Matt Buckler: Dennis House lands big-time interview at Ch. 8
Oct. 6—Vice President Kamala Harris wasn't in New Britain for very long Wednesday — just long enough to participate in a forum at Central Connecticut State University on women's reproductive rights. She hung around long enough, however, to grant a short one-on-one interview with WTNH-TV8 news anchor Dennis House.
House said the two-minute conversation will air in its entirety Sunday on Channel 8's "This Week with Dennis House," airing at 10 a.m.
Granted, it was only two minutes long, but that's two minutes more than any other reporter was able to get Wednesday.
Vice presidents and presidents don't come to Connecticut very often. When they do, they should always talk to the local media. Politicians may find it can be much more impartial than the national media — and much less combative.
WFSB-TV3 was the latest station to report on the rising theft of flatbed tow trucks from the central part of the state. The Channel 3 report was similar to Tuesday's Channel 8 report — it was focused on Manchester where a flatbed was stolen from the business Sunday morning.
The police are still looking for it — there aren't that many good hiding places where you can stash a flatbed.
Castiglione nomination
On Wednesday, Boston Red Sox radio announcer Joe Castiglione completed his 40th season in the booth.
Next season, however, Castiglione may have a little more to celebrate. He is one of the 10 finalists for the Ford Frick Award, given annually at the Baseball Hall of Fame for excellence in broadcasting.
Castiglione, a Hamden native, is known for his in depth description of the action.
He's not a catch-phase type of announcer, but makes up for it with his vivid word pictures.
His philosophy works — Castiglione has been in the Red Sox booth longer than anyone.
The competition will be tough, however. Nine other broadcasters have been nominated, including Gary Cohen of the New York Mets, regarded by many as the top local broadcaster.
One of the nation's most entertaining announcers, Tom Hamilton of the Cleveland Guardians, also has picked up a nomination. He can bring out the excitement of baseball better than anyone. There are never any dull moments during a Hamilton broadcast.
Another contender for this year's honor is radio voice of the Chicago Cubs Pat Hughes, one of the smoothest voices in the business, His voice is perfectly suited for the friendly confines of Wrigley Field.
The winner will be announced on Dec. 7. Castiglione has a passion for baseball and for the Red Sox. He joined the Red Sox radio team in 1983, replacing Jon Miller. And 39 years later, he has been nominated for the Hall of Fame.
As Castiglione would say, can you believe it?
Decent debut
Sunday's premiere of "East New York" was delayed by nearly 30 minutes because the late Sunday football game when New England vs. Green Bay went into overtime.
The show still received a decent sample for opening night, 5.3 million viewers, which in this streaming era of television is a successful debut
The show was helped by grabbing on to the coattails of its lead-in show, "The Equalizer," which pulled in 7.094 million viewers for its debut and also did well in the key 18-49 age group.
The top Sunday show, as usual, was NBC's football game between Kansas City and Tampa Bay, which enjoyed an audience of more than 21 million viewers, Imagine, CBS had a good night and still lost to football by about 16 million viewers.
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Matt Buckler is television and radio editor of the Journal Inquirer.
Follow Matt Buckler for more television, radio, and sports coverage on the JI's Twitter @journalinquirer, and see his articles on the Journal Inquirer Facebook page.
