Two Classics Revisited

Marty:

The best-known line that Paddy Chayefsky ever wrote was spoken by Peter Finch in “Network”: “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this any more!” But prior to the release of “Network” in 1976, another Chayefsky line—or, to be exact, a two-liner—was just as well remembered:

“Well, what do you feel like doing tonight?”

“I don’t know, Angie. What do you feel like doing?” . . .

. . . The Criterion Collection, which specializes in digitally remastered versions of great films of the past, has just released the 1953 version of “Marty” for the first time on DVD as part of a boxed set called “The Golden Age of Television” that contains such other classic TV plays as J.P. Miller’s “Days of Wine and Roses” and Rod Serling’s “Requiem for a Heavyweight.” To see it today is a revelation—and a delight.

And Gone With the Wind:

No one denies that “Gone With the Wind” holds an honored—even sacred—place in the pantheon of beloved American movies. Adjusted for inflation, its domestic box-office gross is variously estimated at $1.3 billion to $1.5 billion—vastly more than the sum earned by “Titanic.” Still more impressive are its initial ticket sales, which totaled more than 200 million at a time when the U.S. population was just 130 million. And then there are those eight Oscars, including best picture, in a year widely acknowledged as Hollywood’s greatest. But affection and respect are different things, and it is perhaps only now—70 years after its initial release on Dec. 15, 1939—that this film is acquiring a patina of venerability.

In large part, this delay can be attributed to the complicated feelings the picture engenders. Unlike, say, “The Wizard of Oz,” from that same year, or “Casablanca,” from three years later, “Gone With the Wind” is not unobjectionable. How could it be? Its primary characters are rich white Southerners living through the Civil War and into Reconstruction—not material that goes down easy for many Americans then or now.

Always Much To Be Thankful For

Peggy Noonan soars with her latest column about things to be grateful for. I especially liked her closing paragraphs (But read the whole thing.):

And after that, after gratitude for friends and family, and for those who protect us, after that something small. I love TV, and the other day it occurred to me again that we are in the middle of a second golden age of television. I feel gratitude to the largely unheralded network executives and producers who gave it to us. The first golden age can be summed up with one name: “Playhouse 90.” It was the 1950s and ’60s, when TV was busy being born. The second can be summed up with the words “The Sopranos,” “Mad Men,” “The Wire,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “ER,” “24,” “The West Wing,” “Law and Order,” “30 Rock.” These are classics. Some nonstars at a network made them possible. Good for them.

I leave it to others to dilate on why TV now is so good and movies so bad, since both come from the same town, Hollywood, in the same era. But there is a side benefit to televisions’s excellence, and that is the number of people who follow a show so closely, and love it so much, that after it’s aired they come together on long threads on Web sites and talk about what happened and what it means. People use their imaginations and unfocused creativity to add new layers of meaning and interpretation. “You know that was a reference to ‘Chinatown.’” “Did anyone notice what it meant when Peggy told Mr. Sterling ‘no’ when he asked for the coffee? A whole revolution captured in one word!”

Those threads are golden. We rightly discuss the fact that media now is fractured, niched and broken up, that we no longer watch the same shows or have the same conversation. But what’s happening now on the Internet after a good show is a conversation, a new one, and it’s sprung up from the technology that helped do in the old one. How ironic and predictable, and another cause, however small, for gratitude.

Trash television and the internet if you want but there’s always much to be thankful for. You just have to look for it. And likely not very far.

Meet Teams on New Season of ‘Amazing Race’

Yay! The Amazing Race returns September 27th! (Click here to learn more about the teams.)

I’m a big fan; the places they visit and the goofy challenges are a lot of fun and there’s always a team to root for. Better yet, there’s always a team to root against. Phil Keoghan’s a great host and reading his blog reveals he has a good and dry and self-deprecating sense of humor. What’s not to like?

The Soup: Mmm-Mmm Good

We have a guilty pleasure on Saturday mornings: the rerun of the hilarious TV show The Soup. But the show promotes conservative values so it’s a pleasure that’s not so guilty at all:

The show, which has existed in various iterations for years, has reached new comedic heights on McHale’s watch. In a nutshell, it features 22 minutes of distilled television trash; the very worst of what American culture has to offer. Degenerate attention-seekers looking for “true love?” Check. Startlingly self-absorbed celebrities padding their inflated egos? Indeed. Washed-up/cashed-strapped stars demeaning themselves for a paycheck? Oh yes. The Soup peddles in the lowest- common-denominator programming that’s beamed to cable boxes and satellite dishes from coast to coast every day.

>The Soup: Mmm-Mmm Good

>We have a guilty pleasure on Saturday mornings: the rerun of the hilarious TV show The Soup. But the show promotes conservative values so it’s a pleasure that’s not so guilty at all:

The show, which has existed in various iterations for years, has reached new comedic heights on McHale’s watch. In a nutshell, it features 22 minutes of distilled television trash; the very worst of what American culture has to offer. Degenerate attention-seekers looking for “true love?” Check. Startlingly self-absorbed celebrities padding their inflated egos? Indeed. Washed-up/cashed-strapped stars demeaning themselves for a paycheck? Oh yes. The Soup peddles in the lowest- common-denominator programming that’s beamed to cable boxes and satellite dishes from coast to coast every day.

American Idol – Down to Three

So now we’re down to three – Adam, Danny, and Kris. Too bad for Allison. Her farewell montage was a reminder of just how endearing the gal is. Talented, too. But it’s not about how well they can sing – that helps – but more about attracting voters. That means appealing to the broadest audience possible and with her niche, she couldn’t go beyond what she did.

I think that’s what’ll happen to Adam, too. He seems wildly popular now but I don’t think he’s going to get any more voters than he has. True, he may have enough to get him through and win this whole thing but I’m not sure he can take over Allison’s base. Then again, Kris and Danny may split that broad audience vote which means only one or the other will be in final. Adam should be in the final, then, but that doesn’t mean he can win it.

The announcement of Kris’ safety wasn’t entirely a surprise. His iTune download numbers showed he was on the rise where the others had flattened and or actually gone back. If that’s true, that may indicate a surge in his popularity and he may be the one to end up in the final two. His talent is no match for Adam’s but Kris has something that Adam lacks: the cuddly factor. Adam is a machine, a creepy machine, whereas Kris isn’t.

Next week is the trips to their hometown and then they sing two songs each. Can’t wait.

>American Idol – Down to Three

>So now we’re down to three – Adam, Danny, and Kris. Too bad for Allison. Her farewell montage was a reminder of just how endearing the gal is. Talented, too. But it’s not about how well they can sing – that helps – but more about attracting voters. That means appealing to the broadest audience possible and with her niche, she couldn’t go beyond what she did.

I think that’s what’ll happen to Adam, too. He seems wildly popular now but I don’t think he’s going to get any more voters than he has. True, he may have enough to get him through and win this whole thing but I’m not sure he can take over Allison’s base. Then again, Kris and Danny may split that broad audience vote which means only one or the other will be in final. Adam should be in the final, then, but that doesn’t mean he can win it.

The announcement of Kris’ safety wasn’t entirely a surprise. His iTune download numbers showed he was on the rise where the others had flattened and or actually gone back. If that’s true, that may indicate a surge in his popularity and he may be the one to end up in the final two. His talent is no match for Adam’s but Kris has something that Adam lacks: the cuddly factor. Adam is a machine, a creepy machine, whereas Kris isn’t.

Next week is the trips to their hometown and then they sing two songs each. Can’t wait.

American Idol Rocks!

Or tries to. Of course, it’s not a rock show; it’s a pop music star they’re looking for and rock is only one of the genres they put the contestants through so the rock performances are no more genuine than any other of the genre performances. I don’t mind that. What counts is what the contestants make of it. Overall, I’d say they did a pretty good job. The biggest surprise? Slash as their mentor. Who woulda thunk he’d be a fan? Who’d tweet about it? See, hardcore rockers are just like you and me?

Adam started, of course, and won the praises of the judges but I wasn’t thrilled. He’d either knock it out of the ballpark like he’s done before or take too much of a chance and go down in flames. He did neither. The girls weren’t watching with us so I don’t have anything to judge against but for me it was just more of the same ol‘ Adam. Oh, sure, he’s very good, but he also creeps me out and he was pretty high on the creep out factor.

Alison did quite well. Once again, it’s hard to believe she’s only 17. Could she have picked better songs? Maybe. Joplin was the obvious pick as would have been her other pick, Jefferson Airplane’s Somebody To Love but, well, what can you do? It’s not like there are a lot of female rock singers out there to emulate.

Kris chose poorly. The Beatles Come Together has been done well only by Aerosmith and though he did well enough, this was out of his league.

As was Danny’s take on Aerosmith. A good song but clearly not his genre.

Not to say I was disappointed with the performances. I enjoyed all of them and I’d be hard pressed to choose who’s going home. But I’ll take a chance and say Adam will, based on his ranking last week and his non-new groundbreaking performance from last night. He may have peaked and may not have been able to attract new voters.

An aside – odd, wasn’t it, that the rock songs they chose to perform were, in some cases, 40 years old? Imagine a pop singer in 1968 crooning a popular song from 1928. Have there been no decent rock songs released within, say, the last 10 years?

American Idol Rocks!

Or tries to. Of course, it’s not a rock show; it’s a pop music star they’re looking for and rock is only one of the genres they put the contestants through so the rock performances are no more genuine than any other of the genre performances. I don’t mind that. What counts is what the contestants make of it. Overall, I’d say they did a pretty good job. The biggest surprise? Slash as their mentor. Who woulda thunk he’d be a fan? Who’d tweet about it? See, hardcore rockers are just like you and me?

Adam started, of course, and won the praises of the judges but I wasn’t thrilled. He’d either knock it out of the ballpark like he’s done before or take too much of a chance and go down in flames. He did neither. The girls weren’t watching with us so I don’t have anything to judge against but for me it was just more of the same ol‘ Adam. Oh, sure, he’s very good, but he also creeps me out and he was pretty high on the creep out factor.

Alison did quite well. Once again, it’s hard to believe she’s only 17. Could she have picked better songs? Maybe. Joplin was the obvious pick as would have been her other pick, Jefferson Airplane’s Somebody To Love but, well, what can you do? It’s not like there are a lot of female rock singers out there to emulate.

Kris chose poorly. The Beatles Come Together has been done well only by Aerosmith and though he did well enough, this was out of his league.

As was Danny’s take on Aerosmith. A good song but clearly not his genre.

Not to say I was disappointed with the performances. I enjoyed all of them and I’d be hard pressed to choose who’s going home. But I’ll take a chance and say Adam will, based on his ranking last week and his non-new groundbreaking performance from last night. He may have peaked and may not have been able to attract new voters.

An aside – odd, wasn’t it, that the rock songs they chose to perform were, in some cases, 40 years old? Imagine a pop singer in 1968 crooning a popular song from 1928. Have there been no decent rock songs released within, say, the last 10 years?

>American Idol’ Gets Down to Final Four

>So it’s so long, Matt Giraud. He had a good run but of the remaining five, he was my least favorite. Not to take anything from him – they’re all astoundingly good and though none of them are Carrie Underwood, I have to agree this seems to be the best batch American Idol has fielded ever. It’s all about votes and I think Matt split the “cute guy” votes with Kris and Danny. Alison has the rocker chick vote so I don’t think she’ll last for much longer as Matt’s voters run to either Danny or Kris. I dunno what group votes for Adam – Rachel and Emily squeal for him and though I don’t like him I have to say he brings something interesting to the table. I’m not sure if his being in the bottom two was hype or true but it was another surprise from a show that always delights.

Natalie Cole looked as hot as she ever does. Good to see Taylor Hicks looked fit and trim and working it out; it’s too bad he hasn’t been as popular as the other winners. Missed Jamie Foxx’s performance – had to dash out on Dad duty – but somehow I survived.

Didn’t catch next week’s theme but I’m already counting the days.

American Idol’ Gets Down to Final Four

So it’s so long, Matt Giraud. He had a good run but of the remaining five, he was my least favorite. Not to take anything from him – they’re all astoundingly good and though none of them are Carrie Underwood, I have to agree this seems to be the best batch American Idol has fielded ever. It’s all about votes and I think Matt split the “cute guy” votes with Kris and Danny. Alison has the rocker chick vote so I don’t think she’ll last for much longer as Matt’s voters run to either Danny or Kris. I dunno what group votes for Adam – Rachel and Emily squeal for him and though I don’t like him I have to say he brings something interesting to the table. I’m not sure if his being in the bottom two was hype or true but it was another surprise from a show that always delights.

Natalie Cole looked as hot as she ever does. Good to see Taylor Hicks looked fit and trim and working it out; it’s too bad he hasn’t been as popular as the other winners. Missed Jamie Foxx’s performance – had to dash out on Dad duty – but somehow I survived.

Didn’t catch next week’s theme but I’m already counting the days.

>American Idol

>Dang dang dang dang dang. Adam was good. Real good. And for once he didn’t creep me out with his look. Channeling Kurt Russel by way of Elvis looks to be a style that works for him. I may have to re-think my position on him.

My man Anoop did well enough that he oughtta be safe this week. If it weren’t for all of the other powerful performances, he would’ve shined brighter. As it was, he got kind of lost back in the middle of the pack.

As for the rest: Kris and Matt started the show off well but Scott brought things back down to earth. He wasn’t bad, he just wasn’t as good as the two that preceded him. Poor L’il took her chance and squandered it, though she looked good doing it. My least favorite, Megan, was awful and for the very reasons I don’t like her: she appears lazy. She’s got a good enough, and quirky enough, voice and style but it always sounds like to me she’s counting on getting by with just her looks. Last week she had the flu. This week, meh. I have no opinion about Michael. I enjoyed his performance well enough and I think the judges were too harsh on him. Another once who was just plain out-performed by the others.

And by outperform, I mean Allison. Holy frijoles, that girl has it! Great song choice – when I heard what she was going to be singing, I thought it was perfect and I was right. Rock it, girlfriend! But her rockingness may be her downfall. Rockers on this show rarely have the fans to support them through to the end. I hope this time it’s an exception.

My prediction: same as my hope, Megan goes home.

American Idol

Dang dang dang dang dang. Adam was good. Real good. And for once he didn’t creep me out with his look. Channeling Kurt Russel by way of Elvis looks to be a style that works for him. I may have to re-think my position on him.

My man Anoop did well enough that he oughtta be safe this week. If it weren’t for all of the other powerful performances, he would’ve shined brighter. As it was, he got kind of lost back in the middle of the pack.

As for the rest: Kris and Matt started the show off well but Scott brought things back down to earth. He wasn’t bad, he just wasn’t as good as the two that preceded him. Poor L’il took her chance and squandered it, though she looked good doing it. My least favorite, Megan, was awful and for the very reasons I don’t like her: she appears lazy. She’s got a good enough, and quirky enough, voice and style but it always sounds like to me she’s counting on getting by with just her looks. Last week she had the flu. This week, meh. I have no opinion about Michael. I enjoyed his performance well enough and I think the judges were too harsh on him. Another once who was just plain out-performed by the others.

And by outperform, I mean Allison. Holy frijoles, that girl has it! Great song choice – when I heard what she was going to be singing, I thought it was perfect and I was right. Rock it, girlfriend! But her rockingness may be her downfall. Rockers on this show rarely have the fans to support them through to the end. I hope this time it’s an exception.

My prediction: same as my hope, Megan goes home.

‘Idol’ Sends a Favorite Home

American Idol can still shock:

So much for that story about “American Idol” already being decided.

It didn’t take a genius to see that Alexis Grace was one of the judges’ early favorites, and a New York Daily News report this week had her already ticketed for the final four. But a funny thing happened on the way to that perch. She received the fewest number of votes this week, and when the judges failed to save her, she became the third finalist voted off the show.

She was a favorite of this house – she’s so cute! – and we thought she did well enough to stay around for a while. We were wrong. Guess we should’ve voted.

(The girls love – ick – Adam.)

But it’s a solid bunch this season so more shocks are bound to come. And, in a way, it’s good to see the show still has some surprises up its metaphorical sleeve.

Oh, and did you see Carrie Underwood? Wonderful!

>‘Idol’ Sends a Favorite Home

>American Idol can still shock:

So much for that story about “American Idol” already being decided.

It didn’t take a genius to see that Alexis Grace was one of the judges’ early favorites, and a New York Daily News report this week had her already ticketed for the final four. But a funny thing happened on the way to that perch. She received the fewest number of votes this week, and when the judges failed to save her, she became the third finalist voted off the show.

She was a favorite of this house – she’s so cute! – and we thought she did well enough to stay around for a while. We were wrong. Guess we should’ve voted.

(The girls love – ick – Adam.)

But it’s a solid bunch this season so more shocks are bound to come. And, in a way, it’s good to see the show still has some surprises up its metaphorical sleeve.

Oh, and did you see Carrie Underwood? Wonderful!

New ‘Idol’ Rule Doesn’t Save Departing Singers

Nor could you expect it to, this early in the game; what’s the point of saving someone now when we have weeks to go? No one let go now doesn’t deserve it. It’s the mid to final weeks that’ll count and then this rule might come in handy but until then, meh.

I’m sorry to see any of the contestants go and I don’t think it was quite time for Jasmine and Jorge but they couldn’t last so, well, so long. My vote out would have been the blonde girl with the sleeve tattoo or one of the blander boys but this will work for now. Poor Jorge looked utterly wounded and beautiful Jasmine was in tears. I wonder if they ever dreamed it would come to this.

But my man Anoop is still standing. He’s gotta do better next week. Dweebs of the world are pulling for him.

Oh, and it was Rachel who pointed out it was Carrie Underwood singing the buh-bye song. Yay, Carrie!

>New ‘Idol’ Rule Doesn’t Save Departing Singers

>Nor could you expect it to, this early in the game; what’s the point of saving someone now when we have weeks to go? No one let go now doesn’t deserve it. It’s the mid to final weeks that’ll count and then this rule might come in handy but until then, meh.

I’m sorry to see any of the contestants go and I don’t think it was quite time for Jasmine and Jorge but they couldn’t last so, well, so long. My vote out would have been the blonde girl with the sleeve tattoo or one of the blander boys but this will work for now. Poor Jorge looked utterly wounded and beautiful Jasmine was in tears. I wonder if they ever dreamed it would come to this.

But my man Anoop is still standing. He’s gotta do better next week. Dweebs of the world are pulling for him.

Oh, and it was Rachel who pointed out it was Carrie Underwood singing the buh-bye song. Yay, Carrie!

Anoooooooop!

American Idol has chosen it’s final 12 – excuse me, make that final 13 – and it included my man Anoop:

Thirteen turned out to be the lucky number for Anoop Desai on “American Idol.” After announcing the three remaining finalists at the end of Thursday’s wild card round, Simon Cowell announced that the much-loved 22-year-old college student from Chapel Hill, N.C., won a previously unannounced 13th spot in the next round of the popular Fox singing contest. In past seasons, 12 finalists were picked to move on.

Does Anoop have what it take to make it to the end? Oh, yes, my friends, he does. So sit back with me and let’s enjoy his march to victory together.

>Anoooooooop!

>American Idol has chosen it’s final 12 – excuse me, make that final 13 – and it included my man Anoop:

Thirteen turned out to be the lucky number for Anoop Desai on “American Idol.” After announcing the three remaining finalists at the end of Thursday’s wild card round, Simon Cowell announced that the much-loved 22-year-old college student from Chapel Hill, N.C., won a previously unannounced 13th spot in the next round of the popular Fox singing contest. In past seasons, 12 finalists were picked to move on.

Does Anoop have what it take to make it to the end? Oh, yes, my friends, he does. So sit back with me and let’s enjoy his march to victory together.

Oklahoma City Native TV Series Creator Visits Hometown

I haven’t watched the show but the creator of Saving Grace came to town on a promotion tour:

The Oklahoma City native executive producer of the TNT drama, Saving Grace, made a publicity visit to her hometown today to kick off the drama’s third season.

Based in Oklahoma City, the Nancy Miller-created drama will return to TNT March 2 at 9 p.m. Miller’s series debuted in 2007 as the summer’s most-watched cable series with plenty of cultural references to Oklahoma and many scenes filmed on location in Oklahoma City.

I understand much of the show has little to do with Oklahoma City except for a few passing references and even fewer scenes actually filmed here. That’s to be expected and I don’t fault the producers for that. What bothers me is this:

Although Miller would love to be able to film more of the series in Oklahoma City, budget constraints have prevented the series from being able to capture more Sooner State settings. For the cast and crew to travel to Oklahoma to film would require a steep investment from local and state officials along with businesses.

Budget constraints? Of local and state officials and businesses? Yes, by all means, film elsewhere because having a Hollywood production come to town and spill a little of its wealth around would be just too expensive. No thanks. Go film somewhere else.

No, when Hollywood says budget constraints they mean theirs not ours. They’re just too cheap to come out here because, oh, I don’t know, the cost of living out here is so high when you compare it to a place like, well, California, a bankrupt state where they, apparently, have no problem “investing” in television productions.

>Oklahoma City Native TV Series Creator Visits Hometown

>I haven’t watched the show but the creator of Saving Grace came to town on a promotion tour:

The Oklahoma City native executive producer of the TNT drama, Saving Grace, made a publicity visit to her hometown today to kick off the drama’s third season.

Based in Oklahoma City, the Nancy Miller-created drama will return to TNT March 2 at 9 p.m. Miller’s series debuted in 2007 as the summer’s most-watched cable series with plenty of cultural references to Oklahoma and many scenes filmed on location in Oklahoma City.

I understand much of the show has little to do with Oklahoma City except for a few passing references and even fewer scenes actually filmed here. That’s to be expected and I don’t fault the producers for that. What bothers me is this:

Although Miller would love to be able to film more of the series in Oklahoma City, budget constraints have prevented the series from being able to capture more Sooner State settings. For the cast and crew to travel to Oklahoma to film would require a steep investment from local and state officials along with businesses.

Budget constraints? Of local and state officials and businesses? Yes, by all means, film elsewhere because having a Hollywood production come to town and spill a little of its wealth around would be just too expensive. No thanks. Go film somewhere else.

No, when Hollywood says budget constraints they mean theirs not ours. They’re just too cheap to come out here because, oh, I don’t know, the cost of living out here is so high when you compare it to a place like, well, California, a bankrupt state where they, apparently, have no problem “investing” in television productions.