Author Archives: admin
Glazer: Scribe Flashes Back to ‘That’s My Boy’ Star’s Kinky Stanford’s Misadventure
It was the best of times and the worst of times…
Stanford and Sons was probably the comedy spot here in the late 1990s and it seemed like every up and coming comedy star was on our stage at some point back then. The late 90’s launched so many multi-millionaire careers it’s hard to name them all.
One of the most notorious events there went down in 1996 with "That’s My Boy" star Adam Sandler.
A comic named Nick Swardson was doing a feature week at the Westport club. We had no idea his best pal and soon to be partner in many films was the hottest comedy star going, Adam Sandler. In fact Adam was playing a one night stand at Sandstone the same week.
So Adam and his crew showed up at Stanford’s with no advance warning. Sandler and three of his producing/writing buds had come to a Swardson show on a weeknight I happened to be there and Adam introduced himself. He was very nice and we all sat down and talked about his newest film "Happy Gilmore" and his upcoming show at Sandstone. He told me Nick was his pal and they all had come to watch his shows. In fact, Adam even did a brief set on our stage, singing his hit, THE HANUKKAH SONG.
When word got out Adam was hanging nightly at Stanford’s it got pretty crazy.
Starbeams: KCI, Why? Rockville’s Horses, Madonna Goes Senile & Royals Wave Brewers
A plan to replace Terminal A at KCI with one giant and modernized terminal has been presented to city officials. Terminals B and C could be turned into office space. Still no word on when they plan to build a terminal near where people live.
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The city of Rockville, Missouri is embracing the prospect of a horse slaughtering plant being located in their town. One hundred and fifty people packed a city council meeting this week to voice their support for the idea. You might say they’re sticking together like glue.
Leftridge: Let’s Do Away With Father’s Day
Father’s Day is a crock of shit.
Allow me to explain.
There are two types of dads in the world, my dad and my cousin Brian.
See, my dad is great. He made me what I am today. When I was 14 and wanted a pair of Nike Air Force Ones, he did what any good dad would do: he said, “if you want $100 sneakers, goddamnit, you’re buying them yourself.” With this understanding, I did what any normal 14 year old does—I lied about my age and got a job bussing tables at a Japanese steakhouse.
Good fathers are always teaching, always fostering. They take their role as caretaker seriously, using small things like athletic footwear to impart life lessons.
Then there’s my cousin Brian.
Hearne: The Problem with Journalism Today
Here’s what I’m talking about…
The Crown Center fountains controversy is a perfect example of what’s wrong with much of what passes for journalism today. Media organizations sending random, often rookie reporters to cover a story in which they have no background or history. They’re armed only with the intention of answering the very basic questions of who, what, where, when and – if we’re lucky – why.
The latter often being the most telling, but least told part of the news story.
Instead what viewers and readers get more often than not are a handful of inconsequential man-or-woman on the street takes and maybe a thin veneer of reasons and or answers with little to no followup or probing questions.
In short, news lite.
Now read automotive giant Bob Lutz‘ take on the practice of journalism today from his new book Car Guys:
Glazer: Kansas City Puts Worst Foot Forward at KCI Airport
Let’s be blunt, we have the nation’s most boring airport…
It’s all wrong for the most part. The best thing about our KCI dead zone is you can get on and off flights quickly. And that, in and of itself, does matter. Rarely are there lines or waits, even on holidays. However, the main reason for that is quite simple.
NOBODY COMES HERE MUCH.
We pretend to be a large, major city, but in so many important ways we just are not.
A city’s airport is kinda like a business card. Ours is boring, slow and all but blank. There’s nothing to do or see at our airport. You can’t even see much, if any, of what our city looks like. Not even as you land. The town looks dead coming into our airport – just like KCI.
Don’t you love it? There are no real restaurants or bars. NONE.
Yes, we have a dump off fast food place here and there…barely. and of course one Starbucks, which is always 500 yards from wherever you might have landed or come in at.
Hearne: Silly Season in Media Surrounds ‘Crown Center Country Club’ Closing
Funny how everybody with a keyboard becomes an expert when a news story breaks…
Take Crown Center closing its fountains this week to public bathing. On one hand you’ve got a local blogger claiming a "TKC exclusive" because he says he was first to "break" the news. Hello. When a large, local corporation makes a grand announcement and sends out press releases that’s not a scoop.
Then there local TV stations to whom capturing a live body on location comes first. To the point that a nearby snowcone truck sales dude’s opinion of what the fountain’s closing means to KC got front-and-center treatment.
Ridiculously, Fox 4 News even managed to get a local lawyer to say that if a "kid was running around there and slipped and bumped their head I probably would not take the case."
The idea being, why would Crown Center close its fountain over minor liability worries?
New Jack City: Hollywood’s ‘Bible’ Slams Sandler’s TragiComedy
The showbiz rag VARIETY is still considered by the movie Industry as the Hollywood’s bible…
And it went out of its way Thursday to slam Adam Sandler‘s latest cinematic offering. The trade topped its review of THAT’S MY BOY with the following headline:
"Adam Sandler’s raunchiest star vehicle in years is a work of relentless vulgarity and staggering moral idiocy. All in all, it could have been worse."
Sounds Good: Jimmy Cliff@Crossroads, Alice Cooper@Midland, Outlaw Jake@Barnyard
I got you guys covered for Father’s Day…
Pretty much all dads are into at least one of the following: spliffs, mascara, or dirt-whiskey.
So like I said, I got you covered. Just figure out which one your old man likes and then take him to one of these shows.
If he’s not into any of those things, there’s always Barry Manilow at Starlight on Sunday, but that’s a whole different kind of daddy…
Hearne: Theater League Honcho Polishes Off Sondheim After Dissing
Just like real life, revenge can taste soooooo sweet on the Broadway stage…
As evidenced Sunday in New York by Theater League honcho Mark Edelman at this year’s Tony Awards.
"We invested in two shows and both of them won Tonys," Edelman says. "So it was a pretty good night for us. We won the big ones, including ‘best musical’ for ‘Once‘ – which won 8 Tonys – it was the biggest winner of the night. And we won for Best Revival of a Musical for The Gershwins’ ‘Porgy and Bess,’ which is kinda funny because it beat out a revival of ‘Follies‘ by Steven Sondheim.
Which was a massive upset, as evidenced by the Washington Post report stating that Sondheim’s ‘Follies" was "considered by some the best musical revival of the Broadway season."
"And Sonheim had dissed ‘Porgy and Bess’ earlier," Edelman says. "He wrote a letter to the New York Times, which of course, they printed."
Jack Goes Confidential: ‘Rock Of Ages’-Don’t Stop Believing
When it comes to movie musicals, ROCK OF AGES is terrific…
It ranks right up there with past Broadway-to-screen adaptations like GREASE, HAIRSPRAY and MAMMA-MIA.
But let me be perfectly honest, there’ll be two camps of moviegoers. Those who’ll love it and the group that’ll hate it. No inbetweeners, no way!
For the record, our advance screening audience fell into the first category.
Like the above mentioned past hits, ROCK OF AGES storyline is a simple one. It’s 1987 as small town Oklahoma girl Julianne Hough meets city boy Diego Boneta while pursuing their Hollywood dreams on the Sunset Strip. Along the way they fall into the world of the Bourbon Room, a rock club allegedly based on the legendary Whisky A Go Go.
Starbeams: Prometheus Syndrome, China Syndrome, Crown Center Ban & Joco Hooters
A kid had a seizure during a gory scene in the movie "Prometheus". I had mine when I paid $12 for a combo.
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Apple debuted the MacBook Pro, which has a retina display. If you stick your eye to the screen you can see a starving underage Chinese factory worker.
Glazer: Count Your Blessings, Scribe Says, While He Counts His
Like most of you I think almost daily about how much more I can do and accomplish in my life…
It never seems good enough, does it? All those dream we had as children that faded into life’s reality at age 30 or 40 or 50. Too often we think of what might have been. Trouble is, we don’t take the time to respect and examine what we’ve really done with our lives.
It was only yesterday, it seems, we were hoping to graduate from high school, have a girlfriend, be liked by others and leave our hometown for college and a life adventure.
Well, most of us did just that or something close, right?
I mean, had the Future Fairy told you at age 12 you’d own your own home, have a family, friends, good paying job, trips to exciting cities and enjoy ballgames, theatre – even pick up a few personal awards along the way – let alone just own a smoking hot, brand new car, wow, that would have sounded so COOL.
But that’s never enough, is it?
Whinery: The ‘Thunder Rule’ & Why is Everybody Hating on the Pauls?
I just watched Oklahoma City led by Kevin Durant with former KU star Nick Collison as “Junkman” destroy the Miami Heat…
What a great game and it goes to my theory that the Heat cant get behind 3 to 4 possessions after leading a game. They lack the “spirit” to come from behind.
And what’s with all the hating on the Pauls – Ron and Rand?
Rand endorsed Mitt Romney which was the right thing to do. Would the “Paulites” be happier if they were froze out of the Republican Party? Listen to the late, great Arthur J. Finklestein and do what you have to do to win.
Hearne: The Real Reason Hallmark Shut Down Crown Center Country Club
It only took Crown Center 14 years to get a clue….
Because it was back in the summer of ‘98 that the Kansas City Health Department cautioned the Hallmark-owned upscale shopping center about allowing “swimmers” in its fountains.
Actually, I was the one who called attention to the situation after learning that Hallmarkers were derisively referring to the outdoor fountain as the “Crown Center Country Club,” owing to it’s popularity as an inner city kiddie magnet.
Funny thing was, after years of doing everything it could to shoo kids and urban teens away from its movie theaters, the last thing Crown Center wanted was throngs of urban youth and their parents publically bathing right outside its front door.
Glazer: Sorry Sam, Zack Greinke Ain’t Coming Back and He Shouldn’t
I usually agree with Star sports columnist Sam Mellinger…
He’s done a top notch job replacing Jason Whitlock and Joe Posnanski. Today he wrote an article suggesting former Royals star Zack Greinke may one day return here. Sorry Sam, I don’t buy it.
I know you asked him recently and he mentioned he liked the city, the people, the coaches, and still had a place here. All true. However the team has the worst record in the American League and along with the Twins, and is going nowhere fast.
Zack on the other hand is fast becoming one of baseball’s best pitchers.
He’s 23-8 with the division champion Milwaukee Brewers with an ERA of 3.62 during his two year’s there. Sam also mentioned something a tad bit important about the Zack Attack when he was leaving.
THAT HE HATED OUR TEAM, THEY SUCKED, HE KNEW IT AND HE FELT THEY WOULD ALWAYS BE TERRIBLE.
Whinery: Ever Had a Gay Family Member Who Won’t Tell You They’re Gay?
I’ve got a very close blood relative who won’t tell me he’s gay…
Not that there is anything wrong or anything. It’s just that after seeing him quoted in newspapers as being gay – like MAJOR publications where this fact has been established- it just kind of bothers me.
I know, my views on many things are pretty conservative. But this relative has been President of his local chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans-which is the premier organization of Gay Republicans. For all intents and purposes, this person is even MORE conservative than I am.
He even opposes Gay Marriage, something I even support…
We both agree that gays should be given the same rights as heterosexuals and be able to form Civil Unions.
We’ve even had long discussions on how the Republican Party should be more inclusive towards the homosexual community.
Starbeams: Kardashian’s Lambo, Missie B’s ‘Flame Challenge’ & Death by ‘Silent Meditation’
More than half of Americans 65 and older now use the Internet. And most of them also believe me when I tell them I need $ to get out of a Mexican prison.
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Kim Kardashian just bought Kanye West a $750,000 Lamborghini. I just saved 15% on my car insurance. You tell me who’s winning?
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A quantum physicist from Truman High won the World Flame Challenge. I won the same honor at Missie B’s in the ’90s. Is this a public forum?
New Jack City: Annoying Questions, Greetings, Buzzwords That Piss Jack Off
Let’s start by not even including the obviously annoying, pretend question; How Are You?
Does the inquirer really freaking care? Course not. Next time you get hit with that one, tell ’em ‘Terrible’ and watch ’em squirm.
Then start unloading further with, "WHY? Do I look sickly or something?"
Maybe he’ll think twice next time before ever asking the most overused, insincere question known to man.
Here’s an annoying greeting I got recently at a local Office Depot: "What brings you here today?"
Hey, I could’ve been a smartass and said something like, "My lawnmower blades need sharpening." Because frankly, having to tell some dude I need paper clips seems so lame.
Today: Delivery Boy’s Error is Star Subscriber’s Treasure & Art Brisbane
Let’s see, Mexican wedding and honeymoon, solid week of hard labor exiting Prairie Village house and a ton of time unpacking and planning for a Lawrence getaway…
That shit takes time, ladies and gentlemen. Time away from writing, but let’s ramp things back up a bit after a lazy Sunday afternoon reading.
The New York Times was delivered yesterday in error in place of Sunday’s Star. Was I bummed? A little at first, maybe, but not for long. I’d almost forgotten how good a job those guys do. You know, the guys that former Star editor and publisher Art Brisbane has been taking to task these past two years. And doing a fine job of it, I might add. Readers of past Brisbane columns may recall how prosaic he can be, but I doubt they recollect he had such sharp teeth.
They do now in New York.
Glazer: The Fix is in on Manny Pacquiao / Tim Bradley Title Fight
Was the Manny Pacquiao / Tim Bradley title fight fixed?
You bet. Which is not anything new in boxing, right? Remember Liston/Clay and the Phantom Punch? And the Ali/Spinks (Leon) fixed fight the first time. Ali maybe was not in on it, who knows.
WHY, YOU ASK?
Simple. As the sport gets weaker, they need to fire up the fans and force a new "bad guy" onto the scene and add a couple big money fights. You know, get people talking. All three of these fights did just that – it worked.
With Ali leaving the game in the late 70’s and nobody else truly mattering, they had to prompt him to fight one more time, to buy time to find a new savior. Until they found Larry Holmes and soon after Mike Tyson. So the fix worked.
However, this one is pure genius.
