Rocky Allen RIP

Well, this is sad. Longtime radio DJ Rocky Allen has died at the age of 71.

Rocky was an old-school DJ who worked all over the country, eventually coming to the late 95.5 WPLJ FM in NYC in the early 1990s. Rocky had two stints at WPLJ in the 1990s and 2000s, and also did time on 77 WABC AM radio. He was a good natured, sweet man with a great voice.

And I worked for him! 

Well, not really -- in the summer of 1994 I was an intern at WPLJ (as I've blogged about before) and logged his show a few times. He was always very nice to me the few times we spoke and it was a good hang at his show. 

In fact, when I was logging his show, I met Pat Morita from the Karate Kid movie series. He was visiting the show one day to promote The Next Karate Kid and he shook my hand by saying "Hi, I used to be a movie star." Rocky and Pat talked about how Pat's new co-star, a young lady named Hillary Swank, was really talented -- and a few years later she'd win two Academy Awards. 

Another memory of working with Rocky Allen: the dude was funny, much funnier off the air than on. During commercial breaks and when songs were playing, he and the staff would tell wild, hilarious jokes and stories. I remember ...

... one of his producers telling us about going down to visit his girlfriend in Florida and found her banging another guy. 

... Rocky's sidekick, Blaine Ensley, looking at a newspaper and, referencing the then-Paula Jones lawsuit against then-President Clinton, asking me, "Do you think Bill showed that chick his weenie?" I had no answer for that nor did I think he really wanted one, although it was obviously a foreshadowing of things to come.

... and from Rocky himself. He once hosted a short salon with me and the guys in the studio about whether or not not "fat chicks" gave "better blow jobs." Rocky did not believe that weight was necessarily proportional to skill (and Rocky himself was very fat so he could and should have advocated for this "position") but the other guys were convinced -- overweight ladies were more talented at this particular activity. So these days, whenever I see fat ladies, I think of Rocky and the gang and smile.

RIP, Rocky. I'll miss 'ya. You were a mench

Paul Auster & Tony Pigg RIP

Two New Yorkers passed away last week who were the kinds of people who give this city its spirit.

Paul Auster was the author of experimental but sentimental novels like The New York Trilogy and City of Glass. He also wrote the delightful 1995 Brooklyn-based movie Smoke, about the intersecting lives of New Yorkers who frequent a local cigar store. I remember watching this movie in theaters just before going off to college and it was like taking a little bit of the city with me in my heart.

Another recent loss is the radio DJ Tony Pigg who bounced around the NYC dial for decades. He DJ'd at my old station WPLJ as well as WNEW and K-ROCK. He also had a great gig as the announcer for LIVE with Regis Philben for 30 years.

Both great New Yorkers who made our city a little better. RIP.

My Scott Shannon Story

In the annals of NYC morning radio, no DJ except Howard Stern (and probably Jim Kerr) is as legendary as Scott Shannon.

For nearly 40 years, he's been waking up this city with his hypnotic timber. After working in Florida, he came to NYC in 1983 and started the "Z-Morning Zoo" on Z100, a widely imitated morning radio show format of wacky phone calls, in-studio guest, stunts, and music interspersed with news and traffic. After a brief hiatus in LA, Scott returned to NYC and spent roughly 23 years at WPLJ where he co-hosted "Scott and Todd in the Morning", one of the longest running duos in morning radio history. Then, in 2014, he left WPLJ (five years before it ceased to exist) and did mornings at WCBS-FM -- and he'll be retiring from there, and from morning radio, this December.

I've blogged in years past about how, one summer in the 1990s, I was an intern at WPLJ. It was a pop music station with the forgettable slogan, "No rap, no hard stuff, no sleepy elevator music. Just the best songs on the radio!" At the time I was too ignorant to understand this dog whistle to mean, "No black stuff, no dirty stuff, no weird stuff. Just boring square white music!"

Anyhoo, Scott Shannon was in his "Scott and Todd" heyday and was a really big deal at the station. Not only was he the morning guy but he was also the program director, so he was treated as a God at the station. As a lowly intern, I had almost no contact with him -- except one day where I was given a huge stack of letters to fax (remember fax machines?) which happened to be located right next to his office. I spent the better part of this day just faxing stuff, and Scott Shannon would be in and out of his office, passing me by. He mostly ignored me but then, out of nowhere, he asked me if I "got chicks." I was a hopelessly nerdy no-girl getting shrimp so I just laughed nervously. So he started calling me "Chick Magnet!" Every time he walked in and out of the office he'd shout "Chick magnet!" For the rest of my internship, whenever I passed him by, "Chick magnet!" My only other interactions with him were when he asked me to fax something for him (I obliged) and then when he talked up and put his fingers around one of my wrists, telling me he couldn't believe how thin my wrist was. He was right, but it was weird.

Anyway, I never saw or thought about him or WPLJ for years after I left until the station went off the air in 2019. And, honestly, Mr Shannon was quite nice to me. So I congratulate him on a long career and wish him a happy retirement. His legacy in NYC radio is quite secure.  

Interview: Allan Sniffen of the New York Radio Message Board

Long before social media conquered the Internet -- and our world -- message boards were the original go-to-places for people to debate and give their opinions on various issues online. Most of these message boards have vanished but one is still going strong – the New York Radio Message Board founded by Allan Sniffen. 

The NYRMB has faithfully tracked the ups-and-downs, and unending changes, of the NYC radio business since 1996. I discovered the message board in 2002/2003 in the aftermath of the Opie and Anthony St. Patrick’s debacle that generated headlines about how far “shock radio” would go to cross lines of decency in pursuit of ratings. What I also discovered about the message board were how many people in the radio business posted to it, and how informative and intelligent most of the discussions were. This was and remains all due to Allan’s diligent oversight and curation of the message board, -- keeping it a smart and civil platform for radio professionals and fans to congregate. 

Allan was kind enough to answer Mr. NYC questions about the NYRMB and the evolution of music and talk radio in NYC in the 21st century. And he also tells us what made him a lifelong radio fan – and how, in radio, talent is everything. 

Tell us briefly about the history of the NYRMB and what inspired you to create it?

I started the Musicradio WABC web site in 1996. I thought it would be interesting to have visitors comment on that era of WABC so I created the message board in 1997. After a few weeks it was obvious that there was only so much to discuss about a radio station that had changed its format years earlier so I decided to shift the focus to current radio topics. It needed to have a catalyst to prod response so that was the role I took on. 

Why do you think the board has lasted for as long as it has? What has made so many people in the NYC radio business flock to it for so many years? 

My conception for the NYRMB is for educated and informed commentary. I don't want poorly written, cheap shots under phony names. I have always encouraged quality over quantity of both posts and posters. 

What topics and/or radio personalities generate the most discussion -- and controversy -- on the board?

The more provocative and polarizing a personality, the more response. Bob Grant. Opie and Anthony. Rush Limbaugh. Howard Stern. They all invite (or invited) controversy so listeners tend to either love them or hate them. Consequently, they make good board topics. Radio station format changes also tend to inspire commentary especially if former formats were once very popular. WNEW-FM dropping rock. WCBS-FM becoming Jack. WRKS ("Kiss-FM") abandoning its urban format. WPLJ giving up its legacy. 

What are some of the biggest NYC radio stories it has covered since it came into being?

WNEW-FM dropping its rock format (1999), Opie and Anthony's St. Patrick’s fiasco (2003), WCBS-FM becoming Jack (2005) and returning to "Greatest Hits (2007), media consolidation (over the last two decades), lack of a country music station (up until 2012), retirements of great Top 40 DJ's (Dan Ingram, Harry Harrison, Dan Daniel and others), WPLJ dropping its heritage (last year). 

How has media consolidation and technology (i.e. streaming and podcasting) changed the music and talk radio landscape? 

Media Consolidation: We now have clusters of stations competing with other clusters (as with iHeart Media competing against Entercom). It used to be a single station verses other single stations. Today, you don't pick a format in a vacuum. You have to consider how it fits into your cluster and how it will compete against the other corporations' clusters. Plus, obviously, consolidation has eliminated many, many jobs. 

New Technology: 

Music formats: Streaming from Pandora, Spotify and Apple have created tremendous competition to conventional music radio. If the only thing a listener wants is his or her favorite songs, new technology is a better alternative. It can be better tailored to each listener and has no commercials. 

Talk formats: There are so many podcasts that the sheer number of alternatives has splintered off many talk radio listeners. That's especially true for young listeners. Plus radio hasn't significantly updated the talk format. It's mostly the same as it was 25 years ago on low quality sounding AM. 

In the years since the message board started, how has the radio business in NYC changed in your observation and opinion? 

Consolidation changed everything. There are fewer and fewer jobs that pay less and less money. Radio is billing only about 30% of what it used to. Any business that has a drop like that must reduce costs. Listeners frequently don't understand that and are quick to condemn their local station. Unfortunately it's a much bigger problem than a single station or manager. That said, all is not lost for conventional radio. It's not going anywhere because it has its own advantages. It's easy to receive (radios that don't drop out and no data fees). It reaches lots of people quickly and in real time. It can provide a human connection. The business of radio needs to remember those assets and use them. 

In the era of Fox News and numerous conservative web sites, is right-wing talk radio still as relevant as it used to be? Also, how will it survive with an aging and less commercially desirable demographic -- or is it more resilient than people might imagine?

Right wing talk radio has done well because it's entertaining. It's not about politics. New York City is politically liberal yet it has spawned many successful conservative talk show hosts (Bob Grant, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and more). Fox News learned that from the talk radio format. Make it entertaining and people will listen (or watch).

The problem with today's talk radio format is that it's mostly on AM and has stagnated over the last 25 years because it can't appeal to younger listeners with its poor sound quality. AM can't program "younger". The result is the same people have kept the same jobs for much longer than they would have in previous eras when they would have aged out. Media prefers younger listeners because advertisers will pay more for them. Since AM is stuck with older listeners for technical reasons the talk radio format has stayed with the same hosts for decades. That will only work until everyone, listeners and hosts, get too old. AM radio's future is not a bright one. 

It seems like shock jocks have faded into history. Opie and Anthony are no more. Don Imus is dead. Howard Stern has been on satellite for almost 15 years and is nowhere near as outrageous as he used to be. What do you think happened? 

Younger talent is not getting much opportunity on radio. The business won't pay or encourage them. At the same time, new media has spawned many podcast and streaming stars. A few have broken out as with Ben Shapiro but even he relies more on his podcast base than on his AM radio listeners. Traditional radio doesn't want to take a chance. Howard Stern cost Infinity/CBS-Radio (now Entercom) a fortune to both pay and defend. It was worth it on a business basis in the '80's and '90's but radio is not going to make that kind of investment today. Too expensive and too risky. 

What made you fall in love with radio and who are some of your favorite radio personalities? 

For me, the most fun radio ever was Top 40 radio of the sixties and seventies. Dan Ingram is my obviously my favorite but I liked almost everyone from that era on WABC, WMCA, WPLJ, WOR-FM, 99X (and others). Not all were from New York. John Landecker at WLS/Chicago. The "Real" Don Steele at KHJ/Los Angeles. The great Top 40 DJ's could generate excitement and enthusiasm over a 10 second song intro and then come back and do it again 2 minutes later. It sounded like fun because it was in real time, unscripted and fast paced. I try to create that feeling on my Rewound Radio live shows. 

Finally, what makes NYC radio so endlessly fascinating? 

Change and evaluating what works and what doesn't. Great radio ideas can fail for one of two reasons. Was the concept a bad idea or was it a good idea that was executed poorly? Figuring out which is like evaluating a baseball team and its players. That said... radio is less interesting than it used to be. It's becoming more and more homogenized with managers taking fewer and fewer risks. Personality radio is less in both quantity and quality on almost all formats. Anyone can play music or read a political press release. The talent is surrounding those basics with entertainment. 

Thanks Allan!

Mr NYC Reviews the 20-Teens

Hard as it is to believe but, as the minutes tick down towards the end of the year, the second decade of the 21st century is ending and the third is about to begin. This very blog will also enter its third decade which, if you don't mind me saying, is something of an achievement.

So what happened in NYC during this past decade, the twenty-teens?

A bunch of stuff, some great, some awful. The New York Times has an interesting list of developments in NYC in the 20-teens that includes the following: the growth of ferry service around the city (good), the dramatic decline of retail stores and the preponderance of empty storefronts (bad), the phenomena of Hamilton that made Broadway relevant again (good), the rise of cashless businesses (neither good nor bad, just reality), the growth of massively tall, skyline-ruining "needle" buildings (bad), universal pre-K (great!), and others. 

One thing this list also includes is the sale of the Chrysler Building for $150 million after previously selling for $800 million. It's truly bizarre that a huge NYC iconic building could sell for less than the most expensive apartments in town and lots of other big name buildings. The reason? It's very old and has tons of structural problems, dramatically decreasing the value. This tracks another big-name purchase that was sold for way less money than one would expect -- the radio station WABC, which was sold for only $12.5, much much much much less than most buildings or apartments in this city. The reason? Very low ratings with an ossified, dying listenership, and practically zero growth potential in the age of podcasts and the Internet. The Chrysler Building and WABC, once mighty NYC institutions, were victims of the changes of this decade.

Another big-time radio station in NYC that wasn't just sold but vanished altogether was WPLJ, where I used to intern, another demographic/technology victim.

One thing about NYC in the 20-teens is that TV about this great city was better than ever: Mad Men, 30 Rock, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel, and many others reflected the wild lifes and times, both past and present, of this town. 

New York City also lost of number of icons, some from death, some from infamy: Ed Koch, Lou Reed, Al Goldstein, and Stan Brooks all died during this decade, representatives, in their very different ways, of this city during the era I call "funky town." Of course, some other NYC icons are still alive but have fallen dramatically from grace: Harvey Weinstein, Anthony Weiner, Louis CK, and Charlie Rose all began the decade in great positions of power NYC only to end it in disgrace and irrelevance. 

The city also saw some physical transformations: Long Island City went from being a real estate desert to a real estate oasis. Hudson Yards opened, creating a brand new neighborhood in the heart of Manhattan. Pedestrian plazas and bike sharing exploded, literally changing the experience of the city streets. 

There were obviously political transformations: Occupy Wall Street (2001), a new mayor (2013), AOC and the Democratic takeover of the State Senate (largely due to elections in NYC in 2018), and naturally, a New Yorker was elected President of the United States but, instead of being a great thing, it was a national tragedy (2016). 

Sports: the Giants won the Superbowl (2012), and anyone remember "Linsanity" (also 2012)?

As always, a lot happened in NYC during the 20-teens -- some things historic, some things just moments in time. I have no doubt that NYC in the 2020s will be equally, if not more, memorable.

P.S. A couple of non end-of-the decade related stories you might find interesting: one is an obituary for an acclaimed activist-artist and another is a long story about how Robert Moses, in a rare feat of true public service, made the Met into the true "people's museum", marrying elite art with the masses, that it is today.

Eddie Money RIP

As a kid in the 1980s, listening to the now-gone radio station WPLJ, I loved the songs of Eddie Money. 

The child of an NYPD family from Brooklyn, Money went his own way, breaking into the music biz and moving to California, then turning out a string of big hit songs like "Think I'm in Love," "Two Tickets to Paradise", "I Wanna Go Back" and -- my two favorites -- "Walk on Water" and "Take Me Home Tonight."

These were rousing, musically dense, and heart-wrenching songs. Money's voice was full of longing, anguish, love, and determination. He was a crooner, a balladeer, the kind of popular singer who don't really have today but was big once upon a time. After a run of huge success, Money's fame receded but he kept touring, kept performing, and even appeared earlier this year on the new Netflix show "The Kominsky Method." 

Eddie Money died today from cancer at the age of 70. I couldn't find out much about his life since it appears that he was married to the same woman for 30 years, had 5 kids, and never got arrested or sued or into some big accident. He seems to have lived a stunningly normal life for someone who was such a talented singer and big star. But he was part of my childhood that is sadly gone and, both as a son of NYC and a singer, he'll be missed. 

Take your ticket to paradise, Eddie. You earned it. 

The Fall of WABC

Just over a month ago the pop station WPLJ 95.5 FM went off the air after being sold to a Christian broadcaster; now its sister station WABC 77 AM has also been sold -- to a local businessman.

This is an interesting development. For decades WABC was owned by big corporations like Cap Cities/ABC, Disney, and, more recently, Cumulus. Now it'll be the personal possession of NYC grocery store magnate John Catsimatidis (more on him and this purchase in a moment).

WABC used to be a huge radio station in NYC. It was a ratings powerhouse and hugely influential in the life and culture of this city. In the 1960s and 1970s it was the music station in town, producing DJs like Cousin Brucie and others, and introducing new bands and singers to NYC listeners. Then, in the early 1980s, it became a talk station -- and made history: its where Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity started their nationally syndicated radio shows, almost launching the conservative media universe that now rules our country. WABC's stable of right-wing radio hosts like Bob Grant and others were (probably) responsible for the election of Governors like Christine Todd Whitman and George Pataki as well as Mayor Rudy Giuliani in the early 1990s.

In many ways, we live in the world that WABC created.

But its been left behind, rattling in the dust. Limbaugh and Hannity moved their shows from WABC many years ago. The Internet and podcasts and social media overwhelmed it, making talk radio seem quaint. It became a victim of its own success. More importantly, as the times changed, as the city it broadcasted to became more diverse, WABC remained, no pun intended, static -- it didn't change, it just devoted itself 100% to angry white male talk, and its rating fell over time. Just as importantly, it was never able to fill the ratings void that Limbaugh and Hannity left behind.

And so, after decades of ruling the NYC radio ratings and government, WABC "bent the knee" to John Catsimatidis. Who is he? He's a businessman who made a fortune running the Gristedes supermarket chain. He's invested in real estate, oil, and other industries and -- like many rich and bored guys in town -- is also interested in media and politics. He gives money to the GOP and Democrats (he's a big Trump supporter), and even has his own radio show where he hosts politicians of all stripes. He's a complete buffoon, one of these guys no one would pay any attention to if he wasn't very rich. He even ran, very unsuccessfully, for mayor back in 2013, and lost big. He's the kind of person everyone mocks behind his back but genuflects in front of -- again, only because he's rich.

What's fascinating about this sale, however, is that a station that was once a part of a huge corporation will be run by one man. It'll be interesting to see if John C. is able to make it into a vibrant local radio station, giving it a new life and relevancy -- or just erode it further. I'm especially amazed that he was able to buy it for only $12.5 million! For a once big-time station in the country's biggest radio market, that's a bargain basement, almost fire-sale price. There are apartments in NYC that cost more, a lot more, than that! It just shows how far the once high flying station has fallen, how irrelevant this once indispensable station has become.

An exhausted volcano.

Good luck, WABC.

P.S. I listened to WABC back in high school and, a short while, after college. Most of the hosts were morons but there was one I loved -- Lynn Samuels, the screechy voiced liberal loudmouth. She was NYC to the core, loud and outrageous, funny as hell, the kind of person I can't imagine being on the radio today. She was very popular and ran on WABC for many years before going off to satellite radion. Sadly, she died several years ago (I even blogged about it here). What she would made of Trump as president is anybody's guess!

The Final Moments of WPLJ

News Today, History Tomorrow -- May 31, 2019

Well, if today isn't a "hinge day" in NYC, I don't know what is! 

Today is the last day of radio station WPLJ before it becomes a "Christian music" station. At 7 PM, this legendary NYC rock station will be no more, a relic of another time and another city.

Today is also the first day of OMNY ("One Metro New York"), the new transit card the MTA is rolling out to replace the MetroCard by 2023. It'll start being used today on the 4, 5, 6 lines in Brooklyn and Manhattan, as well as all public buses in Staten Island. (This is what's called a "soft launch".) Unlike the current "swipe" of the MetroCard, all you'll have to do with the OMNY is "tap" (or scan it) it on an electronic reader, it will be a completely contact-less way to get onto public transportation. Soon the MetroCard will join the token as a relic -- instead, we'll OMNY our way around town.

So today, in a just a matter of hours, one part of the city's past is vanishing and another part of its future is arriving. 

Then there are a couple of issues that, if realized, will transform this city both socially and physically.

There's Hart Island -- the 150-year old pauper's cemetary off the coast of the Bronx that is closed to the public. The city council is now introducing a bill that will turn it into a public park (the  council speaker and mayor support it so it looks to be a done deal). Think of it -- not just another park or public space will be created but New Yorkers will have access to a whole new island, making this archipeligo of a town all the more ... archipeligo-ish. I once called Hart Island a "secret of NYC" but, if this bill passes and this island opens to the public, it will be a secret no more. 

And talking about taking something out of the dark into the light, one day soon New York might very well legalize prostitution -- otherwise known as "decrim." This is, as you might imagine, a divisive topic and many people have different ideas of what "decrim" should be. But the fact that this has a realistic chance of happening, that it's even being discussed, it transformative. Up until just a few years ago, the idea that something like this might happen seemed unimaginable -- like gay marriage or legal weed. Yet here were are. 

So while today might just seem like another day in NYC, it's not.

History is happening all around us!

Farewell to WPLJ

As a kid in NYC in the 1980s, when I was discovering music, I only listened to one station: WPLJ. It was, for me, the best music station in town, playing pop and rock -- all the hits! -- plus it was the home of "American Top 40" which I loved listening to every Saturday morning. 

Songs like Madonna's "Cherish" or the Back to the Future hit "Power of Love" are, for me, the quintessential '80s songs that I associate with WPLJ. Then, in the summer of 1994, I actually interned at PLJ, spending weekends handing out stickers and shwag at promotion events, answering phones in the promotions department, and even logging the occasional "Rocky Allen Showgram." It was a fun experience.

Honestly, by the mid-1990s, by the time I interned at PLJ, my tastes had evolved to classic rock and I was more of a K-Rock listener, but I maintained a soft spot for the station of my youth and that let me intern.

By the time I went to college -- and certainly after I returned -- I basically stopped listening to music radio, especially when the IPod came into existence. I had no idea what was going on with WPLJ nor did I care. But the station felt like an institution -- it had been, and would always be, around forever. 

However, apparently, WPLJ was just sold to a Christian rock company and is, apparently, going to lose its call numbers. Now I'm sad. Really sad. Yet another part of my youth is gone. And yet another great NYC stations is vanishing, along with the likes of WNEW and WNBC and K-ROCK and others. And it's going to become Christian rock? Yewwww ...

So farewell WPLJ. And, to quote a song that was played constantly on that station, "I-ye-eye will always love youuuuuu ..." And, most of all, remember you.

P.S. I think one of PLJ's problems is that, let's be honest, it had a lousy name and lousy call letters. WPLJ means nothing. It's not like K-ROCK to Z-100 -- those had "zing", they had "edge." WPLJ has ... WPLJ. Boring. 

Easily the best call letters I ever heard about was for a rock station in California -- KOME (west of the Mississippi river, all the station call letters start with "K"). KOME, as you might guess, were awesome call letters and the station had a lot of fun with them. The station called itself the "KOME spot for great music", "You've got KOME oozing out of your radio", "Wake up with KOME in your ear", and "Don't touch that dial! It's got KOME on it." Brilliant.

New York, Summer 1994

There's a movie opening soon called "The Wackness" (odd title) about New York City teenagers in the summer of 1994. Obviously I find this somewhat intriguing because -- you guessed it -- I was a teenager in New York City in the summer of 1994! Good grief. A time of my life when I was in high school is now viewed as an historical era. Gosh I feel old.

From what I've read about this movie in The New York Times, it's basically all getting high and hooking up. I guess that's what lots of New York City teenagers did in 1994 -- and still do today. I can't really say I can relate because 1) I've never been a stoner (not because I am or was morally opposed to smoking pot but because I didn't have any money and was never cool enough to hang out with drug dealers), and 2) I didn't hook up much (okay, okay at all) because I was and forever shall be a giant honkin' nerd (and not in the way "nerds" are cool today, I'm talking repellent, Napoleon Dynamite/Brian from My So-Called Life level nerdiness here). I can relate to what the director of this movie, on whose life it is based, means when he says, “Girls weren’t into me ... I wasn’t cool, and I was so nervous that I then fulfilled the prophecy and became even more uncool.” Hear hear, ad infinitum.

So what was I doing in NYC in the summer of 1994? I was working at a radio station called WPLJ who's tag line of the day was "No Rap. No Hard Stuff. No Sleepy Elevator Music. Just the Best Songs on the Radio." That basically meant Top 40 and the hit songs of the day were "Mr Jones" by Counting Crows and "Streets of Philadelphia" by Bruce Springsteen -- and thanks to working at the radio station I heard those songs all the friggin' time.

It was a very hot summer, I remember. Giuliani had just taken office. The Rangers won the Stanley Cup. Baseball went on strike. Forrest Gump and The Lion King were the big hit movies. Everyone, everywhere was talking about the OJ case (remember that?). When I wasn't working during that summer, I spent a lot of time visiting colleges. All in all it was a good summer, but I don't think I would make a movie about it. If I did, however, instead of the "The Wackness" I'd call it the "The Dorkness."