I'm the Great America. Of course, Dick Williams is an icon in Cincinnati,
and he ran the Cincinnati Reds for many years. And when I talked
to Tony Bender and and others, he tells me that Dick Williams is a
foundation of what's happening now with the Cincinnati Reds because of the changing in the
franchise to the younger players. And also it was reported a few weeks back
that Dick Williams is the CEO and chairman of the board now is Skyline Chili.
Talk about two iconic brands, the Reds, Skyline Chili and Dick Williams.
Welcome again to the Bill Cunningham Show. And first of all, I
give you full credit for what's happening with the Reds right now. Does someone
else receive a little bit of credit or not? You're starting me out with
a softball, man. We got such a good team over there running the
Reds. Nick Carl, Sam Gross and Jeff Croppy, Rob Colf and Brad
Metter. Those guys. I love them. They're doing a great job.
They're keeping it going. I was I was glad to be a part of
bringing in a lot of these young guys. But that was my brain trust
and I'm having so much fun watching them, watching them play now, So
thanks for asking. I've come a long way since you put your legal talents
to work freeing a young man from the system of justice when I was a
teenager and I ran on that field after the Reds beat the Pirates to go
to the World Series in nineteen ninety, think about my career trajectory. If
you had not intervened on my behalf and put your legal talents to work to
make sure I didn't get you could still be locked up, correct, You
could have still be locked up fifty years later. You know. Back then
and Cincinnatis, they didn't take stuff like that lightly. No, I mean,
Marge could have thrown the book at me. It's amazing that the kid
running on the field, may I say, acting like a goofball later on
would be the general manager of the Reds. What were the odds of that
kid becoming the gem of the Reds. Well, I'm thinking zero, no,
not listen, zero even even less than you know. I never got
arrested the skyline, but I sure spend as much time in skylines as I
did at Riverfront Stadium and to be able to be a part of both organizations
later in life. That's got to defy from serious odds. Well, what
are the odds of this weekend? They're off today, but Friday study and
Sunday. This is a preview of the world series, Houston, Cuccinnati.
Is that possible? Absolutely? A puff. I'm gonna I'm gonna call Dusty
and getting his head a little bit, you know, please gotta we gotta
rattle his cage. Send a statement this weekend, please, because at this
point I'd like to think you still own a piece of the Reds. I
think wouldn't it be wouldn't it be good? Maybe the end pick up?
Maybe imagine maybe maybe a Scherzer or pick up some stud starting pitcher if they're
if they're close to the top, We're just tell me we're not going to
be selling. We're gonna be buying in about five weeks. We are are
still as a family, very invested in the Reds and as a good partner.
I'm not going to comment on strategic moves. I'm gonna believe I'm gonna
put my faith in Nick Sam and the boys to do the right thing.
Um, But how exciting that we're that we're talking about it, that we're
right here. We gotta get we gotta get past Dusty this weekend. By
the way, did you get you got your Skyline order? Yes, it's
all going. By the way, I don't have any left. Joe Frederick
brought it in about an hour or two ago, and guess what, it's
gone. So I don't know what to spent twenty four so I'm not sure
how many he brought in, but it's started. Well he was give one
away and eight the other one, so there was there was nothing left.
But uh, let's say you're a better you're a better interviewer. On a
full stomach, you can get a little gratchy when you're you're not yet so
I have been fed at this point. But you're trying to be nice to
me. Let's put the reds of the side. What is it? You're
still a relatively young man. Sky Line is iconic, and even when I'm
in Naples, Florida, there's one little skyline Onty on forty one Tammammi trail
that I ever now that I like devil little Skyline. Well, why did
you choose Skyline to run instead of something in investment, banking or insurance,
something like why skyline showing. Well, you know, our family has been
here for generations and we love the same thing as a lot of the native
Cincinnatian's love. And Reds and Skyline are right there at the top. And
you know, this is just an exciting business. We think there's a lot
of room for growth. It's a very traditional business. It's you know,
they found the recipe that works both for their food and in the stores for
the experience, and we want to make sure to make it available to as
many people as we can, and that's the goal we you know, we're
opening a bunch of stores this summer, more than we have and in a
while down in Kentucky we opened one up in Dayton. We're going to be
open on a disney World at Orlando, just outside of Disney World. We're
coming to the airport later this fall. So you know, the demand is
there for new restaurants and we're trying to make it happen. And you know,
my eyes suggest a burrito. I'm thinking about beans, I'm thinking about
chili, I'm thinking about onions, I'm thinking about other accruitments. What about
a burrito like a breakfast burrito. If we thought about a breakfast burrito kind
of like a Taco bell kind of a deal. Well, it is amazing
that you asked that without being cheat up, because I sampled a Skyline breakfast
burrito less than twenty four hours ago. And the reason I did that is
because we're going to CVG, and if you're at CVG, you got to
be open for breakfast. And if you're open for breakfast, you know there's
people that are craving their Skyline. So we're gonna have We're gonna have items,
a bunch of items with chili it'll be fun to sample, and some
items without chili if you're not in the mood for Skyline at that early hour.
But we think I can just tell you stuff I tried yesterday, and
I'll the other ones will be a surprise. But there's several menu items for
breakfast with chili, and I think they're going to be a hit. What
do you see Dick Williams doing? You've charged on the field March shot.
I almost had your arrest and pulled off by the ankles. I was involved
in freeing Dick Williams. And then you run the reds. You set the
Foundation, Della Cruise, Abbit, whatever it might be. These new kids
look so exciting. And now Skyline Chili. In ten or twenty years,
what will Dick Williams be doing. I'm working on a merger. We're going
to merge the Reds and Skyline. They will throw the Bengals in there too.
I'm sure Mike Brown will be happy. Services Sports team will provide it
a one stop shop for everything Cincinnati related. That's beautiful. What's your order?
Which I always get the same thing. I always always get relatively dry
three way, but I like to have a sprinkling of onions, maybe every
inch or two on top. It's kind of a three way plus knock out
a four way, not kind of three way, not quite a five way.
If I could get maybe ten to twenty beans, I always tell him,
give me a three way, relatively dry, make it forty percent wet,
make it sixty percent dry. Give me a couple of onions an inch
or two apart on the bed before you put the cheese on, along with
maybe seven or eight beans, and I mean seven or eight beans or wave
of for about twelve seconds. Then give it to me. You know what
I'm saying, that's my order. And you know what, in most restaurants,
I would probably get you tossed out the door. But it's Skyline.
They bring it. They bring it just as you ask. Right, I'd
call it a Dick Williams. If I get too excited, they just they
throw me on the floor and throw me out the door. Yeah, basically
George and the guys. You know, George passed away a few years ago
there in Kenwood, but his family's kind of involved with Charlie and John and
I. When I walk in, they start making the order and it's at
my table within five minutes, and they know what I want. That's awesome.
Well, I drop your name when I need to get in places,
but I would rather you didn't drop my name. Now you drop my name
when you're trying to get out of jail. That's what you did with Dick.
We got to run. Thank you. And I'll tell you what when
I saw this story as of this is unbelievable that Dick Williams is now running
Skyline. Because you're like a corporate raider. What you do is take companies
at the bottom and take it at the top. But with Skyline, you're
taking company at the top to take it to here before. But lastly,
how much difficulty is there was Skyline chili going to market like Naples, Florida
or Fort Myers because no one knows about it. The Cincinnatians do. But
then they have their own iconic brands or whatever. Most regions have their own
little niche like we have Graids and Skyline and a little bit of freshes.
But nonetheless, how hard is it to break into a Tennessee when they say
this isn't chili. Well, we're gonna find out because we're going to travel
into some new places. But you know, those pockets in Florida your referenced
have a lot to do with the Midwesterners that travel down there. That gives
us a good base of customers. Orlando will be a bit of a test
case, right because we don't have a lot of Cincinnati las down there,
but you've got a ton of people coming through there, and if they if
they gravitate towards it that I think that gives us optimism. We'll keep unrolling.
Here we are the middle of June. I look forward to toward the
third to fourth week in July. The Reds are in first place by three
games. They're looking good. The better the better players, some of the
ones that TJ is gonna come back. I think Voda is going to come
back. I don't know where you play him. I worry, Yeah,
how about him? He's gonna come back. And you have to make a
decision. And you gotta call Nick Crawl and say, give me a stud
starting pitcher and maybe a Rauldus Chapman, who said the other night he wants
to finish his career in Cincinnati. Will you acquire a stud starting pitcher and
a Raldis Chapman at the end of July. Don't give me this Nick,
call Crawl Crap. I want to know if you're gonna make the call and
they listen to you at the Reds, will you bring in a stud starter
and a raldus Well in your end? On the offense, I mean you're
forgetting offense. Don't you think we should get a starter of closer and some
basic offense? Well, who do you have an mind? Where do you
play? Where do you play on this dam second base? In the I
mean, right now, Ella Dela Cruise isn't hitting all of a sudden,
he's got bad shot selection. I don't know about him. Did you send
La della cruise back down? Do you send him back down to Louisville?
What do you do? Ellie's gonna be great, don't get you. Don't
get misled by these small sample sizes. That's what people do. It'll we
let these guys play. You sent over a smaller Tony bender ate all the
chili. There's none left, but see there's always more. I bet there
is. Thanks for having me, all man, we'll catch up soon.
My last question, what is your what is your general food cost? Is
it in the twenty to twenty five or is it twenty five to thirty?
What? How did you? How did you get that range? Have you
been studying the restaurant business a little? I think I know something about it?
But do you try to get twenty to twenty two? Isn't that the
sweet point on food costs? Yes, that's a good range, that's what
I thought. All right, Dick Williams, thank you very much. We'll
do it again. You're showing off. Now. Let me ask you this,
if the if the Reds win the World Series, will you charge out
to second base and make a fool of yourself? I've always wanted to repeat
that stunt, and yeah, are we going to do it? I'm only
going to do it while you still for practicing law. You're the only one
that could get me out of there. Good Spring you all right? Well,
Dick, good luck, te I love the arc of your career and
keep it going. Everybody great talking, God bless you. Let's continue with
more. Can you see Dick Williams charging second base and being thrown to the
turf by Cincinnati's finest Next call was to me, Bill Cunningham, News Radio
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