In these social media dominated times, when everything almost anyone does is posted online, good or bad. For celebrities, it is much worse – it’s like no one can even go to the bathroom without it being on Twitter.
As such, celebrities’ private lives are much more grist for the public mill than ever. With knowledge comes judgment and opinion and leaves us with a question – when does an artist’s/performer’s life impact your opinion of them, and maybe more important, certainly to the performers and their companies, when will you no longer spend money on their output – records, films, shows, etc.? Woody Allen, Roman Polanski, Michael Jackson, how far is too far?
Of course, the most talked about figure of this type is R. Kelly. Facebook “pen pal” is publishing a book on his 25 years in investigating the R&B star for allegations concerning sex with under-aged girls and perhaps holding them against their will. Kelly was indicted this week on more criminal charges in this vein and the case has many facets: race, rich and talented treated unequally, belief in girls’ stories, and more recently the possibility that Kelly is too illiterate to comply with courts. Of course, this is a difficult story for Kelly’s fans, who have paid millions of dollars on his records and concerts, but the gravy train has ground to nearly a stop. Personally, I was never much of an R. Kelly fan – I have his one-time omnipresent Space Jam single, that’s it. I certainly understand and appreciate the sticky sociological issues that the case presents for many, but I can be colder – if he did it – see ya.
However, this piece is not about R. Kelly – its about a music star that I do follow and enjoy – Morrissey. Former lead singer of the Smiths and long-time solo artist has a new CD out this week – California Son. Like the rest of his catalog, this disc is filled with upbeat songs with gloomy and morose lyrics – one of the things that I’ve enjoyed about The Smiths/Morrissey over the years. The new CD is an all covers disc with a Beach Boys feel about it in keeping with the disc’s title. One of the more interesting songs is a cover of “Wedding Bell Blues” (maybe better known as “Won’t You Marry Me Bill” best known as a number 1 hit for the 5th Dimension in 1969).
It’s always been a bit of sticky being a Mozz fan. To the mainstream, questions about his sexuality have abounded (I’ve always assumed he was gay, which, fortunately, is less of an issue today). More problematic has been his uber-vegan stance and a weird worldview. He has been quite outspoken on being against eating meat, which, as an omnivore who loves meat, always just attributed to Morrissey being weird. I just ignored it.
However, it has become more problematic now after Morrissey wore a pin on Jimmy Fallon’s show that supports a far-right wing, anti-Muslim For Britain Movement. Of course, Morrissey is like everyone else, with the right to support who he wishes. However, by wearing this pin in public, he has more publicly than ever before shown his support. Already, at least one record store in England has removed all of the Morrissey product.
After having canceled two Chicago shows that I had tickets for, I have stopped buying tickets for Morrissey shows. He cancels shows like Trump spouts lies. However, I had been curious about going up to the Ravinia Festival to see him. I think I’ll pass again. What to do with Morrissey’s records and videos? I have this history of keeping the music/movies of the troubled artists that I own and enjoyed. I still have my DVD copy of Annie Hall. I have several Roman Polanski directed films. I’m not getting rid of my Michael Jackson records and CDs. I still enjoy the music while being personally disgusted by their behavior. I despise Ted Nugent’s political stance, but I still have his records from the 1970s. I have already purchased California Son (preordered it in fact) and have listened to it. It is an interesting listen, not one of his very best, but not bad either. I guess the question will be how outspoken will he be in the future? Will he be more open about his racism and xenophobia? Maybe his records will end up next to Nugent’s in my “never play” pile?

Many Chicago Bulls fans lay the blame for the team’s lack of success in recent years to the two headed monster President of Basketball Operations John Paxson and GM Gar Foreman. There have been so many hours of sports talk radio, online petitions, even billboards taken out to fire “GarPax” as they’re called. However, the only man whose opinions matter is owner Jerry Reinsdorf, who, has valued loyalty above all else, media and fans be damned. To all of the haters however, there may actually be light at the end of the tunnel and it may be due to luck.
As most people know, the Bulls finished with the seventh worst record in the NBA last season, which gave them a 12% chance to end up with the first pick and a 50% chance of getting one of the top four picks. Of course, this year’s draft is the Zion Williamson sweepstakes – whoever got the number 1 pick would be in the cat-bird seat. The Blackhawks had just come up big in the NHL draft lottery, moving from 12th to number 3; maybe the fairy dust would rub off? The lottery was here in Chicago too and the Palmer House. The stars were in alignment…
Unfortunately, since the team was able to win the draft lottery in 2008 and get number 1 pick Derrick Rose and have him win the MVP then tear his ACL in the 2012 playoffs, luck has been scarce around the Chicago NBA franchise. In this year’s lottery, the team could do no better than get the 7th pick for the third consecutive year. Yes, they have gotten Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter with the number 7 picks and they are good players who form part of the core that the Bulls will need to return to being a quality team, but they aren’t Zion Williamson or studs that are among the best players in the league when they first put on the team’s jersey.
So, they have number 7 again (the Pelicans won the lottery with the number 1 pick), but this time, expectations are higher. After many years of having no shot at the playoffs, this pick had better boost the team to at least being competitive. Another 20 win or less season should spell doom for GarPax. Remember, even Jerry Krause got fired eventually…

Despite my advancing age, I don’t think about death too frequently. It’s going to happen to us all, and yes, I am seeing more celebrities who I looked up to or admired passing away. Some, I’ve met (Stan Lee for example), most I have not. However, it is rare for two sports/broadcasting people who I considered friends at various times die, suddenly and surprisingly.
Long time readers know that a great deal of my exposure to athletes and broadcasters came when I was an Andy Frain usher. I worked both baseball parks, the old Stadium for basketball and hockey, Solider Field for football and the Amphitheatre for wrestling and a million other events. As an usher, sometimes you got to meet athletes and broadcasters – most of the time, it was just a nod; some players were jerks and were mean; more often than not however, the person was nice, especially if you interacted with them in a respectful way.
Occasionally however, players became friends. You got to know them, they knew you on a first name basis. As an usher, often you got to know players through their spouses, and the Cub wives back in the 1980s sat behind home plate, by the handicapped section. A lot of the wives were a bit flighty and full of themselves, but some were very nice. One of the nicest was Cathleen Sanderson, Scott Sanderson’s wife. Through her, I met Scott and we socialized back then – they were completely down-to-earth, some of the nicest people around.
Since then, Scott finished playing, became an agent, they had two kids, and our paths diverged, but they lived in the area I heard, and I got to know some distant relatives and a few friends of theirs and I asked to send them a message, but I don’t know if it ever happened. But I was very shocked that Scott Sanderson died the other day at the very young age of 62, leaving Cathleen and the children.
If that wasn’t shocking enough, today broadcaster Chet Coppock died from injuries obtained in an auto accident in Georgia 10 days ago. You all know that I wrote for The Back Table with Chet Coppock. I was writing for The Sportswriters on TV and the producer of that show, John Roach, was also producer of Back Table. John wasn’t happy I guess with the questions his staff was giving Chet, so he asked me to do it. It was more exposure; it paid, unlike Sportswriters; and the show interviewed numerous sports figures and it gave me the opportunity to write questions that I always wanted to ask.
As it turned out, I had a run in with Chet as a Frain some years ago. I tried to stop him, but he was trying to go live from the old Aisle 7 on the Main Floor at the Stadium during a hockey game. The problem is that the TV lights could be clearly seen by the players, which got the referees skating the length of the ice to get him to stop. I didn’t get into trouble because I tried to stop him. That was the story about Chet, the 10 O’ Clock News was a lot of filler leading up to him on sports. He was a big man – 6’5” and constantly fighting with weight, but he was really bigger in person. Big personality, big voice, big presence.
He seemed full of himself, but you could never tell if that was Chet or CHET the character. Kevin Matthews’ “Chet Chit-chat” was a parody, but how close was it to the real self-promoting, egotistical Chet?
During Back Table time (1995-1998) Chet was working in New York at the time, so he would fly into town for the day, Roach’s staff would line up 4-5 guests, and we would tape the shows. A couple of days before, I would FAX (pre-Internet days) to Chet’s house in the New York area. Chet would sometimes call me for clarification. As I have said for the past 20 years, I wrote the 30 second question – Chet added the 3-minute preamble. When we had guests like Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany, I had some questions, some tough for him, and I was always disappointed that the questions never got asked. Chet would say “I’m not Mike Wallace” (60 Minutes’ legendary interrogator).
After the show went off, I would see Chet occasionally: at the Blackhawk convention in 2010, sometimes at the Unite Center, and I was always amused when he would come up and say “Hey Big Fella.” He knows my name, but moreover, he and I were often of similar girth and he was 3 inches taller than me, making him “the bigger fella.” But he was always nice, he remembered Back Table shows calling me his “authority,” especially on hockey.
As former Roach producer Rich Schwartz wrote today on Facebook, we are all shocked because Chet seemed invincible. He had some health issues, but it seemed that he had beaten them. His daughter just got married and Chet was engaged again (time number 3?). Scott Sanderson was a very young man. I will try to attend any visitations for them because they were both kind and important to me.
I miss seeing Scott all those years and I will miss Chet.

Eye of the Tiger
I thought that Tiger Woods would never win another major championship. Disasters in his personal life, severe back and leg injuries, and the never-ending tide of age made it almost a certainty that Woods would not approach Jack Nicklaus’ 18 titles. After all, it had been 11 years since he’d won a major and 14 years since he had won the Masters.
Then again, there was Woods – winning not just a Major, but in many ways THE Major – the Masters for the fifth time (again second only to Nicklaus). All of a sudden, the golf and sports worlds alighted. The fans cheered, celebrities Tweeted congratulations, there was a beautiful picture of Woods sharing a hug with his son, who had never seen his father win a major championship.
The happiest people in the world – the golf industry and the television networks. Despite all of his faults, Woods has a very deep following, especially among African-Americans. He was the biggest star in the game, most wanted to see him win again, some rooted against him. Either way, the game of golf, falling in popularity and revenue, needed Woods, or some other charismatic star to bring attention back to the game.
I am not a golf fan at all, but I admit to following Tiger during his heyday. Like most of the world, I think his issues with women, and end of his marriage made him a despised figure in many circles. I didn’t despise him, but I had little respect. But I did watch a little bit of the replay after it was announced that he’d won (I guess bad weather made Augusta move up play before the rain).
Now, ever major will get more attention, especially if Tiger makes the cut. Just like before…

I’ve been very busy which took me away from the column, but here are just a few briefs to follow:
• Joel Quenneville gets big money to go to Florida – a young team with some talent and plenty of salary cap room. I’m happy for him – he was the scapegoat for GM Stan Bowman’s mistakes.
• I’ve said for years – you don’t want the President’s Cup (to the team with the most regular season points). The President’s Cup winner wins Lord Stanley’s Cup only about 35% of the time (last team to do it, the 2013 Blackhawks). After tying the all-time record for wins in a season, Tampa Bay is one game away from bowing out in the first round to Columbus. If this happens, it would be one of the great choke jobs in NHL history.
• Getting less attention, the New York Islanders were supposed to be a bottom dweller as they have been mostly for the past decade. Losing John Tavares to Toronto over last summer and the issues over home stadium (Long Island vs. Brooklyn) made the Isles a “to be avoided” destination. In trying to convince Tavares to stay by showing that the owners and management are trying to win, they hired Barry Trots, fresh off coaching the Washington Capitals to their first ever championship. Trots has the Isles one game from bouncing perennial contender Pittsburgh. Hats off the them.
• Speaking of the Maple Leafs, they stole game 1 against the Bruins in Boston and while the B’s came back to win game 2, this series is knotted at 1 game apiece. As are the Predators/Stars series, the Flames/Avs series – that is what makes playoff hockey so great.
• I certainly hope Winnipeg can bounce back and beat St. Louis. Just because they are St. Louis.
• I wish the Sharks/Golden Knights games weren’t so late…

Right now, Chicago fans are relatively happy with the front offices of their professional teams. The Bears are on an upswing; the Cubs still deserve credit for winning after 108 years; the Blackhawks have been inconsistent, but shown signs of life and a new younger core; the White Sox failed to land Manny Machado, but to me, the fact that they were even in the hunt says a lot about Owner Jerry Reinsdorf’s commitment to at least one more World Series Championship before he dies. Still, that leaves Reinsdorf’s other team – the Bulls who have been rebuilding since Derrick Rose blew out his knee the first time. No one represents the mediocrity more than GM Gar Forman and EVP of Basketball Operations John Paxson, who are now probably the most hated men in Chicago sports.
Many Bulls fans have been pushing for firing “GarPax” as they’re generally known for several years. Another non-playoff finish but playing well enough to not get the number 1 pick in this year’s NBA Draft should have been the death knell. Players have been acquired and let go; same with coaches. If there’s one constant with the Bulls is that there will be melodrama off the court and disappointing results on the court.
Unfortunately, Bulls and White Sox fans know that Jerry Reinsdorf values loyalty above all else. Jerry Krause could be said to have ended the Michael Jordan Bulls by firing Phil Jackson and running the rest of the veterans away, but Reinsdorf loved him and kept him around until it appeared that Bulls fans were about to grab torches and pitchforks. Unfortunately for Reinsdorf, that time has been long in coming for GarPax, but today, the Chicago Tribune published an interview with Bulls President Michael Reinsdorf said that Paxson and Foreman would “absolutely” be back next year. A similar vote of confidence was given to Head Coach Jim Boylen.
The younger Reinsdorf said that he believes the pair have “done a great job.” Like his father, he seems to underestimate the hatred a large and growing vocal Bull fan base has for the pair. Bull fans, especially the season ticket holders remember Jordan, Pippen, et.al., or at least remember the best days of the Rose era. They are used to winning, or at least being relevant; not perennial also-rans that make more noise fighting amongst themselves than winning games.
I will restate my overall belief: sports teams are selling wins or hope. Fans will definitely pay for winning teams, and they will pay for hope that winning is soon to come. Right now, the Bulls show glimmers of life, but that hope is inconsistent and flickering like a candle in a drafty room. GarPax may be company guys; they may made great martinis, but the probably have one more draft and next season had better start out great, or both of them will be looking for work.

Long time readers know that I am no fan of Big Ten officials. Over the past many years, I have taken out my ire on the football officials who I believe are the worst in the nation. You also know that on this issue, I’m not a “homer;” I am critical of horrible calls that are made when Northwestern gets the call also. My stance has been that these coaches and especially the players are out there playing their hearts out – they deserve to get the best officiating possible.
I haven’t followed basketball in a very long time, but back when I was into basketball, I was also very critical of the basketball officials too. Back in the 1980s and 1990s, the Big Ten played a very brutal version of the game, which hurt teams in injuries, but also in the NCAA Tournament where the referees wouldn’t be as lenient.
To the Conference and especially Commissioner Jim Delany, the worst thing that a coach could do would be to criticize the referees publicly. I don’t know what is said in private, but the biggest monetary penalties levied are on coaches when they complain about officials to the media or, even worse, in public. Still, as a fan, I want to tell the officials what I think of them. At football games, I do, as loudly as possible, but always without foul language because there are kids sitting around my season tickets. Still, sometimes I wish I could just let loose with epithets to what I really think.
Well, it appears that I want to live vicariously through Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery. McCaffery has been suspended two games as a result of his outburst toward an official following the Hawkeyes’ loss at Ohio State on Tuesday night. According to Yahoo Sports, a couple of reporters saw the coach tracking down a ref in a hallway of Value City Arena in Columbus and calling him a “cheating m—–f—-” and a “f—— disgrace.” McCaffery and his son, freshman forward Connor McCaffery, were both given technical fouls during the 90-70 loss to the Buckeyes.
The incident in question occurred with Iowa trailing 78-67 with 4:08 to play. The coach’s son, Connor McCaffery was whistled for a foul after making contact with Ohio State guard Keyshawn Woods. This foul came soon after McCaffery was called for an offensive foul. McCaffery was then given a technical foul when he was complaining about the call on the play involving Woods. Being a good Dad, Fran McCaffery was called for his technical foul about a minute later.
Never wanting to be upstaged, McCaffery was suspended for two games by Iowa athletic director Gary Barta. In a press release, Barta said “following the basketball game at Ohio State, Coach McCaffery made unacceptable comments to a game official in the hallway headed to the locker room. Fran’s comments do not represent the values of the University of Iowa, Hawkeye Athletics, and our men’s basketball program.” Of course, the university couldn’t take up the coach’s side, it was public, profanity, and where loyalty is concerned, which is more important, a coach who is a very highly paid employee, or the conference which fills the university’s bank accounts?
In addition to McCaffery’s suspension, he was issued a public reprimand by the Big Ten office for violating the league’s sportsmanship policy. The school was also fined $10,000 by the Big Ten. When asked about the exchange after the game, McCaffery said he could not talk about it.
I have always said that the Big Ten is just cheap and full of sycophants. The Conference is making more money than almost any other conference in the nation. Delany’s Big Ten Network and additions of Rutgers and Maryland has brought in more money. However, like most big corporations, anything that would cost more money, like hiring and training competent officials would be money that couldn’t be recouped. Plus, I think the conference still uses it’s “good ole boys” network of officials who have worked for years protected from public scrutiny and this loyalty and relative inexpensiveness keeps them employed.
I did not see the calls of course, I’ve only read about the incident, but there have been a number of times when I’ve wanted to call Big Ten Officials “cheating m—–f—-” and “f—— disgraces” because that’s exactly what they’ve been.
It’s long past time someone called them out, no matter the penalty.