There is something surreal and overwhelming sad about the death of George Carlin. In the early eighties I had the distinct pleasure of meeting George at a party. I was in the company of my friend Mike Coleman. Mike was my mentor in this new world of Los Angeles (after leaving the Marine Corps), and it didn’t hurt that he was also a very wealth mentor. Mike had introduced me to a number of celebrities Magic Johnson, Rick James, Jim Brown, Marvin Gaye (just before his death) and of course George Carlin.
As I said earlier I met George at a t party but he was nothing like I had imagined. When I saw him I told mike” that’s George Carlin.” Mike said would you like to meet him, of course I said yes. We went over and Mike introduced me. I being star struck opened with the obligatory, “it’s a pleasure to meet you, and I’m one of your biggest fans.
Again he was very demure and seemed even shy. But then he responded by saying what was your favorite album. I responded “class clown”. He paused for a moment and very slowly turned and looked at me and said “Wayne, how old are you?” I said twenty-nine. He then looked directly in my eyes and “I’m forty-nine and I have bearded witness to the brain drain of America. How many books have you read in your life, Wayne? You are the next generation and your generation has fallen victim to the mushroom syndrome (kept in the dark and fed bullshit) do not let the mass media machine suck your brain out through the straw we call TV.
That is my memory of George Carlin a man who was concerned about the American intellect. George was a man who studied all aspect of the human condition and had real and deep concerns about the status of our future. He was a philosopher and a man that challenged us to think, to question.
Later in life as I became a parent and began to settle into the routine of life. I did find myself in odds with George on some issue. In particular God, but I never lost my appreciation for his honesty and his challenge to all of us to think and investigate the world we live in and our leaders and the media and their spin on the facts.
The world has truly lost a great free thinker and a very funny man. In irreverence to him, and I think he would appreciate this. GOD BLESS you George and I hope Sister Mary Teresa was waiting for you. May we never forget your plea to challenge us to think for ourselves?
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Good Bye Tim
I have been remiss in my stewardship of this blog. But I have seen the political landscape turn into a quagmire of bitter partanship. Attack after, attack, personal in nature. We have once again falling into the same old game. But something has occurred that warrants a new post.
As I was doing my usual observations on Thursday June 12, 2008 a news bulletin came across the net. I was expecting something about the war or perhaps the price of oil. But when I began to read what the bulletin said. I cried, I cried uncontrollable. I cried with the same intensity that I did when I lost my father.
The news was, Tim Russert, a fixture in American homes on Sunday mornings and election nights since becoming moderator of "Meet the Press" nearly 17 years ago, died Friday after collapsing at the Washington bureau of NBC News. He was 58.
But you have to understand the broader context. When I began the Shemwell Report in 1991 I was green as green could be. I had absolutely no journalism experience and was flying blind. But I did have the presence of mind to realize that I needed some network mentors. I needed to know how to interview in a professional manner. I searched the the air ways and found two people that seemed to have mastered the art of the interview.
Ted Koppel, and Tim Russert were those two. What they had mastered was the art of listening a key component in the art fo the interview. As the years progressed I began to also see how Tim had an additional gift. Each Sunday on “Meet The Press” he engaged his guest but it was never a personal attack. He seemed to put himself in the palce of the average Joe. This I think was the greatest journalist gift of Tim.
I will miss him, but I will carry with me the lessons he vicariously imparted to me each Sunday through his dedication to give the American people the real deal. Thank you Tim, GO BILLS.
As I was doing my usual observations on Thursday June 12, 2008 a news bulletin came across the net. I was expecting something about the war or perhaps the price of oil. But when I began to read what the bulletin said. I cried, I cried uncontrollable. I cried with the same intensity that I did when I lost my father.
The news was, Tim Russert, a fixture in American homes on Sunday mornings and election nights since becoming moderator of "Meet the Press" nearly 17 years ago, died Friday after collapsing at the Washington bureau of NBC News. He was 58.
But you have to understand the broader context. When I began the Shemwell Report in 1991 I was green as green could be. I had absolutely no journalism experience and was flying blind. But I did have the presence of mind to realize that I needed some network mentors. I needed to know how to interview in a professional manner. I searched the the air ways and found two people that seemed to have mastered the art of the interview.
Ted Koppel, and Tim Russert were those two. What they had mastered was the art of listening a key component in the art fo the interview. As the years progressed I began to also see how Tim had an additional gift. Each Sunday on “Meet The Press” he engaged his guest but it was never a personal attack. He seemed to put himself in the palce of the average Joe. This I think was the greatest journalist gift of Tim.
I will miss him, but I will carry with me the lessons he vicariously imparted to me each Sunday through his dedication to give the American people the real deal. Thank you Tim, GO BILLS.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
