Daily Dirt: ‘It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a little emotional scarring’

Daily Dirt for Nov. 19, 2021

Nothing says Thanksgiving like “stuffing bread crumbs up a dead bird’s butt”. And with that we begin today’s three thoughts in Vol. 132 of the Daily Dirt. Welcome aboard!

1. One of the great traditions this time of the year is watching some of our favorite TV shows with holiday themes. Here are three of my all-time favorite moments:

Bronze medal: “It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a little emotional scarring.” — Timothy Burke (Michael Vartan), “Friends”.

Silver medal: “We have to invite your parents. It’s like when the Russians boycotted the Olympics. It diminished the whole event,” — Debra Barone (Patricia Heaton), “Everybody Loves Raymond”.

Gold medal: “Here I am, 5 o’clock in the morning, stuffing bread crumbs up a dead bird’s butt.” — Roseanne Barr, “Roseanne”.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE: “As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.” — Arthur Carlson, “The Big Guy”, “WRKP”

Once again, the Publisher has to save Daily Dirt from an egregious omission. JRG

2. One of the most overlooked and underrated pop music acts was Junior Walker and the All Stars, who never received their true due in the mid-to-late 1960s and 1970s.

The Motown label superstars gave us such great sounds as “Shotgun,” “Road Runner,” “How Sweet It Is (Toe Be Loved By You),” “What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)” and “These Eyes”.

Sadly, Junior Walker and the All Stars have never been voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is another story in itself. I’ve spent numerous paragraphs in this space complaining about and questioning some of the artists who have been included in the Rock Hall, while legitimate and talented hitmakers like Junior Walker and the All Stars remain on the doorstep. We’ll get back to this rant on another day.

This is the 60th anniversary of when Junior Walker and the band that later became the All Stars were discovered. The rest, as they, say, is history. I hope some day a part of Junior Walker and the All Stars’ history includes a well-deserved spot in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For the record, Junior Walker’s real name was Autry DeWalt Mixon Jr. He died of cancer at age 64 in 1995.

3. Rece Davis, one of the integral voices of college football at ESPN, is pretty sure who will be the four semifinalists for the College Football Playoffs. He has well-thought-out reasoning behind each choice, but I’ll spare you all of that.

Here are his picks and my thoughts:

1. Georgia: Slam dunk. No way Georgia is left out, even with a loss in SEC championship game.

2. Ohio State: Barring some upset down the stretch against Michigan State, Michigan or in the Big Ten title game, the Buckeyes are in and a likely No. 2 seed. Ohio State has the most explosive offense in the nation.

3. Cincinnati: Davis is counting on a team like Oregon losing at least one more game down the stretch — or simply dropping in the rankings — to open the door for the Bearcats. If Cincinnati does get in, likely as a No. 3 seed, that matchup with in-state opponent Ohio State would make for great theater.

 4. Notre Dame: No way do the Irish make the playoffs, barring a total collapse of multiple contenders. Remember, Notre Dame struggled mightily to beat a mediocre Toledo team and was defeated by Cincinnati at South Bend.

Three out of four ain’t bad, Rece.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Davis went the hot take route to add Cincinnati and omit Alabama. #KingSEC will not be denied two teams. JRG.

Steve Fact O’ The Day
Steve’s favorite Junior Walker and the All Stars’ offering is “These Eyes”.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. His over/under for Thanksgiving dinner plates is four.