Detroit

It was a little surprising topic for a tribute.  The city of Detroit.

The city that's having as tough a time of any in North America right now was the subject of a downtown London festival on May 28th.

"Even people in Detroit don't like Detroit," laughed a merchant at the nearby Covent Garden Market.  I guess there is some evidence that is true.  Michigan was the only U.S. state to lose population in the latest census.

  But, there is still something about the city of Detroit that many admire.  There is a spirit and honesty in the Motor City that other cities would do well to emulate.  Cities with more going for them.  If you are from the area you are used to all the criticisms.  Detroit residents are under no illusions they are beautiful to the rest of the world.  But there is something to admire in their self awareness.  If you know your weaknesses, there is always hope.

Salute to Detroit Day, May 28 in London.

"Pure Michigan" is the promotional slogan of the state with radio and TV commercials voiced by actor Tim Allen, a Michigan native.  The promotional push by Michigan has been helped by the recent value of the Canadian dollar.

The salute to Detroit day was part of an entire week of connecting with the Motor City.  Bob Seger and Kid Rock made appearances at the John Labatt Centre during the week.  The JLC also announced the Detroit Red Wings would play the Philadelphia Flyers in an NHL pre-season game in September.

The soulful sounds of Motown in London, May 28

Classic Chrysler 

Lions fan at Tribute to Detroit Day in London, May 28

Detroit has a lot to offer Londoners.  For some reason those who think nothing of driving two hours to Toronto for an attraction don't think of heading west.
Conversely, a 2006 Statistics Canada study shows visits to Ontario from U.S. tourists has steadily declined since 2002.

It might be a good idea for both Southern Ontario and Detroit to start appreciating each other.  Perhaps this weekend is a start.

Month of May

It's been a great month to celebrate the accomplishments of Fanshawe College Broadcast Journalism graduates.

Fans of two of the four CHL teams at this years Memorial Cup in Mississauga hear the exploits of their team from Fanshawe voices.  Tim Roszell (BRJR class of '04) calls play-by-play for the Saint John Seadogs on News 88.9 (Rogers).  Roszell, a Chatham native, came to Fanshawe College in 2002 with one goal in mind - to make a career out of sports broadcasting and specifically play-by-play.  When I see Tim hold the Presidents Trophy aloft, I think of all hard work he put into perfecting his broadcasting skills.

Tim  took every volunteer opportunity he could find during his time at Fanshawe.  He started doing play-by-play for the Strathroy Rockets junior B team with a single mic plugged into the team video camera.  The games were viewed by coaches and players.  While attending Fanshawe Tim did play-by-play basketball and hockey but also volunteered for Rogers Television.  This month, he got a chance to call a rare championship winning, overtime goal as the Seadogs beat Gatineau in the QMJHL final.

Manny Paiva (BRJR class of '06) is the News Director for Bayshore Broadcasting. He is also the play-by-play voice of the Owen Sound Attack on Rogers Television and colour analyst for radio broadcasts on CFOS (Bearradio).  The Attack were all but gone in 2000 when the franchise seemed headed for Cornwall.  CFOS helped spearhead a campaign to attract local investors and keep the team in Grey-Bruce.  When Jarrod Maidens scored in overtime of the 7th game of the OHL championship series, who could blame Manny for taking a picture with the OHL trophy (Manny has the brightest smile in the picture).

The month of May continued to rain compliments on our students when the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation (RTNDF) announced the winners of their national scholarships.

Stefanie Masotti (L)  Bernadette Lee 

 Four Fanshawe students and one recent Fanshawe graduate were named winners of $2,000 scholarships.   A fifth scholarship went to Fanshawe graduate Stefanie Masotti, who just completed her MA in Journalism at the University of Western Ontario.  For Stefanie, it will be her third trip to the RTNDF podium in Halifax on June 24th.  In the picture on the right, Stefanie accepts her first RTNDF Marketwire scholarship from Bernadette Lee in Toronto in June of 2009.  She has just been hired by CTV in Ottawa.  Her latest scholarship is the Cold-FX scholarship for medical reporting.

Fadi working the phones in the X-FM newsroom with Sydonie Eggett


Fadi Didi won the BNN Jim O'Connell  scholarship for business reporting.  Fadi prepared a documentary on private coffee and donut shops trying to compete against Tim Hortons.   Fadi came to our program after graduating from the University of Western Ontario with an English degree.  Fadi has a great future in our business and he lives in London, Ontario. 

Emmett Murphy was named the winner of the RTNDF scholarship for graduating students.  He did a piece on singer Justin Corriveau, who is confined to a wheelchair but loves to sing in public.  Emmett is from Ajax and has just been hired by NEWCAP Television in Lloydminster, Alberta/Saskatchewan.

Emmett (right) in studio at 106.9 CIXX-FM with Kate Roberts 

Two other students were awarded scholarships.  Micah Iman of Regina, Saskatchewan has just completed her first year of studies.  Micah won the CBC Barbara Frum scholarship for excellence in interviewing.  Micah has secured a summer job at Regina country radio station Big Dog 92.7 (Astral). Micah will return for her second year of studies in the Broadcast Journalism program in September.

Zachary Currie won the 2011 Marketwire scholarship for 1st year students.  The documentary he submitted was called Living With the Animals about a families difficulties dealing with students living in the same neighbourhood.  Zachary is enrolled in our collaborative program with the University of Western Ontario.

There certainly is pride in sharing these achievements with the students in your program.  Moreover, it feels great that their hard work is recognized in such a tangible way.  Congratulations.

Vin Scully - Catch Him While You Can

Few things can keep me up until almost 2:00am on a weeknight.  83 year-old Vin Scully broadcasting a baseball game will do it.

As Vin Scully might say, "it is the true artist who can wrestle through a crowded day and turn a mid-May baseball game into a symphony."

 That's just what he did.

 There was nothing special about the Milwaukee Brewers against the Dodgers on Monday, May 16th.  But in his 62nd season of calling Dodgers baseball - every game Vin Scully broadcast is special.  It's hard to imagine the game without him, but we'll have to deal with that next year.

"It's a mere moment in a man's life between the All-Star game and the old-timers game." - Vin Scully, 1980.

This game featured one of my favourite pitchers, Sean Marcum.  A poor man's Greg Maddux who's clever, subtle pitching style was perfect for Scully's prose honed over thousands of games.  Scully broadcast his first Dodger game in 1950.  On this night, it's impossible to imagine he couldn't go on for years.  He used statistics perfectly - when it was relevant to the game.  His voice is still silky smooth and soothing.  He missed nothing on the field but also used the monitor beautifully to talk to the viewers.  I'm sure Vin Scully could have been a manager but I'm also sure Mozart could have sold tickets to the opera.  Why waste great art on such mundane things?  

Vin gives life to any game with beautiful words.

"That Marcum change-up just died of exhaustion on the way to the plate."

Great stories.

"At the age of one, Prince Fielder weighed 50 pounds."

..and just a little bit of baseball experience.

"The infield shift is common now, but it was big news in the 40's when Lou Broudreau first used it against Ted Williams."

 The game was not a work of art as the Brewers stranded 14 runners but held on to a 2-1 win.  The broadcast, which Scully still does without a colour analyst, was another masterpiece.  The great Dodger pitcher Sandy Koufax once said, "this might sound corny, but I'd rather listen to Vin Scully broadcast a game, than play in one."  So true.

Catch him while you can and make sure you have a chance to really listen.  You will know baseball a lot better and love it more.

Ilderton Gem

The King Edward Restaurant and Pub is located in Ilderton, Ontario.  It's just a ten-minute drive (north) from the corner of Fanshawe Park Road and Hyde Park Road.

Proprietors Rich and Deb Hunter deliver on their 'charming' English style pub with excellent food and a wide selection of beers. In this case, English cuisine is not an oxymoron.  The Hunter's destroy any notion that English food is bland and lacks imagination.

The King Edward got off to a great start by having a favourite beer on tap.  Fuller's London Pride was one of ten interesting offerings.  The beer was served at a bit warmer temperature than I prefer but I was happy to defer to the English in this case.

My wife ordered the regular Sunday prime rib special with fresh vegetables, mashed potatoes and Yorkshire pudding.  The price of $17.95 was reasonable for the quality of the food.  The prime rib was about perfect for tenderness and taste.  The big difference was the real carrots and potatoes.

 Can I pause here to say something about carrots.  Few food items lose their quality more than carrots when  they are frozen. They are usually tasteless and mushy.  However, roasted, fresh carrots are like an entirely different food item.  The carrots at the King Edward were fresh that morning and we really appreciated the difference.  The meal is not won or lost on the quality of the carrots.  In fact, few would order them if given a choice.  However, the way the humble carrot is treated is a barometer of how much care is taken in the rest of the offerings.

Before ordering the lamb special I did ask if it was a shank.  After being assured that it was not the shank but a loin cut, I felt better.  I wasn't disappointed.  Lots of meat along with the carrots and real mashed potatoes and Yorkshire pudding.  The gravy was a little starchy and I would have preferred some mint sauce with the lamb, but overall the meal was very tasty with generous servings.

I ordered the 3-course meal so I got salad and dessert with the meal.  The salad was quickly served and fresh and basic. The soup was another option.  Be careful on the dessert when ordering the 3-course meal.  The dessert special of the day was pecan pie with ice cream and that's what I had to have.  The board listed the dessert special at $4.45.  We were charged the full price of that dessert on the upgrade, which was disappointing.  The pecan pie soothed any hard feelings as it was delicious.  

The King Edward also boasts a separate menu of chicken wings (50 flavours), burgers and fish and chips.  There are also dishes from the colonial lands featuring curry and more exotic flavours.  In summary, there are plenty of reasons to return and we will.

KING EDWARD RESTAURANT AND PUB
13239 Ilderton Road (Main Street)
Ilderton, Ontario
519-666-1991
www.thekingedward.com

Whatever Happened To....

Whatever Happened To...  The movie host?

One of the great pleasures watching movies on television used to be the movie host.  Aside from making commercials bearable, they used to add funny skits, movie trivia and even pizza eating contests.  No matter how bad the movie, or what time a day it was airing you felt an intimacy to the medium that today seems to forget there is a viewer on the other side of the screen.

Here are my three favourites:

1.  Bill Kennedy.   Kennedy was your frustrated actor/Hollywood insider who seemed to be 'slumming it..' as a movie host.  Kennedy was born in Ohio, but after his acting career fizzled, he started hosting 'Bill Kennedy at the Movies" on CKLW-TV (Windsor) and later WKBD-TV in Detroit.  He would always have a lit cigarette on the set and weave yarns about the movies being shown.  He had bit roles in many films in the 40's and 50's including being the person to set Ingrid Bergman on fire in Joan of Arc.  He was honest about the movie being shown and he balanced his encyclopedic knowledge with just enough bitterness about his average career to make him entertaining.  He would sometimes take calls from viewers - which seemed to pain him.    It was low-key, but you always learned something about the actors or the movies.


2.  Hoolihan and Big Chuck.  These two appeared on late night movies on Channel 8 (WJW-TV) in Cleveland, Ohio.  They would occasionally reference the movie, but were best known for zany skits such as pizza eating contests, spoofs of Ben Casey and anything else politically incorrect.  Bob "Hoolian' Wells was the station weatherman and "Big Chuck" was a station engineer.  Hard to imagine that happening today.   These two were legends in Northern Ohio.

3.  Sir Graves Ghastly aka Lawson Deming appeared on Detroit television from 1967 to 1982. He was a native of Cleveland but made his biggest impact on WJBK-TV in Detroit, hosting Saturday afternoon horror movies.  His show often started with him pulling a can of film out of a grave - great shtick.  He occasionally made prime-time appearances and even did a stint in Washington.  His jokes often contained adult material even though his show was packaged for kids.  He was taken off the air in 1982 when college football took over Saturday afternoons.  Deming died in 2007 at age 94.

   Bring back the movie host, I say and the quirkier the better.  There isn't a video game today that can compete with these characters.  Television needs to go retro for some renewal.