Sweeping Out the Cobwebs of a Busy Year Gone Past

In the vernacular of the ‘90s, stuff happens. Of course, “stuff” is not a direct quote, but the more descriptive word used in its place is not necessary to relate the essential truth of the phrase that launched a million bumper stickers.

Stuff does happen, even in the vastly exciting world of columnists. Sometimes good and true and insightful items are lost for no fault of their own. The time-space continuum that rules the newspaper universe gobbles them up. Suddenly, they are not as fresh. History moves on.

Think of the following items as leftovers from a bountiful year. At the same time, they provide a last glimpse (we promise) at the year that was, a mosaic of tidbits, which reveals something of the events that made 1991 the . . . stuff of legends.

A look at 1991 through the items that should have been used, but for reasons beyond natural control, were not:

* XTRA-FM (91X) broke new ground for commercial radio in May by allowing Michael Portantino, publisher of the San Diego Gay Times, to present a weekly on-air bulletin board of local gay community events. However, the station’s support of Portantino wavered a few weeks later after he lambasted a national beer company, which just happened to be a station advertiser. Portantino’s segment was briefly suspended until he agreed that he would clear any future commentaries with station management before going on the air. . . .

* During Channel 10’s February “Ask the Media” segment on coverage of the Gulf War, a media-savvy woman decried the broadcast as aiding the enemy because “Saddam Hussein may be monitoring the broadcast.” Her fears were proven to be unfounded when it was later learned that Hussein was watching “Wheel of Fortune” that night. . . .

* A naive but insightful friend happened upon the teen dance tunes of KKLQ (Q106) for the first time. “Do you realize they only play 12 songs over and over again?” she said. . . .

* During UCLA’s homecoming football game, Prime Ticket cut to a close-up of Channel 8 reporter and former UCLA cheerleader Jody Hammond leading cheers. . . .

* Capturing the essence of Channel 8 Sports Guy Ted Leitner, a reader from Escondido sent in a letter referring to Leitner as, “the guy at a party who prods you into a corner and proceeds to tell you what a lousy (person) the hostess is.” . . .

* Early in the year, CNN’s Charles Jaco covered the Gulf War, but it was not until December that Jaco was given the real plum assignment: covering the William Kennedy Smith trial. . . .

* In town in November to plug his book, Ollie North’s handlers tried to prevent television stations from using edited portions of his on-air comments. When told by a KSDO producer that reporters were complaining, that wacky joker North reportedly replied, “I’ll handle covert operations, you handle the media.” . . .

* Veteran broadcaster Perry Allen caught this “naval redundancy” during Channel 8’s coverage of the man who walked into a cafeteria in Texas and began shooting people. According to Channel 8, the man “retreated to the restroom where he shot himself in the head.” . . .

* Midway through the football season, after another Chargers loss, KFMB-FM (B100) pranksters “Jeff and Jer” sent a fat lady to sing in front of the Chargers’ offices to confirm that the season was indeed over. . . .

* There was no level too low for KRMX-FM (94.9) to stoop for listeners, including begging. In the spring, disc jockeys constantly told listeners to “tell a friend” about the station. Considering the ratings, some apparently took the suggestion and told friends not to listen. . . .

* Channel 10, in its usual breathless style, announced that it had learned that the case against “A’s Bandit” David Malley might be thrown out of court. The big scoop: Malley’s attorneys had challenged the legality of a search warrant, a relatively routine event. The motion was made on the grounds that the wrong time appeared on the search warrant. The judge denied the motion to suppress the search warrant, and the case went on. . . .

* Just a few days after reports accused China of using slave labor to produce exported goods, KUSI-TV (Channel 51) gave fans of a September Padres games free coffee mugs, which proudly carried the “Made in China” label. . . .

* Understatement of the year: Channel 10 general manager Ed Quinn, speaking for ABC affiliates at a June convention, told Electronic Media magazine that “there is not unanimous support” for the mortally ill Rick Dees show, the “Howard the Duck” of late night programming. . . .

* At Channel 8, former general assignment reporter Chris Saunders went from covering entertainment to covering the courts, which, depending on the perspective, either says a lot about Channel 8’s commitment to entertainment coverage or to news coverage. . . .

* Channel 10 producer J. W. August often teams with reporter Marti Emerald to ambush subjects for the station’s consumer segments. But, when a reporter recently asked him rather innocuous questions about a re-enactment segment he participated in, he refused to answer. It occurred to the reporter that it might be fair turnabout to hide in the Channel 10 parking lot with a photographer and intercept August on his way to his car, badgering him until he answered the questions or was caught by the camera in an embarrassing pose. . . .

* It’s a tough call, but Channel 8 still takes the prize for banal banter. During one newscast, Leitner asked anchorwoman Susan Peters, “Did you bake last night?” And a few nights later, after officials used water to put out a small fire on the field during a football game, Peters asked weather guy/environmental guy Loren Nancarrow, “Isn’t it more environmentally good to use Gatorade to put out fires?”

CRITIC’S CHOICE

‘LIFE IS SWEET’ AT HILLCREST CINEMAS

Mike Leigh’s refreshingly eccentric “Life Is Sweet” may get a second life in local theaters now that it is popping up on more than a few “Top Films of ‘91” lists.

A stylish understated look at the lives revolving around a working-class British family, it is a movie that doesn’t fit into any formula or Hollywood cliche. That’s a large part of its charm.

“Life Is Sweet” is screening at the Hillcrest Cinemas.