As soon as someone pointed out I should write a post about doing taxes, my mind splintered into a thousand pieces and began imagining a thousand different essays about it. From the Jerry Seinfeld, “what’s the deal with taxes?” type, to the anarcho-capitalist word vomit about how the government is simply a coercive monopoly stealing the sweat off of the collective brows of workers…but then, of course, I settled back into my own little corner…
Rodney Cline Carew was born on a train in Gatun, Panama on October 1, 1945. He moved with his family to New York when he was fourteen years old, and signed with the Minnesota Twins on the day he graduated from high school. Rod Carew is one of the most talented players to ever don a major league uniform. During his illustrious nineteen-year career he was selected to eighteen All-Star teams. He is the all-time…
Watching the recent NCAA Final Four, plus knowing UCLA basketball great, John Vallely, would be a guest soon on the ‘A Mick A Mook and A Mic’ podcast, ignited many fond basketball memories. It was in March 1970 when my favorite NCAA basketball memories occurred. Over 50-years ago…yikes! I was a sophomore in college. God, just a baby! I was attending Jacksonville University (JU) in Florida – and finally getting over being homesick. Living south…
Frank & Billy are looking forward to a visit from the legendary UCLA basketball star and a first round pick in the NBA draft, John Vallely, on the April 13th episode of A Mick A Mook and A Mic. Vallely, a former NBA player and 2x NCAA Basketball Champion, was a star and All-American for the John Wooden led UCLA Bruins. He won his two NCAA championships in 1969 and 1970, and was a teammate…
Prolific author Horatio Alger never met Steve Papazian. He is the epitome of an American success story. A Los Angeles native and graduate of Cal State Northridge, Steve started in the mail room at Warner’s after having served a tour in Viet Nam. For the next nearly 50-years, Steve rose through the ranks to become the President of Physical Production for Warner Bros Worldwide. Steve worked on some of the studios biggest films during his…
Humans love to say that they’re spontaneous, that they’re adventurous, that they’re impulsive (but in a fun “let’s not make dinner tonight, let’s go out” way, not an “I just put $60k on the Knicks to cover” way). But, guess what… that’s bullshit! Humans love predictability. Humans love discernable patterns. Humans love cause and effect that can be easily understood. All of this is why humans, now (and Will in particular) and throughout history (I…
Let me be clear, if you’re an adult and not hurting children or a member of my family, I couldn’t care less what you wear or who you bed. An adult in America is free to make their own life choices, as long as it’s within the law of the land or the rules of the game. If you’re not an adult, then those choices and decisions belong to your parents….not teachers, politicians, or corporate…
Few people in the entertainment business have achieved the level of success of Mel Damski. The versatile New York born director has helmed some of America’s finest work in television; M* A*S*H, LOU GRANT, BOSTON LEGAL and PYSCHE …to MOW’s, BADGE OF THE ASSASIAN, A WINNER NEVER QUITS (starring Keith Carradine and Ed O’Neil) … to AMERICA’S BABY: THE RESUCE OF JESSICA MC CLURE. Mel’s feature films include YELLOWBEARD, starring the lads from…
Yes, you read the headline correctly. A plane crash that I experienced ended up saving my life! As I’ve mentioned a few times in my blogs, I started working in the Sporting Goods Industry in the early 1980s. My first job in the industry was with Ektelon, a leading racquetball company based in San Diego, CA. I began with the company serving as its Eastern Sales Manager. Personally, I was based south of Boston and…
One of America’s greatest female swimmers of all time, Donna de Varona, will be the featured guest on A Mick A Mook and A Mic on March 16th. At the age of 17, Donna appeared on ABC’s Wide World of Sports, becoming the youngest and one of the first women sportscasters for a national network. Her groundbreaking career has earned her an Emmy, two Gracies, and the opportunity to cover a wide variety of…
This is difficult to admit, but sports doesn’t mean quite as much to me as it once did. Age certainly has something to do with it, but there are many more negative happenings in professional sports that has added to it being a turn off. As mentioned in previous blogs, much of my life has been devoted to sports. Beginning with youth sports through high school, college and adult travel softball, I played actively for…
A Mick a Mook and A Mic may have more than it can handle when they welcome long-time Los Angeles Sportswriter and ESPN panelist on Around The Horn, T.J. SIMERS, into the studio on March 16. Know for his caustic humor and acerbic wit, T.J was the Page 2 columnist for the LA Times for nearly 25 years. During that time you either loved him (John Wooden & Vin Scully) or hated him (too many…
On January 6, 2021, a violent mob of insurrectionists attacked the US capitol. It was a harrowing, disgusting few hours, but by that evening it was just that, a few hours. The mob was quelled, the capitol secured, and by the next week when it was time to write another essay, so much had been written about it that I decided to write about going on dumb little jogs for my dumb mental health. Since…
With this week’s episode of A Mick A Mook and A Mic featuring the travel adventures of Billy and Frank (Mick and Mook), I thought I’d share some of my travel escapades, most of which were business-related. However, there were also many personal trips that I will always cherish. Over the years, I have traveled to 47 states, Puerto Rico, and 6 countries. The only states I have not experienced are Alaska, Montana and South…
Cincinnati Bengals Hall of Fame quarterback and NFL MVP in 1981, Kenny Anderson, spent his entire professional career playing for the Bengals of the National Football League. Anderson was selected in the third round of the 1971 NFL Draft by the Bengals. Over the course of his 16-season career, Anderson led the NFL in passer rating four times, completion percentage three times and passing yards twice. In 1981, Kenny was named the Offensive Player of the Year and won the NFL Most Valuable Player…
With songwriter J.T. Harding the special guest this week on the podcast, A Mick A Mook and A Mic, I couldn’t help but think about bygone times. So bear with me, as I take a hiatus from my sports blog and reminisce. The episode with J.T. is one in which I’ve looked forward to ever since I learned he would be a guest of Mick and Mook. However, I fear it may also be an…
I’m an only child. That should be obvious. I’ve created a blog spanning a year-plus where all I do is write about things I think (classic “only child center of the universe” stuff right there). As a child, I didn’t have to share my toys or my parent’s attention…that part was pretty rad. I also spent a lot of time alone and when something would break or go missing, I had no siblings to blame…
John Thomas “J.T.” Harding is a songwriter whohas written many chart-topping hits, including: the three-million-copy–selling “Smile” with Uncle Kracker; “Somewhere In My Car” with Keith Urban; “Somewhere With You,” “Bar at the End of the World” for Kenny Chesney; Dierks Bentley’s “Different For Girls”; Jake Owen’s “Alone With You”; and superstar Blake Shelton’s number-one song “Sangria.” J.T was born in the south and was given up for adoption at birth. He was raised in South Detroit…
Beginning with Super Bowl XXXVI, played on February 3, 2002, Tom Brady (The GOAT) has played in ten! Yes, that’s right…10! It’s hard to believe that 50% of all Super Bowls played since that memorable upset of ‘The Greatest Show on Turf’ (St. Louis Rams), have showcased Tom Brady. For the past twenty years, the ‘Brady Bowl’ became almost an annual event. So, it’s no surprise as to why the Patriots and Brady were so…
LAMAR’S GAMBLE: A Tale of the AFL-NFL Merger is the story of Lamar Hunt and his dream to own a professional football team in the 1950’s. After being denied a franchise by team owners of the NFL, Lamar consolidated a group of businesses to form the rival American Football League (AFL) to complete for fans, top players, television viewers and, most of all, money. As the owner of the Kansas City Chiefs, Lamar’s…
The multi-talented Joanna Kerns will be joining Frank and Billy on the February 16 episode of A Mick A Mook and A Mic. Joanna played Maggie Seaver for seven seasons in the iconic ABC Television Series, Growing Pains. She starred alongside Alan Thicke, Kirk Cameron, Tracy Gold, Jeremy Miller and, for one season, a very young Leonardo DiCaprio. Joanna has continued her career as an actress, but more so behind the camera as the…
Congratulations to Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, aka ‘Big Papi’. Ortiz was the sole player voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame this year, on his first ballot, by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA). The 2022 Induction Ceremony will take place Sunday, July 24, on the grounds of the Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown, New York. Ortiz, one of the greatest clutch hitters in MLB history, will join Golden Days Era Committee…
Emmy Award-winning sportscaster, the legendary Charley Steiner, joins Mick and Mook for a special Super Bowl episode. Having seen every Super Bowl played, the three men will take a fond look back at 55 years of games – and a look ahead to what Super Bowl LVI will bring. Special observations on the gambling line from “Confessions of a Bronx Bookie” author, the Mick himself – Billy O’Connor, to insights from Steiner makes this a…
(The following is an excerpt from the book, IF THESE LIPS COULD TALK, by Frank Pace with Billy O’Connor) An internet meme of Howard Cosell with his arms around Bruce Jenner and O.J. Simpson reads, “Folks, I’ve just looked 50 years into the future. You’re not gonna believe what I have to tell you.” America’s fascination with celebrities has reached epic heights. Hell, we elected two reality-TV stars President. Running for President is one talent,…
Jeff McCracken is an actor, director, writer and producer of feature films, television and the theater. A major television headliner in the 80’s, having starred in Bay City Blues, Stephen Bocho’s follow up to Hill Street Blues, Running Brave – The story of Billy Mills Olympic Triumph and Hawaiian Heat, Jeff segwayed into producing and directing. Jeff co-produced Academy Award nominee Quiz Show (directed by Robert Redford) about the first lie perpetrated on the American public by…