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It’s a sad, sad day. Pro wrestler and all-around 80s celebrity Captain Lou Albano died. If you’re about my age you should remember him from the WWF, the WWF cartoon, or in Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” video. Let’s all raise a toast to the man with rubber bands in his beard.
Now that he’s gotten Inglourious Basterds out of the way, people have started speculating about what Quentin Tarantino is going to do next. Well, if you believe what he said on an Italian talk show, his future holds a sequel: Kill Bill vol. 3. But it’s not likely to be his next project. He’s saying that “the Bride will fight again”, but his next movie will likely either be a western or a gangster film. Whatever it is, I’m sure it will be interesting.
Most of the fall TV shows are back already, but there’s been one notable exception: 30 Rock. That’s all about to change, as the premiere of season four is set for October 15th. This season promises to continue the show’s award-winning tradition, and help it stay one of the funniest on TV. NBC has put together a preview of the season, along with some behind-the-scenes stuff, to get us ready for the new season. From what they show the season should be a good one, starting off with Lemon looking to add a cast member to the show, and a guest appearance by news anchor Brian Williams. Can’t wait!
Good Eats is the best cooking show in the history of television. Host Alton Brown does a great job explaining the whys of cooking as much as the hows. And he manages to make learning fun. Incredibly the show is celebrating 10 years on the air, and Brown went on an Atlanta radio station to promote the live shows they put on for the anniversary. While he was there he gave the lowdown on his fellow Food Network chefs, with his typical wit:
Finally, you may remember that Frightened Rabbit’s Midnight Organ Fight was my favorite album of last year. Well the Scots are back, streaming two new songs on their label’s site. The songs are from the band’s upcoming single, Swim Until You Can’t See Land, due out November 16th. They’re prepping for a full-length album release in Spring of next year. Awesome.
In case you missed it when I posted it before, here’s Scott from FR performing “Swim Until You Can’t See Land” all by his lonesome:
This couldn’t make me happier: Jay Leno’s new 10:00pm show is tanking. Like “worst ratings on the big four networks” tanking. Fan-fucking-tastic. The early returns on NBC’s experiment with a comedic talk show in a timeslot usually reserved for dramas couldn’t be worse, and I love it. Go ahead and can this debacle and bring back all 12 Law and Orders.
George “Bad Idea” Lucas and Steven Spielberg are working on a script for a fifth Indiana Jones movie, and apparently they’re leaving the door open for Sean Connery’s return as Dr. Henry Jones. Ugh. Just let it go already. The fourth one was godawful. What’s the story for the fifth one? Indy and dad track down bigfoot?
The Broken West, one of the most promising young bands out there, has broken up. Very disappointing. Their first album, I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On, was great, and the followup Now or Heaven was very good. So it’s sad to see them go. Lead singer is going solo, so hopefully we’ll keep getting good music.
Finally, on a more positive note, Quentin Tarantino’s best movie is now his most successful. Inglourious Basterds has now made more money than his previous box office winner, Pulp Fiction. Bravo QT.
Tonight was the season premier of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and I can say without a doubt the first half of it was hilarious. Then my effing DVR stopped recording it. So, while I’m sure the second half was equally funny, I haven’t seen it. I have to wait until the internets offer up their bounty. Here’s what I’m using to tide myself over: another video of a live performance of The Nightman Cometh. This one’s from when the tour stopped in Boston, and it includes some material not seen in the original episode. Awesome, but very NSFW.
This video inspires so many emotions: joy, loathing, fear, hunger. We all know bacon is glorious. And we all know at least on obnoxious kid. So I think we can all relate. Plus it contains two things I love: bacon and cheese in a can. So, aside from the fact that this kid is a symbol of the stereotypical fat, spoiled American child, what’s not to love?
WARNING: hard-core film geek material to follow. Proceed only if the terms “pull out” and “push in” don’t just apply to porn to you.
I love Mad Men. It is, quite simply, the best written, best acted, and best looking series on television today. It’s set in Manhattan in the 60s, and I can’t remember a show that represents its time and place better than it does (with the possible exception of The Wire, but living in Baltimore I may be biased). The men wear suits. The women wear dresses. Everyone smokes and drinks at the office. But it turns out it’s not just the overt things on the screen that give the sense of the 60s; it’s also the way the show is shot.
Film Freak Central put together a very cool visual essay on the cinematography of Mad Men, and it shows the care the directors and cinematographers put into every shot. Check it out:
Mad Men begins its third season on AMC Sunday Night. If you haven’t watched the first two seasons yet, do yourself a favor and check them out. You won’t be disappointed.
(BTW, this video gets extra credit for using Miles Davis’ “Concierto De Aranjuez (Adagio)” from Sketches of Spain. Awesome.)
If you’re anything like me you’re anxiously awaiting the return of House, M.D.. Last season ended with a bunch of surprises, so any hint about where the series is going is certainly welcome. Fox has released a quick video showing some of what’s going to happen, and it looks interesting to say the least. Check it out:
Do you want to see Shaq swim against Michael Phelps? How about play tennis against Serena Williams? Or take on beach volleyball legends Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh? Of course you do. Shaq is awesome, and he’s got a great sense of humor. And he’s one of the most dominant athletes of the last 20 years. So who wouldn’t want to see him take on the best athletes in other sports?
Well you’re about to get your chance. This fall ABC will air Shaq Vs., a reality show that will put The Big Aristotle outside his comfort zone every week. For each challenge Shaq and his competition will agree on a handicap, and Shaq will have a week to train. Then they’ll pool, court, or field and settle things. There won’t be any prizes though; only bragging rights will be on the line.
Shaq Vs. will premier August 18th, with The Diesel taking on Steelers’ QB Ben NRoethlisberger.
via ESPN
Walter Cronkite, the legendary journalist and broadcaster who served as the nation’s voice of the news for nearly two decades, is dead at age 92. His tenure as anchor of the CBS Evening News coincided with some of the most significant events of the 20th century: the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, the Apollo 11 moon landing, the Three Mile Island meltdown, and the Vietnam War. Cronkite’s clear, concise, unbiased presentation of the news helped lead the nation through difficult times, and set a standard of broadcast journalism that modern journalists largely fail to meet. His signature sign-off, “…And that’s the way it is”, is iconic part of pop culture, and it’s no-nonsense sentiment perfectly signifies Cronkite’s style.
Billy Mays has made his last pitch. The man behind such Made for TV products as Oxy Clean, Mighty Putty, and Orange Glo was found dead in his home this morning. He was 50. The cause of death has yet to be determined.
Mays rose to stardom after he began pitching Oxy Clean. His distinctive style won fans and critics, and made him ripe for parody. Despite the fact that some people saw him as over-the-top, his approach undeniably worked, as the products he pitched sold enormous quantities.
Whether you loved or hated him, you have to admit the world is a quieter, yet less interesting, place without him.
