Yearly Archives: 2011
Hearne: Don’t Waste Your Money on Hangover Part 2
Look everybody knows, most sequels suck, right?
And let the record show that I worship at the alter of Jack Poessiger’s movie reviews as much as the next guy.. more, actually.
Frankly, Jack has better taste than me – I mean, in movies. Other than his tendency to laugh hillariously at fart humor. But in my humble opinion, his relatively rave review of Hangover 2 was completely off the mark.
It sucked.
Glazer: Mencia Kicks Butt, Addresses Joke Stealing Controversy
Carlos Mencia was outstanding Thursday at Stanford’s…
His first show sold out before he got here, so we added a second and the guy almost sold it out in just a couple days. Carlos did a show in another city and drove in with his crew to KC at 4 AM Thursday morning. Still he did four radio shows and Johnny Dare at 7:30 AM and came back at 9:45 AM and closed his second show.
Wow, very nice of Mencia. This is not something many big name stars will do.
What was great about his radio appearances was that Mencia addressed the Joe Rogan attacks of stealing jokes and his semi-retirement for one year and why he is back.
Hearne: Blanc Burgers Bottles Shatters Groupon Record, Still Going Strong
This just in…
The Mighty Casey is back at bat. In this case, it’s Blanc Burgers Bottles and the field of play is Groupon. And for the third time in a little over a year the local gourmet burger and fine dining powehouse is off to what is likely to be a record-setting start.
"They’re at 14,000 sold now," says spokesdude Will Gregory. "But by 7 p.m. they should be well into the 15,000 range. They hold the previous Groupon record for 14,000 and change sold."
Here’s the deal….
New Jack City: ‘HANGOVER II’ Steamrolls Into Holiday Weekend!
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I know you’re getting tired of me bringing up THE HANGOVER PART II, but allow me one more fascinating stat that just came to my attention.
Yesterday’s total North American opening day boxoffice gross for the comedy—including the 12:01 a.m. midnight shows—was an amazing $31.7 million.
The film now ranks as the # 3 ‘Thursday opening’ of ALL time!
"HANGOVER II" was only beaten by two previous Thursday-opening blockbusters; STAR WARS—EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH which produced an initial $50 million and THE MATRIX RELOADED that sold $42.5 worth of tickets its first Thursday.
Not bad company to be in!
Today: Storm Chasers, Heroes or Hotshots? You Make the Call
There’s been no shortage of twister footage on cable news this past week…
Not only have CNN and other news organizations run a ton of footage, they’ve dragged the storm chasers on camera to serve as eyewitness experts. Raising the question, are these dudes community heroes or just thrill seekers?
"No, they’re not heroes," says KSHB TV weather wonk Gary Lezak. "I would say there are some legitimate meteorologists who have a knowlege of what they’re doing and understand the science. And then there’s a whole lot of thrill seekers who go out there and just risk their lives."
Is storm chasing even legal?
Starbeams: Tornado Chair, Trump Does Clay, Soapy Suit & KU Spelling Bee
Greetings from the Heartland, where you can be a storm chaser by just sitting in your recliner.
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Donald Trump tells Fox News that he won’t rule out jumping back into the presidential race, if the right Republican candidate doesn’t emerge. Trump is taking direction from his political advisor; CLAY CHASTAIN.
Hearne: Talkers Magazine’s ‘Heavy Hundred” – No Local Jocks Allowed
Now that we’ve cleared the air on the sad state of local talk radio, lets take a look at Talkers magazine’s "Heavy Hundred" for 2011…
The first thing worth noting is there’s nobody on it that broadcasts locally. No Mike Murphy or Tom Becka types. And somewhat obviously, Mike Shanin and Scott Parks are nowhere to be found. Not even on the watered down 101 to 250 list that does include Becka, former KC guy Ray Dunaway and KMBZ’s Darla Jaye.
Columnist insert: Talkers is a mag that relies on radio hosts and stations as readers, subscribers and advertisers.
So it’s maybe a safe bet that some of the aforementioned personalities were listed in Talkers expanded Top 250 list via either schmooze or sheer attrition. My impression over the years being that just about anybody in the biz with a regular gig can more or less schmooze their way onto the list.
Let’s take a look…
Sounds Good: Bruno Mars@Indy Center, Widespread Panic@ Midland, Pat Green@Crossroads
What to do, what to do with this long weekend, the official start of summer?
Head to Lake of the Ozarks, drink your breakfast, lunch, dinner, try to get away from that turd following you back to your buddy’s dad’s boat, and maybe get puked on by the super drunk girl you’re trying to mack it to?
Maybe. Yeah, I could get with that.
Yard work?
Okay, no, scratch that one…
New Jack City: Wild Bangkok Sidetrip Sets New Record At Midnight!
Just out of the gate, THE HANGOVER PART II has already broken all records with its FIRST showings!
The anxiously awaited sequel premiered with midnight showings at some 2600 north American theatre locations to an incredible $10.4 million!
And that my friends is a new all time midnight show record for an R-rated film!
The previous R-rated midnight record holder was last year’s PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2 which collected $6 million at the bewitching hour.
Today: The Rise & Fall of Talk Radio in Kansas City
Once upon a time Talk Radio seemed to matter in Kansas City…
Notice I said, seemed to matter. By the 1990s most music listeners had migrated to FM or prerecorded music – CDs, even cassettes still. Pretty arcane sounding, huh? Let’s go back a little further.
In the late 1980s a local blowhard emeritus by the name of Rush Limbaugh was making his mark via a nationally-syndicated, politcally-driven talk radio show. Unfortunately, Limbaugh’s amazing success set talk radio upon a course of right wing rant radio that continues to dominate even today.
But in those early, heady days of talk radio there was a lot of variety here in the Cowtown.
Glazer: Couch Potato Epidemic Will Kill Off Movie Theaters, Live Entertainment
Coming soon, entertainment armageddon…
Take the movie biz. There’s no urgency to go see a movie at a theater because they’re available on TV in matter of weeks. Pay per view, Netflix, etc.
So movie houses will begin closing in two years.
They’ll be like drive-in theaters are now. Remember, younger folks didn’t grow up with dinner and a movie being a big deal so agiant screen and pricey popcorn mean zip.
Today: KMBZ’s Move to FM Simulcast Fails to Impress
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Guess who didn’t fare so well in the April radio ratings…
News Radio KMBZ, that’s who.
It was the station’s first month of simulcasting on both 980 AM and sister station KUDL FM’s former signal at 98.1 FM.
The game plan: lure lots of new, news-talk listeners on the FM dial. Boost ratings. Attract younger, more affluent listeners. Pass those ratings wins on to advertisers via higher ad rates. Make lotsa money with less out-of-pocket.
However, here’s how things shook out in adult listeners ages 25 to 54, Monday through Sunday, 6 a.m. until midnight:
Glazer: Down & Out in Kansas City w/ Royals, Chiefs
With the passing of Split, it reminds me of the good old days of the Kansas City Royals.
Those days are long gone. Nearly a lifetime ago we mattered as a ball club. Now we only make ESPN news when our pitcher gives up a record 11 runs in one inning on the way to giving up 19 total runs.
Once again the Royals are much closer to last place – six games out – than first, 8 1/2 games out.
By June lst we’ll be in next to last in our division. To be honest, we stink again. Yes, the team is barely watchable. No pitcher that matters. Almost no hitting to speak of. And a couple young guys who have "potential" but are doing just above average like Hosmer, the next George Brett, batting .281. That’s decent, but not anything worthy of the national news.
Zip, zero, a no-show, nothing, nobody cares.
Jack Goes Confidential: ‘HANGOVER’ Reboot Sticks To Formula—Delivers Basics!
I’m going to be totally honest!
There’s no way they could’ve improved on the original HANGOVER which became the highest grossing R-rated comedy of all time! Who would’ve foreseen a worldwide theatrical gross of $467 million back in 2009? After all, any follow-up would lose some its freshness, originality and unexpected shock factor.
But I’m here to tell you that HANGOVER PART II comes surprisingly close!
OTC: Ex-Royal Paul Splittorff Loses Battle To Melanoma
“Normally when you hear news like this you have heard about it for quite a length of time and have had time to reflect on the guy. But man, what a bomb to drop on today. … I had heard rumors that Paul had told somebody that he was going in for some treatment at the hospital and he would be out in seven to ten days. That was seven to ten days ago.”George Brett, in an interview with Bob Fescoe, on the passing of his former teammate Paul Splittorff, 610 AM
“You can never be ready even when you think you are when a loved one passes away.”
Fred Patek, former Royals shortstop, talking with Petro on 810 AM
GH: When I heard Nate Bukaty read the Royals’ email before 8:00 AM this morning announcing the passing of Splitt I was finishing my morning run. I ran the last block with my left arm raised to honor the Royals big southpaw.
Fred Patek, former Royals shortstop, talking with Petro on 810 AM
GH: When I heard Nate Bukaty read the Royals’ email before 8:00 AM this morning announcing the passing of Splitt I was finishing my morning run. I ran the last block with my left arm raised to honor the Royals big southpaw.
Donnelly: Sporting KC Plays Wednesday In OP; Bunbury Excluded From Gold Cup
After playing nine straight road matches in all competitions to start the 2011 season, Sporting Kansas City will finally play a match in front of home support on Wednesday when they take on the New England Revolution at 7:30 p.m. in the final round of qualifying for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
No, not at the new stadium. That’s not quite ready…
OTC: Nick Says 610/810 Ratings Hubbub Ain’t Wright
“I don’t know if you guys (frequent) those local sports media sites, but there’s been some misinformation.”Nick Wright, 610 AM
GH: This statement in itself was absolutely shocking. Misinformation on a local sports media website??!! Al Gore just rolled over in his gravy!
“Some (of this misinformation) was good for this radio station and some bad about ratings going on. I just want to clear it up.”
Nick Wright, 610 AM
GH: Nick never alluded to what local sports media websites he was referring, which I believe to be a tad unprofessional. I am going to assume at least one of those sites was this one you are currently reading.
Nick Wright, 610 AM
GH: Nick never alluded to what local sports media websites he was referring, which I believe to be a tad unprofessional. I am going to assume at least one of those sites was this one you are currently reading.
Glazer: Carlos Mencia Sells Out First Show, Adds Second
Good news…
Stanford‘s has added a second show this Thursday May 26th for Carlos Menica. His first show is a sell out, so we’ve added a 9:45 p.m. show as well.
Carlos starred in Mind of Mencia, The Heartbreak Kid w/ Ben Stiller, and was even on In Living Color with Damon Wayans and Jim Carey. The last time Mencia did KC he played the Midland and sold it out a couple years back. Now he’s getting ready for a new TV special, so he’s stopping by Stanfords’ because he did so many shows in Westport back in the late 90’s.
Caitlin: The KU Graduation ‘Walk of Shame’ Blues
Although I spent Friday and Saturday attending college graduation parties, by Sunday morning—the actual date of KU’s commencement ceremony—the event had somehow slipped my mind.
So on my typical Sunday morning jog, I chuckled as I passed a girl all dolled up, walking barefoot with strappy high-heels in hand. It wasn’t the first time I’d witnessed the walk-of-shame; hung-over girls, faces smeared with leftover mascara, all chagrined and intensely concentrated on the ground as they weave through the chatty churchgoers crowding up their sidewalks. “Really?” the girls think. “At this hour? Go back to bed people, take four liqui-gels and go back to bed.”
Anyway, my theory would have proved true on any other Sunday morning, but it quickly dissolved after a few short steps. As I dodged a car blocking the walkway, a woman appeared…a mother…carrying her daughter’s graduation cap and gown, her proud grin producing a blinding beam.
Duh.
Starbeams: Google’s Secret, Arnold’s Ride & Harold’s Folly
Google officials building high-speed broadband in Kansas City are calling our town "the best well-kept secret under the sun." Before we get too excited, before KC they listed Bin Laden as the best well-kept secret.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was spotted riding a bike in Santa Monica. He just wants the world to know he can ride anything in the house.
