In keeping with the Bill O’Reilly mash mixup that Southern Beale featured earlier, it seems that all the money I’ve been spending supporting educationo by buying lottery tickets is finally paying off. Go watch this video at Coed Magazine.

Lost is a love/hate thing. Those of us who love it, LOVE it. Those of you who don’t, here’s a picture of Amy Winehouse.

Twitter and blogs tend to focus on the mystery of the show. Katherine Coble has excellent recaps of the show and has a bittersweet relationship with it. She watches it and I tend to think she likes it, but she is also hard on some of the believability of some of the characters’ actions.

Of course, it is a television show but still, you get sucked in.

Jack Sheppard thinks he’s a leader–nice Christlike positioning of the bleeding wound in his side, don’t you think?–but I think he’s as flawed as leaders get.

I continue to find the mythology of the Island fascinating, while being bored by the cockadoody car action parts. The C4 in the ship was a big ol’ eyeroll for me. I generally hate the sight of C4 in any story outside of James Bond. It’s a visual shorthand for “big action sequence coming” and I am not a lover of big action sequences when they are misplaced.

Barry asked questions earlier this week on the mythology and some of the unsolved mysteries. (Update here: New post from him.) And I even throw in my two cents as does Reba.

One blog that has been following Lost breaks it down and brings on the funny.

And although he doesn’t have a recap up for last night’s episode up yet, Russ McBee, who came into the game late, is really enjoying it. His recaps are extremely intense.

“Lost” is the only TV show I’ve ever seen that required me to take notes in order to keep up.

That’s about right. If you have any observations because you are going to have to wait two weeks to see the finale, leave them in the comments.

And he commented on Newscoma’s blog!

No, I’m serious…go see for yourself!

That would be Starbuck if you have been watching the Sci Fi channel on Friday nights.

Enclave takes a bit of a break to talk about what I believe is one of the best shows on television, Battlestar Galactica. His sentiments about the show’s core is basically one of the reason’s I keep going back to it.

The religious imagery was much more rich than typically portrayed on TV. The mix of machine and living tissue on the ships of the Cylon battle fleet conveys incarnation in its most ambiguous sense. The scene where one of the dying Cylon “Sixes” “Eights”–shot by a centurion while trying to disconnect a “hybrid” from the basestar–bleeds into the hybrid’s immersion tank seemingly making the latter give a profound revelation to Starbuck (”the missing Three will give you the Five who come from the home of the Thirteenth”) reminds me of baptism and blood atonement. It also reminds me of the end of Pan’s Labyrinth where where a dying Ofelia bleeds onto the cave altar, which opens up either a portal to the underworld and her reunion with her family or her fantasy that she has done so.

It never ceases to amaze me that the “toasters” worship one God while the humans worship the Gods. You don’t see that kind of boldness in television. Ever.

If you haven’t seen BG, I cannot recommend it enough.

And he’s quite proud that he didn’t know.

It wasn’t until today that I learned “Hannah Montana” is not her real name.

Carry on.

From Silence

Damn. Sue Johanson of Oxygen’s “Talk Sex” is retiring, and the last episode will air on Sunday night (and will count down the year’s top 10 sex toys).

It’s a shame. Sue Johanson’s show was one of the oddest things I’ve ever seen on the telly.

Rachel is right. She will be missed.

We get letters and this one might be something you would be interested in if you have ever wanted to be on reality television.

Hello.

I am a casting director for Mark Burnett Productions (Survivor, Apprentice)
in Los Angeles and am working on a new show for him called “Jingles.” It is
a new music competition show where teams of 2-3 will write, sing and perform
product jingles. We will be coming to Nashville at the end of May to
audition musicians, singers and improv performers for this show. Below is a
blurb about it as well you can google Mark Burnett and Jingles to find out
more. I am writing to you in hopes of getting the word out to your readers.
I would be happy to answer any questions.
Thanks,

Jonathan Tanzman
Casting Associate
Jingles

CBS and Mark Burnett Productions have teamed up to find the greatest
undiscovered marketing genius for a new show, “Jingles”! We are looking for
teams of (preferably) 2-4 people to write and perform product jingles. A
team could be anything from a brother/sister team to a singing comedy duo or
a barbershop quartet!

Please email Jonathan at jtanzman  at markburnettprod dot com for more information.
We will be casting in Nashville late May.

I have delivered the word to you, kind readers and here’s more on the show from Variety.

Was Barbara Walters in La Vergne last week?

Did I see Barbara Walters today in LaVergne? Anyone? Anyone? Ferris?

Read the comments. I’m still not sure if it was Baba Wawa or a cunning impersonator but someone over at the La Verne blog said she was there.

Especially interesting is that she was big news last week.

The video in this link is an interesting look at a political campaign where a minority candidate battles a conservative maverick to win the White House. If this sounds like something you hope for later in the year (or dread), rest assured, it’s from the West Wing - but the parallels are, um, there in heaps. Since I suck at embedding video, here’s the link.

Forget about the saving the cheerleader to save the world - tonight the real life savers, the guys that pluck people out of the cold Bering Sea, the guys that keep crab on the table, return to television.

I’m guessing that quite a few bloggers will be glued to Deadliest Catch tonight.  Tune in, if only to listen to the music that is the voice of Mike Rowe.

For those of you who don’t know, sports broadcaster Dick Vitale was voted into the college basketball hall of fame earlier this year as a broadcaster.

FOX Sports Columnist Mark Kriegel takes exception to this in his latest column:

Dick Vitale wasn’t a player. His coaching career — culminating with a 34-60 record for the Detroit Pistons — was a failure. And while the Hall recognizes media members with its Curt Gowdy Award (a distinction Vitale has already won), one cannot be enshrined as a mere broadcaster. So, again, how the hell did he get in?

Is he insightful? Thoughtful? Provocative? Courageous?

No, no, no and no. He’s loud. He’s a salesman. In fact, the very same qualities that served him so well on television have made him the perfect shill for Hooters. Also, he’s relentless. As people in the basketball business know too well, Vitale has been lobbying for entry into the Hall for years. The movement, such as it was, was spearheaded by influential letter writers campaigning on his behalf, most of them famous coaches whose butts he’s kissed for years. Foremost among them was Bobby Knight, the media-basher now cashing ESPN’s checks. Vitale has been on air since 1979; the next tough word he has for Bobby Knight will be his first.

I have to say I agree with a lot of what he says. Putting aside my personal feelings about Vitale, I will agree that he’s done nothing that indicates he should be in the hall of fame. But it just proves that this, like a lot of things in life, is about who you know and how you play the game rather than any merit or value you may add.

Newscoma’s got one of the first posts up about last night’s season premiere of Battlestar Galactica. If you missed it, you can watch the full episode online at the official website.

Spoilers after the jump… Read the rest of this entry »

~Mark Twain

I got an e-mail about the other day from the PR person for a film that has been making the rounds of public television stations. Here are the details:

The POWER of FORGIVENESS will be shown on Nashville’s WNPT-8 on Friday, March 28 at 8:00 p.m. The film is released nationally on Public Television through American Public Television (APT) and is a production of Journey Films. Best Documentary 2007, Sun Valley Film Festival

The one-hour film is a collection of seven short stories showing the limits, difficulties, healing qualities and unforeseen effects an act of forgiveness can have in people’s lives. It includes stories on The Amish, Ground Zero, Northern Ireland, and Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel, plus reflections from renowned Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh, and best-selling authors Thomas Moore (Care of the Soul) and Marianne Williamson (The Gift of Change).

Other highlights:
- A celebrated forgiveness expert has his theories put to the test after his mother’s brutal slaying
- Latest clinical research shows a link between forgiveness and lower blood pressure, other health benefits
- Equally revealing stories of people who cannot forgive or find relief from anger, grief and resentment

I’ve included more information from the e-mail after the jump…
Read the rest of this entry »

I won’t do it often, but I’ve been thinking. What started it was the aggregator. I looked over there and Brittney Gilbert was praising Bill Hobbs. Seriously doing so. First I thought zombies had taken over her blog, then wondered if I needed new glasses or maybe a shrink, but there it was. So I hopped the iTubes for SanFran. She was talking about something Hobbs had posted at VV on Kleinheider’s last post. (And it was a nice thing for Hobbs to say, btw.) Here’s the line that hit me.

It’s a damned shame that WKRN couldn’t figure out how to monetize the single most valuable political news property in the state.

Then Brittney & Chris Wage talked about TV as a news provider and the evolve or die dichotomy in the comments. Being in “old” media now is something I wouldn’t undertake. They don’t understand the web; they don’t have a good feel for the potential impact (despite political death by YouTube and news spread by viral blog coverage; they don’t see how to make money here; and they’re not wiling to trust in the medium until they come up with a revenue stream. More after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

Be still my heart.

The cast of Battlestar Galactica will be presenting the Top Ten Reasons to Watch BSG on Letterman tonight.  Oooh, I can’t wait.

h/t to New Jersey blogger ack-attack, who writes the funniest Lost recaps you’ll ever read.

I don’t watch Dancing With The Stars and therefore don’t keep up with the contestants.  Then this morning I heard that Penn Jillette was one of the competitors on last night’s season premiere and now I’m kicking myself that I didn’t tune in.  Kicking went into double time when I learned, via Sharon Cobb, that Sgt. Carey Mahoney is also dancing this year.

Steve Guttenberg- I loved him. I thought he would be the Jerry Springer of this season, but he really tried, and was truly happy to be there and humble, not to mention he’s donating his money from the show to charity. He’s an all around good competitor who will work hard to stay in, even though he’s not a natural.

What with Guttenberg on DWTS and Fisher Stevens being on Lost, all we need is Ally Sheedy to star on a show this season and we could have a big Short Circuit reunion.

RACHAEL Ray may find herself with some extra time on her hands…

Sorry RR, you’re kinda cute and I’ll bet in real life you’re totally cool - but the TV thing was “not good”.

At least for me.
Really.
Big time.

The Oceanic Sixth is revealed.

(if you haven’t gotten home to your DVRed Lost yet, don’t jump through)
Read the rest of this entry »

Eric (and I suspect the rest of 24’s fans are, too) is thrilled by the news that Jack Bauer will return in a prequel prior to the show’s return in 2009.

I’m extremely excited about this!  All of us fans have been waiting a tremendous amount of time to see Jack in action.  Now, in about six months, we will!

April’s going to be big.  Battlestar Galactica, Bones, ER, Grey’s Anatomy, & Ugly Betty (among others) are slated to return next month.  If you can’t wait until then, The Riches, Smallville, and How I Met Your Mother should be back on the air before the end of March.  Full list with start dates (as of February) at TV Guide.

I’d be dancing in the streets right now, but having the flu has really sapped my energy.

Good news for fans of NBC’s critically acclaimed series Friday Night Lights.  The show has been renewed for a third season thanks to a deal with DirectTV.

I know that several MCB contributors and readers are fans of the show and I implore you if you’ve not seen the show to give it a try.  The first season is out on DVD and easily rentable from Netflix and other such places.  And the second season will be out in a few weeks on DVD.   You’ve got the rest of the spring and summer to catch up on the best show you’re not watching….

Seriously.  Turn off the crappy reality TV and give this one a chance.  I guarantee you’ll like it.

Last Comic Standing was on site and filming in East Nashville yesterday, and Rachel had a run in with a famous type at the very popular Pied Piper.

There was an annoying dad and his son who completely held up the process to the point of mass confusion, but finely I got us each a cone and was making my out through the crowd, only to basically kick the SAME annoying kid out of the door to get out of there. And then, Bill Bellamy nearly ran me over. Literally. After a few very loud and pointed “EXCUSE MEs” to the rude kid standing smack dab in the middle of the door, I’m walking down the steps and look up to see a camera crew, and Bill Bellamy running up the stairs to the ice cream shop. I tried to keep my cool because OMG I WANT TO BE ON LAST COMIC STANDING, but as soon as I made it past the camera I looked at Brent to make sure he had seen what just happened!!

No way to tell if she’ll end up in the final cut (we’ll just have to watch), but how could any producer resist featuring Nashville’s First Dog on their show?

The television characters we get attached to are often completely fictional, so it’s relatively easy to see them come and go at a writer’s whim.  Not so for Friday Night Lights’ Jason Street, whose character is based on David Edwards, a high school footballer who has died a few days shy of his 21st birthday.

Just 20 years old, David was injured by playing high school football for San Antonio Madison in November 2003. He was a defensive back, and while going after a pass, he collided with an Austin Westlake receiver. Edwards’ neck was broken and the injury resulted in his becoming paralyzed.
…
Since FNL’s premiere in 2006, the Street character has been shown coping with life as a paraplegic, confined to a wheelchair.

If you’ve been following the video war between Jimmy Kimmel and girlfriend Sarah Silverman, and especially if you’re a Kevin Smith fan, you’ll like this.

Elizabeth Banks and Seth Rogan are starring in the newest Smith film and are following up the much talked about Matt Damon/Ben Affleck videos with a raunchy version that can only come from this crew.  Watch for a cameo from my future ex-husband Jason Mewes.

Of course, “Kevin Smith” is code for extremely salty language, and while the Kimmel and Silverman videos have any curse words bleeped out, the third one is definitely NSFW.

Dang, a lot of you guys watched the Academy Awards last night. Glad you’re blogging about it today. I caught about five minutes of the show, and it looks like there was a lot to miss. Some highlights:

On the fashion (or lack thereof):
”Oh, I’m going to the Oscars….I just don’t have time to fix my hair.” - Sista Smiff

On the host:
I’ve been fed audio of Jon Stewart’s jokes from last night. Not bad. He’s better than Chris Rock or Whoopi. Or Letterman. But not Billy Crystal. - Frank at Left of the Dial

On an omission:
Break out the kleenex, here comes the Memorial. WTF? They left out Brad Renfro! - Connielane

On the best screenplay winner:
Yay to someone who is outside the Hollywood norm. Yay to a movie that doesn’t pander to the lowest common denominator (sorry Norbit). - Squirrel Queen

On Helen Mirren:
Its an adjective-fest with the Queen. And again, like half of her dress is made of diamonds. How many Africans are dead so that our movie stars can be sparkly? - Justin at Growing Up

On not having to take advantage of the time delay:
There was only one surprise, and that was Michael Moore did NOT win best documentary for ‘Sicko.’ There were no wardrobe malfunctions, no political speeches, and not even one f***. In other words, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. - Sharon Cobb

Nathan and Joshua Blankenship both wrote about the winning song Falling Slowly from Once. VH1 has been playing this video every morning. Now I know why.

Me too, Thunder Jones, me too….

Plus, now I really want to see “There Will Be Blood” because I want to know why “I Drink Your Milkshake” was so funny. Heck, it was funny even without knowing the real punchline.

Related: Tennesse Guerilla Women (1, 2) but see nbc.com for video. Bitch is the new black!