Ramblin' with Roger

1933 #1s: Stormy Weather

Forty-Second Street

There was stormy weather politically in 1933. From A Century of Pop by Joel Whitburn: “Adolph Hitler’s rise to power as Chancellor of Germany coincided with FDR’s inauguration.”

Meanwhile, the Great Depression raged on. “Mirroring the national economy, the record industry underwent an almost total collapse.” It sold only “six million discs in 1932 – compared to the peak of 140 million just five years earlier. The opportunity to hear all popular songs on the radio for free… also contributed to the desperate slump.”

The Last Round-Up – George Olsen with Joe Morrison on vocals (Columbia), nine weeks at #1

Stormy Weather – Leo Reisman with Harold Arlen on vocals (Victor), eight weeks at #1, from Cotton Club Parade. Arlen co-wrote it with Ted Kohler.

Love Is The Sweetest Thing– Ray Noble with Al Bowlly, vocals (Victor), five weeks at #1. From the film Say It With Music

Lazybones – Ted Lewis (Columbia), four weeks at #1. Purportedly written in only 20 minutes by Hoagy Carmichael and young Johnny Mercer.

You’re Getting To Be A Habit With Me– Guy Lombardo with Bing Crosby, vocals (Brunswick), four weeks at #1. From the movie musical Forty-Second Street

Forty-Second Street – Don Bestor with Dudley Mecum, vocals (Victor), three weeks at #1. From the movie musical of the same name.

Stormy Weather (Keeps Rain’ All The Time) – Ethel Waters (Brunswick), three weeks at #1

The Last Round-Up – Guy Lombardo with Carmen Lombardo, vocals (Brunswick), three weeks at #1. From The New Ziegfeld Follies.

Did You Ever See A Dream Walking? – Eddy Duchin with Lew Sherwood, vocals. (Victor), three weeks at #1. From the film Sitting Pretty.

Shadow Waltz– Bing Crosby (Brunswick), two weeks at #1. From the movie Gold Diggers of 1933.

Repeating Top 3 hits

The charts showed a lot of repeating songs. Stormy Weather also got to #2 by Guy and Carmen Lombardo and #4 as an instrumental by Duke Ellington. The Last Round-Up reached #2 by Don Bestor/Neal Buckley and separately by Bing Crosby. Did You Ever See A Dream Walking? reached #2 with the Lombardos.

Who’s Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf made it to #2 by Don Bestor with Florence Case, Frank Sherry, and Charles Yontz, vocals. It got to #3 by Victor Young. Yes, the song from the 1933 Disney cartoon The Three Little Pigs was reused often.

Finally, Shuffle Off To Buffalo reached #2 with two different recordings: Hal Kemp/Skinny Ennis and Don Bestor/Maurice Cross. It was also from Forty-Second Street

My JEOPARDY malaise

Cliff Clavin

Lately, I’ve been experiencing what I’m calling a JEOPARDY malaise. Even as people continue to bring up my experiences on the show 24.5 years ago – the last time was two weeks ago – the show is giving me less joy.

Some of it is reflected in this story. “Executive producer [Michael] Davies said that he was considering allowing contestants who had previously competed on the show to come back and compete again. And he wasn’t just talking about special competitions; he meant regular episodes. This would mean that hopefuls who have been trying for years to get on Jeopardy! could find their way blocked by a previous contestant getting a second chance.”

And it’s already happened to some extent. Before the last Tournament of Champions, the show had two weeks of a Second Chance Tournament. People had the misfortune of playing against some of the recent “super champions,” i.e., players who won ten or more games, got a chance to play again. Two of them got to play in that ToC, where they were quickly eliminated.

More recently, there was the High School Reunion shows. Kids who played as high schoolers plus an eighth grader four years ago got to compete AGAIN. Who was clamoring for that? Not only did that minimize the opportunity for new hopefuls, but it also went on so long that I’d forgotten who the returning champion was.

As one of those schlubs who somehow made it on the program, I’m in favor of maximizing the opportunity for my fellow hopefuls to make it onto the Alex Trebek stage.

Arrgh!

Now, a “‘Champions’ Wildcard’ Tournament will be instituted as part of this fall’s postseason play, between Second Chance… and the Tournament of Champions. Every single player who wins a game in Season 39 will be invited to the event (if they haven’t qualified for the Tournament of Champions)… It is anticipated that the full postseason schedule is intended to take ten weeks.”

The JEOPARDY Fan editorialized: “While it is great… to see a lot of these players again, I can certainly sympathize with those fans who enjoy being able to watch 190–200 regular-play games per season…. Maybe it’s time for the show to move to 52 weeks a year of production if it wants a 10-week postseason every year. That way, both the fans who prefer regular play and the fans who prefer seeing favorites return both get what they want.”

OR have six weeks off, per usual, during which they rerun the Tournament of Champions and other events. I do NOT love this.

Sloppy

JEOPARDY fandom has rightly complained about inconsistent acceptance of answers. Worse, the show has accepted some wrong or at least dubious responses.

For instance, many fans, including me, heard Ewan Gregor as the response to this clue: The force of Lasse Hallström was strong to pull in this Scot to play a fisheries expert in “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen” -it should have been Ewan McGregor, and that non-call may have affected the outcome of the game.

While hosts have some responsibility, the producer and the judging staff can “go to the film” and correct errors.

A more significant blunder for the viewers happened on the March 8 program when an editing error showed the final scores in a cutaway shot during host Mayim Bialik’s monologue. Jeopardy executives have profusely apologized.

Fan base

I try to avoid the jEOPARDY commentary on certain websites. These can be quite harsh in their assessments. Frankly, I’m bored with people watching the show at home pronouncing a Final Jeopardy “too easy,” or conversely, “impossible to figure out.” I’ve been stumped on the “simple” clues and nailed the “difficult” ones.

I’m SO happy there were no social media when I was on in 1998. One’s every mistake magnified forever. I feel particularly sorry for one recent contestant in the March 22 game.

With just five clues left, Karen landed on the last Daily Double. She had $21.8K; Melissa had $7.1K; and Zach had $6.4K. And the remaining clues, one $800 and four $400, totaled $2,400. A safe bet would have been between $5, the minimum, and $2,799. But she bet $10,000 and missed.

Karen’s score dropped from an assured victory. Going into Final Jeopardy, she had $11.4K, Melissa had $8.7K, and Zack had $7.2K, which made it anyone’s game. Karen missed the Final and ended up in third place, but Melissa got it right and returned as champion.

THEN Karen, who was compared to Cliff Clavin– she didn’t understand the reference – felt required to explain her strategy. I wouldn’t have made that wager, but I’m not her.

“Ultimately, I did what I did,” she said, “and I had THE MOST FUN and at the end of the day… it’s a game, and it’s a show, and it’s a game show.” So be it. But she could have had more fun with $20,000 and another chance to compete. Instead, she’ll show up on snarky YouTube videos like this one from 2017 forever.

Should AI labs hit pause?

ChatGPT’s pronouns

In the March 30 Daily Skimm, I read:

“An open letter called on artificial intelligence labs to hit pause on advanced AI projects for six months. More than 1,000 researchers, tech experts, and others signed the letter — including Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. They warned companies are creating AI tech so fast and aren’t thinking about the potential consequences. Now, tech leaders are saying that anything smarter than GPT-4 (aka ChatGPT’s newest sibling) may “pose profound risks to society and humanity.”

I’m getting “Black Mirror” flashbacks…

“It’s not the first time experts have raised alarms. While chatbots like ChatGPT have helped people write everything from essays to computer code, they’ve also been linked to disinformation, phishing, and other types of cybercrime. Companies like Google, Microsoft, and Snapchat have been rushing to create chatbots that flex their own AI algorithms. It’s got many worried advanced AI could lead to a faster spread of disinformation and that bots could coax people’s behavior.

Can it be stopped?

“Maybe ChatGPT can answer that question.”

I HAD to ask

So, like the lazy blogger I am, I asked it or them or whatever ChatGPT is, “Should artificial intelligence labs hit pause on advanced AI projects for six months?”

“As an AI language model, I do not have opinions or personal beliefs, but I can provide information on this topic.

“There is ongoing debate in the AI community about the risks and benefits of advanced AI development, and whether it is necessary to pause or slow down AI projects. Some researchers and experts have called for a temporary pause on certain AI research in order to ensure that ethical considerations and potential risks are adequately addressed. Others argue that AI development should continue, but with a focus on developing safe and beneficial AI systems.

On one hand…

“One reason for the call to pause AI research is the potential for unintended consequences, including the risk that AI systems could be developed with biases or could be used to create autonomous weapons. Another concern is the risk of job displacement and other economic impacts as AI systems become more advanced.

“However, there are also arguments in favor of continuing AI development, including the potential benefits that AI systems could bring to society in terms of increased efficiency, productivity, and quality of life. Furthermore, some experts argue that it is not feasible or desirable to pause AI development, as other countries or organizations may continue to push forward with research and development.

“In summary, whether AI labs should hit pause on advanced AI projects for six months is a complex and nuanced question, and there are valid arguments on both sides. Ultimately, the decision will depend on a range of factors, including the goals of individual organizations, the ethical considerations involved, and the potential risks and benefits of AI development.”

Since I brought it up

Because I wanted to know, I asked, “What are ChatGPT’s prnouns?” Yes, I put in the typo, which I noticed right away.

“As an AI language model, I do not have gender or personal pronouns. You can refer to me as “it”. My purpose is to assist with answering questions and providing information to the best of my knowledge based on the data I was trained on. If you have any questions or need assistance with anything else, feel free to ask!”

I was interested in how Grammarly would feel about ChatGPT’s word choices. Grammarly likes articles: “an ongoing debate” It prefers “regarding” to “in terms of” and “various” instead of “a range of.” “In order to” should be “to.” It eliminates the second of the “could be” references. Also, it axed “to pause AI development” in the penultimate paragraph as redundant.

I’ve now had a bot check the work of a bot. This is getting too meta for me.

55 years after the MLK assassination

“We must revolt against this peace.”

Many have noted that August 28, 2023, will be the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington. Incidentally, that date is also the 15th anniversary of the nomination of Barack Obama for the presidency.

But today is 55 years after the MLK assassination. I remember the day extremely well. I’m not particularly prone to conspiracy, but even The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford asks the question of who killed the reverend, was more than one person involved, and the like. And my thought: was it a coincidence that he was killed on the first anniversary of his sermon denouncing US military involvement in Vietnam?

Missing the point

I despair that King’s message is often obfuscated. Dr. King campaigned against not just racism but poverty. In his final book, “Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?”, he wrote:

A true revolution of values will soon look uneasily on the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth. With righteous indignation, it will look at thousands of working people displaced from their jobs with reduced incomes as a result of automation while the profits of the employers remain intact, and say: ‘This is not just.’ . . . Let us be those creative dissenters who will call our beloved nation to a higher destiny, to a new plateau of compassion, to a more noble expression of humanness.

Yet Census data show an increase in income inequality in the US. Worldwide, the rich keep getting richer. “The top 1 percent seized twice the new wealth as the rest of the world in the past two years.”

So it is absurd when the Christian nationalist founder of Pastors for Trump said he was ‘pretty sure‘ that Martin Luther King Would Have Been a ‘MAGA’ Republican. I’m “pretty sure” Jackson Lahmeyer has heard, at most, one piece of one MLK sermon. For your maximum irritation, readers, go to the link above to see a MAGA hat photoshopped onto an image of King.

Labor

The AFL-CIO posted on the most recent King holiday: “We must remember him and his words truthfully—far beyond the often-repeated and misused line about skin color and character.

“Most people know Dr. King only as a civil rights leader. But we must remember him as a labor leader who was assassinated while supporting 1,300 Black men in their fight against neglect and abuse at the sanitation strike in Memphis, Tennessee.

“Dr. King is associated with ‘peaceful protest.’ But we must remember his sermon ‘When Peace Becomes Obnoxious.'”

“If peace means a willingness to be exploited economically, dominated politically, humiliated, and segregated, I don’t want peace. So in a passive, non-violent manner, we must revolt against this peace.”

(Coincidentally, I linked to that piece two years ago.)

Really honoring MLK

I recommend to you that you read Letter from a Birmingham Jail. Peruse his speeches.

If you want to take in I Have A Dream, which was at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom – he was an economic warrior – read or listen to the WHOLE thing; it’s about 17 minutes long.

“There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, when will you be satisfied? We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality…

“It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds. But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.”

Then remember, he advised the crowd not to “drink the poisonous wine of hate,” but to use the “way of nonviolence” when taking “direct action” against oppression.

News stories I’m not commenting on (much)

Disenfranchisement in Virginia

There are lots of news stories I’m following. But some I’m not commenting on (much) because I don’t know what to say that others haven’t said. Or that I haven’t said before.

ITEM: The shooting of three children and three adults at a Presbyterian church school in Nashville, TN. What can I say that I didn’t write about Sandy Hook or Parkland – undoubtedly more than once?

Friend Chuck noted regarding his weekly musical playlist, “This is an edited – and sadly, updated – broadcast from May 2022.” Because, as I saw in a Boston Globe headline, these repeated, repeated, repeated headlines – only the names and places change -risk making us numb to the madness.

I will note that “solving the mental health crisis” is an objectively good thing but a damn difficult thing to achieve. When a Denver, CO, high school student was searched for weapons, he shot two administrators. He fled the scene and was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Interesting fact: “From 1980 to 2021, the US automobile fatality rate declined by 64%. From 2000 to 2021, American gun deaths increased by 56%.” We CAN do something. Bring back the 1994-2004 assault weapons ban. It’s not THE answer, but it is AN answer.

I won’t even get into the obviously bogus transphobia that spinners of the Nashville story have tried to insert.

Orange crush

ITEM: djt was indicted. I’m not jumping up and down for joy. For one thing, it’s merely an indictment. For another, I’m more interested in other possible indictments, which on the surface, appear to be more substantial cases about more significant wrongdoing, such as the attempt to manipulate the 2020 Presidential election in Georgia or fomenting insurrection on January 6.

SO many people pointed out that the government got mobster Al Capone for tax fraud.

Maybe I’ll do a happy dance if djt is CONVICTED of something. Still, I don’t mind if the New York Post calls him Bat Hit Crazy.

ITEM: Virginia now has the harshest felony disenfranchisement voting regime in America. Thanks to Gov. Glenn Younkin, a Republican as though you couldn’t guess, Jim Crow is back! Depressing but unsurprising.

ITEM: “They banned Dolly Parton: Republicans want the dumbest parent at the school to control the curriculum.” The conventional wisdom is that people my age should become more conservative. But as the stories – some of which are linked in the story, such as banning a banning a movie about Ruby Bridges – get more inane…

ITEM: I LOVE how the Disney folks outmaneuvered the board that Governor Ron DeSatan, oops, I mean Desantis (R-FL) imposed on the company’s special district. “The agreement restricting the new board’s rights is ‘in effect until 21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III, King of England living as of the date of this Declaration.'” And it is such an arcane maneuver that I laughed out loud when I read about it.

ITEM: Baseball season is here. As someone who still dislikes the designated hitter (instituted in 1973) and DESPISES the rule putting a runner on second base in extra-inning games(instituted in 2020), I find that I LIKE the pitcher/batter clock that was instituted in MLB spring training.