The resurgence of Vaudeville through pop-culture is palpable along with the musical genre of Ragtime, the improbable fusion of the Jazz era and the World Wrestling Federation coalescing as the ghosts of Scott Joplin and Hulk Hogan haunt the various galaxies of social media platforms inspiring the generations through entertainment.
As society is reacquainted with the past, the business model for athletic spectacles and fringe professional sports has reverted to traveling shows spanning the nation, and once upon a time town to town and in the shock culture of modernity, airport to airport, supported by legions of self-driving semi-trucks. From the viral exploits and acrobatics in the outfield of the Savannah Bananas, to women’s professional basketball, various elements of the sporting world have pivoted towards the entertainment factor as comedy is premium.
The ongoing experiment of the women’s professional basketball in the US (WNBA) and the narrative of DEI written into the script of forced competitiveness featuring caustic elements adopted from “The View” and CNN sensationalism, is currently a hot commodity featuring on the court antics and rivalries between compelling characters, at least within the context of a temporary intrigue. Affiliated with the lucrative NBA, the WNBA operates in the perpetual red financially and is heavily subsidized by its big brother. While desperation has set in as financial minority owners lose millions of dollars annually, the corporate brass of the franchises scramble for buoyancy which has impacted the quality of play on the hardwood.
For the WNBA players that are actually skilled enough to spark increase ticket sales among basketball purists, the overall fandom surrounding the game is a detriment as the viewers’ insatiable demand for drama leads to lesser players inventing new ways to gain celebrity status through a steady, yet inane stream of gimmicky social media posts. Every superficially induced plot can’t be the global newsworthy ill-fated historically putrid trade that reacquired Britney Griner in exchange for a murderous tyrant and assassin to be named later- the possibility of a secondary warlord being sent back to the “…stans”, a distinct possibly at this juncture. “No press is bad press”
While the WNBA putters along with “face of the league” Caitlyn Clark overkill and weaponized envy from rivals, baseball is being reimagined by the Savannah Banana franchise, a variety of the game that highlights acrobatics, athleticism, fun, as the pageantry of the game is celebrated. The scintillating performances capture the entire spectrum of the senses, and the team sells out stadiums across the nation to the threshold of requiring waiting lists to satisfy the demands of an enthusiastic fanbase. Outfielders make catches doing flips, infielders, pitchers and umpires dance, hitters can try to steal first base, and kids eat and drink for free, as the family experience has returned to the ballpark where a family of four can enjoy an evening of entertainment for under $200. However, similar to the WNBA, the venture is a novelty where the players are suitably competent, but are light years away from performing at the highest level, a trend that afflicts the majority of secondary sports.
Unfortunately, with the smartphone craze prevalent and forever among the younger generations, interest in the best in the has waned, as the big four sporting ventures, NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL are becoming obscure thanks to instant gratification and the 15-second span. While the leagues have attempted to assimilate to the jump cut culture of audiences, it may be too little, too late. Fortunately, organization such as the WNBA and the Savannah Bananas are racing to meet the disintegrating ratings of traditional professional sports (even the NFL) halfway as the framework of play to be paid sports become morphed beyond recognition. At least the brutal distinction of winners and losers will be preserved, unlike the current trajectory of amateur sports, where political correctness, extremist politics and gender bending meticulously invades campuses transports competition to another dimension of listless reeducation and spirit circles conjuring vampires and apparitions of Fidel Castro’s legacy.
While the State Department integrates templates of foreign diplomacy amid the operating framework of the WNBA, the anti-patriot of Griner, and a bustling cast of vacuous hoopsters crave fame and attention for simply existing off the court exemplifies a fleeting mentality consisting of enablement and lacking accountability.
Among this environment and significant compartment of subculture overrun by apathy, entertainment overtakes the essence of professional sports, while professional sports prospects for waterfront property along the rugged coast of Sierra Leone, the progression of the political-sporting complex supplies the unnecessary vernacular to the notion that fiscal prosperity will always remain at the apex of the inauspicious, regardless of athletic architecture.
Two decades from now it will be all hugs and panic rooms as it is all about no blood and love.
