Archive for April, 2007
One of the benefits to working at a sports talk radio station is that sometimes you find things out that other people never know about. We have friends in and around the Dolphins organization, and after the draft, one of our sources gave to me the list that Cam Cameron had made of people that he planned to draft EVEN if Brady Quinn was available. Obviously, Ted Ginn Jr. was at the top of the list; but the other people on the list was really shocking. I know I shouldn’t share this list publicly, but since the Dolphins and 790 The Ticket have parted ways, I feel no obligation to keep the list secret. So… here are the people that Cam Cameron planned on selecting even if Brady Quinn was still available:
Foghorn Leghorn
Mr. Roper from Three’s Company
Anthony Michael Hall
Mrs. Butterworth
Don Rickles
Pokey Reese
Craig Minervini
Brent Musburger
Jorge Julio
Rosie Ruiz
Dwight Lauderdale
Rich Eisen
Betty Rubble
The owner of “The Tavern” in Coconut Grove
Paul Dee
Dusty Rhodes
Scottie Pippen
Mel Sharples
Kenny Walker
Dave Corzine
Mitch Gaylord
I must admit, I do feel a little dirty sharing these Dolphins secrets with you; but sometimes you have to do what’s right. So you can see, based on that list, the Dolphins probably wouldn’t have selected Brady Quinn unless he fell deep into the second day of the draft.
April 30th, 2007
I have found, based on last week’s blog, that if I write good things about Sid he’ll promote my blog on his radio show. Why am I so interested in someone promoting my blog? I’m not so certain. It’s a vanity thing, I guess. I feel like if people are reading my blog, then people are actually interested in what I have to say. I know that’s not really true, but I will continue to feed (and fool) my ego with weekly blogs.
Radio, we are told, is all about habits. And your habit might be to tune in to hear Dan LeBatard and Stugotz every afternoon at 4pm… And while you’re listening, perhaps you read my blog, look at some of our pictures on the “extras” page of our website, and maybe even check out what we’ve posted on our Myspace page at www.myspace.com/danlebatardshow. And if your habit is tuning in to hear Dan… perhaps you’re not in the habit of also tuning in Sid; and if you’re not listening to Sid, you’re missing a really good radio show.
Sid Rosenberg is on everyday from Noon until 4pm. That’s a long shift for a talk show host, but he pulls it off exceedingly well. Sid is one of those radio guys that just entertains… doesn’t matter if it’s sports or pop culture, Sid is going to have an interesting take on it. Do I like everything he does? No. I flip the dial when he starts talking NHL playoffs. But if you check out the audio archives on Sid’s show (on this website) you’ll see that most of his guests are really interesting. (A fun drinking game is to listen to Sid’s interviews and do a shot every time he refers to a guest as “his good friend.”)
I don’t know if I’ve written anything “flowery” enough to get mentioned on Sid’s show yet, so I’m going to step it up here. Sid Rosenberg’s radio show is one of the most entertaining radio shows you’ll ever hear. I’m not kidding. Certain people have a gift for radio… and Sid is one of those people.
You’re probably asking yourself if someone from the radio show (or someone from Sid’s show) asked me to write this blog. The answer is no. I sat in front of my computer and this is the topic that jumped into my head. I’m starting to think now that it was a bad topic, but I’m too far in to start re-writing anything. Future blogs will be better; I promise.
If you write nice things about Sid in response to this blog, there’s a good possibility he’ll mention you on the air too. He might even call you “the great…” Or he might even refer to you as “his good friend.” This is a really meandering blog. Not some of my best work. I’ve lost focus. The truth is, I really do like Sid’s show and I listen everyday. Perhaps I just should have told that to Sid, rather than writing this blog, but again it’s too late.
As the Executive Producer of “The Dan LeBatard Show” I’m usually the first person to say that it’s the producers who make the talent good. That’s certainly the case on my show. But on Sid’s show, it’s all Sid. He gets very little help from his producers. In fact, his show is good IN SPITE of the producers. (I’m not referring to Adrian by the way. Get well soon, Adrian!)
So what did we learn in this blog? Well, we learned that I can’t write a good blog every week. We learned that I personally find Sid Rosenberg’s show to be extremely funny and entertaining. We learned a fun, new drinking game. We learned that sometimes Sid talks about the NHL playoffs. We learned that there’s no limit to the amount of text I can write in my blog. No one can cut me off here. I can just keep typing and ty
April 24th, 2007
I’m tired of talking about the Don Imus incident. We’ve talked about it on the show for more days than I care to count. I personally don’t care that he got fired, because I’ve heard he’s a complete jackass to everyone around him… I love to see assholes get their comeuppance. If you’re a prick to everyone for years and years, then I have no problem with you losing your livelihood. Perhaps if you were a better person, more people would’ve come to your defense. But I’m getting off point.
This whole Imus thing got me thinking about radio personalities in general. I’ve never understood how Imus was popular in the first place. He’s not funny… He mumbles… and he sounds cranky. I’m a big fan of “radio” in general- always have been. Growing up in Chicago, I used to listen to Steve Dahl, Larry Lujack, and Kevin Matthews. Steve Dahl was probably my favorite air personality growing up. He always did a cutting edge, fun, entertaining show. He’s still on in Chicago, and still has a huge following. (Steve Dahl was the instigator behind the famous “Disco Demolition” night at Comiskey Park that cost the White Sox a game. If you’ve never heard of it, Google it. It was a night to remember!)
Larry Lujack was a radio legend in Chicago. He had a feature called Animal Stories, which was hilarious. Several years ago I was able to download some Larry Lujack Animal Stories off Napster… then Napster went through all their changes, and now I don’t know if you can find Lujack anymore. Larry Lujack ended up going crazy in his later years… but man he was fun to listen to for a while.
The greatest radio personality I’ve ever heard is Phil Hendrie. I used to listen to him religiously when he was on WIOD in Miami. It was the most clever and entertaining radio show I’d ever heard. I’m not certain I’ve heard a more creative radio talent, ever. It’s hard to explain exactly what Hendrie did on the air; but good God was it entertaining. Someone that smart doesn’t belong on radio… He belongs doing something much more important. (Phil Hendrie ended up leaving Miami for Los Angeles and got signed to a TV development deal, but the show never aired.)
Then, of course, there’s Howard Stern. I love the Stern show. I listen as often as I can. Howard Stern took radio to a completely different level, and continues to do so. Howard Stern made radio “big.” Before him, radio was never considered a true entertainment medium. He changed everything. The great thing about the Stern show is that you feel like you’re part of the “family.” It takes a while, but you get all the inside jokes, and you feel a part of the drama when it transpires. (I think the show has gotten even better on Satellite.)
As far as local radio, The Dan LeBatard Show is the most entertaining in South Florida. But that goes without saying. After our show, though…
I actually find Sid Rosenberg extremely entertaining. He took a while to grow on me… at the beginning, I felt he was just a loudmouth New Yorker that was trying to evoke a reaction all the time. As I’ve listened though, I’ve come to realize just how good he is at doing a radio show. He has a really quick sense of humor, and a good radar for what’s funny and entertaining. (I know this sounds like a suck job because I work with him, but I’m really being honest.) I actually listen to Sid every afternoon when I drive to work instead of listening to Stern. Sid is probably my favorite radio personality in South Florida. (I’ve never listened to Paul and Ron, by the way.)
I can’t understand how Hank Goldberg was EVER popular. He’s a talentless, cranky, old coot. (Kind of like Imus, now that I think about it.) Mandich doesn’t do anything for me either. He’s annoying more than anything. Then there’s Neil Rogers: South Florida legend. I’m not into his show anymore… I think he’s mailing it in lately. I used to listen to him when I was in college and found it somewhat entertaining. Over the years though, I’ve grown tired of his routine. It’s the same thing every show… Miami sucks, blah, blah, blah. His best days are behind him.
Now, here’s the part of the blog where you get to write whatever you want to write about the radio scene. There’s no censorship here, so feel free to rip our show or our station. We’re big boys- we can take it! And, if you love us and write something nice, maybe I’ll send you some Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce.
April 16th, 2007
The Sopranos are back, and like millions of others, I was watching their return Sunday night. I kind of feel obligated to watch at this point. I’ve invested a lot of time over the years watching the show, so I might as well watch the final season. I was definitely not as excited this season for The Sopranos as I have been in the past. I wasn’t crazy about last season, and my feeling is that these final nine episodes won’t be enough time to tie up all the loose ends from previous seasons. My guess is that after the final episode, I’m going to be disappointed and unfulfilled. (I hope I’m wrong.)
The greatest show on TV right now is The Office. There is no funnier or more clever show on TV at the moment. Every character on that show is perfect. Dwight- perfect. Toby- perfect. Michael- perfect. Stanley- perfect. Every single character is funny and well written. If you don’t watch The Office, I’m begging you to go get the previous seasons on DVD and catch up. You will not regret it. It’s one of those shows that comes around once in a long while, so enjoy it while it’s here.
There aren’t many shows that I truly look forward to like I do The Office. (If you listen to the radio show, you know I’m a huge American Idol fan, but I’m not going to get into that in this blog. Just know that I’m glued to Idol every Tuesday and Wednesday night. There. I admit it. Leave me alone.)
My favorite shows of all time would include Seinfeld, Cheers, and probably The Cosby Show. Seinfeld and Cheers were just perfect. They went out when they were still funny and clever. Cosby had a few great seasons… but it kind of petered out at the end. They started bringing more and more kids and characters into the show and it lost its touch. But for a while, there was nothing funnier on TV than Cosby.
Some shows I’ve never seen that people rave about: Entourage, Lost, 24, The Shield, and The West Wing. (Is The West Wing still running? Never seen it.) I find it kind of tough to get into one hour dramas. (The Sopranos is the exception.) You have to devote so much time to the one hour dramas. I started watching “The Nine” on ABC last year. It was about nine people who were in a bank robbery, but the viewer didn’t really know what transpired. Each week you’d get a few more clues as to what happened inside the bank… And then the show went off the air. Not enough people were watching, so I’ll never know what happened inside the bank. Glad I spent my time getting into that show.
There are several shows I’m ashamed to admit I loved: Saved By The Bell, ALF, Temptation Island, and Just Shoot Me. I’m a huge David Spade fan. Just Shoot Me was a great and terrible show at the same time. I also loved Everybody Loves Raymond. It’s not cool to say you liked that show, but what can I tell you? It got bad towards the end, but for a couple years it was really funny. (Same goes for King of Queens.)
Finally, I’ll leave you with a suggestion about a show I always watch. You’ve probably never heard of it, but it’s a really entertaining reality show. It’s called “King of Cars” and it’s on A & E. It’s a reality show filmed at an actual car dealership in Las Vegas called Towbin Dodge. The show centers around the owner of the dealership- a young, hip guy named Chopper. (Or Chop.) He chops down the prices of the cars— get it? It’s a fun show, and I would proably book Chopper to come on the radio show, but Dan doesn’t watch it so the interview would probably fall flat. Check out King of Cars on A & E… That’s my bit of advice for this week.
And keep your fingers crossed that The Sopranos will be good this season.
April 9th, 2007
I grew up in Chicago, so I’m a pizza snob. There is no better pizza in the world than Chicago pizza. (I can sense the New Yorkers fuming as they read this.) Chicago pizza is unlike any other pizza on the planet… it’s true deep dish pizza. (Not the “fake” deep dish pizza that you’ll get from Pizza Hut.) A real Chicago pizza about an hour to cook. If you’ve never had real Chicago pizza, it’s worth a trip to Chicago just to try some.
That being said, I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I actually love Papa John’s. Papa John’s is my favorite pizza from a pizza chain. I’m not crazy about Domino’s or Little Caesars… but I’m always up for a Papa John’s pizza. Good sauce… good cheese… and that awesome butter/garlic sauce that you can dip the pizza and crust in. That’s good living.
Back to Chicago pizza though… I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago (on the North Shore) so my all time favorite pizza is Piero’s. (Not many people will have ever heard of Piero’s; but if you lived in Highland Park, you know what I’m talking about.) The most famous pizza places in downtown Chicago are Uno, Due, Lou Malnatti’s, and Giordanos. You won’t go wrong at any of those places. In fact, Lou Malnatti’s delivers all over the country via FedEx. It’s a good “taste” of Chicago, but it’s not like sitting at the restaurant and having that deep dish pizza delivered out to you after anticipating it for an hour. If you’re dying for a Chicago pizza, try 1-800-LOU-TO-GO and you’ll get one via FedEx; but just know that even though it’s good… it’s just not the same.
People in South Florida always rave about Pizza Loft, but I must admit I’ve never eaten there. There’s a place in Boca (where I live) called Cannoli Kitchen that has excellent pizza. If I’m ordering pizza to the house, I’m ordering from Cannoli Kitchen or Papa John’s. (I prefer Papa John’s but my wife isn’t crazy about it.) And, since I have a three year old at home, I’m very familiar with the pizza at Chuck E Cheese. (It’s not horrible.)
Just writing about pizza makes me hungry… and makes me long for Chicago. But even after I’ve told you that there is no pizza like Chicago pizza because it’s deep dish- I’ll let you in on a little secret. There is a thin pizza place in Chicago that is better than any pizza you’ll ever eat. (It’s a bit different, and it’s an acquired taste; but once you give it a chance you will crave it every moment of your life.) The place is called Barnaby’s. I only wish Barnaby’s delivered via FedEx too. I can’t describe exactly what it’s like, but trust me when I tell you that it’s great.
So now… after writing and thinking about pizza, I’m going to go enjoy some. I’m not in Chicago anymore, so deep dish is out. I’m hungry, so I don’t have time to order in. So, I leave you with my final recommendation: it’s a frozen pizza called Red Baron. The best frozen pizza on the planet is Red Baron pizza bread. Get the 5 cheese and garlic variety. Good stuff. Gonna go enjoy one now.
April 2nd, 2007
