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Donnelly: Sporting Out of Sync, Jeferson Benched, In 1-1 Tie With Philly
In another game most observers dubbed "the biggest of the season," Sporting Kansas City managed to walk away with a point after battling to a 1-1 tie with the Philadelphia Union Saturday at Livestrong.
It’s true, every game is "the biggest" when the season’s winding down and the top of the Eastern Conference is jammed with five teams that have between 38 and 42 points.
Houston sits atop for the moment, with 42. Then Columbus and KC at 41, Philadelphia at 40, New York at 39, and DC 38. So you can see, the last few games of the regular season are absolutely crucial.
Car: 2012 Toyota Prius Gets Geek Chic w/ Body Kit, Sound Effects, ‘Creepy’ Commercial
Not that long ago Toyota’s Prius was a lifestyle statement for nerds…
People who didn’t care much how frumpy and/or dorky they looked when they spruced up for a night on the town. Let alone how ungainly their fuel-sipping ride looked as they lumbered about saving the earth and promoting world peace.
Then came the 2010 model year…
Just like that the pabulumy Prius was transformed into a green machine that not only averaged 50 mpgs, actually looked halfway decent.
Hearne: All That Glitters…Jardine’s Hammers Groupon
Longtime KCC readers know I’ve been an admirer and staunch defender of Groupon from the get-go…
When some of you guys zeroed in on the discounting – saying it cheapens the seller’s products – I pointed to the marketing benefits. I quoted local restaurant and nightclub owners that had done well with Groupon and vowed to continue to party with the daily dealmaker.
People like Jardine’s owner Beena Raja (who’s on her third last name in the past year). Jardine’s, like others, turned its back on the local newspaper’s trusty-but-rusty Star Dining Card and found nirvana instead in Groupon’s mass email blasts.
"Let me tell you, Groupon has a solid clentele, they are up to 350,000 people locally now," Raja told me last March. "And these people are no Star Card people – these are people who will spend money and I’ve seen it. They’re younger, hipper, they know how to tip and they make reservations. I have nothing but positive things to say about Groupon."
That was then…
Glazer: Kansas City’s Worst Sports Era Ever, Except for Sporting KC & Next Year’s Royals
The answer is simple, YES…
I’d been thinking about it, then I heard WHB’s Kevin Kietzman say it. "This is horrible. It’s been since at least 1983 since Kansas City was this bad in sports."
Actually, I was thinking it had been worse. In 1983 the Royals were still a very good ball club nearing the 1985 World Series. Yes, the Chiefs were a clown act then too, but better than today’s team. Our area college teams were no-shows except for KU basketball, which wasn’t exactly hot either.
Today the Chiefs – as your humble scribe told you two months ago – are one of the NFL’s worst teams. The Royals finished near the bottom again. KU and K-State football is lousy. MU is decent but headed towards at best an 8-4 season with a lower level bowl game.
So yeah, it really does affect the spirit of our city.
Edelman: Broadway Hit ‘Red’ Makes Thrilling Splash at Unicorn
"Make something new," the paint-splattered abstract expressionist Mark Rothko commands his assistant Ken in the Tony Award winning play RED...
Director Cynthia Levin must have been listening, because in her fine production of John Logan‘s new work (now through October 2 at the Unicorn Theatre, 3828 Main) she’s created a new star on the KC scene: Sam Cordes, the terrific young actor who plays Rothko’s assistant.
If the name Cordes rings a bell, it should. Sam is the off-spring of two of our town’s finest theater artists. Dad Scott Cordes is a versatile actor, as comfortable in Shakespearean threads as he is cracking wise onstage between dinner and dessert at the New Theatre Restaurant. Mom Lisa Cordes is a highly-regarded playwright and theater provocateur– her work at the Living Room and other boho spots around town is legendary.
So it should be no surprise that Sam’s got the old theater bug; but where he takes it is another thing entirely.
Glazer: Humble Scribe Releases NFL & College Football Get Rich Quick Picks
Here’s what you’ve been waiting for boys and girls, this weeks picks…
The favorites have been doing very well so far. The OVER in the NFL has been outstanding. But things may change. Sometimes when it looks too good to be true it just might be.
This week in the NFL there are four or five games that look scary easy, so beware.
The two that jump out: San Diego by just 15 over Kansas City at the Chargers and the Steelers by 101/2 over the Colts.
These smell like trap games.
So here’s what we do; take both favorites and tease DOWN the numbers for both games. Now the Chargers are favored by just 9 and the Steelers by just 4 1/2.
I like it.
Here we go for the rest of BEST BETS BY YOUR HUMBLE SCRIBE
Starbeams: Top 5 Reasons Losing Accereditation Is No Big Thang
THE TOP 5 REASONS LOSING ACCREDITATION IS NO BIG THANG:
#5. A worthless degree works just fine in a worthless economy.
#4. Nobody wants to grow up to be a teacher anymore. Everyone wants to grow up to be Detroit Schools Superintendent.
#3. None of this really matters because, if you’re like me, you eventually spend most of your time in TRAFFIC school.
#2. Who needs a degree when we’ll all be working in factories making things for the Chinese soon?
And the No. 1 reason losing accreditation is no big deal….
Leftridge: Because You Have No Life, Here’s What You Should be Watching this Weekend
There’s entirely too much for you to watch this weekend. Seriously…
And since you’ll be wildly drunk most of the time, the only decision you should be left with is whether or not to sexually harass the Domino’s driver who barely speaks any English (hint: you shouldn’t… she’s a sweet gal).
To make it easy, I’ve compiled a list of must-see sports, things you’ll wish you could be watching when you’re in a detention facility because you ignored me and showed the poor lady your who-ha.
Check it out!
Today: Source Says Kauffman Performing Arts Center Crowd 20,000 Not 55,000
Why ruin a totally cool event with fraudulent crowd counts?
Simply said, there’s no effing way the new, 3.400 seat Kauffman Performing Arts Center hosted 55,000 people at its open house Sunday.
I mean, think about it.
That’s nearly double the size of the Plaza Lighting Ceremony. More people than attend sold out Royals games, which have acres of parking and dozens of police and staff to manage and control the traffic and crowds.
All of that said, here’s what the Star’s Robert Truseell reported:
"Nobody can know with certainty how many people actually walked through the center Sunday, but an estimate of 55,000 was based on the assumption that the building could only accommodate 5,000 at a time. If that number ‘turned over’ 10 times, then total attendance would be 50,000, which was the official estimate by midafternoon. Later, (Kauffman CEO Jane Chu) upped the figure to 55,000."
Hold it right there…
Today: Love at First Sight? Nah, Just the Watson’s Girl & Ex Star Honcho Mark Zieman
OK Cliffy, you asked for it, now you’re gonna get it…
I’m not talking Craig Glazer. I’m not gonna punch anybody’s lights out, Just making good on my pledge to publish the pic I took several years back of Watson’s Girl Jennifer Eichler and then Star editor Mark Zieman.
It was taken when the owners of Watson’s (now Family Leisure) strode through town calling on advertisers – the Star being one – and I hijacked the Watson’s Girl for a photo shoot. The Star photographer who got to do the honors still worships at my altar for bestowing on him the savory task.
Far less thrilled was Zieman, who posed uncomfortably (and looking a little pudgy) when I led Jennifer to his office while giving her a tour of the newsroom and asked them to pose. Yes, it was my idea alone. Nothing sinister, mind you. I’d have done the same thing had she been standing by that statue of Superman in Metropolis, Illinois.
I digress…
Starbeams: Breaking Smashing, Where’s Whitney? & Thinking Outside The Bun
A group of eight children were arrested for breaking into Weeks Elementary in Kansas City and vandalizing school computers to the tune of more than $25,000 in damages. When I went to Devry, we used to get arrested for breaking into the school to do maintenance on the computers.
*******
Sweet Springs kindergarten students were asked to bring important family items to show and tell. One kindergartner brought his mother’s crack pipe and an ounce of drugs. His mom is now in prison. I wasn’t aware that Whitney Houston lived in Sweet Springs?
Jack Goes Confidential: Yale Economics (and the Royals) Fuels ‘MONEYBALL’
Let me say right upfront MONEYBALL is a terrific movie…
And like me, you don’t have to be a baseball fan to enjoy it. Why?
Because it explores ones true worth, being an underdog and one of the most unorthodox comebacks in Major League Baseball. Let’s be real, back in 2001 there were rich teams, poor teams and crap teams like the OAKLAND A’S.
And there was no money to ‘buy-up’
Enter legendary general manager Billy Bean (Brad Pitt) who hires nerdy Yale grad Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) whose analysis techniques revolutionized the way teams evaluated players and took the A’s all the way to the playoffs despite having one of the lowest payrolls in the majors!
Glazer: War is Hell and Hell is for Heroes
Sgt. Dakota Meyer didn’t smile much when the President of The United States put that Medal of Honor on his chest.
Meyer understood what the medal had cost. And not just on the day of the combat, September 8, 2009, but all that went before.
I watched Meyer on 60 Minutes and he’s an impressive young man. One of the youngest Medal of Honor winners in several decades at 23. He’s also alive and not wounded. He saved 36 lives that day.
Of the men he went back for, four US Marines, were dead when he got to them. They were pinned down and had called for help. And other than Meyer, it never came. How sad and tragic. Meyer said, "He felt he had failed" because they all died. It wasn’t his fault, of course.
He also said the most interesting thing of all. When asked if it was worth it – THE WAR – did it really mean anything, he answered, "No."
I agree.
Leftridge: Charles Done for Year: Fantasy Football Fans Despondent, Suicidal
With one awkward landing, a fantastic grimace and the collective gasp of hundreds of thousands of fans, Jamaal Charles effectively dashed this town’s playoff hopes against the rocks of reality.
Okay, so I’m being melodramatic.
This season was likely lost before Charles’ knee turned into a quivering mass of gelatin early in Sunday’s game. Had he not gone down, and had all of the stars that were rapidly plummeting to earth remained securely tucked in the heavens, this was still nothing better than an 8 win team. At absolute best. But truthfully, they’d been shaving wins off of the turkey’s carcass before the season even started.
Sounds Good: Steve Earle@Uptown, Dollar Fox@???, An Horse@Jackpot
Hello everyone, it’s that time once again for "Who’s More Grizzled?" the game show that finds out who’s the roughest, toughest, most grizzled old timer around.
Let’s bring out the contestants. He is our returning champion; he dropped out of school in the ninth grade, is a former heroin addict, and has been married seven times – twice to the same woman. Plus, he attended the execution of an inmate in Texas in 1996, and has been accused of being a terrorist sympathizer.
Everyone say hello to Steve!
Steve, what’ve you been up to lately? – I don’t care much for you.
And I don’t blame you, Steve. Here are your categories: War, Hard Times, Bear Attacks, Ailments, Dead Wives, and finally, the Government…
Hearne: The Pitch’s ‘Big Deal’ Tanking; Are Daily Deals Drying Up?
Goes without saying, when even the Pitch and Star hop on the daily discount deals bandwagon the party’s about over….
With two fierce years and dozens of firms hawking half price email offerings, a thinning of the herd is in order. So how many different companies are out there attempting to con local businesses into giving their shit away at half price?
"I’ve been contacted by no less than 40 and I’ve used 10," says Stanford’s main man Craig Glazer. "And none of them got anywhere near the results I got with Living Social and Groupon. Our last round with Groupon was in May and we did around 1,000 deals when they had 450,000 people on their list. Now they say they have 680,000."
New owners of the Pitch are trying to cash in on the gold rush but with little apparent success.
I contacted a number of businesses that participated in the Pitch‘s The Big Deal. Results; weak as a kitten. Its Big Deal Kansas City Facebook page has been frozen for weeks at 146 "likes."
Glazer: 610 Sports’ Nick Wright Now on the Craig Glazer Bandwagon
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Yes it’s true…
610 Sports afternoon host Nick Wright now says on the air that he believes Chiefs coach Todd Haley will soon be gone. And Nick really likes Todd and thinks he is a good coach in a bad situation. But Nick believes Scott Pioli is also to blame and blames him hard.
It’s now also known that Todd and Scott do not get along and haven’t for some time.
All of which adds up to the following; its just a matter of time before Haley is let go by the Chiefs. Word at Woodside – where I met Haley during his first season – is that the decision has already been made. I think the Haley family is getting ready to leave Kansas City soon. Not until after it’s official, of course. I also believe Haley will land a post in the NFL or College Football, but probably not as a head coach in the NFL.
Many other radio sports guys are saying how shocked they are at Chiefs being so bad and that nobody saw this coming.
Glazer: The KCC, True Hollywood Story of Chocolate Becky
It’s not often the No.1 morning radio host gets upstaged…
But it happened last week when Johnny Dare had local media phenom Chocolate Becky on as his guest. OMG, she rocked the house big time. So much so, Dare’s considering her as the replacement for recently departed Kari Coogan.
Not so fast.
More likely Becky will get her own segment once a week or more. Why?
"You have to be good at reading the news and do alot of homework," Dare says. "And that’s a bit tough for someone who’s never done that. But oh yeah, we want her."
So who is Chocolate Becky, for God’s sake?
New Jack City: Nice Rack (at 97th and Quivira, that is)
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It’s been quite a year for national brand favorites expanding into Kansas City…
The most anticipated was the long awaited opening of not one, but two TRADER JOE’S. And let’s not overlook popular Nebraska export RUNZA which opened its first fast food outlet recently in Mission. JACK IN THE BOX made a splash last year in KCK and its second opens this coming Monday at 103rd and Metcalf in OP.
They say Jack’s’ tacos are to die for.
But hold on, there’s another really big one right around the corner.
Hearne: Remember When Jason Whitlock Tweeted He’d Replace Nick Wright Sept. 5th?
Don’t look now but…
A funny thing happened earlier this month. September 5th to be exact. That’s the date former Star sports scribe Jason Whitlock teased via Twitter that he’d be heading home to KC to do a radio show on 610 Sports. Maybe even take rising star Nick Wright‘s place.
Some local bloggers were all over that story early this summer. The Royals were in the tank. The Chiefs up in the air. And MU, KU and K-State football and KU basketball were a long way off. Even the Big 12 appeared halfway off the hook. They needed something to write about.
Remember the sports talk radio war?
"He intended everyone to think he meant he was coming back to take my job," Wright says.
