O’Donnell: Is NBC turning Snoop Dogg into Bob Hope?
BOB HOPE HAD A 60-YEAR RELATIONSHIP WITH NBC (1933-93) that was a primary factor in Ol' Ski Nose reaching iconic status as a a multimedia show business megastar.
Sure he got devalued a bit as age, changing times — and the brilliant parody of Hope that became a staple of Dave Thomas on “SCTV” — kicked in.
But is The Peacock Network resurrecting elements of the classic Hope teleprompter to make Snoop Dogg a credible new-mill presence as the nation's Great Soft-Centered Comforter?
If the “Sunday Night Football” marathon featuring the Cowboys and the Steelers was evidence, it could be gag on at 30 Rock.
TWO MONTHS AFTER THE MIDDLE-AGED RAPPER was a Dogg-chill centerpiece of NBC's coverage of the Paris Olympics, there he was again.
Snoop drew almost as many camera shots as head coaches Mike McCarthy and Mike Tomlin. The premise was that he had been a Steelers fans “since age 3” — even way out in Compton, Calif. — and just had to be in a private suite at Pittsburgh's Acisure Stadium.
D-O-double-G “highlight” came at halftime. That was when he “Pound”-caked with Paris chum Mike Tirico, NBC's walking, talking billboard for “inoffensive.”
SNOOP RESTATED HIS AFFINITY for the Steelers — touching Flyover America — and also made heartwarming mention of the unforgettable 1979 Coca-Cola commercial featuring Mean Joe Greene. (Officially known among Mad Men as “Hey Kid, Catch!”.)
S-Dogg also managed to work it a blatant plugola for his fresh panelist status on NBC's “The Voice,” the you-too-can-be-a-star franchise now in its 26th season.
He made no mention of any upcoming visits to U.S. military bases and the Christmas specials that would follow or planned “Road” pictures, possibly with John Legend as his new Bing Crosby.
BUT IF DOGG ANNOUNCES A HIP-HOP REMAKE of “Thanks for the Memories” — Hope's signature song — it could be megastar gag on, America.
After all, in an era of runaway AI pop culture, aren't all blank spaces eventually filled?
STREET-BEATIN':
Embattled Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson looked unripened last spring when he came out as chief cheerleader for a new lakefront stadium at a disastrous Bears' media unveiling. He revisited that imperious posturing Monday when he took on Sarah Schulte of WLS-Channel 7 and a second reporter over his plans to attend Sunday’s Bears-Jaguars game in London “to attract business to Chicago.” Johnson may want to spend part of his flight times studying local law regarding a mayoral recall vote. …
Caleb Williams and the Bears have flipped from 1-point underdogs to 2 1/2-point favorites over harried Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (8:30 a.m., NFL Network). Hot production on the West End is a fresh adaptation of the Budd Schulberg-spawned classic “A Face in the Crowd” with original music by Elvis Costello. (Groundlings admission is not available — intentional groundling or otherwise.) …
Two questions at first puck drop for GM Kyle Davidson and the Blackhawks, who opened their 2024-25 regular season Tuesday night at upstart Utah: How are they going to score goals and who's going to consistently protect Connor Bedard? The organization clearly lacks the zip-'n-rip zing provided by Dale Tallon and associates during the first stage of the run to three Stanley Cups. …
News that Steve Stone has signed a multiyear extension with the White Sox is like hearing Michael Reinsdorf is staying on as president of the Bulls. The full truth is Stone would be considered an above-median baseball broadcaster even if he wasn't part of the calcified cabal on West 35th Street. (That swashbuckling Cleveland pedigree undoubtedly has something to do with it.) …
Speaking of calcified cabals, what will it take for Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley to be sandblasted out as personnel decision makers for the Bulls? The Zach LaVine deal remains the biggest contractual albatross in the history of the franchise. Competitively, LaVine is the Deshaun Watson of the NBA. …
Five-star college football matchup Saturday night with No. 2 Ohio State (5-0, minus-3½) at No. 3 Oregon (5-0) — although it wouldn't be happening except for the new Big Ten artificialness of mid-October (6:30 p.m., NBC). The Buckeyes defense of Jim Knowles should travel, although who knows what Phil Knight's mad scientists could come up with to energize the Ducks and Autzen Stadium? …
Bob Costas told Dan Patrick that three of the four MLB Division series — LAD-SD, DET-CLE and NYM-PHL — could require only old-style train rides between games. If Aaron Judge's offense doesn't come alive for the Yankees today (Game 3, 6 p.m., TBS), Bronx manager Aaron Boone may want to resort to some old-style George Brett bat corkage. …
And Taylor Bell, on the budget-friendly debut of the Reinsdorf-Wirtz Chicago Sports Network — the new free TV home of the Bulls, Blackhawks and White Sox: “The old network was Hollywood and David O. Selznick compared to this version of Paducah and Elmer Fudd.”
Jim O'Donnell's Sports and Media column appears each week on Sunday and Wednesday. Reach him at jimodonnelldh@yahoo.com. All communications may be considered for publication.