Washington DC

SoCS — Let’s Go to the Video Tape

Fandango12 Comments

For this week’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, Linda G. Hill has given us the word “tape.” My mind immediately went to Scotch tape, duct tape, cassette tape, tape deck, painter’s tape, video tape, and…wait. Video tape. That reminds me of Warner Wolf, a TV sportscaster back in Washington, D.C. when I was growing up. One of Warner Wolf’s catchphrases was, “Let’s go to the video tape” and then he’d play a brief video tape segment of a certain play in one of that day’s sporting events.

I suddenly remembered that back in November of 2018 I wrote a post about Warner Wolf. So I decided that I would abandon the stream of consciousness format today and would repost my Warner Wolf post. I hope you forgive me, Linda. Here it is.

Let’s Go to the Video Tape

Most TV sportscasters back in the day gave the scores in a boring, listless manner. Being a sportscaster for a local TV station seemed to be a filler job for on-air personalities awaiting their opportunity to report the “real” news. They were all pretty much singing the same, old, boring tune.

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But then, in 1965, something happened that forever changed local sports reporting. The local CBS affiliate hired this young guy named Warner Wolf. He was animated, exciting, and so much fun to watch. He became known for catchphrases like “Boo of the Week,” “Change the Rules,” “Play of the Day” (and week, month, or year), “Give Me a Break,” and my personal favorite, “Let’s Go to the Video Tape.”

Wolf quickly became the top sportscaster in the DC area and I never missed his nightly sports reports. He dominated the sports reporting scene in DC until 1976, when he left for a job with ABC Sports and with the local ABC affiliate in New York City.

Wolf, now 85, is retired, but he left his imprint on sports reporting.

Friday Fictioneers — Going in Circles

Fandango25 Comments

133CF536-C192-4D6E-94BB-6DE07AF152FD I was raised in the Washington, DC area, which is known for its many traffic circles, such as Dupont, Columbus, Logan, and Thomas circles.

DC drivers know how to navigate those circles. Vehicles already in the circles have the right of way over those entering them. Easy Peasy.

When I moved to New England, I discovered what they refer to as “rotaries.” These rotaries have the same rules as DC’s circles.

Now I live in California where they’re building “roundabouts” or small circles. Sadly, California drivers haven’t yet mastered the rules for navigating roundabouts. They are accidents waiting to happen.

(100 words)

Written for this week’s Friday Fictioneers prompt from Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. Photo credit: C.E. Ayr.

Let’s Go to the Video Tape

Fandango6 Comments

A7AF2E70-5A5A-41A0-B0E5-67D130FE7F01When I thought about the word I came up with for my one-word challenge for today, “video,” I was transported back to my distant past, and to the Washington, DC area where I was raised.

Most TV sportscasters back then gave the scores in a listless manner. Being a sportscaster for a local station seemed to be a filler job for on-air personalities awaiting their opportunity to report the “real” news. They were all pretty much singing the same, old, boring tune.

And then, in 1965, something happened that forever changed local sports reporting. The local CBS affiliate hired this young guy named Warner Wolf. He was animated, exciting, and so much fun to watch. He became known for catchphrases like “Boo of the Week,” “Change the Rules,” “Play of the Day” (and week, month, or year), “Give Me a Break,” and my personal favorite, “Let’s Go to the Video Tape.”

Wolf quickly became the top sportscaster in the DC area and I never missed his nightly sports reports. He dominated the sports reporting scene in DC until 1976, when he left for a job with ABC Sports and with the local ABC affiliate in New York City.

Wolf, now 81, is retired, but he left his imprint on sports reporting.

Written for these daily one-word prompts: Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (video), Ragtag Daily Prompt (past), Word of the Day Challenge (listless), and Scotts Daily Prompt (tune).