Happy Thanksgiving 2022!

What’s happening:

Macy’s may be better known, but America’s Thanksgiving Parade takes place TODAY in Detroit! Here are the details.

In 1967, Arlo Guthrie released his debut album. The 18 minute cut on side one told the story of Arlo’s adventures one Thanksgiving in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Alice’s Restaurant became a counter culture anthem that launched the son of the legendary Woodie Guthrie to the upper echelons of 60s rock and roll culture. The 1969 Arthur Penn film cemented to story into our consciousness.

Arlo’s other notable film appearance came in 1970, documenting his performance at Woodstock during the summer of 1969. But he would only chart on the Top 40 with a Steve Goodman penned tale about riding the rails on the famous Illinois Central’s City of New Orleans. That album was Hobo’s Lullaby, a collection on the Warner Reprise label that made it’s debut right around the time that WKNR faded into history.

Every Thanksgiving, those of us who still own the LP dig it out of the closet, dust it off, pop it on the turntable and head back to a time when being a litter bug could get you into real trouble.

Continue reading “Happy Thanksgiving 2022!”

Share:

Keener Today – November 23

What’s Happening:

Normal Rockwell - Freedom from WantWorried about those inevitable Thanksgiving dinner table disagreements? Jim Otteson, a professor of business ethics at Notre Dame, tells Axios it’s OK to let those with differing opinions score some points. Author Melody Stanford Martin says, acknowledging that you might not agree before a debate even begins, transforms the pressure to win into a desire to understand. (More)

Will you get up early to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and recline after the meal to watch the Lions take on the Bills? TV ratings for both events continue to deliver viewers with some declines for the parade, but a record high last year for football. Continue reading “Keener Today – November 23”

Share:

Keener Today – November 22

The Kennedy LimousineNovember 22, Fifty-nine years ago, at approximately 12:30pm Central time, two shots rang out over Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas and a lone assassin took life of President John F. Kennedy. Keener’s new hit music format was barely a month old, but the WKNR News Team turned the station into a 24 hour news and information source as listeners from across Detroit tuned to radio and television for news of the president’s death and the events that followed. 28 years ago, we recorded a podcast about how Keener and the world covered the tragedy. Here it is.

Continue reading “Keener Today – November 22”

Share:

Keener Today – November 21

What’s Happening:

Michigan Central Terminal

Detroit’s Michigan Central Terminal isn’t the only classic train station getting a face lift. DC’s historic Union Station is in need of a 10 million dollar refurb.

Want to make a vegetarian Thanksgiving Dinner? We’ve got some ideas from the NYT.

As Neil Young passes 71, he tells Rolling Stone, “I’m still a hippie at heart. And I still have hope.” These days he’s singing about clear skies, clean water, a world without war. Continue reading “Keener Today – November 21”

Share:

Keener Today – November 18

What’s happening:

It’s Friday!

Taylor Swift breaks Ticketmaster… again. Her concert tix were supposed to go on sale to the general public today. But now, due to, “extraordinarily high demands … and insufficient remaining ticket inventory to meet that demand,” they won’t.

Friendships are love stories, too. “The Shondaland series, The Art of Friendship,” tracks how relationships evolve over time and how to nurture them. The key to keeping things fresh? Adapt and adjust. Continue reading “Keener Today – November 18”

Share:

Keener Today – November 17

What’s happening?

Robert ClaryThe last of the Hogan’s Hero’s gang has passed on. Robert Clary, Corporal LeBeau on ‘Hogan’s Heroes,’ Died at 96. The French actor and singer spent 31 months in a concentration camp but said he had no reservations about starring in a TV comedy about the Nazis. (More)

It’s that time, the annual Leonid Meteor Shower abounds through Saturday morning and the viewing is predicted to be especially good this year.

If you liked Kevin Costner in Yellowstone, you’ll love Harrison Ford, Helen Mirren and Timothy Dalton in the forthcoming prequel,”1923.” It’s coming to the Paramount+ streaming service on Sunday, Dec. 18. (See the trailer) Continue reading “Keener Today – November 17”

Share:

Keener Today – November 16

Artemis I finally blasted off into space early this morning. The unmanned NASA vehicle may, one day, send astronauts to the Moon for the first time since the end of the Apollo program in the 1970s.

Want to check out the Grammy contenders? We’ve got the list here.

Where to expect the rain and snow in Metro Detroit

Hot Wheels ad 1968
The “Original Sweet Sixteen” Hot Wheels cars from 1968 © Mattel

Who is the world’s biggest automaker? Not General Motors. Not the Mercedes-Benz Group or Toyota. According to The Financial Times, it’s Mattel. The maker of hot wheels and micro machines has sold 500 million units this year.

The brown suede Birkenstock Arizona sandals worn by Steve Jobs in the Apple Computer’s early days were auctioned off in New York on Sunday. NPR reports an anonymous bidder paid $218,750.

Via Dave Pell: “As per usual, The Onion was ahead of the curve.” Here’s a headline from April: Man Who Lost Everything In Crypto Just Wishes Several Thousand More People Had Warned Him.

The iPhone 14 can send an SOS, even if you don’t have coverage. The latest Apple smart device pings one of Globalstar’s 24 low-orbit satellites which relays the info to send help. Mashable has a demo so you don’t have to test it yourself. Continue reading “Keener Today – November 16”

Share:

Keener Today – November 15

It’s a wintry week in Detroit. Here are some Nice News tips to prepare.

Prepare your car. CNN’s 25 ways to stay warm without breaking the bank. NPR on how darkness doesn’t have to mean doom and gloom. And a couple of YouTube vids for your screens: A snowy outdoor landscape and some CGI indoor wintry magic. (Signup for Nice News Here))

Scaffolding finally disappears from London’s most historic skyline landmark.
London’s Big Ben is back after five years of renovations: Hear its bong

Want to avoid Cancer? Your workout may be the answer
Study links habitual high-intensity aerobic exercise to a more than 70% decrease in the risk of developing metastatic cancer; authors point to more efficient glucose consumption by organs (More)

And…
Recent research has opened the door for a new era of personalized cancer treatments. In a study published last week, scientists detailed a novel approach to fighting cancer that combines various techniques to essentially attack the disease from multiple angles. Continue reading “Keener Today – November 15”

Share:
Keener Today - July 21

Keener Today – July 21

What’s Happening via JJ Duling

54 years ago this week, we first heard In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida on Keener. The 17 minute title track encompassed the second side of the LP, peaking nationally at #30 and selling more than a million copies.


If you share your Netflix account, get ready to pay up. The BBC is reporting that as revenue growth stalls, the popular streaming service will begin charging $2.99 for a “second home” in Central and South America with a warning that it will clamp down on password sharing. Recent price hikes and a wider array of options have prompted consumers to rethink their streaming priorities.


As temperatures topped 104 degrees in the UK, Britain’s Showcase Cinemas offered free tickets on Monday and Tuesday to redheads. The chain noted that people with red hair have complexions at risk during periods of high heat. Continue reading “Keener Today – July 21”

Share:
Keener Today - July 20

Keener Today – July 20

What’s Happening via JJ Duling

Barbie is going green with a new doll modeled after Dr. Jane Goodall. Launched Tuesday, ahead of World Chimpanzee Day, the Goodall Barbie is made of 90 percent recycled plastic that otherwise would have been bound for the ocean. The 88-year-old researcher told PEOPLE magazine she is “absolutely delighted” and hopes her Barbie will “ inspire little girls” everywhere.

Will watching Disney movies full of princesses with ridiculous body proportions harm your daughter? Probably not, writes Emily Oster in ParentData. One randomized controlled trial of young girls found that princess media exposure had no effect on body image. In sum, Oster writes, “I do not see anything in the data that would suggest your child will be less successful if they like Disney princesses, although we’d likely do well to remind them as they age into puberty that princess proportions are not for people.” [ParentData]

When you find yourselves in the wedding license line with Ben and JLo: As Airika and Demetrius Visaya prepared to get married in Las Vegas on Saturday, they found themselves standing next to Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. People magazine reports JLo gave the couple a shoutout in her On the JLo newsletter announcing the famous couple’s wedding news.

Continue reading “Keener Today – July 20”

Share:
A True Blue Angel

Keener Today – July 19

What’s happening, Via JJ Duling

NBC reports that for the first time in its 76-year history, the Navy’s famed Blue Angels aerial demonstration team will feature a female pilot. Lt. Amanda Lee will join the demonstration team in the fall. The Mounds View, Minnesota native currently performs with The Gladiator demonstration team in Strike Fighter Squadron 106, stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach, Va.


As we mentioned yesterday, Bruce Willis returned the rooftop of Fox Plaza in Century City, Los Angeles ? aka Nakatomi Plaza, the setting for “Die Hard,” released this week in 1988. Here’s the Instagram clip his wife, Emma Heming Willis posted. Although Bruce is officially retired, several previously completed projects are in the pipeline, including “Paradise City,” reunites him with “Pulp Fiction” co-star John Travolta.


The Beatles continue to be the masters of repackaging. A blu-ray version of the 8-hour Peter Jackson film Get Back, which aired recently on Disney+ is now available in a three-disc set. While there are no DVD only extras, hard core Fab Four fans will likely add this one to their collections. Continue reading “Keener Today – July 19”

Share:
Keener Today - July 18

Keener Today – July 18

What’s Happening Via JJ Duling

A West Michigan couple think they’ve located a once lost shipwreck in the shallow waters of Lake Michigan. Kevin and Amy Ailes believe the sonar pings they are hearing reveal the Great Lakes Vessel Milwaukee which went down 180 years ago.


Bruce Springsteen is a grandpa. The Boss and his wife Patti Scialfa welcomed Lily Harper Springsteen, the daughter of their youngest son, Sam in an Instagram post over the weekend. Sam is a New Jersey firefighter.


Ben and Jen finally tied the knot over the weekend. 52 year-old actress Jennifer Lopez and 49 year-old actor Ben Affleck were married in Las Vegas, two decades after they were first planning to walk down the aisle.


According to a new study co-funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, people under the age of 40 start risking their health if they consume any more than two teaspoons of wine or two and a half tablespoons of beer per day. It found that for young adults between the ages of 15 and 39, there are zero health benefits—only risks—associated with drinking alcohol. Continue reading “Keener Today – July 18”

Share: