Every team has that one special fan that stands in for the larger fan-base, people like the Cowbell Man for the Mets or the Jets’ Fireman Ed; Tim McKernan, the self-named “Barrel Man” of the Denver Broncos was just that kind of fan.
The famous rooter made a $10 bet with his brother in 1977 that he could wear a barrel to the game and get on television. He did, and that launched a 22-year-run where McKernan, a former United Airlines mechanic, showed up at every Broncos home game in his ubiquitous orange barrel, orange cowboy hat and boots and little else. From 1967 to 2008, McKernan missed a total of 4 games, in 2007 the Broncos held a special half-time ceremony where they honored him, presented him a game ball and several other team presents.
Early Saturday morning Tim McKernan passed away of lung failure; he was 69.
In a touching moment, 2,000 fans of the Bishop Auckland soccer team stood for a moment of silence in memory of Tommy Farrer, who played for the club from 1945-1953. There was just one small issue with the moment, Farrer isn’t dead!
Today we lost another biggie, Don LaFontaine a master of voiceovers, whose signature, “In a world…” movie trailers was known the world over 
Growing up one of my favorite past times was to lay back on my bed and listen to George Carlin cds. I listened to them all so much that I had the routines memorized. It didn’t matter that I knew what was coming next, he never ceased to make me laugh. Combined with Kurt Vonnegut, Carlin helped influence me to no end in the way I see the world and the way I write. Carlin inspired me to want to be funny and entertain people and while I don’t normally care about celebrity deaths, this one joneses me out to no end.
The Slanch Report 
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