Gaylon Watson’s interview with Rocky Marciano

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Most radio guys (I’m talking pre-1990) have lots of “Brush With Near Greatness” stories. I know I do. Some famous or almost-famous celebrity or performer they interviewed back-stage or who came by the station. Shoot, it’s a big part of why most of us got into radio. My new pal Gaylon Watson recalled interviewing Rocky Marciano.

Marciano was the World Heavyweight Champion from September 23, 1952, to April 27, 1956. Marciano is the only person to hold the heavyweight title and go untied and undefeated throughout his career. I find this story noteworthy because Marciano was reduced to refereeing cheesy professional wrestling matches at the VFW in Kennett, MO. I can only assume he beat the shit out of his agent.

Gaylon Watson

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Gaylon Watson and smays
Yesterday I drove to the little town of Piedmont, in southeast Missouri, to meet Gaylon Watson. Gaylon worked at KBOA back in the fifties and I have long wanted to meet him and capture some oral history from those early days of the station where my father and I once worked. Gaylon’s eighty now but healthy and sharp as a tack. His 28 years in broadcasting covered a lot of ground and we only captured some of it in this recording.
Gaylon’s eighty now but healthy and sharp as a tack. His 28 years in broadcasting covered a lot of ground and we only captured some of it in this recording. We had to leave some on the editing room floor because of the noisy restaurant. After lunch Gaylon gave me the “Chamber of Commerce” tour of Piedmont (where he was mayor for 16 years) and then took me to meet his three dogs who live in splendor on 20 beautiful acres in the Missouri Ozarks.

The average American life, in one chart

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The kids at Vox have yet to disappoint with their graphics. Take a look at this chart.

  • The average American man lives to about 76, and the average woman until 81. In that lifespan, the average person will spend more than five decades going to school and working — with just two to three decades left over for being a toddler and retiree.
  • Americans are getting married later in life. The typical man got married at 28 in 2011, up from 22 in 1960. [I was 30 when I got married. A good decision]
  • The average length of a US marriage that ends in divorce is about seven years. [As in 7 Year Itch]
  • In 1991 and 1993, the average retirement age was 57. In 2014, that rose to 62.

Why do they skip past the commercials?

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Veteran US journalist Bob Garfield has been writing about “media chaos” for while and paints a gloomy picture for journalists, media companies and advertising agencies.

“Why do they they skip past the commercials? For the same reason he puts spam filters on his computer and refuses to click on any banner ad ever for any reason at any time,” he said. “Advertising people like to give trophies to one another for their creative genius and parade like Tony the Tiger down Madison Avenue every Fall during ad week. But if they think people love their ads they are sorely, tragically mistaken.

“For more than three centuries consumers have put up with ads. Some ads are funny and clever and some even worm their way into our heads and popular culture. But they are and have always been a nuisance. To most people all advertising is spam. The proof being that the moment technology afforded us the ability to skip them, skip them we have.”

“So if you were looking forward to a great career in media and marketing it might be a good idea to remove your belt and shoelaces. […] Asked about the future for a 30-something journalist, he said: “You are fucked,” adding that a journalist friend with years of experience now waters plants in offices for a living.

Why Asians save and earn so much

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The article starts with a little research: “A 2010 Pew Research study pegged Asian households earning a median $66,000 a year vs. $49,800 for the average US household, a 32% difference. A 2013 Nielsen Research Report found that Asian American households have a median net worth of $89,300 compared to $68,800 for overall US households, a 30% difference. Meanwhile, roughly 49% of Asian Americans have Bachelor’s degrees vs. 28% of the general US population, a 75% difference.”

The author identifies several contributing factors. I like these two: 1) Asians are allergic to debt. Debt is slavery. 2) There is nothing more important to the Asian American population than academics.