HBO is in the process of producing a new mini-series, "To Appomattox," which will be based on the Civil War-ending final battle at Appomattox, Virginia, and cover the surrender of General Robert E. Lee to General Ulysses S. Grant.
HBO is rounding up a star-studded cast to participate in the more than 50 speaking parts, including a search for NASCAR drivers to take some of the roles. The network has already landed one - Sprint Cup Series driver Carl Edwards, who is scheduled to play the role of Gen. John B. Gordon, a Confederate General selected by Lee to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia.
Among the others lined up for prominent roles are Michael C. Hall as Gen. Grant; William Petersen as Gen. William. T. Sherman; Will Patton as Gen. Lee; and the group Rascal Flatts will produce the soundtrack for the series.
Production is set to begin in the spring of 2011. No date as been set to air the series as yet.
To read more about the mini-series "To Appomattox," go here. To read more about why the series is looking at NASCAR drivers, go here.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Jim Hunter honored by NMPA
The award is designed to recognize character and achievement in the face of adversity, sportsmanship and contributions to motorsports. Each year, quarterly winners are selected, and an overall winner is determined by a vote of the NMPA membership.
Hunter, who died Oct. 29 after a yearlong battle with cancer, epitomized the spirit of NASCAR throughout his lengthy career in the sport. He worked as a journalist, public relations representative, president of Darlington Raceway and NASCAR executive.
Through his role as NASCAR vice president of corporate communications, Hunter served as a liaison between the sanctioning body and the press, and was considered a close and trusted friend of both.
Also receiving votes were: Atlanta Motor Speedway Director of Marketing and Promotion Marcy Scott, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series owner/driver Jennifer Jo Cobb and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson.
Bobby Hutchens, competition director at Stewart-Haas Racing, won the award in the first quarter, J.D. Gibbs and his family won the honor in the second quarter and Sprint Cup driver Brian Vickers won the third quarter Spirit Award.
Friday, December 17, 2010
NASCAR greats honored at Darlington
NASCAR legends David Pearson, Bud Moore, Cale Yarborough, Cotton Owens, current Darlington track president Chris Browning and former Darlington president and NASCAR executive, the late Jim Hunter, were all awarded the prestigious Palmetto Patriot award by S.C. Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer on Friday.
“I am humbled and honored to accept the Palmetto Patriot award on behalf of Darlington Raceway,” said Browning. “Darlington Raceway has played an integral role in the growth and popularity of NASCAR racing and is one of our state’s most treasured assets.”
The Palmetto Patriot Program recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to their fellow citizens and the State of South Carolina. The award is given for one's commitment to public service within their state and community. The award is the highest honor lieutenant governor can bestow.
“I am humbled and honored to accept the Palmetto Patriot award on behalf of Darlington Raceway,” said Browning. “Darlington Raceway has played an integral role in the growth and popularity of NASCAR racing and is one of our state’s most treasured assets.”
The Palmetto Patriot Program recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to their fellow citizens and the State of South Carolina. The award is given for one's commitment to public service within their state and community. The award is the highest honor lieutenant governor can bestow.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Johnson best when it matters - again
It really shouldn't come as a surprise that Jimmie Johnson was the best when it mattered most again this season. Over the course of the 10 Chase for the Sprint Cup races, Johnson, who won a NASCAR-record fifth consecutive championship, scored the most points of any driver - 1,572. And remember, he entered the Chase with a slight deficit to Denny Hamlin, who was the No. 1 seed based on wins at the time.
Also no surprise is that the drivers who finished the season second and third in the series standings - Hamlin and Kevin Harvick - also did well in the Chase. Harvick scored the second-most points and Hamlin third.
But there were some surprises. Four drivers not in the Chase - Mark Martin, Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray and Ryan Newman - ranked among the Top 10 in points scored over the final 10 races, with Martin the best among that group. He scored the fifth-most points in the final 10 races.
1. Jimmie Johnson 1572 points
Also no surprise is that the drivers who finished the season second and third in the series standings - Hamlin and Kevin Harvick - also did well in the Chase. Harvick scored the second-most points and Hamlin third.
But there were some surprises. Four drivers not in the Chase - Mark Martin, Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray and Ryan Newman - ranked among the Top 10 in points scored over the final 10 races, with Martin the best among that group. He scored the fifth-most points in the final 10 races.
Most points scored over the final ten races this season
1. Jimmie Johnson 1572 points
2. Kevin Harvick 1551
3. Denny Hamlin 1523
4. Carl Edwards 1393
5. Mark Martin 1342
6. Joey Logano 1307
7. Matt Kenseth 1294
8. Jamie McMurray 1275
9. Greg Biffle 1237
10. Ryan Newman 1223
Note: For those who like to play the "what if" game. Had Clint Bowyer not received a 150-point penalty from NASCAR for his car failing inspection at the R&D Center following his win at New Hampshire, he would have ranked No. 7 with 1,305 points.
3. Denny Hamlin 1523
4. Carl Edwards 1393
5. Mark Martin 1342
6. Joey Logano 1307
7. Matt Kenseth 1294
8. Jamie McMurray 1275
9. Greg Biffle 1237
10. Ryan Newman 1223
Note: For those who like to play the "what if" game. Had Clint Bowyer not received a 150-point penalty from NASCAR for his car failing inspection at the R&D Center following his win at New Hampshire, he would have ranked No. 7 with 1,305 points.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Who was watching the Chase
Charlotte was the fifth largest TV market for ESPN/ABC during this year's Chase for the Sprint Cup, according to Nielsen Media Research. Nine of the 10 races were aired on ESPN (Charlotte's race in October was on ABC). Charlotte averaged a 6.5 rating for the 10 races, well above the national average of 2.5.
Top 10 markets average rating for the 10 Chase races (US ratings)
1. Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem - 8.4
2. Knoxville - 7.5
3. Greenville-Spartanburg, SC -- 7.2
4. Birmingham -- 6.6
5. Charlotte -- 6.5
6. Dayton, Ohio -- 6.0
7. Indianapolis -- 5.5
8. Orlando/Daytona Beach -- 5.2
9. Louisville -- 5.2
10. Norfolk -- 5.0
For it's own race in October, the Charlotte market had the highest rating in the country - a 9.3. In the other nine races, Charlotte was third once, fourth twice, fifth twice, sixth once, seventh once, eighth once and the lowest was 12th for the Kansas race.
Charlotte had a rating of 8.9 for the season finale from Homestead, the second-best of the 10 Chase races behind the Charlotte race.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Is the NASCAR banquet over yet?
I can't be certain myself, since I stopped watching, but I assume the Sprint Cup Series awards banquet is over by now. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
Having attended many banquets in person, I can tell you a lot of very well-meaning and smart people do all they can to try to make the evening go as smoothly as possible in hopes of providing an entertaining and enjoyable night recognizing NASCAR's best performers of the season.
And they fail every year.
It's not their fault, though. The banquet is just a glorified dinner party. It's just not designed to be an entertaining event.
Think of the all the business-related dinner parties you've attended. They all have fancy menus, strange-looking desserts. They generally feature some people trying to crack jokes in hopes of lightening the mood. The speeches you are actually there to hear turn out to be generally stale, non-controversial and read word-for-word from a script.
That's basically the Cup awards banquet. Was it boring? Yes. Was it too long? Yes. But it was what it was - a glorified dinner party.
Those who got disappointed or angered because it was not something more were simply working with unrealistic expectations. That's not the fault of the people televising the event; it's the fault of the event itself.
Until the banquet becomes something filled with announcements or award winners that the NASCAR world does not know ahead of time, it's never going to be what some who watch wish it were.
A different camera angle or different commentators isn't going to change the fact there is little at the banquet worthy of true entertainment.
It's a high-dollar dinner party. Nothing more. Nothing less.
And it's over. I think.
Having attended many banquets in person, I can tell you a lot of very well-meaning and smart people do all they can to try to make the evening go as smoothly as possible in hopes of providing an entertaining and enjoyable night recognizing NASCAR's best performers of the season.
And they fail every year.
It's not their fault, though. The banquet is just a glorified dinner party. It's just not designed to be an entertaining event.
Think of the all the business-related dinner parties you've attended. They all have fancy menus, strange-looking desserts. They generally feature some people trying to crack jokes in hopes of lightening the mood. The speeches you are actually there to hear turn out to be generally stale, non-controversial and read word-for-word from a script.
That's basically the Cup awards banquet. Was it boring? Yes. Was it too long? Yes. But it was what it was - a glorified dinner party.
Those who got disappointed or angered because it was not something more were simply working with unrealistic expectations. That's not the fault of the people televising the event; it's the fault of the event itself.
Until the banquet becomes something filled with announcements or award winners that the NASCAR world does not know ahead of time, it's never going to be what some who watch wish it were.
A different camera angle or different commentators isn't going to change the fact there is little at the banquet worthy of true entertainment.
It's a high-dollar dinner party. Nothing more. Nothing less.
And it's over. I think.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Is TV in love with Jimmie Johnson?
Jimmie Johnson didn't just win a fifth consecutive Sprint Cup Series championship this season, he also dominated his competition in another way - in TV exposure.
According to research conducted by Joyce Julius & Assoc. Inc. - a sports and entertainment industry leader in measurement and evaluation of sponsorships and promotional programs - Johnson was interviewed an entire half-hour longer and mentioned 1,800 more times by the announcers than series runner-up Denny Hamlin throughout the course of the season.
The research by Joyce Julius, which has monitored every NASCAR race telecast for the last 25 years, Johnson's name was mentioned 7,875 times during the 36 live event telecasts (and replays) of the 2010 season. Johnson also appeared in a season-high 88 interview segments, which added up to over 1 1/2 hours of television time.
Hamlin, by contrast, drew 6,072 announcer mentions and 56 interviews that totaled just over an hour of TV time. Hamlin won the most races this season and lead the Chase for the Cup going into the season's final race.
According to the research, Kyle Busch was the third-most mentioned driver, Kevin Harvick was fourth and Jeff Gordon fifth.
:
According to research conducted by Joyce Julius & Assoc. Inc. - a sports and entertainment industry leader in measurement and evaluation of sponsorships and promotional programs - Johnson was interviewed an entire half-hour longer and mentioned 1,800 more times by the announcers than series runner-up Denny Hamlin throughout the course of the season.
The research by Joyce Julius, which has monitored every NASCAR race telecast for the last 25 years, Johnson's name was mentioned 7,875 times during the 36 live event telecasts (and replays) of the 2010 season. Johnson also appeared in a season-high 88 interview segments, which added up to over 1 1/2 hours of television time.
Hamlin, by contrast, drew 6,072 announcer mentions and 56 interviews that totaled just over an hour of TV time. Hamlin won the most races this season and lead the Chase for the Cup going into the season's final race.
According to the research, Kyle Busch was the third-most mentioned driver, Kevin Harvick was fourth and Jeff Gordon fifth.
Year-End Top-20 Interview Results:
| Driver | Pnts | Intervws | Intervwew | Announcer | |
| Time | Mentions | ||||
| 1) | Johnson, J. | 1 | 88 | 1:31:35 | 7,875 |
| 2) | Hamlin, D. | 2 | 56 | 1:01:50 | 6,072 |
| 3) | Busch, Ky. | 8 | 47 | 1:07:13 | 5,500 |
| 3) | Harvick, K. | 3 | 47 | 0:55:00 | 5,346 |
| 5) | Gordon, J. | 9 | 46 | 0:59:03 | 5,039 |
| 6) | Stewart, T. | 7 | 40 | 0:39:29 | 3,957 |
| 7) | Busch, Ku. | 11 | 38 | 0:35:32 | 3,114 |
| 8) | Bowyer, C. | 10 | 36 | 0:36:08 | 3,482 |
| 8) | Edwards, C. | 4 | 36 | 0:51:20 | 3,133 |
| 10) | Burton, J. | 12 | 33 | 0:32:51 | 3,483 |
| 10) | McMurray, J. | 14 | 33 | 0:49:44 | 2,899 |
| 12) | Kahne, K. | 20 | 31 | 0:28:37 | 2,269 |
| 13) | Biffle, G. | 6 | 30 | 0:30:06 | 3,357 |
| 14) | Logano, J. | 16 | 27 | 0:26:59 | 1,982 |
| 15) | Earnhardt, Jr., D. | 21 | 21 | 0:18:45 | 2,155 |
| 16) | Ambrose, M. | 26 | 16 | 0:15:22 | 1,641 |
| 16) | Montoya, J. | 17 | 16 | 0:08:57 | 3,343 |
| 18) | Newman, R. | 15 | 15 | 0:14:24 | 1,966 |
| 19) | Kenseth, M. | 5 | 14 | 0:10:43 | 2,601 |
| 19) | Keselowski, B. | 25 | 14 | 0:12:44 | 1,143 |
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