on the U.S. Open, Wildhack said:
Currently, the event portion of Chris’ schedule is less than his NFL studio role. With that said, the U.S. Open Golf assignment is something he’s been doing for a long time. He is an avid golf fan, knows the sport and players extremely well and the USGA supports his involvement every year.
Alice Cooper is a golf nut too, but I doubt ESPN would let him anchor the U.S. Open. For such an important tournament, it’s just too jarring to hear Berman on the call. Let him do a long-drive contest.
As for whether ESPN has asked Berman to tone down his act, Wildhack said:
It’s a delicate balance for sure. Our goal as a content team is to provide an entertaining presentation with authority and personality.
Obviously, the balance may change by event. The Home Run Derby is a fun, exciting program that gets huge viewership. With that said, its popularity and significance is not essentially based on who wins or loses like events such as the BCS Championship or NBA Finals. Our production approach – including where our cameras/microphones can go and how our commentators approach the telecast – reflects that.
I have to believe behind the scenes ESPN has asked Berman to tone it down, but he won’t or just can’t do it at this point.
Nail fungus ad mars historic Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel front page
OK, it’s a fact of life that newspapers need the revenue from front page advertising. But perhaps just this one time it might have been best for the Sun-Sentinel in Ft. Lauderdale to kill a front-page ad.
The Miami Heat’s championship presented the paper with one of those rare opportunities for a historical front. Thousands of extra papers are printed for fans who want a timeless souvenir.
The Sun-Sentinel delivered a front page Friday suitable for framing. However, at the bottom, there’s a huge ad for a nail fungus remedy, with before and after photos.
I’m sorry, but that’s way too much for me to digest in the morning, and especially on a front page celebrating LeBron James’ first. The paper should have said to the nail fungus folks, “Not today, we’ll make it up to you.”
Front pages: James barely makes front of Akron paper
Interesting to see how the jilted hometown papers handled native son LeBron James’ first NBA title. No picture, only a corner headline in the Akron Beacon-News, while the Cleveland Plain-Dealer ran a picture and short story.
Bitter? Maybe just a little.
Right thing to do: ESPN networks all in for women’s sports to mark Title IX’s 40th
Timing is everything. If the 40th anniversary of Title IX was on a Saturday in November during the height of football season, I doubt we would see the extravaganza ESPN has planned for this weekend.
But on a lazy, warm summer weekend and with Tim Tebow still a month away from putting on pads in Jets camp, ESPN can go big on women’s sports this weekend to mark Title IX’s big 4-0. More than 180 hours of programming is planned on ESPN’s various platforms. Also the No. 1 women athlete will be revealed from SportsCenter’s countdown of the top 40.
Here’s a link with complete details.
Why such a big commitment to women’s sports? To be honest, ESPN has alternatives to attract bigger ratings. Tim Tebow at the mall, coming up on SportsCenter.
This special package of programming, though, isn’t about ratings, according to Vince Doria, ESPN senior vice-president and director for news. It’s about marking an important moment in history.
Said Doria:
You could debate these kind of things all the time. Some things are easy. Slap the NFL on, and everyone’s happy. Tim Tebow. Peyton Manning. We’re all in.
You try to do some things because you feel they are the right thing to do. There’s a responsibility to do them for a historic standpoint. At that point, it’s a discussion of how much you do. Some people might think it’s this much and some people might think it’s this much.
It’s an important anniversary. This place to some degree has been a standard bearer, both promoting women’s sports and putting them on the air. The WNBA and NCAA women’s basketball tournament. We can all debate about the size of audience. Sometimes, it’s not the right measure of why you do these things. You do them because it’s the right thing to do. It’s important to do.
Craig James claims there are networks interested in him; nix on ESPN
Since the Senate thing didn’t work out, Craig James now is looking for work. He told David Barron of the Houston Chronicle that he has been contacted by networks. One of them, though, isn’t ESPN.
James said he has not spoken with programming executives at ESPN, which he described as “his family,” regarding his career but “at some point I will reach out to catch up from a business standpoint.” An ESPN spokesman said James would not appear on the network this fall, and James acknowledged that most networks have announcers set for this season.
“There are a couple of networks that have called to see what I am willing to do,” he said. “When I resigned in December, I went all in for politics, and I found out how many people enjoyed me as a broadcaster. James said. “They said they would miss me, and I said thank you.
“I don’t know what I am going to do. Yes, I love sports, but I also feel strongly about staying involved in fighting for public policy.”