Sports this 'n' that

 Earlier this week, Michigan State dismissed football coach Mel Tucker with cause amid allegations of sexual misconduct in the workplace.

Thursday, Tucker, through an attorney, fired back, filing an unlawful termination lawsuit.

The allegations surfaced just before the start of the season, which begs to ask why the university let Tucker on the sidelines in the first place when the season began earlier this month. Simple answer is they waited to see if they had enough evidence before forging ahead with terminating Tucker's contract.

Look at it this way. Ohio State should've done the same with their wrestling team years ago, before assistant coach Jim Jordan became a delusional Republican Misrepresentative. Would Jordan have been elected if he had his reputation damaged? We'll never know.

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Baseball lost another legend Tuesday with the passing of Hall of Fame 3rd baseman Brooks Robinson, who played his entire career with the Baltimore Orioles. Robinson, inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1983, was 86, and hailed as one of the greatest at his position.

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No matter where he's been, be it Washington or Philadelphia, Bryce Harper has gained a reputation for having a very short temper, especially when it comes to strikeouts.

Thursday, Harper fanned in his only at-bat vs. Pittsburgh, when 3rd base ump Angel Hernandez, easily the worst umpire in baseball, called strike 3 on a check swing that didn't look like a full swing.

Hernandez, clearly in need of corrective vision, ejected Harper as the latter walked halfway up the 3rd base line. As you'll see, Harper tossed his helmet into the stands....

With the Phillies having clinched a playoff spot, we'll see if Harper finally gets the World Series title that has eluded him. In his first year in Philly, Washington won the title. Go figure.

YouTube Theatre: NBC salutes Disney's 25 years on television (1978)

 In launching the 10th season of The Wonderful World of Disney (1st series), NBC decided it was time to give Disney its just due, as it was the studio's 25th season of television programming, having started at ABC in 1954 as Disneyland.

Ron Howard (Happy Days) & Suzanne Somers (Three's Company) are the hosts, joined by a number of TV luminaries past & present (as of that era), including Valerie Bertinelli (One Day at a Time), Buddy Ebsen (Barnaby Jones), Dan Haggerty (The Life & Times of Grizzly Adams), Bill Bixby (The Incredible Hulk), Melissa Gilbert (Little House on The Prairie), Gavin McLeod (The Love Boat), Bob Hope, Ray Charles, Crystal Gayle, Ricardo Montalban (Fantasy Island), Ed Asner (Lou Grant), and Fess Parker (ex-Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone), who reunites with Ebsen for a segment.

Some, like Howard, Parker, Ebsen, Asner, & Montalban, had ties to Disney's storied past. We had previously posted a segment reuniting "The Aristocats" castmates Phil Harris & Scatman Crothers, over at Saturday Morning Archives, but it was taken down due to copyrights. Now, we have the whole enchilada.

Dick Tufeld, who had taken over as the announcer for Wonderful World by this point in the series, succeeding Dick Wesson, is the announcer.

I did not see this the first time, since I was at church that night. However, this makes up for it.

Rating: A.

More examples of GOP stupidity

 The final Jewish holiday of the year, Hanukkah, or, Chanukah, is in December. Monday was Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement.

As you know by now, Georgia Misrepresentative Marjorie Taylor Greene got the two mixed up, posting a Menorah on X while offering best wishes for Yom Kippur. Someone needs to hire a social media editor for Empty-G. Yesterday.

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Former president Donald Trump suffered a massive legal defeat on Tuesday when judge Arthur Engoron ruled that Trump had in fact lied about his finances to various banks in order to game the system. Gee, what a surprise. Less surprising is the fact that the perpetually whiny Trump complained on Truthless Social, and claims he'll appeal. I don't know if you can appeal a summary judgment, which makes next week's bench trial all but a mere formality.

One domino down, more to follow.

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Lawyers for Diaper Don tried to convince judge Tanya Chutkan not to grant special prosecutor Jack Smith's request for a partial gag order on the Archduke of Affluenza, and----get this----they're trying to blame President Biden, who has nothing to do with any of Trump's legal problems.

Farron Cousins explains:

If you've been hired to work for the Orange Toddler, you need to leave your brains at home, it seems. Trump doesn't know anything about the law, and can't be bothered to Google anything about it. The way Fraud Fauntleroy sees it, he doesn't owe anyone anything, but that's no longer a valid point.

Of course, the lawyers assigned to this case, representing the firm of Dumb & Dumber, Esq., get the Dunce Caps.

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We have to get this in. 

We know Trump is a narcissist, a major league vanity case. Now, we're finding out why he refused to wear a mask during the early stages of the COVID pandemic.

According to Cassidy Hutchinson in her new book, Trump discovered that one mask he actually wore smeared the bronzer he uses as makeup to create that orange look on his face. That upset him to the point where he decided he can't wear a mask. If he had any real sense of priority, he'd have not bothered with the makeup and wore the mask for the duration........

Musical Interlude: Along Comes Mary (1966)

 The Association's "Along Comes Mary" still gets a ton of airplay on oldies channels to this day. With good reason. It's that good.

In memory of vocalist Terry Kirkman, who passed away September 23 at 83. Rest in peace.

David McCallum (1933-2023)

 For fans of 60's television, this hurts.

David McCallum, who rose to fame as Ilya Kuryakin in The Man From UNCLE (1964-8), and saw a career revival with NCIS over the last 20 years, passed away earlier today from natural causes at 90, one week after his milestone birthday.

Like a number of his contemporaries in the 60's, such as Star Trek's William Shatner & Leonard Nimoy and Batman star Adam West, McCallum dabbled in music during his stint on UNCLE. He not only sang, but played a number of instruments, including the guitar and oboe. 

Originally from Scotland, McCallum split time between England and Scotland during his formative years, and began his career as a voice actor on radio for the BBC in the late 40's. After UNCLE ended, McCallum spent two seasons starring in a BBC-Universal co-production, Colditz, which, if I recall correctly, was imported to the US. Back in the States, he top-lined a short-lived adaptation of HG Wells' The Invisible Man for NBC & Universal, playing a secret agent rendered invisible by an experiment gone awry. It lasted half a season.

Four years later, McCallum was back in England, paired with Joanna Lumley (ex-The New Avengers) in Sapphire & Steel, which ran for six seasons, or, as they are called in the UK, series. He also appeared in a number of movies, including "The Great Escape".

McCallum did his due diligence in preparing for his role as forensic scientist Donald "Ducky" Mallard on NCIS, to the point where producer Don Belisario cracked that he had considered making the veteran actor a technical advisor.

From The Man From UNCLE is a scene with David and special guest star Nancy Sinatra, including a duet, "Trouble", composed by McCallum.

Rest in peace.

Football this 'n' that

 Colorado coach Deion Sanders is trying to stay positive after the Buffaloes absorbed their first loss of the season Saturday, getting blown out by Oregon. The Buffaloes (3-1) waded into the deeper end of the Big 12 pool, and without two-way star Travis Hunter, were outplayed by the Ducks.

It was noted in commentary that Sanders' son, Shadeur, Colorado's quarterback, is suffering from a lack of offensive line protection, having absorbed dozens of hits already in 4 games. Giants fans know all about that, as the O-line has been a problem for Big Blue for years.

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"Here's another fine mess you've gotten me into!"---Oliver Hardy to Stan Laurel.

Sean Payton had to have known what he was getting into when he was hired to replace Nathaniel Hackett as Denver's head coach. Hackett, now with the Jests, is still catching heat, but we'll address that shortly. The Broncos were completely outclassed in a 70-20 drubbing at the hands of Miami.

The 1st place Miami Dolphins.

The 70 points is the highest point total in an NFL game since Washington dropped 72 on the Giants in 1966.

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There are three things inevitable to Jests fans. Death, taxes, and losing to New England.

The Patriots picked up their first win Sunday, 15-10, clinching the game with a safety in the 4th quarter.

Unsurprisingly, fans are calling for ownership to cut bait on coach Robert Saleh and the aforementioned Hackett, neither of whom can see the forest for the trees with 3rd year QB Zach Wilson, but Saleh is standing by his QB. Talk about deer in the headlights.

And it won't get any better for the Jests. Next up is the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in primetime next Sunday. Calling it now. Another stink bomb vs. Patrick Mahomes and company, and Saleh is likely gone-ski. Suddenly, that overtime win 2 weeks ago over Buffalo is a distant memory, and we know the Bills will collect the receipt later in the season.

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When baseball season started, fans in New York salivated over the prospect of seeing model Kate Upton at Citi Field whenever her husband, Justin Verlander, pitched. Verlander was traded two months ago back to Houston, but come October 1, another instant gate attraction will likely distract Jests fans.

Of course, that would be singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who was in KC on Sunday, in a skybox with the mother of her rumored new beau, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Last I checked, Taylor still maintains a home in New York, so........!

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Kelce, by the way, has joined Patrick Mahomes and coach Andy Reid in doing State Farm commercials this season. Apparently, the insurance company finally parted company with Aaron Rodgers.

Rockin' Funnies: Jungle Boogie (2015)

 Dr. Teeth & The Electric Mayhem, aided by Sam the Eagle, put a humorous twist on Kool & The Gang's iconic "Jungle Boogie".

Like, crazy, man.

YouTube Theatre: Peter Pan (1976)

 NBC, for the 2nd time, had adapted J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan as a primetime special, after the 1st, with Mary Martin in the title role, had aired several times.

In 1976, this adaptation was headlined by Mia Farrow (ex-Peyton Place) & Danny Kaye, with Kaye essaying the dual roles of Mr. Darling and the villainous Captain Hook. Dwight Hemion & Gary Smith, who at the time were producing a lot of awards shows and specials after Hullabaloo had ended 10 years earlier, were director & producer for NBC & ITC. Like Peyton castmate Ryan O'Neal, Farrow had transitioned to movies by this point, so it was news that she was returning to television. 

A new soundtrack was composed by Anthony Newley & Leslie Bricusse, with the opening theme performed by Julie Andrews. The cast also includes Paula Kelly, known as a dancer and film actress before signing on to Night Court a few years later, and Virginia McKenna (Mrs. Bill Travers) as Mrs. Darling.

I recall seeing this one night, but couldn't finish because it ended past my bedtime. I'd seen Disney's version a few years earlier. This was presented as if it was adapted for the stage, with an actor wearing the costume of the Darlings' pet sheepdog.

Rating: B-.

Sports this 'n' that

 At this rate, they'll even let Joe Sixpack throw out the first pitch at a ballgame.

Kidding aside, ESPN bloviator general Stephen A. Smith was given the honor of throwing out the first pitch before Thursday's game vs. Toronto.....

Smith later acknowledged he was not happy with his performance. I'm sure a lot of pro athletes would appreciate that rare moment of clarity from the biggest poser on cable television today. Then again, it wasn't as bad as 50 Cent when he tried the same thing at Citi Field in 2014......

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In the last few years, Topps, now a part of Fanatics, had lost their licenses to produce NFL, UFC, & WWE cards, with all three signing deals with Panini America.

In the space of the last month, two of the three have announced they are terminating their deals with Panini America.

Last month, it was the NFL Players Association announcing the immediate termination of their licensing deal, which had been in effect since 2015, and would return to Topps/Fanatics.

Earlier this week, WWE, which, coupled with UFC, forms TKO Holdings, a division of Endeavor, announced they were terminating their deal with Panini America as well.

While I am not privy as to why this is happening, Panini does have a bad reputation with collectors for not honoring existing redemptions for premium cards that consumers are entitled to. Given how Panini has driven up the price of cards the last couple of years, forcing Topps/Fanatics to do the same with their baseball product (i.e. jumbo packs are now $8 per pack as opposed to $5 per pack just 3 years ago), that might'v eaten away at profit margins for the licensors. I would expect UFC to follow in lockstep with their new step-sister company, and withdraw from Panini not too long from now.

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WWE also announced that Smackdown will be leaving Fox after the current season, and returning to USA Network, where it aired from 2016-9. Rumors are that Monday Night Raw & NXT would, in turn, leave USA when the current deal expires next year.

Here is an opportunity to have all 3 primetime series on the same channel, at the same airtime on their respective nights, and, so far, either USA or WWE doesn't see the value.

Meanwhile, the Turk came a'callin' on Thursday, as 20 wrestlers across the three brands were cut, including two people in current storylines on NXT.

Dana Brooke had been acting as a mentor to Kelani Jordan, and they were building toward Brooke turning on Jordan in time for a match at next week's No Mercy premium event. Similarly, Mustafa Ali (Adeel Alam) was in line to challenge Dominik Mysterio for the NXT North American title at the same show, and even cut a promo to reference the event on Tuesday. Dragon Lee, who was screwed out of the #1 contender's spot on September 5, now gets a title match, airing on Raw on September 25, which could change the whole scenario in a heartbeat.

The biggest name on the cut list was former grand slam champion Dolph Ziggler (Nick Nemeth), who had been a main roster mainstay for 18 years. The popular belief is that Nemeth will join his brother, Ryan, in AEW, to help add strength to the tag team division.

The cuts were largely in order to balance the books after the merger of WWE and Endeavor, which was 10 days ago, but with rumors of former AEW star Jade Cargill reportedly on her way to WWE, maybe this was also a salary restructuring. We'll wait & see.

Forgotten TV: Lock-Up (1959)

 Lock-Up, a syndicated crime drama from ZIV-United Artists, has largely been forgotten due to the glut of crime dramas of its time. It ran for 2 seasons (1959-61), starring MacDonald Carey and John Doucette. The series' core was rooted in the life of real-life attorney Herbert Maris, played by Carey on the show.

Even though there were enough episodes available for daily syndication after the series ended, it was instead withdrawn. Go figure.

From season 2, here's "Red Confetti", with guest star Neil Hamilton, five years before Batman:

Carey would return to series television four years later in the long running soap, Days of Our Lives. Doucette was mostly a character actor whose last series gig of note was the police comedy, The Partners, with Don Adams, in 1971.

Rating: A.

Musical Interlude: The Last Farewell (1975)

Roger Whittaker was literally a man of the world.

Born in Kenya, Roger spent most of his life in England, where he was a teacher before turning to music as a singer-songwriter, remaining active until this year. 

We lost Roger last Wednesday at 87. In his memory, we present what is arguably his most famous song, 1975's "The Last Farewell":

Rest in peace, Roger.

What Might've Been: The series premiere of The Smothers Brothers Show (1965)

 We've talked in the past about the Smothers Brothers' failed sitcom, which preceded their legendary variety show by more than a year. Now, we are blessed with the series opener.

"There's Something About a Sailor" explains how Tom was lost at sea two years prior in the context of the story, and returns as an apprentice angel. As would be the case in their later series, Fitz & Bones, Dick is the more serious half, in this case, landing a job at a magazine run by one Leonard J. Costello (Roland Winters), while Tom has trouble earning his wings because of the predictable bumbling.

Alvy Moore (Green Acres) appears briefly as a messenger. As you'll see, he carried over the same mannerisms he'd use as Hank Kimball, the dimwitted county agent on Green Acres. Gary Owens (Roger Ramjet) is the narrator in the beginning of the episode.

1965 was not a good year for Four Star. The Smothers Brothers Show was their final sale to CBS. Over at ABC, Burke's Law morphed into Amos Burke, Secret Agent, and was cancelled. Honey West, spun off from Burke, was likewise a 1 year wonder, and The Big Valley was the studio's lone success, beginning a four year run.

No rating. Just a public service.

More examples of GOP stupidity

 "Dumb Donald is really dumb!!"--Gene Rayburn, on Match Game, 1973-84.

Appearing in a pre-recorded interview on Meet The Press today with new host Kristen Welker, perpetual toddler Donald Trump made Welker look terrible, being unable to restrain him as he, as they say, lied his face off on the same tired subjects, including the 2020 election.

All we can say here, since we didn't watch the show, is that it's a good thing it was pre-recorded, but NBC did Welker no favors by not fact-checking the modern Baron Munchausen in real time as the show was on the air.

In the interests of equal time, NBC is hoping to have President Biden sit for an interview. Emphasize "hoping", because so far, there has been no response from the White House.   

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I'm sure you've heard by now how the GOPers in the House of Representatives are still dealing with infighting.

The reason House Speaker Kevin "The Body Snatcher" McCarthy is forging ahead with the impeachment inquiry, despite a glaring lack of evidence, against President Biden, is because he is caving to demands from the more radical members of the party, particularly Rusty Gaetz, as they are threatening to allow a shutdown of the government at the end of the month if their demands are not met.

This is the sort of juvenile BS we're dealing with in a room that is supposed to be full of responsible adults. Well, there are. Most of them are Democrats. The impeachment inquiry is really in response to the Orange Toddler having been impeached twice, and it's been a GOPer obsession since Biden took office. It doesn't help that Fibber Jordan got his five cents in and also said he'd shut things down.

Washington's answer to Beavis & Butt-Head should be censured themselves for abuse of power yesterday.

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With a new COVID booster authorized by the FDA & Centers for Disease Control, guess who decided his state shouldn't have it.

If you said, "Ron DeSantis", go to the head of the class.

The Florida governor, and his personal waterboy, posing as state surgeon general, Joseph Adapo, have told Floridians not to get the shot, claiming they don't need it. Farron Cousins tells us that this is a bad idea, coming from two idiots who actually make Beavis & Butt-Head look smart.

DeStupid won't let actual facts get in the way of his agenda, and yet, his presidential campaign seems to be on life support. Ron, there is dumb, and, then, there is you.

What Might've Been: Harold Robbins' The Survivors (1969)

 ABC was looking to develop another primetime soap to succeed Peyton Place. Universal adapted Harold Robbins' The Survivors (yes, that was the show's official title), hoping to fill the void with an hour long show as opposed to Peyton being a 30 minute show that aired 2-3 times a week at its peak.

Lana Turner, in her only television series, was part of an ensemble with George Hamilton, Ralph Bellamy (his 1st series since Man Against Crime), Diana Muldaur, Clu Gulager (ex-The Virginian, Tall Man), Italian star Rossano Brazzi, Louis Hayward (ex-The Lone Wolf), Kevin McCarthy ("Invasion of The Body Snatchers"), and Natalie Schaefer (ex-Gilligan's Island), who was brought in after Bellamy's character was killed off.

We've previously documented the fact that the series was cancelled by Christmas, replaced with Paris 7000 to fulfill George Hamilton's contract. Ralph Bellamy would return the very next season in The Most Deadly Game, another 1 season wonder from Aaron Spelling.

In this sample, I think this is from Bellamy's final appearance.

No rating. I was but six at the time, and this was past my bedtime. I don't even know if my folks even saw the show (I doubt it).

The desperation of Donald Trump is showing. A lawsuit against a judge? Absurd!!

 We've said for a while that Donald Trump's carefully crafted public image was destroyed while he was president when he was exposed, warts & all, as a fraud.

Facing a civil suit from NY Attorney General Letitia James, the oldest toddler in America is getting desperate to the point of suing Judge Arthur Engoron to block the civil trial. Problem is, the ambulance chasers from the firm of Dumb, Dumber, & Dumbest, as Farron Cousins explains, are building their cases on----wait for it----lies.

So why lie about the Appellate Court? Because Trump thinks his base won't know the difference. Problem is, James & Engoron know the difference, and the desperation is showing on Trump. He doesn't want to part with any of the $250 million he's likely to lose, and his idiot lawyers are acting under the impression this is a criminal trial, not a civil trial. Trump adds to his collection of Dunce Caps & Weasel ears, which he can pass around to his lawyers. He's only postponing the inevitable as much as possible, but it's not going to work.

It's way past time to put a limit on alcohol sales at football games

 Last Saturday, Alabama suffered a rare home loss, beaten by Texas. After the game, some Longhorns players were subjected to racial slurs by drunk Crimson Tide fans upset over the loss.

I get it. Nick Saban's Tide is not as invincible as they normally would be. After all, if the reports are true, Texas will be joining the SEC soon, and last week's game signaled the start of a fresh rivalry between the two schools.

Five nights later, Minnesota Vikings running back Alexander Mattison was subject to those same slurs after a costly fumble against Philadelphia. The difference? These were Eagles fans, rubbing it in the face of Mattison, in his 5th season out of Boise State. Once again, Philadelphia sports fans showed their collective tuchis to the world.

The Vikings and the NFL Players Association condemned the incident, and, rightfully, so should the Eagles, who won the game.

I know what you're thinking. It's Philadelphia. This is normal for them. Especially when the racism & hate are fueled by beer.

And, therein lies the problem. College & pro football fans will have tailgate parties that start hours before kickoff. They'll restrain themselves as far as alcohol is concerned, but by the 3rd quarter, sometimes sooner, they'll have gone over the limit, if you will, and we get incidents like we've seen the last few days.

The Vikings issued a statement.

The Eagles, if they haven't already done so, should follow suit. The message is clear. There needs to be a set limit on alcohol sales. The beer concessions should close by halftime. Ushers should be checking on some of the more inebriated fans, and head off any future incidents like the ones in Philadelphia & Tuscaloosa before they start. The league and its member teams need to be more diligent with fan interactions with players, especially the negatives. And it should start over the next 72 hours. It has to.

On The Shelf: The next generation of Mystery Inc.?

 DC closed out year 2 of The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries by sending the Mystery Inc. team into the world of Batman Beyond. A surprise ending reveals that Mystery Inc. will live on in the future. Now, the question is whether or not DC follows up. We know Chumptoon Network won't.

Writer Ivan Cohen sends this series off on a good note.

Rating: A.

Update, 1:31 pm (ET): DC will relaunch the series as an ongoing in January.

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Next month, Marvel revives an old anthology title, Crypt of Shadows, as a miniseries starring the original Werewolf by Night, Jack Russell, who will be joined by Daredevil, Deadpool, the Hulk, and the Scarlet Witch.

But, before that comes a 1-shot special which pairs Russell, now the King of Wolves (???) with Elsa Bloodstone, whose father headline Marvel Presents for a few issues in the 70's. Seems Elsa & Jack were once a couple, and while there is not a rekindling of affections, they do make an effective team. Russell retains his intellect in his lupine form, a change that took place near the end of his series in the late 70's. A fun trip, but the artwork needs help.

Rating: B-.

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Four years ago, IDW attained a license for The Addams Family, coinciding with the release of the first animated movie based on Charles Addams' legendary strip. Over the summer, IDW reissued The Bodies Issue, a 1-shot special, setting up a miniseries that also debuts next month. You know how this family functions. The fun is in the plot.

Rating: A-.

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The Penguin has been one of Batman's more cerebral foes, and a new miniseries from writer Tom King picks up plot threads from recent issues of Detective Comics, leading to a 0 issue reprinting of Chip Zdarsky's plot. Anyway, Oswald Cobblepot has found love while in exile from Gotham, and it seems he even had time to start a family years ago. Now, though, he's back under the thumb of Amanda Waller, and unlike his time with the Suicide Squad early in John Ostrander's run on the book in the late 80's, things are going to get nasty.

Rating: A.

Musical Interlude: Feelin' Alright (1969)

 Dave Mason wrote "Feelin' Alright" for Traffic, but it's Joe Cocker's solo version that gets more airplay on classic rock channels.

Here, Cocker sings live on The Ed Sullivan Show:

A second hand failure: It Pays to be Ignorant (1973)

 Many moons ago, we talked about the original TV version of It Pays to be Ignorant, which ran for 1 season on TV in 1951. 22 years later, Monty Hall (Let's Make a Deal) and business partner Stefan Hatos revived Ignorant as a weekly syndicated series, largely because celebrity panel shows were big back then. 

Joe Flynn (ex-McHale's Navy), who had spent the post-McHale years as a serviceable character actor, and had a role in Disney's "Medfield College" series of comedies with Kurt Russell, was tapped to host, joined by panelists Jo Anne Worley (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), who also sang the show's closing theme song, Charles Nelson Reilly (ex-The Ghost & Mrs. Muir), better known now for a lengthy run on Match Game, which had been revived two months before Ignorant, and British comic Billy Baxter, who did not land another American gig.

Trade convention ad

As with the 1951 series, Ignorant was ignored by most of the country, and Hatos & Hall replaced it a year later with another revival, this one for Masquerade Party, which also bombed. At least, now you know how prepared Reilly & Worley were for any questions about "Dumb Donald/Dora" on Match Game later on.

Rating: B.

What Might've Been: Hollywood Connection (1977)

 Apparently, Jack Barry didn't really learn anything from reviving Break The Bank and formatting it as a knockoff of a sort of Hollywood Squares.

A year later, Barry replaced the syndicated version of Bank with Hollywood Connection, which, aside from a few tweaks, was a knockoff, again of a sort, of Match Game, with some of the same celebrities who populated Bank as well as Match, such as, in this sampler, Jo Ann Pflug (Mrs. Chuck Woolery), Nipsey Russell, and Jaye P. Morgan (The Gong Show).

Weak sauce.

Rating: B-.

The Jets win, but lose Aaron Rodgers for the season. This is why Jets fans can't have nice things

 24 hours after the Giants began the 2023 NFL season at Met Life Stadium by stinking up the joint in a 40-0 blowout loss to Dallas, the Jets opened their season against Buffalo with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback. They finished the night without their prized off-season acquisition, but got a win in the process.

Photo courtesy People Magazine.

Just 1 series into the season, Rodgers was knocked out the game on a sack by Buffalo's Leonard Floyd, who came over from the Rams in the off-season. At first, it looked like it was an ankle injury, and Rodgers was wearing a walking boot the rest of the night.

This morning, the results of an MRI affirmed the Jets' worst fears. Rodgers, like Baltimore's JK Dobbins on Sunday, had torn his Achilles tendon, and is gone for the season, meaning that coach Robert Saleh must once again turn to 2021 draft pick Zach Wilson, now in his 3rd season out of BYU, as his starter.

But, predictably, the usual media types, including the jabroni clickbait sites, are speculating on who the Jets should bring back to replace Rodgers, and supplant Wilson as the starter du jour. Now, Wilson wasn't exactly setting the world on fire Monday, as it was the defense & special teams that led the Jets to victory, just like Dallas over the Giants the night before, but he played below expectations as a rookie two years ago, and the rabid NY media won't forget that. Joe Flacco is still on the free agent market, but does he want to take a chance on returning? 

It's possible, because the impatient Jet fan base, conditioned to believe Wilson is not the answer, wants a proven winner to cover for Rodgers for the rest of the season.

15 years ago, Rodgers' predecessor in Green Bay, Brett Favre, came to the Jets. He left under a cloud of scandal and inconsistent play. It figures that the bad karma came with Rodgers, too, but the Jets have shown that this time, they can play through. If we're lucky, they could beat out the hated Patriots for a playoff spot, but, then..........

Of course, I could be wrong.

Sports this 'n' that

 Spectrum Cable subscribers are saying, "Welcome back!", to the Disney family of networks (i.e. Disney Channel, ESPN, FX, National Geographic) as earlier this morning, Spectrum's parent company, Charter Communications, facing political pressure from Governor Hochul and her counterparts across the country, reached a new carriage deal with Disney.

The deal comes just hours before the season premiere of Monday Night Football, which is being simulcast tonight on ABC, year 2 of a new deal allowing MNF's original network back in the game, so to speak. Now, Bills & Jets fans will have the added options available to them after all.

Update, 3:10 pm: Not returning are familiar channels like Freeform, Nat Geo Wild, Disney XD, FXX, & FXM. Apparently, that was part of the compromise.

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The Yankees will be without rookie sensation Jasson Dominguez for the rest of the season after a suffered an injury to the UCL ligament in his elbow vs. Milwaukee over the weekend.

Uh-oh, Yanks fans are thinking. Not Tommy John Surgery.

I'm afraid so. The Bombers are now down another starter with Luis Severino out for the rest of the season as well, perhaps brought back too early from injury. Dominguez, an outfielder, had only been called up to make his big league debut recently.

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The New England Patriots decided to bend their own team rules to get Tom Brady into their Hall of Fame ASAP.

The team retired Brady's #12 jersey at halftime of Sunday's opener at home vs. Philadelphia.

That was the good news. The bad? New England choked away a chance to win the game late, enabling the Eagles to escape with a 25-20 win.

Back to Brady. Normally, the Patriots would've waited up to 4 years to induct Brady, but owner Robert Kraft couldn't wait that long. Figure he needed to sell extra tickets for the opener, and this was the best way to go about it.

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Teenager Coco Gauff won the US Open women's singles on Saturday, but there was an unexpected obstacle in Thursday's semi-final.

Some idiot representing the environmental activist group Extinction Rebellion got on the court, and glued his feet to same, causing a delay. I wish these morons would find a better way to get their message out, since they are unwilling to go through proper channels. This clown saw how activists from Direct Action Everywhere pulled similar stunts last year, but they've faded into the woodwork, and so will Extinction Rebellion by this time next year.

As someone once said, as soon as they idiot-proof the world, another idiot comes along...............

What Might've Been: Bring 'em Back Alive (1982)

 Big game hunter Frank Buck was a big star in the 30's. He adapted his own memoir into a feature film, the first in a series. So it made sense nearly 50 years later that his exploits would be adapted for a new generation.

Bring 'em Back Alive was another victim of poor network scheduling. CBS placed it on Tuesdays in 1982, opposite Happy Days & Laverne & Shirley. NBC would enter the fray in the winter with The A-Team, and that finished Alive.

Bruce Boxleitner (ex-How The West Was Won) was cast as Buck. Film star Ron O'Neal ("Super Fly"), Clyde Kusatsu, & Cindy Morgan co-starred. Kusatsu, in particular, had a successful career as a character actor in television, even dabbling in comedy (Family Matters) during his career.

Let's take a look at a sample.

Boxleitner was part of a production company attached to the series. He would rebound a couple of years later with Scarecrow & Mrs. King, also for CBS.

My folks watched the show. I didn't. I would say they liked it, only to move off to The A-Team in January. Rating: B.

What Might've Been: The Sonny Comedy Revue (1974)

 When Sonny & Cher split in 1974, it seems as though the divorce agreement allowed Sonny Bono to retain the writers from their CBS variety hour as he moved to ABC. Unfortunately, Cher got the last laugh, as The Sonny Comedy Revue was gone before New Year's Eve.

ABC was searching for something to fill the 7 pm hour on Sundays for much of the 70's. After Land of The Giants was cancelled in 1970, it was one failure after another, as the black hole of ratings that had formed claimed Bono, Bill Cosby, Swiss Family Robinson, and, finally, Donny & Marie, after the latter series had been rechristened, The Osmond Family Show.

Bono also brought over his & Cher's repertory company, which included Freeman King, Billy Van (The Hilarious House of Frightenstein), Murray Langston ("The Unknown Comic" from The Gong Show two years later), and Peter Cullen, who was pulling double duty as announcer and repertory player for CBS' Hudson Brothers Razzle Dazzle Show, which, like The Sonny Comedy Revue, was produced by Alan Blye & Chris Bearde. Van also worked with the Hudsons.

The only videos available actually have just the audio, as the video footage, save for commercials, appears to have been wiped, per the practices of the day, or held by Bono's estate. Hence, all we have is the above screencap.

No rating. My folks & I watched Disney on Sundays.

Musical Interlude: Centerfold (1981)

 "Centerfold" was the 1st single off the J. Geils Band's 1981 album, "Freeze Frame", and would be the band's only #1 hit on the Hot 100, spending six weeks at the top in February & March 1982. The title track would follow, but fall short of the top spot.

The story is rather simple. As Peter Wolf sings, he spins the yarn of a man who recalls his high school years, only to discover that his crush ended up a centerfold for an adult magazine. That leads to conflicted feelings for the fellow. Does he hold on to the innocent schoolgirl he loved, or does he embrace the lust?

Yes, one of the girls does bear only a slight resemblance to MTV doll Martha Quinn, but only because of the short hairdo. Martha had to debunk the rumor on air that she was in the video.

What Might've Been: The New Land (1974)

 The New Land, which had been a feature film just 2 years earlier with Max Von Sydow, made its way to television in 1974, part of what was meant to be a promising freshman class at ABC. Unfortunately, it failed to click, and was cancelled after just six episodes aired. The problem? Ratings of course, with the opposition including All in The Family and Emergency!. Ballgame over.

The New Land lured Disney star Kurt Russell (ex-The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters) back to television after 10 years, co-starring with Bonnie Bedelia and Todd Lookinland (whose brother, Mike, had just finished a 5 year run on The Brady Bunch).

So, where did ABC go wrong? Putting this show on the wrong night is an easy answer. The 1972 movie would find its way to ABC as well. The above slide is the only evidence left of the series' existence.

No rating.

Dunce Cap Award: Care to take a guess?

 Just because a book, even an audiobook, you don't like, is available at any bookstore on the planet, that doesn't mean you can sue the author & publisher wherever you want when it's most convenient for you.

Donald Trump is facing that harsh reality as a Florida judge decided that a lawsuit filed by the former president against Bob Woodward would be moved to New York.

Farron Cousins explains how stupid Trump and his ambulance chasers were in this case.

Farron may be right about one thing. Once the lawsuit is brought before a judge in NY's Southern District, it's game over. Tossed out of court with prejudice, most likely.

You know what Trump's getting, of course, to add to his collection:

Methinks he's developed a phobia for his former hometown.

2023 NFL Preview, part 3: How the West can be won

 We wrap up our series, three days before the season begins.

NFC West:

Has San Francisco put too much faith on 2nd year QB Brock Purdy? Sure seems like it, with Trey Lance having been traded to Dallas, and Jimmy Garappolo now in Las Vegas. However, star defensive lineman Nick Bosa is holding out for more money, never a good idea at the start of the season. Maybe he should talk to his brother Joey (Chargers) to get better advice. Sam Darnold (Carolina) replaces Lance as Purdy's backup, perhaps in the hope that Kyle Shanahan can right the ship for him, career-wise.

The big story in Los Angeles is the Rams choosing QB Stetson Bennett (Georgia) as Matthew Stafford's understudy. Stafford, entering his 15th season, is, like Bennett, a Georgia alumnus, so there's bound to be kinship. The Rams, otherwise, still have some work to do. Seattle, for all intents & purposes, stood pat, adding DB Julian Love (Giants) to the secondary. Geno Smith remains the starting quarterback. Arizona needs to show they can play a full season with momentum, instead of folding in the stretch like they have the last couple of years.

Projected order of finish:

1. Seattle.

2. San Francisco.

3. Arizona.

3 (tie). Los Angeles.

AFC West:

Like Nick Bosa in San Francisco, Chris Jones is holding out in Kansas City for a new, better deal. I'd like to talk to the agents for these guys. Then again, there's a sports agent right here in the 518 I can contact if needed in Niskayuna High principal JR Rickert, if I want to pick an agent's brain. I digress. The defending Super Bowl champions still have State Farm pitchman Patrick Mahomes at QB, so don't expect them to miss the playoffs any time soon. They open Thursday at home vs. Detroit.

Las Vegas said goodbye to Derek Carr (New Orleans) and Darren Waller (Giants), and hello to Jimmy Garappolo (San Francisco), but there's no guarantee they will be a playoff team. Like Arizona, the Raiders did a fold late last season, and can't afford to do that again. Sean Payton ended his retirement after 1 season to take over in Denver, tasked with getting Russell Wilson back to All-Pro form. On defense, the Broncos made some noise signing linebacker Frank Clark away from Kansas City. The Los Angeles Chargers boast two players with the most interesting names in the NFL. Backup QB Easton Stick was drafted as Justin Herbert's backup, while Stone Smartt is a 2nd year tight end. Expect jokes from the media if either one has a particularly bad day.

Projected order of finish:

1. Kansas City.

2. Las Vegas.

3. Los Angeles.

3 (tie). Denver.

Of course, I could be wrong.

Videos of Summer: All Star (1999)

 "All Star" was the 1st single from Smash Mouth's sophomore release, "Astro Lounge" in 1999. The video features the cast of the movie, "Mystery Men", including Ben Stiller and William H. Macy, though it's mostly stock footage.

Up until today, I had not seen this variant with the movie cast included, as this was on the "Mystery Men" soundtrack.

In memory of singer Steve Harwell, 56, who passed away over the weekend.

This week in the GOP: McConnell freezes, DeSantis gets bad advice from a moron

 Let's all say a few prayers, to start off, for Kentucky senior Senator Mitch McConnell. No joke. McConnell had another spell earlier this week in which he froze in mid-speech at a press conference. Second time that's happened, and some are tying this to a series of spills earlier in the year.

Someone opined that McConnell, who's in his 80's, might've been concussed in one of those spills. That leads me to think that there is the prospect, not so much of Parkinson's Disease, but, rather, Post-Concussion Syndrome (PCS), and now, Senate Republicans are discussing what to do about McConnell, who could run again for re-election in 2026. I've this feeling this may be the end of the line for McConnell. The Republicans in the House of Representatives, however, led by Empty-G, aren't waiting for medical reports. Sure, the immature brats want the principal gone, if ya will. 

Stay tuned.

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And, then, there is Charlie "Don't Call me Captain" Kirk.

The head idiot at Turning Point USA is calling for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to drop out of the presidential race, and give his war chest to the GOP's head wackjob, Donald Trump. Kirk doesn't care that the Archduke of Affluenza has 91 felony charges looming. As Farron Cousins explains, Kirk wouldn't be where he is today without Citizen Pampers:

DeSantis is not going to drop out. There's a better chance Trump may be forced out of the race because of his legal troubles, mostly because of his leading with his mouth, ignoring court orders.

Kirk would be well served, as would Kryin' Kari Lake, who is calling for the rest of the GOP candidates to concede to Diaper Don, to heed this advice:

Enough said.

Sports this 'n' that

Deion Sanders spent the last three years coaching Jackson State. Consider that, if you will, preparing for the big time.

On Saturday, Sanders made his debut as the coach of the Colorado Buffaloes of the Big 12, in front of a national television audience on Fox, and watched his son, Shadeur, smash the school record for passing yards, throwing for more than 500 yards and 4 touchdowns, as Colorado upset last year's national runner-up, TCU, 45-42, matching the Buffaloes' win total of 2022 in one fell swoop.

Sanders is still doing commercials for AFLAC, by the way.

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After airing SEC games the last several years, CBS is sharing Big 10 football this year, and also has a doubleheader on tap today (!!!).

Saturday's opener saw Ohio State down Indiana, 27-3. The Buckeyes used a suffocating defense to keep the Hoosiers at bay.

Indiana freshman Declan McMahon, son of Shane McMahon, grandson of WWE Executive Chairman/head nutcase Vince McMahon, did not play. Probably wouldn't have made a difference if he did.

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Last year, after AEW's All Out, there was a backstage brawl involving CM Punk and members of the Elite (Kenny Omega & the Young Bucks), which led to Punk missing the rest of 2022.

There won't be a sequel, although some might say there was one last week in London at All In. Punk had a confrontation with Jack Perry, the wrestler-son of the late actor Luke Perry, in the gorilla position after Perry had dropped the FTW title back to Hook.

Saturday, prior to Collision, Tony Khan made the most difficult decision of his career, terminating the contract of Punk (Phil Brooks). Following is AEW's official statement:

Couple that with Brooks' wife, April, the former AJ Lee, not renewing with Women of Wrestling after 1 season, one wonders if either one will actually work for a American promotion ever again.

Videos of Summer: Fruitcakes (1994)

 We're at the crossroads between summer & fall, so let's take a walk with Jimmy Buffett as he sings about "Fruitcakes".

"Fruitcakes" got a ton of airplay on alternative radio in 1994, and it'd been a few years since I'd heard anything fresh from Buffett.

In memory of Buffett, 76, who passed away on Friday from unknown causes.

Disney pulls its channels off Spectrum Cable. Football fans, in particular, are upset

 You're getting ready to watch Florida vs. Utah on ESPN. 8 pm (ET) rolls around, and, suddenly, the screen goes black. Yikes! What just happened?

Negotiations between Disney, which owns ESPN, and Spectrum Cable, stalled at precisely the wrong time for football fans. It's not just ESPN's family of networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews, ACC Network, SEC Network, ESPNU), mind, but other Disney-owned channels, such as FX, FXX, Disney Channel, Disney Jr., National Geographic, National Geographic Wild, with four of those acquired from Fox a while back.

Charter Communications, Spectrum's parent company, posted the following message:

Spectrum's argument is that Disney is overcharging for fees. What a surprise, eh? DirecTV bounced local stations WTEN & WXXA earlier this year for the same reason. 

It's not just college football fans that are adversely affected. Unless things change quickly, Sunday Night Baseball will be blacked out this weekend. Any forthcoming UFC events airing on ESPN, too, and Monday Night Football returns September 11 with a Bills-Jets game. As of right now, Fox Sports 1 & 2 are not affected----yet. ABC is blacked out in cities where it's on Disney-owned channels, which is not the case in the home district. WTEN's parent also owns the CW.

I think once Disney realizes the timing is way off, they'll settle, and UFC, NCAA, & NFL fans will be happy before long.