The Birth and Death of the 24-Hour News Channel by Mike Broemmel

Founded in 1980 by business mogul Ted Turner, CNN was one of two 24-hour news outfits that went into operation before and during the early years of the Ronald Reagan presidency. The other was SNC, the Satellite News Channel, a joint venture of ABC and Westinghouse, which launched in 1982 and died 18 months later.

Several years ago, I attended a luncheon hosted by the father of around-the-clock news, Ted Turner, to benefit bison preservation. The main course: bison steak. But, I digress.

I cut my teeth in the realm of media relations when CNN was in its infancy. By 1983, I was a low-ranking Munchkin in the White House Office of Media Relations. Our shop was charged with acting in the place of producers for television appearances by President Reagan.

The people responsible for crafting the television appearances of the President were well in-tune with the importance of the toddling 24-hour news organization in the form of CNN. A good deal of the proverbial message was tailored around the needs of CNN, even during its early years in business.

I think noting that one of the reasons Ronald Reagan was a highly successful President (winning reelection by the largest landslide in modern American history) was because his team understood how to play to CNN. So did President Reagan himself. Folks like to say Barack Obama is a great communicator. He is a good one. Bill Clinton is a great one. But, there is a reason why Ronald Reagan is still called The Great Communicator.

Thing is, throughout the Reagan era and throughout the presidencies of successors to The Gipper, CNN and its siblings in the form of Fox, MSNBC, and lesser-known others, mattered.

I watched the one and only news conference held by President-elect Donald Trump. As a person who cut his chops watching politicians like Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole, and Tip O’Neill communicate with the media, I cringe when I see the President-elect perform before the press.

My initial response to the President-elect’s press conference was: “Good Christ, if President Reagan had done this, he would have been ridden out of town on the horse he came in with, together with Bonzo.” (For those of you younger folks who miss the reference, Trump isn’t the first President to have a past in the entertainment industry. President Reagan was a product of Hollywood, and once starred in a movie called Bedtime for Bonzo. Bonzo? He was a monkey.)

Lest anyone think I am equating the President-elect with the former-President, I do paraphrase Senator Lloyd Bentsen in responding to Senator Dan Quayle during the Vice Presidential debate of the 1988 campaign season. “President-elect Trump, you’re no Ronald Reagan.”

Back to the Trump press conference. The President-elect went after CNN in an unabashed fashion. Truth be told, unhinged might be a more apt description.

The President-elect refused to take questions from the CNN pool reporter (unthinkable in the past). He called out CNN as a propagator of “fake news” (totally beyond anything imaginable at a press conference of any of Trump’s predecessors).

As an aside, CNN does appear to have been one of two entities that spewed out a story about the President-elect that appears to be groundless. The other entity is the routinely questionable BuzzFeed. Even MSNBC has taken CNN to task for not doing its due diligence.

And then I got it.

I was one of many folks who were around at the birth of CNN. And, now we are around to witness the death of CNN and its cohorts as the premier outlets for news and opinion in the United States.

I have heard more than a few communications experts state unequivocally the past two election cycles that television has lost its hegemony when it comes to politics, news, and associated communication. They are correct. 

Indeed, it dawned on me while watching the Trump news conference that since I abandoned watching any of the three 24-hour news networks before the election, I am far better informed.

Yes, the President-elect is brazen to the point of vulgarity. But, in this case, his assault on CNN is like kicking the dead horse that other Presidents would have been ridden out of town on. CNN and company, the 24-hour news networks, are no longer the behemoths of American political discourse they once were. In fact, CNN and company are barely relevant. 

No, the troika of CNN, MSNBC, and Fox will not disappear overnight. But, all three have now crossed the line into ever increasing irrelevance as reliable resources for news. The trend is irreversible. 

Despite its unseemliness, the President-elect’s assault on CNN at his press conference was not an attack on freedom of the press. Rather, it was an attack a thing that has such diminished relevance in the marketplace of news, opinion, ideas, and information, that a person like Trump can *spit* all over it without real consequence.

Farewell, Carrie Fisher ... And Let’s Grab a Coffee Sometime by Mike Broemmel

I can remember what I was doing when I heard Elvis Presley died. Same with Ronald Reagan. But, beyond that, I don’t get overwrought about the passing of a celebrity, even an untimely death. I am not one of those people that feels a close connection with famous folks merely because they are in my living room on the television.

In hearing today that Carrie Fisher died, my reaction is not what I normally experience. I am deeply saddened by the truly untimely passing of this writer and actress. (I relate to her more by a vocation I share … shared … with her.) I feel a hole in my tiny world right now. It is completely unexpected, and yet it is profound.

I remember Carrie Fisher from when I was very young. She is not much older than I am, although I incessantly lie about my age. I lie so much, half the time I don’t know how old I really am.

The first movie I ever saw, when I was five or six, was The Singing Nun, starring Ms. Fisher’s Mom, Debbie Reynolds. I knew Carrier Fisher as Debbie Reynold’s daughter. The Singing Nun is based on a real Catholic nun, who recorded a song that both she and Ms. Reynold’s popularized – Dominique. I can still hear the tune today. Sadly, the real life Singing Nun, also known as Sister Smile, ended up taking her own life in the 1980s.

And then came the summer before my freshman year in high school. The first ever installment in the Star Wars franchise, with Carrier Fisher as Princess Leia. For generations since, and for generations to come, the iconic role of Princess Leia will be something as close to immortal as anything on our frail planet can be.

But, her acting career is not really what causes me to feel a loss … to feel lost … today. Ms. Fisher’s own life journey has served as an inspiration to me, and to others as well. As happens, Ms. Fisher’s life went off the rails, as did my own.

Postcards from the Edge is a compelling look into her own struggles. Her honest efforts to confront the circumstances of her life, and right the ship, is something that I know has inspired many, many people … including me. I didn’t realize how important Ms. Fisher’s journey through the good and the bad is to me, until I learned she was gone.

And a word directly to Ms. Fisher … when my time comes to depart life on this planet, one of the first things I want to do is have a coffee with you in the great beyond. (I am sure coffee is available. It has to be.) In that we will have all of eternity lying in front of us, please squeeze me in. That would be an amazing moment for me.

Democratic Party on Course for Another Major Electoral Disaster in 2018

At the same time many (but not all) Democratic activists were damn certain Hillary Clinton was going to be elected President of the United States by a landslide, they were also shouting from the mountain tops that the Democrats would regain control of the U.S. Senate.

Most of these prognosticators swore that the Senate breakdown would be 52 Democrats (including two independents who caucus with them) to 48 Republicans, after the election. In fact, the breakdown is the exact opposite ... 52 Republicans to 48 Democrats.

But here is the major rub. 25 Democratic Senate seats are up for reelection in 2018 ... only 8 GOP seats are up in the next cycle. Of that number, 10 Democratic seats are in states Donald Trump won.

Thus far, the leadership of the Democratic Party, and the yapping class on social media, have demonstrated a complete unwillingness to engage in introspection about the most recent electoral disaster -- from the top of the ballot on down to state legislatures across the nation. The Blame Machine is on high -- blaming a myriad of things for the major losses of 2016, just like what occurred in 2014.

The net effect of this will be the Democratic Party will run the same type of campaign across the country in 2018 that was run in 2014 and 2016  ... and the Democratic Party will take a historic, mid-Presidential-term shellacking in the next election cycle.

Some folks will argue that there is plenty of time for the Democratic leadership and others to get their acts together. That's a nice sentiment, but ... there was a full two years after the disaster of 2014, and yet nothing was done.

The reality is most Democratic leaders will continue to believe they don't need to change a thing. They will jabber that the Obama Administration was a grand success, using Orwellian arguments along the way. They will pontificate that Hillary Rodham Clinton was the most splendiferous presidential candidate in history. And they will attack and insult those who disagree with them in a way that makes Donald Trump look positively saintly.

There is nearly no indication that any person in a position of party leadership is willing to wake up and accept the reality that the message and the strategies of the Democratic Party are failing. (The only possible exception is New York Senator Charles Schumer. But, in the end, if anything at all, he will be a voice in the wilderness.)

I called the conduct of the Democratic Party in 2014 political malpractice. The party lost U.S. Senators that should never have gone down to defeat, including my own U.S. Senator, Mark Udall.

Words alone cannot begin to describe what I think of the Democratic Party powers-that-be in the aftermath of the 2016 election cycle. I can say this ... I envision the entire executive committee of the DNC pulling up to party headquarters, crammed in a small auto. They all pop out of the vehicle, one after another, wearing rubber red noses and over-sized shoes.

And then, they spend the remainder of the day squeezing each others' rubber noses because it feels so good.

In the final analysis ...

The U.S. Senate headcount after 2018:

Democrats - 38

Republicans - 62

Mike Broemmel Takes on Life Story of Truman Capote in New Play

Playwright Mike Broemmel is slated to pen the life story of iconic author Truman Capote in a new play simply called Capote. The most recent play by Mike Broemmel, entitled Stand Still & Look Stupid, premiered in Colorado in December 2016. Capote is slated to premiere in South Beach, Florida, in 2018.

"I have read Capote's In Cold Blood several times through the years. I became highly interested in the period of Capote's life that he spent in Kansas researching In Cold Blood. I became particularly intrigued by Capote's relationship with one of the killer's of the Clutter family as well as the role Harper Lee played in helping Capote with his work, Broemmel explained.

When asked why South Beach is designated as the city to premiere Capote, Broemmel made it clear that he has always loved South Florida. I have great memories of the times I spent in South Florida. Plus, I think the art scene in South Beach provides a perfect backdrop for the premiere of Capote," Broemmel said.

Capote is part of a five play series that Broemmel has been commissioned to create that focuses on the lives of a group of unique and disparate men. The series includes plays about Al Capone, Jeffrey Dahmer, Buffalo Bill Cody, Truman Capote, and Clark Gable. "It's a strange mix of men, but they are all interested for different reasons. I know the least about Bill Cody, although he spent a great deal of time in Colorado, which is my current home," Broemmel said.

Other plays by Mike Broemmel that have been produced include:

The Row

The Baptism

Goddess People

Kiss

Six Joan Crawfords

Taking Tea with the Ripper

The Hours of Anne

The Bonfils Girl

La Primera Mujer: The True Story of Eva Peron

Stand Still & Look Stupid

Call Me Mrs. Evers

Escort Me

River'd Inn

More information about Mike Broemmel is available at:

www.mikebroemmel.com

Capote by Mike Broemmel

Mike Broemmel

The Framer’s Got It Right: How the Electoral College Can Save the Nation from the Major Political Parties

Introduction

A friendly reminder as we prepare to vote in the 2016 election. When a registered voter casts a vote “for president,” that individual is not voting for a presidential candidate. In all of U.S. history, a citizen of this nation has never voted for a presidential candidate.

A citizen’s vote is cast for a slate of electors identified with a particular candidate. Although ballots neatly set forth the name of the presidential candidates, that reality is the ultimate misnomer. Again voters vote for electors, plain and simple.

The people on the winning slate of electors in each state in turn cast their ballots for an individual they desire to become President of the United States, doing so in December. If an individual garners 270 votes via the Electoral College, he or she will be sworn in as the President of the United States in January 2017.

The Major Party Nominees

Despite the utterly blind allegiance some individuals who support Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton demonstrate, the objective bottom line is that neither major party candidate in the 2016 race for the presidency is fit to occupy the White House. I am not going to belabor this essay with a recitation of the very real shortcomings of these two individuals. I have written extensively on why electing neither Trump or Clinton is in the best interests of the American people.

I will not vote for either Trump or Clinton. I cannot, in good faith, support either of these candidates because they have both consistently demonstrated they are more concerned with their personal self-interest than in honorably serving the needs of the American people.

Some voters are gravitating to the candidacies of the Libertarian or Green Party candidates. There is something positive to be said about people who will vote their conscious and not kowtow to demands by Trump or Clinton partisans that they must vote a certain way.

State Laws Governing Voting by Electors

No federal law requires an Elector to vote a certain way. The Electoral College was established in the U.S. Constitution to amass a group of people who would exercise thoughtful judgment in the selection of the nation’s head of state and head of government. Over the years, the Electoral College has become a mere rubberstamp for voter preference on a state-by-state basis. (There are two exceptions to the winner-take-all structure of electing Electors. Nebraska and Maine proportion electors based on the popular vote.)

Some states have laws on the books that purport to require Electors to vote for the candidate of the party to which the initially pledged support. 29 states and the District of Columbia have these laws, the remainder do not. In those states that do have these restrictive laws, the penalty typically amounts to a fine in the amount of about $1,000.

Keep in mind that most legal scholars maintain these laws could never meet constitutional muster anyway. They have never been challenged and if they were, it is quite likely they would be struck down as unconstitutional. In other words, Electors either are not or cannot be bound by any initial pledge to support a particular presidential candidate.

Keeping Faith with the People

Nearly every presidential election cycle, when the Electoral College votes are cast, one or two Electors are dubbed “faithless.” By that it is meant that such an Elector does not vote for the pledged candidate. In 2016, I strongly suggest that any Elector that does not vote for Trump or Clinton is keeping faith with the American people.

I have no illusions about Electors actually exercising their constitutional duty this election year in a serious, thoughtful manner. I have no illusions about Electors coming together to elect outright someone who is not Trump or Clinton President of the United States. I am suggesting, however, that I hold out hopes that at least a percentage of Electors are thoughtful, individuals who truly have the welfare of our country at heart. (Of course, I perfectly understand that most of these folks likely are the most blind partisans of all.) Since I started working on this essay earlier in October, one Clinton Elector announced defection and will not vote for the former Secretary of State during the Electoral College process.

In the final analysis, if enough Electors abstain, or vote for someone else that is not Trump or Clinton, the presidential race turns to the House of Representatives. (The vice president is selected by the Senate.)

I freely admit this is not a perfect solution. However, after weeks of reflection, I finally concluded stopping both of these two individuals objectively unfit for the presidency from assuming the highest office in the land was worth the risk of what might come out of the House of Representatives.

The House is not required to elect one of its own members to the presidency. Perhaps, just perhaps, these elected officials might rise to the occasion and consider the benefits of selecting someone to be President of the United States who actually would preside over a true national unity government. Perhaps, just perhaps, the Senate would follow suit in the selection of a vice president as well. Although typically in a parliamentary system, unity governments in time of crisis have been formed, to the benefit of the nation and its citizens.

I’m not some political Pollyanna. I understand that harsh realities of where we have fallen as a nation when a serious assessment is made of both major party candidates. Both of them. The state of the presidential election, and the conduct of partisan extremists supporting both candidates, has become incomprehensible to me.

Conclusion

The United States is not, and never has been, a democracy. Our nation was established as, and remains, a democratic republic. The founders had a sound rationale for establishing a democratic republic. Specifically, they envisioned the possibility that the majority could take action in the name of democracy that actually works against the best interests of the nation and its people.

In the 2016 election, a majority of Americans are hell-bent on electing one or another individual objectively unfit to serve as President of the United States. If ever a time existed to put the brakes on imprudent conduct by a majority of Americans, that time is now and the tool is the Electoral College. The Electoral College was created for a reason. And I sincerely think the reason exists in 2016.

October 12, 2016

www.mikebroemmel.com

Mike Broemmel

Family Finances: What to Do When Times Get Tight by Mike Broemmel

One of the most stressful situations that can rip at the fabric of family life is a financial problem. Indeed, tight finances probably ranks after death and illness as the most challenging circumstance that a family potentially can face. Indeed, a family financial problem can lead to a frayed family unit and even physical and mental health issues within the family, according to WebMD.

The best way to address a challenging financial situation as a family is to address it head-on, to take a proactive stance in dealing with the problem. Taking this tactic necessitates an honest assessment of a family's finances and real, concrete actions to alleviate the financial problem.

Tangible Cuts Must be Made

Time and again when families face a situation when money is tight, lip service is made to making cuts in spending, but those reductions never materialize. If any type of cutting does occur, it typically is so minimal that it had a negligible if any real impact.

Every family has expenditures that can be eliminated. The cuts may seem painful at first, but allowing a more significant financial problem to develop will prove to be more traumatic in the long run.

Cable or satellite television should always be on the chopping block when a family faces financial difficulties. Depending on the level of television service, a family can save somewhere in the neighborhood of $600 to $1,200 over a six-month period without cable or satellite television.

Make a Budget for Real

Another area in which families with financial issues chat about is preparing a budget in writing. As is the case with making tangible cuts, this rarely occurs.

Having a written budget is crucial for a family in financial distress. It provides a family with accurate information about where money is being spent and where cuts can be made. A written budget is also an invaluable planning tool when it comes to the family's short- and long-term financial needs, goals and objectives.

Curtail Credit Card Usage

Oftentimes a family facing financial difficulties turn to credit cards to "buy" some breathing room. While the use of credit cards may make members of family feel a sense of relief, the fact is that taking advantage of these debt-generating instruments really only makes the financial situation worse.

A family cannot wisely utilize credit cards as a means of obtaining financial relief, even when couched in terms of providing temporary relief. Indeed, more often than not, stopping credit card use is a necessary step in stabilizing a family's unsettled financial status.

www.mikebroemmel.com

Theatrix USA Rounds Out 2016 on High Note by Paul Sheridan

Founded in 2012 as a project of the Center for Innovation, Theatrix USA heads into the final months of 2016 marking its most successful year yet. Theatrix USA partnered with Act One Productions to bring a series of experimental, and highly successful, one-actor plays to the stage. The productions are:

Taking Tea with the Ripper
The Hours of Anne
The Bonfils Girl
La Primera Mujer: The True Story of Eva Peron

Each of these plays won audience acclaim and played to full theatres throughout the year.

Taking Tea with the Ripper by Mike Broemmel

An evening having tea with one of the most infamous serial killers of all time: Jack the Ripper. Taking Tea with the Ripper takes you through the night in which the Ripper slays his first victim. The most disturbing play of 2016 … but, in a spectacular way.

The play stars award-winning actor Paul Escobedo and is directed by Ashley Gibbons.

The Hours of Anne by Mike Broemmel and Seth Holley

The Hours of Anne chronicles the final day in the life of Queen Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII and the first to be beheaded. We sit with Anne during her last hours in the Tower of London. The play begins with Anne at the block and the remarkable speech she gave at that time. Was she put to death in a just manner for defying the English monarch? Or, was she a heroic innocent killed to satisfy the lust of Henry the VIII?

The play stars Sarah Woodyard and is directed by Ren Manley.

The Bonfils Girl by Mike Broemmel and Seth Holley

Frederick Bonfils was a down and dirty businessman in the days when Colorado was still a part of the proverbial Wild West. Frederick founded the Denver Post -- as well as gambling casinos and (some say) houses of prostitution. Frederick fathered two daughters, the younger being Helen.  Helen would achieve amazing success in the early part of the 20th century in her own right -- including being the first female producer on Broadway and taking the reins as publisher of the Denver Post among other achievements. Helen Bonfils always felt she lived in her father's shadow. The Bonfils Girl brings Helen to the stage, reflecting on the ins and outs, ups and downs (and maybe a few vices) in her life.

The play stars veteran actor Cathy Washburn and is directed by long-time entertainer Rich Beall.

La Primera Mujer: The True Story of Eva Peron by Mike Broemmel and Seth Holley

La Primera Mujer tells the tale of the former Argentine First Lady, Eva Peron, who garnered international renown during her lifetime and gained further recognition in the 1980s as a result of the widely-acclaimed musical Evita. However, this is very different from the musical.  La Primera Mujer tells the true story of Eva Peron … and it’s completely different from the one told by Andrew Lloyd Webber in Evita. Despite the portrayal in "Evita," Eva Peron was neither a social climbing whore or a money grubbing thief. Rather, she was a complicated woman committed to reaching out to the poor of her nation. Witness her story of taking the helm of a country through the majestic power of her voice.

The play stars Maggy Morgan and is directed by Ian Henson.

In addition, Theatrix USA and Act One Productions have one more play slated for the stage in 2016, a one-actor project focusing on the life of screen legend and brilliant inventor Hedy Lamarr. The play has yet to titled. Actor Cathy Washburn, the star of premiere production of The Bonfils Girl, is working on the Lamarr script with Broemmel

During most of 2016, Theatrix USA was headed up by Seth Holley, a producer who oversaw the successful production of the four original plays that premiered during the year. He also saw the special production of Taking Tea with the Ripper and The Hours of Anne in the historic Jayhawk Theatre in Topeka, Kansas.

Mike Broemmel returned for another year on the Theatrix USA team, writing the script for Taking Tea with Ripper and co-writing The Hours of Anne, The Bonfils Girl and La Primera Mujer: The True Story of Eva Peron with Seth Holley.

Theatrix USA is focusing on producing its plays at three venues in Denver: Namastage Theatre on Old Pearl Street and the 910 ARTS Center in Skylite Station in the Santa Fe Arts District.

Theatrix USA and Act One Productions also launched the Iconic Women Theatre Series in 2017, a project created by Seth Holley and Mike Broemmel. The Iconic Women Theatre Series focuses on the life stories of women who have not received their public due … including Anne Boleyn, Helen Bonfils, Eva Peron, Hedy Lamarr and Myrlie Evers.

Theatrix USA has announced its 2017 season, which will include the premiere of two new, original plays: Escort Me in March and River’d Inn later in the year. Goddess People will return to the stage in Denver in June.

In addition, Theatrix USA, together with Act One Productions, will bring the final play in the Iconic Women Theatre Series to the stage in early 2017. That play is entitled Call Me Mrs. Evers and tells the story of civil rights leader Myrlie Evers.

The trio of plays in the Theatrix USA 2017 season each combine humor and pathos to tell stories of real human beings in challenging situations:

Escort Me by Mike Broemmel and Tony Sutera
Goddess People by Mike Broemmel
River’d Inn by Mike Broemmel

www.theatrixusa.org
www.act-one-productions.com
www.mikebroemmel.com