Sunday Morning Coffee — November 17, 2024 — Sunday Morning Scramble
Two weeks ago in our Scramble, two days before Election Day, we said that when the results were in, no matter what happened, our country would be as divided as it’s ever been. I might have underestimated that divide. Thanksgiving de-invites are running rampant with some non-Trumpers choosing not to break turkey with friends and family who supported the president-elect.
Money talks. At least on November 5 it did. With almost every political poll in the United States telling us how close the presidential race was going to be, the wagering dollars in the international betting markets told an entirely different story. On Election Day the New York Times poll had the race a virtual toss-up at 50-50; the Economist had Kamala Harris with a 56% chance of winning. And so on across our most trusted media platforms. The polls went awry with all the closest Trump voters who kept their choice confidential, exercising it in the voting booth and not to pollsters. Two weeks ago we wrote that Donald Trump was a solid -130 to win the election. That meant you have to lay $130 to win $100. By Election Day afternoon Trump jumped to -160 and by early evening he was -320. While Trump was the favorite across the globe to win the electoral vote maybe the biggest surprise to the offshore sportsbooks was that on Election Day morning Harris was the huge betting favorite, -400, to win the popular vote. In this case the smart money got it wrong.
Someone who didn’t get it wrong was the Frenchman known to bookmakers as ‘Theo.’ The former bank trader and financial services professional bet against the accuracy of the polls. Originally it was reported he bet $30 million on a Trump victory. The more he handicapped the race, the more he liked his position on Trump and kept betting through Election Day. That $30 million became $70 million according to the Wall Street Journal. ‘Theo’ not only bet on Trump to win the electoral contest but took odds that Trump would also win the popular vote and sweep the ‘blue wall’— winning Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. He hit that trifecta, too. With odds, his $70 million play resulted in a $85 million haul. Wonder who he likes this afternoon in the Raiders-Dolphins game?
You may not like the results of the election but there is no disputing the outcome. This time the losers graciously conceded, which is refreshing. There was no hocus-pocus, just the American people voicing their opinion which resulted in a mandate. I will never divulge my politics in this space, who really cares anyway, but what I have said over and over for years is no matter my personal choice, I will respect the decision of the people. In other words, in SMC coffee mug parlance, United We Sip, Divided We Spill.
Susie Wiles and her dad, the late Pat Summerall.
If incoming White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles is half as good at her new job as her legendary dad, the late Pat Summerall, was at his then 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue will be well served. Summerall, a Superman look alike, was as smooth as they came as a broadcaster for CBS, FOX and ESPN for over 40 years. He teamed with Tom Brookshire and then John Madden for 22 seasons on NFL telecasts. He was the lead voice on the Super Bowl 16 times, the most of anyone in the business. For 26 years he was in the tower bringing us the Masters. And for 21 years he teamed with Tony Trabert courtside for US Open tennis coverage. Away from sports, he was the friendly spokesperson for True Value Hardware. Ms. Wiles gets her pedigree honest. Let’s hope she can tame the circus and help bring us as professional a White House as her dad did in the broadcast booth.
Ground Control to Major Tom. I’m not really bullish on the long term prospects of this relationship ending well. The president-elect has given his new best pal and confidant, Elon Musk, his own “walk-in” music when the soon to be co-chair of the new government efficiency entity called DOGE enters a room. David Bowie’s Space Oddity will play. As sure as Major Tom radios back to Ground Control, jealousy will set in, never a good thing with Mr. Trump. This relationship will go sideways quicker than a runaway Tesla.
And one last election note — I have absolutely no basis for feeling this way, just a hunch, but I would be surprised if President Trump completes his term.
What took so long? TGI Fridays filed for bankruptcy protection last month. It was about two decades overdue.
Talk about value for the buck — Elwood Edwards died on November 5 at age 74. You don’t recognize the name, but chances are he was a guest in your home countless times during the 1990s. Mr. Edwards was the AOL voice who told us “You’ve got mail,” and said “Welcome,” “Goodbye” and “File’s done.” For his work Mr. Edwards was paid $200.
This is a surprise mainly because this isn’t a part of my daily media portfolio, but over the last month 47% of the population of the United States have listened to a podcast. That percentage jumps to nearly 60% of the demographic under 35 years old.
Arguably the Las Vegas Raiders are the worst team in the NFL. In lockstep you won’t get much pushback that head coach Antonio Pierce and his staff are by far the most unprepared in the league west of Brian Daboll and the New York football Giants. I’m still shaking my head about what Pierce reportedly told the FOX broadcast crew prior to their loss to the Bengals two weeks ago: “The strength of our team right now begins with our punter.” Huh?
Billy Joel and Sting sharing a stage were terrific; Usher was a bit out of my musical comfort zone.
Two concerts over the past week for us. Last night we went to see Usher at T-Mobile Arena. Usher’s music is more Andi than me but the atmosphere and crowd watching was interesting to say the least. Demographically I was a Hatfield at the McCoy family reunion. I had to be the oldest one in the building. Usher,46, is an entertainer and has some moves; I pulled a groin muscle just watching him. He played for two hours, the last 30 minutes without us. A week ago was Sting and Billy Joel splitting the marquee at Allegiant Stadium, the football home of the Raiders and UNLV. The show was excellent. Both emptied their song playbooks in front of over 60,000. Sting opened the night at the senior friendly time of 7 pm with a 14-song set that ran for 75 minutes; Billy did two solid hours and 23 hits which included a six-song encore. They accompanied each other on two melodies. For good measure Joel threw in the obligatory rendition of Viva Las Vegas which must be mandatory in every artist’s contract who plays here. He also paid homage to the world’s greatest concert venue, two miles up the Strip, when he apologized that his only special effect was a rotating piano. “I know it’s not the Sphere,” Billy said, “but it’s the best we’ve got.” It was a good night to be a Boomer.
The new mode of ticketing for shows, concerts and sports— on our phones—has been the death knell to one of the great institutions of yesterday. No longer is there a call for seat ushers. Oh those large mitts they used to wipe down our seats with one hand and the other one dangling for a tip. Sometimes you would tip them not to wipe off the seats because the mitt was significantly dirtier than the seat.
Don’t you hate when this happens? Mattel, a name synonymous forever with quality kids toys, had a small packaging error in the release of its new Wicked line of dolls. The web address on the boxes should have read wickedmovie.com but instead was printed as wicked.com. It took users directly to a porn site. The company tried to issue immediate damage control with some entry-level public relations 101 telling parents that the wicked.com URL was “not appropriate for children.” It made no mention of how inappropriate the site might or might not be for mom and dad.
Fearing their state might become a mini-California without the ocean but with a sky-high cost of living, Nevadans didn’t revel in learning its borders added more real estate agents, 1,140, over the past year than any other place in the country. Hand in hand it’s no surprise that California lost the most agents, 8,160, over that same period of time.
SMU had the right idea; they were just 40 years ahead of themselves. The long downtrodden Mustang football program has had a renaissance the last couple of years and today, with a 9-1 record, sits atop of their conference (ACC) with an eye on the College Football Playoffs. Over the past four decades they’ve lost over 60% of their games. In 1987 SMU became the first and only football program in collegiate athletic history to receive the “death penalty” for repeated serious violations of NCAA rules. The NCAA forced the Dallas school to cancel its football program for the 1987 season because the university had been paying some of the players. The school couldn’t field a team in 1988 when almost all of its roster had transferred. Reportedly $61,000 was paid in 1985 and 1986 but that was only a small portion of the sum. It later was disclosed that SMU had been keeping a slush fund to pay players since as early as the mid-1970s. It’s alleged that future NFL Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson was a big beneficiary. The NCAA investigation revealed SMU officials had known about it as early as 1981. Today that behavior is legal and very much encouraged. It’s the definition of NIL — Name, Image, Likeness.
I hate to be the bearer but some bad news for seniors. That dream Best Western or Choice Hotels discounted vacation stay just got more expensive. AARP announced that after 15 years of stable $16 annual membership dues, there will be a steep 2025 increase to $20. In itself the four dollar bump seems fair. But when positioned as a 25% price hike, it may have all the appeal of a cold glass of prune juice.
And finally, Friday is the 61st anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the most influential news event of my then young life. Short of “This Day In History” it will get little to no attention in our media. We’ll do our best to remember the devastating 1963 weekend in SMC next week.