Articles for December 16th, 2008
Re: NorthPark Parking Lot Carjack Hoax
Allen Gwinn has just posted something about this, too. Councilman Sheffie Kadane’s office can be blamed for perpetuating the untruth. He sent out an e-mail saying that Channel 5 aired a segment about the carjackings. Now his office refuses to correct the mistake. If I worked in NorthPark’s front office, I’d be none too pleased.
Hutchison: Being Female Might Actually Help Win Elections
U.S. Sen. (and possible future Texas governor) Kay Bailey Hutchison made that statement today in Dallas while on a tour to pump up sales of her tome (now in paperback) ”Leading Ladies: American Trailblazers.” Specifically, she said this about why women might have an advantage in running for office:
I’m generalizing here, but part of it is the honesty and integrity issue. People generally think that women are incorruptible (inaudible). Secondly, I think women have done so well in the lower offices, they have shown that not only can they do it, but they do a great job, as a mayor, as a state representative, as a state senator. They’ve done well because they work hard. I think women have had, in my era, they’ve have had to work harder to get where they are. Whether it’s in law school or in education, we’ve had to do the extra measure of proving our self, and therefore, we’ve been successful in the offices we have won.
Jump for the details. (more…)
Dallas Helps ESPN Anchor Robert Flores Realize He’s Making History (Maybe)
Robert Flores, the ESPN anchor who has been at the center of several on-air verbal missteps, was interviewed by the folks over at Deadspin recently. Here is the locally relevant portion of the proceedings:
DS: When I first talked to you on the phone, I mistakenly referred to you as the “Most popular Mexican sports anchor in the world.” You corrected me and said something about the “Hispanic community” or something. Either way, do you feel like you’re some sort of a trailblazer for some ethnic community?
RF: Yep I’m Mexican American. Earlier this year I was asked to speak at this function in Dallas. The organizers asked if I was the first Hispanic to anchor Sportscenter. I thought to myself, “you know that’s a good question.” I asked our PR department and they weren’t sure..at any rate if I am the first then I’m honored. If not, it’s nice to be among the first. …
Earlier, Flores mentioned that he continues “to enjoy quite a following in West, Texas” — which, as everyone knows, is where I’m from. Seems like a strangely specific place to mention. I don’t recall a Robert Flores from West (and since there are very few people there, and only a percentage of them have Hispanic surnames, I doubt I would overlook that). If he is from West, though, go ahead and install him right after Scott Podsednik — former World Series hero with the ChiSox, and the guy who relegated me to sixth-man duty on the b-ball team — as the second-most-famous resident from the home of the fightin’ Trojans. Time to update the billboard.
Oversell of the Week: Party with Brangelina
Last Friday night, I was getting ready to go out of town when a very interesting email came through the pipes. Deion and Pilar Sanders were hosting an event later that evening for their non-profit organization, Sanders Claus, and they were expecting some very VIP attendees:
Per the couple’s spokesperson, A-list Celebrities are expected to be in attendance to include Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Will & Jada Smith, Denzel Washington, Morris Chestnut, Samuel L. Jackson and more.
Of course, I ran into Tim’s office and we giggled about the absurdity. But then, we thought, they might really be there, and we could potentially start a bidding war over the photos between Us Weekly and In Touch. A photographer was dispatched. Jump for the rest.
Mavs vs. Nuggets Gamebook; Or, The Continuing Misadventures of Spider Monkey
As some of you know, my wife and I have had half-season tickets for Mavs games for about five years or so. We had seats for last night’s game against the Denver Nuggets, but Nikki couldn’t go. So I ended up taking our staff photographer Elizabeth Lavin, better known to FrontBurnervians as “Spider Monkey.” Before leaving the office, I predicted to Eric and Tim that it would be like taking a 5-year-old who drinks. That turned out to be spot on. But thanks to our ticket rep, the great Jim Wikman, the night took a huge, unexpected turn. Those highlights are coming up next, after this short click-thru.
More Retro Catalogs: J.C. Penney’s From 1977
A week ago, it was old RadioShack catalogs. Today, I bring you a J.C. Penney catalog from 1977. The blogger who blogged it might have oversold it as “the funniest thing you will ever see,” but it’s still pretty entertaining—especially the “colorful stretch terry coordinates” and the “all-purpose jumpsuit.”
Update: Apparently there’s been some confusion, as several commenters have pointed out. The whole “1977 J.C. Penney catalog on the Internet” is not a new development. I never meant to imply it was. Gizmodo ran it a couple of years ago. And J.C. Penney ran it way back … in 1977. I saw it today and decided to share. Apologies to all whom I’ve offended.
Lake Effect Snow at White Rock
We really did get quite a bit of snow (for Dallas) over at White Rock. A little imagination and you could call it a winter wonderland. No?
DFW Is the Seventh-Healthiest Airport in the Country
An alert FBvian points us here, where Health magazine had this to say about our fair airport:
There’s no better place for a family layover than Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW), which has two 600-square-foot play areas that feature padded airplanes, taxis, and luggage for climbing, plus a TV showing kids’ cartoons. DFW also scores high for its green fleet. Of the airport’s 580 vehicles, from buses to lawn mowers, 540 are hybrids or run on compressed natural gas. And thanks to restaurants like Tequilerias, which serves nutritious options such as jicama and mango salads, the airport stands tall in PCRM’s food rankings.
Correction: Dallas Crowd’s Obama Applause
A while back, the Kansas City Star had to run the following correction:
The Buzz on Saturday incorrectly described when a Dallas crowd applauded Barack Obama. It was when he blew his nose.
A minor Dallas connection? Perhaps. An outdated news item? Certainly. But the correction made it to the list of Regret the Error’s Best Corrections of 2008, and thereby made it relevant to link to the whole, entertaining thing.
NorthPark Parking Lot Carjacking Hoax
The email going around says that evildoers have been placing fliers on car windshields in NorthPark parking lots. When drivers go to remove said fliers, they get carjacked. Not so, says police lieutenant Andy Harvey and NorthPark Security. Still, be careful out there.
Chick Chef Expected to Head “Team Puck” at Five-Sixty
And yes, she is, according to one male, “hotness.“
Leading Off (12/16/08)
1. … Trying to be … very careful here. You should, too. The roads are very slick out this morning, as light freezing drizzzzzzzlzle whooooaoaooaaoaooa. —…. Sorry. Watch out for patches of black ice on the road on your way in. Most large school districts are open today. As is the Duvalls School of Cosmetology. Not kidding.
2. The Texas Youth Commission is still saying the state’s youth prison agency can be fixed, two years after scandaaaaal oh swweeeeetwhoooooaaaaoverpassoverpassoverpasssliding–
3. –alllllovvertheWEBohturnAGAINSTtheslidetapthebreakswhereamI…..OHNONOTthekids -–234234pio … … … … Whoa. There. Found my way back. Sorry. Um, lessee, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition presented a new crib to a Tarrant County family.
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