(May 26, 2021, 4:30 a.m.) -- During those long ago days when I was employed by the long defunct Los Angeles Herald Examiner, I came up with this creation in the fall of 1985 that inspired widespread interest among those who savored it and condemnation among those who despised it.
Actually, it wasn't so much a creation, as it was, in reality, nothing more than a good, old fashion poll to determine what at the time was a much-discussed subject among sporting aficionados around Southern California. Who was the worst starting NFL quarterback in the area, the Rams' pint-sized 34-year-old rookie transplant from the Canadian Football League, Dieter Brock, or the Raiders' 6-foot-5 immobile, interception-prone statue, Marc Wilson? Both, of course, were quite incompetent---Brock lasted only that one season with the Rams and Wilson, somehow, wasn't cashiered by the Raiders until 1987---and the poll that for two weeks was atop the front page of the Her-X's sports section inspired thousands of votes and widespread attention in those pre-internet days. If memory serves me correctly, no longer, alas, a certainty, Mr. Brock wound up the unfortunate winner, but I remember the vote was quite close, an outcome befitting for two of the most forgettable jocks ever to display their modest skills in these parts. Well, 36 years later, I've decided to come up with another poll, albeit this one isn't athletic oriented but long has been a lively topic among many Long Beach residents. Which one of the city's most high-profile tourist attractions, the Queen Mary or the Aquarium of the Pacific, annually loses the most money? Both without doubt hold the embarrassing distinction of never having turned a profit, which is an ignominious reflection of those bumbling LB City Hall politicians and administrators across the years---from mayors, city managers, council people, consultants, ad nauseam---who have been culpable for such a financial nightmare that has been subsidized by local taxpayers and Tideland funds. Long Beach purchased the Queen Mary in 1967 for $3.4 million and it has hemorrhaged money ever since as too often those who have leased it---with the notable exception of Disney---have had this weird habit of winding up filing for bankruptcy with the latest being Urban Commons, which initially made the usual inflated promises but like so many of its predecessors failed to deliver on almost none of them. Indeed, the Queen Mary, which has been closed during The Pandemic, is now in such desperate need of costly repairs---a recurring annual phenomena---that a recent inspection report revealed that it is in danger of capsizing. This certainly would be a fitting ending to the grand vessel's turbulent stay in LB. [Scroll down for further.] |
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But, as badly as the Queen Mary has dripped in red ink across the decades, there are those knowledgeable folk around town who insist its annual losses don't match those of the Aquarium of the Pacific, which reportedly blows millions annually even though the non-profit operation somehow was able to pay its recently departed CEO/President Jerry Schubel in his final year a salary of $545,000 that included perks. Everyone who was aware of the economic miseries that other aquariums around the country had endured knew from the beginning that the LB fish tank would face serious obstacles, but the then City Manager, Jim Hankla, unwisely went ahead with the project despite the ominous signs. The only people who have made money from it are the original bondholders whose risky investment reportedly was paid off by the proceeds of the hotel bed-tax later instituted by the LB politicians. So who do I think blows the most money? I'd give a slight edge to the Queen Mary but only because of its 54-year longevity record of ceaseless financial stress, but one certainly can't underestimate the massive annual fiscal drainage of the Aquarium of the Pacific. For sure, Long Beach, finally, should walk away from the Queen Mary considering the millions it has squandered on it. It should sell it for scrap iron, or hire a company to tow it out to sea and sink the costly monstrosity. . . And then, moments later, I drive down Ocean Blvd., and look over at the Convention Center where 800 or so undocumented children are being well-fed, well-dressed and well-cared-for by federal agencies while dozens of struggling American citizens nearby are adorn in tattered garb and residing in tents and sleeping bags. Something painfully sad---wrong?----about this picture. . . The esteemed Public Works Department stuck K-Rails in front of the opening on the southwest side of 2nd Street near Bay Shore Ave, which is fine and dandy. But that was at least a month ago.
What's with the notoriously tardy infrastructure process in this town? Why would the Public Works Department wait so long to fix it?. . . ``Aren't you really excited because I certainly am!'' he shrieked, excitedly. ``We're just four months away from the return of Long Beach's biggest event---the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach after last year's was canceled because of the Pandemic. It's going to be better than ever. Be sure to mark the date---September 24th through the 26th. This is going to be the 46th running of the event going back to our first one on September 28, 1975 when we staged the Formula 5000. And then six months later we staged our first Formula 1 race on March 28,1976.'' Well, for Jim Michaelian, history apparently will be repeating itself. ``We once again are going to have two races in Long Beach in a six-month span as we're going to hold another Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach race next April 8th through the 10th,'' he said. ``I'm just so excited that we're back in action.'' Jim Michaelian also might be back in action later this year as a professional race driver, possibly in Europe. He already has participated in over 30 endurance races during his career from the 24 Hours of Daytona in Florida to the Gulf 12 Hours in Abu Dhabi to the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia in Italy to the Le Mans Cup in France to the 24 Hours of Nurburgring in Germany to many other competitions. . .
Mr. McCormack had quite a time with Garrett, as he played 14 rounds of golf with him in 14 days. ``Let's just say I wouldn't remind anyone of Phil Mickelson when I was on the links,'' he said with a laugh. . . ``What a fabulous place The Greenbrier is,''' said Ms. Rossi,'' referring to the luxurious 750-room hotel and idyllic golf course designed by Sam Snead. She even ran into Jerry West, who has a home on the premises. Ol' Seth, now a bigshot ESPN basketball analyst who once didn't even have two nickels to rub together when he coached at Long Beach State before going on to far more lucrative paydays at South Florida and Virginia Tech, must be rolling in dough these days. It's estimated the wedding cost him more than $300,000. . . Viewpoints and op-eds on LBREPORT.com are proudly those of their bylined authors but not necessarily those of LBREPORT.com or our advertisers. We welcome our readers' comments/opinions 24/7 via Facebook and moderate length letters and longer-form op-ed pieces submitted to us at mail@LBReport.com.
Previously by Mr. Krikorian: Sign Of The Times: To Donning A Mask At A Near Empty Blair Field To Keep A High School Baseball Game From Being Halted To The Zany LBUSD Superintendent Jill Baker Still Keeping Elementary Students From Engaging In Playground Activity The Beloved Sandra Headley, AKA Coachie, Climaxes Her Memorable 39-Year Tenure At Naples Elementary School With A Most Unusual Task Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia Takes A Victory Lap For His City Hosting The Undocumented Migrants, But The Estimated $35 Million Cost To Taxpayers Has His Critics In An Uproar, Including One, The Famed Bodyguard Mike (The Hammer) DiMarzo, Who Calls Mr. Garcia The Teflon Don Of LB Tommy O'Toole's Magical 12-Hour Day That Might Well Land Him In The Guinness Book Of World Records And, Who Knows, The Zany LBUSD Superintendent Jill Baker Might Be Destined To Wind Up In It, Too Why Don't Mayor Robert Garcia And His Marionette, City Manager Tom Modica, Come Out And Tell The Truth About How Long Beach Became A Lodging Sanctuary For More Than 1,000 Undocumented Kids? Why Have ALL The Long Beach Leaders Been So Silent On The Feds Placing A Contingent Of Undocumented Kids In Downtown LB? A Talk With Jerry West And An Emotional Remembrance For Me Of Still Another Friend, Elgin Baylor, Who Is Gone Frankly, I'm Surprised Long Beach Chief Of Police Robert Luna Didn't Think A Contingent Of Extraterrestrials From Another Galaxy Was Responsible For The LB Crime Wave The Creator Of Two Iconic Long Beach Dining Establishments, Schooner Or Later and Tantalum, LB Bachelor Denny Lund Also Has Been A Creator Of Glad Times Krikorian Notes: From Cal Gov Gavin Newsom Keeping Long Beach Restaurant Diners Outdoors For No Plausible Reason To His Equally Despised Michigan Counterpart, Gretchen Whitmer, Actually Allowing Indoor Dining In Her State To Cock Of The Walk John Morris Speechless (!) To Dickie (Too Fast, Too Furious) Babian Turning Crow's Over To His Son To My New 7-1, 354 Bodyguard Aaron Gray Taking Over From The Undersized 6-0, 225 Mike (The Hammer) DiMarzo Krikorian Notes: From Gavin Newsom Praising Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia As Though He's Destined For Mt. Rushmore To Newsom Hoping The Rest Of California Follows The Jill Baker LBUSD Path (???) To The Tiger Woods Car Accident To Bad Stu Ledsam's Son Kyle's Big Award To Vons Pavilion GM Steve Carr Performing Cashiering Duty To My Watching the Amazing Emerzian Twins Next Week In Michigan Krikorian Notes: From A Most Surreal Development That Has Me In A State Of Giddiness---Our Beloved Long Beach Actually Now Serious About Building A New Swimming Pool After Coastal Commission Approval And Strong Endorsements From Such Local Leaders As Mayor Robert Garcia and City Manager Tom Modica and Their Political Accomplices To Mike O'Toole Doing a Solo, He-Man Rowing Act On A 32-Foot Gondola Carolina Filled With 14 People Around Naples Canals To Jill Baker’s Typical Back-to-School Delaying Tactics To My Receiving My Periodic SAG-AFTRA Residuals From My Once Flourishing Acting Career That, Sadly, Went The Way Of My Once Flourishing Radio Career Long-Time Belmont Shore Resident Dorcas Baldwin, 85, Endures Frightening Experience Of Homeless Man Breaking Into Her Bay Shore Avenue Home And Taking A Shower Before Long Beach Cops Come To The Rescue CIF Southern Section Commissioner Rob Wigod Hoping Gavin Newsom And His Health Department Toadies Come To Their Senses For Projected High School Sports Restart On March 19 Terry Antonelli Orchestrating Rise Of L’Opera After Its Tragic Fall In The Great Long Beach Memorial Day Pillage & Plunder Festival Krikorian Notes: From Mayor Garcia's Spineless Speech To Jill Baker's Passing The Buck Alliance With Gavin Newsom To A Positive Long Beach Vaccination Experience To Welcoming New Neighbor George Gascon To Mike The Hammer Bludgeoning Me About Boxing To The Amazing Tom Brady The Memorable Life Of Tommy Lasorda: From World Series Titles To Slim-Fast Diets To Obscenity-Laced Jim Healy Tapes To Pitching To Jack Clark To A Sacred Legacy Of Laughter And Success On The Ball Yards Of America "A Lady Shrieking "Wear A Mask!" On Bay Shore Ave. Results In A Mask-Wearing Epiphany For Our Columnist A Christmas Tale Of Reflections And Remembrances A Christmas Tale Of Reflections And Remembrances" Krikorian Notes: From New LA County DA George Gascon Moving To Naples To LBUSD Superintendent Jill Baker Continuing To Stunt Growth Of 70,000 Students To Distress Of Locked Down LB Entrepreneurs Jeff Cozart, Mike Neufeld, John Sangmeister To LB’s Very Own Kato Kaelin, Steve Folger, Squiring Kelly Clarkson In Nashville Krikorian Notes: From Joe Jost Owner Ken Buck Sounding Off On The Lockdowns To Big Ben Goldberg's Boat Parade Party In Huntington Harbor To Bob Ludlam Departing LB For Prescott -- The Leisure World of Arizona -- To LB State President Jane Close Conoley Not Faintly Resembling Her Esteemed Predecessors To Mike (The Hammer) DiMarzo Invading Miami For Nightclub Frolic To LB State Women's Soccer Coach Mauricio Ingrassia Suddenly Looking Like A Matinee Idol When Is LBUSD Superintendent Jill Baker Going To End Her Calamitous Lockdown That Has Caused So Much Chaos And Heartache And Disruption Among 70,000 Students? Krikorian Notes: From Councilman Rex Richardson Displaying Courage To Show Up At A Long Beach Restaurant Association Meeting To The Countless Millions Lost On Unoccupied LB Buses To LB Health Czar Kelly Colopy’s Latest Mean-Spirited Edict To the Irritating Silence Of LB City Manager Tom Modica To LB Mayor Robert Garcia Ignoring His Constituents For Political Reasons To Bob The Black Labrador Parading Down The Peninsula Boardwalk Holding A Large Palm Limb In His Mouth How Many Long Beach Restaurants Will Be Forced to Close After Latest Lockdown Lunacy? Where's Krikorian? Temporarily On "Injured Reserve List" Recovering From Shoulder Replacement Surgery Krikorian Notes: From Nico's George Mlouk Praising LB Mayor Robert Garcia For Working To Help LB Restaurateurs To A Plea To LB Health Czar Kelly Colopy To Restrain Her Overzealous Sleuths To Lakers Deserving NBA Title To LeBron James Turning Anthony Davis Into Passionate Competitor To Vital Contributions Of Lakers Coach Frank Vogel And GM Rob Pelinka To Sadness Of Passing Of The Great Joe Morgan And Its Impact On Maury Wills' Hall Of Fame Chances Famous Long Beach Restaurateur Phil Trani Days Of Joyful Memories And Pandemic Miseries Krikorian Notes: From The Irritating Silence Of The Long Beach Politicians In Not Supporting Their Citizens To The Whereabouts Of LB Mayor Robert Garcia To The Whistles Favoring The Lakers Against The Nuggets To The Greatness of Patrick Mahomes To The End Of A European Vacation Streak That Started In 1989 LBUSD Superintendent Jill Baker’s 70,000 Student Online Virtual Teaching Miscalculation A Disaster! Krikorian Notes: From The 9 Unworthies Of The LB City Council To The LB Upstick In Shootings And Speeding To Restauranteur John Morris Horseback Riding On A Wyoming Mountaintop To The Walking Adventures Of Earth Man Jeff Cozart's Time Of Torment: Will His Belmont Athletic Club Survive Gavin Newsom’s Latest Lockdown? Krikorian Notes: A Labor Day Elegy For Those In The Long Beach Business Community Who Were Violated In The Memorial Day Looting Frenzy To The Palm Tree Limbs Littering 2nd Street To The Scooters Littering The Belmont Shore Bridge To The Virtual On-Line Spectacle At Big Mike O'Toole's Household Krikorian Notes: From Long Beach Mayor's Ascent To Dem Stardom Because Of Lockstep Embrace Of The Party's Policies To The Enchanting Parklet Dining On 2nd Street To Tearing Down The Hoops in Belmont Shore To Greg Silver's LB Departure To Huntington Beach To Bob Rice Protecting Me From Isiah Robertson Don Kramer Was A Character Like No Other With His Zaniness, Goofiness, Joyfulness, Kindliness Who Left All Who Knew Him With Lasting Memories Of Slapstick Antics And Mirthful Anecdotes Krikorian Notes: From Majority Of LB Teachers Skipping Classrooms For The Comforts Of Home To Dr. Jill Baker Becoming Another Maria Montessori To Terry Antonelli Discussing Resurrection of L'Opera To Mayor Robert Garcia Touted By MSNBC's Brian Williams As A Future U.S. Senator To Kershaw's Magical Transformation Long Beach's Renaissance Man, Chuckie Miller, Reflects On His Entrepreneurial Life And On Racial Inequity Krikorian Notes: From LB's Elected Leadership's Reimagining Delusions To the Gaslamp's Outdoor Wall Video Band Show To The Ghastly USC Coach, Clay Helton FDR's Grandson, Delano Roosevelt, Talks Democratic Party, JetBlue, Long Beach And His Life LBPD Chief Robert Luna: Stand Up For Your Fifty Ousted Cops! What Next From Long Beach Health Boss Kelly Colopy, Hazmat Suits For Our Restaurant Servers? Sadly, Our National Pastime No Longer A Pastime For Me Parklets! Three Cheers For Long Beach Politicians! Memo To LBUSD Sup Jill Baker: Return The Kids To the Classroom! A Long Beach Politicians Once Again Fail Long Beach Is Long Beach Destined to Become the City That Never Sleeps? I Never Thought I'd Live To See These... Ben Goldberg Exits Long Beach, Now Nearby Refugee In OC Long Time Long Beach Resident Dave Lopez Climaxes Storied 48-Year TV Career From Krikorian's Notebook: When Will LB Police Chief Luna Come Clean About May 31 Downtown Long Beach Looting Frenzy? From Krikorian's Notebook: (1) LBUSD Mgm't Mulls Keeping K-5 Kids Indoors Without Normal Access To Playground, Cafeteria, Auditorium Activities; (2) And More... Will LB's New School Sup't Allocate Untimely Pay Raise To Serve Students? Awaiting Governor's Dictate To Decide Fate Of This Year's (July 3) "Big Bang On the Bay" Mayor/Council Sounds Of Silence After LB Cops Let Some Pillage Our Village Excuses By Long Beach Police & Politicians Dishearten Damaged LB Businesses Hallelujah! LB Mayor Pleads For Sac'to Permission To Lift Closures That Needn't Have Occurred Speak Up, Mr. Mayor, On Governor's Unwise Edicts. You Can Do That And You Should My Beloved Long Beach: A Victim Of Irrational Government Overreach Beyond Reasoned Response To Virus
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