Happy Birthday MTV - You Suck!

Oh no, it's another "This Day In History" post. Deal with it...

On this day in 1981 (27 years ago!), MTV made it's debut at 12:01 am, starting off with "Video Killed The Radio Star" by the Buggles. Some might view this event as something to celebrate. I'm not necessarily one of those people. Don't get me wrong - I have nothing against videos in general. They can be a welcome distraction and sometimes are interesting. At the risk of sounding like an old crotchety windbag (which in all fairness, I am), to me MTV ceased being relevant or interesting many years ago. Let me be the 1,726th blogger to rail against the ills of the MTV. Here are my beefs with MTV, both currently and in the past:

1. They don't show videos
The moniker "MTV" stands for "Music Television." Originally, the concept was that MTV would show music videos 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Fine. In the early days, this was fantastic, because the videos were new and interesting, in addition to being a novel concept. Sure, there were not a lot of them, which led to replaying some videos over and over again. Sure, the quality of the videos left a lot to be desired (in hindsight). But they were showing music videos more or less constantly. A few years ago, MTV just stopped showing music videos. They air awards shows, reality shows, game shows, dating shows, "idiotic stunts" shows, etc. It's not really "Music Television" anymore - it's more like "Pop Culture for People Under 25 Television." Where is there a place for videos from good rock and pop bands like Wilco, Old 97s, Ryan Adams, Steve Earle, Bright Eyes, Son Volt, Ben Harper, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, Death Cab for Cutie, My Morning Jacket, etc?

2. "Image is everything"
Music videos became ubiquitous due to the existence of MTV. Every record label now has to consider the video when they are making a CD. This led to empty headed prima donna no talent "artists" who looked good in front of the camera being featured on MTV - hair bands (Poison, Cinderella, etc), Britney Spears, Duran Duran, boy bands (NSync, Backstreet Boys, etc), etc. Good old rock and roll has been diminished because of MTV and their repeated play of crappy videos that featured scantily clad skanks, and artists that are only getting played because they dress a certain way or look a certain way. The Rolling Stones would not have stood a chance if they had gotten their start in the MTV era. That is one ugly band.

3. Reality TV
I place the blame for the current reality TV craze squarely on the shoulders of MTV. When "The Real World" debuted in 1992, the downward spiral began. Granted, not every scripted show on TV is some sort of award winning endeavor, but some are worthwhile diversions. Thanks to MTV, instead of scripted shows, we have shows in which people stab each other in the back and connive and scheme to vote each other off the show (Big Brother, Survivor, etc.), shows in which participants race to see who can eat testicles and bugs the fastest (Fear Factor, etc.), shows in which people humiliate themselves in order to potentially "date" a famous attention whore (Tila Tequila, Flavor of Love, I Love New York, Rock of Love, etc.), shows in which people compete for the chance to date a non-famous attention whore (The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, etc.), shows in which odd stunts are performed in a race to a finish line (Amazing Race, Road Rules, etc.), shows that are supposedly unscripted, but are so well lit and filmed that there is obviously writing and re-shooting involved (The Hills, Laguna Beach, etc.), shows that display the vapid excessiveness of celebrities and non-celebrities alike (Cribs, My Super Sweet Sixteen, etc.), and shows that are just about someones insane and/or unusual behavior at home with their family (The Osbornes, Newlyweds, Breaking Bonaduce, The Kardashians, etc.). It's all thanks to MTV and The Real World.

What started out as a great idea - making videos as a complement to the audio of popular music - has turned into a steaming pile of crap. Who knew how apropos the first video shown on MTV would be: Video did indeed kill the radio star.

Now get off my lawn, you hooligans! I will not tolerate any more shenanigans from you youngsters!

This Day In History - Rod Beck

Sorry to dwell on death, but today marks the first anniversary of the death of baseball pitcher Rod Beck. Beck was a good relief pitcher for four different major league teams - the Giants, the Cubs, the Red Sox, and the Padres. He died at the age of 38, and the cause of death was not disclosed (although cocaine was found in his home after his death). He was always a bit of an oddball, and looked very intimidating on the mound, mainly due to his considerable girth, his intense scowl, his badass fun manchu mustache, and his professionally sculpted mullett. Ironically, he cemented his legendary status not as a major leaguer, but during a stint in the minor leagues. While pitching for the Cubs minor league affiliate in Des Moines, Beck lived in an RV behind the team's stadium and always welcomed fans in for a cold beer, to use his restroom, and just to talk baseball. He had a neon blue martini-glass-shaped light in the window of his camper. The rule was: if it's on, the bar's open. And it was always on.

Another American original, taken before his time. There's no one left in the league like him anymore. Rod, the light is on for you and George Carlin tonight. When you see George stroll by your camper, invite him in for a cold one.

This Day In History - OJ

If the gloves don't fit, OJ's full of shit.

Wow. Today marks 14 years since the murder of Ron Goldman and Nicole Simpson in what has to be considered one of the most famous unsolved mysteries in the history of the U.S. justice system. The L.A. district attorneys at the time had enough evidence to hold a trial, but were lacking critical evidence that could have tied the suspect, Orenthal Simpson (apparently some sort of famous athlete of some kind), to the crime scene. If only they had definitive proof that the suspect was at the crime scene - you know, maybe his blood or something. If only they had a way to test the blood that they found - you know, something like DNA testing that is commonly used today by crime labs and TV shows alike. If only they could have found a footprint with a distinctive tread pattern at the scene, and then tied the pattern to a pair of shoes of the same size to the suspect. If only they could have found the victim's blood on articles of the suspect's clothing, or in the suspect's car. But alas, none of these items were presented into evidence*, the suspect was found not guilty and this case remains unsolved. Thank god that the acquitted suspect is still searching for the real killers, or this case might remain unsolved forever.

The OJ Simpson trial was quite a spectacle. But the trial did do one thing for America. It spurred the public's interest in DNA evidence and crime scene investigations (forensics) in general. While there were lots of cop shows and lawyer shows before the OJ trial, I cannot think of too many that were related to forensics. "Quincy" is the only one that comes to mind. Since then, the following forensics-focused shows have aired on TV and have flourished (these are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head):

- CSI
- CSI: Miami
- CSI: NY
- Without a Trace
- Cold Case
- Crossing Jordan

In shows like these (and even in real-life trials), DNA evidence is considered practically infallible. Fourteen years ago - not so much. I have a feeling that, due to the public's mainstream exposure to CSI-type shows, if the same trial were held today, a different verdict may have been reached.

*may not be true

This Day In History - Catfish

On May 8, 1968, Jim "Catfish" Hunter had perhaps the best all-around game in major league history. Pitching for the Oakland A's, Catfish became the first American League pitcher to pitch a perfect game since 1922. Twenty-seven up, twenty-seven down. That alone would be enough to qualify as one of the best games ever. At that point in time, only nine pitchers had ever done it before. But Catfish was not content to just get batters out. At the plate, he went 3-for-4, and drove in three of the four Oakland runs. The team he shut out was no slouch. The Minnesota Twins had Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew, and Tony Oliva in their lineup. He struck out Killebrew three times. Another oddity I found while looking at the boxscore for the game: the attendance in Oakland that night was only 6,298. It was the A's first season in Oakland, after moving from Kansas City.

Catfish died in 1999, after falling down the stairs in his home. He was suffering from ALS at the time.

Maybe I sound like an old man, but one thing lacking in today's Major League is great nicknames. Catfish was one of the alltime great nicknames. And on May 8, 1968 he had one of the alltime great games. Raise your glass to Catfish this weekend. Cheers.

This Day In History

Sorry I've been doing a lot of "this day in history" posts this week, but this week has really had some interesting anniversaries. This one's a doozy. On May 1, 2003, President George W. Bush appeared aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln and declared, with a gigantic "Mission Accomplished" banner behind him, that "major combat operations in Iraq have ended." Yeah, right. Perhaps just a bit premature. Five years later, we're still there, gettin' shot at...

In other news, Bush has reported that the Israelis and Palestinians have agreed to a permanent cease-fire, the housing crisis is over, the US dollar is stronger than ever, and cancer has been cured.

EDITED TO ADD: Douchebag in flight suit.

This Day In History

Rodney King resisting arrest on his hands and knees.

Some interesting stuff happened on this day in history.

- In 1992, a Los Angeles jury acquitted four police officers in the videotaped beating of Rodney King. The verdict triggered four days of rioting, resulting in 53 deaths and millions of dollars in damage to buildings and property. Despite the fact that there was videotape evidence that King was laying on the ground being beaten by the officers, the "jury of his peers" (not a single African American) decided that the officers were justified in using excessive force. Bravo, jury. Two of the officers were later convicted of civil right violations in a federal trial, and were sentenced to 30 months in prison. Too little, too late.

- In 1967, Muhammed Ali is stripped of his heavyweight boxing title after refusing induction into the US Army. He was the most famous of the conscientious objectors in the US during the Vietnam War era. He was not allowed to fight again until 1970. His conviction was eventually overturned.

- In 2003, legendary racehorse Barbaro was born. This singular event set into motion the most irrational outpourings of grief ever expressed toward a non-human animal. After breaking several bones in his leg in the 2006 Preakness, Barbaro developed laminitis in one of his other legs and rather than euthanizing him, his owners tried to save him (probably so they could make money from stud fees), thereby prolonging his life for a few months. People began to send get-well cards, flowers, presents, holy water, saint medallions, etc. to help him get well, apparently unaware that Barbaro was a horse and could not read cards or appreciate the other gestures made on his behalf. People on Internet message boards were sending him well wishes despite the fact that Barbaro was without Internet access. It actually got to be quite funny to read some of those message boards (yes, I did read some of them). People really went over the top in their anthropomorphizing (big word, eh?) of the horse, leading me to mutter to myself countless times, "he's a horse!" Anyway, Barbaro was born five years ago today. So, that happened.