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It practically gallops!

Wish Fulfillment

A few days after each “Dinner with the Bone Doctor,” Susan Seals mails me a few snapshots from the event. The pictures are signed by Dr. Bill Bass. This past week I was fortunate to receive a few pictures of myself with Dr. Bass as well as some pictures that I need to give to others.

Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - Melissa Treece meets Dr. Bill Bass Melissa Treece is a fan of Patricia Cornwell’s books and sometimes corresponds with the famous author via Twitter. Melissa plans to start reading the novels and the non-fiction books by Dr. Bass and Jon Jefferson. She bought a ticket to the dinner last Monday night and had a fabulous time. I have three autographed pictures for her.

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Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - Amy Sams meets Dr. Bill Bass and Frank Murphy Amy Sams entered the Star 102.1 Fall Fantasy contest last year. Her entry was picked on Halloween morning and she quickly called in to claim her prize. Her wish was to meet Dr. Bass. The radio station paid for Amy and her mother to attend the dinner. I have two autographed pictures for her.

January 28, 2012 | Filed Under Body Farm | Leave a Comment 

Happy Disposition

The opening scene of last Wednesday’s episode of “The Middle” should be enough to earn award nominations for each of the five main cast members. The actors playing the Heck family displayed great comedic timing while driving home from Aunt Ginny’s funeral. Frances Bay, the actress who played Aunt Ginny, died in September. The characters talked about how Aunt Ginny looked less wrinkled laying down. Embalming will often make an elderly person appear younger.

Like the Hecks, my family’s tradition is to choose embalming and burial. In the old days, the question of whether to be buried or cremated rarely came up. With the rise in popularity of cremation, the question is a valid one, as pointed out in a blog on NPR’s website last Thursday. The writer, Barbara J. King, adds a third choice of donating one’s body to science, specifically the Body Farm. Because I sometimes volunteer as an emcee for Bone Zones events, I am often asked if I want my remains to decay at the Body Farm. I respect those who choose differently but I have repeatedly said that I want my remains to be exhumable. I haven’t purchased a cemetery plot but my inclination is to choose one a Catholic cemetery.

A “NIMBY” controversy has erupted over plans for a new crematory in Fountain City. Eric Botts, the manager of the Gentry-Griffey Funeral Chapel was my guest on the public affairs program that aired this morning. You can listen via the podcast link below. We spoke about the controversy, about changes in the funeral industry and about the increased demand for cremations. The people who have complained about the crematory are uninformed. Newer technology means there will be no smoke or odor. In fact, the neighbors won’t notice anything. After the interview, Eric and I exchanged Facebook messages. He invited me to tour the facility once it’s up and running.

Frank Murphy Interviews Eric Botts of Gentry-Griffey Funeral Chapel [ 30:00 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

January 15, 2012 | Filed Under Body Farm | Leave a Comment 

The Brew Crew

Kim Leslie came down the stairs as soon as I arrived at the Smoky Mountain Brewery. Lauren, the manager on duty, smiled and said she had given Kim one of the same buzzers used to tell patrons their table was ready. When I gave my name at the hostess stand, Lauren activated the buzzer.

I’ve known Kim for years. We worked at different Washington radio stations but had mutual friends. She is now on the air in Nashville. When I read on Facebook that her family was on their way to a vacation in Gatlinburg, I suggested that they have dinner at the Brewery. I had plans to be there for a live video feed on SMOMOtv.com with Taz Cable.

My blogfather, Rich Hailey, and his wife Lissa were also in attendance. I mentioned them as well as a Twitter message I received from Travis Quick, a fan of the Brewery’s Turkey Creek location. Taz and I were on just as the Champs Sports Bowl ended. I was rooting for Knoxville Catholic High School alumnus Harrison Smith, who was playing his last game for Notre Dame. Unfortunately, the Fighting Irish lost but Smith is likely to play again next year in the NFL.

December 30, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 1 Comment 

Incarnation Conversation

Christmas is for giving. Christianity is for forgiving. I brought up the topic of forgiveness with Cardinal Justin Rigali during a radio interview that we recorded last month for broadcast today. Rigali worked for Pope John Paul II and was present when the pope was shot in St. Peter’s Square in 1981. John Paul II was critically wounded but recovered and famously forgave his assassin.

Although we talked about a few Catholic things, most of the interview was geared for Christians of all denominations. We also mentioned Judaism, Islam and other faiths. It was almost as if Cardinal Rigali was delivering a homily about the true meaning of Christmas. He also talked about the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, even mentioning the injustice of the Dred Scott decision.

You can listen to the interview via the podcasting link below:

Frank Murphy Interviews Cardinal Justin Rigali Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

December 25, 2011 | Filed Under Catholic | 1 Comment 

Greek to Me

In past years, talk-show hosts like Bill O’Reilly have drawn attention to the war on Christmas. John Gibson wrote a book with that title. The term refers to people replacing “merry Christmas” with the politically-correct greeting “happy holidays.”

Chi Rho created by Frank Jr. using Microsoft Paint Instead of the war on Christmas, “Overnight America” host Jon Grayson is fighting against the “war on Xmas.” Many people mistakenly believe that the X in Xmas is an atheist trick to remove Christ from Christmas. On Thursday morning’s show, Jon said his grade school teacher explained that the X was a “crisscross” that represented the crucifixion. I had been taught that X was actually the Greek letter Chi, the first letter of Christ. Chi Rho, the first two letters of Christ, are the components of a well-known Christian symbol. “Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison” (Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy) is one of very few Greek prayers in the Latin Mass.

James Newport, the Gatlinburg Improv Fest organizer, posted on Facebook that his 7-year-old daughter spelled Christmas “x minus m-a-s.” His wife Krisha commented, “I’m sure she’ll be messing with ‘E-str’ soon too!”

December 16, 2011 | Filed Under Catholic | Leave a Comment 

Instrumental Health

Maestro Frank Graffeo was contacted by a television producer who told him that they wanted to bring a camera to the Joy of Music School for a documentary. When a large number of crew members showed up with high-end equipment, Graffeo suspected that it was a bigger deal than he was originally led to believe. It wasn’t until the big reveal that the Maestro realized he and his staff were going to be on a show called “Secret Millionaire.”

Maestro Graffeo told the entertaining story in detail on Sunday morning’s East Tennessee Report. The public-affairs broadcast also served to promote the upcoming Holiday Sparkles & Spirits fundraiser on December 9 at Cherokee Mills.

Media File: FrankMurphyInterviewsFrankGraffeo-JoyOfMusicSchool-11-20-11.mp3

Frank Murphy Interviews Maestro Frank Graffeo Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

November 20, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Comments Off 

Telling You Why

St. Louis is home to two of the first radio stations to play all-Christmas music this year.  Fresh 102.5 and Oldies 103.3 made the switch last weekend, less than a week after Halloween. As a fan of Christmas music, I tried sampling both stations on Tuesday while settling down for my afternoon nap.

Like most CBS stations, Fresh 102.5 plays easily on my WiFi clock radio. Like most Clear Channel stations, Oldies 103.3 doesn’t show up. I use a website called Reciva.com to find stations and save them as favorites on my device. To me, the omission is glaring. I wish the site listed my favorite Clear Channel stations from Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

In the long run, I’ll be happier listening to my own Christmas music collection. When I checked the playlists for Fresh 102.5 and for Oldies 103.3, I saw the same holiday standards that get trotted out every year. Even in a religious city like St. Louis, the playlists are overwhelmingly populated by secular songs.

I was hoping to hear some of the newly released Christmas music that I’ve seen promoted on Amazon.com. One of the top-selling albums is “Under the Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber. His cover of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” is on his own album and on the soundtrack for the upcoming movie “Arthur Christmas.” The digitally animated film is made by Aardman Animations, the studio that is famous for the claymation Wallace & Gromit shorts.  Bieber’s music video for the song puts a computer generated version of the singer into scenes from the stop-motion TV special of the same name. Compared to Santa and the other characters, Justin looks too skinny to support his own head.

November 11, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 2 Comments 

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