What’s happening via JJ Duling

TOP STORY:

Tonight’s full moon will be the biggest and brightest super moon of 2022. The increased size and brightness occur because its orbit is closer to Earth than any other full moon this year.

“New-Found Glory” – TIME Magazine has named Detroit one of the World’s Greatest Places of 2022. The announcement highlights the success of the investments into the City and its residents made by public and private entities, which has helped Detroit secure recent honors like the 2024 NFL Draft, the best emerging startup ecosystem, and more.

Prenups Aren’t Just for Rich People Anymore. An article in the New Yorker reports younger Americans, especially, it isn’t about love. It’s about protecting their spouses from the worst impulses of the American debt-collection system. Continue reading “Keener Today – July 13” →

What’s Happening – Via JJ Duling

Rocker Bon Jovi has sold his West Village home in New York City for $22 million, to former Disney Chairman Michael Ovitz. The spacious 3,951-square-foot home comes with its own elevator landing, a chef’s kitchen and a master bedroom with floor to ceiling windows.. Bon Jovi bought the 14th-floor unit for $18.94 million in 2017. (NY Post)

The Baz Luhrmann Elvis biopic opened above expectations over the weekend, luring large number of older moviegoers. About 60% of the “Elvis” audience was over age 35, a group that has been careful about returning to theaters post pandemic. “Top Gun: Maverick,”  came in at number two, topping a billion dollars in overall ticket sales in its fifth week of release. Rounding out the top 5, last weeks number 1, Jurassic World Domination, the debut of Universal’s horror pic, The Black Phone at #4 and Disney’s Lightyear at #5. (Box Office Mojo)

According to family members, Alan Parsons emergency spinal surgery on June 24th was a complete success and the legendary performer and producer will be back on the road this fall with his band, The Alan Parsons Live Project. The 73-year-old Parsons has enjoyed a five decade career, fusing progressive, symphonic, and classic rock elements together into a canon of best selling LPs and CDs. (Ultimate Classic Rock) Continue reading “Keener Today – June 29” →

What’s Happening – Via JJ Duling

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s Amazon’s long awaited drone delivery service: After years of setbacks, Amazon is finally launching its drone delivery service later this year. The tech giant announced that it would be piloting this service in Lockeford, California following approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and local officials. Once onboarded, Lockeford residents will be able to place an order for eligible products like normal and then wait as a futuristic device descends from the sky into their backyard. (Mashable)

Meijer’s Unintentional Weekend Double Dip: Customers who shopped at a Meijer store over the weekend may have been double charged. The popular Michigan chain reported issues with payment processing where a few shoppers were charged double for purchases. The company urges customers to check bank statements and contact the store if there are inconsistencies. (DetNews)

Was a Beach Boy Classic an Ode to JFK? Brian Wilson told the Goldmine website that a fan favorite from the Surfin’ USA LP, “The Warmth of the Sun” was written as an ode to JFK in the wake of his assassination. Mike Love, in conversation with Rock Cellar Magazine, remembers it differently. The tune “..was written the preceding day, words and music, and we got up to the news that President Kennedy had been taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas and that he was dead,” Love said. (Showbiz Cheatsheet) ScottO’s Postscript: I always thought that Love’s lyrics for the Bobby Troup melody in “Their Hearts Were Full of Spring“, recorded by the Beach Boys as  “A Young Man’s Gone,” on the 32 Little Deuce Coupe LP, was more of a tribute tune. Love confirms he wrote the words about the death of James Dean.] Continue reading “Keener Today – June 14” →

What’s Happening – Via JJ Duling

The Doobie’s 5oth Anniversary Tour is underway, with Michael MacDonald on board: The band played Jiffy Lube Live in Virginia over the weekend. It’s their first performance since a mini-residency in Las Vegas in May. The Doobies still draw huge crowds and Michael MacDonald’s presence is juicing ticket sales. He last toured with the band in the 90s. (USA Today)

What’s that smell? Researchers are making headway in understanding why some people with Covid lose their sense of smell and some treatments that may help bring it back. A multitude of potential treatments to tackle the condition are undergoing clinical trials, including steroids and blood plasma. (Nature)

Can we make ends meet with a 4-day workweek? More than 70 companies and organizations across the U.K. are trialing a four-day workweek. Participants will receive full pay for working 80% of their usual hours, while committing to maintain 100% productivity. Researchers are testing whether an extra day to recharge will increase employee morale, focus and engagement during the days they are at work. (Today)

How a bowl of soup made “The Last Train to Clarksville” a hit: At the dawn of the Monkee’s career, Mickey Dolenz didn’t think he had the chops to sing the lead on “Last Train to Clarksville.”  Tommy Boyce of the dynamic duo, Boyce & Hart, took Mickey across the street for a bowl of soup and some supportive words. An hour later, the he laid down the track that began the Monkees’ rocket ride to stardom. (The Cheat Sheet)

How Art Garfunkel’s dedication to a friend changed a life: When Sandy Greenberg was told that severe Glaucoma would steal his sight, his college friend, Art Garfunkel stepped into help. Greenberg writes in a new autobio that Garfunkel inspired him to take on the nickname “Darkness” after Simon and Gar’s first single attempt. Greenberg went onto a life of achievement and was able to return the favor. When Art was down to his last dime before Darkness became a hit, he asked Sandy for a $400 dollar loan. With $404 in his bank account, his friend gladly wrote the check. (Alitiea)

An Elvis Premiere with Tom Hanks – at Graceland: Tom Hanks joined director Baz Luhrmann, fellow cast members and representatives of the Presley family for the Memphis premiere at Graceland of the biographical motion picture, “Elvis.” The Saturday night screening in The Guest House at Graceland — the 450-room hotel just north of the Presley mansion on Elvis Presley Boulevard — was the highlight of a weekend of Memphis activities organized by Warner Bros. that brought dozens of international reporters, bloggers and “influencers” to town.  (Commercial Appeal) Continue reading “Keener Today – June 13” →

What’s Happening – Via JJ Duling

Michigan License Plates Go Digital: Michigan drivers now have the option to purchase digital license plates for their vehicles. Reviver, the company who developed the plate says motorists will have the ability to connect their vehicles with services like registration renewal, vehicle location and security services. A battery-powered model will cost $19.95 a month while the monthly rate for a hard-wired version is $24.95. Michigan is the third state to authorize road use of the digital technology. (WXYZ)

Selling gas for less… than it costs: Jaswiendre Singh is losing hundreds of dollars each day after shaving nearly 50 cents off per gallon at his gas station to help customers weather skyrocketing fuel prices. The Phoenix gas station owner is selling around 1,000 gallons a day, and losing about $500 per day. “We are not here to make money right now,” he said. “I’m very happy to help the other people.” (Yahoo)

E.T and Jaws in IMAX: Steven Spielberg’s classics E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial and Jaws on Imax screens nationwide for the first time. E.T. will be released exclusively on Imax beginning August 12, in celebration of the film’s 40th Anniversary, with Jaws to be released on Imax and in RealD 3D beginning September 2. (Deadline)

Charlevoix mansion sells for $9.845 Million: A Northern Michigan lakefront mansion has been purchased at auction for a whopping $9.845 million dollars, making it one of the most expensive residential properties ever sold in the state. The 10,000 square foot home at 08425 Raspberry Lane sold for the highest resale price ever for a residential property in Michigan. Over $205 million in bids were received on the house in less than 4 days. (MLive)

Climate Change and Hot Sauce: Huy Fong Foods, makers of the Sriracha hot sauce with the iconic green cap and the rooster on the bottle, is warning of a shortage of its popular condiment this summer. That shortage can be attributed to weather conditions in a single region of Mexico. The weather issue began last year and has worsened this year, according to company officials. (LA Times)

We Like the Lincoln Lawyer: Netflix users returned a favorable verdict on The Lincoln Lawyer in its premiere week. The 10-episode season, based on author Michael Connelly’s acclaimed books premiered May 13, racking up 884 million minutes of viewing time in it’s first week. (Hollywood Reporter)

Keener Number Ones for this week in:

(1964) Memphis, Johnny Rivers
(1965) Mr Tambourine Man, Byrds
(1966) Little Girl, Syndicate of Sound
(1967) Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Frankie Valli
(1968) This Guy’s In Love With You, Herb Alpert
(1969) Get Back/Dont Let Me Down, Beatles
(1970) Ooh Child, Five Stairsteps
(1971) It’s Too Late, Carole King

What’s Happening – Via JJ Duling

Life imitates art as astronomers receive a radio burst with some similarities to what Jody Foster heard in Contact: An international team of astronomers have heard a second persistently active fast radio burst. The intense, brief flashes of radio-frequency emissions, lasting on the order of milliseconds have not revealed a message, like the famous repetitive burst in the Jody Foster film, ‘Contact.’ But researchers hope to learn more about their origins as more are discovered.  (Space.com) Continue reading “Keener Today – June 10” →

D-Day: “On June 6, 1944, more than 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline, to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower called the operation a crusade in which, “we will accept nothing less than full victory.” More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion, and by day’s end, the Allies gained a foot-hold in Continental Europe. The cost in lives on D-Day was high. More than 9,000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded, but their sacrifice allowed more than 100,000 Soldiers to begin the slow, hard slog across Europe, to defeat Adolf Hitler’s crack troops.” (US Army)

Possibly one of the most powerful early reports on that fateful day came from CBS’s Richard C. Hottelet, who flew with a Marauder squadron over Normandy at the exact moment of “H-Hour,” when the landings began. The power of his writing and the directness of his delivery helped set the standard for news reporting in the days before personality and opinion overtook the airwaves. Here are seven minutes of compelling radio heard as the first journalists returned from the battlefield to report to the world.

Continue reading “Keener Today – June 6” →

Keener13,com brings back “Sunday in the 60s.” One of our all time most requested programs over the years has been a day devoted to the Keener decade. We call it “Sunday in the 60s,” even though it encompasses tunes from 1959 through 1972. Why? Because those were what Keener was playing during the eight and a half years it was a thing in the Motor City. And naturally, you get to interrupt programming at any time with your requests for any song in the Keener Library, too. Join us today and every Sunday for 24 hours of classic Keener on “Sunday in the 60s.”

What’s happening via JJ Duling

What’s the most popular Oreo Flavor? We had no idea there were 32 varieties of the world’s beloved sandwich cookie. The Delish website surveyed fans and found that Double Stuffs were the most popular. What do fans like least? Birthday Cake flavored Oreos. (Delish.com)

Using TikTok to reinforce math skills: Sixth graders at Polly Ryon Middle School in Richmond, Tex., are clamouring to get into Deidre Kelly’s  math class, because the 10 year classroom veteran has 1.5 million TikTok followers. She turned to the social network during the pandemic to help students stay on track as they learned from home. Since kids turn to TikTok once class time is over, Diedre hoped the videos would reinforce the key concepts. The numbers tell the tale. She’s on to something. (The Information)

It’s that time of year when USA Today lists the albums turning 50 in 2022: Columnist Melissa Ruggieri whets our appetite with gems like Jackson Browne’s self-titled debut. Aretha Franklin’s “Young, Gifted and Black.” Neil Young’s “Harvest.” Deep Purple’s “Machine Head.” Curtis Mayfield’s “Superfly.” Randy Newman’s “Sail Away.” The Doobie Brothers’ “Toulouse Street.” Roxy Music’s debut “Roxy Music” and Rod Stewart’s “You Wear it Well.” Paring the list down to just ten revealed the following collections celebrating a 50th birthday this year. Allman Brothers Band, ‘Eat a Peach’ (Feb. 12). Jethro Tull, ‘Thick as a Brick’ (March 10). Rolling Stones, ‘Exile on Main Street’ (May 12). Elton John, ‘Honky Chateau’ (May 19). Eagles, ‘Eagles’ (June 1). David Bowie, ‘The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars’ (June 16). Alice Cooper, ‘School’s Out’ (June 30). Stevie Wonder, ‘Talking Book’ (Oct. 28). Lou Reed, ‘Transformer’ (Nov. 8). And Steely Dan, ‘Can’t Buy a Thrill’ (November). Continue reading “Keener Today – June 5” →

Keenerfans are remembering Paul Vance, who contributed to dozens of tunes we know by heart including the Clint Holmes’ one hit wonder, “Playground in my Mind,” “Tracy” for the Cuff Links, David Geddes’ “Run, Joey Run” and many songs for Verdelle Smith, including. “Tar and Cement.” Perhaps his most memorable was the Brian Hyland classic, “Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weenie Yellow Polka-dot Bikini.,” a smash hit in 1956. Vance passed away on May 30 at age 92.

Today in Detroit:

• Today in 1967, Lucille Ball won her second Emmy for her solo effort, “The Lucy Show.” Fighting tears, the comedieanne said, “The last time I won the award I thought they were giving it to me for having a baby. Now, that baby is 14 years old.”
• Today in 1972, columnist Sydney J. Harris lamented the “double talk” politicians use to avoid answering tough questions. He warned that it made “ordinary people” susceptible to outsiders like controversial Alabama Governor, George Wallace. “Populist leaders identify with the mass,” he wrote, “and then once in office have invariably proceeded to set up their own personal elite and milk the people for all they are worth.”
• Today in 1977, teen heartthrob, Shaun Cassidy joined the Osmond brothers and members of the Detroit Pistons at Windsor Stadium to help raise money for Project Concern, an international non-profit devoted to helping children.
• Today in 1979, Detroit was pitching representatives of the Democratic National Committee who were in town considering the city to host the forthcoming Presidential Convention. Motown cops even agreed to extend the current labor contract, so negotiations would not be taking place during the event. A 2017 Holy Cross study found that major conventions had only short term financial gains, primarily in the hotel and restaurant sector, often more than offset by extra expenses for operations and security.
• Today in 1982, President Reagan’s original budget proposal for the fiscal year 1983 was sent to the House floor by the House Budget Committee. But the fiscal plan, which included a deficit of about $122 billion had virtually no support in Congress.
• Today in 1987, the state Senate approved raising speed limits on many Michigan highways to 65 mph, attaching an anti-fuzzbuster measure banning radar detectors to the bill as it was sent back to the State House. Officials said it would take at least two weeks to change out the speed limit signs across the state once the law took effect.

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Ringo Starr accepted an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music in Boston this week. He recounted taking up the drums while recovering from a bout of tuberculosis and how he only gave his son Zak one lesson. After showing him the basics, Ringo said, “You’re on your own.” (Rolling Stone) Continue reading “Keener Today – June 4” →

What’s happening via JJ Duling

REO, Styx and Loverboy opened their “Live and Un-Zoomed” tour in Grand Rapids this week. The set lists included chestnuts from three extraordinary careers. We’ve got em all, plus selected videos of some of the performances. (Ultimate Classic Rock)

Up to 50% of women and 20% of men among the 3 billion people who experience migraines and cluster headaches during their lifetimes. The usual attention to diet, fitness and a good night’s sleep can minimize frequency. Experts recommend small, protein-rich meals scattered throughout the day to get a consistent amount of energy to the brain. Magnesium supplements and vitamin B2 can also be helpful. (Buzzfeed)

Ring video doorbells rates are going up. Subscribers were just notified of the 33% increase in cost for some tiers with promises of enhancements that aren’t ready yet. Don’t forget that the most basic Ring functionality is still free, but that does not include any video storage. Looking for alternatives? Here’s what Consumer Reports recommends. (The Verge)

Did you binge on Stranger Things over the weekend? Netflix released seven new episodes of the show’s much awaited fourth season and said that subscribers watched a record-setting 286 million hours, beating out Bridgerton as the networks most binged series. Two more episodes expected in July before the show wraps up with a fifth season. (AP)

Yesterday’s top Google searches included the NBA Finals, Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, Thursday mornings 4.1 Bay Area Earthquake and the Tropical Storm Watch issued for South Florida. (Google) Continue reading “Keener Today – June 3” →

Creem is back! Detroit’s legendary rock and roll magazine is reborn as a quarterly publication. But for Keener fans, the magic is in the archives. The magazine that was home to Susan Whitall, Lester Bangs, Dave Marsh, founder Barry Kramer and many other legendary rock writers has made it’s full 1969-1989 run available on line. Access starts at $5 bucks a month.

Celebrating a Queen: While we don’t ever like to encourage people to tune away from the Keener13.com audio stream, history is being made today in the UK, where Elizabeth II celebrates her Platinum Jubilee.Today in 1953, the young princess was crowned in Westminster Abbey. A year long celebration of that event begins today. The TV channels are filled with coverage of the festivities, many of which will feature her heirs. Here’s the Reuters live feed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A3xIYBmKZg Continue reading “Keener Today – June 2” →

Keener13.com Celebrates 20 Years!

On June 1st, 2002, Steve Schram and Scott Westerman launched this website. It was envisioned as a non-profit enterprise, celebrating the Detroit radio station that we grew up with, a phenomenon that became part of the heart of the Motor City and the soundtrack of a generation. Keener was a thing from October of 1963 until April of 1972, barely nine and a half years. But in it’s brief prime it helped define popular music in Detroit, introduced legendary entertainers to our community and helped us make sense of the changing world around us.

Keener13.com has now been around more than twice as long as WKNR lived. But 49 years after that Halloween night when the Keener Sound first debuted, tens of thousands of Keener listeners still cherish its memory. And through this website, we’ve introduced the Keener magic to many thousands more.

Thanks to the Keener people who contributed content to this labor of love. And thanks to all of you who have helped use keep the WKNR flame burning for nearly half a century. Continue reading “Keener Today – June 1” →