Friday on the Skip Murphy and Co. Morning Show, it was announced that comedian Nanette Lee would be leaving the show to pursue other opportunities.  Besides her duties at K104, Ms. Lee has hosted Phat Tuesday at the Addison Improv since 2001. Mr. Murphy said they wanted to be more open about Ms. Lee's departure because of criticism they received after popular on air personality 'Wig' departed the station.  Though I had heard months ago that Nanette's days on K104 were numbered, I was still a bit surprised to get the news this morning. According to Murphy, Ms. Lee is leaving to pursue an acting career, as well as to write a book.  There was nothing on her website or My Space page regarding her departure.  She will also continue with Phat Tuesday's in Addison.

I knew something wasn't right as I watched Ron Jackson on Fox 4 last night.  It was like he was trying to tell me something more than what I was hearing.  He may have even winked at the screen, I'm not sure.  But after his weather report, I was satisfied that the freezing precipitation that he mentioned wouldn't cause any problems. Then this morning when I wake up, it's snowing like crazy.  Last night on every channel, it was as if they were trying to curb the enthusiastic tone in which the weather had been covered over the past 4 days. But I didn't hear the word snow uttered, and it didn't appear in the newspaper's forecast this morning.  I don't blame the weather men in any of this, they all do a great job.  But I do think it's something about how the stations are covering these storms.  It seems like more people are choosing to go to work today - in the worst conditions thus far - because of how it went over the weekend and on Monday.  Let me know how it is out there, my son's out of school so I'm Mr. Mom today.

In one of my initial posts on this blog (Is Education the Salvation) I talked about the impact that could be made in Southern Dallas by the presence of the University of North Texas at Dallas.  On Tuesday, leaders from across the area celebrated Dallas taking one step closer towarxs having a public insitution of higher learning as the first building of the UNT Dallas Campus officially opened at 7300 Houston School Road. A series of grand opening events were held throughout the morning and there was a sense of excitement among those who were in attendance.  UNT System Chancellor Lee Jackson and UNT Vice Provost for the Dallas Campus John Price hosted the historic ceremony.                                            Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, Lee Jackson and John Price      Those who were on hand to help commemorate the occasion included Dallas Mayor Laura Miller, State Senator Royce West, State Representative Helen Giddings, and Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Don Hill.  There were also a number of elected officials present from DeSoto, Lancaster, Duncanville, and Cedar Hill.                            During her remarks, Mayor Miller acknowledged the support given to the university by Dallas City Councilman James Fantroy, who was unable to attend Tuesday's ceremony due to ...

I got hold of a memo from one of the local news stations titled How to Cover a Winter Storm.  I was kind of baffled by the media coverage the weather got over the last few days, but this explains a lot.  Take a look. * Move away from the term "Arctic Blast."  Begin to instead use "Icy Blast", "Winter Blast" or any other term for cold followed by the word "Blast." *  Say the words Wintry Mix as often as possible. *  If you are fortunate enough to catch a car accident on tape, run it  over and over and over again.  No one will realize it's the same footage. *  On the condition that the producers have overblown the severity of the Winter Blast, blame the meteorologist. *  Head for the High Five Interchange as soon as the temperature reaches 33 degrees and at the first sight of precipitation thereafter. *  Remind motorists to "take it easy" on the roads at the beginning and end of every live shot.  They would never think to take precaution during bad weather. *  Whip the public into a panic as to cause closings.   Remember, once the school closings start to roll, that's when the big ratings come in. *  ...

After this weekend in the NFL Playoffs, my dream of a Colts/Bears Super Bowl is still intact.  Growing up, I learned from my parents to always root for the black quarterback, no matter who he is playing against. Back then there were no black coaches to cheer for. But black head football coaches have found a high level of success since Art Shell earned (I almost said was given) the opportunity to be the NFL's first black head coach.  Lovie Smith and Tony Dungy have a chance to make history next week when their teams play for the NFC and AFC Championships respectively. On the weekend that we celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King's birth, seeing these great coaches lead their teams one step closer to the Super Bowl had even more meaning. And as is the case in most areas in life, the fate of other black coaching prospects are directly tied to the success of Dungy and Smith So next week black men and women who have never had an interest in the Bears or Colts, will find themselves directing positive energy towards Chicago and Indianapolis.  I'll be on my couch doing the same thing, waiting for my dream to come ...

This Monday, the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday will be observed, celebrating the birth of one of the greatest leaders this world has ever known.  Many companies will give their employees the day off to commemorate the day as they choose. I would urge everyone not to use Monday as a day to catch up on your rest, but as a day to reflect on the life and legacy of Dr. King. Numerous programs and activities are planned around town throughout the weekend and into Monday.  I'd like to share some of the events that I plan to attend in observance of the holiday.  The City of Dallas had a great quote on their website: "Remember! Celebrate! Act! A Day On, Not A Day Off!"  SATURDAY The City of Dallas will hold a March/Parade on Saturday as part of their 26th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration.  The parade will start at City Hall Plaza and head south on Ervay to Martin Luther King Blvd.  The parade will pass and review in front of the MLK complex at 2922 MLK Blvd. SUNDAY Rev. Jesse Jackson will be preaching Sunday morning during the 10:45 a.m. service at Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas.  Friendship-West is located at 2020 Wheatland ...

Statue of Liberty

10.  The Statue of Liberty can still work I can't remember seeing it run in a game, and have only fleeting memories of executing the play at the park back in the day. But Boise State brought back the coolest play in football: The Statue of Liberty, executing it perfectly in their overtime win against Oklahoma. 9.  The Big East is a good football conference When Miami and Boston College left for the ACC, most experts said the Big East should be stripped of their automatic BCS bid.  After Louisville's impressive win over Wake Forest, and West Virginia’s win in the Gator Bowl, the Big East is probably wondering why they didn't kick Hurricanes out a long time ago.  And by the way... 8.  Rutgers deserved to be in a BCS game. I sent one of my friends a text message in the 3rd week of the College Football season stating that Rutgers would finish the year as a ranked team.  Little did I know how high.  Rutgers capped an 11-2 season with a win in the Texas Bowl while Notre Dame collected $17 million in the Sugar bowl. 7.  The Big 12 is the worst of the BCS conferences. As ...

I was blessed to meet Mr. Wilton Hollins 8 years ago when he was the director of Friendship-West's J.C. Holmes Male Chorus.  Our subsequent friendship led to a collaboration that we called "Buy It Out", where we advocated cooperative economics in the African-American community through a selective buying program. Wilton is Human Resources Director at Value Options, and most recently served as Minster of Music at the historic Hamilton Park United Methodist Church.  He continues to be a blessing to the community, and is now working with Larry James and Central Dallas Ministries (CDM).  I talked with Wilton about his work with CDM.                                            DSB:     Wilton for those who may not be familiar with Central Dallas Ministries, how would you describe the group.  WH:       CDM is a community development-social justice ministry dedicated to addressing issues related to poverty: including hunger, health, housing, law, children's education and workforce development.  We want a strong safe supportive community that allows all of its residents to achieve their full potential.  DSB:     What is your role with Central Dallas Ministries?  WH:      I currently serve on the Board of Directors for Central Dallas Ministries.  I was however recently elected by the board to serve on its Executive Committee.  DSB:     What ...

I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't let you in on a sleeper that I recently discovered.  My wife and I went to Blockbuster for the first time in at least a year over the Christmas Break.  Generally on a trip to the Big B, we will get a new release that we haven't seen, something that we missed at the movies and on pay-per-view, and then we will try a movie with a predominantly African-American cast.  Most of these films are direct to DVD movies that we've never heard of, staring the likes of Lisa Raye, Vivica A. Fox, or Shamaar Moore, and about 80% of them have Clifton Powell playing the role of angry black man.  You may have seen some of these like Civil Brand, Getting Played, or The Other Brother. On this occasion, we rented Superman, Talladega Nights, and then rolled the dice on Who Made the Potatoe Salad.  Please don't let Jaleel White's face on the cover keep you from trying this movie.  I'm not going to oversell it, nor am I going to tell you what it's about.  But I promise you I laughed more during "Potatoe Salad" than I did at Rickey Bobby, and I've been a Will ...