You're with me, leather

. [cite news
url=http://deadspin.com/sports/chris-berman/he-could-go-all-the-way-166410.php
title=He ... Could ... Go ... All ... The ... Way!
publisher=Deadspin
date=2006-04-11
accessdate=2006-07-24]

"You're with me, ____," with other words or phrases inserted in place of "leather," is often repeated in response to news stories involving Berman. The phrase is also often used without context as a non sequitur, snowclone or an inside joke.

Origin

An anonymous contributor to Deadspin, whom the site's editor Will Leitch calls "a respected journalist," claims that in the mid-1990s, he was flirting in a bar with an attractive woman wearing leather pants and holding a leather jacket. However, his efforts proved unsuccessful when Berman, who was in Scottsdale, Arizona to cover baseball spring training, walked by and told the woman "You're with me, leather." The woman immediately got up and left the bar with Berman. [cite news
title=The dubious dozen
url=http://www.dailynews.com/sportsmedia/ci_4713853
author= Tom Hoffarth
publisher=Los Angeles Daily News
date=2006-11-27
accessdate=2007-01-13]

During the 2006 NFL Draft, a 15-year-old fan asked Berman whether he had ever visited Deadspin. Berman reportedly told the fan, "Why would I go and do that? That is such a stupid question. What are you, stupid? That is so stupid." [ [http://www.deadspin.com/sports/espn/for-the-record-we-dont-advise-this-170954.php Espn: For The Record, We Don't Advise This ] ]

In 2007, Berman said of the phrase and its popularity, "A lot of people are very mean-spirited, apparently... You’re talking about something that happened nine years ago, some people want to dump on a guy that’s been pretty nice to people for 27 years.” [ [http://www.mercextra.com/blogs/buzz/2007/02/09/from-pebble-beach-chris-berman-doesnt-appreciate-his-place-in-cultural-history/ From Pebble Beach: Chris Berman doesn’t appreciate his place in cultural history] , Morning Buzz - "San Jose Mercury News" February 9, 2007]

Reference in mass media

References by current and former ESPN personalities

* Tony Kornheiser ("Monday Night Football" announcer) on WTEM "Tony Kornheiser Radio Show": joked that his touchdown call on Monday Night Football should be "You're with me, leather." [cite news
title=Tony Kornheiser Is Into Leather
url=http://deadspin.com/sports/espn/tony-kornheiser-is-into-leather-167019.php
publisher=Deadspin
date=2006-04-13]
* Keith Olbermann (former "SportsCenter" anchor) on MSNBC "Countdown with Keith Olbermann": "...Then again who am I to get into a semantics argument with a guy carrying an iron war hammer and a tunic made out of animals he killed with his own teeth? You’re with me, leather!" [cite news
title='Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for April 26
url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12531710/
publisher=MSNBC
date=2006-04-26]
* Neil Everett on "SportsCenter": "He's with leather", describing a catch by Texas Rangers outfielder Gary Matthews, Jr. [cite news
title=Neil Everett's Death Wish
url=http://www.deadspin.com/sports/espn/neil-everetts-death-wish-174081.php
publisher=Deadspin
date=2006-05-16]
* DJ Gallo of ESPN.com Page 2, referencing Berman's alleged outburst at the fan who asked if he had read Deadspin: "But I can't believe I got a double bogey on 18. Why would I go and do that? That is so stupid. What am I, stupid? I am so stupid." [cite news
title=Mickelson's final round blog
url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=gallo/060619
publisher=ESPN.com
date=2006-06-19]
* Bill Simmons of ESPN.com Page 2, in a SportsNation chat session on July 12th, was asked by someone who identified themselves as Chris Berman from Bristol, CT: "You're with me, Sports Guy." Simmons responded with "(Trying to fight off 100,000 bolts of electric current...)"." Simmons has admitted in a non-ESPN interview that Deadspin is one of the few blogs he reads. [cite news
title=Bill Simmons SPORTSNATION Chat 7/12
url=http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/chatESPN?event_id=12262
publisher=ESPN.com
date=2006-07-12] [cite news
title=Scott's Shots: The Boston Sports Guy: Revisited, Reinvented and Revealed
url=http://www.bostonsportsmedia.com/archives/shots/the_boston_sports_guy_revisited_reinvented_and_revealed.php
publisher=Bruce Allen Media LLC
date=2005-09-30]

References in sports media

*Host John Woolard to co-host Jay Christensen of the Los Angeles Times on the "Sports Overnight America radio show": "Woolard after Christensen mentioned the Deadspin item on the "leather" comments attributed to Chris Berman: "I wonder if the woman was the same woman (Suzi Quatro) who played Leather Tuscadero on 'Happy Days'? Too bad 'The Fonz' wasn't there to stop it all from happening." [cite news
title=Sports Byline USA
url=http://www.sportsbyline.com
author= John Woolard
publisher=Sports Byline USA
date=2007-05-29]
* Ted Miller, "Seattle Post-Intelligencer": "Most gurus project the Seahawks will take a cornerback with the 31st pick, a theory that goes over well with fans who imagine a newcomer forming a ball-hawking tandem with Marcus Trufant that deadeyes spinning pigskins and exclaims: 'You're with me, leather!'" [cite news
title=Can't see fun of draft day? You're not trying.
url=http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/football/268452_miller29.html
author= Ted Miller
publisher=Seattle Post-intelligencer
date=2006-04-29]
*Tom Hoffarth, "Los Angeles Daily News": "Does that mean ESPN's Chris Berman, good enough to do the Super Bowl commercial for the awful Disney remake of "The Shaggy Dog," wasn't synergetic enough to voice his own car? Is it because they couldn't come up with a catchy nickname for him? If only "Chris Airbag" could have been cast for the role, so Waltrip could have told him: 'You're with me, Leather.'" [cite news
title=Disney's Small World (Cup)
url=http://www.dailynews.com/sportsmedia/ci_3889828
author= Tom Haffarth
publisher=Los Angeles Daily News
date=2006-06-02]
*Dan Wetzel, "Yahoo! Sports": "He is appropriately light, doesn't act like this is too important and, unlike Chris "You're with me, Leather" Berman, doesn't tip off the pick 10 seconds before it is announced with some horrible pun or play on words." [cite news
title=Winners and losers
url=http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=dw-winnerslosers062806&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
author= Dan Wetzel
publisher=Yahoo! Sports
date=2006-06-29
accessdate=2006-07-10]
*CBS Sportsline.com "SpiN On Sports" cartoon: [http://www.sportsline.com/spin/story/9548410 SPuN on the new NBA ball] [cite web
title=SPuN on the new NBA ball
url=http://www.sportsline.com/spin/story/9548410
author= John Moore
publisher=CBS Sportsline.com
date=2006-07-10
accessdate=2006-07-10]
*FSN Houston: Displayed info box with the text, "Astros lead the majors with 112 double plays this season" with the title, "You're with me, leather" during a broadcast of the Houston Astros vs New York Mets game on July 23, 2006. [cite news
title=Hello, FSN Southwest!
url=http://deadspin.com/sports/espn/hello-fsn-southwest-189373.php
publisher=Deadspin
date=2006-07-24
accessdate=2006-07-24]
*NBCSports.com When the announcement on December 11, 2006 came about that the NBA was switching back to the old basketball after the failure of the synthetic model, NBC Sports had the tagline "We're with you, Leather"
*Yahoo! Sports: Over the weekend starting June 23, 2007, a link to a video of MLB defensive highlights read, "They're with leather: MLB's Top 10 defensive plays".

Popular media references

* Damien Fahey, host of MTV "Total Request Live": Cited YWML as his favorite pick-up line on the June 20, 2006 broadcast of "Total Request Live" and displayed the t-shirt sold by Gawker.com bearing the phrase and an obscured portrait of Berman. [cite news
title=YWML Suddenly Huge With 13-Year-Olds
url=http://www.deadspin.com/sports/clips/ywml-suddenly-huge-with-13yearolds-182124.php
publisher=Deadspin
date=2006-06-20]
* In a November 10, 2006 episode of "Las Vegas", a guest star used YWML to pick up Vanessa Marcil's character at a hotel bar.
* Keith Olbermann referenced the line on the February 20, 2007 episode of Countdown in an unrelated story about the Rawlings all-time Gold Glove team.

References

ee also

*Chris Berman
*Deadspin