Yearly Archives: 2011
Starbeams: Royals ‘Bat’ Nightmare, Ann Taylor Plaza Riot & Vanguard Flashback
Good news! Nobody got shot on the Plaza last night, although, my wife did start a riot when she arrived at Ann Taylor one minute after they closed. You haven’t lived until you see an Ann Taylor riot.
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Passengers on a Delta flight from Madison to Atlanta were frightened by a flying bat inside the plane. People were yelling and screaming and the flight had to return to Madison as no one knew how to handle a bat. Begging the question, why were the Royals flying from Madison to Atlanta?
Glazer: KC Mayor Sly James to Adopt Glazer Plan for Plaza
Kansas City Mayor Sly James is a KC Confidential reader for certain…
I wrote several stories about him when he ran for mayor – all backing him. I interviewed Sly twice and wrote both stories on kcconfidential.com. Now the mayor’s going with my plan to save the Plaza. As written here a couple days back. The plan to rid the Plaza of the large groups of unruly black youth on Saturday nights.
OK, maybe James thought it up on his own. But it’s exactly what I suggested here a few days back.
CURFEW OPTION HAS KC’S INTEREST is the Star‘s headline today. The Mayor said a new city-wide curfew would be in effect this weekend. Starting at 9 P.M.
Sound familiar?
The details are still in the works, but it will be an under 21 and you’re OUT curfew.
Westport tried this in the 90’s, but it kinda failed due to lack of police enforcement.
Hearne: The Sun Also Sets, NPG Newspapers Issues Death Sentence to Joco Sun
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Prediction realized…
Last December I asked: "Does Steve Rose to the Star mean Death to the Sun?"
Today that rhetorical question was answered by the Sun‘s parent NPG Newspapers of St. Joseph.
"Everybody has to be out of the office by noon today, former Sun publisher Rose told me around 11 a.m. as I drove to Oklahoma City. "I got the official word on it three days ago."
Rose parents, Stan and Shirley Rose founded the suburban Johnson County weekly more than a half a century ago.
"It’s a very sad moment for me," Rose says. "And it’s sad for my mother who is alive and well – she started the paper with my dad – and she’s pretty emotional about it."
The unfortunate reality being, like any number of print pubs, the Sun was destined to set, Rose says.
Star Search: As Expected, Star Unleashes Furloughs Instead of Layoffs
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Nothing like being A over Tea Kettle in a financial freefall….
That pretty much describes the current state affairs in of the newspaper industry. Publishers continue to talk of better days ahead – after our long, national nightmare – the coming-soon, double dip recession. Which naively ignores the long term downward prospects of the print news industry.
Bringing us to the mandatory one week staff furloughs announced at the Star.
They went down this week as both suggested and predicted by KC Confidential. With a 32 percent earnings drop in its 2nd quarter, McClatchy had to make some serious cuts. No question. But forcing Parrish to do the dirty work one month into her KC Star honeymoon would have placed her in a very unsavory position.
Getting rid of two highly paid columnist positions was likely a savings. Especially given the axing of one.
Now let’s do some math on the furloughs. Which are forced, unpaid, one-week vacations. Vacations that have to be taken between now and year’s end.
Hearne: Christian Radio Kicks Butt, Tops KC Radio Stations in Women Listeners!
First adults, then dudes, but leave us not forget the all-important, sought after women listeners…
Trust me, everybody wants a piece of this action. And don’t take that the wrong way. To that end, let’s look at the Top 10 KC stations in women listeners, 25-54, 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday.
For the uninitiated, this is when 90 percent of most station’s revenue is derrived. Where its heaviest hitters slug it out for money, power and glory. Morning shows next.
Now hang onto your crucifixes because you may be in store for a huge surprise…
Starbeams: Pharm Aid, Plaza Security & Gary Amble’s Sister Elected Iowa Straw Queen
Willie Nelson and Neil Young need to do a benefit concert for their fans called Pharm Aid.
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Shots rang out Saturday night on the Plaza near mayor Sly James as his security shoved him to safety. Three teenagers were injured. The mayor says he’s getting serious about the violence with flash mobs and teenagers that seems to be increasing. In fact, he plans to inform Plaza Security about the shootings later today.
Glazer: Why Blacks & Whites Don’t Get Along and How to Solve The Plaza Problem
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How to solve the Plaza problem?
Simple. Kansas City should institute a new policy: AFTER 9 PM YOU MUST BE OVER 21 TO BE ON THE PLAZA. Weekends only. UNLESS YOU ARE WITH PARENTS.
That, for the most part, will end this issue. Much of the Plaza’s problems have to do with teenage blacks and the Cinemark Palace on the Plaza movie theater. Unfortunately, Cinemark must now avoid playing movies that attract that crowd. Which means it would miss out on some of the highest grossing films.
Donnelly: Farm Aid at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, August 13, 2011
It was the 26th Farm Aid but the first-ever concert at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park.
How did it go? How did it sound?
How was the crowd? How high was Willie?
Were there any kinks that need worked out before this weekend’s Buzz Beach Ball featuring Jane’s Addiction, Bush, and others?
Yeah, a few…
Hearne: Plaza. Police, Mayor Panic, Too Late to Solve This Year’s Plaza Kid Problem
The long hot summer…
On August 1st, upon returning from Arizona I spoke with KC Police who confirmed that for several weekends hundreds of mostly black youths had gathered on the Plaza near the Cinemark. That there had been problems – but nothing major – maybe a little pepper spray. But no tear gas or "crowds running kind of things."
Not yet anyway.
That long lull before the storm came to an end last night when shots rang out, three teens were wounded and what had the makings of another Plaza mini-riot began to unfold.
New Jack City: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Getting Sex in Las Vegas
Frequently asked questions and misconceptions about Las Vegas include sex and its availability in Sin City…
Say you’re on the bachelor party plan. You’re staying on the Strip and do the ‘Hangover’ thing the first night. Great! And by Day 2 you’re looking for companionship of the professional kind.
No matter what you may have heard, prostitution is illegal in Clark County which includes all of Las Vegas. And because of the recent mayoral campaign, authorities of late have really been cracking down.
So don’t get caught with your pants down.
Hearne: Mayor’s Plaza All Clear Call Gives Way to Shots Fired
Talk about timing….
As luck would have it, KC Confidential‘s server went down on the day I decide to cruise the Plaza. As a followup to recent police confirmation here that the urban youth problem had been simmering – mostly off the media radar – for several weekends. I’d been out of town for two weeks during the buildup and was limited to third party eyewitness reports and carefully-worded police statements.
Here’s what I learned at 9 p.m. tonight (Saturday) prior to KC Mayor Sly James rubber stamp visit to the Plaza and the Star‘s 10:18 p.m. report that the evening had gone without incident.
Au contraire…
Starbeams: Move Over Farm Aid; The Top 10 “Aids” to Mend KC
The Chiefs‘ preseason started Friday with a 25-0 loss to Tampa Bay at Arrowhead. It was a meaningless game with nothing on the line. Or as the Royals call it; September.
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The Missouri State Fair opened this week. Eleven days, 300,000 visitors. Lynyrd Skynyrd had to cancel its appearance because of health reasons – huge blow to the African-American community.
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Farm Aid is today at LiveStrong Sporting Park. Other AID benefit concerts Kansas City could use:
Glazer: Chiefs Give Sneak Preview of How Bad This year’s Team Is
As your humble scribe and friend, I told you just the other day the Chiefs are not very good…
That they would be lucky to win 6 games this season. Last night they started by showing off just how bad a team can be. Yes, it’s pre-season, but it’s ALWAYS PRE-SEASON for this failing franchise. They couldn’t have looked worse. NOTHING looked decent. Nothing. Defense rated an F-minus – they couldn’t even stop the Tampa number two or three quarterbacks from picking up long third down throws. Our offense well, it was not at Arrowhead. As I write this the game is still stinking up my screen. I am doing the Chong show, but took time out to watch this "mess’ we call the Chiefs.
Let’s see what else.
Caitlin: New reality show “Russian Dolls”: Flash or Trash or Both?
Since I’ve been done with school for awhile now, I’ve decided that the television and I should recommit.
It’s been years since I have followed any sitcoms or weekly reality shows—and if you are wondering, the answer is yes. Some college students actually do study.
So last night my girlfriends and I celebrated with a long night of bad TV. I don’t know what dudes do on their game or poker nights, but I have a feeling that they don’t top our girl parties. Reclining chairs, coronas with limes, burritos, booze, and gossip—only during the commercials, of course.
Beer in hand, I successfully re-communed with my TV….
Today: Newsosaur Examines Star Parent McClatchy & Newspaper Woes
While Jimmy C‘s away, the mice will play…
I don’t know what exotic locale vanquished politico / Star editor turned blogger Jim Fitzpatrick escaped to the past two weeks. All I know is he wasn’t around to nail this journalistic diddy to his cross. And that it would have been smack up his alley. A column by Newsosaur, the "Musings (and occasional urgent warnings) of a veteran media executive, who fears our news-gathering companies are stumbling to extinction."
The proposition at hand: "Will business model stabilize for newspapers?"
The departure point being the disastrous situation at McClatchy, parent company of the Kansas City Star.
"Quizzed by securities analysts last week about his company’s disappointing financial performance, the best McClatchy boss Gary Pruitt could say was that he hopes the newspaper “business model will stabilize” at some unspecified point in the future. But it will not," Newsosaur begins.
"And it had better not, if Pruitt intends to save what’s left of his newspapers, where relentless cost cutting has halved the headcount of his flagship Sacramento Bee to some 700 increasingly nervous souls in the last three years."
It may feel to Pruitt like he’s in the 19th inning of a really bad Royals game, but don’t expect a walkoff homer.
Sounds Good: Mardi Diaz@Bottleneck, Farm Aid@ LIVESTRONG, Pitch Awards@Uptown
What a month for music in KC…
Last week, My Morning Jacket decimated the Uptown’s face.
Then Kanrocksas dropped its bomb on KCK’s punk ass.
Coming soon is Steely Dan at Starlight, Bon Iver at the Uptown, and Jane’s Addiction at LIVESTRONG.
Not to mention Yonder Mountain String Band and TV On The Radio.
But first, some old school musical legends would like a word with you…
Jack Goes Confidential: ’30 MINUTES OR LESS” For Slacker Comedy
If you’re going to film a low budget, 83 minute-long, R-rated slacker comedy in Grand Rapids, Michigan you better make it a funny one…
Especially when you’ve got Oscar nominee Jesse Eisenberg fresh off his THE SOCIAL NETWORK success in it! And guess what, ZOMBIELAND director Ruben Fleischer kinda sorta gets it done. Which makes me wonder whether his co-producer Ben Stiller didn’t have a hand in pulling it off?
The story has Eisenberg playing pizza boy Nick who’s constantly racing against the clock to deliver the goods to customers before the 30 minutes or its free deadline is up. He usually blows it. Nick’s best bud Chet—played by Aziz Ansari—has improved his status in life by becoming a teacher.
And Nick’s confession though that he schtupped Chet’s little sister hasn’t helped their buddy relationship much.
Today: The Top 10 Kansas City Radio Afternoon Drive Shows for July
The radio ratings war is played on many fronts…
The most important; morning and afternoon drive.The weekdays when tens of thousands of Kansas Citians are in their cars going to and from work listening to the radio. KCFX’s Slacker won the morning drive in men 25-54 and The Rock’s Johnny Dare and Mix 93.3’s Rocket & Teresa were tops in women 25-54.
Now let’s see how p.m. drive stacked up in men 25 to 54…
There’s no shortage of heavy hitters past and present here. The Buzz’s Lazlo, WHB’s Kevin Kietzman, KCFX’s Skid Roadie, 610 Sports up-and-comer Nick Wright and KMBZ news talkers Mike Shanin & Scott Parks.
And the King of the Beasts is…
Glazer: The NFL Starts Tonight, My Picks to Win it All
Tonight’s the night so many of us have been waiting for THE NFL BEGINS…
Kinda like "Batman Begins." Or maybe not. This is preseason and doesn’t count, but we love football so much we just want to see the players play. Even the lowly Chiefs will likely have a decent crowd at Arrowhead tomorrow. Maybe even 45,000. That would be a great start for them. Past years preseason games have drawn 30-40 thousand tops. They haven’t had any sellouts in years during the regular season. Aside from some phony numbers in the paper. But those include season ticket holders who aren’t at the game. And then some.
So who are THE teams this season?
Hearne: WHB, Kietzman Retake High Ground in July Ratings, KMBZ Slips Again
How appropriate that the battle for sports radio supremacy in KC would be a see-saw affair…
In June, 610 Sports upstart Nick Wright nosed out WHB strongman Kevin Kietzman by a tenth of a share point in men, 25 to 54, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. It was a monumental victory, that somehow or another WHB made sure – via microscopic ratings adjustments for Royals game overlaps – proved to be short-lived.
But make no mistake; the days of WHB putting clown suits on Wright and 610 appear to be in the rearview mirror.
In June Wright came in fourth with a 6.8 share to Kietzman’s 6.7.
The latest?
