Summer pre-order update #2 August 27, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Audiobooks, Books, Media, Personal, TV.add a comment
For the first time in the 3 1/2-month history of these pre-order posts, I’m reporting that I’ve pre-ordered something other than a music CD. I have pre-ordered a nonfiction book and unabridged audiobook (CD):
Bill O’Reilly, “A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity: A Memoir” (9/23)
Courtesy Amazon.com
Here is the book synopsis:
In 1957, in the heart of the Eisenhower years, in the third grade classroom of Sister Mary Lurana in Saint Brigid’s parochial school in Westbury, Long Island, was a mouthy, obstreperous kid by the name of William O’Reilly. Quite a handful he was, and so one day Sister Lurana bent over him in exasperation in response to some piece of mischief and told him to his face, “William, you are a bold fresh piece of humanity.” Little did she know that she was, early in his career as a troublemaker, defining the essence of Bill O’Reilly and providing him with the title of his brash and entertaining issues-based memoir.
In his most intimate book yet, O’Reilly goes back in time to examine the people, places, and experiences that launched him on his journey from being a working-class kid to an immensely influential television personality and bestselling author. Readers will learn how his traditional outlook was formed in the crucible of his family, his neighborhood, his church, and his schools, and how his views on America’s proper role in the world emerged from covering four wars on five continents over three-plus decades as a news correspondent. What will delight his many fans and surprise many others is the humor and self-deprecation with which he handles one of his core subjects: himself, and just how O’Reilly became O’Reilly.
The Crusaders on the DNC P.A. today; Jeff Lorber again August 26, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Jazz, Media, Personal, Politics, TV.add a comment
Once again, I have “Your World with Neil Cavuto” on. And once again, contemporary jazz is playing on the Pepsi Center’s public address system in the moments before today’s DNC festivities begin. At this moment, 4:37 PM Eastern, “Shotgun House Groove” by The Crusaders is playing. The song is from their 2003 album “Rural Renewal.” What is it with 2003 music at the DNC?
There’s 20 minutes to go. If I hear anymore songs, I’ll list them.
4:52 PM UPDATE: “Under Wraps” by Jeff Lorber again; second day in a row. The music hasn’t been as loud today. So, it’s been hard to identify.
4:58 PM UPDATE: I give up.
Spyro Gyra at the DNC? Jeff Lorber, too! August 25, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Jazz, Media, Personal, Politics, TV.add a comment
This hour (4PM Eastern Time), I’ve had on “Your World with Neil Cavuto” on Fox News Channel. The show is airing from the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, the site of this year’s Democratic National Convention.
As I listened closely to the background noise, I couldn’t believe what I heard blaring over the public address system. Spyro Gyra! Whoever is in charge of the P.A. has their 2003 “Original Cinema” album playing on shuffle. So far, I’ve heard in order: “Extrovertical,” “Big Dance Number,” “Funky Tina,” and “Getaway.”
There’s another 10 minutes in the hour. If I hear anything else, I’ll provide updates.
4:51 PM UPDATE: Neil commented that the music is so loud he can hardly hear himself.
4:53 PM UPDATE: Now, we’ve switched to Jeff Lorber! “Under Wraps” is playing, from “Philly Style” in 2003.
4:54 PM UPDATE: “Gigabyte”
4:55 PM UPDATE: Neil, tossing to a commercial: “The formal kickoff with Howard Dean and this shindig really gets started, and the music really gets loud, after this.”
4:58 PM UPDATE: “Philly Style,” the title track
5:01 PM UPDATE: The music has faded out and the convention is underway. But it’s always great when contemporary jazz gets played at a mainstream venue, even if it’s just a P.A. warmup for the main event.
Mentioned at HotForWords! August 20, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, Technology, TV.add a comment
The latest lesson at HotForWords – a website run by Marina Orlova, a Russian-born philologist – was partially inspired by yours truly, Mike Chimeri.
It all began in the comment thread – where my profile name is MCLIJazz (as it is nearly everywhere else) – for a blog post promoting her latest appearance on “The O’Reilly Factor”, the primetime opinion show on the Fox News Channel hosted by Bill O’Reilly. I am a big fan of “The Factor” and Bill himself. In the post, Marina reminded visitors to e-mail Bill to let him know how much they liked her appearance on the show:
Also.. after you watch it, please email Bill and thank him for having me on. Here is his email: …
So, I left the following comment:
Marina, your second appearance on “The Factor” rates as an A+. You were excellent.
And if anybody is going to write to Bill, include your name and location (”name and town”) in the signature, and write about one to three short, punchy paragraphs or sentences. Or as Bill would say, “keep it pithy.”
So, the latest video lesson is on the origin of the word “pithy”:
I get the “hat tip,” as we say in the blogosphere (typically abbreviated h/t), 40 seconds in:
MCLIJazz, mattym, annuddermale, prospero811, and mergatroidal have been using the word “pithy” all over my website. What exactly is “pithy” and where did it come from? HotForWords decided to investigate.
Watch the video for the investigation. (Warning: Scary image beginning at the 2:30 mark.)
Cablevision Derangement Syndrome August 12, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, TV.2 comments
I just got off the phone with a Cablevision customer service representative, got the same apathetic attitude regarding adding Fox Business Network, and hung up on him. (He deserved it.) So, I’ve coined a new term: Cablevision Derangement Syndrome.
Those with Cablevision Derangment Syndrome are Cablevision customers that are sick of the company’s arrogant attitude–reflected in customer service and advertising (see Optimum TV ads)–and unwillingess to add channels that many other cable companies, and phone and satellite operators have already added!
Symptoms include anger, frustration, helplessness, envy toward customers of other providers (DirecTV, Verizon FiOS TV), and a yearning to switch providers. Alas, a person with CDS realizes that switching providers means no more News 12, no more News 12 Traffic & Weather, and no more localized Local Forecasts on The Weather Channel (in SD). They also realize that their parents and sister don’t care about the lack of certain channels, are content with what they have, and refuse to switch providers just to please their son/brother. (As you can tell, I’m indirectly referring to myself.)
If you are a Cablevision customer and are afflicted with CDS, please leave a comment to this blog post. That way, I will know that I am not alone.
8/16 UPDATE: I guess I am alone on the Cablevision Derangement Syndrome front. That’s what happens when you make terms up – no one else knows what the hell you’re talking about, nor do they care. Am I right? Or am I just impatient in waiting for a response?
Cablevision adds new HD channels today! July 28, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, TV.add a comment
Well, today’s the day. Cablevision has added the 15 HD channels that I posted about earlier this month. Only 10 of the 15 were announced at that time. The bad news is Fox Business Network and ESPNEWS HD are not among the other five channels being added today. (Will they ever be added?) The good news is these are the channels being added:
AMC HD Animal Planet HD Discovery Channel HD Fox News HD FX HD Hallmark Movie Channel HD IFC HD Nickelodeon HD Science Channel HD Speed Channel HD Spike HD The Weather Channel HD TLC HD Travel Channel HD WE HD
So far, I’ve taken a look at the Science Channel, The Weather Channel, and Fox News Channel. It was quite a difference in picture.
7/30 UPDATE: Originally, I had a different link because the Cablevision press release was not yet available on their website. Now, they do and the link has been changed.
Quite a compliment July 14, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, Sports, TV.2 comments
Today, I left a few comments to a blog post on Alisyn Camerota’s (“Fox and Friends,” Fox News Channel) Greenroom blog. Audra Floyd, Alisyn’s summer intern, posted while Alisyn is on vacation. In one comment, I referred to my Saturday post on the passing of Tony Snow and Bobby Murcer:
[R]egarding Tony Snow, I was saddened when I heard he had passed away on Saturday. I posted about him – as well as Bobby Murcer, who died of brain cancer on the same day – on my blog. Click on my name to go there or click on the link below to see my post:
One of the regular commenters at the Greenroom blog was a man named Brad. He left quite a compliment for me:
Mike C-
Awesome blog, it should be nominated for a Webby Award, just like this one
I heard about Bobby M[u]rcer from a sports channel I was watching the other day. He was a legend in the NY Yankee organization. It’s really sad and tragic. God bless him and his family.
In the three months that this blog has existed (three months ago tomorrow), I never thought I would even be considered for a Webby Award. I’m just a humble blogger. It’s an honor just to be told The Mike Chimeri Blog should be nominated. I thanked Brad in the comments to Audra’s post, but I’ll repeat the thanks here. Thank you very much, Brad.
7/15, 2:30 PM UPDATE: I originally had video of two commercials Audra appeared in for motorcycle dealerships in Arkansas and Oklahoma. But after a comment in today’s Greenroom blog post where I linked to this post was removed, I feel that, as I had feared last night, I overstepped my bounds. So, I have removed the videos. I am very sorry I gave Audra too much exposure. I wish her the best in her future endeavors and wish Alisyn the best as she returns to “Fox and Friends Weekend.”
7/15, 4:40 PM UPDATE: I have decided to give up commenting at any Fox News blog. I’m better off focusing my energy on other things. I’m repeating myself, but I am very sorry for being a bother in any of the comment threads I’ve been a bother in.
Now, let’s get back to talking about jazz or any venues I’m going to.
7/18, 10:50 AM UPDATE: Today was Audra’s last day as an intern. Again, best of luck to her.
7/18, 3:40 PM UPDATE: Oh, what the heck? I’ll put them back. If I get any complaints, I’ll take them down again. Here’s the ad for Sunrise Honda in Searcy, Arkansas:
And the ad for Shawnee Honda in Shawnee, Oklahoma:
Let me know what you think.
7/25 UPDATE: On Tuesday, I had added video of Audra last Friday morning as she helped Steve Doocy with the weather, or the Foxcast. I made the clip in RedLasso, which I had just joined the day before. Unfortunately, access to the site has been suspended, likely forever as I don’t see that company ever reaching agreements with networks. So, I have removed my clip.
7/26 UPDATE: I published my recording of the above to YouTube. This is the first video I’ve ever uploaded there.
3/10/10 UPDATE: I’ve deleted the video from my YouTube account. Sorry.
Tony Snow: 1955-2008; Bobby Murcer: 1946-2008 July 12, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Baseball, Media, Personal, Sports, TV.4 comments
Tony Snow in 1996; Courtesy FOXNews.com/AP
I didn’t wake up for the day until 1:30 this afternoon and didn’t have internet for a few hours because of a branch in the way of the cable wire to the house. The problem wasn’t fixed about a half hour ago (it’s 4:48 as I post this). Then, I checked my e-mail and was told by a friend on my private Topica discussion list that Tony Snow had died of colon cancer at the age of 53. I immediately put on Fox News Channel to watch their coverage of his passing.
This is very sad news, but I could sense it was coming. Among the many things I liked about Snow was he remained highly positive and upbeat to his final moments. May God rest Tony Snow.
Mark Koldys, of the cable news discussion site Johnny Dollar’s Place, has posted several links to coverage of Snow’s passing here.
11:15 UPDATE (Picture and links updated on 7/14):
Bobby Murcer; Courtesy AP
Another great in his field lost his battle with cancer today: former Yankees player and play-by-play announcer Bobby Murcer died of brain cancer at the age of 62. He, too, will be missed.
Another post about Cablevision after all July 3, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, TV.add a comment
I know that I said a few weeks ago I would no longer post about Cablevision and what channels they should add but haven’t added yet. But today at Johnny Dollar’s Place, I learned some very positive news. There was a link to an online article from the staff at Broadcasting & Cable that said Cablevision will be adding 15 HD channels at the end of the month:
The new HD channels include Nickelodeon, WE tv, AMC, Animal Planet, The Weather Channel, Travel Channel, Fox News Channel, Discovery Channel, Hallmark Movie Channel and FX. They will come online over five days starting July 28.
Cablevision’s press release says “The full list of new HD channels will be announced when the services become available later this month.” There are still five channels we don’t know about. Maybe ESPNEWS HD is among them. And maybe Fox Business Network will finally be added in HD and SD simultaneously. We’ll see what happens later this month.
7/5 UPDATE: Please disregard the automatically generated possibly related post that’s titled “I give up with Cablevision!” I have no idea why it shows up or why you can still read the text of it in the RSS preview. I’m sorry it’s even there. Five hours after I wrote that, I was all calmed down, deleted it, and wrote this post in its place.
Commerce Bank Championship July 1, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Golf, Personal, Sports, TV.add a comment
On Sunday, I attended the final round of the Champions Tour’s Commerce Bank Championship at Eisenhower Park Red [Golf] Course in East Meadow, New York. This was the third year in a row I attended. Each year, I showed up a few times in the background of a camera shot during the Golf Channel’s telecast. The previous two years, I sat in the bleachers by the 18th green, watching the last 10 groups (approximately) finish their rounds and then watch the trophy presentation. This time, I stood by the fairway at 18 until the last three groups. After that, I stood by the green until the trophy presentation. As eventual champion Loren Roberts was lining up for a putt, this is what you saw on the HD telecast (I’ve highlighted myself):
I had a vidcap, but got a better shot from my digital camera off my TV.
I also appeared in a wider crowd shot as David Eger (“Eager”) had a tap-in putt:
Here’s the same picture cropped:
I could be seen in HD and SD in that shot. Eger took the lead from Roberts early in the round, but faded after the 11th hole.
For the record, Scott Simpson was also in that final group.
“Newsday” reported that this may have been the last Commerce Bank Championship after 22 tournaments. If that’s the case, it went out on a high note. And I don’t mean because I was in crowd shots.
7/2 UPDATE: I’m surprised at how many golf blogs are linking to this post. Thank you for the publicity. Feel free to check out the rest of my blog.
7/22 UPDATE: I think it was only two blogs, but still, thank you.
11/6 UPDATE: Last Friday, October 31, Commerce Bank was renamed TD Bank.
MikeChimeri.com 