goldenthroat's Blog

Did anyone happen to notice Danny Ferry grinning like the cat that ate the bird during the Cavs press conference annoucing the big trade?

Why shouldn't he be grinning from ear to ear? I think he knows something we haven't seen yet. The aquisition of West, Wallace, Wally and Smith in exchange for half the Cavs team should end up paying huge dividends. Ferry is shaping this team, not only into a continued long term contender, but another championship run this year.

Everything I have read and heard about the new players has been that they are all chomping at the bit to get started with King James and Company and they have welcomed the new team members with open arms.  Looks like the chemistry is already there.  

Now - on to the issue at hand - another Eastern Conference title and on to the NBA finals. 

Go Cavs!

I can't stop laughing...

Judge Cicconetti gave these two knuckleheads busted for prositution what they deserved - public humiliation by wearing a chicken suit, standing on a street corner, and holding a sign with a message against prostitution!

This creative form of sentencing should be standard procedure by all judges but, unfortunately, we'll still have left-coast, bleeding-heart jurists who think this is going over the edge and feel this is cruel and unusual punishment.

So the one defendant lost his girlfriend as a result of this, huh? Hmmm - maybe this will send a loud and clear message that, when crimes are committed, others are affected by these actions! But, then again, this kind of common sense will happen when I see a pig fly past my window...stupid is as stupid does!  

God bless Judge Ciccconetti - keep up the good work!

An open letter to Brady Quinn...

Hey, Brady, why is it that you can find yourself already making personal appearances around northeast Ohio AS A MEMBER OF THE CLEVELAND BROWNS, charge outlandish fees just to get your stinkin' autograph, but you can't seem to sign a contract and get to training camp?

When you were drafted by the Browns, you stated in so many words you wanted to be with this team.  Now it's time to put up or shut up, get into uniform, and join your teammates at Berea.

Keep in mind, too. Brady, that Browns fans have had it up to their eyeballs with players who talk the talk and won't walk the walk.  Are you going to be the next one?

Get your act together, sign your contract, and suit up. Demonstrate to Browns fans you want to be a leader by being one.

An open letter to Mr. Rupert Murdoch,

It was announced that Fox 8, along with several other Fox affiliates around the country, is being put on the sales block by you so that you can add some leverage power in your quest to by Dow Jones.

Mr. Murdoch, this is a terrible decision. Why must you sacrifice viewers who have been loyal to your stations and cable network since the inception of Fox? Are you not one of the richest men in the world?  Are you telling us that you no longer care for the viewership that has been established?  I may not understand the world of business but this is doing nothing but biting the hand that feeds you.   

I would hate to see northeast Ohio lose Channel 8's Fox affiliation. It has been good for our area and only time would tell what might happen if such a transaction is finalized.

Over the years, this station has undergone many changes in ownership and programming.  But it was a blessing for Channel 8 to unload CBS for Fox years ago and gave Cleveland and northeast Ohio a fresh new network that is enjoyable to watch with excellent programming for everyone.  

Just like the Cavs, it's time for Cleveland viewers to 'rise up' for Fox 8. 

Mr. Murdoch, I hope you will reconsider your decision to sell Fox 8. It's too good of a station to lose.

I have to confess that Memorial Day is a bit emotional for me. I am the son of a World War II/Pearl Harbor veteran.  My father was in the Navy in battleship row on December 7, 1941 serving aboard the U.S.S. Maryland when the Japanese attacked America. He spent the rest of his Navy days aboard that magnificant battleship, taking only one thirty day leave throughout the entire war.

Thanks to his #2 son (me), Dad was often interviewed by area media about his Pearl Harbor experiences. He never once turned down an interview request and was a walking history book about the war.

What's more, Dad always stood for what was right, even if he were the only one standing for it. He had no use for those who bad-mouthed America and for what it stood for even when America was in the face of conflict.  He was able to take that stand - he had earned the right to be called a 'patriot' because he had been there.

Dad died on my 53rd birthday in 2004, less than two months shy of his own 89th birthday.  During the funeral service, the pastor of their church showed a fitting power point presentation of my dad's years in the service.  When, during that presentation, the Navy hymn "Eternal Father, Strong To Save" played as a montage of the battles my Dad was involved in appeared on the screen, I don't know when I had been more proud of my father than I was at that moment.

At the graveside service, a Naval Color Guard honored my father with a 18 gun salute - then taps were sounded for this Naval warrior who had so proudly served his God and his country.

This Memorial Day and those in the years to come, I will visit the grave where he and Mom are buried next to each other, she passing away only 18 days after he did. My two brothers and I have placed American flags at the corners of the grave marker along with the Navy flag. I will look at the date engraved in that marble monolith - October 19, 2004 - and be reminded for the rest of my life that God, in His mercy, gave me a birthday gift of calling my father home to Him on that day. I am proud that I was also given his name at birth.  

To all of our nation's military veterans - thanks for serving the greatest country in the world and defending our freedoms - because freedom never will be free.

They say nothing is certain outside of death and taxes.  But for those of us in our fifties-plus who grew up in northeast Ohio watching Cleveland television, we have all been stunned at the news - albeit mildly - of the impending retirement of Big Chuck. 

I can still remember as a teenager staying up late on the weekends watching the then "Hoolihan and Big Chuck Show" and falling asleep in the wee hours of the morning to the great movies and sketches these guys put on. 

Then Hoolihan moved to Florida and Little John took over - the tradition continued with the great movies and slapstick - perhaps even funnier. I have to admit that, when I heard the news and watched the interview with Big Chuck on the newscast on Fox8 Friday evening of May 18, I had a bit of an empty pit in my stomach feeling like I was about to lose a lifelong friend.  Knowing that I literally grew up with this show and have enjoyed in my adult years, even with my 11 year old daughter, will now be just a memory.  She has enjoyed "Couch Potato Theater" and knows that Dad has been watching Big Chuck and Little John much longer than she has been around.

I have thought over the years if any other television station in any city had ever offered their viewers such terrific local TV programming like "Hoolihan/Big Chuck/Little John".   If not, they have been deprived of what television was meant to be - fun, clean, and most of all, entertaining. These guys were our  "Abbot and Costello", "Laurel and Hardy" - but we had the additional privilege of knowing they were northeast Ohio's own - our entertainment - for our viewing - something we looked forward to on a weekend night for decades. 

I hope we'll have the opportunity to buy a compilation DVD of the sketches from these legendary shows someday - sketches like "Readings by Robert", "Soul Man", highlights from the pizza eating contest featuring "Mushmouth" Mariano Pachetti,  "Mary Hartski! Mary Hartski!", "Ben Krazy", "The Certain Ethnic (fill in the blank)", BC and LJ's rendition of "Who's On First?" - just to name a few.

How about it, Fox8?

Best wishes to Big Chuck and Little John.  Like the late Bob Hope sang: "Thanks for the memories." 

You'll be missed. 

Yes, Don Imus' comments on his nationally syndicated radio/TV show about the Rutgers University women's basketball team was irresponsible, out-of-line, and just plain stupid!  Should he be called on the carpet for it? Absolutely!

BUT - is it enough for Imus to be fired? Because if it is, then radio and TV talk show hosts around the country had better begin updating their resumes because many of them may be on the verge of losing their jobs.

LIstening to Bob Frantz on 1100 WTAM on the morning of April 12 is a perfect example. Bob, along with popular afternoon host Mike Trivisonno, are both getting skittish about what they say on their shows for fear of backlash.  Can you blame them?

But when I read that one of the Rutgers players said that, because of Imus' remarks, she would be 'damaged for life' - PUL-EEEEEZE!  If the comments of a radio has-been like Imus whose ratings are approaching the sub-basement can actually accomplish this then this young lady needs a major reality check!  My educated guess is that she is going to have a hard time holding down a job after she graduates because even the slightest criticism of her work will send her out the door in a huff.

However - much more is at risk here - our very right to express opinions in the public arena such as radio or TV talk shows,  letters to the editor in newspapers, et al, have now been placed in jeopardy.  This is not just an isolated issue anymore.

And -  has anyone noticed how little press is being given to  'Rev' Al Sharpton's irresponsible and inflamatory comments about the Duke rape case and the Tawana Brawley fiacso? Turn about fair play - or at least, it should be, especially if the Rev wants to rake Imus over the coals!

What's good for the goose is good for the gander - or it used to be until 'political correctness' went berserk! 

Whoops, I'll be getting a letter from the attorney for the goose and gander any day now...

I don't get it - I just don't get it.  Why did the city of Cleveland ever go after the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when for years now it seems no one there gives the south end of a north bound horse about the induction ceremonies being held in New York City?

From the get-go the Big Apple has hosted this event. Why? Is Cleveland embarrassed to fight for this for some unknown reason?  This would be like holding the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in Green Bay!  I lived in Stark County for 23 years and, believe me, the city of Canton would declare war if that happened! 

Hasn't Cleveland rolled over and played dead long enough about this issue? When will the powers-that-be at the R and R HOF put their foot down and say "enough is enough, the inductions will be held in Cleveland. Period!"

Oh, wait a minute - I just checked and that falls under the "when hell freezes over" category!

The sad news of the death of four baseball players from Bluffton University as the result of a bus accident in Georgia hits home with me. My #2 daughter is a Bluffton alum and currently living in Virginia.  She has already emailed me to tell me she has been in touch with friends who work on the campus about the news. My heart goes out to her and the Bluffton University family and I  can only offer my prayers and support in this time of loss.

I visited this campus when my daughter graduated from there a few years ago. It is serene, quiet, picturesque, and a wonderful place for learning. Now these students will collectively learn how to deal with grief - the loss of close friends - and the lessons they will learn about life itself. They will be drawn closer together as a student body - aquantainces will become friends - friends will become closer friends -  instructors, administrators and staffers will re-dedicate themselves to the mission of Christian-based higher learning. And these student athletes whose presence will no longer grace the classrooms of Bluffton will be remembered as family. 

In an imperfect world, life is not fair. No one ever said it would be.  The Bluffton University family is grieving and all Ohio should grieve with them.  These young men were home-grown and it is not only Bluffton's loss - it is Ohio's loss. 

May God comfort their families during this time.   

I see where the University of Illinois has forever banned any more appearances of their "indian" mascot -  where will it end? And if you REALLY want to take this ridiculous issue all the way, then let's ban ALL nicknames!

Case in point - I am of Irish lineage.  When my father was in high school in the 30s, his nickname was "Irish". Maybe I, along with anyone of an Irish background, should storm the gates of Akron St. Vincent/St. Mary High School or the University of Notre Dame in Indiana and protest the name "Fighting Irish". In Tuscarawas County, New Philadelphia High School bears the nickname "Quakers".  Some refer to them as the 'Fighting Quakers'. Now THERE is an oxymoron if there ever was one!  Yet I have neither read nor heard of any attempts to change these nicknames.  BTW - Their cross-county rival, Dover High School, bears the name "Tornadoes".  Hmmm - I wonder if any Fox8 meteorologists take offense to this one?

How about USC? Did it ever occur to anyone that the name "Trojans" may be offensive to those with their ancestry linked to Troy?  Virginia Tech's nickname is 'Hokies' - last time I checked, a 'hokie' was a bird modeled after a turkey and has been their mascot since 1961 ! 

I was raised that the definition of 'hokie'  described something said or done that was really stupid. What on earth does this pathetic creature look like? Maybe I shouldn't even ask!

Any and all schools that have animal nicknames might as well consider dropping them.  Bulldogs - Tigers - Cardinals - Golden Eagles - ad naseum - I can't believe PETA hasn't protested these names in that they might offend animal lovers!  

This issue has taken political correctness to new heights of absurdity!

I rest my case.

Your thoughts, please!  

Watch those claims regarding 'freecreditreport.com'`!  I recently tried to get a credit report from them.  I got suspicious when they asked for a credit card number just for 'account' purposes.  Instead of a 30 day 'free trial', I saw they had already charged my debit card on that day for the report! A phone call to them cancelled my account and refunded my money.

Word of advice to all: if you want a really 'free' credit report, go to www.annualcreditreport.com.  This one IS free and you can call up any or all the major credit reporting agencies and they will not charge you a dime. Nor will they ask for a credit card number unless you want additional reports or credit scoring information later on.

Duane "Dog" Chapman has now been cleared to be extridited to Mexico for apprehending an international fugitive!  This loser is serving 124 years in the slammer and the "Dog" is now being treated like the criminal!  This is  frightingly similar to the two border patrol agents who are now in jail for their bravery against illegal immigrants.  Living proof that no good deed goes unpunished!