Archive for Michael Bird
Love, Peace, Soul
They just don’t make them like Don Cornelius anymore. A native of Chicago’s South Side, he served in the Marines during the Korean War. He came home and worked several odd jobs with the Chicago Police Department, and even sold insurance and tires. But he dreamed of being on the radio. He quit all his [...]
8Feb2012 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
A Golden Year In Popular Music
In the winter and early spring, the Beach Boys made a record; the Rolling Stones regrouped with a new member; Bob Dylan performed a concert that was later released on vinyl; Ray Charles broke new artistic ground; and the Beatles recorded a demo. That paragraph could have been written about any year between 1962, and [...]
9Jan2012 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
How Will 2011 Be Remembered?
As we approach the end of the Mayan calendar in 2012 (don’t get me started on the end of the world thing), let us look back on an eventful 2011. ROYAL WEDDING: Prince William and Kate Middleton captured the attention, and the hearts, of the world with their fairytale wedding in April. For a moment, [...]
26Dec2011 | Michael Bird | 3 comments | Continued
Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown
A Charlie Brown Christmas first aired on CBS in 1965. In the 46 years since, it has rightfully become a cultural icon. The “Peanuts” comic strip, created by Charles Schulz, had been around for a decade before he had the idea to move his characters to television. Though not exactly light and carefree, the “Peanuts” [...]
20Dec2011 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
Billy Joel Revisited
I recently finished reading a biography, Billy Joel: the Life and Times of an Angry Young Man by Hank Bordowitz. The author interviewed many of the movers and shakers in Billy’s world through the years: managers, band members, record label execs, and the book has much new information on its subject. After some success in [...]
12Dec2011 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
The World Turns On and On
Last fall, I bemoaned the ending of As the World Turns on CBS after a 54-year run. Since then, the American soap opera has gone from life support to a death rattle, with two more serials cancelled since then: All My Children, which ended with a cliffhanger in September; and One Life to Live, which [...]
6Dec2011 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
Fair and Balanced
The bloodsport of contemporary politics grows more cutthroat by the day. Anyone seeking a middle-of-the-road voice, one that simply reports the news, will be disappointed that no real “news” seems to exist on the dial. The Edward R. Murrows of the world have vanished, leaving self-styled pundits in their place. Recently, Rolling Stone magazine featured [...]
29Nov2011 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
The Return of Beavis and Butt-Head
Heh-heh-heh. After a full day of teaching music, followed by an evening as a cashier and bag boy at the grocery store, I came home to a most pleasant surprise. My favorite pop culture critics from the 1990s, Beavis and Butt-Head, are back on TV with new episodes after a 15-year wait. It’s as if [...]
9Nov2011 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
The Rise of the DJ
Radio was in peril during the 1950s. Listeners of serialized dramas, comedy shows, and news programming had migrated to television, leaving radio to begin anew. No one could have predicted that radio’s true golden age was about to begin. There are many fathers of rock and roll, but perhaps none more prominent than the disc [...]
22Aug2011 | Michael Bird | 0 comments | Continued
American Top 40
American Top 40: Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars! The inaugural episode of Casey Kasem’s “American Top 40” aired the weekend of July 4, 1970. The show featured the best-selling and most-played songs in the United States for the week of July 11, according to Billboard magazine. That format [...]
11Jul2011 | Michael Bird | 7 comments | Continued
The World Needs More Steve Hartmans
Unless you are a regular viewer of CBS Sunday Morning or the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, you probably have never heard of Steve Hartman. In the past few days, the world gathered to watch Alabama be destroyed by tornadoes, William and Kate have a royal wedding, the beatification of Pope John Paul II, [...]
3May2011 | Michael Bird | 1 comment | Continued
Finally! After almost a year and a half since Montgomery locals were turned up on Direct. Picture quality is great. ...