While fans will not be allowed at Oakland Athletics games this season due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, RingCentral Coliseum will still feature one of the team’s most famous former employees: award-winning actor Tom Hanks.
Hanks, who was born in Concord and grew up in Pleasant Hill and Oakland, got his first job selling concessions to fans at the coliseum in his late teens.
The A’s said Friday that they plan to play audio recordings during games of Hanks hawking peanuts, hot dogs, programs and other ballpark fare along with traditional stadium sounds of cheering fans and drums.
A brilliant marketing strategy, sure to divert fans from kneeling players, deadly viruses, and Marxist propaganda.
Classic
I’ve always liked Tom Hanks – he seems like a decent guy – and this sounds like a fun idea. However, I will not be watching. I’m a Giants fan – grew up listening to them on the radio as my parents were big fans also. Always went to 3 or more games each season and have several Giants hats & shirts. I tuned in last night, very excited to watch the classic rivalry between the Giants and the Dodgers. I lasted about 5 minutes. As soon as they made it political I turned it off. People are tense, stressed, and worried. We need a break. Watching a baseball game – like old times – sounded perfect. But, no. It had to get political and ruin the experience. I’m done – I will not watch again. We’ve learned to live without quite a few of our favorite things during this time. Add professional sports to the list.
@ Brandi – Totally agree!
Completely agree. We’re getting political agendas shoved down our throats 24/7 and you’d hope sports would provide a respite.
I’m with you guys, politics need to stay out of sports. No more NFL, NBA, MLB and NASCAR for me.
Sports will stop being political when people stop being racist. So never.
My mom was such a Giants and A’s fan that after my father retired, they trekked to Scottsdale for a couple of weeks of Spring training baseball every year before the season started. All she talked about was baseball and she collected players signatures and memorabilia. She may have been sympathetic to the injustices being protested, God rest her soul. However, I simply cannot watch what I consider disrespect portrayed by those who likely didn’t serve their country in the cruel and inhospitable conditions of war and know nothing about the painful separations and sacrifices veterans and their families make in service to their country. The pride of that service is memorialized in the words of the National Anthem. And, since I’m not watching, I don’t know what advertisers to boycott, but I’m guessing Budweiser is one of them. That won’t be difficult to avoid, but can someone tell me who else advertises with MLB?
That’s Bullstool! RDUB
Just try working for a big company with lots of contracts and then you start spouting off on a bunch of Marxist political views.
You’d be out the door.
There is no reason MLB can’t lay down the law & tell their players to save political activism for off duty hours while NOT in uniform… they are just too CS to do it!
Gittyup….. RE; SF Giants……….Major corporate sponsors are Yahoo, Coca Cola, Bank of America, Visa, Chevron, Charles Schwab, McDonald’s.
Gametime advertizers include Taco Bell, Clark Pest Control,B of A,Hancook Tires, Toyota, Dodge, Little Caesars, Jim Beam, Scotts Miracle Grow & T-Mobile, just to name a few, easy to email companies who you can inform that you will not be buying their products as long as they continue to buy ad time with teams that support Marxist political movements.
@RDUB
Sports will stop being political when they stop making money. Watch how quickly the teams put a stop to the political nonsense when their revenue drops. Lefty’s tend to not like sports in the first place, (all that nasty competition and skill needed to succeed) so that leaves centrists and conservatives who will switch it off rather than watch a bunch of millionaires complain about inequality. I would love to see just one of these crybaby sports stars say “I’ll take $100,000 a year and donate the rest of my salary to xyz charity”, but instead they buy a Bentley, Ferrari, Jag and a big house in a gated community and have the nerve to lecture regular people about how bad we have it living is such a terrible country.
The best part is the captions. They are so far off they may as well have been done by somebody just learning to speak English.
“Cutdown! I don’t care! Colossal. Lots of talk on programs kind”
They say you can’t make this stuff up, but somebody did.
If they keep kneeling in the future the only fans will be cardboard cut outs.
How does Hanks find the time in between talking about Walnut sauce, cheese pizza and Adrenochrome?
Nothing can stop what’s coming
Sports used to be a nice escape from problems where people with opposing views good get along with their love of the game & team. No more. Now, these teams are shoving the political agenda at us.
@Lazy One : Well said…
Question for baseball fans:
Before today, how many of you had actually heard of this guy or seen him play?
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/giants-sam-coonrod-kneel-black-lives-matter-faith-christian
Just a little skeptical. I mean, come on, Coonrod is a damn ridiculous name, given the context.
That no one is pointing out the absurdity of his name is hilarious, maybe less so if he is a long established player. But it looks like his Wikepedia page was just created a day ago and there is a dearth of info about him.
And how well known was Bruce Maxwell before he took a knee, brandished a handgun at a female food delivery driver, and avoided a felony by pleading guilty to disorderly conduct?
Yoyo,
What’s absurd about the name Sam?
Nope. Done with sports and any company that has an advertising relationship with them. I use to watch sports to get away from politics and propaganda. Don’t need it that bad.
I have been looking forward to some baseball all year. I didn’t really think they were gonna keep the stadium empty. 50% for social distancing sure, but empty with cardboard people? Kneeling players? Yeah not really interested anymore. Sports was an escape from the day to day challenges. Now they just serve as a reminder to the challenges we see everywhere. I’m over it. My hobbies don’t include giving money or ratings to overpaid losers. Shame on all these bums.
If you have been to an A’s game lately, unless they are playing the Giants, Yankees, Boston, or it is a fireworks night, most games are at 50% capacity or less anyway. They could easily open the Colosseum and just let people sit where they want. Just have a one price ticket, leave spaces between groups of people, first come first served seating.
That is priceless. He was a fabulous hawker! The best ever. My brother did the same at about that time for the A’s! It was fun just watching him too. I love baseball. Those were the days. Who would have thought that we would not be able to go to a game now because we could infect one another with a deadly virus. Insane. Now we can only imagine attending a baseball game eating a hotdog along with a soda.
There are some increasingly credible theories out there about Tom Hanks being a weirdo connected to Epstein and doing very Epstein like things. Probably best to disassociate from the man as a town for awhile if I’m honest.
It has previously been reported on claycord that Tom Hanks called Concord the “armpit of the Bay Area”. I’m really trying but it’s nearly impossible to say anything bad about Tom Hanks.
I guess it could have been worse, he didn’t call it “the taint of the Bay Area”.
Is this a fake photo of Hanks? The hot dog button on his cart states $6.00. That’s a very pricey hot dog for the early to mid 1970’s.
And A’s Access was certainly not around back then either.
Just sayin’.
PH Pete,
Good eye, good eye Pete! Wait for one you can drive!
Those are some loud and clear recordings…
Good point Pete.
The picture is probably as real as Hanks case of corona and his matching typewriter.
I have stopped watching sports. I would not be concerned with someone getting millions of dollars if they cured COVID or cancer but to play sports, nope!
I have a lot of better things to do!
Reminds me of one of my favorite stories about Tom Hanks vagabonding with some family and friends in an RV to see multiple baseball games for Tom’s 50th birthday:
https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2006/07/21/Hanks-celebrates-50th-birthday-with-a-baseball-road-trip/stories/200607210141
If you have a knee down can you get a half price discount ?
Tom Hanks has more to be worried about than huckin peanuts at a game like buying children on Epstein’s sex island. His name is on the list. He can’t get outta this one
your valid source please
Wilson caught Hanks red handed!
S
My valid source is Epstein’s list. The 14 yo girl Hanks bought, named him as her buyer. Look it up yourself it’s public knowledge. Hanks along with other ”famous” people. Hollyweird is going down. Can’t be happier. We just need to find those kids. Enough on here this is about “peanuts”.
your response is not a valid source… But whatever….
Tom is suddenly human after being first in Hollywood to divulge his corona virus. I liked him in Bosom Buddies and then adored him in Turner and Hooch. He’s the best and fame never bloated his head.
1. Professional sports cannot seem to be able to focus on giving the fans a good product (a great game), but instead are distracted by politics. I don’t watch to receive political statements – I can watch Fake News if I want that (I don’t). So I tune out….no professional sports for me.
2. I never understood American’s love of celebrity. Yeah, Hanks seems like a decent guy, but he’s just another guy like anyone else. Why would I care or why would a sports team seem to think I’d be more likely to attend a game or buy some of their food/clothes/etc. just because someone on film used to sell them?
Can’t wait to see the day when the stadium fills with real people, and all the players show their disrespect. The boo’s will probably be deafening.