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They like us, right now, they really like us - Printable Version

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Re: Fringe benefits - Extra Point - 05-30-2014

(05-30-2014, 12:58 PM)Papa John link Wrote:Gee, I'm just trying to fit in, Extra Point. No offense intended.

I wasn't responding to you in particular Papa John and I am not offended.

Good gawd - Redrum - 06-01-2014

It was the Star-News, not the News-News but nowadays it has been bought and sold and absorbed and combined so many times who knows how much is left?  But, a great place to start in the news biz.  Very old-movie newsroomish.  Editors and writers with bottles of whiskey tucked away in their file drawers.  Guys smoking on the job at the copy and editorial desks.  Stories phoned in and dictated to someone typing on a manual typewriter.  And the best part:  vacuum tubes (thwipp!) for sending copy, messages and proofs between editorial and composing on different floors.  All this, thanks to Ben Ridder (of the Knight-Ridder chain) who cared more about racing horses than newspapering.  So the second floor was where his office was and Santa Anita Race Track, a 15 min drive east, was where his heart/ and he was. When Ben croaked, so did Knight Ridder's benevolent tolerance of this movie set operation  and change became inevitable.  But we saw the first computer typesetting come in.

Before I went off to see the world I got to: tangle with head sports writer for his shameless felating of the Ohio St. Buckeyes before the 1971 Rose Bowl.  I got crossways with the typographers union and they staged a work stoppage. Very old school.  And while putting the paper to bed early on morning, for the first and only time I got to say "Stop the presses!!" and we got the story of the Palestinian attack on the Munich Olympics on the front page.  It was more fun than I've had in any job since.  What's weird is I don't remember John Freed. Perhaps he came after I left.  Or, I was drunk most of the time.  But if he was there, I hope he had as much fun as I had.

Re: Good gawd - Rally - 06-01-2014

(06-01-2014, 10:05 AM)Redrum link Wrote:It was the Star-News, not the News-News but nowadays it has been bought and sold and absorbed and combined so many times who knows how much is left?  But, a great place to start in the news biz.  Very old-movie newsroomish.  Editors and writers with bottles of whiskey tucked away in their file drawers.  Guys smoking on the job at the copy and editorial desks.  Stories phoned in and dictated to someone typing on a manual typewriter.  And the best part:  vacuum tubes (thwipp!) for sending copy, messages and proofs between editorial and composing on different floors.  All this, thanks to Ben Ridder (of the Knight-Ridder chain) who cared more about racing horses than newspapering.  So the second floor was where his office was and Santa Anita Race Track, a 15 min drive east, was where his heart/ and he was. When Ben croaked, so did Knight Ridder's benevolent tolerance of this movie set operation  and change became inevitable.  But we saw the first computer typesetting come in.

Before I went off to see the world I got to: tangle with head sports writer for his shameless felating of the Ohio St. Buckeyes before the 1971 Rose Bowl.  I got crossways with the typographers union and they staged a work stoppage. Very old school.  And while putting the paper to bed early on morning, for the first and only time I got to say "Stop the presses!!" and we got the story of the Palestinian attack on the Munich Olympics on the front page.  It was more fun than I've had in any job since.  What's weird is I don't remember John Freed. Perhaps he came after I left.  Or, I was drunk most of the time.  But if he was there, I hope he had as much fun as I had.

Loved this story, Redrum.  I could hear the typewriter keys clacking in the background, saw the cigarette about to burn a writer's hand, and even caught a glimpses out of the corner of my eye of a copy editor sneaking a pull on his bottle.  Thanks!

Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - Extra Point - 06-01-2014

(06-01-2014, 09:12 AM)garvin link Wrote:I had no idea John Freed (class of 1978, another of our Daily colleagues), was the Times ombudsman. Synchronicity: His first job out of Stanford was at the Pasadena News-News, which if I'm not mistaken was also the first job out of Stanford for Redrum. Also: grammar is for swine.

I wouldn't say grammar is for swine and editors certainly have a role to play. But, this role is janitorial.

Exceptional writers like Garvin have done a lot for this board, and they have done it purely out of love for Stanford athletics. Stanford fans have the opportunity to come here and feed their addiction with professionally written inside information anytime they need a fix. You have to wade through neurotic garbage for hours on other fan boards to find anything that approaches the level of writing you see here everyday.

I don't think people understand how much work and creativity it takes to write the way Garvin, Redrum, Terry, and others do. It is not easy! Unfortunately, when are you directing all of your attention to the message you want to convey and the most eloquent way of expressing your message, minor grammatical errors are going to go unnoticed. When Michael Angelo created a sculpture, he wasn't concerned about the marble chips on the floor. Someone else swept up at the end of the day. This person undoubtedly grumbled about how messy Michael was, but no one listened. The end result was a masterpiece. This isn't what happens here, though. When professional writers provide their services for free, they have to do their own janitorial work – Occasional grammatical errors are going to occur. But, grumbling about them is inappropriate. All to often the message is ignored and the only thing people talk about is an absolutely horrible egregious grammatical error.

PS  What is unusual about having a brandy when you boot up a new computer?


Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - CornFed - 06-01-2014

I do not think ANY disrespect is intended, EP.  Actually, I think that in some cases, it is offered as a straight line to elicit a snappy comeback from our most amusing contributors, like Garvin,  Case in point - "grammar is for swine".  My impression has been that the best writers among us get enough feedback from time to time about the appreciation we all have for the wit they share.  It might be that too much fawning would be offputting.  Right, Garvin?  Redrum?  CowboyIndian?  Mick?  Others?

Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - Rally - 06-01-2014

Extra Point, Michael Angelo may have had a janitor cleaning up after him but he never created any sculpture worth mentioning.  You may be thinking of Sig. Buonarroti?  :)

Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - CornFed - 06-01-2014

(06-01-2014, 03:09 PM)garvin link Wrote:It depends. Fawning on me never gets old. Fawning on Redrum is nauseating. (Kathy, poisoned by her festering editor genes, regards fawning on any writer as nauseating.) Fawning on Terry is probably billable; lawyers won't even bask in your admiration for free. Fawning on Dollies runs the risk of mentioning one Hulk plans to marry and he might beat you up. Fawning on Justin Vedder will make even 71Bear laugh out loud. And fawning on Uma Thurman is liable to make her turn suddenly in your direction, which is why being crushed by rogue nostrils is the fifth-most common cause of death in America.
See?  Set!  and SPIKE!

Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - Leftcoast - 06-01-2014

The Cardboard reminds me of Civil War reenactment. 

On the Cardboard the Dana/Uma wars make you think it's the 90s, the '72 Ink Bowl is relived in 2014, the Borg continually battle the Stepfords and, most topically, the skirmish between reporters and editors is fought nightly.  Like those guys wearing 19th century uniforms our obsessions are a little weird but it's in good fun and most importantly when the loud bangs are over and the smoke drifts away you find no one has been hurt.  Once you "get" this place you realize that these are our version of the casual jargon tuhat identifies a tribe. 

Don't take it personally when you get  a barbed note from Kathy or CI explaining the proper placement of the object of a preposition; it means we really like you.

Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - Kathy - 06-01-2014

(06-01-2014, 02:28 PM)Extra Point link Wrote:I wouldn't say grammar is for swine and editors certainly have a role to play. But, this role is janitorial.

I'm an editor, Extra Point, not a janitor. My skills are more in line with Rumpelstiltskin's — I spin straw into gold. 

Re: They like us, right now, they really like us - CowboyIndian - 06-01-2014

(06-01-2014, 02:28 PM)Extra Point link Wrote:All to often the message is ignored ....

I'm trying...but I can't ignore this.