Bzzzzzzzzzzz... Guess who? That's right humans, it's your friendly neighborhood Sports Fly! All apologies for my absence, but I found this cow whom it gave me particular pleasure to annoy. You know, land on the eyeball, get blinked off, land on the eyeball again... that sort of thing. Endless entertainment, to be sure, but as you know, it's never too long before I'm back to my usual rounds. There's simply too much love inside me to deprive you of the perspective that only a fly on the wall can provide.
Bzzzzzzzzzzz... And that is precisely what makes today's installment so special! Undoubtedly, each of you has wondered from time to time what it must be like behind the scenes at the Worldwide Leader, and 1/14 inch body size notwithstanding, I am really no different from the rest of you. So here I am in Bristol, Connecticut for a visit to ESPN Studios, where hipster producers are said to rule with iron fists and silver tongues.
Bzzzzzzzzzzz... Hey, one of those mythical producers is meeting with an intern right now! What a perfect place to start!
PRODUCER: How's the editing going for tonight's "Blink-And-You'll-Miss-It Overstimulating Rock n' Roll Highlight Reel"?
INTERN: Well, I've got it all cued up. Take a look for yourself and tell me what you think!
(14.3 SECONDS LATER...)
PRODUCER: What the hell is this?
INTERN: It's the "Blink-And-You'll-Miss-It Overstimulating Rock n' Roll Highlight Reel".
PRODUCER: No. It's just not. I hate to tell you this, but I can actually focus on the images. I'm not sure who trained you on the ESPN-style highlight loop, but if it's edited properly, I shouldn't be able to tell if I'm looking at LeBron James or Secretariat. Think strobe light, my friend! Strobe light!
INTERN: You got it!
PRODUCER: Now fix it up while I go have a talk with Steve Berthiaume. He did the "say hello to my little friend" thing one time too many and his numbers on the "Now" index went way down.
Bzzzzzzzzzzz... A "Now" index, eh? That sounds interesting, but the melancholy piano music I hear can only mean one thing: They're about to tape a segment for that new sports journalism show "E-60". These guys are real pros, folks- definitely worth checking out!
REPORTER: Well, first of all, congratulations! You hit .343, and drove in 130 runs. I'd say that's a pretty decent year, wouldn't you?
BASEBALL PLAYER: (TURNING RED) Heh, heh. Pretty decent, I guess.
REPORTER: Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's all well and good, but as a legitimate sports journalist, that's not really my concern. Now something happened before the season that changed your life forever, didn't it? Something terrible...
BASEBALL PLAYER: Yes, something did happen.
REPORTER: What was it?
BASEBALL PLAYER: Well, my father and I were vacationing in the Australian Outback and he was mauled by a kangaroo. We rushed him to the hospital, but by the time we got there, he had lost too much blood and they couldn't save him. An hour later, he was gone. He was the one who taught me how to play baseball...
REPORTER: Tell us what he said to you as he lay there in that hospital bed, dying- dying a deadening death- a death so deadly it rendered him dead. And lifeless. Forever.
BASEBALL PLAYER: He told me to go out and be the best baseball player I could be, and that he would always be with me.
REPORTER: And tell us what was it like to stand over him at the very end when he physically died, torturously and irreversably, to the point of deadness.
BASEBALL PLAYER: Oh, it was horrible. It felt like a part of me had just died, too.
REPORTER: Did it make you... sad?
BASEBALL PLAYER: Yes, incredibly sad.
REPORTER: Did it make you want to... cry?
BASEBALL PLAYER: Yes.
(SHORT PAUSE)
REPORTER: And...?
(LONG PAUSE)
BASEBALL PLAYER: And it was probably the hardest day of my life.
REPORTER: (TURNS TO PRODUCTION CREW) Oh, screw it! Just spray the onion fumes already so we can wrap.
PLAYER: Can I still talk about my foundation for victims of kangaroo attacks?
REPORTER: Look, you just cost me an Emmy. Don't you think you've done enough for one day?
Bzzzzzzzzzzz... How depressing! Now I know why I regurgitate my food. But fear not- I just found an interview that should be a little more upbeat! A new job candidate has just arrived with dreams of joining the ESPN Deportes family... And we're off!
PRODUCER: Como que pasa, mi hombrino? Welcome to ESPN Deportes. I'm Perry Nissler, and you are?
INTERVIEWEE: Gustavo Ordonez, sir.
PRODUCER: Well, pleased to meet you there, G-Ord! Have a seat and we'll get this thing started.
INTERVIEWEE: Actually, I prefer to be called Gustavo.
PRODUCER: I'm sorry, G-Ord, but that's not the ESPN way. You see, we have a little saying around here: "First initial, first syllable". That means we take the first initial of someone's first name and the first syllable of his last name and combine them to form his ESPN name- just like we do with every athlete we mention in our broadcasts. Derek Fisher is D-Fish. Tracy McGrady is T-Mac. And I'm Perry Nissler, so what does that make me?
INTERVIEWEE: P-Nis?
PRODUCER: E-zizzle-zaclty! You're a quick one, G-Ord! So tell me, what qualities make you the right guy for this position?
INTERVIEWEE: Well, I have great people skills- and I'm also very gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooal -oriented!
PRODUCER: WOW! You just earned yourself some dap, young man! How long have you been waiting to use that line?
INTERVIEWEE: My whole life, sir. Just being here is a like dream come true!
PRODUCER: Alright! Let's get you behind the desk and have you read a little from the teleprompter. Sound good?
INTERVIEWEE: I'm ready!
PRODUCER: OK, rolling in 3, 2, (POINTS AT HIM INSTEAD OF SAYING "ONE")
INTERVIEWEE: In a spirited contest with minimal rioting, Atletico Nacionale defeated Sportivo Luqueno 3-0 to pull into a tie with Sao Paolo atop Group 7 in early round action at the 2008 Libertadores Cup.
PRODUCER: Cut, CUT, CUT!!! G-Ord, why are you not reading with a South American accent?
INTERVIEWEE: Because the words are written in English, and they're intended for a North American audience. Plus I'd feel like a complete tool if I spoke in a phony South American accent just to create some transparent sense of authenticity.
PRODUCER: You just don't get it, do you, G-Ord? Leave now, and don't come back until you're ready to sell out!
INTERVIEWEE: Whatever you say... P-Nis! (EXITS)
PRODUCER: (TO HIMSELF) What did he just call me?
Bzzzzzzzzzzz... Jeez, that was scarier than Chris Berman during a commercial break! No more interviews of any kind fo me, thank you. Let's get our creative juices flowing instead with a little visit to the corporate think tank. Oooh! Looks like the Research and Development team is already there! I bet they're busy concocting the next super-fresh idea to hit the airwaves...
PRODUCER: So, Jason... what hip, new ways have you come up with to say "sponsored by"?
JASON: Well, I'm thinking "charged by" would be a good one, as in, "and now for the 'Blink-And-You'll-Miss-It Overstimulating Rock n' Roll Highlight Reel', charged by Duracell batteries." And I also came up with "infused by", as in, "and now for the Pre-Fantasy Draft War Room, infused by Vitamin Water."
PRODUCER: Oooooooooh, yes! YES!!! I can feel an infusion of hipness overtaking me as we speak! Well done, my protege. Dap for Jason, everybody! (TURNS TOWARD EMPLOYEE #2) And how about you, Randy? What uber-trendy substitutes have you created for the term "home run"?
RANDY: Well the first idea that hit me was inspired by my college physics classes, and that one is "completing the circuit"- not to be confused with "hitting for the cycle", heh heh heh... (SILENCE)... You know, because when a guy hits a home run, he completes a circuit around the bases... (MORE SILENCE)... yep... so... anyway... the next one I thought of was "mashed tater", because "tater" is already a term for a home run, so I figured "mashed tater" could be used when a guy hits one like, 500 feet... or something like that... (EVEN MORE SILENCE)
PRODUCER: I'm not feeling the "it", Randy. I'm ####eless over here. Now give me something catchy while I go and scold Neil Everett. He did an NCAA bracket report and said "favorite" instead of "chalk".
RANDY: Will do.
PRODUCER: Oh, and Randy?
RANDY: Yes?
PRODUCER: You'd better start thinking more like Jason or you're gonna wind up working at Fox.
Bzzzzzzzzzzz... Aw, come on! Take it from a guy who turns a Port A Pot into an all-you-can-eat buffet. It can't be THAT bad! ;)
OMG, freaking HILARIOUS!! Loved the interaction between G-Ord and P-Nis!! Loved how you put a needle in ESPN's balloon by illustrating the fallacy of their self-importance.
Jon, I'm so glad you "get it" (although the real-life versions of my fictional producers would probably not be as amused lol), and thanks to your kind comment you will NOT be thrown under the bus! :)
fly...jon, the bus driver, called it, hilarious! First time I've read your stuff. Won't be the last. I can't watch espn during basketball season for the reasons you give here.
I'm trying to get back into it, but I don't post nearly as much as I used to on here, so I at least try to make sure it's worth someone's time to check out.
As for ESPN, it's pretty much a love-hate thing with me. Some of the cheesy lingo they use is pure torture, yet I'm watching morning, noon, and night.
Anyway, thanks again for the feedback- always appreciated!
TSI
You're hittin' 'em outta the park once again bro' ! This one landed way up in the rafters. It went so high that even Tara Reid that it was cool. And we all know how what Paris would've thought of it don't we ? 'Ooooh that's hot' .
Hey is there room on your the casting couch for both Paris and Tara ? I'd dare that they wouldn't mind interning for someone somehow ? Especially knowing their lack of inherent talent.
tophat, this was a blog I came up with a long time ago, but never got around to writing. Still, it was too good of an idea not to use, as we can all certainly relate to the unnecessarily slick packaging of their product.
As for Paris and Tara, I guess the lesson here is you can do a lot with very little talent... if you're hot.
YeeMum, As you can see, the timing of the message you sent me couldn't have been better! Yes, I'm busy, but I'm making a sincere effort to get back to blogging regularly. Time constraints be damned!
SI-you have been vacationing LONG ENOUGH! You need to come back to "BLOGLAND" ASAP and help me get throgh my less than exhilerating existence with your super wit and brilliant humor. PLEASE? Loved this post!
"I may have misread that" Even your comments crack me up, dude! If you ever lose your gift for sarcasm, I'm going to come through your computer screen and give you a... stern lecture.
As the struggles and lessons of life continue, so, too, does our fascination with sport, for within its regulated drama we find the human experience so aptly mirrored.
Greetings, fellow connoisseurs, I am The Sports Intellectual. My soul burns with a passion for sport that belies my lack of formal writing experience.
I hail from the land of Columbus, where Buckeyes roam the streets, their moods determined by the latest performance of our footballers.
Though my Blog moniker and ornate prose may smack of the erudite, I do enjoy the occasional peptic outburst and scratching of the nether regions.
May our banter enlighten us all!
