Thursday, October 26, 2006

 

Sorry, IPLawGuy, but I can't be the Frankenberry of legal punditry

Unfortunately, there already is a Frankenberry of legal punditry: Al Franken. Not only are they both "Frankens," but they look pretty similar. Check it out:







Actually, I'm not the first to make this connection-- Al Franken himself did, back when he was on SNL in the 70's.

Strange but true connection between me and Al Franken-- in the year 2000, for reasons I still don't fully comprehend, I was invited to the annual Renaissance Weekend in Hilton Head, South Carolina over New Year's. It's kind of a big wonky weekend of policy geeks talking about stuff. Anyways, at the traditional touch football game on New Year's Day, Al Franken and I were the defensive backfield for one of the teams. Whatever else you may think of the guy... he takes touch football verrrrry seriously. During a petty rules dispute, I tried to make a joke ("It's like the GS7's playing the GS8's") and he just kind of looked at me and said "cover deep this time." It's probably a mistake to make jokes with a comedian-- that's his field. Of course, these days he does seem to be returning the favor.

Comments:
Al Franken pundicizes on politics, culture and current events. His take is much broader than "the law."

You're correct, however, Frankenberry is not a good comparison/role model for you.

Perhaps your students can suggest something better.

The leading legal commentator in the field of Trademark law is named McCarthy, and he is neither a red-hunter nor a ventriloquist's dummy. But I don't know what cereal character I'd compare him too. Maybe an aged Mr. Keebler, the the elves don't do cereal, do they?

How about you aspire to be a grown up version of Mikey from the Life Cereal ads?
 
Prof. Osler, don't know if you catch the Dallas Morning News down there, but you got a first-page, above the fold quote
 
Alright, so I'm sure you're sick of me leaving random anecdotes in your comments (see Toonces), but I have an Irritated Al Franken one, too.

I was on a trip to New York with my parents 3 or 4 years ago, and we were walking past the NBC building when a black towncar pulls up next to the sidewalk. The door opens, and Al Franken, clutching some books to his chest, barrels out of the car like a tiny cannonball, almost knocking my mother off her feet as he dashes inside.

Okay, okay, it's not as good as the touch football story, but I like to think that my mother and I bothered him at least a little bit by our presence between his car and the door of the building.
 
Well that was a`disappointment! i was hoping he'd be quoted in the story about the dead rat at the McDonalds.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/dmn/stories/102606dntexscotus.33a005b.html
 
Great-- I suspect that both the Court of Criminal Appeals and the 5th Circuit will now be mad at me. And tomorrow, I will enrage Congress! Hoo boy. That's a full week...

Thank God tomorrow is Haiku Friday. There be a very special prize awarded.
 
I don't know. My stepmother thought your comments were sympathetic to the CCA and 5th Cir. So, at least, they're susceptible to different interpretations depending on who is reading them.

Your Morning Edition quote was fantastic!

-B
 
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