Month: November 2003

I’ve been AWOL this past week, being that I was in Anaheim, CA for a conference. I didn’t get a chance to blog because I was busy putting together another work of art– the medium of choice was PowerPoint. Did the red-eye back to JFK to make it in for work today. I have over 600 pictures of the most magical place on Earth. Tomorrow morning, I’m leaving for Honolulu for another conference. Maybe I’ll find an Internet hot spot somewhere?

NYC: It’s quite quiet. And, cold. Etc. NY Giants lost, NY Jets somehow won, but I’m not that into football.

The cover of the New York Daily News tv guide has a picture of the star of “Saving Jessica Lynch.” I do not know if it’s a good thing that there are movies about Jessica Lynch, the woman GI of the recent Iraq war, and Elizabeth Smart, the Colorado teenager who was kidnapped. After much criticism (deserved or not), the Ronald Reagan movie was shifted to Showtime, instead of the producing network, CBS, the same network that broadcasted a movie on Hitler. What does all this say about our society? Then there’s CBS’ “60 minutes,” with a story on the other POW’s of the war, and we have to ask ourselves – who is a hero; what is truth; are we accepting what the on-screen media is feeding us, and shouldn’t we hear other stories and perspectives, to know what is “truth”? Hmm. Some food for thought, I suppose.

WB’s “Everwood” is still interesting tv. The annoying Dr. Harold Abbott, even if annoying, is a portrayed by a subtle actor. I just hope this show doesn’t wind up spending all its time inviting guest stars (maybe it’s just for November sweeps).

“Star Trek Enterprise” is slowly improving, but it’s still frustrating, especially when it lapses into the curse of recent Trek (i.e., hitting the reset button with a time travel episode that returns us to the correct timeline, yet declining to follow up on intriguing potential consequences or focusing on consequences with shortcomings).

I’ve noticed this since the baseball playoffs, and I figure I might as well mention this now – the Delta airlines commercial, where the lady who orders her seat on-line and her seat pops out of the printer and accompanies her to the airport. The jingle is strangely catchy; I would end up singing along with it, while still not actually knowing the words. And, yes, the subliminal (or not so subliminal) message: yes, Delta, let’s see the grandest of canyons and enjoy our traveling campanion, that comfortable seat. It’s campy, but scary too (because, I don’t know, the lady seems to like her seat way too much; and watching a seat with legs dressed in khakis must be a straight out of Twilight Zone). I’d give it extra credit for being a hypnotic commercial; both eye-and-ear catching.

Better Sundays ought to be out there. Really.

I caught most of tonight’s “Angel” – quite funny and angsty, in the best of the “Angel” way, wherein the vampire-with-a-soul, Angel, fights along side these Mexican fighters (guys with masks). Angel’s trying to regain his sense of being a champion for good since he’s been feeling disconnected (since he’s currently running the L.A. branch of The Big Evil Law Firm); finding out what it takes may still take awhile for Angel, but maybe he’ll find his way.

Still can’t get over seeing the Dukes of Hazzard (John Schneider and Tom Wopat) singing tv show theme songs during that CBS 75th anniversary show on Sunday night (11/2/03). It was eerie. The two of them are caliber level Broadway actors (Wopat, in particular, having done “42nd Street” recently) and yet singing the Ballad of Gilligan’s Isle? Aye Carumba, as Bart Simpson would say.