Top 10 Ravens of All-Time - Chicago Bears v. Baltimore Ravens

Summary

Dan Bernstein Unfiltered – Episode Summary

Episode: Top 10 Ravens of All-Time - Chicago Bears v. Baltimore Ravens

Date: October 24, 2025
Host: Dan Bernstein (DB), with Executive Producer Matt Abbatacola (MA)

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Main Theme

This episode blends irreverent Chicago sports commentary with an offbeat ranking of "Top 10 Ravens of All-Time"—riffing on the Bears’ upcoming game against the Baltimore Ravens. Dan and Matt dissect gambling scandals in sports, debate fan logic around NFL victories, and read extensive listener feedback, all before unveiling their inventive “top Ravens” lists.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Sports Gambling Scandal: Industry and Ethics

• Dan opens with a rundown of the current nationwide sports gambling scandal, referencing the NBA, Chauncey Billups’ role, and Barkley vs. Kenny Smith’s heated debate:
  • Barkley: “No, this is stupid. It's stupidity. I don't want to hear anything about that… You got guys making tens of millions of dollars who are risking it all for all this stuff.” (02:12)
  • Kenny Smith: “You're making my point that people make illogical decisions because of the addiction…It is a disease and it is a sickness that really needs professional help to overcome.” (01:36)
• Matt sides with Smith, emphasizing the illness of addiction.
• Dan notes the irony and hypocrisy: almost all sports media—including their own show—are underpinned by gambling sponsorships (03:00).
  • Dan: “Everybody talking sports, wherever we are, are in large part funded by gambling. It's a fact. Running from it… is cowardly.”
• Both agree: if a player bets on the NFL (or NBA, etc.), they should be banned for life, addiction or not (04:50).
  • Dan: “They have to be banned for life. It doesn't matter why… That's the world we live in.”

2. Bears Fan Logic: "Just Win, Baby"

• Dan rails against the notion that real fans should “want to play the best”:
  • Dan: “Stop saying stupid things like I want Lamar Jackson to play. I'm a Bears fan. Shut up. Then you're a stupid Bears fan.” (09:27)
  • Fans want the best chance for victory, not moral victories.
• They point to the ’85 Bears: no one cares about the quality of QBs they faced en route to their Super Bowl win (11:52).
  • Matt: “No one ever brought up the 85 bears and said, yeah, but you know the quarterbacks they played against… No, people still live and will go to their grave [saying] the greatest team that's…ever played the NFL.” (13:45)
• Moral: fans (and teams) should prefer injured/scrub opponents to maximize wins.

3. Listener Feedback: Humor, Empathy, and Community

• Email feedback segment is both heartfelt and hilarious:
  • Serious: Several listeners thanked Dan for his strong words about the Blackhawks/Joel Quenneville sexual abuse scandal; others criticized the lack of empathy among some sports fans (21:00).
    • Matt: “If you lack [empathy]… it says a lot about your development as a person and it should be examined and looked at. Period.” (22:46)
  • Humorous: Stories about people laughing out loud (and even embarrassing themselves) at inside podcast jokes (24:22).
  • My Buddy Jingle: Multiple emails about the show’s fake “My Buddy” lyrics, leading to office mishaps and ruined childhood nostalgia (25:15–38:14).
  • Anecdotes about kids misunderstanding memes (“67 craze means hairy balls and penis” – 32:23).
• Both hosts delight in the quirky, participatory vibe of their community.

4. Top 10 Ravens of All Time: Creative Spin

• Instead of limiting the list to Baltimore Ravens athletes, the show’s “committee” interpreted “Raven” in all possible ways—historical, mythical, pop culture, and more (41:59+).
• Highlights from the Committee’s List (41:59–54:18):
  • Honorable Mentions include Elsa Raven (actress), Jimmy the Raven (Hollywood animal actor), The Ravens (R&B group), The Three Eyed Raven (Game of Thrones), Cameron Crowe and Raven-Symoné.
  • Top Picks include The Disney Raven (Snow White), Grip (Charles Dickens’ pet), Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven,” Scott Levy (wrestler Raven), Norwegian myth ravens Hugin and Munin, Ravenclaw (Harry Potter), The Birds (movie), Simpsons Treehouse of Horror “The Raven,” and Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft (Tony the Tiger voice, “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch”).
• Dan’s List Deviates Wildly:
  • Jimmy the Raven is Dan's #1. He shares details about this real bird who starred in 1,000+ films and impressed celebrities like Jimmy Stewart (64:29).
  • Other creative entries: Pete Crow-Armstrong (Cubs rookie), Crows candy, Tower of London ravens, the symbolic raven from Omen II, retired adult actress Raven.
  • Offers a “DBU prize pack” to any listener who names a child “Gwern” (after Bran the Blessed’s son, a mythic raven reference).
  • Meta-commentary about the joy of riffing on a silly premise, play-arguing over mythical vs. pop culture vs. athlete choices.

5. DBU Picks: Betting Advice

• Matt’s college football picks (Vanderbilt -2.5 vs Missouri; Old Dominion -14 vs Appalachian State) (69:09).
• Dan’s NFL prop parlay: Mark Andrews (Baltimore TE) over 3.5 receptions and 35.5 yards vs. Bears, citing matchup logic and the narrative of “trade rumors” leading to a big game (69:57).
  • Dan: “When you're thinking the guy’s old and done… that's when you remember him having a really good game…” (71:09)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On gambling hypocrisy:
  “It is underpinning the entire industry… Running from it and failing to acknowledge that openly is cowardly.” — Dan (03:00)
• On sports talk morality:
  “I think we are all aware enough intellectually to understand where we are, what's going on, and deal with it as like adults who are capable of thinking about multiple things at the same time.” — Dan (05:37)
• On Bears fandom:
  “What you want every week is for the team that you care about to have the absolute best chance to win…” — Dan (09:27) “If I have a choice, I'm always going to choose the starter to be hurt and never play… at every position. Especially quarterback.” — Matt (16:33)
• On ‘My Buddy’ segment fallout:
  “Thanks for ruining my childhood for me.” — Listener’s son, after dad played podcast alternate lyrics (37:34)
• On lack of empathy from sports fans:
  “To lack the ability to show empathy to another person is… really sad. And I would suggest if you feel that way… take a look at yourself seriously.” — Matt (22:14)
• On eccentricity of the “Ravens” list:
  “Jimmy the Raven is my overall number one… He could perform any task possible for an eight-year-old child.” — Dan (43:21, 64:29) “We’ll give you a special prize pack if you can have a child and name it Gwern…” — Dan (58:27)

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Timestamps

• 00:00–06:12: Intro, sports gambling scandal, Barkley vs. Smith argument
• 09:20–16:38: Bears fan logic—rooting against the best, why ugly wins are fine
• 19:09–41:59: Friday Feedback—serious (Quenneville/abuse), then comedic stories and in-jokes
• 41:59–67:36: Top 10 Ravens of All Time—committee and Dan’s lists with pop culture deep dives
• 69:09–73:11: DBU betting picks, logic for weekend sports bets, banter about historic Ravens
• 73:12–End: Wrap-up, next week’s topic preview (“Top 10 Bengals of All Time”)

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Tone & Language

• Unfiltered, irreverent, Chicago-centric, self-deprecating humor
• Mix of sports expertise and playful nonsense
• Genuine empathy (esp. around scandal/abuse), balanced by relentless comedic riffs

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For New Listeners

If you haven’t listened, this episode is a perfect sampler: deep Chicago sports takes, sharply observed sports culture, gleeful banter, wild topic pivots, and a palpable sense of community between the hosts and their listeners. The “Top 10 Ravens” segment demonstrates the show’s refusal to take itself too seriously, while the feedback and gambling discussions ground it in sports radio tradition—albeit with a much sharper edge.

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Next episode: Top 10 Bengals of All Time—expect more creative list-making, sports talk, and robust listener feedback!

Transcript

[Matt Abaticola]

Dan Bernstein, Unfiltered.

[Dan Bernstein]

Unfiltered on 312 Sports. Welcome to Dan Bernstein Unfiltered. I am the eponymous Dan Bernstein and that is Matt Abaticola, our executive producer here on 312Sports. And we are presented in partnership with my bookie. So today a bears thought, a thought on the gambling scandal that is unfolding across the United States and potentially beyond. Based on every detail that's emerging. And what I love what's happening is people actually read through the full indictment and get some understanding first. It's like, well, this is crazy. Chauncey Billups isn't really connected to anything but the poker. Like, oh, really? Why don't you read about Co Conspirator 8 or however he's. He's designated? And some of what is being shared and how this is all going on. I don't know if you heard the debate between Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith. They were getting after it about how Kenny's like, look, gambling. This just shows you that gambling is a disease. It's an addiction. And it can override logical behavior. And Barclay was having none of it. He goes, no, this is stupid. It's stupidity. I don't want to hear anything about that. You got guys making tens of millions of dollars who are risking it all for all this stuff. And Kenny's like, well, yeah, that. Charles, you're making my point that people make illogical decisions because of the addiction. And he's. I don't wanna hear that. It's just stupid. It's not an addiction. You're letting him off the hook. It got pretty heated. It was pretty good. It's like, I'm mad at Kenny right now.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. I mean, I can see both sides of that. But, you know, I would lean more towards Kenny. Cause there really is the inability to stop what you're doing when you have that wiring in your brain. And that addiction, it is a disease and it is a sickness that really needs professional help to overcome. You can't just knock it on your own.

[Dan Bernstein]

There is. There. There are a lot of layers to this. And it's been very, very interesting to watch how we. And I'm not. We're certainly not excluded here. We and others in sports media are trying to be as open and honest about this as we are supported by money from sports gambling. It is underpinning the entire industry. And everybody who points out that irony is right. And I think it's completely fair to point out the irony that everybody talking sports, wherever we are, are in large part Funded by gambling. It's a fact. Running from it and failing to acknowledge that openly is cowardly. So I understand it, and I think we can all have enough bandwidth, enough ability to understand that that's part of what we're all doing here and not necessarily be somehow cowed into not talking about things because of what the realities are. Look, Europe has been dealing with this forever, and with all the popularity of sports there and everything that's gone on and all they've dealt with, this is part of these are the growing PA of this partnership. It's going to happen. It's a matter of how the leagues respond. And I think Adam Silver has to come out today. Don't hide behind statements. Adam Silver's got to come out and say, anybody found to have been involved in betting on my game is banned for life. Period. Paragraph, out, done, forever.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. I'm not going to argue with anything that you just said there because I agree with you. We are supported, and the sports talk industry has been supported by gambling dollars for years and years and years. But. And it's not lost on me, but the fact that you have professional athletes that are doing things to impact the outcomes of games is not in the similar vein of being supported by gambling dollars. To talk sports.

[Dan Bernstein]

No, but I just think it acknowledges those who say, boy, it's sure hard for all of these sportscasters out there to talk about this and to take some kind of ethical stand or make some sort of serious point and then say, well, this is brought to you by. And I think we can. We can acknowledge that.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, but I'm not. I'm not taking some kind of ethical stand and saying, Chauncey Billups is a bad guy and he needs a. You know, this should happen to him and he should do that.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, I get it. I mean, he's a guy that made a mistake and might have an addiction issue and a problem with gambling. And Terry Rozier, I mean, you know the same thing. I'm not going to pass any judgment on them for the mistakes they've made, but they're also in a position where they can impact the outcomes of games, and you have to live with those consequences, regardless of this illness or not.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, right. They have to be banned for life.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

It doesn't matter why. And if it so happens that you're. You're unlucky, that you throw away everything you've built in your life because of your addiction, that too bad. That's the world we live in.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. And hopefully you can recover from it personally and rebound become a better individual. I'm never gonna pass judgment on someone for making mistakes and making bad life decisions. We all do that. And I think if you want to live in some kind of ivory tower and pass judgment on people and not look at yourself and the things you do in your own life because your sins aren't as bad as other people's sins. Well, I'm not for that. Not buying that. But I'm also not going to pretend like, oh, we can't do our segments on sports betting and be supported in this industry in sports talk because of it. That's who I am.

[Dan Bernstein]

I agree with you and that's my. In large part that's also sort of my point is I think we are all aware enough intellectually to understand where we are, what's going on and deal with it as like adults who are capable of thinking about multiple things at.

[Matt Abaticola]

The same time or as adult as we can be.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right, Exactly. Whatever. The limit is on our ability to function as intellectually as adults. And I know that I'm not necessarily great at that all the time.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, our ceiling might be a little lower than others.

[Dan Bernstein]

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[Matt Abaticola]

Can I guess?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. The answer is Cooper Rush. I'm not even going to let you guess.

[Matt Abaticola]

Like the worst possible opponent.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, the answer is Cooper Rush or whoever their emergency quarterback is behind him after they knock Cooper Rush out of the game. Because all this, this high minded crap about well, the Bears should hope that they can beat the best. And I wanted them to say no. Stop saying that. Stop thinking that what you want every week is for the team that you care about to have the absolute best chance to win about whatever the opponent is able to roll out on that field. Depth matters, roster building matters. Being able to withstand injuries is a test of an organization. And if the organization can't, that's on them. It's not on you. Stop saying stupid things like I want Lamar Jackson to play. I'm a Bears fan. Shut up. Then you're a stupid Bears fan.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. I think that's born out of the whole idea of this lack of national respect for my team. I think that's where it comes from. Because you remember a few weeks ago when the sketch, we looked ahead at the schedule and Joe Burrow was out before Frankenstein's monster got there. It was like, oh, that's going to be a win. We're looking forward to that. That changes the way things look now and then, as you get closer to that game, it's like, we're not getting enough national respect. The national media doesn't believe in the Bears like I do, and they're criticizing them on national broadcasts. It's like, no, like, don't, don't, don't get away from that initial thought of, give me the easiest possible route to a victory.

[Dan Bernstein]

And you know why? Because when it happens to Bears opponents, when you get to the end of a season and you look back on, like, the NFC north, you're saying, well, we. The packers won 10 games of. The Vikings won 11 games. Alliance, nobody remembers what their schedule looks like.

[Matt Abaticola]

No.

[Dan Bernstein]

No. You don't remember how many of the other teams wins or the teams that finished ahead of you were against some horseshit quarterback? Nobody remembers. And it makes me crazy to have to do this because, you know, I hate it and I don't want to be that guy, but I'm going to be that guy for a moment, if you'll indulge me. What is the. The essence of the soul of every Bears fan, whether it's our age, older, maybe even slightly younger, still to this day, in the DNA of Bears fans, it is the 1985 Super bowl champion Bears, right?

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt Abaticola]

40 years ago.

[Dan Bernstein]

Do you really want to go through and look at the quarterbacks that those teams beat and the teams that those teams beat? Do you really want to do that? Do you. Do you remember what was going on?

[Matt Abaticola]

No, I do. Just. I mean, the super bowl is all you have to look at.

[Dan Bernstein]

Thank you. So I was building. I was building to that. I was, first of all, 44 to.

[Matt Abaticola]

10 over bum quarterbacks.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Yeah. Well. Well, it isn't just that. In the NFC Championship. Do you remember Dieter Brock?

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes. How bad he was for the Bears? Didn't give up any points.

[Dan Bernstein]

The Rams pulled out this guy, Dieter Brock. Who the hell is he? Well, I know he's the guy lying down there holding his head and people are stepping on him, but his head.

[Matt Abaticola]

Is in his arms because it's off of his neck.

[Dan Bernstein]

But here's the thing. The whole point of the playoffs and nobody cares about this and nobody. Which is good, that nobody cares about it was the point of the super bowl was to avenge their in season Monday Night Football loss over Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins. Everything was pointing to that. That's what. Well, we'll get you back when it's time for the AFC to meet the NFC in the Super Bowl. Because the Bears were licking their wounds over being 15 and 1 instead of 160 in the greatest season of all time. And you know what? They never got that chance because that Patriots team ended up in the super bowl. And it didn't matter. It didn't matter that you get, you're chasing Tony Eason around and Richard Dent's pinning his arms behind his back and taking the ball away from him and the guys, everybody's running back to every pass for a touchdown and Jim Morrissey and Reggie Phillips and everybody else and it didn't matter. It didn't. You didn't face Dan Marino. You never avenged that loss and nobody gives a shit. Right?

[Matt Abaticola]

Not only that, but in the last 40 years, no one's ever brought up the 85 bears and said, yeah, but you know, the quarterbacks they played against, I mean, it doesn't really count. It's not as significant. No, people still live and we'll go to their grave the greatest team that's. That ever played the NFL, but yet we conveniently forget who the quarterbacks were because. Because they won it all. And that's all that matters.

[Dan Bernstein]

And even if you win the game, like you don't remember even in a good Bear season, whether it was Tyler Thigpen or Seneca Wallace or whoever it was that you saw, that was a good thing.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes, it was a good thing.

[Dan Bernstein]

Do you remember when they lost to Brett Hundley?

[Matt Abaticola]

Now let me ask you this. Let's. Let's just, let's play imaginary game and imaginary fairy tale land.

[Dan Bernstein]

I like imaginary fairy tale. And that's where I get to be an elf. They.

[Matt Abaticola]

They win the super bowl this year.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt Abaticola]

Is anyone ever going to go back and go, yeah, I remember though, in week eight when Lamar wasn't his best.

[Dan Bernstein]

No.

[Matt Abaticola]

Or like, oh my God, Lamar only played half the game.

[Dan Bernstein]

I mean, they won this. They won that year. Even if they don't win the Super Bowl, I would say even if they remember this as the arrival of Ben Johnson and the Bears, just like we were talking about with, with Lou Canellis yesterday and forward progress, like if they just Have a really good year. That gets you excited about the regime and excited about the ERA and excited about what's to come. Nobody's going to remember that Cooper Rush was out there wetting his pants. Right.

[Matt Abaticola]

Or that Joe Flacco played for Joe Burrow because he was out with turf toe.

[Dan Bernstein]

Who cares?

[Matt Abaticola]

No one. No one should care, especially as a fan. The only people that should care are the guys that make money off of who they play. We shouldn't care. We should enjoy victories and try to get over the losses as quick as possible, and that should be our job as Bears fans.

[Dan Bernstein]

Thank you. Thank you. I just. I thought it was a simple thing, but I hate. I don't want the Bears to say that they beat a team without Lamar Jackson. Why not? What's wrong with you? I hope that the other team's got nobody left that has to forfeit.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes. No, that would be great. Right?

[Dan Bernstein]

That's an automatic win, right?

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. I, as a Bears fan, I won a W. And. Yeah. Am I going to get worked up if it's ugly and they don't perform as well as I expect them to perform in their individual jobs as NFL players? Yeah. I'm still going to do that because I'm a meatball and I'm a moron and I have higher expectations for certain players on this team. But at the end of the day, I'm going to walk away and go, it was a W and that's all that matters. Because when I look at the standings, there's a W column and there's an L column, and there isn't a one by this many column or one ugly column or should have lost but didn't lose column. It's a W and an L, period. I don't care who the opponents are, but if I have a choice, I'm always going to choose the starter to be hurt and never play.

[Dan Bernstein]

The Bears always at every position. At every position. Yes.

[Matt Abaticola]

Especially quarterback.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right. It's like we.

[Matt Abaticola]

If it was like, hey, Lamar Jackson's out. Derek Henry's out.

[Dan Bernstein]

Great.

[Matt Abaticola]

Let's go. Let's eat. I'm happy.

[Dan Bernstein]

Thank you. Good. I'm glad. I'm glad we can enter that into the record. And Page now, we can establish that. Indeed. You know, I'm just sitting in my basement right now and you think, ooh, the basement. It's got to be really cold down there on a day like this. See, it's not because there's 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. There's good windows here. And the reason I Have good windows in my house is because of Russ Armstrong and Chicago window Guys and like, boy, I'd really like to have good windows in my house. Aha. You can. All you gotta do is call him. He's waiting. 847-302-9171. Go to ChicagoNowdownGuys.com and Russ will come to your house and he'll talk to you about windows and curling. He'll also talk to you about curling your hair. No, Russ loves. Russ is a curler.

[Matt Abaticola]

He loves. Seriously?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, he loves. I'm telling you, when Russ comes to your house, if, you know, you pour a pot of coffee and you want to talk about curling, he's your guy. I'm telling you, if we did a curling segment, Russ would. He'd show up in studio, like in full curling gear.

[Matt Abaticola]

Well, we could maybe we could plan that down the road and maybe a curling segment, a bocce ball segment, who knows?

[Dan Bernstein]

Perfect. As long as they want to sponsor it, it's fine. And Russ is. He's the owner of Chicago window guys. He doesn't use subcontracted labor, so he knows all the people who are in and around your house. They all, his whole crew works for him. So the same people that installed my windows and are going to install my new windows will install yours. He matches any price, so you don't have to worry when you hear these. Buy one, get one free or 50% off this. When you buy this, he'll explain why none of that makes any sense. He also offers a lifetime guarantee with parts and labor. So that means if your little kid has a curveball slip out of his fingers and it breaks the glass, he's going to replace it for free. He can't replace your kid's janky curveball, though. You don't have to wait weeks on end for a replacement to come in from across the country because Russ's factory, he custom makes the windows to for you right here in Chicago. So give them a call, especially right before the weather gets really, really cold. You're going to regret it if you don't call now. 847-302-9171 chicagowindow guys.com Nice.

[Matt Abaticola]

You know what time it is, Dan?

[Dan Bernstein]

It is. Yeah, I do. It's 9:38am in the great city of.

[Matt Abaticola]

Chicago on a Friday morning during.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, oh, oh, okay. Yes, I do know.

[Matt Abaticola]

Friday feedback.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's time for Friday feedback. Yes.

[Matt Abaticola]

And excited.

[Dan Bernstein]

Let me just say I think we set a new record this week for the number of submissions that were specifically tagged Friday Feedback. Like I go in and try to grab everything that will look through the comments. We'll look through the emails that come into and the email by the way, it's [e-mail] matt312sports.com [e-mail] so there's all kinds of stuff that comes in. Some of it is personal. And I wanted to mention there was a lot of feedback this week about the commentary that I made regarding Joel Quenville and his return to United center again with another team and the Blackhawks and the idea that, oh, they've moved on and they've moved on and how Brad Aldrich's victims don't have that luxury, don't have that privilege of moving on. And I thought it was kind of gross the way everything was handled. And I received several notes from people who said it was important for them to hear that that stand being taken. Also mentioning the work that Mark Lazarus did because he, he really wrote a an important and gutsy column for the Athletic about the very same thing. I'm not going to name names and I'm not going to read specific stories, but sadly, I heard from a number of people who also were victims of abuse and were felt empowered and felt that they had an ally in those who would say that they you don't move on. You just don't. And it can be insulting when the people who facilitate the perpetration of these crimes can declare that they have moved on. So I hear you received noted and I appreciate people having the courage to put their names on these things and their courage to reach out and tell some of these stories and share some of these really difficult things.

[Matt Abaticola]

Some of the people that replied in and emailed and had a different approach to it were going at us for the commentary that we shared that you shared Dan and saying things in a negative light about Kyle Beach. Those individuals that lack the simple ability to hear another individual, to hear their story and to feel anything, to feel any empathy or any sympathy for that individual for what they've gone through and then turn around and, and use the narrative of lies that have been out there. It's just, it's, it's really sad.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's really aggressive, aggressively.

[Matt Abaticola]

And to be aggressive about it, to be angry.

[Dan Bernstein]

How dare you get mad at Quenville.

[Matt Abaticola]

Like as a human, to lack the ability to, to show empathy to another person is, is really sad. Is really sad. And I would suggest if you feel that way or you lack that ability, take a look at yourself Seriously. Because if there's a handful of things that I can teach my boys in life, one of them is to be empathetic towards others. And if you lack that ability, it says a lot about your development as a person and it should be examined and looked at. Period.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well said. So can we get to the fun stuff?

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Do you want to start? You want me to start?

[Dan Bernstein]

Because I only want you. Go ahead.

[Matt Abaticola]

I excited. Go ahead. I'm excited. Okay. So this was an email that came in from Nick, and I read this on the train, laughed out loud, read it multiple times, laughed every time. So thank you, Nick, for this. He says, I'd like to give you guys a big fuck you in the nicest way possible. I already like it for making a fool out of me. In our annual county all staff meeting. I work in government Human services just north of Milwaukee. As many other human services providers, we have had some pretty significant budget challenges over the last several years. Our county director was giving an annual update specifically on some budget stuff. Apparently, we've made some great strides over the last two years. And the way he described the work we did was super duper. Not only did he say it once, he said it five times. The first time he said it, I immediately thought of Matty playing his Super Duper clip. The second time he said it, I snickered. The third time he said it, I covered my mouth with my coffee cup because I was smiling. The fourth time he said it, I had just taken a drink of coffee. I spit half of it out laughing and began choking on the second half, loudly dropping my metal coffee cup on the hard tile floor in the process. Immediately, 300 sets of eyes focus on me. Laugh, coughing, coffee coming out of my nose and coffee all down the front of my shirt and onto the front of my pants.

[Dan Bernstein]

I apologize for nothing.

[Matt Abaticola]

After I collected myself and the subsequent awkward silence and assurances that I was okay, the director made direct eye contact with me and said, one more time, you guys did super duper work. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought he was in on the bit. So, like I said, fuck you guys very much and keep up the great work. Good, better, best. From Nick. I absolutely.

[Dan Bernstein]

Thank you.

[Matt Abaticola]

I laughed out loud. Read it multiple times. Thanks for sharing that email, Nick.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, thank you, Nick. Appreciate it. This is from Kevin in Jefferson park who said, thanks for getting me in trouble at work.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, no. It's like our new slogan. Listen to DDU get fired.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right? 312Sports getting you in trouble at Work, he said, for walking around and making up lyrics to the My Buddy jingle.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, no.

[Dan Bernstein]

And meanwhile, a guy sent me a picture. He had, like, somewhere in his. His mother's house, he found his original My Buddy.

[Matt Abaticola]

It is somewhere in his mother's house.

[Dan Bernstein]

It is creepy as shit, man.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

It is so weird. It's. It's awful. So he said. He said he kept singing My Buddy. My Buddy won't say where he was on January 6th.

[Matt Abaticola]

So walking around the office, making up lyrics and then. And then singing them out loud, though. That's great.

[Dan Bernstein]

My Buddy. My buddy wants my dad's password for pornhub.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's too good. All right, now, this came in earlier. I wasn't able to get to it last week, but it's Evergreen because the World Series is starting tonight. And this is Kevin in Warrenville. Says he's right by the Topgolf I88 corridor. He says John Smoltz was on the Dan Patrick show and during a segment in the third hour about legendary rock bands the guys each thought was overrated or they didn't like. John Smoltz didn't participate because he says he doesn't like music and doesn't know any bands. And apparently Paul even closed the show with is his what we he learned today. So I'm telling you, something's wrong with John Smoltz.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, that. That right there, that's. That's the clincher. I mean, you need.

[Dan Bernstein]

Doesn't like of information. Doesn't like music.

[Matt Abaticola]

That's weird.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's weird. It's one thing to not be totally into music. It's another thing to say you don't like. Like, you're like things that sound good. Like any kind of music. Like a wind chime you don't even like.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, I don't get it. Because songbirds, like, music's always been. Even though I'm not musically inclined, I can't sing well. I've never played an instrument, but music has always been a big part of my life, and I think it is for most of us too. And there really isn't anything better than hearing a piece of music, whatever genre it is, whatever it might come from. And to impart emotion and draw emotion out of you or feeling. There's nothing better than that.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's the essence of humanity. You're not human.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, that's it. I officially hate John Smoltz.

[Dan Bernstein]

Thank you.

[Matt Abaticola]

I wasn't on board with you because I was like, all right, whatever. I don't give a shit. And I don't like. I definitely don't like the guy. I'm done.

[Dan Bernstein]

He wants to share that publicly, right? I don't like music.

[Matt Abaticola]

I don't like food or breathing.

[Dan Bernstein]

Come on, man. Here is a note from Father Nick. This is Father Nick in o', Fallon, Illinois.

[Matt Abaticola]

Different. My buddy story.

[Dan Bernstein]

Father Nick says, greetings from the Downstate Diaspora. Despite having a theology degree, I was surprised how much I learned on Friday's episode of DBU regarding your list of saints. Things never even touched upon in my hagiography course at the seminary, one that I expected to be on your list, however. And again, this is coming from a seminarian, a priest, Saint Eleutherius of Nicodemia, the decapitated icon ensconced on the stained glass window of Reverend Lovejoy's church. Among the miracles attributed to Saint Eleutherius was inspiring Lovejoy to get the vestibule recarpeted. And he says, I love the new format. That is from Father Nick. Thank you, Father Nick.

[Matt Abaticola]

What you say? He sent that email in from Downstate. The downstate what?

[Dan Bernstein]

The Downstate Diaspora.

[Matt Abaticola]

Diaspora, yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know what a diaspora Diaspora is of a group or an organization that is scattered outward, that almost finds safety in its. In how far it can be spread. And like throwing out, casting. Casting seeds outward. There can be a diaspora for any. For social groups, for religious groups, for anybody to be represented far and wide.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay, just a little programming note coming up relatively soon in the near future, there's going to be a new segment I'm going to post on social media. It's called the Dan Bernstein Unfiltered Word of the Day. So I'm going to pull a word that you use, and I know this came from an email, and read the definition of it in a short video just to help our listeners become smarter, because there's at least one word of the day that I learned something new like today, early on, the word opponent. What did you say?

[Dan Bernstein]

Eponymous. How is it eponymous? Okay, so, yeah, E, P O N Y M O U S. All right, I'm going to.

[Matt Abaticola]

I'm going to look that one up later, and that'll be the first one. For the DBU word of the day, I'll post a short video reading the definition of that word so we can all get smarter together. As I get smarter, you can all join my journey and expand your vocabulary. So we'll have the DBU word of the day as well as the DBU Hot Guy of the day.

[Dan Bernstein]

I saw that yesterday, Tom. And Edgebrook says Monday, you guys are talking about Caleb Williams finding the balance between running after leaving the pocket and throwing. Matt, you said that Caleb would prefer to run. Ben's trying to coach him to stand and throw. Looking at Caleb's background, we have college stats on quarterbacks who scramble to throw versus scrambled a run. In college, Caleb had one of the highest rates of scrambles that actually ended in a pass, and it's carried over to the NFL. One of the reasons he took so many sacks last year was he was unwilling to give up on pass plays instead of rushing. And this year he's only scrambled for yardage 12 times in six games. If anything, I think Ben is probably telling him to take the easy yards rather than hold out longer to pass.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay, email Tom. Thank you for that.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, I think that's. I think that's excellent.

[Matt Abaticola]

Good stuff. Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sean says, I have four kids under the age of nine. The 67 craze has taken over my house. I kind of knew what it was about, but my parents who were in town last week did not. So my mom asks my third grade daughter what it meant and my daughter told her she couldn't say it out loud, but she can write it down.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, no.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh no. So my daughter wrote it down and what she wrote down for the meaning of the 67 craze was hairy balls and penis. Do I correct her or do I just let her keep believing it means hairy balls and penis? Wow.

[Matt Abaticola]

No, don't correct her. Don't correct. I didn't see that coming at all. So she's a night. She's a third grade nine years old and thinks six, seven is hairy balls and penis. Yep. All right. So he said four kids. So she's. She's the oldest then four kids under.

[Dan Bernstein]

The age of nine. Good luck. If I were you, I'd leave the country.

[Matt Abaticola]

It wasn't like an older sibling that. No. Into thinking that. So it was someone at school.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right.

[Matt Abaticola]

Most likely a boy who said to her, 6, 7 means hairy balls and penis.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sean, I don't know if I can help you on this one.

[Matt Abaticola]

Don't correct her. Let it. No, I would actually then encourage it more.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. Andy and Schomburg has a saint that we. That we missed. Yeah. Good luck. Andy and Schomburg said. What about David St. Hubbins of Spinal Tap as portrayed by Michael McKean? Why didn't you include him? I thought about it, but I think Spinal Tap 2 has ruined it for me. I. It's just a movie. I was never going to see. I didn't like the trailers. I thought the trailers look pathetic and sad. And I would. Had there never been a Spinal Tap to and. Or their second album, Break like the Wind, I probably would have gone there. But it. Spinal Taps not the same because of the. Because of them going. Going back for a double dip on that thing.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right. I'm sure you'll have some reaction to this. I've never seen Spinal Tap.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay, well, you should. You should remedy that as soon as you can.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay, I might do that then.

[Dan Bernstein]

I really think you should.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay, I'll consider it. As long as you watch how to Lose a guy in 10 days.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, here's a recommendation that you gave me that actually is a subject of Friday Feedback, and it's Leo in Uptown. And he said, guys, I found it moving that the film Will and Harper was even brought up in your format. It's a true testament to your character. The film is at times heartbreaking, but it is an incredibly beautiful representation of friendship in a mad, mad world. Matt, great call. Thank you for bringing it up, Dan. Please let us know when you have the chance to watch. I'll be tuning in either way, but I wanted to express some gratitude. For some reason, I can't exactly pinpoint, the conversation had me pretty emotional, which is not a bad thing. It was just really sweet of you guys. Said, take good care, Leo in Uptown.

[Matt Abaticola]

Well, thank you, Leo. Yeah. And I. I cannot recommend that documentary enough. It is. Leo worded it perfectly. It's just. It's a great, beautiful story of friendship. And you have this knowledge and image and perception, Perception of who Will Ferrell is from his movies, and you've seen him on different interviews and whatnot. And watching this, it just. It shares a different side of Will Ferrell. And it's. It's a beautiful, lovely story. If you're a super Neanderthal hockey guy that we'd mentioned earlier in this. In this. In this show, you're not going to enjoy it because you lack human quality of empathy and understanding and love and kindness and goodness in your heart. But if you are a regular human being that has those qualities, you will thoroughly enjoy this. Doc, if you've not watched it yet.

[Dan Bernstein]

Here'S something from Nathan. Nathan says, guys, I really appreciate all the content you're putting out. I also appreciate you brought up the NBA return to NBC, which was a triumph of those nostalgic 90s NBA broadcasts we came to enjoy. Being Bulls fans, I don't know how many noticed the subtle Easter egg, but if you Watch the initial beginning of the Round Ball Rock intro with the lasers carving out the NBC logo. The initial aspect ratio of the video is 4 to 3 before it changes into our common 16.9widescreen format that we've grown accustomed to in the last 30 years. But a small tip of the hat to the trusty jalopy televisions that we used to watch when the Bulls were trashing Matt's favorite John Starks every late spring in the playoffs. Well done, NBC. Somebody put a lot of thought into that whole thing.

[Matt Abaticola]

Very nice. So maybe that just goes back to what we discussed earlier this week about the homage to the big voice announcer, and maybe that was just done for that opening night only. Maybe. Yeah, we'll see. Maybe.

[Dan Bernstein]

But that. That's. That's a really good catch. I. I can't say that I did notice it. I don't know, Matt, if you have any left, but I was going to close with this one before we get to our top 10 Ravens. No, go ahead.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, we're good.

[Dan Bernstein]

Jim and Orland Park. The My Buddy segment was epic. I'm still laughing about it. So when my son, who is now 22, was little, I used to sing him the My Buddy song, and I always called him my buddy. So on Tuesday, I played the segment for him. All of those alternate lyrics. As I'm on the ground laughing, my son says, thanks, dad. Thanks for ruining my childhood for me. He said, I'm still laughing. And yes, he's still mad at me.

[Matt Abaticola]

That's great. Yeah. I loved our take on the geographical differences for the theme song based on where the dao is Sold.

[Dan Bernstein]

I didn't know how many people remembered it, let alone the one. The one loon who still had his stashed away.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh. I think if you're of a certain age and you saw that commercial one time, that song is burrowed in your brain forever. And not Joe burrowed, either.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. You know what else is. Does anybody remember Alvin the Aardvark?

[Matt Abaticola]

I don't.

[Dan Bernstein]

For some reason, my sister and I, if you like. That's an automatic touchstone. Like a lot of the. For some reason, Alvin the Aardvark. That commercial is one that I remember way too well. It was like a. You move the aardvark across the floor and it would shoot its. Its tongue out and, like, pick up ping pong balls or shoot ping pong balls.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, so it was a little toy game kind of thing.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. And the jingle. It was the. The jingle for Alvin the Aardvark is something that has stayed in my head. So that. That's probably a much deeper cut than my buddy, but.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, it looks like a big hairless ball and penis.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. It also looks like a toy that you. Who would want that?

[Matt Abaticola]

I don't know. It's really. I. I've never seen this before. This must have been when I was younger. I mean, what. Yeah, you got. You got four years on me. So maybe that was. Maybe that was like the mid. Early mid-70s, which are.

[Dan Bernstein]

Was your entirely different era than the. Than the mid 70. No, I think it was. I think it was right around 1980. We had the late 70s. Yeah.

[Matt Abaticola]

Album, TVs. Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

Just a bad, bad toy.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. That looks terrible.

[Dan Bernstein]

Did you have toys in Berwyn or did you just get like a.

[Matt Abaticola]

No. Switchblades.

[Dan Bernstein]

I'm saying nails. Yeah. Cool.

[Matt Abaticola]

Cigarettes. Like empty cigarette carton boxes. We made like forts out of those.

[Dan Bernstein]

Cigarettes for the toys. Here you go, kid.

[Matt Abaticola]

Play with this. Yeah. Then the box. The carton. The empty carton was the. Yeah, we used one of those. Make forts. We had decks of cards as sticks.

[Dan Bernstein]

Members of sticks. Dirt. Thanks for the Friday feedback. I look forward to it. Great stuff. You know what separates the professionals from everyone else? They don't ignore injuries. A torn ligament doesn't heal itself. Well, neither does Ed. And 30 million men deal with it, which adds up to pretty much every major sports fan combined. And that's where Rougiet comes in. Because ED happens when there's not enough blood flow. And that can be combined with decreased arousal signals from your brain. So it's not about age or losing your competitive edge. It's just biology. And it's treatable with Rougy. Yet doctors review every case. So there's tailored treatment. It isn't a one size fits all. It's online. There's no awkward pharmacy trips. Their medications are FDA approved. Ingredients unlimited doctor follow ups are included to make sure that your dose can be adjusted until it's just right for you. With Rougiet. And players who ignore injuries have short careers. And those who get treatment do not. They remain effective. And this is a treatment. Rougiet specializes in ED treatment with doctors who know exactly what they're doing. Visit rougeet.com that's r u g I e t dot com and use the promo code DBU at checkout for a special offer. R u g I e t dot com get back in the game with Rug yet?

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, it's time now for the top 10 Ravens of all time. The committee has convened at the kitchen table here at the Abaticola home, and they have produced a list of 16 items. So there's six honorable mentions and 10 items for the top 10 list, which is a good number to have for a top 10 list having.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Riffin. Well done.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, well done. Nicely done. All right, we'll go through some of these quicker than others because some have some more to mention. But starting with the honorable mentions for the top 10 Ravens of all time. Honorable mention number one is Elsa Raven, American actress, most known for her role as the save the Clock Tower lady from the movie Back to the Future. Oh, Elsa Raven.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt Abaticola]

Another honorable mention. Jimmy the Raven. A Raven actor who is reported to have appeared in more than 1,000 films from the 1930s to the 1950s.

[Dan Bernstein]

Jimmy the Raven is my number one.

[Matt Abaticola]

No way. Get out of here.

[Dan Bernstein]

Jimmy the Raven. And I've. I was. My jaw dropped when I read about Jimmy the Raven.

[Matt Abaticola]

That's amazing. You're number overall number one.

[Dan Bernstein]

My overall. Jimmy the Raven is my overall number one. Wow. Because he's. Did you read about him?

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes, I'm. This is amazing.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Like, I. It kept going. I'm like, no, no way. He's. He's incredible. Jimmy the Raven. I made him number one.

[Matt Abaticola]

Wow. That's. That's amazing. Here.

[Dan Bernstein]

So do you want to. Do you want to. Wait, can I. Can I have that one?

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. I'm good. I'm done with it. Because he's honorable mention for the committee. He's your number one. You can elaborate on Jimmy the Raven. More than 1,000 films. Another honorable mention. The Ravens. An American R B vocal group formed in 1946 by Jimmy Ricks and Warren Suttles. They were one of the most successful and most influential vocal quartets of that period.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt Abaticola]

The Three Eyed Raven from Game of Thrones. Mystical figure who guides Bran Stark to become the next greenseer, Possessing the power of greensight, allowing him to see the past, present, and future.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, I thought it was like a golf thing. No. I thought his handicap was cut in half the moment he had greensight. Okay. No, because that'd be awesome.

[Matt Abaticola]

That's really good.

[Dan Bernstein]

I think you want to come in on the right. It's a false front. Like, he always knew exactly how much yardage it was between the trap and where he wanted his landing speed.

[Matt Abaticola]

He's a great caddy. Yeah. For sure.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right? Yeah. Okay.

[Matt Abaticola]

Really good. Okay. So that's the Three Eyed Raven from Game of Thrones. Cameron Crowe.

[Dan Bernstein]

Honorable mention Honorable mention for me, too.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Recurring character from the series BoJack Horseman. Despite his name being Crow, the character is definitely Raven. The show makes a running gag out of confusion with the character himself, pointing out, my name is Cameron Crowe, but I'm actually a Raven, so common misconception.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. Mine was. I have the actual Cameron Crow.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, do you really?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Matt Abaticola]

The director.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay. Anything to share on him?

[Dan Bernstein]

No, he's just. He's part of my honorable mentions.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, and then last honorable mention is Raven Simone. American actress, singer, director, received several accolades, including five double NAACP Image Awards, two Kids Choice Awards, three Young Artist Awards, five Emmy Award nominations, and in 2012, she was included as VH1's list of 100 Greatest Child Stars of all time. That's Raven Simone.

[Dan Bernstein]

I had her as number seven.

[Matt Abaticola]

There you go. Look at that.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, Raven.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, now we start the committee's top 10 list. Coming in at number 10 is the Disney raven, a character from the 1937 film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Later appeared as the antagonist in other Disney media. Queen's pet, Raven.

[Dan Bernstein]

That movie. So bad.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yep. But iconic figure of childhood movies.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep.

[Matt Abaticola]

Number nine is Grip.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's my number. Grip is my number eight.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay, so almost there. Right there. Number nine. Beloved pet of English writer, journalist, social critic Charles Dickens, the pet Raven inspired a character in the 19 or the 1841 novel Barnaby Rudge, which in turn inspired Edgar Allan Poe's poem the Raven. Grip died on March 12, 1841, Dan, after eating lead based paint chips.

[Dan Bernstein]

And then he became a score caller upon his death.

[Matt Abaticola]

Now, that shed some insight on the bird himself. That wasn't the end of Grip, as Charles Dickens had the bird taxidermied and displayed in a glass case. The stuffed bird is currently on display, Dan, at the Free Library of Philadelphia as part of the Edgar Allan Poe collection. Okay, quick side note on that. The Free Library of Philadelphia isn't just a free library, meaning it doesn't have a cover charge to get in when the bouncer greets you at the door and asks for ID, it is a public library system with over 50 branches that provides free access to books, digital resources programs for all ages to advance literacy and lifelong learning. While the name would suggest there is a library system in the greater Philadelphia area that charges people for access to their books, there isn't. Just to clear that up.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. I'm surprised it hasn't been shut down yet by the government. Oh, it's soon, I guarantee you.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, when I starts going after Books.

[Dan Bernstein]

Mm.

[Matt Abaticola]

Number eight. The Raven. I know you excluded this, but a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, ineligible. Begging the question.

[Matt Abaticola]

In January 1845, primarily about death of his beloved Lenore and Hope. Lenore is a fictional character in the poems Lenore and the Raven, but many critics believe the character was inspired by his wife Virginia, who died of tuberculosis in 1847. Okay, the committee also has a quick side note on this one, Dan. Yes, There isn't one historian who believes Virginia, Edgar Allan Poe's late wife, was the Inspiration for the 1998 song By Train, Meet Virginia. But a deep dive into the magical lyrics of Meet Virginia might suggest otherwise, as they are truly inspired lyrical poetry. Her daddy wrestles alligators. Mama works on carburetors. Her brother is a fine mediator for the President. Well, here she is again on the phone. She, like me, hates to be alone. We just like to sit at home and rip on the President. Meet Virginia. All right, those are some lyrics from this.

[Dan Bernstein]

I thought it was Virginia McCaskey. It's not Virginia McCaskey.

[Matt Abaticola]

Not about Virginia McCaskey. Although it should be.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. Because I think we'd have a better understanding if it were about Virginia McCaskey. Would explain some things.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, number seven on the committee's list of top ten Ravens, Scott Levy.

[Dan Bernstein]

I went to camp with a guy named Scott Levy.

[Matt Abaticola]

Scott Levy, an American born professional wrestler, better known by the ring name of Raven. He made appearances in the ecw, the wcw, the WWF and WWE and tna. Widely recognized as one of the best talkers in wrestling. Raven is known for his psychological heel tactics and grunge inspired gimmicks. The wrestler Raven, Scott Levy, Number seven.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't think it's the same guy I went to camp with. No, it's not.

[Matt Abaticola]

No. He was born in. In Philadelphia. His father was a journalist and editor, I think, for, for some really well known magazine there. Okay. All right, number six, Hugin and Moonin.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hougan and Moon in my. Number two.

[Matt Abaticola]

Wow, look at that.

[Dan Bernstein]

They're huge.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. From Norse mythology. From Norse mythology, they were the ravens that flew across the nine worlds to gather knowledge for the God Odin. Their symbolic meaning revolves around wisdom, memory, and the continuous pursuit of knowledge through observation and reflection, which is important for some humans. Their names translate to thought and memory. Odin fears losing either, but the loss of memory is considered a greater loss than that of thought. Okay, that's Hugin and Moonin.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, there's, there's. And actually I read about them for a while because there's so much. There's a lot of information regarding Huginn and Munin. No, I just. It was. It was kind of cool, actually. That's one of the reasons I enjoyed doing this segment was because there's so much stuff I didn't know. But. Yeah, I just thought they were there. No Jimmy the Raven there. Nobody's Jimmy the Raven, but that was my number two.

[Matt Abaticola]

Number five. The Mad Hatter's Raven refers to the famous riddle from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Why is a raven like a writing desk? Now, originally, Lewis Carroll did not intend for the riddle to have an answer, but he later provided a solution. A writing desk can produce a few notes and a raven is never put with the wrong end in front. However, the word never was meant to be spelled backwards, Nevar as a pun on the word raven. But a proofreader removed the inverted pun before publication. Did you know that?

[Dan Bernstein]

I did not. Well, there you go.

[Matt Abaticola]

That is number five. The Mad Hatter's raven. Number four. Ravenclaw is a house at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, known for valuing wit, wisdom, learning and creativity. Founded by Rowena Ravenclaw, the house's colors are blue and bronze. Its symbol is the eagle. The house, and its house ghost is the Gray lady. Now, students are characterized by their sharp minds, logic, and often eccentric and individualistic nature. If none of this makes sense to any of you, the house Ravenclaw is part of the fantasy novels written by British author J.K. rowling entitled Harry Potter. Now, the novels chronicle the life of a young wizard named Harry Potter. By the way, how is your Harry Potter?

[Dan Bernstein]

How's your Harry Potter? That's why Terry got kicked out of the bookstore, remember?

[Matt Abaticola]

Correct. How's your Harry potter? Yep. Number three. So that's number four. Ravenclaw. House of Ravenclaw. Number three. The Birds. 1963American natural horror thriller film produced and directed by Albert Hitchcock. So maybe you've never seen it. It's our Jessica Tandy, Rod Taylor, Suzanne Plechette. And introducing Trippy Hedren.

[Dan Bernstein]

Tippy. Tippy, not Trippy.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, yeah, sorry.

[Dan Bernstein]

Trippy.

[Matt Abaticola]

Different.

[Dan Bernstein]

Different.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, it was a spinal tap. The story tells of a series.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hey, man, look at these birds. No, it's Trippy Hedron.

[Matt Abaticola]

Whoa.

[Dan Bernstein]

They're leaving tracers.

[Matt Abaticola]

If you've never seen the Birds, because it is from 1963 and maybe you're younger, right? And you think, all right, it's about a sudden, unexplained, violent bird attacks in a small California town. It's Absolutely fucking terrifying.

[Dan Bernstein]

Or you could be like my kid who saw Mel Brooks's High Anxiety before he saw any of the Alfred Hitchcock films. So he had no idea really what was going on. And then he took a film class and he's like, oh, now I get all the jokes from the other movie. Funny.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yep. Yeah. Did you think the Birds was scary? Like, do you see? I'm sure you saw it as a kid, right?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, I was. It's pretty scary.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. You would think it wouldn't be, but it's pretty terrifying. That's number three, the birds, which, of course, included ravens in the Birds that Kill People. Number two, the Raven episode from the Simpsons, from the first Treehouse of Horror anthology, which aired in 1990. In the segment, Homer imagines himself as the narrator of Edgar Allan Poe's poem the Raven, with Bart playing the role of the raven who taunts him. The story features Homer grieving for Marge and being repeatedly tormented by Bart's Raven, who only says nevermore before eventually asking Homer to eat my shorts. So, number two, the Raven episode from the Simpsons, the Treehouse of Horror anthology, and the number one overall Raven, according to the committee, thorough Arthur Ravenscroft. American actor, bass singer. He was well known as one of the booming voices behind the Frosted Flakes character Tony the Tiger for more than five decades. Also the uncredited vocalist for the song your mean one, Mr. Grinch from the classic Christmas television special Dr. Seuss's how the Grinch Stole Christmas, topping the list for the top 10 Ravens of all time, thorough Arthur Ravenscroft.

[Dan Bernstein]

Nicely done. Now, I appreciate the committee's hard work. I know what they put into this, so no judgment here, but we've got a lot of deviation on my list. The ones we have in common. I had the actual Cameron Crow as a. An honorable mention. And you got my numbers 1 and 2, Jimmy the Raven and the combo of Hugin and Munin. Number seven, Raven Simone. And number eight, Grip, the pet of Charles Dickens who became a character in Barnaby Rudge. Now, my honorable mention list. I've got the Chicago neighborhoods of both Ravenswood and Ravenswood Manor.

[Matt Abaticola]

Nice.

[Dan Bernstein]

I've got Counting Crows, the Black Crows, Russell Crowe, Cheryl Crow, the movie the Crow. And, you know, I did not include magpies. Js, the other two members of the Corvid family in this list. Number 10 on my list, Pete Crow. Armstrong. Okay, I like him. I think he's fun and cool and exciting and definitely, at the moment, one of the most important and telegenic Chicago athletes and maybe will end up Being, I hope, one of the most exciting, intelligentic Chicago athletes of an era. They're certainly that we've had in a long, long time. So, Pete Crowe Armstrong is number 10. Number nine is the candy known as Crows. Crows have existed for since the 1890s. The trademark was registered in 1911. They were bought by Tootsie Roll Industries in 1972.

[Matt Abaticola]

Oh, I remember these.

[Dan Bernstein]

And these are basically if you know the movie Candy Dots.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, they're black dots.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep. They're licorice black dots. It's basically. It's. It's like if you made a whole box of the Black Chuckle and. And only had this. And I didn't know these existed until the entire Northstar camp went to a movie at the Hayward Theater years and years and years ago. I think we saw, I don't think the Goonies or something like that. And they had Crows. And I said, are those what I think they are? And I thought I had that the world had opened up to me. And yeah, they're kind of racist. But there's something awesome about where every. You don't have to search for the licorice bite. You don't have to search for the black jelly bean or the black gumdrop. You just reach into the box and you can watch a movie without looking down, trying to find. Find all the ones that you love. They're all in the box together. It's the equivalent of like the Oops, all berries version of Crunchberries. So Crow's candy number nine. All right, again, number eight was Grip. Number seven was Raven. Simone. Number six is Bran the Blessed. Bran the Blessed, which translates in Welsh to blessed. Raven or crowd, was a giant and king of Britain. In wealth mythology, he is the brother of Bronwen, Manodian, Nissen and Efniesen. The name Bron in Welsh translates to raven. And I can't even get into all of the mythos, but he is. His species is giant. So he was a giant and king. And I like the fact that Bronwyn gave birth to a son named Gwern G W E R N. So if we end up having another child, it's going to be named Gwern. Yeah. I just like.

[Matt Abaticola]

If you're listening to this, to this episode of DBU and your. Your wife is with child name option for you.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, yeah. And we'll give you a special prize pack if you can have a child and name it Gwern and show evidence of that.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. You need to prove it with birth certificate.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep.

[Matt Abaticola]

Wern is the child's first name, Gwern. There'll be a DBU prize pack. Yep.

[Dan Bernstein]

G, W, E, R, N. That's number six, Bran. The blessed number five. The Tower of London Ravens.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay, yeah, good, good, good pull.

[Dan Bernstein]

They're known as the guardians of the Tower, and we know how smart ravens are. And the legend is, it said the kingdom in the Tower of London will fall if the six resident ravens ever leave the fortress. It was Charles II thought to have been the first to insist that the ravens be protected after he received the warning that the crown and the Tower itself would fall if they left. And the order was given against the wishes of his astronomer, John Flamsteed, who complained the ravens impeded the business of his observatory in the White Tower. Now, I first learned about John Flamsteed recently on our trip to England when we went to Greenwich and Beth and I went to the Royal Observatory and learned all about John Flamsteed, but I did not know about the. Where the ravens came up. There are currently ravens in the Tower, and the names are Harris, Jubilee, Poppy, Edgar, Georgie, Chaos, Henry, and Poe. So they. They exist and they are there. The Tower of London Ravens are number five.

[Matt Abaticola]

Now, two prize packs. If you name your child Gwern Flamsteed.

[Dan Bernstein]

That would be awesome.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

I'm writing that down. Quern Flamsteed, we got to put him on the team somewhere. We got to add him in there with, like, with Mike off and a mere 12 yards. We got to have Gordon Flamsteed on there. All right, so that was number five. Number four is the symbolic and plot moving Raven from the good, bad, bad, good movie, Damien Omen 2. Okay, now, the Omen one we know is. Is an actual good movie. Great movie with Gregory Peck and then just how terrifying it was. Damien Omen 2 is a lesser kind of campier version where the violence becomes a little bit silly, and it's just sort of the same scene over and over again. But there is a raven who is involved in all this and always symbolizes either the raven itself is literally going to be involved in the horrible death or is at least symbolizing the death. And now we've got a little bit of connection between our two segments today. And it comes in an odd way that the star of Damien Omen 2 is the late, great William Holden, who. And this was shortly before he died when he got drunk and fell over and hit his head and died. Do you know the hometown of William Holden?

[Matt Abaticola]

I don't, but I should know more about him. I think he's my mom's favorite actor, so I should probably know this.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, he was a lot of people's favorite actor. Did you ever see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood? The Tarantino movie.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yes. Excellent movie.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, you know the Sean Penn's character.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

That gets on the motorcycle.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

I believe that's supposed to be William Holden. Oh, and he was born in o', Fallon, Illinois.

[Matt Abaticola]

Really?

[Dan Bernstein]

O', Fallon, Illinois. Which is where our friend Father Nick. So Father Nick, who weighed in on our Saints list in Friday Feedback. He has his ministry and does his fine work in o', Fallon, Illinois, the hometown of William Holden. The star of Damian Omen 2, which has the raven that checks in at number four.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, he was. This is definitely the guy that was my mom's favorite actor. He won the Academy Award for best actor in Stalag September.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, great movie.

[Matt Abaticola]

I know she loved.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, great movie. And was the basis for the long running TV show Hogan's Heroes.

[Matt Abaticola]

He was born William Franklin Beadle Jr.

[Dan Bernstein]

Cool.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. B, E, E, D, L E. Interesting.

[Dan Bernstein]

Number three is Raven. Raven is a retired, apparently very successful and popular pornographic actress.

[Matt Abaticola]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

And this is her bio from IMDb.

[Matt Abaticola]

Also the favorite film actress for my buddy.

[Dan Bernstein]

Big fan.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah, big fan of Raven.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep. This is her. This is her official bio on IMDb. She was born July 31, 1964. Gorgeously slender and sensuous brunette knockout, Raven was born Rachel Vickers. She first started steaming up the screens in explicit hardcore movies in 1983. She appeared in a slew of X rated features for such notable companies as vca, Las Vegas Video, avc, CDI Home Video and Caballero Home Video. Raven achieved her greatest enduring popularity with her spot on wicked portrayal of the bitchy, selfish and manipulative teenage seductress Nina Sutherland in the well regarded Taboo American Style series. She took a brief hiatus from porn in the late 1980s, but returned with a vengeance in the early 1990s sporting larger, surgically enhanced breasts. Alas, Raven retired from the adult film industry a few years after making her comeback and has kept a low profile ever since.

[Matt Abaticola]

She did make a comeback, but she.

[Dan Bernstein]

Checks in as number three. Raven.

[Matt Abaticola]

Wow.

[Dan Bernstein]

Number. Number. Number two, as you mentioned, the Norse team of Hugin and Moonin. And number one. My number one. And it surprised you, but Jimmy the Raven number one, Jimmy the Raven, reported to have appeared in more than 1,000 films from the 1930s to the 1950s, made his debut in youn Can't Take it with youh in 1938. Director Frank Capra would then cast Jimmy in every subsequent movie he made. He was Uncle Billy's pet in the Building and Loan in It's a Wonderful Life. He is the crow that lands on the scarecrow in the wizard of Oz. Wow. Jimmy belonged to Hollywood animal trainer Curly Twyford, or Twiford, who found the bird in a nest in the Mojave Desert in 1934. Now, if if anything can speak to the intelligence of the Corvids, this is it. Twifford trained Jimmy to do an assortment of tricks such as typing and opening letters. Jimmy could ride a tiny motorcycle. Jimmy could understand several hundred words, although only around 50, were what Twiffered called useful. It took Jimmy one week to learn a new useful word. Two weeks if it had two syllables. Jimmy could perform any task possible for an eight year old child. His human co stars were complementary. Jimmy Stewart on the set of It's a Wonderful Life called Jimmy the Raven the smartest actor on the set, requiring fewer retakes than the human counterparts. And he said, when they called Jimmy, we both answer. After he'd become more popular with the studio, MGM had Jimmy insured for $10,000. Lloyd's of London wrote a policy to cover Jimmy's $500 a week fee as well as Twiffer's $200 handler fee in the event Jimmy forgot any of the words he'd need on the set. And Twifford credited these fees with keeping him solvent during World War II. At one point, Jimmy had 21 different stand ins, 15 of which were female, who would fill in for him when the scene didn't require any tricks or movement. Jimmy's like, I'll be in my trailer.

[Matt Abaticola]

Interesting.

[Dan Bernstein]

Call me when you need me. I'll be in my trailer.

[Matt Abaticola]

I love that. His fee weekly fee was higher than the human trainer, the human handler.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right. Jimmy got a Red Cross gold medal in acknowledgment of 200 hours spent entertaining veterans after the war. His footprints enshrined in cement at a large Los Angeles pet store alongside those of Lassie and other Hollywood animal stars. His last credited film was Three Ring Circus in 1954, after which little is known about him. So there you have it. The number, number one raven of all time, Jimmy the Raven.

[Matt Abaticola]

Very, very cool. All right, good stuff. Top 10.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right.

[Matt Abaticola]

I love it.

[Dan Bernstein]

There you go.

[Matt Abaticola]

Love it. And so then what do we have? What do we have next week? Who do the Bears play? Is that the. It's not the Bengals game, is it? Or is it the Bengals game?

[Dan Bernstein]

I think it is, isn't it is.

[Matt Abaticola]

Next Friday, the 31st. Yeah. The first. The second.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Oh, that's going to be fun. Yeah, that's gonna be fun.

[Matt Abaticola]

Next week will be the top 10 Bengals of all time.

[Dan Bernstein]

And obviously, I am going to be expanding the concept of Bengals to include both Tigers and anybody of Bengali extraction.

[Matt Abaticola]

I'm going to expand the list to include anything I want.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, the committee is in charge of that. That's really all that matters.

[Matt Abaticola]

No, the committee will stick to Bengals and Bangles alone. Got it.

[Dan Bernstein]

If you are waiting for Sunday to start betting, you're missing half the fun and half the money. College football's already cooking upsets, blowouts, wild covers, and my bookie lets you hit it all. Game lines, player, props, more, everything you need before the pros even kick off. So when Sunday rolls around, you're already up. I haven't looked closely at the college schedule tomorrow, but we're getting. It's. Things are getting interesting because this is a you never know kind of season, which means there's all sorts of wagering opportunities. And if you're new to my bookie, you gotta use our code DBU for Dan Bernstein. Unfiltered. And then any bet you choose up to $500 is fully covered. Make your play. If it doesn't hit, you get it right back when you opt in using your bet back bonus token. The code dbu. It's my bookie, where bettors win together because bragging's good, but cashing in is better.

[Matt Abaticola]

All right, so that leads us into our DBU picks. I will start as I always do, and I have. I have two college games for us, Dan. Okay, two college games. I'm not running these as a parlay. These are separate plays for me this weekend. We're of course going with Vanderbilt hosting Missouri and laying the two and a half. So Vanderbilt minus two and a half at home against Missouri.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt Abaticola]

SEC game, and only because it came up yesterday in the show. Appalachian, Appalachian Mountains. I looked at the Appalachian State Mountaineers. They are playing tomorrow at Old Dominion. So the Monarchs are hosting the Mountaineers and the monarchs are laying 14 at home. And we're going to give those 14 points and the win for Old Dominion over Appalachian State.

[Dan Bernstein]

DBU picks are presented by my bookie and these are going to be mine. And it's counterintuitive thinking, but it was something we're going to talk today with Brian Wacker of the Baltimore sun about on forward progress when we get in to some more serious regarding the Bears and The Ravens about the drumbeat for wanting to trade their longtime successful tight end Mark Andrews because they have a. I believe it's Isaiah Lively is the guy who's hot on his heels and Isaiah likely. Excuse me, Isaiah likely is listed as a co starting tight end at this point and he's obviously going to be the next guy. And they're wondering with Mark Andrews and his production dropping a little bit, is that a guy they want to trade? And I don't know why I think this, but first of all is sometimes right when you're thinking of the guy's old and done and you're about to get rid of him, that's when you remember him having a really good game and the broadcast like, well, don't write this guy off yet. Everybody's been talking about the next guy. And don't forget they still have Mark Andrews who can still be a productive tight end. And the other aspect is because of the Bears banged up secondary and having to stop Derrick Henry, whether it's Kyler Gordon at the nickel position or whether or not they're going to be using, whether it's Noah Sewell or demarco Jackson, depending on who's available as placed in the box to stop Derrick Henry and how they assign safeties, the tight end might have some opportunities in this game, especially if Lamar Jackson is not at his quickest and is looking to go to a safety valve rather than try to run the ball because of his hamstring and or doesn't play. I have Mark Andrews combined in a parlay on both of his prop overs. I'm going to go over three and a half receptions and over 35 and a half yards for Mark Andrews. And also Mark Andrews, type 1 diabetic. And as we know, as the father of a type 1 diabetic, I always like to see people setting good examples in that regard. Unlike certain former Chicago athletes, at least two I can name but Mark Andrews over three and a half receptions, over 35 and a half yards receiving and those are my DBU picks.

[Matt Abaticola]

I like your thought process there. I like how that, that the. The genesis of that, that, that, that play. I think he may have had that game already though.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's possible. Yeah.

[Matt Abaticola]

Yeah. Against the lions he had 91 yards and his two touchdown game. He accounted for more than half his yards this season in that game. But I like it, I like it. And three and a half and then 35 and a half, right?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep.

[Matt Abaticola]

So I mean his receptions by game 116724 and then yards 5, 2, 9, 1, 30, 22, 24. So I like the thought process to it. So Mark Andrews, three and a half receptions, 35 and a half yards.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Yep. The over on both.

[Matt Abaticola]

I love it. Okay. Very good.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right. Very cool. So that's going to do it for this fun Friday edition of Dan Bernstein Unfiltered. And it has been presented by my bookie, Dan Bernstein unfiltered, unfiltered on 312Sports.