Mets in the Popular Culture 2020

[batmagadanleadoff]

From Philip Roth's Pulitzer Prize winning American Pastoral:

One night in the Summer of 1985, while visiting New York, I went out to see the Mets play the Astros, and while circling the stadium with my friends, looking for the gate to our seats, I saw the Swede, thirty-six years older than when I'd watched him play ball for Upsala. He wore a white shirt, a striped tie, and a charcoal-gray summer suit, and he was still terrifically handsome. [***] "You're Zuckerman?", he replied, vigorously shaking my hand. "The author?" [***] "These are my friends," I said, sweeping an arm out to introduce the three people with me. "And this man", I said to them, "is the greatest athlete in the history of Weequahic High. A real artist in three sports. Played first base like Keith Hernandez - thinking. A line drive doubles hitter. Do you know that?" I said to his son. "Your dad was our Hernandez." "Hernandez's a lefty," he replied. [***] The following letter reached me by way of my publisher a couple of weeks before Memorial Day, 1995. Dear Skip Zuckerman: I apologize for any inconvenience this letter may cause you. You may not remember our meeting at Shea Stadium. I was with my oldest son (now a first year college student) and you were out with some friends to see the Mets. That was ten years ago, the era of Carter-Gooden-Hernandez, when you could still watch the Mets. You can't anymore. [***] Sincerely, Seymour "Swede" Levov, WHS 1945

[FIMG=333]https://readwithstyle.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/american-pastoral-book-cover.jpg[/FIMG]

[The Hot Corner]

There is a fly over view of an abandoned CitiField in post-apocalyptic NYC during "Avengers: The End Game"



Unfortunately, I can't figure out how to post an image.

[bmfc1]

Tonight is the finale of the fantastic show "Brockmire" and I brought a relevant clip (at around :45):

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]

[G-Fafif]

C'mon, Charles, buy the Mets.

[G-Fafif]

Pete Alonso to appear in expanded version of The Last Dance, according to this totally real promo.



https://youtu.be/2i94NiMW_Wohttps://youtu.be/2i94NiMW_Wo

[G-Fafif]

More from the Strokes.

Few bands are as synonymous with New York City than The Strokes, who helped launch the rebirth of the city's rock scene nearly 20 years ago. So it's fitting that their new album, The New Abnormal, concludes with “Ode To The Mets,” a mercurial and layered finale of nearly six minutes. But you won't hear frontman Julian Casablancas crooning about the team's bullpen woes or Wilpon mismanagement—in fact, he doesn't mention baseball at all. Like much to do with the team in Queens, it started as a joke. Casablancas, a Manhattan-raised Mets fan—one of his first memories is the team winning the 1986 World Series—attended the 2016 Wild Card game against the Giants at Citi Field with Paul Vassallo, a Strokes guitar technician. After New York lost 3–0 when Jeurys Familia gave up a three-run home run in the ninth inning, Casablancas wrote “Ode To The Mets” while waiting for the 7 train on the platform outside the stadium. But the brutal loss—which, Casablancas claims, didn't hurt much because he was “expecting them to lose the whole time,” though he also proudly recalls waging “psychological warfare” against Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner by heckling him—didn't directly inspire the song. “I did write it on the subway platform of the 7 sadly waiting for the train, but I wasn't really thinking of the game,” he says.

https://www.si.com/mlb/2020/05/12/ode-to-the-mets-strokes-julian-casablancas-interviewhttps://www.si.com/mlb/2020/05/12/ode-to-the-mets-strokes-julian-casablancas-interview

[Edgy MD]

An almost unrecognizably baby-faced George Carlin in 1965, a guest of Merv Griffin, introducing his character of Lyle O. Higley, John Birch Society chapter head, as "A veteran of two wars, a depression, and a Mets double-header."



Reference comes around the 2:20 mark.



[YOUTUBE]gu-trYf96xo[/YOUTUBE]

[MFS62]

In the Law and Order episode titled Navy Blues (1997), Detective Lenny Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) talking to a slow moving shopkeeper looking for a receipt, "Hurry up. I have Mets tickets next month".

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0629352/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0629352/

Later

[G-Fafif]

When the Mets won the World Series in 1969, the writer's room at ABC's Manhattan-set That Girl was paying attention, as observed in the final two episodes of the 1969-70 season.



“There are a lot of great men. There's the infield of the Mets...”

—Boyfriend Donald Hollinger (Ted Bessell), “Easy Faller,” S. 4, Ep. 25, March 19, 1970



“When I can explain why I can miss an entire inning of a Mets baseball game because I've been staring at your picture on my television set [...] then I'll be able to explain why I love you.”

—Donald's note to Ann Marie (Marlo Thomas), “All's Well That Ends,” S. 4, Ep. 26., March 26, 1970

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Batgirl>That Girl

[Frayed Knot]

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: Batgirl>That Girl

Just the fact that Bat Girl had the good sense not to marry Phil Donahue makes that statement true.

[LWFS]

I'm sure-- 99.5 percent or so-- that I'm probably the only one this bugs, but... the German in me is INCESSANTLY annoyed when I see new posts here, and they end up being from a Marlo Thomas sitcom rerun, or a Dick Cavett throwaway joke from '76.



I mean, just because I read MADAME BOVARY this weekend doesn't make it part of 2020 popular culture. (Although finding out Charles Bovary was a big Ike-over-Duda guy would be a pretty big fun.)

[MFS62]

I agree with LWFS over the overblown importance of Marlo Thomas. On the overrated scale, She was the Derek Jeter of television.

Yes, her father was a popular comedian and a great humanitarian and she carried on his tradition of raising money to help sick children.



But the public reaction to his daughter when her show was on could have made a billy goat gag. The height of foolishness to me was when she would be the cover story in women's magazines, interviewed for tips on parenting when she had no children. She was put on a media pedestal for no apparent reason. People even overlooked her awful nose job (it was so bad that my wife said Marlo's surgeon should have lost his license).



I'll climb down off my soap box now.

Later

[batmagadanleadoff]

I agree with LWFS over the overblown importance of Marlo Thomas. On the overrated scale, She was the Derek Jeter of television.

I thought LWFS was referring to the anachronistic nature, rather than the qualitative rating of the Marlo Thomas pop culture reference, and by extension, the anachronistic nature of almost all of these pop culture references. If I'm right, I'll chime in that initially, I had the same pet peeve that I think LWFS is expressing.



But I enjoy them anyways, and I've come to rationalize the thread title by explaining to myself that these aren't 2020 pop culture references, but rather, pop culture references that were documented in 2020.



Also, it'd be hella impressive if LWFS really did read Madame Bovary this weekend, especially being that we're barely into Sunday.



And for sure ... Batgirl > That Girl.



[FIMG=555]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48750588128_1e0cc634bd_c.jpg[/FIMG]

Edited June 28, 2020 by Guest

[batmagadanleadoff]

September 15, 1967 --- New TV sensation Yvonne Craig appears as a guest on The Merv Griffin Show in her Batgirl costume where the two poke fun at the perennially sad-sack New York Mets baseball team in this exchange:



Craig: "So, Merv, their new manager, Gil Hodges, thinks he's going to mold the Mets into a winner!"



Griffin: "Oh brother! Last season, Don Bosch was going to be the next Willie Mays!"

[G-Fafif]

Typical Merv.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Asshole! What did Eva Gabor see in him?

[Edgy MD]

He let her host his show where she hooked up with hot, young, hairy Chuck Norris.



[YOUTUBE]FxLOQLxie6w[/YOUTUBE]

[Edgy MD]

"If fame came in calories, this man would weigh more than the entire roster of the New York Mets."



— Casey Kasem, speaking of Ray Stevens, the man whose smash hit, "Everything is Beautiful," was at #22 this week in 1970.



The hits don't stop 'til we get to the top.

[G-Fafif]

The first AT40, no less. Happy 50th, Casey!



From 2020‘s Two for Tennis by novelist and Mets fan Michael Elias, whose protagonist Mark seeks solace in the doings at Shea in September 2008:

They all agreed on this last point and busied themselves with individual concerns: Ronnie cleaned up in the kitchen, Zeb headed for the bathroom, and Mark, remembering that there was a full slate of major-league baseball games every Sunday (as on most days), tuned in to ESPN to catch the scores. In particular, he was hoping for good news about his Mets, who were playing a doubleheader after a rainout the day before. From Shea Stadium in Queens, New York, ESPN was actually televising the second game of the doubleheader as their national Sunday night game-of-the-week. Excellent, Mark thought. What was even more excellent was the score, the Mets leading by a few runs. It was late in the game and Carlos Delgado, their slugging, black Puerto Rican first baseman, had hit a pair of home runs and driven in four. Their 137-million-dollar star pitcher, Johan Santana, had started the game and given them a strong performance, keeping the bats of the opposing Phillies quiet. Just last September, the Mets had blown a sizable division lead to the Phillies in the worst late-season collapse in baseball history, missing the playoffs by one game. For this reason, Mark, even more than usual, wished the Mets would overcome their Eastern Division rivals and send them back down the Jersey Turnpike to Philly disappointed. This game was crucial to the Mets, as it turned out they'd already lost the first two of this three-game series. But Santana answered the bell and, like he was doing all season, continued earning this year's big salary on that huge contract, one which was negotiated by a family friend who happened to be Johan's agent. Now a relief pitcher was in for the Mets, trying to close out a victory for them, and after a bad call by an ump and a squirrely infield hit, he recovered to preserve the lead and sew up the game. It was a much-needed win, like oxygen to a runner. The victory bumped the Mets' division lead back up to three games over Philadelphia. Had they lost, it would have been down to a single game, a prospect Mark found thoroughly loathsome. But now the Mets had a bit of breathing room, and, although it was just sports and Mark now had something more important in his life, he still cheered his team on toward success. There were still three weeks of games left on the regular-season schedule, but Mark was hopeful his team, like his new relationship with Ronnie, would be a winner and continue onward to greater heights. Why limit his thoughts to only one? The two possibilities were not mutually exclusive.

There's more Metsiness within.



https://www.amazon.com/Tennis-Adventures-Mark-Michael-Elias/dp/B089HXV78B/https://www.amazon.com/Tennis-Adventures-Mark-Michael-Elias/dp/B089HXV78B/

[Edgy MD]

Is it good?

[G-Fafif]

I've only read Metsian excerpts provided by the author.

[G-Fafif]

Oakland Mets in the Popular Culture.



https://twitter.com/mighty_flynn/status/1284317737267990528?s=21https://twitter.com/mighty_flynn/status/1284317737267990528?s=21

[G-Fafif]

Unearthed of late..



“I gotta go down to Kelsey's and watch the Mets play ball.”

and later...

“I won on a ballgame. The Mets beat them San Diego Padres.”

—Archie Bunker, All In The Family, Season 6, Episode 2; September 15, 1975 (the night Mike Vail ties the rookie hitting streak record)



“I love the Mets! But every time I suggest a Mets-themed prom, you guys look at me like I'm crazy! Well, here I go — final effort: Let's do a Mets prom! Blue and orange streamers, hot dogs! My uncle knows Mookie Wilson. He can come! Therefore, my theme is, ‘Remember the Night We Mets?' Thank you.”

—Fred Armisen (wearing a Mets road jersey and a blue Mets cap) as Billy Zerillo, in a prom committee meeting, Saturday Night Live, May 19, 2007 (Season 32, Episode 20)



The 1963 Off-Broadway revue Put It In Writing included a song, written by Fred Ebb and Norman Martin, that included the following lyrics:



“When you run for a ball run right into the stands/Don't forget, you're a Met/When a grounder arrives let it slip through your hands/Don't forget, you're a Met,” asserting Mets fans preferred their new team lose. (Boo.)

[G-Fafif]

On Saturday Night Live, October 6, 2007 (Season 33, Episode 2), Fred Armisen as Omar Minaya and Kenan Thompson as Willie Randolph take to the Weekend Update desk to unsuccessfully explain away the Mets' late-season collapse (with Thompson in a home Mets uniform and blue cap).



https://i0.wp.com/www.onesnladay.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/10-6-2007_0.42.43.01.jpg?ssl=1>

[stevejrogers]

Was Greg notified about this?

https://www.amazon.com/New-York-Mets-Popular-Culture/dp/1476680108https://www.amazon.com/New-York-Mets-Popular-Culture/dp/1476680108

[G-Fafif]

“What a great-looking crowd — so many stars, so much cocaine. Is this the Emmys or the Mets' locker room?”

—David Letterman, 2020 Emmys (9/20/2020), reading jokes ostensibly left in his tuxedo pocket from when he last wore it, hosting the 1986 Emmys

[Edgy MD]

[YOUTUBE]_vmhlIfaeAU[/YOUTUBE]

[G-Fafif]

On the Season 32 premiere of The Simpsons (“Undercover Burns,” September 27, 2020), Mr. Burns takes on a new identity: Fred Kranepool.

[G-Fafif]

The guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers when NBC News broke in to announce Trump tested positive for COVID-19 was David Wright, promoting his upcoming book, The Captain. After the initial report, the network rejoined the Wright interview, already in progress.

Edited October 1, 2020 by Guest