Meeting a Famous Person, Defining Woke and Ballpark Prices

Woody Allen and Dick Cavett

If you could meet a famous person, who would you choose?

This was a discussion topic I tossed my students’ way a few days ago. I’ve used it regularly over the years. Today I thought I’d field the question myself.

I would love to meet Dick Cavett who during some of my formative years hosted a late night chat show. The Dick Cavett show can be found on the Decades network nightly at six though it appears that its days there are numbered. In any event, I always greatly admired Cavett the comedian, the interviewer and the writer (I have all his books, a couple of which are comprised of the columns he wrote for the New York Times). I always related to Cavett, we had a version of the same first name (I’ve never been a Dick — well not by name, anyway). We are of about the same height (not tall) and are blonde. We are both wits though I’d be the first to admit that he is my superior. He has also always leaned to the left (though not quite as far as I have) and even made Nixon’s enemies list (Tricky Dick did not know enough of yours truly to place me on it). Cavett is one of three great U.S. chat show hosts (my opinion, of course) along with David Letterman and Seth Meyers. (Jack Paar, Steve Allen and Johnny Carson would rank just behind them.)

I would also like to meet Woody Allen maybe especially given how he has suffered unfairly from false and easily disprovable accusations. Of course more than that he is my second favorite director of all time (Ingmar Bergman is first). First as a comedian and later as a director/actor/screenwriter/essayist he’s given me countless hours of entertainment over the last six decades. Maybe I could do a two-for-one and meet both Cavett and Allen, after all they are life long friends.

I’d also thrill at meeting Paul McCartney another celebrity who has been enriching my life through his art since I was a child. Plus, and you probably know this, he's a Beatle.

If any of you are in a position to affect introductions I would greatly appreciate it.

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

A conservative author, Bethany Mandel, who wrote a book about how wokeism is harming American youth failed to define the term in a recent interview. Hilarious. If you’re a conservative and something scares or threatens you, simply call it woke, nothing is more terrifying and never mind that you can’t define your terms. This is today’s conservative: divorced from reality, creating false narratives, straw man arguments and scaring the bejeezus out of each other. They’re bent on destruction with no ideas or plans to offer (other than tax cuts for their wealthy patrons). By the way, here’s how our good friends at Merriam Webster define woke:  “aware of and actively attentive to important societal facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice)." I can see how that would scare the hell out of a conservative. 

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

Someone recently tweeted a list of concession prices for the San Francisco Giants 1971 baseball season. It should come as no surprise that by today’s standards everything was ridiculously cheap. The most expensive of the four hot dogs on offer was a staggering 75 cents, a hamburger was 65 cents, a beer 50 cents and a “premium” beer 60. Sodas were a quarter. Today a twenty dollar bill would not cover the price of a burger and beer. But -- you say -- inflation. We make a lot more money these days so of course everything is more expensive. Fair enough, so what should that burger and brew that set you back a buck and a quarter cost today. According to the inflation calculator your total for today SHOULD be $9.28. I’m going to make this clear (for myself if no one else) a ballpark meal has more than doubled in value against the dollar in the past fifty years. Way more than doubled. 

Why?

On the one hand that’s the way of the world today where billion dollar corporations can’t soak us regular folk enough. Plus there are those exorbitant salaries that have to be paid. But shouldn’t the massive increase in revenues from TV and streaming and advertising cover a large chunk of salaries? Now we’re getting into areas that are beyond my ken. What I know for certain is that fans are getting soaked. Hell, look at ticket prices. When I was a high school student it was nothing for my friends and I to go to a game. Today even shelling out for a bleacher seat is enough to give one pause. Sure your average Joe or Josephine can make it to a game, maybe even buy a hot dog and soda, but it will put a dent into the wallet and may be awhile before you can go again. Again I long for the good ole days.