On-Air Personalities Aren’t Immune to Broadcasting Identity Problems
What’s my name: The media Web site ronfineman.com had a bit of fun with KNBC newscaster Michele Ruiz the other day, pointing out that she “started to call herself Colleen Williams while filling in for Williams.” (She caught herself after saying “Colleen.”)
Well, Ruiz can take comfort in the fact that seasoned pros also have had identity problems on the air.
The Orange County Register’s Randy Youngman noted that longtime Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn recently signed off: “For Chick Hearn, I’m Stu Lantz. (Pause) No, I’m not!”
And I recall the time that Jim Lampley, then a Channel 2 anchor, opened a newscast with the words, “Good evening, I’m Bree Walker.”
Lampley at least kept the boo-boo in the family. Walker was not only his co-anchor but his wife.
A make-over would be one thing. . . . Patt Barron saw a Mother’s Day ad that prompted her to comment: “New look or not, this mom doesn’t want to be slipcovered!”(See accompanying.)
Don’t shake his sleeping bag whatever you do: Sandy McGregor of La Canada Flintridge spotted a listing of some vacant property with an unusual warning (see accompanying).
Guerrilla art: The transformation of one Manhattan Beach sign into “Kobe” Bryant Drive by a Laker fan brought another shot from that city, courtesy of Mike Peck (see photo). Peck, who said this altered street sign had been in place at least a month, added: “I think the attention to detail (color match, tape, type font) contributed to its longevity.”
Recipe for danger? You may recall the item here about the Irvine resident who told police he “returned home to find his condo cleaned and reorganized, and there were no signs of forced entry.”
It reminded Bill Case of Hemet of this offbeat police log item, which he came across as a newsman in Northern California: “Resident reports upon returning home from a weekend away, he found someone had broken into his home and cooked some noodles.”
On the road: Joe Dymkowski of Santa Ana says that while on a tour of Milan with friends, they decided to take a taxi “to go to see ‘The Last Supper,’ by Michelangelo. Driver spoke no English. He promptly took us to the Michelangelo Hotel for supper.”
When Dymkowski’s group realized that it was Da Vinci who created that masterpiece, the driver delivered them to the museum.
The entertainment is free: Suzanne Cooper and her friend Celeste Hong click onto EBay for the humorous misspellings, not the bargains. Some of their favorites:
* “Sequenced” dresses
* ‘40s’ “pomps” (shoes)
* Stockings with “seems”
* “Risky” clothing (well, risque can be risky)
And speaking of risky items, they also spotted:
* A “shear” dress, and
* A beautiful “neckless”
miscelLAny: The newspaper ads for “Dame Edna,” now appearing at the Shubert Theatre, say, “Original Cast!” A bit of a joke there, I think. It’s a one-man show starring its creator, Barry Humphries.
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Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LA-TIMES, Ext. 77083, by fax at (213) 237-4712, by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., 90012 and by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com.