COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 17

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): Deeply delusional, convinced his approval is "really" at 60% but The New York Times stole it from him, believing he can stave off a Democratic house and a senate with enough Dems and terrified Republicans to convict and remove him, Trump launches his Weaponized Department of Justice and personal justice slut Todd Blanche against Alaska Senate ballot because he doesn't know what the word "incumbent" on the ballot means. Trump threatens voters there - and election officials in California if they don't corrupt the voter rolls for him.

BUT THERE ARE THOSE HEROES UNDERCUTTING TRUMP namely: the Republican candidates. Ramaswamy's subhuman Amy Acton ad blows up on him; Ohio businesses reportedly canceling events on him because they can't afford the blowback after being seen hosting him, and Cook Politics changes the Governor's race from Toss-Up to Lean Democrat. There are equivalent disasters in Michigan, Iowa, Texas. 

TRUMP HIMSELF is always the Democrats' best campaign tool: Trump claims to gullible columnist Byron York that his approval rate is "really 60%" and admitting he "doesn't give a damn" if you know he's overjoyed that oil companies are making "a freaking fortune" off your suffering. Oh and by the way the Netanyahu says the Iran war escalates to regime change Wednesday, and others confirm it may last another year.

B-Block (33:00) SPORTSBALLCENTER TONIGHT: I'd like to apologize for the World Series; the NBA can't apologize enough for Knicks' owner Jim Dolan; and there is nobody more unconsciously funny in American politics than America's 85th Place Sweetheart, ex-swimmer Riley Gaines. She's done it again - twice.

C-Block (42:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: The day I didn't have coffee with Uma Thurman.

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 17
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): Deeply delusional, convinced his approval is "really" at 60% but The New York Times stole it from him, believing he can stave off a Democratic house and a senate with enough Dems and terrified Republicans to convict and remove him, Trump launches his Weaponized Department of Justice and personal justice slut Todd Blanche against Alaska Senate ballot because he doesn't know what the word "incumbent" on the ballot means. Trump threatens voters there - and election officials in California if they don't corrupt the voter rolls for him.
BUT THERE ARE THOSE HEROES UNDERCUTTING TRUMP namely: the Republican candidates. Ramaswamy's subhuman Amy Acton ad blows up on him; Ohio businesses reportedly canceling events on him because they can't afford the blowback after being seen hosting him, and Cook Politics changes the Governor's race from Toss-Up to Lean Democrat. There are equivalent disasters in Michigan, Iowa, Texas.&nbsp;
TRUMP HIMSELF is always the Democrats' best campaign tool:&nbsp;Trump claims to gullible columnist Byron York that his approval rate is "really 60%" and admitting he "doesn't give a damn" if you know he's overjoyed that oil companies are making "a freaking fortune" off your suffering. Oh and by the way the Netanyahu says the Iran war escalates to regime change Wednesday, and others confirm it may last another year.
B-Block (33:00) SPORTSBALLCENTER TONIGHT: I'd like to apologize for the World Series; the NBA can't apologize enough for Knicks' owner Jim Dolan; and there is nobody more unconsciously funny in American politics than America's 85th Place Sweetheart, ex-swimmer Riley Gaines. She's done it again - twice.
C-Block (42:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: The day I didn't have coffee with Uma Thurman.

TRUMP LAUNCHES HIS PLOT TO STEAL THE MID-TERMS - 10.26.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/3154e2d2-f9d3-4e7c-83a6-b4ee016b0390/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 16

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): Trump's doctors are not asking him to tell the difference between a snake and a giraffe because he CAN tell the difference between a snake and a giraffe! They're asking him because in private he must be showing continual signs that HE CAN'T TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A SNAKE AND A GIRAFFE!

We've lost the truth behind Trump's boast about his "perfect scores" on "IQ tests" and all those doctors who stick by him even if you in the crowd are dying. This is not like taking his BP every day. The tests have to be to confirm he's not nuts - not TODAY anyway.

Since it's a given the countless psych doctors Trump boasts about are there because metaphorically speaking Trump isn't, can't some of them put him away? Institutionalize him? Or failing that, couldn't one of them go public? On behalf of mankind? Risk everything (and by the way, sure you'd stop being a Trump doctor. Instead you'd become Psychology Jesus and an instant World Hero forever and make billions from a grateful planet).

ALSO: De-Trumpification accelerates, especially after Whorenvoy Steve Witkoff praises Putin to his face as a "humanitarian."  And Vivek Ramaswamy evidently thinks George Washington is in hell, because he's talking about what he'll have to say to George when he meets him in "the afterlife."

B-Block (THE BIG FINISH) (24:00) The latest G. Elliott Morris polling indicates a 10-point Democratic lead for the average house seat and a Senate range that goes as high as 56 Democratic seats. The fallout to the idiotic tweet by soon-to-be-ex-CBS-News-Legal-Correspondent Jan Crawford has opened a can of worms there, and inside was a worm named Bari Weiss. And can you imagine a dinner in which Kid Rock is the intellectual star? You can if the other three guys were Bill Maher, Stephen A. Smith, and Trump.

C-Block (THE GENIUS OF JAMES THURBER) His classic centerpiece to his book "My Life And Hard Times" - "The Night The Bed Fell."

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 16
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): Trump's doctors are not asking him to tell the difference between a snake and a giraffe because he CAN tell the difference between a snake and a giraffe! They're asking him because in private he must be showing continual signs that HE CAN'T TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A SNAKE AND A GIRAFFE!
We've lost the truth behind Trump's boast about his "perfect scores" on "IQ tests" and all those doctors who stick by him even if you in the crowd are dying. This is not like taking his BP every day. The tests have to be to confirm he's not nuts - not TODAY anyway.
Since it's a given the countless psych doctors Trump boasts about are there because metaphorically speaking Trump isn't, can't some of them put him away? Institutionalize him?&nbsp;Or failing that, couldn't one of them go public? On behalf of mankind? Risk everything (and by the way, sure you'd stop being a Trump doctor. Instead you'd become Psychology Jesus and an instant World Hero forever and make billions from a grateful planet). ALSO: De-Trumpification accelerates, especially after Whorenvoy Steve Witkoff praises Putin to his face as a "humanitarian." &nbsp;And Vivek Ramaswamy evidently thinks George Washington is in hell, because he's talking about what he'll have to say to George when he meets him in "the afterlife."
B-Block (THE BIG FINISH) (24:00) The latest G. Elliott Morris polling indicates a 10-point Democratic lead for the average house seat and a Senate range that goes as high as 56 Democratic seats. The fallout to the idiotic tweet by soon-to-be-ex-CBS-News-Legal-Correspondent Jan Crawford has opened a can of worms there, and inside was a worm named Bari Weiss. And can you imagine a dinner in which Kid Rock is the intellectual star? You can if the other three guys were Bill Maher, Stephen A. Smith, and Trump.
C-Block (THE GENIUS OF JAMES THURBER) His classic centerpiece to his book "My Life And Hard Times" - "The Night The Bed Fell."

COULDN'T TRUMP'S DOCTORS INSTITUTIONALIZE HIM? - 10.22.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/3d624dea-eefa-4a5d-9ff8-b4ea015df6ea/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 15

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT) Trump has proved it again and Trump has proved it anew.

He is owned by Russia.

Only, this time, even rabid Conservatives are realizing it's true.

The National Review is out with a new article insisting "Congress Must Investigate Trump's Aid and Comfort to Putin." That, again, is our Constitution's terminology for treason. And a rabid right winger, Dan McLaughlin, who still somehow thinks Trump's previous conspiracies with Putin were simply rhetorical, now says "this time The Wolf comes as a Wolf."

The tipping point was Trump's gutting of the sanctions against oil and diesel sales by Russia. And the right is also reacting to Trump's attempt to get the nearly $300 billion in Russian assets in Europe, either to keep himself or return to Putin.

There is no telling what's next after Trump dug still further yesterday by not merely endorsing Netanyahu (who cares) but trying to blackmail Israel. "If Israel has the wrong leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this work ourselves, and I am not inclined to do so." He's threatening to lessen or pull U.S. support for Israel. Remember Trump, in the classic mindlessness of the antisemite that he is, believes American Jews are more or equally loyal to Israel. If so, did he not just destroy Republican chances with them? Should they not rise up and neuter him and his movement?

B-BLOCK (25:00) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD. So many nominees I'm handing out six medals! Stephen Miller makes an orientation joke about Talarico while Trump is checking out men's backsides. A guy fired by Fox thinks Nixon was innocent. Elon Musk turns out to be the sole owner and proprietor of Ken Paxton. Stephen A. Smith solves the world's problems by saying don't worry, he has "pressed" Trump on several issues over dinner. CBS must fire legal correspondent Jan Crawford after she thanks a bigoted right-winger who tried to troll Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan over the weekend, and congratulates him on getting him to "self-own." Who in the hell is she to be taking a political advocacy position? Even at CBS? And JD Vance gets called the b-word by a liberal and the floodgates have opened because guess what? He is.

C-BLOCK (37:00) SPORTSBALLCENTER. My modest proposal: The Baseball World Series will feature two of three cities who have combined to play 227 seasons in which there's been a World Series or equivalent. To show for it they have three World Series wins, and the 1895 Temple Cup. This is not going to be a big TV draw. So why not take back what baseball once had in the glory days of 40,000,000 viewers per game? Grab a sports-exclusive window. Play games during weekdays. I mean, how could it hurt?

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 15
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT) Trump has proved it again and Trump has proved it anew.
He is owned by Russia.
Only, this time, even rabid Conservatives are realizing it's true.
The National Review is out with a new article insisting "Congress Must Investigate Trump's Aid and Comfort to Putin." That, again, is our Constitution's terminology for treason. And a rabid right winger, Dan McLaughlin, who still somehow thinks Trump's previous conspiracies with Putin were simply rhetorical, now says "this time The Wolf comes as a Wolf."
The tipping point was Trump's gutting of the sanctions against oil and diesel sales by Russia. And the right is also reacting to Trump's attempt to get the nearly $300 billion in Russian assets in Europe, either to keep himself or return to Putin.
There is no telling what's next after Trump dug still further yesterday by not merely endorsing Netanyahu (who cares) but trying to blackmail Israel. "If Israel has the wrong leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this work ourselves, and I am not inclined to do so." He's threatening to lessen or pull U.S. support for Israel. Remember Trump, in the classic mindlessness of the antisemite that he is, believes American Jews are more or equally loyal to Israel. If so, did he not just destroy Republican chances with them? Should they not rise up and neuter him and his movement?
B-BLOCK (25:00) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD. So many nominees I'm handing out six medals! Stephen Miller makes an orientation joke about Talarico while Trump is checking out men's backsides. A guy fired by Fox thinks Nixon was innocent. Elon Musk turns out to be the sole owner and proprietor of Ken Paxton. Stephen A. Smith solves the world's problems by saying don't worry, he has "pressed" Trump on several issues over dinner. CBS must fire legal correspondent Jan Crawford after she thanks a bigoted right-winger who tried to troll Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan over the weekend, and congratulates him on getting him to "self-own." Who in the hell is she to be taking a political advocacy position? Even at CBS? And JD Vance gets called the b-word by a liberal and the floodgates have opened because guess what? He is.
C-BLOCK (37:00) SPORTSBALLCENTER. My modest proposal: The Baseball World Series will feature two of three cities who have combined to play 227 seasons in which there's been a World Series or equivalent. To show for it they have three World Series wins, and the 1895 Temple Cup. This is not going to be a big TV draw. So why not take back what baseball once had in the glory days of 40,000,000 viewers per game? Grab a sports-exclusive window. Play games during weekdays. I mean, how could it hurt?

TRUMP PROVES IT AGAIN: HE IS OWNED BY RUSSIA - 10.19.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/08412896-315b-4031-a4f2-b4e701575319/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 14

Bulletin - Trump confirms press secretary Katie Zacharia (in Monday, out before close of business Friday) is out as Press Secretary.

"I told her I think you are better off being happy. I'm not sure you can ever be happy in this job." Trump said she may stay in the administration in "a more pleasant form" and a White House source says she is "transitioning out" of the role she occupied for about 100 hours. 

Though she clearly lied about whether she was a lawyer, an attorney, or the perfectly respectable position she tried to hide - that she had a law degree but never was admitted to the bar - that was not the cause here. Lying is a plus in this administration.

She was fired because the revelations surprised Trump and at his stage of mental deterioration he can't handle any more surprises.

 

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 14
Bulletin - Trump confirms press secretary Katie Zacharia (in Monday, out before close of business Friday) is out as Press Secretary.
"I told her I think you are better off being happy. I'm not sure you can ever be happy in this job." Trump said she may stay in the administration in "a more pleasant form" and a White House source says she is "transitioning out" of the role she occupied for about 100 hours.&nbsp;
Though she clearly lied about whether she was a lawyer, an attorney, or the perfectly respectable position she tried to hide - that she had a law degree but never was admitted to the bar - that was not the cause here. Lying is a&nbsp;plus&nbsp;in this administration.
She was fired because the revelations surprised Trump and at his stage of mental deterioration he can't handle any more surprises.
&nbsp;

BULLETIN: TRUMP FIRES PRESS SECRETARY AT HALF A SCARAMUCCI - 10.16.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/752cb6fa-6774-45eb-bf55-b4e5013091fe/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 13

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): The President is insane.

I know you know this – we all know this.

But – days after a disturbed man climbed into a tiger enclosure in England and was mauled to death, Trump posted a video of another man in a lion enclosure. He captioned it “Don’t ever mess with nature.” Almost immediately afterwards he posted ANOTHER video of a series of similar incidents, at least half a dozen lions killing people. One tiger. No caption this time. Just grisly, horrifying, death. Five hours later, as if to mock the disturbed man who died in the tiger enclosure – he posted an AII video of himself tackling a tiger, then playing with it – as if to prove HE wouldn’t meet the same end as the disturbed man in England did.

I first wrote and commented on Trump's genuine mental instability a decade ago in "Could Trump Pass A Sanity Test?" for Vanity Fair. He's not getting better. He's posting snuff films. The President is insane. And every once in awhile it is absolutely necessary to underscore this truth – to ourselves, for the record, for the future – if there is one.

And it shows up in his daily decisions, like appointing a Press Secretary who won't take questions and can't read aloud (although why are kind of looking at this backwards. She's humiliating him - why is this a BAD THING?). Throttling internet and warning systems for Ukraine because he told them they'd agreed to an "energy cease fire" - only they hadn't. 

There's also a series of smaller stories including how we should almost feel bad for Kim Guilfoyle, but not for Megyn Kelly. And how we definitely should try to figure out where in the cabinet a Democratic County Council candidate in Indiana best fits in, because she is out of Effs and I'd take her as Senate Leader instead of Schumer.

B-1 (35:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: I've never told this story before, it's 40 years ago, but way back then a respected producer in Hollywood believed I was the perfect host for a show he was developing called... YOUR FACE OR MINE. I'm afraid you're going to have to listen to find out why the heck he thought this was a winning title.

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 13
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): The President is insane.
I know you know this &ndash; we all know this.
But &ndash; days after a disturbed man climbed into a tiger enclosure in England and was mauled to death, Trump posted a video of another man in a lion enclosure. He captioned it &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t ever mess with nature.&rdquo; Almost immediately afterwards he posted ANOTHER video of a series of similar incidents, at least half a dozen lions killing people. One tiger. No caption this time. Just grisly, horrifying, death. Five hours later, as if to mock the disturbed man who died in the tiger enclosure &ndash; he posted an AII video of himself tackling a tiger, then playing with it &ndash; as if to prove HE wouldn&rsquo;t meet the same end as the disturbed man in England did.
I first wrote and commented on Trump's genuine mental instability a decade ago in "Could Trump Pass A Sanity Test?" for Vanity Fair. He's not getting better. He's posting snuff films. The President is insane. And every once in awhile it is absolutely necessary to underscore this truth &ndash; to ourselves, for the record, for the future &ndash; if there is one.
And it shows up in his daily decisions, like appointing a Press Secretary who won't take questions and can't read aloud (although why are kind of looking at this backwards. She's humiliating him - why is this a BAD THING?). Throttling internet and warning systems for Ukraine because he told them they'd agreed to an "energy cease fire" - only they hadn't.&nbsp;
There's also a series of smaller stories including how we should almost feel bad for Kim Guilfoyle, but not for Megyn Kelly. And how we definitely should try to figure out where in the cabinet a Democratic County Council candidate in Indiana best fits in, because she is out of Effs and I'd take her as Senate Leader instead of Schumer.
B-1 (35:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: I've never told this story before, it's 40 years ago, but way back then a respected producer in Hollywood believed I was the perfect host for a show he was developing called... YOUR FACE OR MINE. I'm afraid you're going to have to listen to find out why the heck he thought this was a winning title.

TRUMP IS INSANE: NOW HE'S POSTING SNUFF FILMS - 10.15.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/4676871c-568e-4940-9347-b4e3016f3503/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 12

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): 31% of those who voted for Trump just 707 days ago now DISAPPROVE of his presidency.

His approval rating among those who voted for him was 95% on January 20, 2025. It is now just 67%.

There is no other word for this: it is a collapse within his base. Even if they do not go to the polls to punish him, and even if a large percentage of those in the new Pew/USA Today poll saying they do not approve actually blame somebody else for his failure, it portends a midterm calamity for MAGA and the GOP so large that it could trigger the avalanche in which the Democrats not only get both houses, but are left with enough terrified Republican Senators up for re-election in '28 that they'll abandon Trump in January '27.

This overlooked outcome overshadowed a busy week of lying and traitoring and repeating himself. Trump's newest treason? He is buying oil from Putin that he himself sanctioned only 25 days ago. His latest repeated lie? He announced an "energy ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia" yesterday (American media had already forgotten he already announced an "energy ceasefire" just one month ago). And oh by the way he's also trying to start a race war in Minnesota and New York and America.

And it turns out he literally can't find America on a map - or a globe.

B-Block (SPORTSBALLCENTER TONIGHT): You think the spectacle of Mike Tyson - whose life Donald Trump ruined nearly 40 years ago - was shocking to YOU? Through marriage and adoption Mike is my cousin. Also Bob Costas has additional details on the Don Larsen Perfect Game Batters' Eye controversy, and the baseball "final four" belies the owners' argument for a salary cap, and the White Sox choke requires the invocation again of one of the greatest things the great writer Jean Shepherd ever wrote: The White Sox and the Military Suicide Mission.

C-Block (THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL): We all have something we are eternally ashamed of. For some of us, we knew before it happened that it would be eternally shameful. I'm in that group: I once worked for Rupert Murdoch. What can I tell you? It helped set me up for life financially AND it got me out of the nightmare of covering the Republicans hunting Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton. The whole gory story, in detail.

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 12
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): 31% of those who voted for Trump just 707 days ago now DISAPPROVE of his presidency.
His approval rating among those who voted for him was 95% on January 20, 2025. It is now just 67%.
There is no other word for this: it is a collapse within his base. Even if they do not go to the polls to punish him, and even if a large percentage of those in the new Pew/USA Today poll saying they do not approve actually blame somebody else for his failure, it portends a midterm calamity for MAGA and the GOP so large that it could trigger the avalanche in which the Democrats not only get both houses, but are left with enough terrified Republican Senators up for re-election in '28 that they'll abandon Trump in January '27.
This overlooked outcome overshadowed a busy week of lying and traitoring and repeating himself.&nbsp;Trump's newest treason? He is buying oil from Putin that he himself sanctioned only 25 days ago. His latest repeated lie? He announced an "energy ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia" yesterday (American media had already forgotten he already announced an "energy ceasefire" just one month ago). And oh by the way he's also trying to start a race war in Minnesota and New York and America.
And it turns out he literally can't find America on a map - or a globe.
B-Block (SPORTSBALLCENTER TONIGHT):&nbsp;You think the spectacle of Mike Tyson - whose life Donald Trump ruined nearly 40 years ago - was shocking to YOU? Through marriage and adoption Mike is my cousin. Also Bob Costas has additional details on the Don Larsen Perfect Game Batters' Eye controversy, and the baseball "final four" belies the owners' argument for a salary cap, and the White Sox choke requires the invocation again of one of the greatest things the great writer Jean Shepherd ever wrote: The White Sox and the Military Suicide Mission.
C-Block (THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL): We all have something we are eternally ashamed of. For some of us, we knew before it happened that it would be eternally shameful. I'm in that group: I once worked for Rupert Murdoch. What can I tell you? It helped set me up for life financially AND it got me out of the nightmare of covering the Republicans hunting Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton. The whole gory story, in detail.

ONE THIRD OF TRUMP '24 VOTERS ABANDON HIM AS MIDTERMS LOOM -10.12.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/28616246-6103-4f90-98e2-b4e001581617/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN – SEASON 5 EPISODE 11

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): This is not complicated.

Trump: ”They could take out a city. Let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego.”

U.S. Constitution: “Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort.”

It’s impeachable aid and comfort to an enemy. Literally. Definitionally. PER THE CONSTITUTION. Add it to the $14 Billion he freed up by letting Iraq and its investors regain access to their oil money in March - $14 Billion they could use to fund a “take out” of L.A. or San Diego or – moron – the all-MAGA corridor between the two cities.

So impeach him next January. The chances that there will be 60 Senators willing to convict continue to increase, between Democratic chances, terrified GOP Senators up for re-election in 2028, and accelerating De-Trumpification. Greg Abbott blew him off in San Antonio yesterday. Mike Rogers cut an anti-tariff ad in Michigan. Sununu. Rupert Murdoch! Maybe even David Ellison!

-And an all-time great meme is born. Susan Collins continues to self-destruct in Maine, giving birth in the middle of a debate to ‘Let Them Eat Road Salt.’

-Plus why Trump is actually right about Murdoch throwing him under the bus, and the indicator that new CNN/CBS owner David Ellison is backing into the hedges. The phenomenal story of Kash Patel appearing to put fugitives on the FBI’s Most Wanted List just as the FBI is about to arrest them – they’ve even corrupted THAT.

B-Block (39:00) SPORTSBALL CENTER TONIGHT: The Secret of Don Larsen’s World Series Perfect Game is Revealed!

70 years ago today a mediocre pitcher who had led the league in losses two years earlier and would be traded nine times in his career, threw the only perfect game in the history of the World Series (indeed any post-season game). Don Larsen of the Yankees: 27 Dodgers up, 27 inexplicable Dodgers down.

Well it WAS inexplicable. A revelation on a long-lost kinescope of the game telecast from 1956, and two sets of previously unknown color photographs, explains the whole thing. I own the photos and I’ll share them with you.

In short: the Dodger batters never saw the ball coming out of Larsen’s hand! Can't see ball, can't hit ball!

C-Block (55:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: Since we’re doing baseball in the middle of the baseball playoffs – why not? Let me tell you the unexpectedly hilarious story of the day in 2000 my Mom, sitting in our seats at Yankee Stadium, got hit in the face with a wild throw by the second baseman, Chuck Knoblauch. She was the star of the New York tabloids for a week, she never had more fun in her life, and to ratchet it up a notch – I was ON THE AIR anchoring the Game-of-the-Week broadcast on Fox and got to narrate highlights of my own Mom becoming the most famous fan in America.

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN &ndash; SEASON 5 EPISODE 11
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): This is not complicated.
Trump: &rdquo;They could take out a city. Let them take out <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/los-angeles">Los Angeles</a>. Let them take out San Diego.&rdquo;
U.S. Constitution: &ldquo;Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort.&rdquo;
It&rsquo;s impeachable aid and comfort to an enemy. Literally. Definitionally. PER THE CONSTITUTION. Add it to the $14 Billion he freed up by letting Iraq and its investors regain access to their oil money in March - $14 Billion they could use to fund a &ldquo;take out&rdquo; of L.A. or San Diego or &ndash; moron &ndash; the&nbsp;all-MAGA corridor between the two cities.
So impeach him next January. The chances that there will be 60 Senators willing to convict continue to increase, between Democratic chances, terrified GOP Senators up for re-election in 2028, and accelerating De-Trumpification. Greg Abbott blew him off in San Antonio yesterday. Mike Rogers cut an anti-tariff ad in Michigan. Sununu. Rupert Murdoch! Maybe even David Ellison!
-And an all-time great meme is born. Susan Collins continues to self-destruct in Maine, giving birth in the middle of a debate to &lsquo;Let Them Eat Road Salt.&rsquo;
-Plus why Trump is actually right about Murdoch throwing him under the bus, and the indicator that new CNN/CBS owner David Ellison is backing into the hedges. The phenomenal story of Kash Patel appearing to put fugitives on the FBI&rsquo;s Most Wanted List just as the FBI is about to arrest them &ndash; they&rsquo;ve even corrupted THAT.
B-Block (39:00) SPORTSBALL CENTER TONIGHT: The Secret of Don Larsen&rsquo;s World Series Perfect Game is Revealed!
70 years ago today a mediocre pitcher who had led the league in losses two years earlier and would be traded nine times in his career, threw the only perfect game in the history of the World Series (indeed any post-season game). Don Larsen of the Yankees: 27 Dodgers up, 27 inexplicable Dodgers down.
Well it WAS inexplicable. A revelation on a long-lost kinescope of the game telecast from 1956, and two sets of previously unknown color photographs, explains the whole thing. I own the photos and I&rsquo;ll share them with you.
In short: the Dodger batters never saw the ball coming out of Larsen&rsquo;s hand! Can't see ball, can't hit ball!
C-Block (55:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: Since we&rsquo;re doing baseball in the middle of the baseball playoffs &ndash; why not? Let me tell you the unexpectedly hilarious story of the day in 2000 my Mom, sitting in our seats at Yankee Stadium, got hit in the face with a wild throw by the second baseman, Chuck Knoblauch. She was the star of the New York tabloids for a week, she never had more fun in her life, and to ratchet it up a notch &ndash; I was ON THE AIR anchoring the Game-of-the-Week broadcast on Fox and got to narrate highlights of my own Mom becoming the most famous fan in America.

TRUMP’S “LET THEM TAKE OUT L.A.” IS TREASON. IMPEACH HIM FOR IT - 10.8.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/cc5f66de-7ae8-4bad-a0a0-b4dc01785fdb/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 10

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): Even Trump sees the wave of Blue water forming on the horizon, now less than a month out. It's so bad he's resorted to one of the three classic cliched lies: "The check is in the mail!" He has actually said it, virtually word-for-word, in Ohio, talking about his latest attempt to buy votes. Not $5,000 apiece this time. Not even a $100 advance he mentioned. This is $500 to Ohioans. It's desperate, stupid, and invites Natalie Harp jokes that even I just won't make lol.

But he has reason to panic. G. Elliott Morris at Strength In Numbers now puts a Democratic House at 99% and a Democratic 52-48 Senate at 73% and Republican bastions are crumbling. They've abandoned the Senate race in South Carolina. Two ex-Republican governors of Iowa have endorsed the Democrat. Ken Paxton is losing so badly in Texas he trashed Trump's Nuremberg Rally off the record, and now he's had to beg the wife who is divorcing him on BIBLICAL GROUNDS to do a TV ad endorsing the statewide ticket even though she refused to say his name. Texas Toast, indeed.

(SPECIAL COMMENT 2): If you are shocked and shamed and furious at the plight of Jane Doe at Cornell, imagine how we alums feel. Imagine how we alums who have wanted to see the fraternities banned at Cornell...since 1975. They still bully and influence not just the lives of anyone they want to manipulate, but the University itself. And they encourage and protect criminal behavior. Beyond what must be done to reform Cornell and every other university where sexual violence is protected, the frats have to be banned. Today.

B-Block (40:00) SPECIAL COMMENT 3: If you flinched when you saw Trump's Leni Riefenstahl commercial run on MS NOW - at Taxpayer Expense - imagine my shock when it turned out the Quisling at the former MSNBC who rationalized it to his enraged colleagues was the former line producer of Countdown, a skilled show timer with absolutely no editorial sense who used to regularly leave the studio to go sing in a choir just before showtime - and insist he not be docked any time off. His name is Greg Kordick and of COURSE it's him who sold out the network and its viewers. 

B-Block (1:04:00) SPORTSBALL CENTER TONIGHT: Aaron Judge has a calf injury. Giancarlo Stanton has a calf injury. Francisco Lindor had a calf injury. Juan Soto had a calf injury. And a second calf injury. Funny thing - what did we used to presume when there was a seeming epidemic of soft tissue injuries in joints? 

C-Block (1:08:00) MONDAYS WITH THURBER: We celebrate the memorial service for his daughter Rosemary, and the re-publication of "Thurber's Dogs", with the first reading of this new series: the first one I ever read aloud, the unparalleled "A Box To Hide In."

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 10
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): Even Trump sees the wave of Blue water forming on the horizon, now less than a month out. It's so bad he's resorted to one of the three classic cliched lies: "The check is in the mail!" He has actually said it, virtually word-for-word, in Ohio, talking about his latest attempt to buy votes. Not $5,000 apiece this time. Not even a $100 advance he mentioned. This is $500 to Ohioans. It's desperate, stupid, and invites Natalie Harp jokes that even I just won't make lol.
But he has reason to panic. G. Elliott Morris at Strength In Numbers now puts a Democratic House at 99% and a Democratic 52-48 Senate at 73% and Republican bastions are crumbling. They've abandoned the Senate race in South Carolina. Two ex-Republican governors of Iowa have endorsed the Democrat. Ken Paxton is losing so badly in Texas he trashed Trump's Nuremberg Rally off the record, and now he's had to beg the wife who is divorcing him on BIBLICAL GROUNDS to do a TV ad endorsing the statewide ticket even though she refused to say his name. Texas Toast, indeed.
(SPECIAL COMMENT 2): If you are shocked and shamed and furious at the plight of Jane Doe at Cornell, imagine how we alums feel. Imagine how we alums who have wanted to see the fraternities banned at Cornell...since 1975. They still bully and influence not just the lives of anyone they want to manipulate, but the University itself. And they encourage and protect criminal behavior. Beyond what must be done to reform Cornell and every other university where sexual violence is protected, the frats have to be banned. Today.
B-Block (40:00) SPECIAL COMMENT 3: If you flinched when you saw Trump's Leni Riefenstahl commercial run on MS NOW - at Taxpayer Expense - imagine my shock when it turned out the Quisling at the former MSNBC who rationalized it to his enraged colleagues was the former line producer of Countdown, a skilled show timer with absolutely no editorial sense who used to regularly leave the studio to go sing in a choir just before showtime - and insist he not be docked any time off. His name is Greg Kordick and of COURSE it's him who sold out the network and its viewers.&nbsp;
B-Block (1:04:00) SPORTSBALL CENTER TONIGHT: Aaron Judge has a calf injury. Giancarlo Stanton has a calf injury. Francisco Lindor had a calf injury. Juan Soto had a calf injury. And a second calf injury. Funny thing - what did we used to presume when there was a seeming epidemic of soft tissue injuries in joints?&nbsp;
C-Block (1:08:00) MONDAYS WITH THURBER: We celebrate the memorial service for his daughter Rosemary, and the re-publication of "Thurber's Dogs", with the first reading of this new series: the first one I ever read aloud, the unparalleled "A Box To Hide In."

TRUMP'S NEW BRIBE LIE: "THE CHECK IS IN THE MAIL!" - 10.5.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/43b6520d-fba4-40e5-ac91-b4d9015bf4b4/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 9

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): You heard me. Trump wrote me a fan letter - but he hates me.

Yet here's something I never write: but this is not about me! We'll get to it later. It's important because it is a metaphor for what's happening to the Republican Party as the midterms speed towards us: all of their candidates are vulnerable because their base is sick of the war and sick of Trump and especially sick of a guy who on the same day launches a tax-payer tirade concluding "America will never become a Communist country!" and then hours later is holding a State Dinner for the number-one ranked communist in the world. Even for a man who has never held the same thought in his head for two days in a row, it's bad.

The De-Trumpification is picking up speed. ANOTHER Republican Trump Darling has scrubbed Trump from his site. The small-c conservative Cook Report has moved fifteen House races towards Democrats. An Iowa religious broadcaster says all the House candidates there have been told they are vulnerable, even if Trump won their district by 15 points.

It. Is. Happening.

B-Block (33:00) OK, the story of the fan letter from Trump and my other encounters with him, that date back to December 1983 (and which was followed by me walking in silence and then blurting to my camera crew the still-unanswered question 'WHAT THE EFF WAS WRONG WITH THAT GUY?"

C-Block (58:00) WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Succession? The fourth best TV show of the century? I worked for the Murdochs. "Succession" is laugh out loud bad. Then there's the National Hockey League trying to manipulate history, and why the newest craze of paying half a million or two million or three million for an active athlete's trading card is madness. It's simple: what if he gets hurt, and you just paid $500,020 for his card, as some fool just did for a card of football's Jaxson Dart.

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 9
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): You heard me. Trump wrote me a fan letter - but he hates me.
Yet here's something I never write: but this is not about me! We'll get to it later. It's important because it is a metaphor for what's happening to the Republican Party as the midterms speed towards us: all of their candidates are vulnerable because their base is sick of the war and sick of Trump and especially sick of a guy who on the same day launches a tax-payer tirade concluding "America will never become a Communist country!" and then hours later is holding a State Dinner for the number-one ranked communist in the world. Even for a man who has never held the same thought in his head for two days in a row, it's bad.
The De-Trumpification is picking up speed. ANOTHER Republican Trump Darling has scrubbed Trump from his site. The small-c conservative Cook Report has moved fifteen House races towards Democrats. An Iowa religious broadcaster says all the House candidates there have been told they are vulnerable, even if Trump won their district by 15 points.
It. Is. Happening.
B-Block (33:00) OK, the story of the fan letter from Trump and my other encounters with him, that date back to December 1983 (and which was followed by me walking in silence and then blurting to my camera crew the still-unanswered question 'WHAT THE EFF WAS WRONG WITH THAT GUY?"
C-Block (58:00) WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Succession? The fourth best TV show of the century? I worked for the Murdochs. "Succession" is laugh out loud bad. Then there's the National Hockey League trying to manipulate history, and why the newest craze of paying half a million or two million or three million for an active athlete's trading card is madness. It's simple: what if he gets hurt, and you just paid $500,020 for his card, as some fool just did for a card of football's Jaxson Dart.

TRUMP WROTE ME A FAN LETTER - 9.28.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/d828380b-dbf3-4073-9451-b4d2013ecf63/transcript

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 8

A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): BREAKING: Republicans finally throw Trump overboard - or maybe it's "Republicans finally throw Trump under the campaign bus."

-Trump toady Byron Donalds, running for Governor of Florida and only ahead in the polls by 1/10 of a percentage point, scrubs Trump from his website.

- Foundering GOP Senate candidates in Iowa and Michigan criticize Trump's war in Iran and resultant high prices.

- Trump's approval among Pure Independents drops from +15 to -71 since Election Day (an 86 point swing against Trump!; 99 point swing on the economy)

-The percentage of Trump voters who supported him - not the GOP - goes from +23 on Inauguration Week to -22.

-And the Tump staff response? They want to rename Ford's Theatre after Trump! 'Ford's Theatre - because the one thing you really want as the midterms loom is some commercial that includes the tag lines 'The Lincoln Assassination - brought to you by Donald Trump!'

The De-Trumpification Has Begun!

PLUS the polls are crashing around him and Trump can't decide if the midterms are about him or aren't about him, and I have to take some of your time to protest this claim that a baseball player who may lead the American League in Runs Batted In this year after leading the National League four years ago, will be the first to ever do it. He isn't. There is now a desperate bid to make everything that happens, something that has never happened before. 'The first time since 1904' is a plenty big enough accomplishment without hyperbole.

B-Block (40:00) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Stephen A. Smith is back and fully up to date on politics (as long as that date is July 15 2024). Jared Golden, phony Democratic congressman from Maine, endorses a Republican in New York because they worked together prioritizing lobstermen over democracy. And Friedrich Merz, a German chancellor having trouble fending off a bunch of fascists bent on ethnic cleansing. Get some help, Ethel Mertz.

C-Block (52:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: I cherish the memory of a friend no longer with us and the extraordinary person she was. In fact, she should've been president - at minimum, she should've been the VP candidate on the Democratic ticket, not her husband. Elizabeth Edwards - my friend.

 

COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN - SEASON 5 EPISODE 8
A-Block (SPECIAL COMMENT): BREAKING: Republicans finally throw Trump overboard - or maybe it's "Republicans finally throw Trump under the campaign bus."
-Trump toady Byron Donalds, running for Governor of Florida and only ahead in the polls by 1/10 of a percentage point, scrubs Trump from his website.
- Foundering GOP Senate candidates in Iowa and Michigan criticize Trump's war in Iran and resultant high prices.
- Trump's approval among Pure Independents drops from +15 to -71 since Election Day (an 86 point swing against Trump!; 99 point swing on the economy)
-The percentage of Trump voters who supported him - not the GOP - goes from +23 on Inauguration Week to -22.
-And the Tump staff response? They want to rename Ford's Theatre after Trump! 'Ford's Theatre - because the one thing you really want as the midterms loom is some commercial that includes the tag lines 'The Lincoln Assassination - brought to you by Donald Trump!'
The De-Trumpification Has Begun!
PLUS the polls are crashing around him and Trump can't decide if the midterms are about him or aren't about him, and I have to take some of your time to protest this claim that a baseball player who may lead the American League in Runs Batted In this year after leading the National League four years ago, will be the first to ever do it. He&nbsp;isn't.&nbsp;There is now a desperate bid to make everything that happens, something that has never happened before. 'The first time since 1904' is a plenty big enough accomplishment without hyperbole.
B-Block (40:00) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Stephen A. Smith is back and fully up to date on politics (as long as that date is July 15 2024). Jared Golden, phony Democratic congressman from Maine, endorses a Republican in New York because they worked together prioritizing lobstermen over democracy. And Friedrich Merz, a German chancellor having trouble fending off a bunch of fascists bent on ethnic cleansing. Get some help, Ethel Mertz.
C-Block (52:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: I cherish the memory of a friend no longer with us and the extraordinary person she was. In fact, she should've been president - at minimum, she should've been the VP candidate on the Democratic ticket, not her husband. Elizabeth Edwards - my friend.
&nbsp;

BREAKING: REPUBLICANS THROW TRUMP OVERBOARD - 9.24.26

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/74251dcd-adab-4e19-9b39-b4ce016d67ad/transcript

“Countdown With Keith Olbermann,” the landmark news and commentary program that reordered the world of cable news, returns as a daily podcast. Olbermann’s daily news-driven mix will include his trademark “Special Comment” political analysis, the tongue-in-cheek “Worst Persons In The World” segment, and his timeless readings from the works of the immortal James Thurber. The man who turned SportsCenter into a cultural phenomenon will broaden the content to include a daily sports segment, a daily call for help for a suffering dog, and a remarkable series of anecdotes covering a career that stretched from covering the 1980 Olympic Miracle on Ice a month after his 21st birthday, to anchoring the 2009 Presidential Inauguration and the 2009 Super Bowl pre-game show in a span of just twelve days, to rejoining ESPN as a “rookie” baseball play-by-play man at the age of 59.

“Countdown With Keith Olbermann,” the landmark news and commentary program that reordered the world of cable news, returns as a daily podcast. Olbermann’s daily news-driven mix will include his trademark “Special Comment” political analysis, the tongue-in-cheek “Worst Persons In The World” segment, and his timeless readings from the works of the immortal James Thurber. The man who turned SportsCenter into a cultural phenomenon will broaden the content to include a daily sports segment, a daily call for help for a suffering dog, and a remarkable series of anecdotes covering a career that stretched from covering the 1980 Olympic Miracle on Ice a month after his 21st birthday, to anchoring the 2009 Presidential Inauguration and the 2009 Super Bowl pre-game show in a span of just twelve days, to rejoining ESPN as a “rookie” baseball play-by-play man at the age of 59.

Countdown with Keith Olbermann

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