May 9th - May 16th- 2011

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Text the Red Cross at 90999 on your cell phone to help the victims of the tornadoes in the South with a TEN DOLLAR donation charged to your phone, a horrific tragedy to hit our shores and the worst tornado outbreak in history, as well as a GREAT loss of life and LIVELIHOOD STILL being tabulated.

In an uplifting note in the midst of this unimaginable tragedy, the Wall Street Journal featured an article in their weekend May 7-8 edition about the herculean effort exhibited by the Clear Channel cluster of radio stations in Tuscaloosa Alabama in regards to the use of their AIR SPACE and electronic billboard capabilities to assist locals in connecting for needed services and information, services that were extended to ALL people in the region, black, white and ILLLEGAL immigrants as a conduit with preempted programming and 24 hour back up support from the station staff to keep these critical avenues of access open.

This is from a conglomerate that catered to strictly whites in the polarized Deep South.

It is more than moving to consider that in many cases the people accessing these services have NO HOMES, NO PHONE SERVICE, NO TELEVISION, only the radio as their contact to the outside world and the selfless use of these information assets for the common good is an unprecedented extension of benevolence by the media powers to be.

It is a sacred responsibility to use the media in a responsible caring way to educate the public on the nature of their world in a forthright, honest manner, whatever the application.

This reporter is committed to that mantra and is SO appreciative of our first amendment right of free speech and this profound concept is the backbone of my editorial outlooks, so you know.

Now, an intersection of American History, Theatre and the Deep South.

Andrew Jackson, our 7th president whose ubiquitous presence this century is fueled by his appearance on our US $20.00 bill, is extending his influence in our world almost 200 years after he was first elected president in 1828 with a rock musical called "Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson' that is scheduled to be part of the 2011-2012 Balliwick Theatre Chicago season.

The title is in obvious reference to Jackson's army background and his success in the Indian wars of the early 19th century where he established himself as a FEARLESS and savvy commander.

He hailed from Tennessee and was first rebuffed in his quest for the presidency in 1824 in a hotly contested election against none other than John Quincy Adams, the first son of a previous president (John Adams) to be elected and the only one till the 20th-21st century tandem of George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, which to this day remain the ONLY 2 FATHER and SON tandems to serve as president of the US .

So enraged was Jackson at the way this election played out in 1824 that he plotted for 4 years to run in 1828 and won heartily when he did. It is rumored at his inauguration that his friends from the wilderness of Tennessee that came to Washington became so excited and ROWDY that they totaled the White House on the inside during AND AFTER the inauguration ceremonies and were all drunk and passed out on the White House lawn for DAYS afterwards.

Is that why it's called the "Volunteer state?

Remember JACK DANIELS whiskey is from and IN LYNCHBURG TENNESSEE so they have a rich and storied heritage of partying down there.

Don't you love our history lessons?

Remember, some of the nastiest battles of the Civil War were fought in this CONFEDERATE state just a few decades after Jackson's presidency. In addition, ONLY Virginia had more battles fought on her soil than Tennessee in the Civil War, the most famous being the bloody Shiloh battle of 1862 which featured future president US Grant in one of his first major battles for the Union.

This musical has the music and lyrics composed by Michael Friedman and is based on a book by Alex Timbers and recently received two Tony Award nominations for set design and the best book as the reference source for it's Broadway run.

This certainly is a different Jackson to create a musical around, unlike the upcoming Michael Jackson Immortal World tour being staged by Cirque De Soleil that launches this fall and I discussed in last week's Metro Pulse.

In a semi expected development in the music world, Len Blavatnik, a Russian oil billionaire, has emerged as the winner of the auction for Warner Music, the third largest music company on the planet, paying NINE TIMES this years expected earnings.

Access Industries was the vehicle used by Blavatnik to buy the company and the amount paid BEFORE assumption of debt ($1.9 billion) and cash on hand was $1.3 BILLION dollars (or $8.75 a share, about half the IPO price of $17.00 in 2004) and the total deal came to $3.3 Billion dollars.

In 2004, the company was bought for $2.6 billion by a consortium led by CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. and private equity firms Bain Capital and Thomas Lee Partners . They cashed out their investment in dividends and payouts over the years , making this purchase price PURE PROFIT, effectively doubling their money on the investment.

In the April 18-25th Metro Pulse (available in the archive on the bottom of this article) I reported WHY Ticketmaster/Live Nation was in the running to bid on Warner Music, but as the bidding went on and the price increased Ticketmaster/Live Nation dropped out, along with other potential suitors.

Ironically, the 2011 first quarter totals for Ticketmaster were up 11 percent from last year's dismal totals, fueling Live Nation's totals by 17 percent as they reported a first quarter gross of $849.4 million dollars. This represented an increase in total sales of tickets to 34.6 million from 31.2 million units.

As reported by Ticket News, it was also revealed that a larger percentage of artists will be "on the road" this year touring for Live Nation, a whopping 75 percent of their available touring acts as opposed to 50 percent last year, but the proof will be in the pudding when we see how gas prices play out this summer, A KEY barometer of the discretionary income that will be available for the impulse purchase of tickets by consumers. (At press time 5/7 it was announced the AVERAGE price per gallon in the US was $4.00)

To their credit, there HAS been a reduction of the ticket prices on SOME acts that I have seen in the early onsales this year.

Adding to this scenario will be the roll out of the "dynamic pricing" model later this summer that will allow for a set your price option for the unsold ticket inventory that has traditionally dogged the bottom line of Live Nation/Ticketmaster .

I will delve into this concept further when I launch TicketPulse®.net shortly.

The company is also reducing the number of shows it is promoting at the "outdoor sheds" it owns or controls that should stem the red ink.

Note that Michael Rapino, president of the company, stated in testimony on Capitol Hill during the useless hearings that were held to air concerns about the Live Nation/Ticketmaster merger in 2009 that some 45 percent of their TOTAL ticket inventory goes unsold, a fact poignantly brought home in fiscal 2010 when the company lost approximately a QUARTER OF A BILLION dollars cash.($228.4 million to be exact)

This week brings a varied selection of entertainment to the Windy City in the last week we can say a "Daley" is mayor in our lifetimes as mayor elect, former congressman and White House chief of staff and Israeli commando Rahm Emmanuel (what a resume) takes office on May 16th.

Seems to me we need a "commando" mentality to tame our streets here in Chicago.

Speaking of commandos, kudos to the "SEAL TEAM 6" on their "whacking" (a uniquely Chicago term) of scumbag supreme Usama Bin Laden on MAY DAY, in response to the burial at sea controversy and the alleged disrespect shown Bin Laden's corpse in death, my retort to that is tell the families of the almost 3,000 people we lost on 9/11 why their loved ones didn't get a proper burial, in many cases, they could not be identified TO THIS DAY.

As the president so eloquently stated on an interview on 60 minutes airing on 5/8, any mass murderer who kills on American soil and is killed because of it won't make me lose sleep at night.

Remember ALL OF US are now soldiers in our respective worlds and NEIGHBORHOODS here in AMERICA as the low life cowards who supported this insidious criminal have declared war on us in retaliation for doing the right thing, be vigilant and AWARE in your surroundings at ALL TIMES, these cowards could strike anywhere. Any of us have the capacity to be a hero, remember, we ARE AMERICANS.

Back to the beat………………..

May 11th brings TV host and comedy queen Chelsea Handler to the Chicago Theatre for "50 Cent". Ooops, that was her reported paramour, NOT the ticket price, Sorry.

For the record, the real name of 50 Cent is Curtis Jackson, ANOTHER Jackson mentioned in this week's Metro Pulse.

May 12th is the opening date for the regional Air Guitar Championships at the Double Door which are REALLY important if you live in Chicago because the FINALS will be held July 23rd at The Metro right here in Chicago if you make it that far.

May 13th is the day, FRIDAY THE 13th, Columbia College hosts the "Urban Arts Festival" in the South Loop at 1000 S. Wabash AND Asia, the 1980's supergroup, plays the House of Blues.

May 13th also has Gladys Knight playing The Venue in Hammond Indiana at the Horseshoe Casino.

May 14th is the last time you will probably be able to see aging rocker Bob Seger (68 years old) this lifetime at the Allstate Arena AND the group Chicago will headline a FREE inauguration concert at Grant Park for incoming mayor Rahm Emmanuel. J.C. Brooks and the Uptown Sound will open this show.

May 15th sees Elvis Costello at the Chicago Theatre AND the "Green Festival" which features exhibits and events on sustainability opening at McCormick Place.

Oak Park hosts a weekend of "Art in the Park" from 10 AM to 5 PM at Mills Park in the suburb if you are hankering for some creative exposure on May 14-15.

RELAY FOR LIFE -the American Cancer Society "Rockin for a Cure" fund raiser will be held at Bobby McGees 10139 S. Harlem on May 15th, admission is $15.00, children under 12 are $5.00, multiple bands will be in attendance, go to tsagaris@comcast.net for more information on bands and Facebook.com/Bobbymcgees for general information.

Viper Alley, the smoking new club in Lincolnshire, has landed musical icon and record mogul Herb Alpert on June 11th for a RARE performance. Call the box office at 847 499 5000 for ticket availability or go to www.VIPER-ALLEY.com for more information. Little Feat plays there on June 13th.

Tickets on the fly dept.

Congress Theatre goes for the jugular with "The Killer", Jerry Lee Lewis on July 9th , tickets available at Ticketfly.com or CongressChicago.com.

One of this reporters favorite bands, Queensryche, plays the Congress on August 20th for their 30th Anniversary Tour.

And, in a final nod to our city's famous WORLDWIDE heritage, NOT, go to www.chicagomobfest.com for information on a music networking conference to be held at the Chicago Hard Rock Hotel on June 23, 24 and 25, a splendid time is guaranteed for all.

Till the next time MD

Michael E. Dehn
metropulseinc@hotmail.com
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