R.I.P. Harvey Korman

Comedian Harvey Korman is dead. When I was at WMAL, I once had a Program Director who insisted that stories about all celebrities be preceded by a title such as "singer" or "actor" or "comedian" because he didn't think our listeners were smart enough to know who these celebrities are. He literally told me that if Bob Hope dies (this was before Bob Hope actually DID die), we should call him "comedian Bob Hope". How insulting. So let me amend my opening remarks.



Harvey Korman is dead. He had an aneurysm. He was 81. You may remember him best as Carol Burnett's TV sidekick who could never manage to keep from giggling during the sketches on her TV show. But I prefer to recall the Harvey Korman who managed to exude an air of taking himself too seriously when, in fact, he was doing quite the opposite. Korman was at his most brilliant in Mel Brooks' "Blazing Saddles", playing corrupt politician Hedy Lamarr:


I know... I know... It's HEDLEY!

Rest In Peace, Harvey.

Scott McClellan is No Hero.

Former Bush White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan is padding his pockets this morning with money earned from his new book, What Happened, a hatchet job about the Bush White House, and McClellan's role in selling the administration's spin on stories ranging from the start of the War in Iraq to the late response to Hurricane Katrina. In the book, McClellan declares the war was unnecessary, and claims the White House just stood by and watched for the first week following Katrina.

I can't argue with many of the points McClellan made. History will no doubt be unkind to the Bush administration, and to many of the political operatives who served under Mr. Bush. But the person at the top of that "undesirables" list should be Scott McClellan himself.

I am a First Amendment hawk, and I certainly agree that McClellan has the right to write what he wrote. But as Grandma always said, "just because you can, it doesn't mean you should". In writing this book and releasing it now, Scott McClellan has revealed himself to be a cynical, disloyal, petty and bitter man. He has sold himself out, and even a long, long stay on the New York Times best seller list won't make up for that.

I would have no problem with McClellan's book if he had released it on January 21st, 2009, after President Bush left office. But by releasing it now, McClellan is not only screwing over an administration that gave him a career-changing job opportunity, he is also throwing many of his former White House colleagues under the bus on the eve of a change in administrations. These people are going to need jobs soon, and most of them will not have the benefit of the title "White House Press Secretary" on their resumes. McClellan also further undermines the U.S.' reputation on the world stage at a time when America is struggling to maintain its leadership position.

So why now? Money, of course. McClellan's book will certainly sell more copies in an election year than he ever would have once President Bush became yesterday's news. And, as a bonus, he still has both Hillary and Barack around to sell his books for him! McClellan better hope he makes enough money off of this to make working an option for the forseeable future, because I can't think of anyone in either party who would want to hire him.

You can be tardy... you can be sloppy... you can be dim... you can have no sense of humor... you can even have body odor. NONE of those traits is worse in an employee than disloyalty.

Was it worth it, Scott?

Thanks, Sophie!

The creator of "It's Academic", Sophie Altman, has died at the tender age of 95. If you can even manage to live to 95, God bless you, but Sophie continued to produce the high school quiz show at Channel 4 until just three weeks before her death! Thousands of America's brightest scholars got their starts on It's Academic, and the roster has also included an astronaut, two U.S. Senators (find Hillary Clinton in this picture!), scores of doctors and lawyers, and hopefully, next school year, my son, Brad!

"It's Academic" levels the high school playing field for those kids who don't find their niche in sports, but in academics. My son doesn't watch MTV... he watches the History Channel, and "It's Academic" provides him with an outlet to hone his craft - to make him want to excel in education. What a blessing it's been!

In its heyday, "It's Academic" was syndicated to 24 other cities, and it is still aired in eight markets, from Washington to San Diego. The DC version is the original, of course, and it's still hosted by the ageless Mac McGarry, himself a D.C. institution as a broadcaster and the longtime announcer voice of both Channel 4 and many NBC programs. I had a chance to meet Mac at a taping of "It's Academic" earlier this year, and it was a thrill. He is not that far behind Sophie Altman in age, but I think Mac has many more miles in his tank!

You can and should read about Sophie Altman's fascinating life and career in this obit in the Washington Post. She even had Hollywood connections - her daughter-in-law is Wonder Woman Lynda Carter!

Thank you, Sophie, for giving geek squads a fighting chance in this world!

Indiana Jones And The Raiders Of Madison Avenue!

The Matthews caught the new Indy flick at a nearly-sold out show at 10:40 in the morning yesterday... Other folks obviously had the same idea to try and avoid the sellout crowds. I am happy to report without giving away any plot lines that the movie was, as predicted, thoroughly enjoyable and a fun family bonding moment! There were fun homages to earlier Indy movies, and even to George Lucas' very first film, American Graffiti (which also happened to feature a very young Harrison Ford)! I thought there WERE parts that were over-the-top and more than a little bit of a stretch, but hey - we're talking about a senior citizen superhero here... From that point-of-view, it's ALL over the top!

I'm glad we finally saw the film, because the inevitable burnout factor over Indy is coming sooner than ever! I literally could not walk into a store over the weekend without hearing the Indy theme playing somewhere, or an Indiana Jones promotional tie-in for SOMETHING on display... And then there was THIS - which Mrs. Matthews just HAD to have!

Yes - it's "Taters of The Lost Ark", from the same folks who brought you "Darth Tater"!

You think it's EASY being married to a pre-school teacher?

Memorial Day Double Feature - Why I Lost My Job And No - It Has Nothing To Do With The Fact That I Let My Employees Play Solitaire At Work!

I've told this story countless times, but for the many of you who do not work in the radio business, my former colleague, Chris Core, has published an article in The Washington Post that clearly explains the economics of commercial radio (and, by extension, WMAL) that led to my untimely demise. It's an excellent read, and I recommend it as a primer for anyone who wants to know why I'm on the beach!


But onto happier topics, such as this article from Slate Magazine, in which it is revealed that the all-time number one video game of all time is not the latest version of "Grand Theft Auto" or "Guitar Hero 3" or "Super Mario Bros", but lowly old Windows Solitaire! In fact, the article reveals that Solitaire is the single most-used program in the entire Windows Universe! Apparently, Microsoft developed the solitaire game as a way to teach computer novices how to use a mouse... And sure enough, I can still recall directing oldtimers like Bud Steele to spend a half-hour at a time playing cards on a computer! This for a guy who was still smoking Camel unfiltereds and using a manual typwwriter when I arrived at WMAL in 1982! 25 years and one lung lighter, Bud is still happily clicking away at Leisure World!

I remember encouraging my first News Director, Len Deibert, to get a PC shortly after I got my first 386-SX back in 1991. Len asked me - "Why would I ever need a computer!" Why, indeed! The world has certainly changed in ways we never saw coming... Just read topic number one of this blog entry!

More Proof That I'm Ahead Of The Curve!

I've told you before, and I'm telling you again - when it comes to setting trends, you're looking at Mr. Trendsetter. My job was eliminated in March - and lookie lookee at the cover of today's Washington Post Magazine!

I haven't read the article yet, but I have no doubt the author got most of his material from Life On The Beach!

If only the newspaper biz was in better shape than the radio biz - I could call the Graham family and ask for a job!

Hillary's Scarlet Letter

In the blog entry just prior to this one, I took political pundits to the woodshed for not really being up to the task of projecting what will happen at any given point in the presidential campaign. I also ventured to guess that would include whether an Obama/Clinton ticket (in that order) would be a road to redemption or a road to Hell. Well, I still believe we have no real way of knowing whether the Barack/Hillary team would win in November... THAT much is still a 50/50 proposition. But - I think the chances of there BEING a Obama/Clinton match just plummeted because of Hillary's stupid remark about the Bobby Kennedy assassination.


Now, in Hillary's defense, by alluding to assassination, I think she was only recognizing the 800-pound gorilla that has been stomping around in the minds of most Americans... that President Obama would perhaps face a heightened chance of facing an assassination attempt if elected. But by using the "A" word as others in her camp have been quietly trying to line her up for a Vice Presidential slot, I think Hillary has shot (sorry, my bad for the pun) her chances of getting the number two spot on the ticket. Just as with Hester Prynne, "A" may just prove to be Hillary Clinton's Scarlet Letter.