John Oliver and Monday's Cartoons
Plus: Farewell to ground breaker Johnny Rodriguez.
Greg Mitchell is the author of more than a dozen books and now writer/director of three award-winning films aired via PBS, including “Atomic Cover-up” and “Memorial Day Massacre.” Now watch trailer for acclaimed 2025 film “The Atomic Bowl.” Before all that, he was a longtime editor of the legendary Crawdaddy. You can still subscribe to this newsletter for FREE. Yes, we said FREE.
Skipping around a bit:
Johnny Rodriguez became country music’s first Mexican American star (he hailed from Texas) with ‘70s hits including “I Just Can’t Get Her Out of My Mind” and “Ridin’ My Thumb to Mexico.” He has died at 73. Below he sings Woody’s classic and timely “Deportee” with Johnny Cash.
John Oliver’s important segment last night on the Alliance Defending Freedom, which helped give us the Dobbs abortion decision and so much more….
Had to laff over social media reference to Stephen Miller as “Pee Wee German.”
Enjoyed this little note in a NY Times newsletter today, although you guys don’t have to worry since we are free here: “Substack: People are losing track of just how many newsletters they’re paying for.”
And in case you lost track of this story, an update this morning:
Auction to Dine With Trump Creates Foreign Influence Opportunity
When the bidding stops Monday, the top buyers of a Trump family crypto coin will win a tour of the White House.
Finally, a swell new single from Little Feat. I first wrote about them back in (ouch) 1971, with Lowell George still alive.
From Tunes to Toons
Tjeerd Royaards:
Wow, this post sure sent me back 50 years! The witty host introducing the two Johns singing "Deportee" is Ralph Emery (b. 1933–d. 2022). I listened to the Ralph Emery Show out of Nashville, Tennessee, every morning throughout the 1970s before leaving home to drive "up the mountain" to teach high school. He always started my day on a happy note. Emery was the person who introduced Naomi and Wynonna Judd to the world during those years. They were frequent guests, but in those days, Emery called them the "Soap Sisters." They were, of course, mother and daughter instead of sisters, but most of the audience did not know that then. Emery named them the Soap Sisters because Naomi (the mother) sometimes talked about making her own soap. If not for Emery, I think far fewer people would ever have heard of or admired the Judds. Naomi, who also died in 2022, is also the mother of Ashley Judd, the actor and author.
That cartoon with the American flag prison bars is brilliant. I wish it wasn’t so realistic.