All the MDA hs to do is shift just a couple of corporate donations to the national telethon tote board and do better than the last year. It is well known that the corporate and telethon donations are two separate account totals. And I too look forward to the "International Press Conference" at which, Jerry said he would have a great deal to say the day after the telethon aired!
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MDA: Jerry Lewis Out As Chairman, Telethon Host
- Thread starter DToTheJ
- Start date
crainbebo said:
I agree--I watched a few hours of both the WGN America and local (WCIA-3 Champaign, IL) versions of the telethon. Not the same.
Still amazing that the MDA was able to still get their $1 more (and then some) considering the new format and the aftermath of Hurricane Irene in the East and Tropical Storm Lee on the Gulf Coast.
Speaking of Lee, did the storm and all the related weather warnings (particularly tornado and flood warnings) force any Gulf "Love Network" affiliates to punt the telethon to a subchannel (or even bump it entirely) in favor of storm coverage?
And it's also sad that this is the first Labor Day itself (other than the telethon running over midnight in the Eastern Time Zone) that the MDA telethon is nowhere to be found. I wish the new format could have been done a little differently--perhaps allow Love Network affiliates to spread out the six hours any way they wished between 8PM ET Sunday-8PM ET Labor Day evening, IMO.
We are in a fast food, eye tuck, New Age kind of society. This means that when it comes to such ideas as the Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon the younger types figure nobody will really give a rat's behind whether Jerry Lewis is there or not.
"Are there no work houses? Are there no prisons? The government will take care of those children", is pretty much the attitude these days, and just as the telethon was cheapened and trashed so did some expect that the money to take care of these children would not come in.
Just a little clue for those who figured they could cheapen it and make it wither away: $2 million more than last year was raised, if I understood correctly, and we know that that money was raised for JERRY'S KIDS. We also know that every need of those children has always been met, at no expense or hardship to their families.
It is only natural that there will be those who engage in character assassination, along the lines of, "So, do you still want him even though you know this about him?".
Kinda like, "There is an omen of death. Do you still want to be married to him/her?"
"Are there no work houses? Are there no prisons? The government will take care of those children", is pretty much the attitude these days, and just as the telethon was cheapened and trashed so did some expect that the money to take care of these children would not come in.
Just a little clue for those who figured they could cheapen it and make it wither away: $2 million more than last year was raised, if I understood correctly, and we know that that money was raised for JERRY'S KIDS. We also know that every need of those children has always been met, at no expense or hardship to their families.
It is only natural that there will be those who engage in character assassination, along the lines of, "So, do you still want him even though you know this about him?".
Kinda like, "There is an omen of death. Do you still want to be married to him/her?"
Silkie said:
But still, there's a question of if all of that $61 million are pledges, or if a part of that $61 million include the fund raising and corporate checks doled out during the telethon (which, in earlier editions, were NEVER included in the tote). Considering the economy is just as bad, if not worse, than last year, and that there are about 30 less stations in the Love Network, I think the final tote this year got a little "help", just to make the MDA look good.
High-profile articles don't get revised like that. Patrollers figure these things out and fix it within minutes.azumanga said:
Silkie said:
If you're referring to the talent that does the telethon, last time I heard, they donate their time to appear on the telethon -- they don't get paid.
As for presidential races -- there is the $3 box that people can check off on their tax return, which does not affect their refund or payment. And most of the money comes from PACs and special interest groups anyway, at least for the GOP and Democrat candidates.
DToTheJ said:
Despite his ego, I highly doubt that Jerry Lewis will say or do anything that would hurt MDA's fund-raising efforts in the future. No one doubts his dedication to those children and adults affected with muscular dystrophy.
With that said I at first thought that this would be the last year for the MDA telethon. However factoring in the money the six hour event made, especially without Lewis and in this economy, I am not so sure now that the telethon is history. If this formula worked this year it might in the future as well.
The Voice of Reason said:
Many of us also think the telethon would sink. Now, it's evident that it won't, but I believe that's because they're wearing inflatable waders. I still believe, given the circumstances, that not all of the $61 million pledged come from viewers -- I believe they inflated that amount only to please MDA's corporate donors, as well as keep their current Love Network stations on board for years to come.
And even though the telethon was a "success", it's still a long way from being a "hit" it was -- it needs more A-list stars performing live. It needs a strong anchor to host the telethon, not a group of reality show nobodies. And it needs to be live coast to coast, not live on the east coast and tape delayed everywhere else.
I would like to see the MDA's balance sheet for the telethon, just so I can see whether or not all the $61 million comes from pledges.
F
flashback
Guest
like i am sure many of you others i suspect it was all the money including corporate donations in the total.
as much as i think they were treating jerry lewis so terrible i hope they succeed because of the people they help.
as much as i think they were treating jerry lewis so terrible i hope they succeed because of the people they help.
I wanted to point out something else. I was watching on WCVB Boston, and I noticed that for the local portion, they FINALLY got a new set. I think the one they had been using was very old, and the board that displayed the total looked very old and outdated. I'm pretty sure it was an old vane display. Were any stations still using an older-looking set?
flashback said:
In the past, time and time again, Jerry said that the pledges on the tote DID NOT include the corporate sponsors.
This year, who the heck knows!
As were all the other local portions of the telethon.azumanga said:
johnnya2k6 said:
So everyone is using the same number, the same graphics and the same "style" of toteboard. When Jerry was hosting the telethon, each station had their own approach and look to the telethon -- now, the MDA wants them to be all the same. I'm surprised the MDA didn't put their foot down on WGN for lengthening the telethon by an hour and employing their usual "double dollars while the camera has a jerky picture" trick.
Uniformity of the Love Network is yet another reason why I won't be watching next year.
One newspaper's TV listings said Jerry was hosting this year. I didn't see that in time to post last week.
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