Hollywood Strike-Out

I never would imagine that even in the days of Internet, digital, DVD, etc. that Hollywood would again go on strike. Yes, on Monday the writers created their picket lines once again, and right off the bat it's hitting your favorite TV shows. No sooner than the late-night talk shows became affected, then the sitcoms were next in line (aside from the drama "Desperate Housewives"). It's really a shame to have your television habits affected, isn't it? Of course, the network that's really gonna lose in all this is NBC, the lowest rated network amongsted the big four. I don't think anyone cares at this point. You know what? It doesn't bother me one bit since my relatives (whom I'm staying with) don't have cable right now. At least we still have the NFL and the NBA to bring us some drama. If a complete wipe-out of our entire season happens, I won't be surprised. It's all about one thing...money. The more time passes, the more dough they ask. But you got to have some sympathy for the writers...they make things work in the first place...that is, for shows that manage to survive. Just one thing I ask of them...don't picket for too long or Hollywood will really lose its cool.

NEXT TIME: DVD Box Set Stuff

Football's Answer to "Last Man Standing", Part II

It can only get tougher for football. After the end of this past weekend, only three undefeated teams remain in College Football, while in the NFL there's only one (the New England Patriots). But the few that remain can only display their faith in themselves, and faith that they will make it through that championship game. Whatever know-how they have, they are tough as nails. I will be surprised if any undefeated team makes it to that championship. I guess that's the short of it as I was not surprised to hear about the latest Hollywood strike involving the writers...but that's another gripe for tomorrow.

Friday Gripe (or "Dawn's Early Night")

To close out another week of gripes, I've chosen as my subject a great entertainer who passed away this past week, singer-actor Robert Goulet.

Goulet had a unique musical voice. His talented career spanned film, stage, television, and radio. Goulet was a remarkable performer. But, sometimes he had a few blunders.

I remember years back watching blooper shows (they drew a lot of ratings back in the 1980s). One show I remember seeing had a black-and-white film of Goulet back in the 1960s performing (or at least trying to) the National Anthem. Right off the bat, he flubbed the opening line. "Oh, say can you see, by the dawn's early night". NIGHT? Well, that was a day done quick, didn't it? Needless to say, the audience booed and booed. Anyway, that was some ultimate insult to Francis Scott Key's patriotic composition, wasn't it? Yes...at least until Roseanne ruined it even further decades later. By the way, the opening line should go, "...by the dawn's early LIGHT".

I didn't know until news of Goulet's death hit that I learned where that footage came from...a 1965 boxing match that featured Muhammad Ali (still "The Greatest Athlete" in my book).

Another blunder Goulet committed that I saw on the blooper shows was (I believe) from the old "Mike Douglas Show" (I think...or was it another daily pre-Oprah talk show?) Anyway, here was Goulet picking a lovely girl from the audience to sing to. The song was called "The Nearness Of you". Boy, how he serenaded and kissed her on the forehead. "Her", that is, until "her" was revealed to be a man in drag!!! (calling Dustin "Tootsie" Hoffman.) Boy, was Goulet embarrassed! Yes, entertainers are entitled to a few mistakes. But all-in-all, he was a great artist to the end. He will be sorely missed.

Have a great weekend...back next week! And don't forget to set your clocks back on Saturday night for the return of Standard Time (Hooray! Longer nights are back!!! I love it when it gets dark early.)

NEXT TIME: Football's Version Of "Last Man Standing"--Take II

If You Don't Have A TV...

TV or not TV...that is the question. It used to be in case you missed a favorite show you'd use the good ol' VCR. All you have to do is time-shift (program it so you can see it at a later time). So, if you had no time to watch, say, "General Hospital", while you're at work or shopping, the VCR would take care of it for you. Push a few buttons, then when you get home, rewind the tape and see it after dinner.

Boy, have we come far from it. Digital has taken over. Now you have such things as Tivo, DVR, and yes, disc recording from your own home.

But when it comes to the Internet...hmmm. Somehow the networks found a way to make their first-run shows available there too. Miss that episode of "CSI" or "Lost", and don't have any recorder or TV at all? Now there's a scenario to think about. All of a sudden, your PC has become a television! I once tried this kind of thing with the second episode of NBC's newest remake of "Bionic Woman" on a certain website. And you know what? It's kind of cool. Not that I'm fond of a network languishing in fourth place right now. I've been a little bit hesitant to try it with stuff from the other networks, but I suppose I will catch on if I try.

Oh, can we forget those that have iPods that can store new and classic TV shows too with a little know-how?

You know, when those Southern California fires hit and we had no cable TV to watch the coverage, obviously we used the Internet to access one of the local news channels and our PC became our television in a sense. We had it going non-stop.

Gee, I didn't know a PC could replace a television. But I suppose if we're too lazy to catch this
season's crop of shows or current news events on regular TV, it seems like a pretty good alternative. Now, I wonder if I can log on to my favorite game show...

NEXT TIME: Friday Gripe (or "Dawn's Early Night").