Show Prep #35

Greetings and Salutations, people. Direct from beautiful Centennial, Colorado. It’s the radio show that is like 101 Dalmations, only with more dogs. This is Vertically Striped Radio. I am your host Craig Dodge,

Okay, before we get cranking on the show today, two weird things that happened to me this week. 1. I was standing at the light rail station waiting to go South when a North bound train pulled up on the other track, and I saw a big fat guy shaving. 2. The phone rang on Monday night, I picked it up and it was a telemarketer, I answered with my customary, “Hello.” And I was treated to this, “Is your Mommy or Daddy home?”

Today on Vertically Striped Radio: As mandated by the sports talk gods, we will talk a little bit about the AFC and NFC Championship games going down tomorrow. I am going to seek to restore a little bit of order in the world by providing a better Top 10, nay Top 20 list of the top dogs in pop culture. The American Kennel Club list left a nasty taste in my mouth, so with the help of some friends on the Dameshek.com message board, I’ve compiled a better list. It’s still probably not perfect, but it’s so much better than the AKC’s list.

Give out the phone number - (646) 716-6831 OR 6-HOP-1-MOVE-1
Email address: radio@verticallystripedsocks.com
If you’d like to chat with the show and it’s listeners as Vertically Striped Radio broadcasts live, you can point your internet machine over to DAMNradio.blogspot.com where there is a chat room open for your convenience.


Let’s get to the news…
(Play News Music – Clip 03)

LONDON (Reuters) – International hotel chain Holiday Inn is offering a trial human bed-warming service at three hotels in Britain this month.

If requested, a willing staff-member at two of the chain's London hotels and one in the northern English city of Manchester will dress in an all-in-one fleece sleeper suit before slipping between the sheets.

"The new Holiday Inn bed warmers service is a bit like having a giant hot water bottle in your bed," Holiday Inn spokeswoman Jane Bednall said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
The bed-warmer is equipped with a thermometer to make sure the bed reaches the required temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit.

Holiday Inn said the warmer would be fully dressed and leave the bed before the guest occupied it. They could not confirm if the warmer would shower first, but said hair would be covered.
Florence Avis, Holiday Inn spokeswoman told Royters that the "innovative" bed-warming method was a response to Britain's recent cold weather, She could not explain why the beds were not being warmed by hot water bottles or electric-blankets, but did admit that the human method was quirky.

Holiday Inn are promoting the service with the help of sleep-expert Chris Idzikowski, director of the Edinburgh Sleep Center, who said the idea could help people sleep. Idzikowski was quoted as saying "There's plenty of scientific evidence to show that sleep starts at the beginning of the night when body temperature starts to drop," he said. "A warm bed - approximately 68 to 76 degrees Fahrenheit - is a good way to start this process whereas a cold bed would inhibit sleep."


LONDON (Reuters) – A British department store chain has created a gift list for those wishing to help a loved one with the pain...and party atmosphere of modern divorce.
Debenhams said it launched a divorce gift list service to reflect the increasing popularity of greeting cards, parties and cakes celebrating divorces as well as provide assistance to someone who has had to divide the assets.
"A divorce means that one partner will be leaving the marital home and therefore be left without any essentials in their new house," Debenhams head of retail services Peter Moore said in a statement.
"Divorcing can be an expensive time and registering for a divorce gift list means that family and friends can help the newly separated begin their new life."
Items on the divorce gift list include cookware, cutlery, crockery, glasses, bed linen, towels, small electrical goods such as toasters and microwaves as well as non-iron shirts, large plasma screen TVs and computer games.

Our last two stories are rather dripping with irony, which I always enjoy.
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Organizers of the "Antiquities Theft in Israel" exhibition could not have chosen a more fitting name for their display.
Burglars on Wednesday broke into the Ashdod Museum where hundreds of artifacts recovered from the black-market were on show and snatched several valuable items, including a silver ring belonging to Alexander the Great and gold earrings.
The Israel Antiquities Authority said the popular exhibition had been running for four years.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Sheriff's deputies in central Florida found a suspected car thief playing the "Grand Theft Auto" video game, and they later charged him with just that.
Polk County deputies investigating the theft of a 1998 Dodge Durango arrested 30-year-old Michael Ray Ekes on Thursday. They found the SUV outside a Haines City home. Ekes was inside in the house, playing the popular video game.
Ekes was charged with grand theft auto, burglary and drug possession. At the time of his arrest, he was out of jail on bond for another grand theft auto charge.
I’m Craig, and that’s the news…(Play News Music – Clip 03)
MAIN TOPIC:


NFL Playoffs: (Play Clip 18 – Luke predicts the weekend’s games)

Jets-Colts: Colts 33 Jets 13
Vikings-Saints: Saints 31 Vikings 28

What is the best possible Super Bowl Match-Up?

Other football news:

Broncos to play 49ers in London next year: All around London folks were saying, (Play Clip 19)

Is Washington a good place for Mike Shanahan?

Pete Carroll leaving USC for the Seahawks. Is this a move because he wanted the challenge of an NFL gig, or is it rats fleeing the Titanic?

Is the Rooney Rule a good idea?


Movie reviews: “The Road” and “The Princess and The Frog”
(and defend “Almost Famous” and “The Shawshank Redemption)



NEW YORK (Reuters) – The "Peanuts" comic strip character Snoopy was named the top dog in pop culture by the American Kennel Club on Tuesday as part of its 125th anniversary celebration, beating out a college sports mascot.
Nearly 76,000 online voters chose their favorites from a list of pop culture dogs drawn from television, film, literature, sports and art, the kennel club said.

Snoopy was the pensive dog whose best friend was a bird and who seemed to be smarter than his human master in the comic strip created by the late Charles Schulz, who died in 2000.

"Peanuts," which for close to five decades served as a mirror for the baby boom generation, appeared in 2,600 newspapers in 21 languages. Its daily readership was believed to be the most of any comic strip in history.
Second place went to Texas A&M University's mascot Reveille, followed by Scooby Doo, the television cartoon character.
The top 10:
1. Snoopy
2. Texas A&M's Reveille
3. Scooby Doo
4. Eddie from the TV show "Frasier"
5. Pound Puppy toys
6. Painting "Dogs Playing Poker"
7. Song "How Much is that Doggie in the Window"
8. Georgetown's Jack the Bulldog
9. The song "Who Let the Dogs Out"
10. Brian Griffin from the animated TV show Family Guy

The new improved Top 10, er 20:

Just Missing the Cut:
25 Puffy from Something About Mary
24 Petey from the Little Rascals
23 Lassie
22 Pluto
21 Cujo

20 The Bumpus Hounds from A Christmas Story
19 Odie
18 Huckleberry Hound
17 Cleveland Dawg Pound
16 Santas Little Helper
15 Triumph the Insult Comic Dog
14 Toto
13 Old Yeller
12 Baxter from Anchorman – Play Clip 21 – Eating whole wheels of cheese and pooping in the fridge
11 Dog the Bounty Hunter
10 Mr. Peabody – Play Clip 22 – The WABAC machine made history fun
9 Uga - University of Georgia
8 Scooby Doo
7 Cerberus
6 The Taco Bell "Yo Quiero" Chihuahua – Play Clip 23
5 Mike Vick's Dogs
4 Snoop Dogg
3 Snoopy
2 Spuds McKenzie – Play Clip 24 – So Cheesy…it just had to be the 80’s
1 Tina Fey



Magnificent 7: Seven things people driving around me need to stop doing.

1. Stopping at a flashing yellow.
2. Stopping at a continuous merging lane.
3. Driving the speed limit or slower in the left lane.
4. Getting over into my lane directly in front of me and then slowing down.
5. Three Words: No turn signal
6. Braking for no logical reason
7. Not pulling into the intersection to turn left when the light is green but you don’t have a green arrow.

Ashley Revell - (born 1972) is a London resident who briefly achieved fame for selling all his possessions (including all his clothes) and gambling US$135,300 on a single spin of a roulette wheel in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2004.
Revell won his bet (on Red; the result was 7 Red) and left with $270,600. The event was filmed by Sky One as a reality mini-series. Ashley used his winnings to set up his own online poker company called POKER UTD.

Who is the best opponent in Mike Tyson’s punchout?


Imelda Marcos:

The Vertically Striped Music Recommendation:
Wilco – Sky Blue Sky (White Light – Clip 20)

Thanks to: (Whoever called)
We’ll be meeting up with our friend Trace Smith pretty soon, he’ll be coming on Vertically Striped Radio soon, and I’ll be making an appearance on his very fine Southeast Sports Beat Program…He had The Ed on earlier this week in a solid appearance from Mr. Miller. You can check Trace out over at blogtalkradio.com/southeastsportsbeat

Shalom and Good Evening to you all!