Yearly Archives: 2011
Photo Essay: Rob Zombie at Sandstone Amphitheater, July 16, 2011
We sent KCC photog, Katie Grogan, out this past weekend to see what was going on at Sandstone Amphitheater.
Her report?
Lots of sweat, some hard hitting bands, and of course, zombies.
Enjoy the pics…
Glazer: Take Off the Training Wheels, It’s Time for The Star’s Sam Mellinger to Grow a Pair!
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When Sam Mellinger took Jason Whitlock‘s place on the sports page of the Kansas City Star I really thought he was going to be outstanding…
Now that he’s had the post for about a year, uh, I don’t see much excitement there.
Maybe the Star has put the brakes on Sam’s ink, but he’s become a total "homer" and kinda boring. Of course our sports world in KC is horrible. We have no good teams, but hey Sam could have gone out of the box.
For example, which Chiefs are using roids? Investigate it, Sam, it’s all out there. Or how about a story about the Royals having No Future? That would be a good one. Or, will this be Matt’s last year here?
Something, anything!
Instead Sam tows the party line way too much.
Glazer: Rising Star T.J. Miller to Join Pal Nick Vatterott in Cameo @ Stanford’s
I’ve been in the entertainment biz long enough to know most people you help on the way up, forget you fast once they make it to the top…
They say nice things, but God help you if you need them for anything. Then there are the rare exceptions, like Lewis Black, who became a top three comedy star in the early 2000’s. Yet he came back to help open our club at the Legends in 2007. Lewis was getting around $100,000 per show, but since we were pals, and he gave us credit for helping jump start his stand up career he came in twice for much, much less money.
Great guy.
A few years back we gave another young comic a shot, T.J. Miller.
Joe Miller: Confessions of a Corporate Journalism Hit Man, Part I
When I came to Kansas City to work for the Pitch in 2000, I was an enemy invader.
A few months before I arrived for my first day of work, the paper had been bought by a corporation, New Times, and there was a lot of tension between the new ownership and the old staff. For years, The Pitch (then Pitch Weekly) had been your classic alternative weekly staffed by underpaid, bleeding-heart, left wing writers who were free to write about whatever the hell they wanted to write, and who, truth be told, weren’t that good at it. New Times, on the other hand, owned a dozen or so papers around the country that all looked exactly the same, with formulaic stories that were beholden to no ideology, left-wing, right-wing or other-wing, and they’d won a shitload of journalism awards.
Caitlin: Rumors of Fall 2011 Womenswear Collection from Kanye West
Rumors of a Fall 2011 Collection from Kanye West have been circulating since last spring, and after reading recent interviews with Kanye’s mentor, Louise Wilson, I think it is safe to say that a fashion collection from Yeezy himself is about to drop.
Wilson, Professor at London’s Central Saint Martin’s College of Art and Design speaks highly of Kanye’s potential in the realm of fashion: “I’ve known him for two years now and he’s incredibly knowledgeable about fashion, he’s a global phenomenon.”
True, Kanye isn’t new to the realm of fashion or art. He has designed shoes for Louis Vuitton, attended fashion shows in Paris, and held internship positions at Fendi and the Gap.
Joe Miller: City of Broken Dreams
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Every once in a while, a stranger will tell me they appreciated the way I handled the whole Funkhouser situation, the way I went from being the former mayor’s top lackey to being all over the newspaper and TV news spilling all the secrets of the administration. The kind words bring little comfort, though, because I know from experience that in Kansas City no one ever criticizes anyone to their face, and that for every compliment I’ve received, there are likely dozens and hundreds of people who think I’m a schmuck, even people I’ve never met.
Today: Arizona Getaway 2011; Lots More Joe, Lots Less Me
Everybody needs a vacation, whether they deserve it or not…
I obviously don’t, but I’m taking one anyway. And contrary to popular midwestern logic, that it makes no sense whatsoever to party in Tucson in July, I’m here vacationing without you.
A somewhat best kept secret; the monsoon season goes down in mid- July and August here, bringing clouds, rainfall and cooler temps. And Tucson’s temps are far cooler than Phoenix/Scottsdale – the totally yuppified areas most vacationers prefer. What heat there is, is dry and bearable, sans the merciless humidity of KC.
Here’s the really good part…
Donnelly: Stoppage Time Goal Saves Sporting Again, Plus Brazilian Midfielder Signed
Sporting Kansas City refused to lose on Saturday night in Houston. 
No, they didn’t win either.
But they did extend their unbeaten streak to 11 games, the second best streak in all of MLS this season.
And they did it again with late game heroics – this time from central defender Aurelien Collin – snatching a point on the road after trailing for the entire game…
Donnelly: Gin? Check. Juice? Check. Snoop Dogg Coming To Crossroads July 26th
Try this out: Ask your mom if she’s ever heard of Snoop Doggy Dogg.
I bet she has, and I bet she knows he’s a rapper.
And I bet she even knows that with so much drama in the LBC it’s kinda hard being Snoop D-O Double G.
Okay, maybe not that last part, but it just goes to show you what a ridiculously wide swath the Doggfather’s career has carved out…
New Jack City: K.C. Worships At the Altar Of TRADER JOE’S!
Remember watching the opening of the Berlin Wall on TV in 1989?
Thousands of East Germans crushing their way through the newly opened border into West Berlin. But where were most of them really heading to on their first visit to freedom?
The supermarkets and department stores, that’s where!
That’s where everything they didn’t have in the East was available for the asking on fully-stocked shelves.
Glazer: P&L District Implements Stern Measures to Fend Off Urban Hordes
The shooting of a 16-year-old there last month has propelled Power & Light District into high gear…
The game plan: Eliminate the urban/hip hop crowd from the downtown entertainment district.
The teenager was shot in a P&L parking garage at 1:40 a.m. after the R. Kelly concert. Obviously Kelly, a popular black singer, has had his own issues with the law.
And as we all know, most established concert venues try NOT to book black acts. Other than crossovers like Bill Cosby, Tina Turner and even Snoop Dog. There’s simply too much violence surrounding the younger urban shows. Surprised, huh? Uh, no.
Now P&L has added some new twists: A $10 COVER ON FRIDAYS AND SATURDAYS.
And get this…
New Jack City: Harry Potter Breaks All Records, Massive Crowds Pack Plexes!
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Friday’s opening of HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS-PART 2 raised the bar for Hollywood tentpoles by grossing a massive $92.1 million at North America’s boxoffices.
A good part of that huge number came courtesy of the blockbuster Friday 12:01 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. "midnight" shows which saw record-breaking ticket sales of $43.5 million.
HP8 is now on track to score a whopping $180 million-PLUS in its initial 3 day domestic opening weekend
Glazer: Humble Scribe Sizzles in the Summer Sun @ Woodside
"Summer lovin had me at last, summer lovin had me a blast"…
Truer words never spoken. I love the summer – even the 100 degree heat. It makes people go to the pools and that’s where the fun really starts. All those hotties!
Woodside has a smokin hot happy hour afternoon on Fridays. Bring a guest day starts at 3 and goes until 7 p.m. And it’s always sold out – like 300 plus adults, mostly 20s and 30s – and oh yeah, me.
Yesterday was no exception.
I ran into an old flame who asked that I not identify her – I think you can guess why. And
Black Barbie
was there and wanted to drive my Porsche. I let her but it turned out she didn’t know how to drive stick, so I had to jump in and put my foot on the brake before she ran into another car.
Starbeams: KC Council OKs Backyard Chickens; Top 5 Cool Things
The Kansas City Council unanimously approved a measure that allows more people to have backyard chickens. You can now own up to 15 chickens but you must keep them at least 100 feet from your neighbor’s property.
TOP 5 COOL THINGS ABOUT HAVING CHICKENS IN YOUR BACK YARD:
#5. Makes it easy to call in sick with bird flu.
#4. You can finally get to the bottom of why they cross the road.
#3. In this weather, you’re just a short stroll away from EXTRA CRISPY.
Glazer: SOS, Save Our Star; Hire Hearne & Jason Back
Enough is enough, sometimes we have to admit we made a mistake and fix it fast…
The Kansas City Star, which I do like overall, needs a shot in the arm bad. Really bad. The fix is not more big ads on page one or hiring more inexpensive young writers with limited talent. No.
HERE IT IS KANSAS CITY, DRUM ROLL..HIRE BACK HEARNE CHRISTOPHER AND JASON WHITLOCK NOW!
Both should have one-off stories on Page One for a bit, then alternate that for a couple days a week.
Lets face it THE STAR HAS NO STARS.
Glazer: Time to Erect a Statue of KC’s One & Only Superstar, Tom Watson
Got up early for radio to be at Johnny Dare’s at 6:50 AM…
Glad I turned on my TV at 4:40 AM. It was dialed into the British Open. And I looked up just in time to see Tom Watson take a 4 iron to tee off.
The ball was like a layup right into the hole – a hole in ONE.
I thought to myself, is this older tape? NO. It was live from THE BRITISH OPEN at 10:55 their time, 4:55 our time.
OH MY GOD, A HOLE IN ONE!
WATSON in his 60’s is without argument people: OUR ONLY CURRENT, WORLDWIDE SUPERSTAR.
Hearne: Go Figure, KCFX’s Slacker Wins Men, Johnny Dare Women in June
Here’s a bit of a shocker…
Former KY102 and 99.7 KY personality Slacker has taken over as Numero Uno among men listeners, ages 25 to 54, in morning drive from 6 a.m to 10 a.m. weekdays.
Go ahead, squint, rub your eyes, stare in disbelief, Slacker nosed out The Rock 98.9 FM’s Johnny Dare for top ratings honors with a 12.5 audience share to Dare’s 12.3. Let the record show that PPM or metered ratings tend to skew more toward music format than personalities, but it’s a remarkable feat nonetheless.
Here are the rest of the Top 10 stations in morning drive in men for June
Today: What’s in a Name? Jazz Club Owner Changes Name…Again!
Where to begin…
See, there’s this woman who worked her way up through hard charging, powerful partying and blind faith into becoming the most powerful and influential person on the Kansas City jazz scene. She’s from India, of all places and you probably know her as Beena.
For me it’s a bit more complicated…
Hearne: And Now the Rest of the Radio Ratings; Top 10 Men & Women
Now it’s time to lay down the numbers most important to radio execs and advertisers…
The Top 10 highest rated stations in June for Men and Women, ages 25 to 54. In prime time – 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. – Monday through Friday. That’s where 85 to 90 percent of a station’s revenues are earned and its heaviest duty air personalities slug it out for the survival.
Let’s start with men…
Donnelly: Blind Pilot at the Bottleneck, July 14, 2011
I don’t think Blind Pilot lead singer Israel Nebeker ever stopped smiling throughout the whole show at the Bottleneck Wednesday night.
Hell, he’s probably still smiling, even though I hear, via Tweet, that the band is having some trouble out in western Kansas, probably due in part to their 1977 Crown school bus that is their home on the road.
According to the band, the old bus is "a very bad decision according to most tour managers we have met. But a great adventure according to us."
But sometimes, when something feels good you just go with it…
