IntenseDebate - MikeMcK

14 years ago @ Big Hollywood - Top 5 Country Albums o... · 0 replies · +2 points

One of the interesting things to emerge from the death of country music is what Marty Stuart calls the "new old country" acts like Leroy Troy and Tennessee Mafia Jug Band and similar bands that harken back to the days of Roy Acuff and Bashful Brother Oswald.

If you ever get the chance to see Tennessee Mafia Jug Band, whether you like old time or string band music or not, I hope you'll do what ever it takes to be there. You won't be disappointed.

And is it just my imagination, or has Southern Gospel music exploded since the death of country music?

14 years ago @ Big Hollywood - Top 5 Country Albums o... · 0 replies · +1 points

Although his records are hard to find, the late Don Walser is also a shamefully overlooked singer who carried on the country tradition.

14 years ago @ Big Hollywood - Pork TV: How Millions ... · 1 reply · +1 points

Don't black people already have five or six TV networks with nothing but black shows?

14 years ago @ Big Hollywood - Top 5 Country Albums o... · 0 replies · +5 points

I wouldn't give you a nickel for any of them except for George Strait, and even he jumped the shark about twenty years ago.

When you turn on your local "country" station and you can't tell the difference between it and the Top 40 station next to it on the dial, that's a good sign it's not real country. Even John Schneider was better than most of the new acts.

About the only place to hear real country music anymore is the Marty Stuart Show, and even he's started having people like Keith Urban and other non-country artists on.

Even the Grand Ol' Opry seldom has country music anymore.

It's sad.

In case you're wondering:

1. The Louvin Brothers
2. Vern Gosdin
3. George Jones
4. Gene Watson
5. Kitty Wells
6. George Strait (early-mid 80's era George Strait)
7. Leroy Troy
8. Porter Wagoner
9. Buck Owens (early-mid sixties Buck Owens)
10. Ray Price
11. Joe Diffie (early Joe Diffie before he started singing all of those novelty songs)

Honorable mention:

The Derailers
Cornell Hurd Band
Guy Clark
Daily and Vincent

14 years ago @ Big Hollywood - Product Placement Gone... · 0 replies · +1 points

Yes, it's against the law. I forget the name of the law, but it's similar to the Children's Television Act, in that characters can't sell a product associated with the show in character. The idea being that a child's favorite cowboy telling him, "...so if you want to be a real cowboy like me and Dusty, be sure to eat your Oateos!" held an unfair influence on the child.

This carried over to adult programming and is why Ed McMahon had to stop selling Alpo dog food on the Tonight Show, among other things.

14 years ago @ Big Hollywood - Product Placement Gone... · 2 replies · +2 points

I listen to a lot of old radio shows and this is nothing new. They wouldn't even disguise the fact that it was a commercial. They'd just work it into the show.

Announcers would routinely find an excuse to break into the show to explain how Johnson's Wax or Chase and Sanborne Coffee or Jello would solve some dilema faced by the characters.

On the Phil Harris and Alice Faye Show, the plot frequently revolved around their real life sponsor, Rexall, and Phil's attempts to please them. He did and at the end of every show, Gale Gordon or Grif Barnett, playing your friendly neighborhood Rexall druggist, would set him straight about Rexall.

The commercials were often made a part of the plot or were worked into the show so seamlessly that you actually look forward to them.

It's unfortunate, too. Since that time, laws have been passed that prohibit this sort of sponsorship. I believe bringing that back would be a good thing for TV.

14 years ago @ Big Government - Tuesday Open Thread: S... · 0 replies · +2 points

I wonder how many people here know or remember that Auburn and LSU played a literal "barn burner" in 1996.

During the game, the old Auburn Sports Arena (aka "The Barn") caught on fire and flames could be seen rising above the top of the stadium. There's probably video on the internet somewhere.

Just a few years before that, LSU fans made so much noise as LSU scored a comeback touchdown with a minute and a half left that it set off seismograph earthquake alarms in the school's engineering department.

It's a great rivalry.

Oh, right. We were talking about Sherman. Almost forgot. He was a wicked, wicked man who purposely targeted civilians. He should be remembered as the scumbag that he was.

14 years ago @ Big Government - #OccupyHarvard Appears... · 0 replies · +3 points

"Yeah, you guys protest. I'm going to Mr. Bartley's." - MikeMcK

14 years ago @ Big Government - Today's Students 'Don'... · 1 reply · +5 points

I don't think I chose my words very wisely. "Vehemently" was a little stronger than I mean. It implies anger, which isn't what I meant at all.

His books on history and raising boys are very good.

14 years ago @ Big Government - Today's Students 'Don'... · 3 replies · +11 points

I taught history and American Government at both the high school and college levels for years. In my college classes, right after I gave my "Why Do We Study History" speech, I would give the students a quiz just for fun to show them that so much of what we believe we know about history is actually influenced more by pop culture than actual history. I would get answers ranging from "Abraham Lincoln was the greatest of all of the Founding Fathers because he freed the slaves" to "Robert E. Lee fought the British in the Civil War" to "the president is Congress' boss".

Although I disagree vehemently with his religious views, I would strongly urge any parent to purchase W. Cleon Skouson's books, including "The 5,000 Year Leap". I believe there's even a children's edition of "5,000 Year Leap".

We homeschool our children and, while I understand that not everyone is able to do that, you must understand that we can no longer trust government schools to educate our children. You MUST suppliment your child's education.

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