Daddy Warbucks

Record breaking football attendance means big bucks

Almost half a million people attended UA home games this past season, according to statistics compiled by the UA Sports Information staff. Woooo Pig Soooie, Daddy W. says. That is a new UA record. A record in spite of the fact that the Little Rock game was counted as an “away game” to give that alphabet school in Louisiana the attendance so it can remain on the fast track for Division I status. NWA merchants – hotel keepers and those in the food and bend-the-elbow beverage business are clamoring for more home games in the future. Isn’t the War Memorial Stadium deal about done? Or, well half-done? Maybe soon the Hogs can quit playing in Little Rock and appearing on the mini-tron, not the jumbo-tron high above Donald W. Reynolds Stadium on the campus. Numbers are numbers. If there were around 500,000 at the home games here – could there have been 300,000 in town for Bikes Blues and BBQ? Daddy W, again, doubts, seriously doubts, the crowd estimates for the October bike festival.

MORE ON BIKE FEST
The dates for the 2007 session of bikes roaring into Fayetteville have been set—on an off weekend from Hog home games and the War Eagle Arts and Craft Fair. Daddy W. likes the BBBQ festival, but really doubts the over-inflated crowd estimates – including the ludicrous numbers of bikes in the Parade of Thunder. Note to organizers: If you wanna count blue sky – just note the number of hits on your website, not those supposedly onsite. We can see
those numbers. We can’t see how often someone shows Richard Watson how to click on a website.

AND MORE
While Daddy W. was happy that more money and more organizations got a “tip” from the BBBBQ festival, at no time have the organizers disclosed how much $ they made, how much $ they got from the city and other groups both in cash and services, and how much they paid the group that handles its website and promotional material. A little sunshine on the money goes a long away when the “aginners” start harping about noise and traffic problems.

STOCK SLIDE
Tyson Foods, now the number two chicken producer/processor in the world, has suffered a stiff stock slide. And, my friends, it ain’t over yet. Hang on to the stock though. It’s gonna come back… maybe by mid-summer.

POWERFUL READING
The most mystifying Yule gift: UA Chancellor John A. White sent out copies of Dr. Randal Woods’ latest tome on LBJ to select recipients (UA Board, 2010 Commission and favorite friends) this past week. Daddy W. didn’t get one. The book, while a good biography, was published by an off-campus press. The UA Press sure publishes good books. Let’s hope White sees fit to include some of them in next year’s stockings.

CIVITANS ROAST 75 BUTTS
According to Steve Thomas, a straight-laced Arvest banker in the hectare, the Siloam Springs Civitan Club sold 75 slow-cooked pork butts for the holiday season. Thomas says they slow roasted the same number of butts last year.

WHO PROVIDED THE NEW LIGHTS?
There was once a former newspaper publisher who loved to sell Christmas lights to area cities. He’s been long gone (to Benton, Ark.,) but Daddy W. got to pondering who sold the city all the new red Christmas lights on the Square? Could someone at City Hall (dare we say it) enlighten us on the vendor?

BEST BUY PROTEST
Daddy W. had to snicker a little over the customer protest at the Fayetteville Best Buy recently. The protestors/customers had bought a big screen TV that was too big to fit into their vehicle so apparently they and the Best Buy folks took the TV out of its box to make it fit. When they got home the screen was cracked. It was a he-said, they-said argument from there. Lesson No. 1: If it won’t fit, let common sense prevail