A look at some random stories, after-the-jump ...
But first: Top Comments appears nightly, as a round-up of the best comments on Daily Kos. Surely ... you come across comments daily that are perceptive, apropos and .. well, perhaps even humorous. But they are more meaningful if they're well-known ... which is where you come in (especially in diaries/stories receiving little attention).
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In February, 2020 I highlighted some old venerable restaurants that had to close (for a multitude of reasons). One that was still going was a small restaurant on the Upper East Side of Manhattan — and Neary’s Pub was a success due to the intrepid Jimmy Neary, who came-in to work each day at age ninety … and he would shake your hand whether you were a regular or a newcomer just the same. He had some famous regulars … yet had everyday New Yorkers as the backbone of his clientele. I visited for the first time in decades in late 2019, yet he chatted-me-up as if I was a regular.
Two years later Jimmy Neary died at age ninety-one (with former mayor Mike Bloomberg delivering a euology) … but his place carried on with his daughter Una running it along with her day job (on Wall Street).
Alas, his family has decided the workload was too much … and Neary’s closed in mid-July after fifty-seven years. As Jimmy was lucky enough to be able to buy his space, his family was able to sell it (at what must be a gigantic premium) to two restaurateur brothers. His daughter Una says they do plan on opening a “more modern Irish-themed restaurant within 6 months” … but will not be called Neary’s.
Jimmy Neary (1930-2021)
This past April, I noted several hotel trends (mostly annoying) — and while I am not a frequent traveller, I can add another one. Most hotels no longer have radios, which during Netroots Nation meant not hearing NPR or a local station for weather reports. Often I had to tune-in to a local Sinclair TV station … with the feeling that I might as well have been watching Newsmax.
Too much to hope for?
And finally, a good news story … in an area where one mostly hears of tragedy.
One often reads of famous (if not necessarily) star athletes who manage to go bankrupt. With sudden riches (and unable to say “no”), they are besieged by family members and old ‘friends’ to become an entourage, hiring inept relatives to manage complex financial matters (or unscrupulous managers who skim off money and fail to file taxes) … before their own frivolous spending (plus expensive divorce and medical bills) even kick in.
A recent ESPN essay noted four retired NBA players who have beaten the odds and made a great living off-the court: three of whom (Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and LeBron James) the public knows.
Someone who was a good (yet not star) player who is right after them in net worth is Junior Bridgeman — whose career lasted from 1975-1987, yet made more money ten years after playing than his combined team earnings. He made a note to pay attention to his post-career than others … and even turned down a team front-office post, as he was determined to become a successful businessman.
After some early investing mistakes, he determined to learn any business opportunity from-the-ground-up: buying a fast-food franchise and even working the counter. He parlayed that into a business empire that (at its peak) had 650 franchised locations, a Coca-Cola distributorship, and purchasing both Ebony and Jet magazines.
He gives lectures to current players (with salaries far in excess of his playing days) and hopes that he gets through to them. A fascinating read.
At age seventy: estimated net worth $600m
In honor of the blues legend Buddy Guy’s eighty-eighth birthday this week … my favorite song of his (along with singer/harmonica ace Junior Wells).
Plus, honoring the ninety-third birthday of the jazz legend Kenny Burrell:
Now, on to Top Comments:
From inkstainedwretch:
In the diary by mach82 about today’s prisoner swap — DaveinBremerton comments about Biden and Putin swapping prisoners, with a terrific tagline -- nice work, Weirdo!
A pair from Paul A:
In the diary by Mother Mags about you-know-who’s session at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Chicago — I nominate Bring the Lions's comment, pointing out that he wasn't there for an interview for the public but rather for a performance for his base.
And in the front-page story on JD Vance’s 2020 denigration of Simone Biles's mental-health pause in the last Olympics — Anne Elk's classic comment speaks for itself.
And from Ed Tracey, your faithful correspondent this evening ........
In the front-page story about the saliency of the abortion issue for voters — Texas Tom makes an apt comparison.
One of the highest-ranked images for today ...
… plus a second one …
And lastly: yesterday's Top Mojo - mega-mojo to the intrepid mik ...... who rescued this feature from oblivion:
