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Conference 7.286::sports_91

Title:CAM::SPORTS -- Digital's Daily Sports Tabloid
Notice:This file has been archived. New notes to CAM3::SPORTS.
Moderator:CAM3::WAY
Created:Fri Dec 21 1990
Last Modified:Mon Nov 01 1993
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:290
Total number of notes:84103

163.0. "Sportscasters" by CARROL::LEFEBVRE (Half a world away) Thu Jun 13 1991 11:45

    This note is for discussion of sportscasters.
    
    Mark.
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163.1CARROL::LEFEBVREHalf a world awayThu Jun 13 1991 11:468
    I heard during the Red Sox radio broadcast yesterday that Howard Cosell
    is hospitalized and being treated for cancer.  The report indicated
    that Cosell had a tumor removed from his chest.  Has anyone heard any
    more on this?
    
    Here's hoping for a quick recovery.
    
    Mark (long time Cosell fan)
163.2Back at home for nowGOLDKY::HUNTI just want to help the ballclub ...Thu Jun 13 1991 12:268
 USA Today says that Cosell is back at home in New York after surgery on
 Monday to remove a chest tumor.    They say that "cancer treatments" are
 next in line for him.    No elaboration on what kind of treatments.
 
 Rest of the small piece consisted of sympathetic quotes from O.J. Simpson
 and Frank Gifford.
 
 Bob Hunt
163.3BOSOX::TIMMONSI'm a Pepere!Thu Jun 13 1991 15:037
    Geez, I could swear that I read that the tumor was non-malignant.
    
    I'll have to check it out tonight.
    
    Best of luck to Howard.
    
    Lee, (who never did care for him, but he is human)
163.4CARROL::LEFEBVREHalf a world awayThu Jun 13 1991 15:165
    Lee, it seemed that the Monday night games were much more interesting
    and entertaining to watch back when Howard, Dandy Don and Gifford were
    in the booth.
    
    Mark.
163.5too good to pass up!!!!CST17::FARLEYHave YOU seen Elvis today??Thu Jun 13 1991 15:5812
    re: "...but he is human."
    
    Lee,
    
    Isn't Howard a lawyer?
    
    Aren't lawyers snakes?
    
    ;^)
    
    Kev
    
163.6EARRTH::BROOKSLet's get it together ...Thu Jun 13 1991 19:137
    re .4
    
    No kidding. There are a lot of people who refuse to admit that they
    miss Howie. 
    
    Notice, I didn't say like or love him, but simply miss him - even as a
    'hate' object. Monday night football isn't the same ...
163.7My opinion, no ratholes please...RIPPLE::DEVLIN_JOShould I stay or should I go....Thu Jun 13 1991 19:1811
    Doc -
    
    I dont' miss Howard Cosell one bit.  I found him to be the worst
    sportscaster I've ever seen - and I use 'sports' very loosely.  He was
    a sham, a charlatan, a miserable cur.   I found him to be a lousy
    journalist.  I neither hated him nor loved him - simply ignored him -
    which is the worst thing that can happen to a loud mouth egomaniac.
    
    He was an extremely biased, overly opinionated guy.  
    
    JD
163.8Sounds a lot like the tone of your note, JDSOFBAS::TRINWARDMaker of fine scrap-paper since 1949Thu Jun 13 1991 19:2728
RE: .7

>>   I dont' miss Howard Cosell one bit.  I found him to be the worst
>>   sportscaster I've ever seen - and I use 'sports' very loosely.  He was
>>   a sham, a charlatan, a miserable cur.   I found him to be a lousy
>>   journalist.  I neither hated him nor loved him - simply ignored him -
>>   which is the worst thing that can happen to a loud mouth egomaniac.
    
>>   He was an extremely biased, overly opinionated guy.  
  

From what I've heard/seen, `next' or othereise, in these Notes, there's a
mirror in here somewhere...

Seriously, Cosell may have been (okay, WAS!) an obnoxious, loudmouthed,
opinionated, etc. LAWYER (can you say that in Notes?); HOWEVER, he was
also one of the first commentators to really challenge the athletes AND
the owners and other management-types to justify themselves to the public.

In some cases, he was a shill (what else is new in that game?); in many
others, however, he was a lone voice questioning the _modus_operandi_ of
some of the Sleazier characters (including, you, George!) that the general
world of "little boys' games" has seen since Comiskey and his fellow-
cutthroats passed on...

He WILL be missed -- already is, in fact, judging from some of the foregoing.

- Steve
163.9Had some decent qualities, didn't lend them credibility...NAC::G_WAUGAMANThu Jun 13 1991 19:396
    
    The problem with Cosell was that the gap between his strong, oft-voiced
    principles and the practice of them in his life was a virtual canyon...
    
    glenn
    
163.10EARRTH::BROOKSLet's get it together ...Thu Jun 13 1991 21:5012
    re .7
    
    ... But how do you REALLY feel about the man JD ?
    
    Hey, I didn't say he was a knight, but without him, it takes one hell
    of a Monday night game to hold my interest (although Diedorf
    occasionally drops a gem). Before, I'd live for the times that Dandy
    Don would put him in his place (almost as good as Ali snatching off his
    toupee') ....
    
    Oh yeah, he had some fascinating insights as a sports journalist. Pity
    his ego kept getting in the way ...
163.11RIPPLE::DEVLIN_JOShould I stay or should I go....Thu Jun 13 1991 22:3017
    Doc -
    
    Hey, I think MNF has suffered without him and Dandy Don - but that's
    for the entertainment value.  I usually watch football cuz I like the
    sport, not the sportscaster - but that's a different story.
    
    I guess I saw him as a blustery type of fellow.  
    
    I tell ya one thing, with Howard having cancer, and Ali his problems,
    Billy Crystals' great routine of him imitating Howard interviewing Ali,
    Holmes, Hagler, Hearns, etc... just isn't as funny (though it was a
    classic).
    
    I never thought he did a good job at interviewing - which is what a lot
    of folks thought he was good at.  He became a parody of himself...
    
    JD
163.12BOSOX::TIMMONSI'm a Pepere!Fri Jun 14 1991 10:0118
    Well said, JD.
    
    He tired me out real quick with his constant barrage of opinions,
    usually followed by some sarcastic remark to anyone who disagreed with
    him. 
    
    It's one thing to feel strongly about something and try to make your
    point.  It's quite another to try and win the argument by ridiculing
    your opponent, regardless of the validity of his position.
    
    He positioned himself as the celebrity, rather than the one he
    interviewed.  He used those people for his own benefit.
    
    Regardless of how I feel about him, though, I take no pleasure in his
    illness.  I'll save that for despots and tyrants, like Saddam Hussein.
    Now, there's a guy I could enjoy watching as he suffers pain.
    
    Lee
163.13My humble opinion...........FDCV06::KINGAnd just when you thought it was safe.........Fri Jun 14 1991 11:3313
    Gee, and I thought that MNF was suppose to be a football game and not
    some little hair-piece asshole shooting off his mouth so the fans
    could not hear the play-by-play..

    REK

    I was glad when MNF dumped him, his "guest" in the booth was a joke.
    When he called the black DB from Washington (?) a little monkey, that
    was the last straw. The man is an IDIOT when it comes to sports.

    I'm sorry to hear about his cancer, just like I would be sorry about
    anyone getting cancer... But  to treat him like a real sports-announcer
    is a joke!
163.14Don't call me HOWIE!AXIS::ROBICHAUDFri Jun 14 1991 11:411
    	Cosell was always funny when he was baiting Oscar Madison.
163.15The man was not racist, just a loudmouthSHALOT::MEDVIDFri Jun 14 1991 11:578
    That "little monkey" incident was blown completely out of proportion by
    the ever-looking-for-something-to-shout-about NAACP.   
    
    I was never a fan of Howard, but I feel he was deeply hurt by the
    public's reaction to this euphemism was uncalled for after he had for
    years promoted the black athlete.  
    
    	--dan'l
163.16Dan'l don't go overboard ...LUNER::BROOKSLet's get it together ...Fri Jun 14 1991 12:1018
    re .15
    
    Danl, the incident WAS blown out of proportion, but don't blam(tm) the
    NAACP. They had nothing to do with the backlash. 
    
    I don't believe that Cosell meant anything racist, it was just bad
    timing (but I'd had given a weeks pay to look at his face when he
    realized how the phrase could be taken :-) and a poor choice of words
    to describe the player (who as Alvin Garret WR for the SKins).
    
    And I think that Cosell was taken aback by teh reaction, but he didn't
    suffer for long after that remark. Most of the people I read about (and
    talked to) felt that it was faux pas, rather than a racist remark. 
    
    Compare that to say, Campanis or Jimmy The Greek, and you'll see what
    I'm talking about.
    
    00:00
163.17With or without Cosell, MNF would be where it is today...NAC::G_WAUGAMANFri Jun 14 1991 12:1622
    > That "little monkey" incident was blown completely out of proportion by
    > the ever-looking-for-something-to-shout-about NAACP.   
    
    Bingo.  The minute he made that comment (it was in reference to the
    Skins' "Smurf" receiving pair of Garrett and Brown), I knew there would
    be hell to pay, but in the context you knew Cosell had no idea what he
    was saying.  Hell, the guy was the very first national sportscaster to
    speak out on then-controversial issues of race, but by the time he made
    the comment he had slipped a long way and was prone to Reagan-like 
    lapses of the tongue and mind.
    
    MNF had gone into the dumper well before Cosell left, IMO.  He and
    Meredith and Gifford came along at the right time when MNF was a great,
    fresh, new idea and capitalized on it with their sometimes goofball
    antics. But just like any TV show, after 10+ years the act had gotten
    stale and MNF no longer had that "big-game" appeal.  The NFL is partly
    responsible for that, too, with overexposure of televised games now and
    all the gimmicks that kept the games going till 1 AM...
    
    glenn
       
163.18More...SHALOT::MEDVIDFri Jun 14 1991 12:2818
>(but I'd had given a weeks pay to look at his face when he
>    realized how the phrase could be taken :-) 
    
    Doc, I'd bet his face was as stoic as ever because:
    
    	a) he meant no malice
    	b) no malice should have been implied
    
    The NAACP certainly was involved.  I remember distinctly many an
    interview in the days following with its then president.  Look, I'm one
    of the most liberal, non-racist people you'll run into but I really
    feel the NAACP has hurt its self image due to its overreaction to so
    many mousey issues.  Just wanted to clarify my stance on the NAACP;
    actually, I think it's an organization that has been passed by and is
    trying to insight controversy to stay alive.  That's sad when a person
    like myself can develop an opinion like that.
    
    	--dan'l
163.19CAM::WAYRuck till you puke...Fri Jun 14 1991 13:0414
Howard Cosell was the Archie Bunker of the sports world.

A core of humanity seldom seen because of the somewhat unpalatable shell
around it....

I still roll when I think of my favorite MNF memory....  Camera pans to
this sleeping guy in an empty section of seats.  Cosell babbling something
about him.  The guy wakes up and flips the bird to the camera.  Cosell, 
normally unflappable is speechless.  Ever quick Dandy Don jumps in and
says "Look Howard, he's telling us we're Number One ...."

I just about pissed my pants!

'Saw
163.20A LOT of that going around...SOFBAS::TRINWARDZAPPA: `read my lips - no MORE taxes'Fri Jun 14 1991 13:0911
>>  ...  Just wanted to clarify my stance on the NAACP;
>>  actually, I think it's an organization that has been passed by and is
>>  trying to insight controversy to stay alive....
   
Hmm, sounds a LOT like the UAW, AFL-CIO, Teamsters, et al. -- not to mention
GM, U.S. Steel, World Bank, IRS, DOD, CIA, FBI, SSA...

	Zap '92!

- Steve

163.21Wishing this were true...SHALOT::MEDVIDFri Jun 14 1991 13:1410
    My favorite MNF story might not be true (since it was told to me
    secondhand), but I'd really like to believe it.
    
    Gifford, Cosell, and Merideth had all the players' names, numbers,
    stats, and colleges listed on a sheet of paper in front of them. 
    Cosell was making a statement about a great play this guy had made and
    it went something like, "That's so-n-so out of Noonee College."  To
    which Merideth replies, "Um, that's 'none', Howard."
    
    	--dan'l
163.22Howard was prob'ly playing straight man for the old "Nun" college jokeNAC::G_WAUGAMANFri Jun 14 1991 13:189
    
    > Cosell was making a statement about a great play this guy had made and
    > it went something like, "That's so-n-so out of Noonee College."  To
    > which Merideth replies, "Um, that's 'none', Howard."
    
    Otis Sistrunk, undoubtedly...
    
    glenn
    
163.23Otis Sistrunk was from the University of MarsAXIS::ROBICHAUDFri Jun 14 1991 13:451
    
163.24Chocolate Thunder Flyin'!!!GENRAL::WADEIBeenDrivinAllNight...MyHandsWetOnTheWheelFri Jun 14 1991 14:088
    
    Slasher,
    
    	That's better than where Darryl Dawkins is from......
    
    	Lovetron!
    
    Claybone  :^)
163.25AXIS::ROBICHAUDFri Jun 14 1991 14:532
    	Dawkins was a true character.  I doubt he would fit in well
    in Stern's image conscious BetterEatYourWheatiesNBA.
163.26Cosell was greatBSS::G_MCINTOSHULTRIX NETWORKS, CSC/CSFri Jun 14 1991 17:468
    I think Cosell was great.  I enjoyed his overcommentary.  I enjoyed his
    use of words.  I enjoyed what I perceived to be his insight to the game
    and I think I liked the fact that he wasn't a jock.  I especially liked
    the on-air chemistry with the others in the booth.  He was a breath of
    fresh air and is light years ahead of Bill Walsh and others.  This guy
    was at least interesting to listen to.
    
    Live from Charger Central.......Glenn
163.27MCIS1::DHAMELLife's toils of the broke & unknownFri Jun 14 1991 19:128
    
    Cosell was a breath of air, alright.  Although it wasn't always fresh
    since he didn't always talk out of his mouth.  
    
    But the guy sure is/was a one-of-a-kind classic.
    
    Dickstah
    
163.28Hey, A-A-Albert!SOFBAS::TRINWARDZAPPA: `read my lips - no }&@#$% taxes'Fri Jun 14 1991 19:546
Whatever Cosell was, he was a dad sight better than the "Albert and Fratello"
show to which we've subjected over the last few weeks...  ;^}

Me, I much prefer Ned Martin!

- Steve
163.29L.A. had the best !CSC32::A_PARRACOLA - 9th NBA Finals in 12 years ! Fri Jun 14 1991 23:4415
    
    Jeez, the rathole turned into a neutrino tunnel !   ((:^))
    
    
    
    I had the true privilege (listening, not living !) of growing up 
    in the San Fernando Valley in the 1960's/70's and listening to :
    
    Vin Scully (Los Angeles Dodgers)
    Chick Hearn (Los Angeles Lakers)
    Jiggs McDonald (Los Angeles Kings)
    Dick Enberg (California Angels, Los Angeles Rams, UCLA/USC home football)
    
    - The Combat Proctologist
    
163.30CNTROL::MACNEALruck `n' rollMon Jun 17 1991 16:585
    JD's feelings of Howard Cosell just beg the question:
    
    "Has anyone seen Howard and Dan S. in the same room at the same time?"
    
    ;^}
163.31AXIS::ROBICHAUDMon Jun 17 1991 17:181
    	There is a *strong* physical resemblance there Big Mac.  I wonder.
163.32CAM::WAYRuck till you puke...Mon Jun 17 1991 19:185
163.33BOSOX::TIMMONSI'm a Pepere!Tue Jun 18 1991 10:0125
    How can you'se guys say that Dan and Howie have a strong resemblance?
    
    They have nothing physical in common.
    
    
    lEe
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Howie is *MUCH* better looking, and in better shape, too!  :*)
163.34EARRTH::BROOKSLet's get it together ...Tue Jun 18 1991 13:1911
    I'm not going to get involved in a NAACP rathole (fwiw, I think the
    crticisms of it are bogus, but hey it's a byproduct of the Reagan
    80's), but my favorite cosellism was the Monday Night Halftime
    highlights ....
    
    "THIRD and twelve ... Joe Willie passes to THAT man - NUM-ber 8-TY
    eight ...Richard Cas-ter ... and he will go all-the-way ...."
    
    Classic stuff, almost as good as John "The Voice Of God" Facenda ...
    
    Dr 00:00
163.35CNTROL::MACNEALruck `n' rollTue Jun 18 1991 13:442
    Come to think of it, has anyone seen Dan, MrT, and Howard in the same
    room at the same time?
163.36RDOVAX::BRAKEA Question of BalanceTue Jul 02 1991 16:2028
    Howard never took himself seriously. I miss the guy. Showed a lot of
    courage when he exited the boxing arena after the Tex Cobb/Larry Holmes
    debacle. 
    
    Howard and Ali fed off each other to the benefit of both. Perhaps THAT
    is the single reason JD really doesn't like him.
    
    I recall hearing a story about some bar somewhere in East Overshow, USA
    that charged admission to patrons to watch MNF. The kitty typically ran
    about $300. At half time a number was picked and the lucky winner got
    to trhow a brick through the TV screen when Howard was giving a solo in
    front of the camera. Proceeds from the admission charge went to buy a
    new TV every week.
    
    As far as announcers, my Dad tells me nobody was better than Red Barber
    doing Brooklyn Dodger games.
    
    I remember the sweet tones of Curt Gowdy "Hi Neighbor, Gav a Hansett"
    doing Red Sox games on Boston TV on weekends. Then there was steady Don
    Gillis doing the Sox games on WHDH radio. The guy was great.
    
    But my all time favorite was Ned Martin. His "MERCY" brought me right
    out to the ball game and, although Ken Coleman stole the show in '67
    from the Nedster, it is Martin I recall living and dying with during
    the Impossible Dream year.
    
    Rich
     
163.37RIPPLE::DEVLIN_JOI'll give you my Prime TimeTue Jul 02 1991 16:338
    Rich -
    I never liked Howard Cosell - ALi had nothing to do with it.  I still
    find Howard to be full of it, and one of the worst of all time.  I
    don't mention his name in the same company as real sports reporters or
    the great sportcasters.  He was a bufoon and a clown - a parasite, and
    one of the most overrated 'interviewers' ever.
    
    JD
163.38CARROL::LEFEBVREAspiring Fender BenderTue Jul 02 1991 16:436
>    As far as announcers, my Dad tells me nobody was better than Red Barber
>    doing Brooklyn Dodger games.
    
    Yep, that Red Barber was a cut above the rest, that's fer sure.
    
    Mark. 
163.39I don't remember GillisTNPUBS::MCCULLOUGHLindsey is a toddler now!Tue Jul 02 1991 17:3913
Rich

When did Gillis do the Sox games?  Must have been before my time, Gowdy and 
Martin were the first I remember.

When Gowdy did the NBC games there was none better, but I also have never 
seen an announcer go down hill so fast.  I still say that Jack Buck is right up
there, especially on baseball.  I also think Keith Jackson knows college 
football as well as anyone doing the games.

The worst curent announcer is of course the Scooter.

=Bob=
163.40VAXWRK::SCHNEIDERBreaking rocks in the hot sunTue Jul 02 1991 17:538
    >Yep, that Red Barber was a cut above the rest, that's fer sure.
    
    Mark, did you know that Red Barber spent some time as a member of the
    New York Yankee broadcasting crew?  Cut a deal and got to sit next to
    the master, Mel Allen.  Red was razor sharp with his southern drawl
    next to Allen's matchless style.
    
    Dan
163.41CARROL::LEFEBVREAspiring Fender BenderTue Jul 02 1991 18:253
    Having Barber sit with Allen must have been a hair-raising event.
    
    Mark.
163.42RDOVAX::BRAKEA Question of BalanceTue Jul 02 1991 18:2711
    As I recall, Gillis did Sox games about the same time Gowdy did. 
    
    Dan brought up Mel Allen. Now, as much as I dislike the team he
    broadcast for, his voice and style were/are great for the game. When I
    used to spend summer visiting my grandfather in the Queens, he'd have
    the old radio on and Mel Allen would be effortlessly crooning on about
    the Yankees. Whenever I hear him, even today, I still can smell a White
    Owl cigar...
    
    Rich
    
163.43NAC::G_WAUGAMANTue Jul 02 1991 19:016
    
    Mel Allen's been completely fried for near 30 years now.  Give me
    Barber any day...
    
    glenn
    
163.44RDOVAX::BRAKEA Question of BalanceTue Jul 02 1991 19:1513
    Nah, Glenn, I kinda like old Mel doing This Week in Baseball.
    Refreshing to get away from the slickness of Hollywood supertalkers and
    ex jocks who sit in the booth waiting to be asked about their career.
    
    Mel is a throwback to an era that was magic to most of us. Before TV
    and high salaries. Kids listened to sportscasters like Mel and formed
    images of players they had never seen before. They used phrases like
    "sweet swing" and "goin' downtown" to personalize their broadcasts.
    Their descriptions of games seemed, to me, to be directed directly AT
    me. Mel, Red, Curt - these guys had that quality.
    
    Rich
     
163.45AXIS::ROBICHAUDWed Jul 03 1991 11:5711
163.46RDOVAX::BRAKEA Question of BalanceWed Jul 03 1991 12:1813
    Slasher, I recall the cigar business as being quite competitive. There
    used to be huge billboards in greater Boston for Dexter and, I think,
    7-20-3 cigars. Robert Burns made more than tiparillos. If you happen to
    go to some good flea markets, look at some of the many old cigar boxes
    there. Also consider that the cigarette market was very small then,
    too. Pre filter days. Luckies, Pall Mall, Chesterfield, Camel, Old Gold
    and Philip Morris were the major brands. 
    
    You are right, though, about White Owls. I took a few puffs once and
    then tried a Hav-A-Tampa and never puffed a White Owl again.
    
    Rich
    
163.47pick me up and smoke me sometimeMCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Wed Jul 03 1991 14:506
    
    Parodi roolz!
    
    
    Dickstah
    
163.48Macanudo 't'ain't too bad neitherCARROL::LEFEBVREAspiring Fender BenderWed Jul 03 1991 15:076
>    You are right, though, about White Owls. I took a few puffs once and
>    then tried a Hav-A-Tampa and never puffed a White Owl again.
    
    Habanas rool!
    
    Mark.
163.49AXIS::ROBICHAUDWed Jul 03 1991 15:249
163.50Back to Mel Allen....UNXA::ADLERRich or poor, it's nice to have $$$Wed Jul 03 1991 16:0611
....if memory serves me correctly, Mel was [one of] the first announcers to
coin phrases associating homeruns with the sponsor's product.

"Ballantine Blast" and "White Owl Wallop" preceded "This Bud's for you" by
many years.

Ah yes, to watch Mel Allen at the close of a Yankee telecast, pouring the
Ballantine with a perfect head of foam into a Pilsner glass, downing more
than half the brew in one gulp,.... brings back great memories, don't it?

/Ed
163.51MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Wed Jul 03 1991 16:1523
    
    Just to keep on topic, I wonder how many sportscasters smoke cigars?
    
    I friend of mine was Italian, and he'd grab off a few of those
    shriveled stogies from his uncle Sal or Guido or Sonny or whatever.
    We sat in the Fenway bleachers one day puffing on them, and like the
    "hate it when that happens" duo, I wondered "Like, what would it be
    like if a person inhaled this sucker?"
    
    Well, my lungs went into immediate arrest as I coughed and gagged so
    much I thought I was gonna turn inside out, like the dog did in the
    remake of "The Thing."  I thought I had a hair ball stuck in my throat,
    but it was really my sphincter.  Man I hate it when that happens.
    
    When I was in kollidge, I thought it was cool to smoke a pipe like all
    the professors (especially the English department).  You know the ones:
    beard, turtleneck sweater, jacket with the patches on the elbows, briar
    pipe filled with some aeromatic blend.  And those were the females.
    
    Ah, nostalgia.
    
    Dickstah
    
163.52CAM::WAYToonces, the Rugby Playing Cat....Wed Jul 03 1991 16:2425
My first experience with a cigar was most memorable.  

It was at college on a Saturday afternoon after a football game.  We were
in one of the parking lots playing frisbee, and my buddy was sittin' on 
the sideline smokin' a stoggie.  Anyway, he wanted to play, so I went over
and sat on one of the cars, and he gave me his cigar. 

So, there I am puffin' on it, and soon, I started getting a little more into
the frisbee game.  Next thing you know, I have to run about 10 yards and 
jump to catch it.  I do, and as I land, I inhale bigtime on that damn cigar.

YOWZA!  I was in the fire department at the time, and even that wasn't as
bad as sucking in a healthy lungful of that cigar smoke...YUK...


Used to smoke a pipe too.  Always enjoyed that, in fact, I could get hooked
on that again big time.  Loved Captain Black tobacco....


On occasion (a rare occasion these days) I'll smoke a pack of Marlboro lights...


'Saw

PS  I hear that lots of Sportscasters smoke, which is why I entered this tome....
163.53MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Wed Jul 03 1991 16:329
    
    Captain Black sips.  It always filled the pipe with juice and made
    smoking sound like someone with the sniffles, never mind the bitter
    taste.  I usta like Amphora (red).
    
    Now Captain Morgan and Johnny Walker (red) are something else...
    
    Dickstah
    
163.54CAM::WAYToonces, the Rugby Playing Cat....Wed Jul 03 1991 16:459
Amphora smells like burning cow dung 8^)

Seriously, I never had a "juice" problem with Captain Black...


Drinking Jack Daniels whilst having a chaw of Redman is simply Divine!  ;^)


'Saw
163.55STAR::YANKOWSKASPaul YankowskasWed Jul 03 1991 17:158
    re sportscasters smokin' ceegars:
    
    How about the old farts on "The Sports Writers on TV"?  I don't know
    how Rick Telander can breathe with Bentley, Jauss, and Gleason chain
    smoking stogies like there's no tomorrow...
    
    
    py
163.56MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Wed Jul 03 1991 17:1617
    
    >Ah yes, to watch Mel Allen at the close of a Yankee telecast, pouring the
    >Ballantine with a perfect head of foam into a Pilsner glass, downing more
    >than half the brew in one gulp,.... brings back great memories, don't it?
    
    I remember Curt Gowdy used to do the Naragansett Beer commercials live
    from the broadcast booth too.  During the game you'd see him up there
    with a can of 'Gansett on the window ledge in front of him.
    
    Which raises another question.  Howcome nowadays that the announcers
    can never be seen *actually drinking the beer*?  I understand there's
    some kind of law that prevents it.  Come to think of it, do the people
    in, say, the Miller Lite or Silver Bullet or whatever commercials ever
    actually drink it on camera?  I can't really recall if they do or not.
    
    Dickstah
                                
163.57MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Wed Jul 03 1991 17:208
    
    >Amphora smells like burning cow dung 8^)
    
    Don't knock it till you've tried it.  Cow dung isn't half bad.  Used to
    smoke it when we ran out of banana peels. 8^)
    
    Dickstah, 60's throwback
    
163.58'Gansett SipsRDOVAX::BRAKEA Question of BalanceWed Jul 03 1991 17:438
    Dicstah,
    
    Gowdy used to get hammered on Narraganssett beer. The jingle for them
    was "Hi Neighborm Have a 'Gansett". Many was the time that, by the 8th
    inning, ole Curt would be bubbling, "Hi Neighbor, Gav a Hansett."
    
    Rich
    
163.59MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Wed Jul 03 1991 18:149
    
    I'd heard people tell about Gowdy getting lit up during the games, but
    I didn't know if it was true.
    
    Now I do remember reading about how Dandy Don would get absolutely
    shitfaced on Monday night football.  Not sure about Howard and Frank.
    
    Dickstah
    
163.60BDWISR::WASKOMWed Jul 03 1991 19:1513
    You won't see anyone actually drinking an alcoholic beverage on U.S.
    TV during an ad.  Back when the FCC outlawed hard liquor ads (and 
    tobacco ads), that was the compromise which allowed beer and wine 
    advertising to be continued.  Not to be confused with the dramatic
    content of shows, which I believe *may* show individuals ingesting
    alcoholic substances.  (I don't watch enough non-sports programming to
    be sure.)
    
    Sometimes I almost wish they'd let hard liquor and tobacco ads back on,
    with the same "rules" around actual use.  At least they inspired some
    pretty high-quality commercials....
    
    A&W
163.61RIPPLE::BRUSO_SAI am, therefore I skiMon Jul 08 1991 15:0913

I don't believe anyone is allowed to drink alcoholic beverages on U.S. 
TV, whether it be in a commercial or in a movie.  Norm on "Cheers" is 
not drinking real beer, but rather a concoction that's mixed to have a 
head and color like the real thing.  Apparently it's pretty vile tasting
because he says that after a few takes, he has all he can do to even sip 
the stuff.  I've noticed that in many of the scenes, he doesn't take a 
good "pull" on his mug, but rather sips a little off the top.

Sandy_who_never_sips_beer


163.62BSS::JCOTANCHIt's almost football season!Mon Jul 08 1991 16:0110
> Norm on "Cheers" is 
> not drinking real beer, but rather a concoction that's mixed to have a 
> head and color like the real thing.  Apparently it's pretty vile tasting
> because he says that after a few takes, he has all he can do to even sip 
> the stuff.
    
    Why don't they just use non-alcoholic beer?
    


163.63MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Mon Jul 08 1991 16:139
    
    Beer (alcoholic variety) is beer.  Everybody knows what it is, and
    everybody knows what it can do.  You drink it.  I don't know what is
    accomplished by not actually watching Bob Eucker take a sip.  Kinda
    like selling handguns on the tube, as long as they don't actually show
    one being fired.
    
    Dickstah
    
163.64my $.02CST17::FARLEYHave YOU seen Elvis today??Mon Jul 08 1991 16:3311
    'nuther reason why the commercial guys probably aren't shown drinking
    da beer is as was mentioned with Norm....
    
    the liquid in the glasses are only a viSUal rendition of what beer
    is, jazzed up to look more appealing.  Has ANYONE ever seen a lite
    beer with such great color or a head like they show?
    
    nahh, didn't think so.
    
    Kev
    
163.65CAM::WAYMon Jul 08 1991 17:0513
The reason that they don't use real beer (or even near-beer) is that
beer photographs poorly, and the head doesn't hold up under the lights.

I saw a TV show one time on how they do stuff like that for commercials.
In commercials, where no one will drink the beer, a lot of time they use
a yellow liquid, with a head of dish detergent whipped up.

For ice cream they use lard colored with food coloring.....

(those instances are, of course, where no one consumes the stuff....)


'Saw
163.66VAXWRK::NEEDLEMoney talks. Mine says "Good-Bye!"Mon Jul 08 1991 17:148
A friend of mine was working on a commercial for a candy bar.  He had one in
his backpack.  It didn't look like the same wrapping.  It was much brighter and
colorful than the usual wrapper.  And when opened, it had zillions of nuts, a
thick chocolate outside, and generally looked appealing (something unusual for
this particular candy bar).  Of course, it didn't taste any better, despite the
fact that it cost around $250 per bar to produce.

j.
163.67CAM::WAYMon Jul 08 1991 17:168
Whoa!  A genentically enhanced candy bar, just for a commercial...

I wonder if the Enquirer and Star know about this.....


I guess smoke and mirrors go far beyond your average Digital Demo, eh?

'Saw
163.68MCIS1::DHAMELSay kids, what time is it?!!Mon Jul 08 1991 17:4922
    
    >Whoa!  A genentically enhanced candy bar, just for a commercial...
    
    ...and like every Big Mac or Mc Lean or Mc Shyteburger you buy is
    'zackley like the ones you see on tv, too.
    
    Getting back to the beer ads, I don't see much difference in the
    so-called "premium" beers.  So they don't sell *beer* to garner their
    market share, they sell a look and a lifestyle.  You don't see any beer
    guts on beer ads, and the gorgeous blonde ladies fresh from the beach
    just love those tan muscular beer-swillin' dudes.  Why, they'll even
    let a_ugly dog caress their lovely legs cuz the flea-bitten cur has a
    name that rhymes with Bud.  That's right, just drink the right beer and
    you too can look great, develop a magnetic personality, be healthy as a
    horse, and party, party, party.
    
    And how about that chain-smokin' camel that the girls go ga-ga over in
    the ads.  Ever notice what his head looks like?  Well, you don't have
    to be Fellini to figure that one out.
    
    Dickstah
    
163.69CAM::WAYMon Jul 08 1991 19:0518
Some of the best beers I haven't seen advertised on TV.  I've never seen
a Samuel Adams ad on TV, nor have I seen an ad for Newcastle Brown Ale 
(obviously an import), and those are two fine brews.

The Heinies, Rolling Rocks, etc etc etc are, as you say, set up to cater
to a particular group of people....


In fact, have any of you ever seen bodacious women like they have on TV
anywhere in real life?  I've got a theory that these women are kept in a
compound somewhere, and forced to eat nothing but yogurt and bananas all
day, except for when they eat a Special-K breakfast.  Then they do commercials
all afternoon.  At night they are drugged to get their beauty rest.

I'm sure of this....


'Saw
163.70Dolls of PaperSHALOT::MEDVIDkiss them for meMon Jul 08 1991 19:156
>In fact, have any of you ever seen bodacious women like they have on TV
>anywhere in real life?  
    
    They're there, you just have to know where to "hang out."
    
    	--dan'l
163.71Rolling Rock is good beer. Shame it went yuppie.VAXWRK::SCHNEIDERIsthmus be my lucky day.Mon Jul 08 1991 20:117
>In fact, have any of you ever seen bodacious women like they have on TV
>anywhere in real life?  I've got a theory that these women are kept in a
>compound somewhere, 
    
    They keep them all in Australia.  Trust me.
    
    Dan
163.72Got a different perspective nowANGLIN::KIRKMANEscanaba - summer only, PLEASEMon Jul 08 1991 22:2712
>In fact, have any of you ever seen bodacious women like they have on TV
>anywhere in real life?  I've got a theory that these women are kept in a
>compound somewhere, 

Hey - they exist. I'm even marrying one.

I will admit though, I met her on the 1 night/year that she went out on the
town (bars).  It also seemed during the time that I was unattached that many
very-attractive women did "hide" quite a bit.

Commander Scott
    
163.73RIPPLE::DEVLIN_JOBritish Columbia ROOLZTue Jul 09 1991 02:0312
    Dan -
    
    Hey, I'll second the Australia line.  Geez - I was amazed - and the
    fack that I was on my honeymoon didn't help -0 but wifey understood -
    of couse she go even looking at all those non-lat-endowed aussies!
    
    JD
    
    Also - US COmmercials used to have a law taht you douldn;'t show women
    wearintg underwear - they could have on a string bikina, but not a bra
    and panty set...remember the commercials where Jane Russel has the bra
    on OUTSIDE her sweater...?
163.74On a sad noteCOBRA::BRYDIEHoward Roark laughed.Tue Jan 07 1992 12:146
    
      Johnny Most, the legendary Boston Celtics radio announcer, had both
     of his legs amputated Monday morning due to blood circulation diff-
     iculties. The surgery was performed at New England Baptist Hospital
     and a hospital spokesperson said Most was "doing very well" last
     night.
163.76CAMONE::WAYNude up and NoteTue Jan 07 1992 13:1111
My mom smoked three packs a day for year.  Then, about twenty years ago,
she quit.  Her life became more healthy and everything.

YET, she still has early signs of emphysema.


Smoking is NOT cool, and if you do it, I'd urge you to quit if it all
possible....


'Saw
163.77QUASER::HUNTERBad_Boy of ::SPORTSTue Jan 07 1992 13:193
    Some one ought to tell JimBob Denver Dallas Johnny Most Crews !
    
    BG
163.78REFINE::ASHEWhat's this about Creme de Menthe?Tue Jan 07 1992 17:242
    Was it from smoking or was he diabetic?
    
163.79Senor Wencas, Si? Si!CTHQ3::LEARYBeano:PreventGasBeforeItStartsWed Mar 11 1992 16:0212
    Listened to some of Eddie Anvilhaid the last couple nights and he 
    does come up with some gems on occasion.
    
    Talking about the Bruins' head honchos Harry Sinden and Mike Milbury,
    Eddie was commenting on how Milbury mimics everything Harry says
    and jumps at his every command. Eddie's calling them "Harry and
    Senor Wencas (sp). I was rolling. You know Senor Wencas, the dummy
    in a box ( Si?, Si!, S'allright?,s'allright!"). Every time I hear/see
    Milbury, I'm gonna crack uo thinking, Senor Wencas.
    
    MikeL
    
163.80ROYALT::ASHESometimes you're a windshield...Wed Mar 11 1992 19:283
    "Tim Naehring is nothing more than a slow, white shortstop...."
    
    -Eddie Andelman 
163.81CELTIK::JACOBA double flutter blast!!Wed Mar 11 1992 19:3712
    
    I heard somewhere that a sportscaster, baseball that is, named Milo
    Hamilton was elected to the HoF for sporstcasters.
    
    This guy did the Bucs games for a few years before he was run out of
    town.  He was absolutely the WORST baseball play-by-play guy I have
    EVER heard.
    
    What's the criteria for getting into the HoF??
    
    JaKe
    
163.82SALEM::TIMMONSWhere's Waldo?Thu Mar 12 1992 14:563
    Dunno, but Milo was a great DJ in Chicago back in the late fifties.
    
    lEe
163.83CBS radio station in BostonAD::HEATHTue Jul 14 1992 18:2911
    I know that this is probably in the wrong topic but I know that 
    CBS is doing the ALL-STAR game tonight but what radio channel is
    that in Boston.  The Sox are on RKO but to the best of my knowledge
    that is not a CBS affiliate. Any body know which one it is?  The 
    only good thing about radio is that Jack Buck is doing it and I
    think that Don Drysdale is doing color.  It that is the case how
    long after somebody hits a dinger will it take him to talk about
    knocking somebody down.
    
    Thanks in advance.
    Jerry
163.84COBRA::DINSMORESlash, the 2nd coming of AndelmenTue Jul 14 1992 19:102
    it should be on 590  AM..