Ted Beitchman Is Back With Fast Philly Sports (And Inga Saffron Is Not Amused)
Just when we’d almost forgotten about publisher, ex-convict, and colorful Philadelphia character Ted Beitchman, he has resurfaced with a new website: FastPhillySports.com.
Beitchman is the publisher of Philly Sport magazine (left), which apparently still exists. Prior to Philly Sport, he published the magazines RealPhilly and The Player. Both were spectacular flops.
His other claim to fame is that he held a senior position in Ed Rendell’s mayoral administration, prior to being convicted of tax evasion and impersonating a state official.
If you ask Philadelphia notables about Beitchman, they tell you fantastic stories that could fill an unauthorized biography, but they’ll never tell you on-the-record. For some reason, people seem to be scared of Ted Beitchman.
His newest venture is a blog filled with opinions on the local sports teams and complete reprints of stories by other publications, like this New York Daily News article about Donald Sterling and Alan Richman’s much-discussed GQ list of the best cheesesteaks in Philadelphia. (We’re just going to assume that you have the rights to those stories, Ted.)
When it comes time to actually do some writing, Beitchman targets Michael Barkann and Angelo Cataldi.
But his best piece has got to be his 2,500-plus word rant on bicycles in Philadelphia, titled “YIKES! BIKES! CENTER CITY’S NEW BLOOD SPORT”
Just check out this introductory text:
City government knuckleheads, cheered on by the Inquirer’s anti-car, anti-business, Amsterdam-loving Inga Saffron, have handed our town’s narrow streets over to barbarians on bikes. As a result, the 98 percent of us who are not pedaling have been put at physical risk by the 2 percent who are.
When Philly Bike Tours pointed the article out to Saffron via Twitter, Saffron responded:
@PhillyBikeTours It’s not worth acknowledging him or giving him a bigger audience. He’s a troll.
— Inga Saffron (@IngaSaffron) May 13, 2014
And then…
@bcgp @PhillyBikeTours I know the guy, unfortunately. Like Stu, he is fond of prostitutes. — Inga Saffron (@IngaSaffron) May 13, 2014
