Anyone who had not heard of Carl Paladino has heard of him now.
Paladino, the Republican choice for governor this election year, got into a row with New York Post reporter Fred Dicker after a function at The Sagamore on Wednesday night. It was all caught on video and was quickly being viewed around the country to such a degree, it may overtake the Nielsen numbers of "American Idol."
Paladino, a rough-around-the edges millionaire from Buffalo, and his promise to take a bat to Albany, resonated with enough people around the state to win him the Republican primary against Rick Lazio.
It's hard to imagine that a bat-wielding bureaucrat would do any good, but citizens related to the Legislature-bashing Paladino. Who knew Paladino meant the remark literally? After Wednesday night, I wouldn't be surprised if there was a Louisville Slugger tucked under his back seat.
The altercation with Dicker showed that Paladino is not just talk. This guy, hatched from the Tea Party movement, looks like he could take on a Teamster and win.
He is a cross between a tough-talking Tony Soprano, the fictitious mobster from New Jersey; and Rex Ryan, the F-bomb-dropping coach of the New York Jets.
Maybe Paladino should add Ryan to the ticket as lieutenant governor.
There was a time when this type of out-of-control behavior by any candidate - remember Howard Dean just acting goofy after the Iowa primary - would derail the campaign immediately. But the electorate seems so frustrated, so angry by the years of Albany dysfunction, many are wondering if this is exactly what we need in Albany. Forget about the baseball bat; give the guy a sledgehammer.
If the Paladino folks are smart, they will take this bit of reality TV and make it a prime-time commercial. Wait a minute, cable news has already done that, and they did not have to spend a dime.
This testosterone-fueled, primal screaming match had the schoolyard bluster of many a young man's youth, complete with finger-pointing and a few "Oh yeahs!" No one would have been surprised if one of the combatants had squealed "your momma wears combat boots" which, of course, would be the final insult before both dropped their gloves.
Juvenile?
Yes, but it's not like we will be giving Paladino or anyone else the launch codes to defend New York.
Maybe bringing a little Broadway theater up the New York State Thruway is just what the state needs.
Maybe a wild-eyed candidate that is in the people's corner, willing to stomp around like a crazed bull, will get the attention of a Legislature that is out of touch with reality, but destined to be re-elected almost unanimously. There is your real dysfunction.
So everybody get out of the way. Carl Paladino is coming out swinging and somebody might get hurt.