Bill Simmons landed in the perfect place after his unhappy exit from ESPN, where he felt inhibited by management. Because for a guy with Simmons’s fire-away style and wide range of interests — he’ll put Kanye and Larry Bird in the same sentence (even if he really shouldn’t) — HBO is the sweet spot of entertainment.
So mid-May HBO dropped promo video for Simmons’ new show Any Given Wednesday. In the spot Simmons expounds on the world as it should be, painting a picture of a Simmonsonian Utopia with a series of This is What I Believe statements. First thing you realize is that Simmons believes in writers and focus groups. Below is some of what Simmons believes. But the slam dunk that explains where he’s coming from — that makes clear he’s on the fans’ side — is this: “I believe,” Simmons intones, “that billionaires should pay for their own f%$king football stadiums.”
- I believe that Kanye’s a genius. It’s just that he knows it, and that’s the problem.
- I believe we should ban the DH, long putters, extra points, the NIT, and pick-off throws.
- I believe in the four-point line.
- I believe soup is the perfect food.
- I believe in a Belichick-Popovich presidential ticket.
- I believe every DiCaprio movie would be just a little better as a Matt Damon movie.
You get the idea. Branding is tight in other ways too. You already know the show is on Wednesdays. Pretty good stuff. Kanye must have helped with that one. Any Given Wednesday starts June 22.
