Posts Tagged ‘Dolly Parton’

With a drastic vacancy in office buildings and emptiness in the hallways of hotels, the Renaissance Grand Hotel has been no exception other than Saturday night when the local Emmys took place.  As for the hotel, let’s be reminded of Ogden Nash‘s line, “Progress was a good thing once but it went on too long.” There was no end of fascination during the presentations, although big names of news anchors, reporters, sports and weather on-air talent seem to be a thing of the past.  Cable penetration, pubic TV, production houses, universities and online video websites have forced the competition and its out-of-town judges to use the same measuring stick against free commercial network affiliates, due in part to the recession or just the need for a full house. Conspicuously on hand for the event were KSDK’s Mike Bush and Fox2′s Mandy Murphey, but MIA were Larry Conners, Vickie Newton, Dave Murray, Russell Kinsaul, Leisa Zigman, Cindy Preszler and a few news reporters. But there were teams of talent from Springfield, Mo.,, Kansas City and Little Rock.  Strange that the entire Channel 4 management and on-air team weren’t on hand, while the station’s promos tout, “We’re 4 St. Louis.”  Presenter Patrick Clark, trimmed and slim, came in from L.A., carrying his guitar to the stage. WIL Radio’s deejay Cornbread grabbed an Emmy for Best Commentary/Editorial on KSDK and quipped, “I thank KSDK  for giving a fat man a chance to express himself.” Shocker of the night: Channel 4′s David Souza, Jr., nabbed an Emmy, while he said of his missing female colleague, “I told her to keep her ass at home – there was no need to come.” Ted Koplar revealed that his World Events Productions will be back in 2011 with a global release of 26 new animated episodes of “Voltron” in partnership with Mattel Toys and a full-length theatrical movie of robotic action. Yesteryear chief of KPLR, Hal Protter, confided that he and CW Network in Burbank have parted ways.  Protter joined Koplar to back-pat Spencer Koch’s marketing exec Suzi Schrappen, who was inducted to the 2010 Emmy Silver Circle. Not to be outdone by Oprah’s gifting audiences with exotic trips and cars, Schrappen got guffaws for having servers pass out hundreds of Fox2/KPLR 11 branded cookies during her presentation.

Before the plane left, do-gooder Jeffrey Fort challenged this columnist to try to get a table at Gotham’s Il Mulino. Even his barrister Chet Pleban and produce guy Charlie Gallagher couldn’t manage it.  Neither could the columnist. But, that turned into a mitzvah. The Stage Deli’s Steve Auerbach and Paul Zolenge had not only a table for me, but also put in the works a Jerry Berger sandwich of smoked salmon on a bialy. So, the columnist will soon join the real upper crust: the ranks of those whose namesake sandwiches appear on the Stage Deli’s menu.  Others? The tongue/swiss cheese and corned beef given the name of Larry King; Larry David’s corned beef and turkey; Howard Stern’s pastrami; A-Rod’s turkey, chopped liver lettuce, tomato and onion; Ben Stiller’s hot roast beef; Aretha Franklin’s pastrami and turkey and Dolly Parton’s twin rolls of pastrami and corned beef; and Tiger Woods’ Rueben … The columnist’s favorite alumnus of the Non-Partisan Judicial Selection Plan, Mo. Supreme Court Judge Michael Wolff, is clearly truthful, enlightened and so cool!  Has he ever smoked a joint? “It was a youthful indiscretion,” said Wolff over brunch at the Chase-Park Plaza.  “Unlike some others of my generation, I did inhale.”Wolff said he is a voracious reader and among his faves are: The Riverfront Times, New York Wired, Washington Monthly and the papers in and around Jefferson City.  The 64 year-old judge said that after mandatory retirement at 70, he’ll go back to teaching. Any hint where? Of Saint Louis University uber-president he says, “He’s transformed SLU and the city by making that gorgeous campus. I even like his engaging (the columnist thinks that is judicialese for “nude”) artwork on the campus.”  He looked back on his career on the bench and commented, “As a judge, it’s hard to get away from thinking about how law affects ordinary people, how it affects the average person. People with money can take care of themselves.”  Does the cool judge hit the casinos?  “It’s entertainment for five or ten minutes, but I do spend two dollars a week on my Powerball habit,” he admitted,  As to Judge Wolff’s family, he said, “My mother was a typical Irish Catholic – I don’t forget that!” We were joined by the Chase’s exemplary French Chef, Brian Hale, who hails from the whine region of St. Louis County. Brian Hale … Recession?  Mike Lordo says “not so much.”He and his brother have each just sold a 12-carat yellow and 13-carat emerald cut diamond rings at Lordo’s on Clayton Road … First there were Buster May, then Desmond Lee. Now, it’s Rex Sinquefeld who’s the outstretched hand from our town’s charity types. Who he? A zillionaire grad of Bishop DuBourg High (just like Jack Dorsey, founder of Twitter), who wrote the definitive book on stock market returns and was co-founder of Dimensional Fund Advisors.