[UPDATES: HBO says they'll cancel CatHouse before they let Drew Peterson be a character on one of their shows, but the matter may be moot now because Peterson has been arrested for murder. Also, that Gans-hating blogger's still a douche and proving it more and more all the time.]Two gross things popped up today worth being shamed:
1. Moonlite Bunny Ranch's Disgusting Publicity Stunt: Dennis Hof's a smart fellow, a marketing genius, really. He's managed to turn his northern Nevada brothel into a destination thanks to the HBO series "CatHouse" and more power to him on that front. But tomorrow, he's hosting Drew Peterson, the Illinois cop accused but never charges in the deaths of two of his many wives, at the whorehouse. To promote this, a Bunny Ranch PR chickadee, Tonya, sent an email to a NY-based reporter I know urging coverage. When he politely told her that he didn't report from Nevada, she wrote him back: "This story is going to get huge fast ... so it's still good information to have even in NYC." So you can see where these people's minds are at.
I wrote Tonya and asked, "May I ask why Dennis Hof would invite Drew Peterson, a man accused of killing two women, to the Bunny Ranch?"
Her response: "Dennis was introduced to Drew on Mancow via Glenn Selig, who is the same PR guy for Rod Blagojevich. Dennis’ rationale is this is a famous guy coming to a famous place….the BunnyRanch. He hasn’t been convicted of any murders and is innocent until proven guilty; therefore, Dennis is inviting him out to meet the ladies and have a great time as well as explore potential employment opportunities."
Ew. This PR guy gets all the best clients, huh? If you're scum of the earth in Chicago, give this Selig dude a call!
2. DANNY GANS HATE BLOSSOMS ANEW. A man is dead. A family and community is in mourning. Toxicology reports will be finished soon enough to reveal the cause. And what does this asshole want to know? He wants to know why the Pulitzer-winning media in Las Vegas isn't badgering the shit out of Gans' confidants and paramedics to get to the bottom of what killed the man. And in the absence of this pressing use of precious journalistic resources, the same asshole is implying inappropriate relationships Danny did not have and taking words by Robin Leach out of context to imply there's some news on Gans' demise.I wouldn't have known except that I think this Perez Hilton wanna be (and I can't imagine why anyone would wanna be one of those vermin) thought I might be a kindred spirit and emailed me to ask me why the Vegas media hasn't dug into this most pressing issue of our time. To which I responded thusly:
"Uh, because until the toxicology reports come back it would be irresponsible and inappropriate for legitimate reporters to write baseless speculation? Because a man is dead and a family is in mourning and the state of the nation is not dependent upon exacerbating their grief? Because Pulitzer Prize winning newspapers have better uses of their resources than to "investigate" something that public documents will reveal soon enough anyway?
I looked over what you've been "reporting." It's all beneath contempt. Ginning up Robin Leach's "rumors" when the rumors he's referring to have nothing to do with Gans' death, implying an inappropriate relationship with KVBC's Alicia Jacobs, attacking the local press for showing a modicum of dignity and restraint on a story that will come out anyway ... I need to go take a shower now. Blech."
To which he gleefully responded, "Thanks for the honest response, Steve. Can we quote you?"
And around and around and around it goes. At least the jolly purveyors of DannyGansSucks.Com have posted condolences. Might be time to take the whole thing down, no?
23 comments:
There's no reason to call names.
And there's no hatred or glee.
We're only doing the job that you and your fellow Las Vegas journos have pointedly avoided.
Shame on you.
Good for you, Steve.
SG
props steve. these guys are what's wrong with "journalism" today.
Oh yeah, reporters asking questions, that's what's "wrong with 'journalism' today," not lazy reporters who wait around for official sources to spoonfeed them lines to reprint.
Wake up, people.
That guy just won't give it up. His like, top eight stories are about Gans. Which is strange, because he doesn't seem that headline-worthy to me.
But who is this prick in the first place?
And to refer to all the city's broadcasting and paper newsrooms as "Pulitzer-winning media" is a laugh. A Pulitzer, for a story written by *a* journalist, at *a* newspaper. Doesn't mean I can call those two people on Channel 8 who oughta retire already Pulitzer winners.
Be sure to check in here:
http://www.tabloidbaby.blogspot.com/
And THEN decide if Steve is offbase.
Yeah, I dunno who you are or anything.
I can't necessarily doubt your suspicions. I mean, I casually follow the insider world of pro wrasslin' and see young men unexpectedly die of drugs all the time, I'm familiar with all the symptoms and I admit they seem familiar. BUT, even the other fans at least wait to say "IF this is a drug death..." until the report arrives. And they're just people on message boards using pseudonyms.
Expecting people to throw their credibility at faint vapours of scandal is just silly. Steve can't just put in the NY Times everything and anything that you can put in your Google-hosted blog. The Times isn't, to use what my dearly departed grandmother called her tabloid subscriptions, a smut sheet.
Rest assured, I'm sure the Enquirer a rumourmonger on the story.
As long as there are albums and dvds for sale the site will remain up. People should know what they are about to spend their hard earned money on.
Anyone who thinks Steve friess is afraid to speak truth to power or criticIze the big boys of vegas isn't worth responding to. Ask Steve wynn, MGM mirage or the mayor if they feel coddled. Listen to any interview on the strip. If Steve feels this is worth exhibiting some restraint over, maybe it's because he's got something this guy clearly lacks. . . Class. It's not waiting to be spoon fed to let the scientists make their findings. What value other than entertainment of losers does specilation serve? If it's steroids, we'll know later and then what? What does that do for people? Anna nicole and elvis were people with very public dramas that they sought to capitalize from. Gans didn't do that. It's not nearly the same. Bravo Steve!!!
Steve,
You wrote that this blogger "is implying inappropriate relationships Danny did not have." I presume this was in reference to the blogger's comments about Gans and Alicia Jacobs.
I didn't know Gans, and I don't mean to delve into his personal life while his family is mourning him. But how can you state so unequivocably that he didn't have an inappropriate relationship with her, or any other person?
You've put your opinion out there on a limb, yet did you really know the guy so well that you can safely make that claim? If he, or any other public figure, was unfaithful, it's reasonable to assume that this fact may not be widely known outside of their immediate circle. Yet you're shooting down the very possibility with 100 percent certainty -- He did not have sex with that woman, a la Bill Clinton.
How can you be sure, to be that confident?
One of my best friends used to work with Alicia at 13, and my friend said years ago that she and Gans had a side relationship going on. That's not some newly created rumor.
Again, not to say it was true or was not -- I don't know either way -- but you're quite adament in your position in an instance where you could very well be wrong.
Drew Peterson was indicted for the death of his 3rd wife today. Yahoo has a story. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090507/ap_on_re_us/us_police_officer_s_wife
First of all, Tabloid Baby is a news team, not a blogger.
And for you to refer to our entity as a "douche" explains a lot.
How childish and lightweight.
We doubt you will be doing much more writing for any legitimate national publications.
You are a disgrace.
"A douche?"
Pathetic.
If all Las Vegas journalists are like Mr. Friess,
dude, enough with the royal we. we know it's just you in your underwear eating cheetos. go back into the hole you crawled out of. team. that's a good one.
P.S. you're using Blogspot. That's a blogging service. A news team? LOL
I wonder if Steve Friess has figured out that he just " Shit and fell back into it" as we say here in the south, by pissing off Burt" Prince Of Darkness" Kearns?:)-Lewis Bailey
Sorry - I didn't mean to delete the prior comment, but I don't see how to restore it, so here it is:
Tabloid Baby staff has left a new comment on your post "From the Files of ICK!":
Yes we're a news team, where have you been for the last decade? Ask Franklin Ruehl, Eli Wohlgelernter, Sam Peters and about ten other people who contribute on a regular basis.
But that doesn't matter much.
Looking for the latest news on the biggest LOCAL tory in years?
http://www.tabloidbaby.com
Of course nobody's ever heard of any of the people mentioned in the prior post, so I did our homework for us. Franklin Ruehl is cuckoo UFO freak; Elli (it's with two Ls) Wohlgelernter evidently is a journalist whose best work has been abut some issue with baseball and Israel for which the nutjobs at this site seriously believe they deserve the Pulitzer Prize (I'm not making this up!) and "Sam Peters" who, so far as I can tell, is a publicist for...this guy's silly website!
So silly. And now he seems to think that my having written a guidebook for GLBT travelers harms *my* credibility. What a piece of gay-hating work. Yeesh. (Cue a "I have gay BFFs) comment...)
Excuse me, Mr. Friess. For a nationally-published journalist you are rather hysterical and quite the insult-hurler.
If we identified you by your best-known work and linked to it, how does that turn us into "gay-hating"?
Just as we must ask, how are we "Danny Gans haters" because we search for justice in his death, or at least some answers in order bring closure to his many fans-- including us.
You call us nutjobs and freaks and cuckoo and douches and assholes because we investigate a great story?
You are doing yourself a great disservice.
And what are you so defensive about?
Whose payroll are you on?
We smell corruption. We will investigate!
Oh, and poor Miles.
Of course you smell corruption! What else could you possibly smell? You don't give a damn about justice. You give a damn about sensationalism and exploiting people and twisting information for maximum outrage. My guidebook is my best-known work? Really? That shows the extent of your "investigative" abilities, pal. I'm not sure what my best-known work is, but I can assure you that's not what most people come up with.
OMG. I just figured it out! You think you and Danny are kindred spirits of a sort. Danny was a huge Vegas star but was relatively unknown outside of Vegas. You're a huge star in your own mind and nobody has any clue who you are. The only difference is that Danny was OK with being less known beyond the borders; it drives YOU mad. Bummer!
P.S. I'll be away from the computer for the rest of the day visiting with my family. Feel free to post all sorts of self-congratulatory blather. I don't pre-moderate my comments sections, although I'm starting to think I should...
FYI:
http://tabloidbaby.blogspot.com/2009/05/lawsuit-las-vegas-writer-steve-friess.html
Post a Comment