#apparently this has been a hugely controversial topic this week? if my 10 minutes on this app since the episode aired is any indication

[moonstonediaz]

idk my whole stance on the “will they/won’t they” in regards to buddie canon is just. it’s loud, it’s oddly ironic, that these are the only two main’s on the show that are S I N G L E. still! in season sex six! that their relationship statuses have basically run parallel to each other, that they keep trying and failing to find a romantic partner. so let’s look at the other side of the coin. what’s the other option? introducing yet again brand new love interests for both buck and eddie and having these people be their endgame relationships?

eddie? who has always held his cards close to his chest, is extremely protective over his son and who he gets close to, who has already tried dating the seemingly perfect woman for him and his son?

buck? who’s going to be a harder sell than ever now that he knows not to settle? who’s going to be looking for someone that accepts him just as he is, someone that compliments him perfectly, who accepts his relationships with the firefam, with chris and eddie, without complaint?

if this were season 2, 3, or hell, even season 4, i’d say yeah maybe we have time for all that. but we’re nearing the end of season SIX and there have been no new love interests brought in. and i don’t foresee 911 being a show that runs for 20+ seasons. i mean it could i guess but like. we’re in it. the meat of the sandwich. narratively, i don’t see it making sense for them to spend precious time cultivating new endgame relationships for the two of them. they’d likely have to run them at the same time, parallel to each other. yet again. which would be a tell in its own right that they were actively avoiding buddie canon.

i’m not saying they absolutely won’t do that, i have no idea what their actual plans are. i’m just saying they’re boxing themselves into a corner. a great big rainbow-filled flaming gay corner.

[diyunho]

The Joker x Reader - “ Nobody” Part 1

After not feeling well for months, The Joker finally found out why: the life threatening condition is so serious there’s only a 50/50 chance of survival.  Dealing with a brain tumor is not going to be easy, that’s why The King of Gotham asked his half-brother Arthur to help Y/N while he’ll undergo treatment.

The Joker yawns, repositioning his head in your lap.

“You want a small pillow?” you pause the movie you’re both watching and he refuses.

“No,” J stretches on the couch. “These are soft enough,” he pokes your thighs and you squirm, ticklish to his touch.

Suddenly, the cell phone chimes and J reaches his hand to grab it from the table.

“Arthur is here,” he announces. “He wasn’t in a hurry, hm?” The Joker mumbles while getting up.

You decline to comment and do the same because you can hear the elevator going up to the Penthouse. You could say the anticipation is making you a little bit nervous: you’ve been with J for about 10 months but you’ve never met Arthur. Probably it’s safe to assume they are not very close yet soon after finding out about the illness, The Joker contacted his sibling to let him know and sure enough he agreed to come over and help.

Although Mr. Fleck is three  hours late, it doesn’t mean he is trying to back out on his promise.

The elevator opens and Arthur emerges dressed in one of his red suits, anxiously passing his fingers through his curls. J wants to criticize and his brother is in no mood for a lecture:

“Before you lash out, I was delayed by an unexpected issue!” he keeps talking and walking in your direction. “My apologies.”

“What issue?” J growls and Arthur extends the palm of his hand, firmly shaking yours, definitely not waiting for an introduction: “Hello there,” he smiles. “I’m the older, smarter, funnier and more charming version; you must be the better half.”

“Riiiiiight…” The Joker rolls his eyes, annoyed.

“Y/N,” you smirk at the man’s remark and he lets go of your hand, explaining his delayed arrival:

“Don’t get worked up, kid. One of my projects required immediate attention and I had to sort it out.”

You expect The Joker to protest the nickname but he doesn’t mention anything: Arthur always called him that since they were teenagers and your boyfriend is used to it. Doesn’t bother him at all.

“Do you want a drink? Are you hungry?” you offer and he nods a no.

“I’m good; thanks,” he takes a sit on the nearest armchair and the couple reprises their position on the sofa.

A few moments of silence before Arthur decides to talk about the reason why he’s at the Penthouse.

“Sooo… What did the doctors find out? How bad is it?” he inquires and you unconsciously cling to J’s arm, not willing to hear about it again.

“The brain tumor is too big, I can’t have surgery yet. I already started with lower doses of medication 20 days ago, I have to gradually build up to the higher doses so my body can handle it. Soon I’ll have chemo every 3 weeks, then every 2 we…”

A low chuckle and Arthur covers his mouth in horror.

“Sorry…” he has a chance to whisper before bursting out laughing.

“Here we go…” The Joker crosses his legs, patiently waiting for his brother to finish his outburst. The King of Gotham may not be an accommodating individual, but his sibling’s condition is something he has always tolerated without any problem.

“I’m very��” Arthur tries to speak but the strenuous sounds he makes at the end of each cackle prove how much he’s struggling to control his inappropriate amusement. “…s-sorry,” he continues to snicker while digging in his pocket for a small piece of laminated paper. He finds the item and hands it over to you; you curiously inspect the writing: it basically explains his neurological disorder in a few words.

“It’s fine, J told me,” you return the information to its owner.

“I can’t believe you still have that,” The Clown Prince of Crime huffs as Arthur is slowly regaining his composure.

“I’m very sorry,” he emphasizes his regrettable outpour. “You were saying?”

J deeply inhales and reprises the briefing:

“I’ll have to do chemo every 3 weeks, then every 14 days until the tumor shrinks enough to be operable. I guess I have a 50/50 chance of surviving the whole thing, that’s why I asked for your cooperation in helping Y/N oversee my affairs. I will get worse before I might get better, thus here we are.”

Arthur pulls tissues out of the box next to him and gives them to the devastated Y/N: The Joker didn’t notice you are quietly sobbing by his side.

“Please stop crying,” he kisses your temple, avoiding your emotions like he regularly does. The best option is to divert the gathering towards another topic. “We got ready one of the bedrooms upstairs for you; I hope that’s up to your standards.”

“My standards are normal,” the truth is blurred out. “You’re the fancy one, kid. That’s why you’re The Joker and I’m Joker; I don’t need any glorification. Plus, I didn’t oppose when you picked this half of town and left me the other.”

“You’re an idiot!” the green haired man stands up from his spot, wanting nothing more than to retreat to the master bedroom after an exhausting day.

“Runs in the family,” Arthur nonchalantly hints and you snort, blowing your nose in a tissue.

“Keep your mouth shut!” J advices and you have no clue he’s referring to more than just the constant bickering going on between them. “I’m calling it quits, are you coming?”

“I’ll have a smoke on the terrace first, “Arthur searches for his pack of cigarettes and you believe this is the perfect chance to chat with him:

“I’ll stay with our guest, alright?”

“Suit yourselves,” The Joker grumbles and you follow his brother outside on the huge patio.

“I forgot how nice this is from the 30th floor,” Arthur stirs the conversation while lighting up a cigarette.

“Yes, it’s a lovely view,” you wipe your tears and he resentfully mutters:

“I fucking hate this town…”

You sigh, not wishing to interrupt in case he has more to add and the plain inquiry catches you off guard.

“How are you holding up?”

The question resonates in the awkward stillness and Y/N elects to bring him up to date.

“I’m doing the best I can under the circumstances. He’s not doing well…” you sniffle and Arthur pays attention to your confession. “The medications may be in low amount, but they are strong; they make him very confused at times, plus the side effects of the tumor… he forgets things, he has no idea where he is or… or… who I am. The doctors advised that when it happens we have to go with the flow and not push for him to recall details. His brain is under a lot of pressure and this is only the beginning.”

Arthur blows smoke up in the air, displeased with the news about his younger sibling.

“Shit, that’s rough…”

That’s surely the understatement of the year for the heartbroken Y/N.

“When he doesn’t recognize me, I tell him I’m nobody, just a person taking care of the place and he doesn’t even know the difference. I suggest you avoid any type of confrontation while he’s like that; please generalize everything you articulate and don’t complicate the situation.”

“Of course… Yeah, yeah, of course,” he is fast to agree with your guidance.

“Thank you,” you sincerely show your gratitude because you appreciate his presence. “I think I’ll join him upstairs; tonight he’s beginning higher dosage on his pills and he might have a reaction.”

“I’ll stay and finish my cigarette,” Arthur scratches the scar above his lip. “Which bedroom is mine?”

“Fourth one on the left.”

“Perfect, I’ll find it,” he waves as you return inside, eager to check up on The Clown Prince of Crime.

**************

“What the … t-the hell?” The Joker stutters, groggy from the strong medications swallowed a few hours ago.

You barely distinguish his wobbly silhouette standing by the bed.

“What’s wrong?” you turn on the lamp on the nightstand, instantly aware of his wet boxers.

“I d-didn’t make it to… to the bathroom,” J seems out of it, yet at least he realizes that much.

“Oh, it’s totally fine,” you maintain your cool and jump off the sheets, rushing to help him. “The doctors warned accidents could happen since the drugs are making you dizzy and super drowsy. Let’s step in the bathtub, shall we?”

You take his hand and lead a compliant boyfriend to the master bathroom; sometimes it’s easy to deal with him in this state, sometimes it’s not.

Luckily tonight he’s obedient.

You turn on the water and he tightly holds his boxers while you attempt to yank them off him.

“Who…who are you?” The Joker sulks, unhappy with your movement.

“I’m nobody,” you reply and manage not to cry at his disorientation. “I’m here to help you, ok?” you calmly try to reason with his baffled mind.

“I… I… I don’t want you to see me naked,” he complains and Y/N has an easy solution for the apparent controversy.

“I’ll close my eyes, deal?”

You do as vowed and J lets you undress him, finally ending up in the bathtub for a quick, relaxing soak.

“You want bubbles?” you glance at him once the body is submerged under the warm water.

“No…” he yawns and you fold a towel, placing it under his head in case he’ll pass out.

“Where… where am I?...”

A faint knock at the door and Arthur talks in a low tone:

“Everything good?”

“Yes, we’re fine,” he distinguishes your reply; he just returned from the underground garage with his suitcase and discerned the commotion: made him wonder if his assistance was necessary.

“Who was that?” The Joker enjoys being pampered by the stranger he doesn’t recognize for the moment; apparently forgot about shyness also because he has no objection to the sponge bath now.

“The maintenance guy,” you lie without blinking while pouring more shampoo over J’s toxic green locks.

*************

10 am

Arthur joined you and The Joker in the kitchen less than 5 minutes ago; he positioned himself against the counter, this way he has a broad perspective of the whole space. He sips on the fresh coffee, observing the scene unfolding at the table:

J is reading a magazine and you feed him breakfast, caressing his hair every few seconds. You didn’t mention anything about last night; he woke up feeling a bit better and it’s safe not to agitate him with useless facts.

“Are you hungry?” you address Arthur and he lifts his shoulders up, undecided.

“Maybe… I’ll munch on something shortly.”

“Hurry up before it gets cold,” you encourage him and The Joker is already as crabby as he can be.

“Stop bugging him! If he wants to eat, he’ll eat!”

“I’m not bugging him,” you defend your action, upset at J’s feisty attitude.

“She’s not bugging me,” Arthur tucks a rebel curl behind his ear, disapproving of his brother’s assumption.

“I’m not,” you sweetly smile and The Joker slaps your fingers away from his hair.

The cheerfulness dies on your face and you get up, kicking the chair in the process.

“I’ll bring your morning meds,” you enunciate and leave the kitchen in a hurry.

“Goddamn irritating,” J hisses at your behavior and Arthur can’t zip it.

“Are you stupid?” he sucks on his cheeks and that definitely gets your boyfriend’s attention.

“What did you say?!”

“I’ve been here for minutes and she didn’t take a single bite out of anything, too preoccupied with making sure you eat. Do you even notice how she looks at you?” he raises his voice. “So I’m asking you again: are you stupid?”

“Excuse me?!” J abandons his seat and the threatening demeanor queues Arthur about the imminent scuffle, not that he’s willing to avoid it.

“I wasn’t clear enough?” the latest provokes his sibling. “ARE. YOU. STUUUUPID?” he repeats, cracking his neck with anticipation.

You are coming downstairs with the meds and the ruckus happening in the kitchen makes you speed up.

You are certainly not disappointed at the show: J and Arthur are wrestling on the floor, relentlessly hitting one another.

“Stop it!!” you shout and your plea is ignored. “Stop it!” you insist when you detect Arthur’s bloody nose and J’s busted lip. “Are you deaf?! Stop it!!”

This is the last drop: after another shitty night and the stuff you endured recently, you are completely lacking any kind of patience for anybody’s nonsense.

You toss the vial with The Joker’s tablets on the counter, snatch the ice bucket from the freezer and fill it out with water. The ice cubes float in the clear liquid: the 8 gallons metal container is pretty large since it’s used for J’s grape juice cans.

You thud on the marble floor and dump the freezing concoction on top of the two heated fighters, the sudden shock from the unexpected impact being enough to halt the brawl.

“Ugg!!” J rolls on his back while Arthur crawls by the stove. “What are you doing, Y/N?!” he yells and you storm out, firmly squeezing the ice bucket to your chest without realizing.

The loud bang of a shut door bears witness of your justified rage concerning the altercation; how can you not get mad at such crap?!

Arthur seeks for his beloved cigarettes in the interior of his orange vest, triumphantly lightening one after failing the first trials.

“I like her,” he puffs the fumes out, leaning towards his brother because J is gesturing for the bud.

The Joker takes a deep drag, admitting for once:

“Me too.”

“I thought you quit,” Arthur points out.

“I did,” his brother answers, glaring at the ceiling. “Clean up this mess!” he orders and continues to smoke.

“Nope, we should let fate determine,” the older sibling suggests and J falls into the little trap.

“Rock, paper, scissors?”

“Ready?” Arthur smirks and counts. “1…2…3!”

“… … … Dammit!” The King of Gotham cusses.

“Have fun, kid!” the winner plucks the cig away from J. “Gimme, these are bad for your health!”

**************

“Are you in here?” The Joker sneaks in his office and watches you patrol around the desk, still vigorously attached to the infamous ice bucket.

The lack of reply makes him approach the distressed woman; you avoid gazing his way at all costs.

“I need my pitcher,” he sniffles and Y/N disregards his sentence. “You’re aware I like to use grape juice on ice for those bitter capsules. There’s no bucket and no ice in the freezer so… what am I supposed to do? Skip my morning remedy?”

A hint of lowered resistance and he’s taking advantage of it.

“My lip hurts,” he rubs the swollen, red spot. “I need ice for this too.”

You place your precious bucket on top of some folders, cautiously examining the superficial cut.

“Stitches won’t be necessary,” the obvious result updates a pouting J.

“Are you sure?” he plays dumb and wraps his arms around your waist. “Take a closer look, I can’t afford to walk around with chipped dignity.”

You peck the unharmed corner of his mouth, mad you’re giving into such cheap amendments.

“I’m positive…”

The Joker grins and kisses you, entirely convinced it wasn’t hard to get under your skin.

“You’re not going to leave, are you?” he rests his forehead on yours and Y/N is speechless at the question. “This is the tumor talking, obviously,” J fixes the tiny mistake when he sees your reaction.

“Obviously…” you whisper, sadly reckoning he purposely avoids any type of sensitive debate about your future together.

The Joker though is carefully listening to Arthur mumbling on the hallway, suspicious at the meaning.

“Is he eavesdropping?!” you focus on the faint words also and it clicks for J.

“Cut it out!!!” he screams while Mister Fleck is not phased, joyfully concluding the ceremony the couple didn’t agree to.

“By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you Nobody and Joker!”

“What was that?!” you crinkle your nose, puzzled.

“He has a minister license and never used it; he tried to hitch me with my ex too,” J clarifies his brother’s odd conduct.

“You may now kiss the bride!” Arthur shouts and The Joker had enough:

“Shut the fuck up!!!”

“What am I supposed to do with my license then?!” the wavy hair pops in the door frame.

“I don’t care!” J snarls, fed up with his sibling’s persistence. “Go pester someone else!” the door is slammed in Arthur’s face; fortunately the 42 years old is not the type of man to be easily offended.

He adjusts the pieces of tissue sticking out of his bloody nose, proudly holding the minister accreditation at eye level.

“I got myself a sister-in-law,” Arthur chuckles at his achievement, impatiently searching for a pack of cigarettes in the pocket of his red jacket.

 Also read: MASTERLIST

You can also follow me on Ao3 and Wattpad under the same blog name: DiYunho. 

[scottielambchop]

Tite Five Vol. 1

Here's the deal: Unemployment really sucks.

But it's important to keep "flexing my writing muscle." So, I decided to take the blog format I had with my old company and take it here. Which is rad because I can now write all the f-swears I want. But even better, I can rename this stupid fucking thing. So without further ado, I present to you my Tite Five.

Arby’s Subscription Box

Well, the more things change, the more they stay the same. I may not be writing blogs for an ad agency anymore, but that doesn't fuckin' mean I won't talk about fast food.

For those who don’t know me (and now that I’m writing on my own blog, I don’t know why the fuck you wouldn’t), I have sort of backed myself into a corner with Arby's. It all started innocently enough. I wrote a Facebook post asking if anyone wanted to go on a romantic date to Arby’s. Seemed like a funny-enough thing to say. But then I doubled down and asked the same question again a few weeks later. Then again. And again. Soon enough, I became the “Arby’s guy.” Which, to be honest, isn’t the worst thing to be known for. Especially since Arby’s is pretty good and their Pizza Slider is one of the most underrated QSR food items on the market.

Alright, now that I got that little nugget of useless bullshit out of the way, let’s get to this subscription box. For the past couple of years, Arby’s has been fucking killing it in the advertising game. Their hilarious Ving Rhames-voiced copy spots and subsequent transition to more visual stuff with H. Jon Benjamin, their delightfully nerdy paper-craft social posts, and now, their subscription box. That’s right, you fuckin’ heard (or read) me correctly, Arby’s now has a subscription box.

In early January, Arby’s tweeted out they would be sending a subscription box called Arby's of the Month. All you had to do was sign up for $25, and you would get six mystery boxes of seasonal gear from everyone’s favorite roast beef provider. Now, I’m sure you’re wondering, “Who the hell would want that?” Well, let me tell you, a lot of people the hell would want that. It sold out in less than an hour.

Minneapolis' Fallon (my dream agency) has done amazing work with Arby's. They've taken your grandparents’ favorite fast food joint and turned it into something for everyone. By simply getting weird with everything they do, the younger generations have latched on. Honestly, who the fuck would think about sending a subscription box full of roast beef swag, and how the fuck did it work so well? The answer is Fallon.

P.S. If anyone from Fallon is reading this, my portfolio is scottielantgen.com. Hire me, please.

Re-Watching South Park

One of the most beautiful things about unemployment in the digital age is the ability to hunt for jobs across the country while sitting on your couch and streaming a seemingly endless supply of shows. And that’s exactly what the fuck I’ve been doing with South Park.

Now before I begin, I just need to say that, yes, the show’s liberal use of the “f-word,” “r-word,” and countless racial stereotypes DO NOT hold up well to today’s standards. And honestly, I’m not going to defend it. It’s not my place.

Problematic dialogue aside, what I love about rewatching South Park from almost the very beginning (just skip the first three seasons. You're not missing much) is how it’s a perfect current event/pop culture time capsule. I seriously forgot about Elián González, Terri Schiavo, how the popularity of Paris Hilton made everyone fucking terrible for a while, and just the Passion of the Christ in general. But thanks to South Park, those headlines came rushing back in vivid detail.

South Park still holds up as some of the best satire ever created. It’s quick, funny, and often offensive. And I’m pretty sure that’s what Trey Parker and Matt Stone wanted it to be.

Also, Butters and Randy Marsh are two of my favorite fictional characters.

Skittles Commercial: The Broadway Musical

The “Big Game” (who has the money, amirite?) is tomorrow, and it’s like a goddamn advertising cotillion. It’s the day where the entire country gathers around a TV to eat a variety of sauced meats, drink one of three different beers, and watch the newest batch of commercials from some of the biggest brands in the country. I am told there’s also a football game.

This is the day companies spend millions of dollars for 30 seconds of air time. It’s absurd. But it’s the most viewed event of the entire year, so companies feel the need to get their air time. Except for Skittles. They've been doing something a little different.

Last year, Skittles was fed up with the high price of “Big Game” ad placement, and decided to ditch that mess and do their own thing. So, they did what any other rational company who wanted to advertise to millions of viewers would do. They made an ad for just one person (Check it out. It rules). This little stunt got them billions of media impressions, which, in a lot of ways, is just as good as paid placement.

Where does Skittles go after the major success of last year’s stunt? Broadway of course. During halftime, Skittles will present a one-time performance of Skittles Commercial: The Broadway Musical. Lead by Six Feet Under’s own Michael C. Hall (fuck Dexter), this 30-minute musical is slated to be very meta. Their website states, “Through song and dance, the show takes an absurdly self-reflective look at consumerism and the ever-increasing pervasiveness of brand advertising in our lives.”

It’s fucking brilliant, and I can’t wait to hear how it turns out.

Companies Taking a Stand

Other than writing as many “fucks” and “shits” as I want, one of the coolest things about writing this blog untied from any agency has to be freely expressing whatever dumb-fucking-shit opinion I have. Don’t get me wrong, my old company gave me a lot of freedom, but I always felt it best to stray away from any “controversial” or “political” opinions. Now I’m off the leash and ready to spread my leftist propaganda like a mother fucking virus!

There is a great divide in our country. I know it’s always been there, but it seems way worse ever since the 2016 campaign trail. Regardless, with this growing separation between liberals and conservatives/left and right/cool dudes and white people, companies are also taking sides. And I think it’s a really fucking smart idea.

As you’ve probably seen (and possibly burnt your own shoes about), Nike was one of the first major companies to take a stand for what they believed in. Hiring “controversial” athlete, Colin Kaepernick, to be the face of their newest campaign was a really bold move, but it paid off big time.

Yes, they faced a backlash. Fox News was all up their ass about “DiSrEsPeCtInG tHe FlAg,” and Twitter users shared a litany of videos of people destroying the products they already bought and paid for. But overall, the campaign was killer and showed that the company was willing to put themselves at risk for equality and doing what is right—though I’m sure they’re heartbroken your shitty uncle won’t buy their socks ever again.

Gillette was the next big company to pick a side. They took a stance on the truly controversial topic of “not being a shitty dude.” I really don’t know where the backlash for this came from, but apparently, men don’t like being told that it’s wrong to catcall and sexually assault women. For a bunch of “manly-men,” they’re really crying like little babies over a minute-long video. The ad is still pretty new, but it already seems to be resonating well with younger male audiences, but not so much with boomers. Weird, right?

And lastly, Patagonia just announced that they will donate all 10 million dollars they saved on tax cuts to environmental groups. I don’t know how people will find a way to be upset by this, but I don’t doubt for a single second that someone will. The world is a nightmare.

Listen, I know there are always going to counter-arguments.

“Oh, they’re just exploiting a current issue to make money.”

“Oh, you may think they’re doing the right thing, but their internal business model is totally fucked.”

“Oh, not all men.”

“Oh, that money could have gone to hard workers and not a stupid tree or whatever.”

It really doesn’t matter. This is advertising. They are spreading a message. You may not need a razor at this moment, but that spot can also serve as a reminder to be a better man. You may prefer a different brand of athletic wear, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to see how much a person has sacrificed to support a cause. You may not be a white Instagrammer, but now you know that some companies are doing honorable things. These companies aren't just selling products, they’re also selling ideals.

Gratitude

As I’ve alluded to throughout this post, I recently lost my job. I wanted to make light of it a little, but I also just wanted to get some things off my chest. The truth of the matter is this: I am forever grateful for the opportunity I was given and the people I befriended along the way. I was able to work with and learn from some of the most talented people I have ever met. I took a huge risk moving to a smaller, one-agency town to take this job—and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I am forever thankful for this time in my life.

One of my biggest New Year’s resolutions was to express more gratitude. As I said before, the country is divided. I can’t seem to hop on any social media channel without seeing some kind of bullshit-fueled fight going on. Everyone seems to be focusing on the negative and no one really cares about the positive (I fully understand the irony of this sentence). But this could change by expressing more gratitude for the people in your life and amazing opportunities.

Listen, I could be really pissed about the current state of the world. And honestly, I am. But I’m trying to express more positivity. Everyone else can complain about our turd of a president 24 hours a day. Why not tell the important people in your life why you’re thankful to have them? It’s a really fucking simple thing to do—and it could possibly start a chain reaction.

Listen, I’m not going to tell you to not focus on the bad parts of your job or whatever because that shit is so much more easily said than done. And it also goes on a job-by-job basis (I couldn’t really think of a positive in working in corporate finance or some soul-sucking shit like that). But I will say this, I’m thankful I was able to work a job where I could see a bright side. I learned a lot and I’m looking forward to the next steps in my career.

I know it seems tough to remain positive in such dark times. But, fuck, this is your life. You’ve only got one of em. Don’t spend it worrying or complaining all the time. Find the positive and try and improve upon that… or don’t. It’s your fuckin’ life. Do whatever you want.

Well, guys, that’s it for my very first Tite Five (but also not, ya know?). I hope this was as enthralling as Chris made it out to be. I love you all. I’ll probably see you next week with another post of sorts. Take care and don’t drink and drive after the “Big Game.”

[flauntpage]

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure

If you listened to this morning’s Crossing Broadcast featuring Harry Mayes, thanks.

It was good, wasn’t it? I mean, I can say that right since I wasn’t on it? I’m not trying to blow sunshine up anybody’s butt here, I just found it to be interesting and fresh and relatively unfiltered, with Harry explaining his departure from 97.5 the Fanatic and sharing some unique behind-the-scenes information about the station and radio in general.

Definitely listen to it if you have 30 minutes of free time, or if you’re stuck on the Schuylkill Expressway driving home today, or if you’re stuck on I-95 northbound at the construction zone. If you can’t, I thought it would be a good idea to transcribe some of the most relevant quotes and write out pieces of the interview right here in this space.

As far leaving the station, Mayes, a 13 year veteran and the longest tenured host at 97.5, confirmed that he was offered a gig on the morning show but ultimately did not take it because of the money.

“I just wasn’t comfortable with what I was going to be asked to do for the amount of money, and I just said, ‘I can’t do it,’ and that’s why we’re here today,” Mayes explained.

Kyles suggested that Harry would be a good morning show host, to which Mayes agreed, pointing out that he wasn’t against the idea of changing shifts, but noting that it would be a huge lifestyle and schedule change for both he and his wife.

“It came down late last week that (management) was going to be making a change to the midday show, and I didn’t know that our show was going to be touched,” he continued. I thought they were going to do something new with the mornings and I didn’t know that it had to do anything with my show, but they said, ‘we’d like you to go to the mornings’ and be like the update guy and the 2nd voice, 3rd voice, whatever you wanna say, on the morning show. And I was like, ‘okay, let’s talk about it.’ I was interested in that. Who wouldn’t want to be on a morning show?

“When it was presented, the financial situation just was not tenable. These guys that do morning shows, a lot of people don’t understand how hard they work and how early in the morning they get up and how much their schedule is impacted. You’re getting up at 3 a.m., some guys even earlier, and they’re going to bed at seven o’clock at night and their whole life is transformed. My wife’s life would have been transformed, and I was like, you know, ‘I’m gonna need X amount (of dollars) to do that.’ We tried to get there, they would not guarantee that, and so I couldn’t do it. It was like, ‘I need this, I told you this on Thursday and Friday and we got to Monday and it still didn’t happen,’ so we agreed to part ways with no hard feelings. But I would love to be on a morning show. There were certain things that needed to happen for that to take place, and that was not presented.”

Mayes went on to explain that he treated the midday show as a morning show, if that makes sense. If you listened to his shows with Tony Bruno or Rob Ellis or Jason Myrtetus, they were certainly more relaxed and less stiff, a little more lighthearted and “loose” like a Preston and Steve type of vibe. He says he learned a lot during middays and felt like doing a morning show with Bruno would have been successful, maybe even as a competitor for Angelo Cataldi at 94 WIP after 97.5 decided to do away with their national syndication and install a local program instead.

“For some reason it broke down and never happened, but I felt like that would have been a great morning show,” said Mayes of possibly working with Bruno from 6 to 10 a.m. ”

Apparently Harry has worked with more than 40 hosts, by his count, which doesn’t surprise me. He’d been on 97.5 for something like 10 years and came over from 950 AM before the Fanatic even existed, so he’s been around the block.

Mayes also admitted that he was focused on just doing “good radio” and not necessarily good sports radio, suggesting that he wasn’t 100% interested in talking about the same sports topics over and over again.

“We were many times told, ‘let’s get it back to the Eagles,’ and that became a running joke when I was with Rob Ellis,” said Mayes. “We had sound bites that we’d play for that. Like if we ever sort of got off the beaten path for too long, there might have been a phone call made to the producer (from management), saying, you know, ‘what are they doing here? Let’s get back on track.’ They don’t like things getting off the rails. I actually think the show is best when it’s getting off the rails, unless there is a real, serious good topic to discuss. I think that’s when I was at my best, and I think a lot of times I felt maybe hamstrung by that.”

Mayes says this idea of staying on track had been a thing “going back for years.” It was not specific to Program Director Eric Johnson or longtime former PD Matt Nahigian, who left the station last year.

Harry also revealed that he did not particularly enjoy doing shows with a heavy focus on social or political issues (the NFL’s national anthem controversy as an example). Those shows would bring out extremes on both sides of the argument, and sometimes, though rarely, he said he was encouraged to take a side on an issue when that wasn’t really his way of doing radio.

“The 90% Eagles onslaught at times got tiring for us as well,” he added. “We were thinking of ways to sprinkle in other topics or do different things and sort of set ourselves apart. But, working with somebody who you have great chemistry with, you don’t have to go to those lengths. It just sort of happens. That’s what I started to realize when I worked with Tony, when I worked with Rob and Jason, too. We had great chemistry, and that’s what I enjoyed about it, where we could sort of, 10 o’ clock comes around, the light comes on, and we might not have something big and heavy to get into, but ten after ten we’re into a good discussion. That’s what I felt was really good and authentic about the shows I’ve been on.”

What’s next for Mayes?

He’s not sure, but didn’t sound too keen on jumping back into sports radio, at least not right away.

“I’m really not interested in doing just, ‘hey the Eagles need a new cornerback, Jalen Mills sucks, 610-632..’ I’m kind of bored with that, to be honest with you.”

Mayes said he doesn’t expect to have anything lined up anytime soon, noting that we’re in the middle of the NFL season and that most shifts are filled and most contracts are signed. He’ll appear tonight on Tony Bruno’s podcast and you can listen to him with Kyle and Russ below:

The post “We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure appeared first on Crossing Broad.

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[flauntpage]

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure

If you listened to this morning’s Crossing Broadcast featuring Harry Mayes, thanks.

It was good, wasn’t it? I mean, I can say that right since I wasn’t on it? I’m not trying to blow sunshine up anybody’s butt here, I just found it to be interesting and fresh and relatively unfiltered, with Harry explaining his departure from 97.5 the Fanatic and sharing some unique behind-the-scenes information about the station and radio in general.

Definitely listen to it if you have 30 minutes of free time, or if you’re stuck on the Schuylkill Expressway driving home today, or if you’re stuck on I-95 northbound at the construction zone. If you can’t, I thought it would be a good idea to transcribe some of the most relevant quotes and write out pieces of the interview right here in this space.

As far leaving the station, Mayes, a 13 year veteran and the longest tenured host at 97.5, confirmed that he was offered a gig on the morning show but ultimately did not take it because of the money.

“I just wasn’t comfortable with what I was going to be asked to do for the amount of money, and I just said, ‘I can’t do it,’ and that’s why we’re here today,” Mayes explained.

Kyles suggested that Harry would be a good morning show host, to which Mayes agreed, pointing out that he wasn’t against the idea of changing shifts, but noting that it would be a huge lifestyle and schedule change for both he and his wife.

“It came down late last week that (management) was going to be making a change to the midday show, and I didn’t know that our show was going to be touched,” he continued. I thought they were going to do something new with the mornings and I didn’t know that it had to do anything with my show, but they said, ‘we’d like you to go to the mornings’ and be like the update guy and the 2nd voice, 3rd voice, whatever you wanna say, on the morning show. And I was like, ‘okay, let’s talk about it.’ I was interested in that. Who wouldn’t want to be on a morning show?

“When it was presented, the financial situation just was not tenable. These guys that do morning shows, a lot of people don’t understand how hard they work and how early in the morning they get up and how much their schedule is impacted. You’re getting up at 3 a.m., some guys even earlier, and they’re going to bed at seven o’clock at night and their whole life is transformed. My wife’s life would have been transformed, and I was like, you know, ‘I’m gonna need X amount (of dollars) to do that.’ We tried to get there, they would not guarantee that, and so I couldn’t do it. It was like, ‘I need this, I told you this on Thursday and Friday and we got to Monday and it still didn’t happen,’ so we agreed to part ways with no hard feelings. But I would love to be on a morning show. There were certain things that needed to happen for that to take place, and that was not presented.”

Mayes went on to explain that he treated the midday show as a morning show, if that makes sense. If you listened to his shows with Tony Bruno or Rob Ellis or Jason Myrtetus, they were certainly more relaxed and less stiff, a little more lighthearted and “loose” like a Preston and Steve type of vibe. He says he learned a lot during middays and felt like doing a morning show with Bruno would have been successful, maybe even as a competitor for Angelo Cataldi at 94 WIP after 97.5 decided to do away with their national syndication and install a local program instead.

“For some reason it broke down and never happened, but I felt like that would have been a great morning show,” said Mayes of possibly working with Bruno from 6 to 10 a.m. ”

Apparently Harry has worked with more than 40 hosts, by his count, which doesn’t surprise me. He’d been on 97.5 for something like 10 years and came over from 950 AM before the Fanatic even existed, so he’s been around the block.

Mayes also admitted that he was focused on just doing “good radio” and not necessarily good sports radio, suggesting that he wasn’t 100% interested in talking about the same sports topics over and over again.

“We were many times told, ‘let’s get it back to the Eagles,’ and that became a running joke when I was with Rob Ellis,” said Mayes. “We had sound bites that we’d play for that. Like if we ever sort of got off the beaten path for too long, there might have been a phone call made to the producer (from management), saying, you know, ‘what are they doing here? Let’s get back on track.’ They don’t like things getting off the rails. I actually think the show is best when it’s getting off the rails, unless there is a real, serious good topic to discuss. I think that’s when I was at my best, and I think a lot of times I felt maybe hamstrung by that.”

Mayes says this idea of staying on track had been a thing “going back for years.” It was not specific to Program Director Eric Johnson or longtime former PD Matt Nahigian, who left the station last year.

Harry also revealed that he did not particularly enjoy doing shows with a heavy focus on social or political issues (the NFL’s national anthem controversy as an example). Those shows would bring out extremes on both sides of the argument, and sometimes, though rarely, he said he was encouraged to take a side on an issue when that wasn’t really his way of doing radio.

“The 90% Eagles onslaught at times got tiring for us as well,” he added. “We were thinking of ways to sprinkle in other topics or do different things and sort of set ourselves apart. But, working with somebody who you have great chemistry with, you don’t have to go to those lengths. It just sort of happens. That’s what I started to realize when I worked with Tony, when I worked with Rob and Jason, too. We had great chemistry, and that’s what I enjoyed about it, where we could sort of, 10 o’ clock comes around, the light comes on, and we might not have something big and heavy to get into, but ten after ten we’re into a good discussion. That’s what I felt was really good and authentic about the shows I’ve been on.”

What’s next for Mayes?

He’s not sure, but didn’t sound too keen on jumping back into sports radio, at least not right away.

“I’m really not interested in doing just, ‘hey the Eagles need a new cornerback, Jalen Mills sucks, 610-632..’ I’m kind of bored with that, to be honest with you.”

Mayes said he doesn’t expect to have anything lined up anytime soon, noting that we’re in the middle of the NFL season and that most shifts are filled and most contracts are signed. He’ll appear tonight on Tony Bruno’s podcast and you can listen to him with Kyle and Russ below:

The post “We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure appeared first on Crossing Broad.

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[flauntpage]

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure

If you listened to this morning’s Crossing Broadcast featuring Harry Mayes, thanks.

It was good, wasn’t it? I mean, I can say that right since I wasn’t on it? I’m not trying to blow sunshine up anybody’s butt here, I just found it to be interesting and fresh and relatively unfiltered, with Harry explaining his departure from 97.5 the Fanatic and sharing some unique behind-the-scenes information about the station and radio in general.

Definitely listen to it if you have 30 minutes of free time, or if you’re stuck on the Schuylkill Expressway driving home today, or if you’re stuck on I-95 northbound at the construction zone. If you can’t, I thought it would be a good idea to transcribe some of the most relevant quotes and write out pieces of the interview right here in this space.

As far leaving the station, Mayes, a 13 year veteran and the longest tenured host at 97.5, confirmed that he was offered a gig on the morning show but ultimately did not take it because of the money.

“I just wasn’t comfortable with what I was going to be asked to do for the amount of money, and I just said, ‘I can’t do it,’ and that’s why we’re here today,” Mayes explained.

Kyles suggested that Harry would be a good morning show host, to which Mayes agreed, pointing out that he wasn’t against the idea of changing shifts, but noting that it would be a huge lifestyle and schedule change for both he and his wife.

“It came down late last week that (management) was going to be making a change to the midday show, and I didn’t know that our show was going to be touched,” he continued. I thought they were going to do something new with the mornings and I didn’t know that it had to do anything with my show, but they said, ‘we’d like you to go to the mornings’ and be like the update guy and the 2nd voice, 3rd voice, whatever you wanna say, on the morning show. And I was like, ‘okay, let’s talk about it.’ I was interested in that. Who wouldn’t want to be on a morning show?

“When it was presented, the financial situation just was not tenable. These guys that do morning shows, a lot of people don’t understand how hard they work and how early in the morning they get up and how much their schedule is impacted. You’re getting up at 3 a.m., some guys even earlier, and they’re going to bed at seven o’clock at night and their whole life is transformed. My wife’s life would have been transformed, and I was like, you know, ‘I’m gonna need X amount (of dollars) to do that.’ We tried to get there, they would not guarantee that, and so I couldn’t do it. It was like, ‘I need this, I told you this on Thursday and Friday and we got to Monday and it still didn’t happen,’ so we agreed to part ways with no hard feelings. But I would love to be on a morning show. There were certain things that needed to happen for that to take place, and that was not presented.”

Mayes went on to explain that he treated the midday show as a morning show, if that makes sense. If you listened to his shows with Tony Bruno or Rob Ellis or Jason Myrtetus, they were certainly more relaxed and less stiff, a little more lighthearted and “loose” like a Preston and Steve type of vibe. He says he learned a lot during middays and felt like doing a morning show with Bruno would have been successful, maybe even as a competitor for Angelo Cataldi at 94 WIP after 97.5 decided to do away with their national syndication and install a local program instead.

“For some reason it broke down and never happened, but I felt like that would have been a great morning show,” said Mayes of possibly working with Bruno from 6 to 10 a.m. ”

Apparently Harry has worked with more than 40 hosts, by his count, which doesn’t surprise me. He’d been on 97.5 for something like 10 years and came over from 950 AM before the Fanatic even existed, so he’s been around the block.

Mayes also admitted that he was focused on just doing “good radio” and not necessarily good sports radio, suggesting that he wasn’t 100% interested in talking about the same sports topics over and over again.

“We were many times told, ‘let’s get it back to the Eagles,’ and that became a running joke when I was with Rob Ellis,” said Mayes. “We had sound bites that we’d play for that. Like if we ever sort of got off the beaten path for too long, there might have been a phone call made to the producer (from management), saying, you know, ‘what are they doing here? Let’s get back on track.’ They don’t like things getting off the rails. I actually think the show is best when it’s getting off the rails, unless there is a real, serious good topic to discuss. I think that’s when I was at my best, and I think a lot of times I felt maybe hamstrung by that.”

Mayes says this idea of staying on track had been a thing “going back for years.” It was not specific to Program Director Eric Johnson or longtime former PD Matt Nahigian, who left the station last year.

Harry also revealed that he did not particularly enjoy doing shows with a heavy focus on social or political issues (the NFL’s national anthem controversy as an example). Those shows would bring out extremes on both sides of the argument, and sometimes, though rarely, he said he was encouraged to take a side on an issue when that wasn’t really his way of doing radio.

“The 90% Eagles onslaught at times got tiring for us as well,” he added. “We were thinking of ways to sprinkle in other topics or do different things and sort of set ourselves apart. But, working with somebody who you have great chemistry with, you don’t have to go to those lengths. It just sort of happens. That’s what I started to realize when I worked with Tony, when I worked with Rob and Jason, too. We had great chemistry, and that’s what I enjoyed about it, where we could sort of, 10 o’ clock comes around, the light comes on, and we might not have something big and heavy to get into, but ten after ten we’re into a good discussion. That’s what I felt was really good and authentic about the shows I’ve been on.”

What’s next for Mayes?

He’s not sure, but didn’t sound too keen on jumping back into sports radio, at least not right away.

“I’m really not interested in doing just, ‘hey the Eagles need a new cornerback, Jalen Mills sucks, 610-632..’ I’m kind of bored with that, to be honest with you.”

Mayes said he doesn’t expect to have anything lined up anytime soon, noting that we’re in the middle of the NFL season and that most shifts are filled and most contracts are signed. He’ll appear tonight on Tony Bruno’s podcast and you can listen to him with Kyle and Russ below:

The post “We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure appeared first on Crossing Broad.

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[flauntpage]

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure

If you listened to this morning’s Crossing Broadcast featuring Harry Mayes, thanks.

It was good, wasn’t it? I mean, I can say that right since I wasn’t on it? I’m not trying to blow sunshine up anybody’s butt here, I just found it to be interesting and fresh and relatively unfiltered, with Harry explaining his departure from 97.5 the Fanatic and sharing some unique behind-the-scenes information about the station and radio in general.

Definitely listen to it if you have 30 minutes of free time, or if you’re stuck on the Schuylkill Expressway driving home today, or if you’re stuck on I-95 northbound at the construction zone. If you can’t, I thought it would be a good idea to transcribe some of the most relevant quotes and write out pieces of the interview right here in this space.

As far leaving the station, Mayes, a 13 year veteran and the longest tenured host at 97.5, confirmed that he was offered a gig on the morning show but ultimately did not take it because of the money.

“I just wasn’t comfortable with what I was going to be asked to do for the amount of money, and I just said, ‘I can’t do it,’ and that’s why we’re here today,” Mayes explained.

Kyles suggested that Harry would be a good morning show host, to which Mayes agreed, pointing out that he wasn’t against the idea of changing shifts, but noting that it would be a huge lifestyle and schedule change for both he and his wife.

“It came down late last week that (management) was going to be making a change to the midday show, and I didn’t know that our show was going to be touched,” he continued. I thought they were going to do something new with the mornings and I didn’t know that it had to do anything with my show, but they said, ‘we’d like you to go to the mornings’ and be like the update guy and the 2nd voice, 3rd voice, whatever you wanna say, on the morning show. And I was like, ‘okay, let’s talk about it.’ I was interested in that. Who wouldn’t want to be on a morning show?

“When it was presented, the financial situation just was not tenable. These guys that do morning shows, a lot of people don’t understand how hard they work and how early in the morning they get up and how much their schedule is impacted. You’re getting up at 3 a.m., some guys even earlier, and they’re going to bed at seven o’clock at night and their whole life is transformed. My wife’s life would have been transformed, and I was like, you know, ‘I’m gonna need X amount (of dollars) to do that.’ We tried to get there, they would not guarantee that, and so I couldn’t do it. It was like, ‘I need this, I told you this on Thursday and Friday and we got to Monday and it still didn’t happen,’ so we agreed to part ways with no hard feelings. But I would love to be on a morning show. There were certain things that needed to happen for that to take place, and that was not presented.”

Mayes went on to explain that he treated the midday show as a morning show, if that makes sense. If you listened to his shows with Tony Bruno or Rob Ellis or Jason Myrtetus, they were certainly more relaxed and less stiff, a little more lighthearted and “loose” like a Preston and Steve type of vibe. He says he learned a lot during middays and felt like doing a morning show with Bruno would have been successful, maybe even as a competitor for Angelo Cataldi at 94 WIP after 97.5 decided to do away with their national syndication and install a local program instead.

“For some reason it broke down and never happened, but I felt like that would have been a great morning show,” said Mayes of possibly working with Bruno from 6 to 10 a.m. ”

Apparently Harry has worked with more than 40 hosts, by his count, which doesn’t surprise me. He’d been on 97.5 for something like 10 years and came over from 950 AM before the Fanatic even existed, so he’s been around the block.

Mayes also admitted that he was focused on just doing “good radio” and not necessarily good sports radio, suggesting that he wasn’t 100% interested in talking about the same sports topics over and over again.

“We were many times told, ‘let’s get it back to the Eagles,’ and that became a running joke when I was with Rob Ellis,” said Mayes. “We had sound bites that we’d play for that. Like if we ever sort of got off the beaten path for too long, there might have been a phone call made to the producer (from management), saying, you know, ‘what are they doing here? Let’s get back on track.’ They don’t like things getting off the rails. I actually think the show is best when it’s getting off the rails, unless there is a real, serious good topic to discuss. I think that’s when I was at my best, and I think a lot of times I felt maybe hamstrung by that.”

Mayes says this idea of staying on track had been a thing “going back for years.” It was not specific to Program Director Eric Johnson or longtime former PD Matt Nahigian, who left the station last year.

Harry also revealed that he did not particularly enjoy doing shows with a heavy focus on social or political issues (the NFL’s national anthem controversy as an example). Those shows would bring out extremes on both sides of the argument, and sometimes, though rarely, he said he was encouraged to take a side on an issue when that wasn’t really his way of doing radio.

“The 90% Eagles onslaught at times got tiring for us as well,” he added. “We were thinking of ways to sprinkle in other topics or do different things and sort of set ourselves apart. But, working with somebody who you have great chemistry with, you don’t have to go to those lengths. It just sort of happens. That’s what I started to realize when I worked with Tony, when I worked with Rob and Jason, too. We had great chemistry, and that’s what I enjoyed about it, where we could sort of, 10 o’ clock comes around, the light comes on, and we might not have something big and heavy to get into, but ten after ten we’re into a good discussion. That’s what I felt was really good and authentic about the shows I’ve been on.”

What’s next for Mayes?

He’s not sure, but didn’t sound too keen on jumping back into sports radio, at least not right away.

“I’m really not interested in doing just, ‘hey the Eagles need a new cornerback, Jalen Mills sucks, 610-632..’ I’m kind of bored with that, to be honest with you.”

Mayes said he doesn’t expect to have anything lined up anytime soon, noting that we’re in the middle of the NFL season and that most shifts are filled and most contracts are signed. He’ll appear tonight on Tony Bruno’s podcast and you can listen to him with Kyle and Russ below:

The post “We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure appeared first on Crossing Broad.

“We Tried to Get There” – Harry Mayes on His 97.5 the Fanatic Departure published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/