February 17, 2014
Two-time presidential loser Mitt Romney is the Great Mentioner’s main squeeze right now, a regular Page One Pin-up Boy.
Start with this front-page story in Saturday’s Boston Globe (mercifully below the fold).
Money quote:
“Oh, no, no, no. No, no, no, no, no. No, no, no,” Romney told The New York Times.
But . . . “in recent weeks, a strange thing has happened: Some supporters and donors, pollsters and pundits are starting to suggest — without irony — that the former Massachusetts governor run for president in 2016.”
Romney, not surprisingly, says all the right things in pooh-poohing the possibility he could go for the hat trick, while adding a few Mitticisms along the way that are as awkward as he is.
As the redoubtable Dan Kennedy noted on Facebook:
Mitt Romney on presidential losers: “Mike Dukakis, you know, he can’t get a job mowing lawns. We just brutalize whoever loses.” (http://b.globe.com/1fodGJN) Haw haw haw! Michael Dukakis has been an important part of the Northeastern community for many years. But why let the facts get in the way of a bad joke?
Why indeed.
Crosstown, Romney graces the front page of today’s Boston Herald.
The take here is different from the Globe’s, in that the Herald piece operates under the assumption Romney is not a potential 2016 contender.
Mitt Romney — the GOP’s uptight 2012 presidential nominee known for his family-man image and awkward sound bites — just might turn into the 
Republican Party’s top
attack dog in 2016.
“He will be the one who carries the fight and makes the arguments and shows the contrasts,” said Tom Rath, a New Hampshire GOP consultant who helped Romney’s 2012 bid. “He fills the void while we are waiting to select a nominee, and he can be a very effective and compelling spokesperson who doesn’t have to be anything but be himself.”
Of course, being himself is what made him a two-time loser. But why get technical about it.
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Uncategorized | Tagged: Ann Romney, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Dan Kennedy, Great Mentioner, Mike Dukakis, Mitt Romney, Mitticism, Northeastern University, Ron Kaufman, Tom Rath | 
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Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 16, 2014
It’s been All Olga All the Time at the feisty local tabloid this weekend as the Boston Herald wages jihad against embattled Department of Children and Families Commissioner Olga Roche.
Start with yesterday’s blowout front page:
Inside there’s double-trouble for Roche. (Inexplicable Little Green Numbers sold separately.)
And, of course, there’s the standard-issue Time to clean house editorial.
Today, on the other hand, Roche is reduced to the top of Page One.
Then again, the DCF commish also gets the traditional His ‘n’ Her columns by Howie Carr and Margery Eagan (they make great parting gifts!), neither of which is especially kind to Roche.
That seems to be the Boston Globe’s department. The stately local broadsheet has barely laid a glove on Roche, as these search results for “Olga Roche” attest:
Where are the editorials? The op-ed columns? Doesn’t anybody at the Globe have an opinion about the dismal state of DCF affairs? We’re not saying the Globeniks should go all Howie on Roche, but damn – something’s in order here, isn’t it?
For the moment, at least, it’s not just Deval Patrick who’s looking disengaged.
3 Comments | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Department of Children and Families, Deval Patrick, Globeniks, Howie Carr, Margery Eagan, Olga Roche | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 16, 2014
From our Free the Doug Mohns One! desk
Saturday’s Boston Globe featured this obituary (via the Atlanta Journal-Constitution).
Jim Fregosi, 71, All-Star shortstop and gregarious manager
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Atlanta Braves special assistant Jim Fregosi, a former All-Star shortstop and manager known for his gregarious personality and baseball acumen, died early Friday in a Miami hospital after suffering multiple strokes 
four days earlier . . .
After an 18-year playing career that included six All-Star seasons with the Angels, Mr. Fregosi managed parts of 15 seasons in the majors and had a 1,028-1,094 record with the Angels, White Sox, Phillies, and Blue Jays. He guided the Phillies to a 97-65 record and 1993 World Series berth after rallying from a 2-1 deficit to beat the Braves in three straight in the National League Championship Series.
Fregosi’s Boston connection?
He received multiple college football scholarship offers but opted to sign with the Red Sox for a $20,000 bonus.
Period. Never played for the Sox (although he did affect the 1967 Impossible Dream team in an indirect yet significant way according to ESPN’s Gordon Edes.)
Regardless, how does Fregosi deserve an obit before Boston Bruins stalwart Doug Mohns, whose passing has been resolutely ignored by the Globe (as the hard reading staff has previously noted).
Hey, Globeniks: Do the right thing, yeah?
Give Doug Mohns a proper sendoff.
UPDATE: To his credit, Globe sportswriter Fluto Shinzawa wrote this in today’s Sunday Hockey Notes column:
Remembering former Bruin Mohns
Doug Mohns last pulled on a Black and Gold jersey in 1964. Half a century later, fans recalled the former Bruin with fondness upon his death Feb. 7. Mohns appeared in 1,390 career games for Boston, Chicago, Minnesota, Atlanta, and Washington. Mohns, who played both up front and on defense, scored 248 goals and 462 assists. In Boston, Mohns had his best season in 1959-60, scoring 20 goals and 25 assists for coach Milt Schmidt. In Chicago, Mohns played on a line with Stan Mikita. Mohns might be best remembered as being an early adopter of the slap shot.
Nice, but still not a proper obit.
Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: Angels, Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Blue Jays, Boston Bruins, Boston Globe, Chicago Blackhawks, Doug Mohns, Fluto Shinzawa, Jin Fregosi, Milt Schmidt, Phillies, Stam Mikita, Sunday Hockey Notes, White Sox | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 14, 2014
As the hardreading staff previously noted, Wednesday’s Boston Herald had the Inside Track killing off Lauren Bacall prematurely. We also noted that there was no correction in Thursday’s Herald.
But there is one today, at least in the print edition. (We couldn’t find it online.)
Respeck to Track Gal Gayle Fee. Good to see someone at the feisty local tabloid knows CPR.
P.S. Our original item got Two-Daily Town a nod from the redoubtable Jim Romenesko. Dear Diary . . .
Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Herald, Gayle Fee, Inside Track, Jim Romenesko, Lauren Bacall | Permalink
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February 14, 2014
Splendid reader Bob Gardner sent this comment to Two-Daily Town yesterday in response to our post Lauren Bacall Killed by Boston Herald.
On the other hand, I haven’t been able to find any mention in the Globe today of the death of Doug Mohns. Mohns was one the great Bruins from the 1950′s and “60′s. Mohns was considered to be one of the best Bruin players at that time and (if I remember right) was one of the few players of that era who wore a helmet.
Mohn’s death was reported in the NY Times today but my search of Boston.com turned up nothing. That’s especially ironic, since not only did he play in Boston, but (according to the Times) was a resident of Bedford Mass at the time of his death.
New York Times obituary:
Doug Mohns, N.H.L. Player for 22 Seasons, Dies at 80
Doug Mohns, a durable and versatile skater who lasted 22 seasons in the National Hockey League, playing in seven All-Star Games, 
died on Friday in Reading, Mass. He was 80.
The cause was myelodysplastic syndrome, a blood and bone marrow disorder, said his wife, Tabor Ansin Mohns.
For most of his career, which extended from 1953 to 1975, Mohns was a stalwart of the old, compact N.H.L. — when there were only six franchises, rivalries were especially intense, no one wore a helmet, and players were intimately acquainted with the strengths and weaknesses of players on every other club.
He played 11 seasons for the Boston Bruins . . .
As Gardner says, the Globe has essentially ignored the passing of Doug Mohns. Plug his name into the Globe’s search box and you get this (as of midnight Thursday):
The Boston Herald hasn’t done much better. There’s only this mention that was tagged onto the February 9th Bruins Notebook (no link because the Herald is the Bermuda Triangle of search engines).
Rest in peace, Doug Mohns.
Just not in the Boston dailies.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Bob Gardner, Boston Bruins, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Bruins Notebook, Doug Mohns, Lauren Bacall, New York Times, NHL | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 13, 2014
(Tip o’ the pixel to the Missus)
Yesterday’s Inside Track in the feisty local tabloid featured an interesting, if out-of-nowhere, profile of local photographer Sid Limitz.
Photographer captures heyday of Theatre District
Forty years ago, when he was just 17, Sid Limitz began working as a ticket taker in Boston’s Theatre District. He was walking past 
the old Music Hall one night when Bette Midler came waltzing out the front door.
“I happened to be in the right place at the right time and there she was,” Limitz said. “I thought to myself, ‘This is a moment where someone should have a camera.’”
And so Sid asked for — and got — a camera for Christmas and he’s been taking pictures in the
Theatre District ever since.
Limitz estimates that he has more than 800,000 shots he snapped in the area around the intersection of Tremont and Stuart streets. In the district’s theaters, comedy clubs, gay bars, concert venues and movie houses, Limitz encountered and photographed legends including Liza Minnelli, Lauren Bacall, Elaine Stritch, David Bowie, Frank Zappa and more.
And then there was this:
Amazingly, in the online edition of Wednesday’s Herald, Bacall is no longer dead.
As a member of the theatrical employees union, Sid worked with Bacall in the Theatre District twice — in 1999 for “Waiting in the 
Wings” at the Colonial and in the ’80s when she did “Love Letters” at The Wilbur with Richard
Kiley. But his favorite pic of the great actress was snapped outside the Harvard Club in 1980, when
Bacall came to celebrate the late U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy’s 50th birthday with the clan.
Tell you what – if Bogie were alive now, there’d be hell to pay for this.
P.S. Raise your hand if you thought today’s Herald would run a Correction.
Us neither.
3 Comments | Uncategorized | Tagged: Bette Midler, Bogie, Boston Herald, Boston Music Hall, Boston Theatre District, Colonial, David Bowie, Elaine Stritch, Facebook, Frank Zappa, Harvard Club, Inside Track, Lauren Bacall, Liza Minelli, Love Letters, Richard Kiley, Sid Limitz, Ted Kennedy, the Missus, Tremont & Stuart, Waiting in the Wings, Wilbur | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 9, 2014
Filmmaker Woodycame to his own defense today. This New York Times piece aims to rebut allegations from last Sunday’s Times that Allen had sexually molested his adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow.
Allen writes:
TWENTY-ONE years ago, when I first heard Mia Farrow had accused me of child molestation, I found the idea so ludicrous I didn’t give it a second thought. We were involved in a terribly acrimonious breakup, with great enmity between us and a custody battle slowly gathering energy. The self-serving transparency of her malevolence seemed so obvious I didn’t even hire a lawyer to defend myself. It was my show business attorney who told me she was bringing the accusation to the police and I would need a criminal lawyer.
I naïvely thought the accusation would be dismissed out of hand because of course, I hadn’t molested Dylan and any rational person would see the ploy for what it was . . .
Then again, maybe not. Boston Herald columnist Margery Eagan blowtorches Allen in this piece today.
Rebuttal does little for Allen
Better to keep your mouth shut and just appear to be a pedophile than open it and remove all doubt.
Or most doubt anyway.
I know, I know. We cannot say with certainty that filmmaker Woody Allen sexually assaulted his then-7-year-old adopted daughter Dylan Farrow two decades ago.
But, in an apparent tit-for-tat against that daughter, Woody Allen doesn’t just open his mouth but shoves his foot right in it. He’s written a loathsome and skin-crawling rebuttal to Dylan Farrow printed in the New York Times, his hometown paper.
And etc.
Crosstown, the Boston Globe relegated Allen’s response to a largely nonjudgmental item in the Names column. The hard waiting looks forward to some judgmental action from Globe columnists soon.
Meanwhile, roll your own here.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Globe, Boston Herald, child molestation, Dylan Farrow, Margery Eagan, Mark Shanahan, Meredith Goldstein, Mia Farrow, Names, New York Times, Nicholas Kristof, Woody Allen | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 8, 2014
For several months an environmental advocacy outfit called Forecast the Facts has been protesting the presence of conservative billionaire David Koch on WGBH’s board of trustees. There was a flurry of coverage last October, the highlight of which was this contribution from the feisty local tabloid:
Now comes a new skirmish, according to today’s Herald.
Koch foes say ’GBH gave them wrong meeting date
Environmental protesters planning to picket the WGBH board of trustees this week accused the station of slipping them bad 
information about the date of the meeting — but the PBS affiliate denied it was a secret plot to thwart their campaign.
“Oh, heavens no,” said Channel 2 spokeswoman Jeanne Hopkins. “Of course not. We welcome all comers. We’re open to all.”
Uh-huh.
(Full disclosure: The hardreading staff used to toil at the World’s Greatest Broadcast House, but we drifted.)
The protesters say the station forecast the meeting for Thursday but held it on Wednesday. Hopkins told the Herald “the station has no record of giving them the wrong date.” And tossed in this priceless endnote:
“We feel bad,” she said, adding, however, that “one person with a very nice flier” did show up Thursday to protest.
See? All it takes is a nice flier.
Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: board of trustees, Channel 2, David Koch, Forecast the Facts, Heckle Me Elmo, Jeanne Hopkins, WGBH, World's Greatest Broadcast House | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 7, 2014
Fact #1: David Ortiz is unquestionably the greatest clutch hitter in Boston Red Sox history. Fact #2: David Ortiz is 38 years old (at least). Fact #3: David Ortiz will make $15 million this coming season. Fact #4: David Ortiz wants more.
Let the Big Papirama begin!
Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy one week ago.
David Ortiz’s contract talk is selfish, offensive
David Ortiz was on Boston television the other night. Guess what he was talking about?
His contract.
Big Papi loves to complain about his contract. He’s never satisfied unless he has a multiyear contract. It’s about respect, I guess.
Sorry, but it’s also tone-deaf, selfish, and offensive.
Crosstown at the Boston Herald, Gerry Callahan wrote this:
David Oriz can wait
With Papi destined to stay, Ben should avoid long-term deal
First off, let’s paint the whole picture.
David Ortiz didn’t just demand a contract extension from the Red Sox on “Sports Final” with Steve Burton on Sunday night. He demanded a contract extension while holding a white Chihuahua on his lap. And he didn’t just demand a contract extension while holding a white Chihuahua. He demanded a contract extension while holding a white Chihuahua that was wearing a yellow sweater.
Chihua-whatever.
Cut to yesterday’s Christopher L. Gasper Globe column.
Ortiz contract request fair, not foul
Ask and you shall receive, or if you’re Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, ask about a contract extension and you shall receive criticism, ridicule, and indignation for daring to ask . . .
Ortiz has drawn the ire of some Red Sox fans and media members [read: fellow Globie Shaughnessy] this winter for having the gall to repeatedly express his desire for a one-year contract extension with a year still remaining on the two-year pact he signed in November of 2012. Ortiz made $15 million last season, and is on the books for another $15 million this season.
Sometimes athletes just can’t win. Failure to express unequivocal desire to stay with a team beyond your current contract brands you disloyal, selfish, and greedy. Expressing a clear preference to stay with a team before your contract is up makes you insolent, selfish, and greedy.
You decide, yeah?
Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: archbishop of Boston, Big Papi, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Chihuahua, Christopher Gasper, Dan Shaughnessy, David Ortiz, Gerry Callahan, Sports Final, Steve Burton | Permalink
Posted by Campaign Outsider
February 6, 2014
The Boston Herald is a three-time loser in the advertising department today. Once again, the Boston Globe scoops up all the good ads, starting with this one from the new nonsmoking CVS.
(The Herald has a news story about the chain’s move, but that’s all.)
Also in the stately local broadsheet, this media culpa from Neiman Marcus:
Here’s a slightly more readable version:
The hardsquinting staff gets why Neiman’s wouldn’t run that – or any – ad in the Herald. But CVS? What – only smokers read the Herald?
Regardless, this Puffs ad doesn’t soften the blow any either.
The feisty local tabloid, no doubt, is reaching for the Kleenex.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CVS, Kleenex, Neiman Marcus, Puffs | Permalink
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It's Good to Live in a Two-Daily Town 