Yearly Archives: 2011
Hearne: Congressman Emanuel Cleaver II; KC Needs Urban Movie Plex for Kids
Unruly kids, bad parenting, floodlights overhead, police on horseback, the latest Hollywood blockbusters…
This is not the stuff from which flash mobs are made. Maybe that one a couple years back. But sexy as the term "flash mob" is for lazy media types wanting to dial sensationalism into Plaza kid curfew stories, it’s time to deal with the realities of the situation.
Poor kids from poor parts of town want to go see blockbuster first-run movies just like their suburban counterparts.
It’s the American Condition. The kids see ads for "Fright Night" and they wanna see it.
Just one problem…
New Jack City: KC’s Celluloid Movie Summer—The Good. The Bad. The Easily Forgettable
As Kansas City’s movie summer flickers to a screeching halt let’s reflect on what approximately $4.4 billion in North American ticket sales bought moviegers at the nation’s boxoffices.
Here then my take on the endless summer of 2011
First there were the this summer’s three major sleeper hits
Translation: Pictures that far exceeded expectations and where great word-of-mouth built their ongoing performance
* Judd Apatow’s BRIDESMAIDS written by and starring Kristen Wiig. This one started out totally as a chick flick. But once the guys discovered it they loved it just as much!
Donnelly: Dweezil Zappa Plays Zappa@The Midland by AMC, August 26, 2011
You could tell Dweezil was having a great time from the moment he and his band walked onto the Midland stage a few minutes early at 7:56.
He was all smiles as he announced, "We’re gonna start this with something kinda fun that you can dance to."
The eight piece band launched into the Zappa classic, Dancin’ Fool, sounding in sync and full, with the distinctive sound of jazz xylophone accentuating the rare musical style that Frank Zappa explored. It became quickly apparent who the real fans in the audience were.
I mean, people who really like Zappa are, well let’s just be honest, a little bit eccentric usually, right?
You have to be slightly twisted deep inside to truly appreciate what Frank Zappa did for years with his unique brand of music. He put premiums on extremely complex rhythms, mixed with the most off-the-wall lyrics and storytelling, mixed with an ethos that always tried new and weird things just for their own sake.
So like I was saying, people that like Frank Zappa REALLY like Frank Zappa.
I counted at least three standing ovations during Dweezil’s hour long set…
Glazer: Hey, Ricky! Matt Cassel is Done, Bring on the Quarterback Controversy
With my sharp eye and clear vision of this years Chiefs season we can say this: ITS OVER…
This is a lost season. There are simply way too many holes to fill with a tough schedule. Not like last year when we played Grandview every week, and still needed lots of luck to win those 10 games. Oakland, Baltimore, Denver and Oakland showed who this team was at season’s end. Oh yeah, add San Diego to that list. Ugly. Down the stretch we were 2 and 5, guys. One of the NFL’s low level ball clubs.
Last year’s Chiefs were phonies.
You know it. I know it. The NFL knows it. And the team surely knows it. Head Coach Todd Haley damn well knows it. And maybe some guys on radio should know it too, huh?
So about last night…
Jack Goes Confidential: With ‘OUR IDIOT BROTHER’ What You See Ain’t What You Get
Hail to the primo trailer-makers for creating the smoke and mirror previews for OUR IDIOT BROTHER…
That’s not to say that the movie is necessarily bad. It’s just not a rip-roaring comedy. OUR IDIOT BROTHER could almost qualify as an art house entry, which means that the masses that’ll be attracted to it (thanks to its sly marketing) may end up disappointed.
OUR IDIOT BROTHER stars Overland Park export Paul Rudd as Ned, a simple minded kinda dude. An irresponsible man-child of sorts selling organic veggies from the little farm that he toils with girlfriend Kathryn Hahn and his beloved dog Willie Nelson.
He’s a goodhearted soul. And when a friendly cop tricks Ned into selling him a little weed, it’s promptly off to the slammer for him.
Fast forward eight months as Ned is released from jail only to find his girlfriend with a new stoner. Furthermore, she’s not giving up Willie Nelson.
Glazer: Hang onto Your Parents, No Matter How Bad They May be
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We only have one mother and one father – I mean real ones…
Not someone who married one of your parents after they split. It’s tough being a child to a parent. Too many parents expect way too much. And often parents live vicariously through their offspring.
My father, Stan, was the kind of parent who just didn’t want to be one.
People who know him and my brothers say Stan Glazer was a terrible father.
Without a doubt. All three of his sons – me included – ended up in prison at one point or another.
Donnelly: Steely Dan@Starlight Theater, August 25, 2011
When I was younger, I hated Steely Dan. Not that I even knew who they were.
There was a radio show every Sunday night called "Reelin’ in the Years," that played classic rock and other "oldies." Appropriately, the theme song for the show was the Steely Dan song by the same name.
What is this old crap, I thought?
Plus, my parents listened to the Dan on long road trips. Yuck.
Then, in college, I "discovered" Pretzel Logic. THIS is the band that played that theme song?
I got hooked.
Thursday night was my first Dan show, and I must say I was impressed…
Starbeams: Santa Lands SUV in KC Attic, Apples Fall on Jobs Report, iPhone 5 to Sprint
An SUV lost control, hit an embankment and landed in the attic of a house at 43rd and Kensington Wednesday. There was speculation the driver could have been drunk…or Santa.
*******
Kansas City School Superintendent, Dr. John Covington unexpectedly resigned because of conflicts with the school board. He is the 26th superintendent the district has had in the past 40 years. The good news? He can be my Facebook friend now.
Car: Libyan Rebels Liberate Gadhafi’s Tricked Out Fiat 500
Like it’s been said, it’s been a long, hot summer…
Seriously. I spent like two weeks bouncing around Tucson in mid July, taunting locals about how cool the desert was compared to here. It was, too because it was monsoon season. I thought for sure I’d dodged the 100 degree temps and humidity bullet until I got back and Mother Nature spanked the you-know-what out of us for two more weeks.
Now it’s time to really get back to work and make KC Confidential bigger and better. And what better way to start than restart the Car coverage with a stunning scoop – props to WhiteMamba – about the Fiat 500 being the ride of choice for ousted Lybian strongman "Muammar el-Qaddafi.
But first a local update on the 500 and a shout out to comments dude Rogger…
Hearne: A Closer Look at the Nick Wright – Greg Hall 610 Sports Pissing Match
Forget who won or lost yesterday’s on-air tete a tete between 610 Sports host Nick Wright & sports media blogger Greg Hall…
The inside baseball nature of the confrontation probably left most listeners wondering what to make of it. That said, readers of KC Confidential were likely all-too familiar with the subject given most of Hall’s coverage of Wright went down right here over the past two years.
So, against my better judgment, let’s take a look.
Frankly, I’m not sure who "won."
Hall wisely pimped Wright into bringing him in the studio rather than calling in over the phone where it would be easier for Wright to steamroll him. And to a large extent, Hall’s strategy worked. Listeners who contacted me – ages 30 to 60 – felt Hall came out on top. But not by a landslide.
A closer listen while transcribing the confrontation, showed that Wright had the better arguments, but got distracted and wasn’t able to hammer home his points as well as he might have.
Example…
Wright started by nailing Hall for calling him a coward and accusing him of plagiarism. Which clearly Hall had done in the past week.
But Wright allowed Hall to wriggle free by saying that he never used those exact words.
True enough, but to borrow a line from former KCTV investigative reporter Dave Helling, here’s the "Truth Watch" on that.
Hearne: 610 Sports Nick Wright Lays Down ‘Explanation II’ – Bashes Local Bloggers
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And now, the rest of the story…
Look, I get that most readers, sports fans and people with things going on in their lives besides penning vitriolic comments under assumed names don’t much care about who got some news scoop first.
Just the facts, ma’am and they”re happy.
An earthquake jolts the East Coast, who cares if Fox or CNN reported it first. People want the full, accurate story, the news. Not touchdown dances and gotcha stories claiming some kid with a microscopically small twitter account spread an unconfirmed rumor a couple hours before the actual news was reported.
It’s silly.
Hearne: 610 Sports Nick Wright, Star Editor Bust Blogger for Journalistic Missteps
There’s a difference between news sources and news stories…
Between tweeting rumors to a handful of people and gathering facts and reporting a story through a major media outlet to a large audience. Anyone can tweet a rumor. Running down the story and reporting it responsibly is an entirely different animal.
So it is that 610 Sports host Nick Wright took umbrage at being called out by local sports blogger Greg Hall.
"Nick Wright Claims Chiefs Scoop That Was Not His To Claim And He Knew It," Hall’s headline reads.
Three problems…
First, Hall assumed Wright had read a bare bones tweet last week from a local with fewer than 40 followers.
Glazer: My Love / Hate Affair With The Long, Hot Summer
I love the summer…
It reminds me of the end of school, the pool, cars with the top down, wind blowing in my face, the sun, the fun and all those dreams. Hey, my business is strong in the winter and slow in summer. There’s too much else going on out there. Still I can’t help but enjoy those summer days and nights.
These past several weeks have been by far the hottest in our city that I can remember.
We must have had more than 20 or 30 days of 100 degrees or higher. All I could hear from people was, "Man, I can’t wait for it too cool off – this is awful – it’s too hot."
Well, in a few weeks you’ll get your wish. And God forbid, in a few months, it’ll be cloudy, there’ll be drizzle, snow – it’ll be hard to drive anywhere. Hard to see at night with snow pounding the windshield. Bitter cold out. Remember? Yep, we all do.
Then we’ll dream of those 100 degree days and wish they were back.
Fitzpatrick: Star’s New Columnist Lineup – Money-Saver or Bold Stroke?
The Kansas City Star is now three weeks into its new rotating metro columnist system, and, while it’s far too soon to judge the success or failure of the initiative, it’s a good time to take a closer look at the concept.
Personally, I think it’s going to be difficult for any of the six new columnists (there are three carryovers, C.W. Gusewelle, Steve Kraske and Mary Sanchez) to gain traction with readers. That’s the whole idea of columnists, you know — to have them become trusted, if controversial, voices whose work becomes a destination point for readers.
Maybe this is an experiment designed to cull the reporting ranks for a new, marquee columnist or two, but this move strikes me as more of a money-saving mishmash, a cheap alternative to hiring or promoting at least one new, permanent columnist to replace the two being replaced.
But I certainly don’t claim to have a perfectly clear perspective on this, so I sought the views this week of two top, former editors who have deep wells of experience in newsroom leadership and organization.
Sounds Good: Steely Dan@Starlight, Zappa Plays Zappa@Midland, and TV On The Radio@Crossroads
A lot going on this weekend…
Not only am I personally recommending three really great shows featuring some unique and legendary artists, there’s also some great local music happening in Lawrence and KC, as well as the Chiefs on Friday night and Sporting KC on Saturday night.
Yep, it could be an epic several days if everything goes according to plan.
Thursday it’s some chill rock with Steely Dan, Friday we get a little weird with Dweezil, then Saturday it’s off to LIVESTRONG to watch Sporting keep climbing the ladder. But no after-game beers this time because it’s a bee-line for Crossroads to catch one of the cooler live acts around on Saturday night, TV On The Radio.
Who’s with me?
Starbeams: Songwriter’s Death Reminds of When KC Still Mattered, Chivas-SKC, Light Rail
Songwriter Jerry Leiber, who with longtime partner Mike Stoller wrote, "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Kansas City " and dozens of hits, died Monday. He was 78. Once again, our top story is about people used to write about Kansas City.
*****
The much-anticipated date for Chivas Guadalajara’s visit to Livestrong Sporting Park is set. Sporting Kansas City will play the storied Mexican club on Oct. 12. That’s bad news for the Roeland Park Walmart’s sales on October 12.
Glazer: Time for Matt Cassel to Prove Himself or Get The Hell Outta Town!
Location, location, location…
That’s what they say about buying real estate or opening a restaurant. In the NFL its quaterback, quarterback, quarterback!
So lets get right to it Chiefs Nation. Thus far, Matt Cassel, THE FRANCHISE, ain’t doing so hot.
I’ll admit that I loved it when we traded/bought/ stole Matt from New England.
Hey, tons of teams wanted the Matt Man. After all, he was schooled by one of the best quarterbacks to ever play, Tom Brady. Matt had a huge year in 2008 for the Pats. THE FRANCHISE had a quarterback rating of 89.4, threw for 3,693 yards, 21 touchdowns and just 11 interceptions. He won 11 games. Damn.
Yes, he had a strong team, but he even hit mini bombs in the snow. IN THE SNOW FOR GOD’S SAKE.
I made sure I was Nick Wright’s first guest that day we stole the FRANCHISE.
Donnelly: KC’s Best Pro Team Wins Again, Does It Vermes’ Way
Remember when Sporting Kansas City head coach Peter Vermes was considered a dead man walking?
It seems so distant, but in reality it was about two and a half months ago. Sporting was mired in a horrific road trip and struggled to earn any points. Players worked hard, but confessed that always being “the enemy” was starting to sap their energy.
After a particularly lackluster showing, club president Robb Heineman called in unannounced to 810 Sports and admitted live and on the air that the team was underperforming. He stopped just short of calling SKC’s performance embarrassing, but he did mention that anything short of the playoffs could/would result in heads rolling.
That was then…
Hearne: Olive Branch Alert; Warring Festivals Render Buzz Beach Ball a Beach Bust
About Friday’s Buzz Beach Ball at Livestrong Sporting Park in KCK…
Sources say the concert was a stiff, likely losing in the neighborhood of a quarter million bucks. Which comes on the heels of reportedly seven-figure losses the promoters of Kanrocksas, suffered 12 days earlier. (By the way, word on the street is Kanrocksas may return next year. The idea being that most big fests don’t break into the black until the second or third year.)
But face it, it’s been a long, ridiculously hot summer and entertainment times have been tough. With some exceptions, Arrowhead and Farm Aid to name two.
According to freelancer / blogger Noah Homola – who reviewed Beach Ball for the Star – there may have been, at its peak, 10,000 people at Livestrong for Incubus. In other words, half a house.
(By the way, Homola did a nice job covering the fest. Not to mention bringing a 30-year-old’s perspective to the review party rather than the newspaper’s usual 50s and up suspects.)
Now here’s what the entertainment community is saying about the red ink churned up at Beach Ball and Kanrocksas…
