Comments by kenl | San Diego Reader

Find a story

News & Politics Neighborhood News News Ticker Under the Radar

Food & Drink Beverage News Booze News Drinks All Around Feast! San Diego Beer Tin Fork

Movies Big Screen Movie Archives Movie Reviews Movies@Home

Happenings Fishing Report Outdoors Reader Travel Roam-O-Rama Surf Diego Theater Your Week

Music Blurt Classical Music The Gonzo Report Live Five Musician Interviews Of Note Upcoming Shows

Comics Famous Former Neighbors Obermeyer Overheard in San Diego

Archives Reader by issue date Today’s stories All of the latest stories

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news

News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

See all neighborhoods

September 25, 2024

September 18, 2024

September 11, 2024

September 4, 2024

August 28, 2024

August 21, 2024

August 14, 2024

See previous issues

News & Politics Neighborhood News News Ticker Under the Radar

Food & Drink Beverage News Booze News Drinks All Around Feast! San Diego Beer Tin Fork

Movies Big Screen Movie Archives Movie Reviews Movies@Home

Happenings Fishing Report Outdoors Reader Travel Roam-O-Rama Surf Diego Theater Your Week

Music Blurt Classical Music The Gonzo Report Live Five Musician Interviews Of Note Upcoming Shows

Comics Famous Former Neighbors Obermeyer Overheard in San Diego

Archives Reader by issue date Today’s stories All of the latest stories

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news

News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

See all neighborhood stories

September 25, 2024

September 18, 2024

September 11, 2024

September 4, 2024

August 28, 2024

August 21, 2024

August 14, 2024

See previous issues

Ken Leighton

Ken Leighton is a Reader contributor. See staff page for published articles.

Take a Hikey, Mikey

Part 3 It needs to be pointed out again....even though Esparza's bile-filled attacks were over the top, Rick Jackson said the separation was NOT due to anything he he said on the air. Yet, I think it is fair game to ask that question. Hey something I'm missing here...If Esparza can talk about his substance abuse on air, why am I taking "potshots" or putting out "innuendo" if I do. You Mikey fans need to do better. This was a newsworthy event and these topics were all germane to this very peculiar event. And trust me, there were rumors and innuendo out there that was not used for this story. And although I think Mikey's legacy as a rating's earner (or not) are appropriate to bring up as he exits the station, I am certain bad ratings could not have been a legal reason for Lincoln Financial Media to terminate his contract.
— March 14, 2012 3:56 p.m.

Take a Hikey, Mikey

PART 2 Yes it is true that the Mikey facebook page has 16000 friends. But the arbitron ratings are what counts. Hate to tell you M1_12 but just because 91X had a commercial free weekend does not give Esparza license to through those slurs out there. That was a degenerate rant (audio files exist) that there is no excuse for. Even if Mikey is your personal radio savior, you just don't do stuff like that. Regarding "taking sides" not sure what that was all about. I spoke to Rick Jackson and would have loved to speak with Mr. Esparza. If it seems like I was repelled by what Esparza said about Garrett Capone, well, I guess you might be right on that. If you are Don Imus you cant say "nappy headed hos" and if your Rush Limbaugh you can't call a lady a "slut." Heck, here in San Diego you can't even call a woman a "sasquatch." Do you get that? If you Esparza can get away with because he tells us all how Christian he is....don't think so. To Mr Sanford, yes that was a direct response from him to my statement to him that there was a lot of speculation that substance abuse was thought by many to be cause of the separation. I think any reasonable person would think that those statements and facts are germane to each other. Hence the question to Jackson, and hence his answer. Do you get it Jay? Regarding the Fox TV R Factor...They reported that The Mikey Show was the most popular in San Diego because they had, like, 700,000 votes. Who's to say 10 people couldn't 7,000 times. You get the idea.
— March 14, 2012 3:36 p.m.

Take a Hikey, Mikey

The "speculation" was an honestly labeled statement that many in the industry have said over and over. The Mikey show certainly had its fans, but that the mix of the show an the station was a huge mistake. There was no "speculation or inuendo"...it was a statement that you can accept or reject. It is a verifiable fact that 949's overall rating are lower since January 2010 when Mikey came on board. Whoever said that above that Mikey took the ratings up is misinformed. The most recent overall ratings show that 91X is in 14th place, Rock 105 in 16th and 949 23rd. On what planet does that not support the other DJ's comment? But besides that, here are some SPECIFIC MORNING RATINGS from a few months ago that maybe you were not aware of: September 2011, AM Drive (M-F 6am-10am) Men and women 18-34 91X 4th place Rock 105 14th place FM 94/9 24th place Men & women 25-54 91X 6th place Rock 105 20th place FM 94/9 21st place Keep in mind 949 is owned by an insurance company who would not terminate an employee contract unless they had a good reason. Jackson said Esparza is no longer under contract even though he was inked until December. If it was a mutual decision, I would imagine both sides would come out and say something. 949 won't talk specifics and Mike has been silent. Mikey numerous times on the air talked about his past with substance abuse. I think any reasonable person would bring that up in a situation like this. Jackson said it was not the case. So why the bitch?
— March 14, 2012 3:35 p.m.

91NEXT!

Misheard Mr. Capone. "Bakersfield" should be Banker's Hill. My mistake. Ooops Ken
— February 8, 2012 2:05 p.m.

That's Not Rockabilly

so mr. anonymous mud slinger... still waiting to hear who you are and what bands got stiffed.
— October 25, 2011 11:51 a.m.

That's Not Rockabilly

Anchorsaway, these are pretty serious charges. If they are true, why don't you tell us your name. It seems pretty weak that you would throw these things out anonymously. They have no credibility otherwise. And when you tell us your name, why don't you tell us which bands did not get paid. This is a significant charge. Please give us details. Just because you don't know that PBR does come in 16 oz cans does not mean it doesn't exist. One thing I will say is the way the fairgrounds does business needs to be scrutinized, whether or not this particular promoter is liked by anonymous bloggers. That was the whole point of the article. This article was not to promote or defend Mr. Thayer as a promoter, but to point out why he was, I think, the only outside promoter to do a show at the fairgrounds (not counting the Del Mar Thoroughbred group of course) this year. They basically get free rent to do shows. Thayer raised some very good points, especially concerning too many mandated food servers, a $1700 backstage catering that he HAD to pay for, and security guards that he had to pay for but who weren't doing their job. Not all of the expenses for the show were listed in the article. For instance there was a $1-million insurance policy and posters and flyers and other expenses out there as well. That's just what I recall him telling me. Some of your points may be valid. But with all due respect you don't have all the expenses in front of you to put out his bottom line. Maybe most of what you say is true. Maybe not. But unless you tell us who you are they are just cheap random stabs-in-the back. At the very least, this promoter (who may have flaws) was actually doing something. He risked a lot of money and he lost a significant chunk of change. Those who can, do. Those who can't, blog. Since you know so much about this, why would you not identify yourself and the bands who got stiffed? I agree the Bo Huff incident and the EBay auction are specific facts that can be verified. Those should be researched.
— October 23, 2011 6:34 p.m.

That's Not Rockabilly

There was no profit. That's why St. Jude's gets nothing but the guitar. This happens all the time. Unless the ads state that a "$1 from every ticket" goes to.... then the "proceeds" line can be unclear. At least Thayer was up front about it. It should be noted that Tim Finnell, fairgrounds exec director, finally returned a call almost a week after I asked the fairgrounds media lady for a response. He said there is no way the fairgrounds would ever allow bad words or naughty T-shirts, so there is no need to debate that. This raises some interesting questions that should be pursued. It is one thing if its the Del Mar Fair. It is something quite different if the place is rented out by a private promoter. Attendees of a "Hellbilly Fest" do not have to be protected against a potty-mouthed Mojo Nixon. Finnell also said that if Thayer's event was larger, then the fairgrounds may consider talking to him about sharing revenue from beer sales. Excuse me? If Thayer's $30,000 estimate is correct, I would say that is a pretty substantial one day take. Yet Finnell is saying, in essence, that $30,000 isn't a big enough take. On what planet is a $30,000 one day bar take not significant? It is interesting that the all-powerful Finnell has the discretion to negotiate with a promoter over whether to give him a cut of the bar or not. It would seem reasonable that if the fair were run most other places, once the bar reaches a threshold, like $15,000, say, then the promoter would get a cut. Those 2,500 people did not show up because of the flunkies who were pouring beer. They showed up because of the investment Thayer made, including $25,000 for 17 bands. Finnell ultimately calls all the shots at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. He reports to nine appointed board members. As the U-T recently reported, most of the six new appointees picked by Gov. Brown gave Brown campaign donations. The bio of one appointee listed as his most notable achievement that he was the husband of longtime Democrat heavyweight Lynn Schenck. She happens to be very competent and decent. But does that mean that's were her husband gets to run the fairgrounds? This would seem to be a questionable governance model for such an important operation. Events at the Fairgrounds must be overseen by bonded security companies. But other government agencies that rent out facilities like this have a list of approved companies, and the promoter must select from a list. In this case, Thayer was told he must hire this one security, which Thayer said let in hundreds of people for free because they weren't doing their job. I think any reasonable person would agree this is a broken business model at best, or completely corrupt at worst. There needs to be an overhaul of the way the fairgrounds is run. Not sure how to do it, but the City of Del Mar seemed headed in the right direction when they would have taken it over and let elected officials run the thing.
— October 20, 2011 1:36 p.m.

Not Neighborzly

So where we are now is that Jay Crew will show anybody who wants to see, his copyright registration papers. He just wrote the serial numbers for those papers. So Brett Benito what do you have to say now? Where's the slander? Nothing I wrote was wrong. I quoted two members of Sunny Rude and Crew. I think the "douche" remark in your recent blog post pretty much sums up where you guys are coming from. The sad thing is, not everybody in Sunny Rude is like that. I hope that Jay Crew tells every musician who asks, how to copyright and protect your songs. It's very easy and not very expensive. I also hope that Brett Benito or anyone who tries to act as a "manager," should make sure that the songwriters in the band he is supposed to helping, needs to protect their work.
— October 13, 2011 1:44 p.m.

Not Neighborzly

So let me get this straight...if songwriters who are interested in this struggle (and it certainly is a legitimate problem that would concern many others) show up to see Bad Neighborz, Jay is going to show them his copyright registration receipt. If they come to the Sunny Rude show, the band is going to say "But we had a recording of it first on iTunes first..."....hmmmm... Anyway Brett Benito, I sure hope you weren't the manager of Sunny Rude when it came time for them to protect their songwriting copyrights. Because if you told them (as you say now in your blog posts) that all you have to do is put them up on iTunes, then I would say you have a lot to account for.
— October 12, 2011 10:11 p.m.

Not Neighborzly

Hey Brett - I am trying to convince Jay that he has nothing to lose by posting his copyright registration number. Please stand by. At any rate, he says he will gladly show you (or anyone else) these papers in person. If he doesn't, get back with me. I repeat: everyone interested in this should see your show and then go see Bad Neighborz' show and see who can produce the copyright papers on these songs. Jay has said he will bring them with him. Will you bring yours?
— October 12, 2011 9:24 p.m.

< Previous Next >

News & Politics Neighborhood News News Ticker Under the Radar

Food & Drink Beverage News Booze News Drinks All Around Feast! San Diego Beer Tin Fork

Movies Big Screen Movie Archives Movie Reviews Movies@Home

Happenings Fishing Report Outdoors Reader Travel Roam-O-Rama Surf Diego Theater Your Week

Music Blurt Classical Music The Gonzo Report Live Five Musician Interviews Of Note Upcoming Shows

Comics Famous Former Neighbors Obermeyer Overheard in San Diego

Archives Reader by issue date Today’s stories All of the latest stories

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

See all neighborhoods

September 25, 2024

September 18, 2024

September 11, 2024

September 4, 2024

August 28, 2024

August 21, 2024

August 14, 2024

See previous issues

This Week’s Reader