Channel 43 Plays Favorites! Channel 43.... Here comes the neat animated graphic for MASH. After a few highlights the announcer comes on while a little animated truck rolls along and a pair of lips on the side of the truck make a kiss with a *smooch".  7pm to 8pm while Mash was actually still on the air with new episodes. It replaced the Hogans Heroes hour which was top rated. It became the top rated show in local television for a few years.

Meanwhile the Cleveland Indians were played on Channel 43. So were the Cavaliers. This was at the dawn of cable TV  and many many years away before it swallowed up all the broadcast TV airings. Channel 43 had the games. Of course, that meant, MASH wouldn't play. It also meant the Indians didn't play. We had Municipal Stadium. It was a monstrous 70,000 seat house of pain. Other than the home opener which always sells out, the Indians of the 70's and 80's was lucky if they had 10,000 in the cavern of crap. Of course, on Sundays during foobah season, it was Browns Town. Dream crusher. Not housing champions since 1964.

Now, I wasn't old enough to drink, but the subliminal advertising for kiddies like me worked. When I was of "legal age", Busch beer was a cheap beer but it had more taste than the cheapest dreck out there. "Popular Priced" I believe was the moniker used. You could buy 40oz bottles of these for 95 cents at the local Revco drug store. Now, I'm not sure why they chose to adorn the other side of this butt comforter.  Maybe because it tastes like A**. I recall at the old broken down palace of tears, the official beer you could get was Genesee. It's a fine burp beer as well. Popular Priced. With who? Yes, we drank that stuff. I had a friend that liked their Cream Ale nick named "Genny Screamers". It didn't grow on me.

Channel 43 Plays Favorites! Then, Channel 19 WOIO went on the air and kicked their ass by playing movies pretty much without editing. My video tape of the Blues Brothers with commercials is pretty much the way the DVD came out. With swear words. They also played newer shows as well as better older shows. Ahh, but when the Indians were on Channel 43,  the old United Artists Cleveland outlet was on top. Why wanted to actually pay their pittance to drink watered down beverage when they could be seen at home?  Since the Indians were so "meh", they had a giveaway every weekend and various weekdays. My step father would take us to bat day. We'd have actual Louisville Sluggers which my brother would promptly break playing softball with them. Ahh, the other times we got freebees from the Indians, this was indeed one of them. Could you see them giving a BEER ADVERTISEMENT to an 12 year old nowadays? It was a Municipal Stadium SEAT CUSHION!  A man built this! It's vinyl covered foam!

I remember we did use these a few times when we went to the stadium. Likely they got left there and then trashed. I actually looked this up on the Bay and yes, you can buy one for $20! Wheeee, this junk blog is worth something! Of course, it's vinyl with foam inside so that means that it cant get the NERF EFFECT (pat pending). Nerf Effect is, when you pass gas, a really hideous waffles with syrup or cinnamon Life cereal or even Taco Bell bean burrito toot into a foam football...you'll smell it again for years...and years... 

Even keeping it in a box with a little mold didn't stay in the foam. This still smells like peanut shells and old Genny and crushed dreams. The old Municipal Stadium seats really needed some padding... Ask anyone that grabbed one when Modell took the Browns away from Cleveland....

Oh yeah, Opening Day 2016 at home at the JAKE, er, Progressive Field  is Monday April 4th at 4PM. GO TRIBE! Indian Fever...it starts from the very first inning!  I'll be sitting on my Nerf Effect resistant Channel 43 plays favorites Busch "Popular Priced" seating while rooting on my team. GO JOE CHAR-BON-EAU! GO JOE CHAR-BON-EAU!

-Ric

PS: As I live in Cleveland, we have something called winter. That thing called winter can sometimes F**K up plans. Every few years, it F**Ks up opening day. So, enjoy your iced beer and ice cream and $40 parking 2 days in a row. Now Tuesday, April 5th at 1PM. Est. temp at game time? 30-35 degrees....but likely SUNNY.