Yearly Archives: 2011
Glazer: Nick Wright & I Were Wrong About LeBron. Really Wrong!
My pal, 610 Sports major player voice, Nick Wright and I called it wrong on LeBron…
We both felt he was maybe the third or fourth best player to come to the NBA, behind Michael Jordan and Kobe. But the Miami Heat got jacked again in Dallas by the real "new" name of super-super-stars Dirk Nowitzki.
Starting now a household name all over the planet.
Yes, Dirk is nearing the end of his long career. But he’s stopped by to let the world know that it’s Dirk’s, NOT LEBRON’S world right now.
Today: The Reason Why Sporting Kansas City is Major League Soccer’s Worst Team
It’s not like what I’m about to tell you is a huge secret…
Not to the players on the soccer team known as Sporting Kansas City. The worst overall soccer team in Major League Soccer for the past three years.
Forget the non-excuse excuses offered up by team management earlier this week. Yes, it was super dumb front-loading the schedule with nonstop away games.
The team skittered into its first home game at the new stadium with but one win in 10 tries.
But playing a poorly-planned road schedule with all those losses and ties isn’t really the problem.
It’s the coach, Peter Vermes.
Jack Goes Confidential: J.J. Abrams Serves Up Spielberg Magic in ‘SUPER 8’
Here’s a movie quiz!
What does BRIDESMAIDS have in common with SUPER 8?
Answer: An unremarkable title that could work against the film’s success, that’s what.
Case-in-point, BRIDESMAIDS advance tracking by Hollywood research firms was pretty unimpressive. The title sounded total chick flick and the want-to-see factor by males was almost non-existent. It wasn’t until after the movie opened and received great word-of-mouth that it became a major hit!
The same could hold true for SUPER 8.
Caitlin: Crossroads Fashion Show “Summer in Spain” Turns Eleven Saturday
Looking for a bit of weekend fun that involves…
a) a well-established, KC actor? [Walter Coppage, check]
and
b) a local artist/reality TV star? [Peregrine Honig, check]
Diid I mention it’s free?
Then don’t miss Kansas City’s 11th annual West 18th Street Fashion Show on Saturday.
Nestled between Baltimore Avenue and Wyandotte Street, an impressive outdoor runway and spectator section will pop up. And while stage crews work adeptly at their construction on the street, models and designers will mill in and out of the studio space above, all preparing to showcase their latest art and fashion designs, beginning promptly at dusk.
Dusk, you ask?
Glazer: Stop the Presses…Holly Starr is Pregnant!
"It" grrrl Holly Starr is on the cover of this month’s HERLIFE magazine…
Inside Holly announces she and her husband are going to have a baby girl. But she says she’ll still do the sexy 38 The Spot spots as long as she can.
The story says that Holly’s also on Hallmark cards, billboards, in newspaper ads and is doing runway modeling locally and nationally. Her meals get comped, she gets to keep her designer clothes, she has free access to concerts, sporting events and so on. And she has a similar position in Las Vegas for 38 The Spot’s sister station there.
Make no mistake, Holly’s worked hard to get where she is today.
She even went to LA a few years back to try acting and modeling. She landed small roles in movies like DEEP IMPACT and KRIPPENDORF’S TRIBE and TV appearances in BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER and THE PARENT HOOD.
Tony: Father’s Day @ Jardine’s, Talking with KC Music Legend Marilyn Maye
Not every day affords the opportunity to listen to a living legend.
I was waiting to put a call into Marilyn Maye after making contact with Helen, her assistant, and browsing through a bunch of complimentary clippings about her recent stint of shows for Feinstein‘s at the Loews Regency Hotel in New York City.
In the Big Apple Ms. Maye is undergoing a bit of a career renaissance and drawing some of the most influential and prized crowds in all of the world. But career success is nothing new for Marilyn Maye. By now we all know her resume: A record 72 appearances on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, collaborations with some of the greatest names in American Music and a catalog of hits and performances that span the modern era.
But in this town, the name Marilyn Maye is about more than just music.
Donnelly: Wakarusa 2011, An Upcoming Band to Watch Out For and Arkansas Wine
Four days amidst stunningly beautiful nature, more than 150 bands, no rules, no responsibilities, plenty of cold beer, plenty of whatever else you might be into. 
What’s not to like about that?
Nothing, that’s what.
If you wanted to be the guy wandering around with one shoe, no shirt, and a mason jar of moonshine tied to your neck with a piece of twine, you could do that. It’s your day and nobody’s going to stop you.
That was the vibe last weekend on top of Mulberry Mountain, the new-ish site of the Wakarusa Music & Camping Festival…
Sounds Good: Republic Tigers@LIVESTRONG Sporting Park; ACBs@Davey’s; Think Floyd USA@Crossroads
Hey, I adopted a pet squirrel once, too. I called it, um, World Peace. 
I nursed it to health on a diet of corn nuts and strawberry Kool-Aid.
And you know what? That squirrel broke my heart.
I had my doubts about the situation after I came home from work one day and found World Peace had ordered several pay-per-view pornos. He denied it of course, and blamed it on the dog. Refused to pay for them.
But I knew the truth.
It was time to feed World Peace to my neighbor’s huge snake that should have been illegal to own.
Now I just wander the clubs, listening to kick-ass local and national bands, looking for something – anything – to fill the void…
Donnelly: It’s Go Time – LIVESTRONG Sporting Park Debuts Thursday Night
The moment we’ve all been waiting for is finally here – Sporting KC’s first home game is Thursday at 9:00 p.m..
Okay, maybe not all of us, especially not the soccer haters that like to post comments about why soccer sucks and and all that. Blah, blah, blah.
Sorry to be the one to tell you this, but soccer is here to stay. Did you know that Major League Soccer as a league averaged higher per game attendance last season than both the NBA and the NHL?
I know that stat may make you feel threatened, but that’s just because you don’t know how to appreciate the beautiful things in life, beautiful game, for example.
I got a chance to tour the beautiful new stadium and got an inside look at a bunch of places that most people will likely never get to see without juking a few security guards, like the owner’s suite, exclusive clubs, and some other cool stuff.
Pics of all that after the jump…
Edelman: Rodgers & Hammerstein’s ‘The King and I’ Shines at Starlight!
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There’s a masters class going on at Starlight every night this week.
The subject: How to Write a Great Musical. The instructors: Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers. Enroll if you can.
Now, before you respond, "What are two dead white guys gonna teach me about writing a musical in 2011," remember that those irreverent South Parkers, Matt Stone and Trey Parker have borrowed liberally from Oscy and Dick for years. Their current Broadway blockbuster, THE BOOK OF MORMON, reads like the final term paper in R&H’s course on this subject. And why not?
Nobody does it like Rodgers & Hammerstein, and these guys were at their best doing THE KING & I (now through Sunday at Starlight).
Hearne: The Envelope, Please. KSHB Poised to Unveil New News Anchor
So much for focus groups…
It’s no secret that KSHB TV, Channel 41 has been on the lookout to hire a replacement for veteran, outgoing news anchor Elizabeth Alex. Alex is slated to bail at month’s end for a position at a local children’s shelter and to spend more time with her souvenir, boy toy husband from Romania.
So who’s gonna get the gig?
Hearne: Would You believe MLS Attendence Better Than NBA & NHL?
It’s not exactly new, but with Sporting Kansas City’s first game in its new digs Thursday, it’s worth a reminder..
For all the red-blooded American sports fans who love to diss the sport we call soccer, attendence last year for Major League Soccer actually surpassed that of the NBA and NHL. That’s right, boys and girls. Lowly American professional soccer somehow slipped past pro basketball and ice hockey.
Bull hockey, you say?
Check it out.
Today: KanRocksas Powering Up, Rocking On Despite Cold Shoulder From Buzz
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In a perfect world, KanRocksas music fest would have ads running every which way but loose all over radio station The Buzz...
After all, The Buzz is the one local station that caters to most of the artists booked for the two-day festival August 5th and 6th at Kansas Speedway. However, Buzz owner Entercom has refused to allow KanRocksas to buy ads for the event on its airwaves.
Because two weeks later, the station is selling tickets to its own single day Beach Ball competing event at nearby LiveStrong Park.
Hearne: Stanford & Sons Pet Squirrel Hope Flies the Coop
About Stanford & Sons comedy club’s unofficial new mascot…
You know, baby squirrel Hope that office manager Christy has been caring for and bringing to Stanford’s in the Legends.
"Oh, now she can’t come to work because somebody in the comments section said it was illegal," grouses Stanford’s Craig Glazer. "So the squirrel’s not at work anymore. I mean, she’ll be back at some point but my secretary got upset and didn’t want to risk it."
There’s more…
Star Search: News Beat Patrol, Cheerleading Royals & Distorting Sporting
I’ll make this brief because, as many of you know, I’m bullish on Star sports scribe Sam Mellinger…
And I know that being a columnist with a finite beat like sports is a mixed blessing. On one hand it’s a somewhat sexy subject, a lot of people follow the local teams and and you can say almost anything you want because they’re public figures. On the other, you’re stuck writing about the Royals for six months.
Glazer: Don’t Kid Yourselves, Maria Shriver Totally Knew Arnold Was Fooling Around
I’ve met Arnold Schwarzenegger a few times…
Arnold co starred with my former girlfriend Sandhal Bergman in Conan as well as Red Sonja. Classics. And my best pal, Sonny Landham co-starred with Arnold in Predator. But it wasn’t until Mickey Rourke had a party for the opening of a hair salon in Beverly Hills, that I really met Arnold. Because he had worked with Bergman and Landham we were all seated at the same table at Rourke’s party. It was in the early 90’s, so Arnold was still one of the top film stars on the planet at the time.
Even though he had been married to Maria Shriver for years, it was clear he openly dated at that time.
He spoke and joked about his desires. In fact, he slept with Sandhal during Conan, she admitted to me.
"Who wouldn’t?" she said to me.
New Jack City: The Sorry State of Movie Funding in Hollywood
With much of movie production financing sources dried up, Hollywood’s been turning increasingly to sure bets.
In other words SEQUELS!
Network television by comparison has cut way back on filmed entertainment shows which can cost up to $2.5 million per episode. Opting instead for those cheap-to-produce, dreadful reality, amateur talent and cheesy dance shows with price tags at a mere fraction.
Think in the neighborhood of $250K for today’s TV reality fluff.
Today: Radio Station The Buzz Declares War on KanRocksas Festival
Whatever became of the nobler aspects of rock ‘n’ roll?
You know, the part where the promoters, radio personalities and stations actually cared about the artists, fans and listeners? As opposed to declaring war on one another over small-minded, petty, percieved self interests?
Remember the "Save the Buzz" campaign several years back to try and keep KC’s then failing, only alternative rock music station on the air? Parent company Entercom had marked it for extinction. Word leaked out. And no less than Entercom corporate overlord David Field rode to the Buzz’s rescue and vowed that it would continue.
Things like the radio station’s Church of Lazlo came to mean more than merely a repository for corporate cash.
Which brings us to Entercom’s fully declared war upon KanRocksas, KC’s largest two-day rock fest ever.
Glazer: There’s Just One Reason to Watch the Royals, a Million Not to
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The Royals have one of the most exciting rookies in baseball, Eric Hosmer.
Hey, the guy is in the No. 3 spot already and batting .300. He’s likely to be the American League Rookie of the Year. In fact, he likely will be our only ALL STAR this year, outside of long shots for Billy Butler or Alex Gordon,
Total long shots.
The Royals have at least measured by the team’s stats a decent hitting line-up.
They lead off with Gordon, hitting just under .290. Then Cabrera hitting .273, Hosmer at .300, Franceur at .276 with some power and Butler at .305. Even our No. 6 guy Betemit is hitting .297.
Impressive huh? No, not at all. We still stink.
Glazer: The Totally Bogus Myth That NASCAR Brings Biz to KC
Oh my God, the race is this weekend at Kansas Speedway, it will be a zoo!
"Craig, bet you guys will be packed with the NASCAR race fans this weekend!" Yeah, right. That’s what everybody always says. And what’s really nice is the city puts all those highway signs up saying, RACE WEEK, FRIDAY & SATURDAY.
Meaning, STAY AWAY IT WILL BE NUTS.
Now the truth: "This is unreal, we are one of the busiest restaurants in the area and this is our slowest weekend of the year unless it snows," said a Yardhouse waiter.
