September 22, 2005
Barksdale. Bell. McNulty. Sobotka.
Anyone who loves the Wire and lives in Virginia should be sure to check out this event, hosted by VCU. Richard Price, who's a screenwriter for the show, and the amazing David Simon (co-creator, writer, exec. producer) will both be in attendance, answering questions, and screening an episode. Apparently the show has (or will soon) start production again, for the 4th season which'll be broadcast in early '06.
Posted by Kevin at 02:51 PM | TrackBack
September 21, 2005
I literally can't resist
Today is a travel day for me, so I hadn't planned on saying anything. However, I'm watching American Morning, and there's something that I can't let pass without comment. See, starting on Monday, they sent Carol Costello (who I hate) down to report from New Orleans. Originally this infuriated me, since I figured that putting her in a windbreaker and ballcap was their attempt to give her some credibility and gravitas (like when they tried to make Miles O'Brien look smart by having him cover the shuttle launch). That would mean that the powers that be at CNN are at least somewhat invested in that idiot (seriously, she's just dumb).
However, it just occurred to me that maybe what they're doing is elbowing her out by showing how sinfully ugly she is with a ponytail and minimal make-up. That would be genius.
Also, I love watching Soldedad lay into Chertoff. She's done it a couple of times now, and it's pretty spectacular. Who knew?
I'll talk at you tomorrow from sunny partly cloudy South Florida, which is thankfully between hurricanes.
Posted by matt at 07:32 AM | TrackBack
May 25, 2005
I Was Raised On TV and I Turned Out TV
Like worker's comp, TV is indeed a bitch-goddess, giving with one hand while taking with the other.
This is old news, but it hasn't stopped sucking with age: Carnivale, the awesomely awesome endtimes fable of dust-bowl evangelism (or HBO's thinking-man's Da Vinci Code), has been cancelled. This happened despite how fantastic last season was, and with complete disregard for the psychic trauma of not resolving the most precarious of cliff-hangers. The good news is that HBO resurrected The Wire from teevee death, so the same could happen here.
On the bright side, the sixth and final season of Six Feet Under starts (Monday?!) June 6th.
Now if they would just make the next season of Deadwood start immediately when SFU ends, I'd never have to worry about not having an HBO show to obsess over.
On the Sopranos, there's this news.
Also, be sure to check out Dread Central's interviews with Carnivale's Adrienne Barbeau and Tim DeKay (Jonesy).
Posted by matt at 10:05 AM | TrackBack
May 16, 2005
Arrested Development News [Updated]
So this was probably up everywhere on Friday, but in case you hadn't seen it, Jason Bateman was quoted as saying the following in reference to the status of the show: "Actually, great. Supergreat. There is a heartbeat. There is no flatline. And there may be twins. I'm going to let Kristin [some girl from E!] figure out what that means. I can't comment any further, but there will be an announcement next week.". The article goes on to say that Fox is renewing for a full, third season of 22 episodes(!!fuck yes!!). Bateman's 'twins' comment was related to the fact that Fox's Peter Liguori had initially considered renewing for two more seasons. This is some great goddamn news for a Monday. Hopefully it's true...
[Update] Yes, it is true. Defamer, as usual, has got the lowdown.
Posted by Kevin at 09:43 AM | TrackBack
May 05, 2005
Oh, See?
Ha! If you want to see the episode of The OC that they filmed at my hotel while I was in Miami, it's on tonight. And it's a two-hour special! That's a whole night on Fox without American Idol!
Posted by matt at 07:05 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 06, 2005
Carnivale Fans, Unite!
The questions surrounding the fate of Carnivale's third season remain unresolved--about as unresolved as everything else on the show was left after the season two finale. The good news, though, is that HBO apparently hasn't necessarily decided to pass on a third season. That is, if the fact that they've put a poll out on the subject is any indication of their thinking.
If you want to see more scarified dust-bowl theology, then you best make your voice heard (link via Dread Central).
Posted by matt at 03:20 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
March 20, 2005
the Wire is On
For the few of you who haven't seen this elsewhere, the Wire has been renewed for a fourth season, set to air some time in 2006. 12 episodes. Should be interesting to see where the story goes, given the changes in focus that happened between seasons 1, 2, and 3- (season 4 will possibly delve into the educational system, as the article says). Now if Fox would only renew Arrested Development...
Posted by Kevin at 10:52 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
March 16, 2005
Queer Eye for the Center Fielder
Well, if all of non-greenideas America wasn't already sick of the Red Sox, they sure as hell will be when last season's World Series champs (!) appear on the season premiere of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. Johnny Damon, Kevin Millar, Doug Mirabelli, Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek are all set to get the Fab 5 makeover.
I think it's a cute idea, and they can do whatever they want with the last four of those guys, but I wish they'd just stay away from Johnny D. For one thing, aesthetically speaking, he's fine the way he is (and he's got those eyes you could just get totally lost in...). But more than that, if there's one thing last season proved, it's that his power clearly resides, Samson-like, in his hair. Fortunately, a contractual obligation surrounding his forthcoming book (and tour) prevents him from cutting his hair. But the beard is fair game, and we've seen repeatedly that as his beard grows, so does his on-base percentage.
On a side note: Dear god. What is wrong with me that I can't help but go straight to the gutter when Carson Kressley is quoted as saying (Re: the Sox/QEftSG cultural exchange) that "They're teaching us how to spit." It's not just me, is it?
Posted by matt at 12:18 PM | TrackBack
The OC Goes Bi(-Coastal)
Apparenty the producers of The OC took the really wrong exit off of the 405, as they will be filiming at my hotel tonight. With any luck, there'll be some future episode of that show which will inexplicably (to most) feature posters from the conference we're holding here. After all, if they can turn Death Cab into an overnight mainstream success, imagine what they can do for hospital-based palliative care! Kids all across the country will be like "yeah, changing American attitudes towards death and dying is hella sweet!" Totally.
Posted by matt at 11:57 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
March 10, 2005
Where is my Mind?
Somehow, maybe because I had such a bad case of LOAG fever (for which there is no known cure), I totally forgot that the season premiere of Deadwood was last Sunday! Even saloon-styled Grand Central shuttle service wasn't enough to get me in front of my TV that night.
Thank Jeebus for HBO On-Demand. Now where's my hooch?
Posted by matt at 02:55 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
February 15, 2005
Lights! Camera! Awesome!
Holy crap! Law & Order: Trial by Jury is filming on our block tonight! Lilith could be on our block!
Just in case they film our building, we taped the Boston Herald from the day after the Sox won the World Series in the window. It's a fold-out!
There must've been some mix-up, though. We seem to have gotten Gothamist's birthday present by mistake (by the way, happy birthday, Gothamist!). We wonder if maybe they filmed an episode of Gilmore Girls in front of Gothamist's apartment on our birthday.
Posted by matt at 08:04 PM | TrackBack
February 10, 2005
Arrested Development might be cancelled
'American Dad' did so well (hmm, maybe because it was shown right after the Super Bowl and the Simpsons?), that Fox is thinking about moving the show back an hour to an 8:30 p.m. timeslot (instead of the 9:30 slot originally planned), creating a full hour and a half of animated sitcoms on Sunday nights (starting in May). Now, don't get me wrong, 'American Dad' was pretty solid, but really it doesn't hold a candle to Arrested Development. If Fox does end up dropping the Emmy-winning show (which would be a wretched move on their part), here's hoping some other network is smart enough to pick it up for (at least) another season. As is, the episode order has been curtailed, and AD will have to end its second season in April some time. (news via Yancey)
Posted by Kevin at 02:15 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
October 19, 2004
Burger King to the Nth
For people who may have missed this because they lost their sight due to cavefish-like visual atrophy, the Burger King commercial that's been playing for the past couple weeks is by far the best television ad we've seen in ages. Allow us to quickly re-cap: 1. ginger-headed man sleeps soundly in his bed. 2. wakes up and rolls over to see the massively-headed Burger King King staring at him. 3. Is understandably freaked out a little bit. 4. BKK gestures for him to slow his bewilderment; he's got something to assuage his fears of being raped. 5. The BKK delivers, with a manual flourish, an exqusitely delicious looking Croissan'wich. 6. BKK and his stalkee share a small, uncomfortably intimate bonding moment (hands on knee).
It's so fucking good. Congratulations go out to Crispin Porter + Bogusky for creating what is probably one of the most imaginative and well-executed TV ads in recent memory. Greenideas, however, disagrees with the assessment given by the staff of VH1's Best Week Ever show- that the BKK and the customer had a torrid one-night affair, and the BKK felt guilty about it, so he ran out and got his man some breakfast. It seems to us that it's far more likely that the BKK is meant to function as some sort of nutrition-centric yet perverse version of Santa Claus- a beneficent figure who diffuses through doors and windows, and delivers his v. corporate presents in a polite, but grotesquely creepy, way. Let's hope there's a series of these in the works.
Posted by matt at 08:00 AM | TrackBack
September 13, 2004
The Apprentice's Snobatronic Lame-boy
Raj Bhakta, pictured somewhere in the html environs of this post, is the smuggest, prissiest man-child we've ever seen on a reality TV show, and a lot of that has to do with his education. Well, maybe 40% of the smugness is education-related. Raj attended the same boarding school as greenideas Kevin: the Hill School, a 'bastion' of 'tradition' and Southeastern Pennsylvania snob-bobbery. It wasn't all that bad, actually, outside of the fact that when we (and by we, I mean 'I, Kevin'. God, this blogger's "we" construction is awkward) attended, it was all-male. Which we won't go into, since the effects of the instantaneous social retardation effective upon enrollment are still lingering to this day. Oh, chuckle. Getting back to Raj ('94)...he gave a chapel speech where he admitted that he masturbated. In front of: the Headmaster, the Headmaster's wife, all the faculty, and all the students. It was pretty funny at the time, mostly because the large majority of the audience was, of course, under-18 year old guys. It's hard to take someone all that seriously when they get up and confess, under the non-denominational eyes of a generic wooden Jesus, that they pleasured themselves constantly as a '2nd-former' (eighth-grader, for those of you who don't speak British-inflected prep. school jargon) and there's a slight (like .5% chance) that the Donald knows about this chapel speech, since he's the proud father of two Hill alumni, Donald Jr. ('96) (loaned me $1.50 once) and Eric ('02). Definitely adds to the experience of watching the Apprentice. Which one should never, ever do.
Posted by matt at 08:00 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
August 30, 2004
And Twayuns!
We'll be the first to admit that there have been a lot of provocative beer commercials over the years: Bud Bowl, Whassup, etc. The Yes I Am guy for Bud Light, however, is a personal favorite. But in the last couple of years, advertising has made us sad, with its reliance on tired, lame tropes of male 'preferences', e.g. the Twins!, or the recent one where a montage of men say "I have dated a woman for her brains. Her BIG...BEAUTIFUL...BRAINS" [Ed. note: when they say brains, they mean breasts]. It makes our eyes melt and our ears congeal with hate to witness these commercials. It's insidious and clever because the 'brains' line can be interpreted on several different levels, across demographics: you've got the people who will think to themselves and then actually say to the TV, 'oh yeah dude, I feel you on that one, wink fucking nudge wink' and then chaw up their cheeks with some menthol thin-cut Red Man and beat their dog with a tire iron, etc. And then there's your standard normal US male, who, while he can acknowledge to himself that what they're saying (in the commercial) is funny, KNOWS that he could and probably should never express anything like that in front of a standard US female, if he wants to be regarded as a mature, sophisticated person, and not as some prognathic-jawed asshole. Ahh, it all becomes very complex and depressing after a certain point, and really, it's just annoying. And it's all Coors' fault, that smug bastard up in his Aspen terrarium (he is a walking lizard, did you know that?), spreading his exothermic filth all over the place.
Of course, this post wouldn't be complete without a mention of Zapp Brannigan's pick-up lines from that one episode of Futurama where Kif first tries to date Amy: "Oh! Ahem! I find the most erotic part of a woman is the boobies".
Posted by matt at 11:00 AM | TrackBack
August 27, 2004
Taking Carb Mountain (By Strategy)
Have you seen that Subway commercial, where the little kids talk about how they've lost weight by swimming, or walking, or rocking briskly back and forth as they commune with their Gamecubes? Point being, this little slab of hot capitalist/PSA hybridization is rolling along to the tune of Brian Eno's "Ending (Ascent)", from his album Apollo, which is weird, weird, weird. Who was the first on the marketing team to say, "you know whose music really says weight loss to me? Brian Eno. Especially his ambient stuff. Jesus, does it ever. So evocative of both lunchmeat and healthy nutrition. Let's get that bitch on the phone. Fuck whatever the royalties are, we're doing it." That's probably exactly what they said.
Posted by matt at 07:30 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
August 02, 2004
Things that You Should Like but Don't, vol. 1: Gilmore Girls
We're inaugurating a new feature today here at greenideas. In order to remedy what we see as unfounded prejudices that prevent people from seeing awesomeness, we're just going to point out some of the places from whence this awesomeness issues. (Note that this endeavor is distinct from efforts to debunk claims of awesomeness where none exists, koff Franz Ferdinand koff) At any rate, here are some reasons why you, gentle reader, should like Gilmore Girls
1. Lauren Graham is hot - Yes, it's true. And she's not just a pretty face. She's got a sweet ass, too! Seriously though, she's hot.
2. Alexis Bledel is hot - You know, for a while there, we thought it was kind of wrong to think this. With a baby face like that, one has to take great care in judging hotness (don't kid yourself into thinking that that Olsen twins countdown clock was anything but gross). Needless to say we were all kinds of psyched when her character, Rory, started college. But here's the thing: Gilmore Girls wasn't even cast until after Bledel had finished her first year at NYU. It was always okay to think she was hot. Research is cool!
3. If you're a chick, the guy who plays Luke is hot - Sure, the guy who plays Luke has kind of rugged good looks, and he's got those eyes that could look right through you... Anyway, this list is geared more towards the guys who think this show is too girly, so let's move on, shall we?
4. The Music - Maybe you don't watch the show because you think they don't play good music. Is that it? Dude, you're so wrong! After the first season, they released a soundtrack album that was really good. Come on, now. PJ Harvey? Pernice Brothers? The Shins? Yo La Tengo? Big Star? You like those bands, don't you? There was even an episode where this really lame boy asked Rory out to a PJ Harvey show, even though he didn't know who she was. Hell, The Shins even played on an episode. Grant-Lee Phillips, founder of the seminal alterna-country (more "alternative" than alt-country) band, Grant Lee Buffalo, has a recurring role as the town troubadour. Plus each and every episode is packed to the brim with references to the Who or Syd Barrett that 97% of the shows viewers don't get.
7. One time, they referenced Emma Goldman - They don't usually namecheck early feminist/anarchist thinkers on The OC, do they?
6. It's not on at the same time as Six Feet Under or The West Wing - What could you possibly be watching that's better? Hm?
Seriously, it's on tomorrow night. You've got a month or so to catch up on reruns, and get the season one DVDs from Netflix. Don't be stupid.
Posted by matt at 11:43 AM | TrackBack
May 21, 2004
Seth McFarlane Rules the School
Okay, we here at greenideas hate Rupert Murdoch considerably more than the next guy, but god damn are we excited about Fox's Fall season. For reals.
No, we're not all abuzz over "The Billionaire," the stupid "Apprentice" rip-off, "starring" Richard Branson (The twist is that rich guy is British. It's like The Donald meets Simon Cowell!). In fact, looking at most of the other offerings in the line up fills us with a bizarre melange of rage and nausea.
So what are we so psyched about? The new season of Family Guy, obvs. And before you ask, yes, that alone is most definitely enough to warrant our enthusiasm. But that's so far from all.
Not only is there a new season of Family Guy, but that show's creator, Seth McFarlane, has another bun in the oven for next season. "American Dad" is another cartoon show, and since it's by McFarlane, will thus be awesome. It's about a family whose patriarch is a CIA, homeland security guy. Also, there's an alien and a German-speaking goldfish. Other than that, details are sketchy to nonexistent. Nonetheless, we already love it.
Posted by matt at 01:07 PM | TrackBack
May 19, 2004
"Angel" Says "Peace Out"
To continue with what's becoming our once weekly ritual of posting on somebody's series finale, tonight is the last "Angel".
This should really be a bigger deal than it is. When "Buffy" bowed out, it was huge. We took off work, prepared a feast and hunkered down with a box of Kleenex in case anyone bit it (R.I.P. Anya). So naturally, like all "Buffy" fans, we looked to "Angel" for the continuation of the mythology of the Buffiverse. But damn, did they drop the ball. Last season, more people were watching "Angel" than "Buffy," and the numbers only went up in the new season. In return for this increase in viewership, they decided to deliver the worst, lame-duck season they could possibly muster. Between the potty humor (the unfunny kind), and bringing Spike back as a g-g-ghost, they lost us pretty early on.
We'll probably try to watch it, since it is kind of an event, but we haven't seen it in a while due to its major league suckage, so we've got some catching up to do. Presumably there's something threatening to destroy the world, or Angel becomes human, or Cordelia gets out of rehab. Something like that.
If somebody could wake us if anybody from "Buffy" makes a cameo (even though SMG is a confirmed no-go), that'd be great.
Oh, but this is kind of cool, Kevin Williamson on the "Angel" finale
Posted by matt at 12:03 PM | TrackBack
May 17, 2004
Jon Stewart Rocks the Colonial House
Infotainment cutie-pie, Jon Stewart, gave this year's commencement address at his (and greenideas') alma mater, The College of William & Mary (located in picturesque Williamsburg, VA).
That's cool and everything, but we can't help but feel all kinds of cheated, since our commencement speaker was Madeline Albright. Although, Civil War historian Shelby Foote, and James Ukrop, founder of the VA-based Jeebus-friendly supermarket chain, Ukrop's, were also involved in the ceremony. Woo, and might we add, hoo.
In case you were wondering, some other famous W&Mers are: Thomas Jefferson, Travis from Dismemberment Plan, and the first lady of American theater, Glenn Close.
(link via stereogum)
While we're on the subject of Williamsburg, check out Gawker on Bush Gardens in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, vs. Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA.
Posted by matt at 12:32 PM | TrackBack
May 13, 2004
Some Show Called 'Frasier' Ends Tonight
Apparently there's this show called 'Frasier' on NBC, and it's having a series finale tonight. Did anyone else hear about this show? It couldn't have been on for very long if nobody's heard of it, right?
Seriously though, we can't help but wonder how Frasier has managed to hold on for as long as it has. We do remember it being good for a few years at the beginning, but it never really ascended above the level of 'Three's Company'- hijinks (compromising scenes seen through keyholes, conversations misheard through kitchen doors escalate into salacious scandals, etc.). We've heard a lot of talk about it being the smartest show on television, but nonetheless, we can't help but guess at what that could mean besides the fact that two of its main characters put on pseudo-English William F. Buckley accents and talk about opera.
Also, the fact that NBC had to move the show into Must See Thursday for its finale can't say anything very good about how the network handled the thing.
At any rate, Frasier being a spin-off of the wildy popular 'Cheers' and lasting as long as it has has got to bode well for 'Joey' in the fall, right? Right?
Don't mind us, we're just bitter because we wanted to see more of Frasier and Roz hooking up.
Posted by matt at 10:20 AM | TrackBack
May 06, 2004
Obligatory 'Friends' Post
Has anybody ever seen this 'Friends' show? No? Well, we'll tell you a little bit about it just so you don't feel totally lost when you watch the finale tonight. See, there are these people, and they're all friends, and they live in New York. They're all very different, but somehow they manage to maintain their friendships despite that, and also despite all of the socially incestuous hooking up between them. Some of them even got married to each other, and there are various children that are or will be the products of this twisted web of twentysomething-cum-thirtysomething intrigue. Plus Monica used to be fat.
We kid the friends, but we kid because we love. Sure, there's probably some ice-veined sociopath out there who didn't double over in squirmy joy when Ross came back to knock on the door of the coffee shop to give Rachel the major league smooches. But we know that, thanks to our criminal justice system, that person is safely locked away somewhere dark and slimy--possibly with electrodes attached to various parts.
The fact is, it's a great show that, even after having seemingly jumped the shark several times, always managed to pull it back together and make us laugh, cry, or whatever else it was the writers wanted us to do every damn week.
The show's producers have said that we can expect a happy ending tonight, which rules out fiery death and 'it was all a dream,' but not much else.
Posted by matt at 10:12 AM | TrackBack
May 03, 2004
Jack McCoy: Born in a Log Cabin?
This Wednesday, Sam Waterston will deliver a speech at Cooper Union. In this speech, he will introduce himself to the nation and give a lengthy argument detailing his concerns that the Union is in danger--that we are hurtling inexorably towards a war that will pit brother against brother. He will argue that the government must be prepared for this conflict, and he will do so without claiming that Alabama has WMDs. The thing is, he totally stole the speech! The oration Waterston will give on Wednesday was orginally given by Abraham Lincoln in 1860.
According to the Times, Waterston is nervous that people won't be able to sit through what is essentially a long political argument of the sort that is now heard only on the Senate floor or read in policy journals. For us, this just confirms what we've always known: Sam Waterston is a badass.
The Times has the full text of Lincoln's speech.
Snopes on Kennedy having a secretary named Lincoln.
Posted by matt at 10:12 AM | TrackBack
May 01, 2004
Forthcoming Awesomeness from Aaron Sorkin
If it's true, this news is great enough to out ourselves as occasional readers of Ain't It Cool News. The fanboy megasite's resident TV guy has some fantastic news about Aaron Sorkin, creator of 'Sports Night' and 'The West Wing' (two of the best shows ever... ever!).
Apparently, Sorkin is working on a film project called "The Farnsworth Invention," about Philo Farnsworth, the inventor of TV. Just the fact that this baby will have Sorkin's name on it should be enough to make you feel good in your pants, but if you remember Sam Donovan's (Bill Macy) monologue about Farnsworth from the second season of 'Sports Night' ("I can make glass tubes"), the pants feel even better. Sorkin is completely in love with television, and uses its inventor as the metaphorical embodiment of the unbounded creative possibilities of the medium.
According to Variety, Tommy Schlamme is also on board for this one as well. That should delight more than a couple of you. Empire Online backs all of this up.
The other (less substantiated) project Sorkin is working on is another behind-the-scenes TV dramedy, in the vein of 'Sports Night', except this one will be about an SNL-type late-night comedy show. This poses the question of how excited is too excited as far as TV shows are concerned? Judging from both 'Sports Night' and 'West Wing', Sorkin has a preternatural ability to figure out what happens behind any closed door, and turn what he finds into an endlessly compelling narrative.
If either of these projects actually make it onto their respective media (or, dare we dream, both do), there'd really be no other way to describe it than so very best. God, we're giddy. Like, honestly giddy. Okay, time for a cold shower.
Posted by matt at 11:35 AM | TrackBack
April 22, 2004
Pernice Bros. Rock the Mortuary
Oh, Lucky Day! Two of greenideas' favorite things, 'Six Feet Under' and The Pernice Brothers, will soon be together at last. In a message to the band's e-mail list, artist-wrangler, Joyce Linehan, said that an episode of the brilliant HBO series will feature the song "Baby in Two" from the Bros. last full-length, Yours, Mine, and Ours. Truly, these are two great tastes that will taste freakin' amazing together.
In other Pernice Brothers TV news, one of the band's "I Hate My Life" t-shirts will appear on another great show, 'Gilmore Girls'.
Now if we could just get Lorelei Gilmore to wear a Pernice Brothers t-shirt and make out with Nate Fisher while Joe Pernice croons sweetly in the background, that would be hot.
Posted by matt at 01:50 PM | TrackBack
April 14, 2004
D'oh!
What do 'The Simpsons' and the NHL have in common? Both feature characters who have relatively few teeth, and both are having serious labor issues which might put the kibosh on their respective next seasons. How do they differ? We care a hell of a lot more about 'The Simpsons.'
All six principal voice actors for the series are demanding that their salaries be almost tripled, to $360,000 per episode. That's quite a leap, especially when you consider that each actor was paid $3,000 a show in the first season.
If Fox caves on this, it would represent a coup in the industry which has always treated animation as a red-headed stepchild. Voice-actors would find themselves with considerably more professional leverage. For instance, if Homer and co. get their raises, it will give the actors on the recently resurrected 'Family Guy' considerably more bargaining power. Furthermore, it would go some way towards establishing Dan Castelanetta, the voice of Homer, as well as the other actors, as being on equal footing with the stars of live-action sitcoms.
Our standard policy on entertainers clamoring for more money is that they are spoiled whiners who should be grateful for having their dream jobs. However, as we are big fans of cartoons, we're choosing to look at the ideological grounds for this battle. Also, we just think that Fox should do everything in their power to make sure that the best show on television has a next season. Besides, even if the cast gets every cent they're asking for, their pay per episode will still be over $600,000 south of what the 'Friends' cast and Jerry Seinfeld get.
"Negotiations Stalled for Voice Actors in 'The Simpsons'" (NYT)
Posted by matt at 09:47 AM | TrackBack
April 02, 2004
NYT Gives Props to 'My So-Called Life'
In what's actually kind of an interesting article, the Times today gives a critical capsule history of teenage-themed TV dramas. The article looks at how drastically TV portrayals of adolescence have changed in the space between 'My So-Called Life' and 'The O.C.,' noting how hot all of the O.C. kids are, and how they never seem to really go to school, or do anything that would indicate that they're not 30 years old.
You've really got to hand it MSCL's creator, Winnie Holzman. She absolutely nailed the awkwardness, isolation, and desperation of adolescence. Sometimes, watching that show still brings up not-so-pleasant feelings. We can't really remember much of anything that happened in high school, but MSCL is so very evocative that it makes us remember exactly how much it sucked to be 15.
Anyway, if you've got the big cable dealie, reruns of 'My So-Called Life' start tonight on The N, which also brings you 'Daria' and 'Degrassi High.' So have Tino make you a fake ID. Put on your Doc Martens, something plaid, and a look of disaffected ennui, and remind yourself that it's not so bad to be a grown-up.
God, remember when Angela went to see Jordan Catalano's band practice, and she thought he was singing that song about her but really it was about his car? Brutal.
"The Ancient Days of Teenage Drama" (NYT)
Posted by matt at 11:06 AM | TrackBack
March 26, 2004
Bye Bye Briscoe? (Updated)
Jerry Orbach might be leaving "Law & Order." We hope we're not alone in thinking that this would be an absolute tragedy.
On the bright side, the same sources who are saying that Briscoe is leaving L&O say that Orbach won't be leaving the franchise. He will likely be involved with the newest member of the L&O family, "Law & Order: Trial by Jury." We can only hope that he'll be reprising his role as Lennie Briscoe, the coolest curmedgeon in prime time. Let us trust in the ways of Wolf.
We can't help but wonder how Gothamist is taking this news. We also can't help but be all kinds of jealous of their visit to the L&O set.
"'Law & Order' Losing Veteran Jerry Orbach - Sources" (Reuters)
Update: See Gothamist Jen's thoughts at Gothamist, or below in comments.
Posted by matt at 01:08 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
February 26, 2004
And Your Bird Can Suck
The producers of 'American Idol' are courting Paul McCartney to be a guest judge for their spectacle of misery and humiliation. The 'Idol' execs say they're also after Stevie Wonder.
If nothing else, were either McCartney or Wonder to actually sign on for this nonsense, it would allow us to give a definitive answer to Barry's question in 'High Fidelity': "Is it fair to judge a once-great artist for his latter-day sins? Sub-question, is it better to burn out than fade away?"
Of course, we could be thinking about this all wrong. Maybe Paul's motives could be pure and good. Maybe he's just doing his part to make himself as lame as possible in order to finally let Ringo be the coolest living Beatle.
"McCartney 'Idol' Judge?" (NY Post)
Posted by matt at 03:06 PM | TrackBack
January 23, 2004
Finally, Late Night TV Weighs in on Dean's Temper
Look, we realize that it's our civic duty to rag on Dean for blowing his top, but we're just one ambiguously-pronouned weblog, we can't be expected to come up with that many quips about the whole Iowa fiasco. With that in mind, it's time to sit back and let the professionals handle the dirty work:
Letterman: "Howard Dean has been the front-runner, and last night he finishes a distant third. Here's what happened: The people of Iowa realized they didn't want a president with the personality of a hockey dad."
Conan: "Howard Dean came in a disappointing third place. Afterward, Dean said, `Iowa is behind me, and now I look forward to screaming at voters in New Hampshire.'"
Seriously, these men are professional comedians. Don't attempt to achieve that level of political satire or you just might lose a finger.
Posted by matt at 01:22 AM | TrackBack
January 21, 2004
News Flash: TV Creates Pop Stars
In an in-depth expose on the painfully obvious, an NYT feature makes the bold claim that television has a strong impact on the success of popular recording artists. By comparing the chart success and sales figures of R&B act Kelis with those of whitebread singing sensation Josh Groban, the article attributes the latter's considerable fortune to his being all over the place on television. Who could have imagined that having an artist force-fed to an unsuspecting populace would allow that artist to enjoy commercial success?
Greenideas wonders what sorts of revelations are in store in tomorrow's Times. Perhaps we will be treated to a muckraking tell-all exposing the Clear Channel's stranglehold on the media. If we're very lucky, we might have the fortune of seeing a feature on how eating greasy McDonald's food contributes to obesity. Truly, we have reached the high watermark of investigative journalism.
Should the reader follow the link below, we would like to point out the author's choice of the expression "grass-roots" to describe Groban's program of media saturation. Granted, we stopped believing long ago that independently released music would save the world, but to call an artist such as Groban's rise to fame "grass-roots" completely ignores the blood, sweat, and tears that artists like Guided by Voices have put into buliding lasting, artistically rewarding careers. Hell, the Strokes are more "grass-roots" than Josh Groban.
"Forget Radio, Musical Path to Success is TV, TV, TV" (NYT)
Posted by matt at 11:40 PM | TrackBack
January 20, 2004
Woo Hoo!
Recognizing a fact that is tacitly accepted by the clear majority of the human race, The Writers Guild of America has nominated 'The Simpsons' for three awards for best comedy writing.
Although we haven't seen very much of this season, due to a lack of a working television at greenideas HQ, we can still subsist on a steady diet of reruns on tape. Also, we'd like to assure our readers that we didn't know about this story when we made our two vaguely Simpsons-related posts earlier today. We are, in fact, a little creeped out now.
In a move sure to please the Gothamist brain trust, the Guild also nominated 'Law & Order' for three awards for dramatic writing.
Kudos to all of this years nominees, but mostly to 'The Simpsons' and 'L&O.'