Category: Brooklyn

The infamous bar review company, Barbri, has gotten itself in trouble out in California. People in California could actually get a refund from Barbri for Barbri’s alleged monopoly of the bar review market (or, at least, to the extent that it allegedly made a deal with Kaplan, that other test prep organization, to squeeze anyone else from entering the test prep industry – as if Kaplan’s this poor helpless organization):

Central District of California complaint states that the alleged agreement between Kaplan and BAR/BRI amounts to a per se unlawful market division to preserve BAR/BRI’s alleged monopoly on full-service bar review courses. The named plaintiffs, Ryan Rodriguez and Reena B. Frailich, are both Los Angeles lawyers. The lawsuit claims BAR/BRI students were overcharged about $300 million since August 1997, and seeks treble damages. Rodriguez v. West Publishing Corp., No. CV 053222R (NCx).

After Kaplan withdrew the offer to purchase West Bar Review, West Publishing sold West Bar’s assets to BAR/BRI. Then BAR/BRI was able to raise the price of its courses substantially, according to the complaint. In 2001, West Publishing re-entered the bar review business by purchasing BAR/BRI.

A spokesperson for West Publishing says the case is without merit, and the communications director of Kaplan Inc. made a similar statement.

Information for the complaint came from people then associated with both companies, says the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Eliot G. Disner.

“There are a lot of eyes and ears in the bar-review business—spurned suitors, former employees, competitors,” says Disner, who practices in Santa Monica, Calif. “I’m not going to say who told me everything, but it’s fair to say it’s a combination of people who put this together.”

If the case is successful, Disner estimates plaintiffs will receive approximately $1,000 apiece, depending on how much they paid for the BAR/BRI course.

“My goal is to get the [BAR/BRI] company broken up,” Disner says. “Over the years, there’s been a number of people interested in the bar business—it’s very lucrative—but BAR/BRI has done a very good job at keeping them out, I think illegally at some times.”

The lawsuit marks the second time Disner has filed a case against BAR/BRI. Previously he represented Bar Passers, a California business that was ultimately acquired by West.

“A pattern, on BAR/BRI’s part, is doing whatever it takes to keep control of the bar review market,” he says.

Others aren’t so sure.

“The sort of thing alleged here is textbook per se illegal stuff,” says J. Manly Parks, a Philadelphia antitrust lawyer. Plaintiffs’ witnesses, he adds, may have some baggage, but he doesn’t see that as a hurdle.

“If they’ve got a witness saying there was such an agreement, and the other side says, ‘No, there wasn’t,’ if that’s the key issue in the case, it’s going to trial.”

The government or competitors, not consumers, usually challenge such mergers, says Washington, D.C., lawyer Joel A. Christie.

“They’re basically asking for the court to order the creation of a separate and independent competitor, and I would characterize that as a very big stretch,” says Christie, who previously worked in the Justice Department’s antitrust division.

Hmm.

Today’s “Doonesbury” – May 16, 2005 – slight error by Garry Trudeau!
The character B.D., the veteran of the War in Iraq and who lost his leg, tells his daughter that he has to return to the hospital to check out his new prosthetic leg.

“You’re going back to the hospital again, Daddy?”
“Last time. At least, I hope so, Alex,” says B.D.

Umm, B.D. – I could have sworn that your daughter’s Sam (as in Samantha). 😉 “Alex” is the name of Mike Doonesbury’s daughter and she’s currently being recruited by the US Army for the war (much against Doonesbury’s stern objections).

Ah, that Trudeau. He’s quite a prolific cartoonist – years and years of “Doonesbury”‘s – and he forgets a character’s name… oops… 😉 Well, lots of characters, so it’s hard to keep track. Plus, it can get confusing, as B.D. and Mike both have daughters. But, really, Trudeau. Did the office intern/penciller mess it up this time? We Doonesbury readers deserve an apology! (tee-hee). Nah. Catching such a mistake was a laugh.

NBC previews next season – “Scrubs” is put off until mid-season?! Jerks!

Until tomorrow…

I will refrain from saying much more about the Star Trek series finale just yet. I thought the final two episodes were initially strong; still feel the next to last episode was strong; yet increasingly feel that the series finale was… more to be desired (perhaps I have been since influenced by the on-line message boards, or just on further reflection, or what).

“Survivor” – funny how that show remains a compelling watch.

This week, the tv networks decide what to renew or cancel. On my would-love-to-see-renewed: WB’s “Jack and Bobby” – but its season (?) finale was so… well, a finale indeed. But, great show. CBS’ “Joan of Arcadia” is on the bubble too – not sure how did it get to be on the bubble. It had pretty strong (well, critically, I guess; don’t know the ratings numbers) episodes. It got dark though. I’d like it to stick around. “Arrested Development” deserves to stick around.

I think “Scrubs” is going to be around (what will NBC do?) – and maybe as to “Joey” (but just not funny enough). NBC needs help.

Very glad that “Veronica Mars” and “House” are already renewed. I have no idea what ABC’s plans are as to “Grey’s Anatomy” – but I enjoy it. Hope it sticks around.

Curious to know what new offerings may be in the fall. I still like the idea of tv seasons (routine is nice, in a world where routines are declining), and I don’t hate reruns (these fans of “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives” act like reruns are the bane of society; get a life and a grip and enjoy the freakin’ reruns!). I do find reality shows tiresome, but it’ll be awhile before the networks do decide to show more interesting stuff. Unless I get cable. Or buy DVD’s of my favorite (cancelled) shows. But, either ain’t happening. Oh well.

Enjoy the work week…

I like this interview that Tavis Smiley just did on PBS with Henry Winkler, the former Fonzie of “Happy Days.” Smiley asked Winkler how did he deal with the setbacks of his career/life (having dyslexia and avoiding the threat of being typecasted as just Fonzie), and Winkler said he learned that having a learning disability meant that he had to find new ways to learn (ok, lot of repetition on “learn”). This motivated him to become what he is today. And, then Winkler said he worked as hard as he did, because he was afraid to see himself in a “Where are they now?” tv show, so that drove him. “Tenacity and fear” said Winkler, got him through life. Hmm. Thumbs up. A life lesson indeed!

(oh, and yes, I know he’s Henry Winkler, but I can’t help it that I still see him as Fonzie. Pardon!).

Just finished watching the final two episodes. Pretty strong episodes, yet so sad. Star Trek is dead. Long live Star Trek. Live long and prosper.

Was cold called today by a consulting company. How is this for BS (this is actual text from the website, my annotations in brackets]:

“Our mission is to empower our clients to create a sales and marketing operation at least as good as the best so that they can meet and exceed their revenue plan.

[What the hell do they mean by “at least as good as the best”?]

In practical terms we deal with client issues such as:

Defining the core offers, particularly where there is a high service content

[Figure out where we can bill the client up the wazoo]

Creating valuable customer propositions

[Make an offer you can’t refuse]

Installing an end-to-end sales and marketing process

[Which end? The rear?]

Formal and informal training for professionals and managers

[Your place or mine?]

Coaching individuals for better performance

[We are not amused]

Mentoring managers to exploit the opportunities created

[Exploit is the operative word]

Supplying critical skills on a short-term basis to support change”

[Sending in security staff to get rid of the compentent workers and outsourcing the rest]

To top it all off, they appeared in F**d Company for 3 years running. Just say no.

Have you noticed how grocery prices have jumped up recently? Your average 2 liter soda went from .99-1.09 to 1.39-1.59. New 1.5 liter soda bottles are now being offered in the $1 price point. Manufactures are afraid of losing market share if people perceive that prices are going up, so they will slightly reduce the size of the product. For example, typical bags of potato chips have been reduced from 5 oz to 3 oz for the same price.

Some things just don’t make sense. I happen to like Shredded Wheat. The full size is like 16 oz for like $5. The mini Shredded Wheat is like about $4.79 for 15 oz. However, the frosted mini Shredded Wheat version is $2.79 for 19 oz. Triscuits, essentially the same product as Shredded Wheat, is about $3 for 12 oz. Go figure.

It took me exactly 30 minutes to jet from the end of exams to a waiting B23 bus to Flatbush, then yet another perfectly connecting B train to Sheepshead Bay, and then a mad 3 block run to catch the second half of the Amazing Race finale. I thought it was really great that they got in some Carribean islands into the race — the race has been to India 3 times, the West Indes zero before this.

The general consensus was that Team Pink Slip (the Africian American couple were Enron and Worldcom castoffs) were the more “deserving” of the final teams, but others declared shannagans on how they managed to get on board an American Airlines plane that had already pulled back the gate. It’s actually not that rare — it happened to me when I was coming back from Washington, DC. They had closed up, but after a few minutes realizing that the next planes were totally full, they put back the gate and let me on.

I’m going to be in a 5K charity walk/run (believe me, I’m walking) 7 PM next Tuesday at Prospect Park beginning at 15th Avenue (Prospect Park station on the F line). A lot of the exam officials are participating too – we’re going to wear striped referee shirts and our exam gear.

I once again thank my VCR(s) for doing double duty. Without them, I would not be able to enjoy the riches of the Tuesdays at 9pm time slot.

TV Guide’s tv critic Matt Roush had mentioned this on tvguide.com – Tuesdays at 9pm (EST) is just loaded with good stuff – and it drives me nuts (kind of how Wednesdays at 9pm did it) – – – “Amazing Race” vs. “House” vs “Veronica Mars” (I really got into it as the mystery wound down) vs. “Scrubs” (I would like to watch the show, I just can’t fit it in at all – impossible. and channel-changing between commercials doesn’t satisfy, so I don’t try it at home too often, even if I try…). Argh.

“Amazing Race” – well, interesting finale. I’ll say more later, in all likelihood. But, for now, I must say – the series needs more minority contestants (and when I say “minority” – I mean people of color, not just the interesting interplay of people of various sexual orientations and moms and best friends). The couple that won in the end were wonderfully determined and lucky and faithful – but watching them pull off that final leg of the race without money was just hard viewing. I know it’s part of the rules of non-elimination round to deprive the contestants that came last of their money and stuff, but the producers didn’t seem to feel any qualms about doing that to the African-American couple and thus having them beg for help and cash? I felt bad as it was watching the older couple go through that the previous edition of “Amazing Race,” but to watch the African-American couple go through it was heart-wrenching. It really compounded the notion of racial perceptions in (North) America (the husband asked for help to pay the cab driver just as he and the missus were yards away from the finish line, and this white guy remarked “Get a job” – ugh … ), and so it was only right and fair that they got to win in the end (they certainly were amazing competitors, putting aside all frustration to make it and they became more committed to each other). My one major criticism of the “Amazing Race” folks, I guess. More diversity will help. (Pardon my rambling).

Oh, and I do think that this show is more revealing about relationships than, say, Dr. Phil’s show – the way “Amazing Race” put couples through the ringers…

I managed to watch my tape of the season finale of “Veronica Mars” – this season’s big mystery is wrapped up, but implications for next season are already in place. Good stuff.

Oh, and “House” – well, I taped it and will have to save it for later. Actor John Cho (a.k.a. Harold of the “Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle” fame) guest stars as the latest patient of the week. Apparently, his character is described as a “pervert” – umm, okay… 😉

Speaking of diversity on television, I read this interesting article in the NY Times by Matthew Fogel about the diversity of “Grey’s Anatomy” on ABC:

Seattle Grace is the fictional home of ABC’s latest hit series, the steamy hospital drama “Grey’s Anatomy.” Although medical shows have become the cough syrup of television – sturdy, dependable and widely available – “Grey’s Anatomy” has differentiated itself by creating a diverse world of doctors – almost half the cast are men and women of color – and then never acknowledging it.

Perhaps there just isn’t time: the series creator, Shonda Rhimes (who helped write the screenplay for the HBO movie “Introducing Dorothy Dandridge”), has conceived Seattle Grace as a frenetic, multicultural hub where racial issues take a back seat to the more pressing problems of hospital life: surgery, competition, exhaustion and – no surprise – sex. It’s a formula that has paid off for ABC, which leased the show its most valuable post-“Desperate Housewives” real estate, where it has quickly become a surprise hit.

“The face of America is a diverse canvas,” said Stephen McPherson, president of ABC entertainment, who as president of Touchstone Television helped develop the series. “And the fact that this show represents a lot of those different aspects, you would be silly to think that doesn’t have something to do with its success,” he said in a telephone interview.

A lot of this has to do with Ms. Rhimes, who, as one of television’s few black showrunners (she shares the duties with James Parriott, a television veteran whose credits include the series “The American Embassy” and “Threat Matrix”), has created a show around her vision of diversity – one in which color is more description than definition – that feels almost defiantly fresh for network television.

“I’m in my early 30’s, and my friends and I don’t sit around and discuss race,” Ms. Rhimes said on the telephone. “We’re post-civil rights, post-feminist babies, and we take it for granted we live in a diverse world.” [….]

And even though some network executives assumed [Sandra] Oh’s hypercompetitive character would be white, Ms. Rhimes did not – in the pilot’s script she wasn’t even given a last name – so all it took was one “fabulous” audition from the “Sideways” star to christen the character Cristina Yang.

“Of course Cristina is smart and ambitious – she’s in medical school,” Ms. Oh said, responding to what some critics have called a stereotypical character. “The reason we sustain these stereotypes is that we never have more than three lines, so the audience doesn’t get to know us better.”

Ms. Rhimes has also worked hard to extend diversity to her show’s smallest roles. Determined not to have a program in which “all the extras are white, except the lone janitor,” she has created one of the most colorful backgrounds in television, a hospital in which punked-out bike messengers and suffering Hasidim roam the corridors. “Shonda’s only rule is drug dealers and pimps cannot be black,” said Dr. Zoanne Clack, a black writer for the show who also practices medicine. Even the episodic roles – a gay African-American, a young Hispanic couple – are multicultural. [….]

Very interesting stuff. Of course, I think I just like the show because of the relationships of the characters and the complexity (Oh’s Cristina Yang is the stereotypical hypercompetitive one with the poor bedside manner, yet she appears to be Pompeo’s Meredith Grey’s closest friend of the roommates; the pretty model/doctor character is turning out to have compassion that may be her vulnerable flaw/greatest strength; George, the male roommate intern who has an unrequited crush on Meredith – well, is he going to get his act together?; the resident in charge of the interns – the tough short African-American female – they need to flesh her out – she has potential to be really interesting as more than the tough one; and, of course Patrick Dempsey (still cute, even if his character is sooo wrong for pursuing a relationship with an intern!).

I’m still on my promoting Bob Kerrey kick, I guess – NY1.com’s politics section referred to this fascinating New York Magazine article analyzing Bob Kerrey, by Kurt Anderson, a fellow native Nebraskan turned New York Magazine writer. Anderson nicely notes: “[Kerrey’s] 72-hour debate with himself about the mayoralty was, it must be admitted, capricious and half-baked. Yet its very whimsy reinforced my fondness for him. Indeed, I count most of the attributes that are conflated into that invidious ‘flaky’—unapologetic ambivalence, reflexive candor, independent-mindedness, a habit for giving bipartisan offense, spontaneity, playfulness—among Kerrey’s great virtues.”

Flaky, as I noted before, is ok.

Enjoy the nice weather…

Weekend reflections…

My sis and I saw “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” on Saturday in Brooklyn Hts. The website and the trailers are quite cool; the movie’s pretty good. A thumb’s up on the Ebert and Siskel scale; a grade of B — but I could push it to a B+ were I in a good mood. You don’t have to have read the book or heard the original radio show or seen the original BBC-tv show to enjoy the movie. Marvin the Chronically Depressed Robot is so cute (well, putting aside the depression stuff, which is majorly depressing) – the voice of British actor Alan Rickman! (“You could press that, but you won’t like it.” “I’m so depressed.” “Here I am, the brain the size of a planet, and they ask me to help you navigate? You call that job satisfaction? ’cause I don’t!”). There’s also more heart and sweetness to the movie than I recalled from the book (I’m one book and a half through the five book “trilogy”). I recommend the movie.

“Star Trek: Enterprise” – well, that episode was rather – – – Star Trek: Deep Space Nine-esque, with the galactic politics in play (we are supposed to be building toward the founding of the Federation, after all); human xenophobia (“xenophobia is bad!”), bad relationship building (umm, yeah, right; Star Trek does not do romance very well, oh…). Hmm…

Asian Pacific American Heritage Festival at Union Sq on Sunday – food, fun, and stuff. Music was all right. The amazing dancers. Everybody was more or less milling around for the guest of honor, Jet Li, who was being honored for his humanitarian work in Indonesia since the tsunami (as he was in one of the Indonesian resorts that day and he and his family had to make a run for higher ground). Well, the bigger cheers were for Morgan Freeman, who got to introduce Jet Li. After all, Morgan Freeman’s the Big Oscar Winning Actor/Cult Favorite (for “Shawshank Redemption” and possibly even for “Electric Company” for a certain bunch of Generation X’ers). Freeman and Li are starring in a movie coming out; they were at the festival for some five minutes. Oh, and I’ve a gripe about tall people – must they move to the front, as if their 6ft frames can’t allow them to see the stage? I mean, this tall guy walks right in front of me; pain in the ass! Makes me wish I were taller, but I’d blame that on genetics… Otherwise a good time was had by all.

So it goes; nicer weather, if a bit cool temperatures…

Ok, so at this hour, the on-line tv reviewers have posted their reviews of the latest next-to-last episode of “Enterprise,” but I am trying my best not to read them (since NYC’s local UPN has Yankees on TV on Fridays, no “Enterprise” until tomorrow). I can’t give in to reading the spoilers and ruin it for myself. And, thanks to Entertainment Weekly, for not giving away what will happen on next week’s series finale. I cannot bear to have it given away; I must watch to bear witness to the end of Star Trek (at least, the broadcast television version of it; I’ll have to take up reading more Trek fiction again).

Speaking of Yankees, what the heck is with them? Losing like heck. Eh. And, what’s with the hype about Yankees’ owner George Steinbrenner’s horse going to the Kentucky derby and maybe being a Triple Crown winner? Eh?

Mets – real close (since they had the bases loaded near the end of the 9th inning) – but they won! Yeah!

Until tomorrow…