Yep, we’re back at the Troc tonight, with one of the top 10 bowling films of all time! Tonight is your chance to see the Big Lebowski on the big screen. It is also your chance to see the most insane game show ever, the Wheel of Terrific. The action begins at the Trocadero (1003 Arch Street) at 7:30 p.m. Hope to see you there!
It’s Scamtastic!
I was watching TV yesterday, and an extremely unusual ad came on, saying that Verizon was lobbying Harrisburg to only provide cable to rich people in Pennsylvania. “Now, this is really strange,” I thought to myself, so I decided to go to the website that was shown on the commercial, keepitlocalpa.com. Sounds kind of grassroots, doesn’t it? The website has a very quaint, non-corporate look to it. (It also has, I kid you not, a photo of an Amish buggy at the top of the page. Apparently Verizon is so cruel that they are going to refuse cable to the Amish!) Well, guess who’s one of the “coalition members” of this little grassroots organization? I’ll give you a hint. It’s a company that currently has a total monopoly on an enormous service here in Philadelphia, and that I suspect would hate to have another cable provider offer prices cheaper than $45 a month. Something smells rotten in the state of Denmark.
Um yeah
So I had a big day planned for today. Gym, pay bills, post winners from Quizzo on website. Big day, big day. Then Trivia Art was like, “Hey ya wanna go to Amada, they have a $12 lunch?” I was like, “Sure, $12 sounds great.” Well, a couple of other friends joined us, and two pitchers of sangria and $150 later, it’s 4:30 p.m., and I’m leaving for the ballgame in an hour and a half. There will be no bills paid, no gym, and no pics from quizzo. But if it’s any consolation, I feel freaking great. Let’s go Phils!
Around the horn
*We just saw that our good friend over at Blinq, Dan Rubin, thinks that Paris Hilton is a genius. In other news, we just lost all respect for one of our favorite bloggers.
*A couple of days ago, Philebrity broke the beatdown offered by Philly’s finest in Old City. Am I the only one who hopes that police start beating down random clubgoers in Old City every weekend?
*Johnny ain’t the only one reviewing local pizza.
*If you haven’t already, read the lively debate about the casinos in the comments section under my Big Bopper interview.
*And finally, I got a text message on my cell phone last night, moments after asking Trivia Art for a favor. Apparently Trivia Art tried to send it to someone else, but accidentally sent it to me: “Just got a text from Goodtimes, ‘Can you tivo Grey’s Anatomy?’ What a chick.”
Weird, wild stuff
*It’s a YouTube video about, uh, You Tube that I found on Liz Spikol’s blog. It is eerily compelling. She also has a couple of videos on her blog where she describes getting shock therapy to relieve her depression.
*Today is the date, in 1827, that Moroni gave Joseph Smith those golden plates that he turned into the Book of Mormon. This led, indirectly, to Johnny Goodtimes partying with Salt Lake City hipsters in a kiddie pool in August of this year.
*And happy birthday, Nicole Richie and Dave Coulier!
The Hunt for a Red October
Just so we’re all on the same page here, here is the Phillies schedule for the remainder of the season. The next four are home, followed by six on the road. We actually have a much better road record than home record, so six straight on the road isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If we go 8-2, we’re in the playoffs. 7-3 should put us either in the playoffs or in a one game playoff against the Dodgers or Padres. We play Florida three times at home (and don’t have to face Dontrelle Willis!), then have a makeup game with Houston at home, where we will have to take on Clemens. Then we have three in Washington against the woeful Senators. And then, finally, three in Florida. The Marlins have kicked our ass in September to knock us out of the playoffs a couple of times, so I’m a little nervous. My goal is 7-3, which means 2-1 against the Fish, beat the Astros, 2-1 against the Senators and 2-1 against the Marlins. If we can’t do that, we don’t deserve to be in the playoffs.
Baseball Bit
Learned this from Herm last night at the Vous. Why do the A’s have a white elephant as their mascot? This from their media guide: In 1901 Connie Mack and his Philadelphia Athletics helped form the American League. The following year, New York Giants Manager John McGraw dismissed the A’s with contempt, calling them “The White Elephants,” implying Mack shouldn’t be allowed to spend money without supervision. Mack defiantly adopted the White Elephant as the team insignia, and in 1902, the A’s won the American League pennant.
Larry Mendte talks about ghosts
After receiving Larry’s recent e-mail about his dad and the TV in the dark rumor, I responded to him thusly:
Your double life as underground lamp promoter has been exposed. You will have to answer the masses now, pal. hope you’re ready for the inevitable backlash from people who hate lamps but who bought them anyway to protect their eyes at nighttime.
Larry fires back, after the jump.
Quizzo for the Cause
Hey guys, it’s been a while since we’ve done one of these, but I saw this article today and figured that this would be a good time to get involved in a growing problem in the city-homelessness. THerefore everybody who plays this week is asked to donate a dollar, (though you are welcome to offer more).
And I have found a really great charity to offer our money to. It’s called the Philadelphia Committee to End Homelessness, and it is the only homelessness organization in Philadelphia that does not accept government funding. In speaking with the head of the organization, I was told that by not accepting government money, they can keep the program better suited to each individual rather get caught up in a giant bureaucracy. And this organization is not just concerned with giving away food. It is also concerned with helping to get people back on their feet. I hope to have an interview with the head of the organization tommorrow, so you can learn more about their work, but I think this is a great opportunity for us to give back to our community.
Question of the Week
This man fought in the Battle of New Orleans, then moved to Galveston where he ran a pirating ring. After being expelled from Galveston by the Navy, he disappeared with immense amounts of treasure, which has never turned up. Who is he?