Category Archives: Friends

John Mayer on Sheryl Crow

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John Mayer and Sheryl CrowSheryl Crow and John Mayer recently toured together and during the next-to-last date, John Mayer come onstage during SC’s set, dressed as a bear. The following night, Ms. Crow interrupted his set, wearing a bikini and waving around a baton (I’m pretty sure she was a twirler in high school). Based on this post from Mr. Mayer’s blog (10/12/06), they had a good time:

“Sheryl – I hope you realize, even if for a fleeting moment just once a day, that everything you’ve ever hoped you would be, you are. I’ve never heard you sing a sour note, your record collection could freeze a Lower East Side hipster dead in his tracks and you have one of the hardest to find traits in a musician; you believe that nice isn’t the opposite of bad-ass. Add to that the great people you surround yourself with, and it’s no wonder I walk away from every conversation with you feeling like I expend twice the energy but say half as much as you do.”

Ms. Crow looks pretty good (for any age). There’s no permalink to the specific post on the Mayer blog.

Mike Neely: 1948-2006

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Mike Neely died last week. I’m not sure about the date or just how he died. I’m told his health had not been good in recent years. I spoke with his mother, Myra, tonight and she said Mike and his family had visited in September. His death was “not real” to her yet.

Mike NeelyMike lived next door and we were best buds all through grade school. His family moved to California about the time we were starting high school. I think he did a couple of years of junior college before enlisting in the air force and serving in Thailand. After his discharge he moved back to Kennett and attended college at Arkansas State where he got an accounting degree. He went to work for some big accounting firm (Frost?) and they sent him to St. Thomas, VI. He and Jeanine have been there ever since.

Many of my best childhood memories include Mike. He was something of a golden boy. Great at all sports. Popular. He was a good kid. (He’s on the left in the photo above)

Mike and I could always make each other laugh. I’m talking about hysterical, gasping, tears-streaming-down-your-cheeks, can’t-get-your-breath laughter that literally leaves you rolling on the floor.

We didn’t keep in touch in recent years, as is often the case with childhood friends. I regret that. I might never laugh that hard again.

Mike and his wife, Jeanine, have two sons, Luke and Jake.

Jeff McVey studies Kung Fu in China

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Jeff McVeyBack in May, I posted on Jeff McVey and his wife (Deborah) who I live in a martial arts academy in a small village in the mountains outside of Yantai, China… studying Kung Fu from the Shaolin Monks who teach there. (I shit you not)

“I had my first kickboxing match this week. I think I did pretty well. They weren’t actually keeping points, but I controlled the fight and got in some good hits. It’s a little nerve racking to just put on a pair of gloves and go at someone. I know we practice this stuff daily, but it’s a different story when someone is trying to knock you out. However, I really liked it. It’s the best practice you can do for that sort of thing. I think I’ll be a bit more confident the next time we do this.”

John Reeder: 1924-2006

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John ReederJohn Reeder (known on-air as Johnny Mack Reeder) passed away in Mt. Ida, Arkansas on October 10, 2006, at the age of 82. John was living in a nursing home at the time of his death. He’ll be buried in Blytheville, Arkansas. John helped put KBOA on the air in 1947. He and my father worked together until John left Kennett (in the fifties sixties?). John Reeder was a great broadcaster. He established KBOA’s reputation for local news coverage. You can hear John’s great pipes in the brief interview segment on KBOA830.com. John was a talented and avid photographer and took literally hundreds of photos of the early days of KBOA. Almost every image on the KBOA830.com site was taken by John.

Colorado images by Henry Domke

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Willows by a Creek

Henry shares some beautiful (a poor adjective in this instance) images from his recent trip to Colorado, where he concentrated on Lichen and of the Aspen trees.

“At first glance the colors of the skies, leaves and lichen appear to be too saturated to me, but that is the color they were.”

You’ll also find some amazing new images at Henry’s website.

Dr. Everett Mobley: Your dog’s “wolf-score”

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Dr. Everett Mobley blogs at Your Pet’s Best Friend. He started in September and his posts just get more and more interesting and informative.

Now look at your dog. Notice the parts that look wolf-like and the parts that don’t. What kind of a wolf percentage do you have? Chances are that the lower your wolf-score, the more built-in problems your pet has.

You never know who’s going to be a good blogger. By “good” I mean someone who posts frequently and writes in an open and personal voice. I confess that I find it very gratifying to play even a tiny role in helping someone get started blogging. YPBF is a must-read for anyone with a pet.

Delta Fair Parade

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Charles Jolliff shares his flickr set of the 2006 Delta Fair Parade. Brings back lots of memories. My first radio interview (1972) was with Bill Walsh and Jack McDaniel, the Kennett businessmen who have been organizing the parade for about 50 years. My end of the interview was so bad, I spliced (magnetic tape, grease pencil, splicing block) in new questions. Took hours.

For years, Jeff Wheeler, Tom Colvin and I broadcast the parade live (You had to be there).

Back in the fifties, my father rode in the the parade in a wheelbarrow, as part of a radio station promotion. God bless America!

Your Pet’s Best Friend

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Kennett pal Everett Mobley started blogging recently. He’s still finding his rhythm but is off to a great start. The blog is primarily a companion to the website for his veterinary practice and I predict it will be very popular if he keeps posting useful and interesting information like today’s on dental care for dogs. If you have pets, you’ll want to visit and subscribe to Your Pet’s Best Friend.

Interview: Dan Arnall, Business Editor, ABC News

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Dan ArnallIn the mid-90’s (1996? 1995) I went searching for someone that could help our our company get online. Websites were a new thing and I didn’t have a clue where to start, so I called Mike McKean at the University of Missouri School of Journalism (not sure if he was a professor back then) and he said he had a student that was really sharp, had his own web page, and might be just what we were looking for.

I met with Dan who told me he and his best friend, Allen Hammock, had a company that could do just what we needed. I think the company was about 10 minutes old at that moment but we wound up hiring Dan and Allen (who became affectionately known as the Cyber Twins) to guide Learfield into the new digital age.

We got wet –like everybody else– when the Internet bubble burst and Dan and Allen moved on to pursue their careers. Dan, a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, kicked around in Seattle and San Francisco for a bit and then went back to to get his masters degree at Columbia University.

We chatted for half and hour earlier this evening, talking about his duties at ABC; the changing world of journalism and media; living in Manhatten and Brushes with Near Greatness (John Lithgow and Tony Danza). (AUDIO: 30 min, 10 meg MP3)

Technical Note: After screwing the pooch on a couple of Skype interviews, I’m proud to report this sounds pretty good. I was a tad hot but I didn’t lose the interview.