Superbowl stunts

Kevin Carter's R&R Street Talk Daily fax is normally a bit too "CHR" in attitude for much use on a country station, but I read it every day for Kev's writing style, which is a great lesson in how to pump up the verbiage in effective (fun) promo style. And, it's also worth a read for a reminder of how far our pop and rock competition go to create buzz and grab listeners' memories. That is a game that we need to be in too, of course..

The NFL playoffs have come down to the final four: In the NFC, the Philadelphia Eagles will fight like hell to not lose their fourth consecutive NFC Championship game as they take on the Atlanta Falcons, while in the far-superior AFC, the Pittsburgh Steelers will attempt to go head-to-head against your World Champion New England Patriots!

“This city is really starved for a championship,” says WBMX (Mix 98.5)/Boston APD/MD Mike Mullaney. “It’s been 11 months since the Pats’ last Super Bowl win and 2 1/2 months since we took our latest World Series title — we’re already going through withdrawal!” he tells ST Daily. “The Patriots vs. the Squealers should be a good game, but let’s be honest: Bill ‘The Genius’ Belichick vs. Bill ‘I Need The Heimlich Maneuver’ Cowher isn’t really much of a fight. The wheels have come off ‘the Bus,’ and the rookie QB has been playing like, well, a rookie, so look for Brady, Dillon, Vinatieri, Bruschi and company to take these frauds apart in their house. The Pittsburgh fans will need their ‘Terrible Towels’ to wipe the tears out of their eyes after the

Steelers see what the greatest team in football history is about — winning!” shrieks Mullaney.
• Football fever also has Philadelphia in its grip, as WIOQ (Q102)’s Chio in the Morning is giving away Eagles/Falcons tickets — but it’s going to cost you ... and we’re not talking cash. Exec. Producer Joey B. has a question: “What personal item of yours would you destroy to win tickets?” he wonders.

And therein lies the conundrum. This morning, crazed Q102 listeners will line up to test their level of commitment to their beloved Eagles by publicly destroying one of their most prized possessions for a chance at tickets. Joey now shares just a sample of some of the scheduled stunts:

* A woman who will smash her totally restored 1972 Chevelle show car....

* A man who will smash his and his wife’s wedding rings, burn their wedding pictures and her wedding dress. They just got married last month....

* A man who will destroy all of his baseball memorabilia — including 150,000 baseball cards and a ball signed by Joe DiMaggio!

* And our favorite: A guy who will feed his prosthetic leg into a wood chipper.

Remember when we said that all participants have a “chance” at tickets? “All contestants will do their stunt,” says Joey. “But only one will win the tickets!”

• On the Falcons’ side of the street, Atlanta is ready to rock:

WWWQ (All The Hits Q100)’s Bert Show had Falcons defensive lineman Patrick Kerney on the air to talk game strategy. That’s when things got interesting. “Right afterwards, one of our board ops, Michael Checkoway, called in to rip on the Falcons and accused us of cheering for the home team even though theyhave no real chance of winning,” Bert Show ringmaster Bert Weiss tells ST Daily. “He was so confident the Falcons would lose, he offered to walk from Atlanta to Jacksonville if they win!”

Weiss upped the ante, saying that if the Falcons won and Checkoway backed out, he’d give out Checkoway’s home address and phone number on the air. “I’ve also requested that a few of our morning show billboards be converted to a picture of his face with his phone number printed on his forehead!” Weiss says.

Don’t Just Sit There, Contribute Something Big & Dumb To ST Daily: kcarter@radioandrecords.com