The Last Daily Show with Jon Stewart

A lot of people are going to hate me for this, but I'm not a regular viewer of "The Daily Show," not since Jon Stewart came on board sixteen years ago actually. His arrival marked a change in the show. Before, with Craig Kilborn, I kinda dug it, but when it became a news show with comedic elements as opposed to a comedy show about the news - I checked out.

The main thing that has always bothered me about this incarnation of "The Daily Show" is that there are people who think it is news. There are folks who hang on Jon Stewart's every word as if he's this generation's Walter Cronkite, and I think that's sad. Just as I think that more than half of the programming on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and others should have a big sign on the screen that says OPINION when they are doing that instead of reporting the news, I think "The Daily Show" should have one that says SATIRE.

The more Jon Stewart got political, and the more he took himself seriously, the less I liked what I saw. This wasn't what I was tuning in to Comedy Central for, ya know? And if I wanted to see one-sided fake news by people who think they're clever, let's face it, I'd watch Fox News. So yeah, I am neither a regular viewer nor a fan, but I did watch the final episode with Jon Stewart last night.

I enjoyed the SNL40 vibe of the returning correspondents, good to see many of them again, as those reports were something I did dig about "The Daily Show," and I am a fan of the official and unofficial spin-offs with John Oliver, Larry Wilmore, and even Stephen Colbert. And opposed to SNL40, it did not go on too long. As a fast food aficionado I have to say I loved the Arby's commercial, that was a touch of class.

So despite not liking the show, not being a fan of either Stewart or his concept of the show, I have enjoyed it from time to time, and enjoyed the final episode of his run. Even Springsteen was pretty awesome. It wasn't bad, even with the preaching about 'bullshit.' I think would have rather had them actually talk about the Republican debate, but as it stands, we all know the debate was much funnier. I look forward to a new take by incoming host Trevor Noah.

Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart

Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart ~ Before CourtTV, before O.J. Simpson, this was the trial that in the age of tabloid television started it all. There's To Die For, Anatomy of a Murder, and my favorite with Helen Hunt and Chad Allen, Murder in New Hampshire: The Pamela Smart Story. At least three films before this, numerous books, and dozens of TV shows - Pamela Smart is the godmother of television murder trials, and one could say it was almost by design.

Pamela Smart was a media teacher at her local high school, who conned her fifteen year old student boyfriend to murder her husband of less than a year. When the media storm started, before she was a suspect, Smart was the fashionable victim, always looking good for the camera, sometimes even directing the interviews. She was a natural, until she was caught, and then for the camera at least, she went from predator to prey. The media devoured her.

This is the aspect that filmmaker Jeremiah Zagar takes on in his HBO documentary Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart, how the media covered this super tabloid circus, and how it reflects on us today. He also contends that the sensationalism of the coverage decided the trial's outcome in the public eye no matter what occurred in the courtroom. This is done with the help of interviews with many involved, including Pamela Smart.

This is not a bad documentary, very watchable for folks who both know the story and those who weren't around when it was happening. My only complaint is that Zagar drives home his thesis like jackhammer in the early morning. It gets old and annoying very quickly. I don't think there's any doubt that Pamela Smart had her husband murdered, or that she was given a fair trial, but there you go.

RIP Don Pardo

I saw "Saturday Night Live" for the first time in June of 1976. I remember recognizing the voice of announcer Don Pardo right away. I can't rightly say where I knew it from but I knew it. The show has been on the air for almost four decades and he was there for all but one misguided season. The powers that be corrected that mistake quickly.

When the last new show of the current season aired, I actually thought of Don and how long he's been at this, Googled his age and was surprised. I loved the man, and loved his sense of humor, and his ability to deadpan a joke when needed. He did this to great effect in "Weird" Al Yankovic's "I Lost on Jeopardy" and when his usual announcement that "guests of Saturday Night Live stay at the Marriott's Essex House" became part of a bit. He did it with the same finesse as always.

Don Pardo passed away yesterday, quietly in his sleep at the age of 96. SNL is probably what he was known for most even though his golden voice has graced many other shows, games and news, with the same warmth and professionalism. The man and his voice are legend, and I know "Saturday Night Live" will ever be the same again.

Dark Knight Rises Prelude

Everyone knows basically what happened Thursday night in Aurora, Colorado. The tragedy that is being called by the news media, the 'movie massacre,' is now inextricably tied to the film The Dark Knight Rises.

I was up late Thursday night when I heard about it on the top of the hour news during Coast to Coast AM, and immediately clicked on the television news. Like 9/11 or Columbine (not all that far from Aurora) I was one of millions glued to my TV watching and waiting. I finally dozed off to images of the tragedy.

Later that afternoon, I kept plans to see The Dark Knight Rises despite everything. Things were a little different at the theatre. Bags were checked, we weren't allowed in to the theatre until just before the show, and nobody was in costume. I think this may actually be the end of that. No more costumes, and maybe even no more midnight release showings.

Another difference was that there was no chatter before the movie. No one was talking. It was very disconcerting. Usually on opening day, everyone is excited, not this day. I suppose everyone was thinking about the shootings.

One specific preview, for Sean Penn's new film Gangster Squad made children jump, women gasp, and grown men scream. It depicted men with guns shooting through a movie screen and then into the audience. I hope Warner Bros. has the sense to pull this preview for the time being. The audience was shocked and horrified.

I am left numb. I enjoyed TDKR but am unable to write about it yet. Maybe tomorrow or the next day. My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims of this tragedy and their families and friends.

Mike Wallace Dead at 93

Over the weekend one of television's pioneers passed away. Multiple award-winning journalist, TV host, and media personality Mike Wallace is dead at the age of 93 from natural causes.

While best known as a correspondent on the long-running news program "60 Minutes," Mike Wallace has worn numerous and varied other hats such as narrator on the "Green Hornet" and "Sky King" radio series, game show host, actor (under the name name Myron Wallace, although he played himself in one of my favorite films, A Face in the Crowd), and he also hosted several other news shows before landing "60 Minutes."

Wallace had semi-retired in 2006, but appeared throughout 2008. He garnered at least twenty Emmy Awards, had written two autobiographies, and was perhaps the last of the real television journalists (just my opinion). We have lost one of the greats.

Andy Rooney Dead at 92

Some folks are their work. I can't help but think about that today as I write about the passing of journalist and writer Andy Rooney. He passed away Friday night from major complications of an undisclosed surgery, just weeks after signing off for the last time on his regular closing slot on the long running "60 Minutes." Even in his final piece, an interview for the program, he said he wouldn't stop writing - he couldn't stop writing.

Rooney was a journalist since the Second World War and had closed the CBS new program with his commentaries for over forty years. He was the curmudgeon's curmudgeon, always questioning the most mundane and puzzling of the day's mysteries. His voice was grating and his attitude confrontational and often sarcastic, but he was always entertaining, and if you weren't careful, informative.

Andy Rooney wrote for television and news for decades, He won four Emmys while on "60 Minutes," and many other broadcasting and journalism awards during his long career. We have lost a true legend and an epic voice in our times. He will be missed.

Battle Los Angeles

Battle Los Angeles ~ This wannabe summer blockbuster took a new spin on the old alien invasion story by telling much of it through modern day news coverage and also through the eyes of one group of young Marines as they hold the line in Los Angeles against nearly indestructible extraterrestrial assault.

It's a creative war movie rather than a scifi flick, but it's spoiled by some dumb plot elements and tired clichés early on. I found it hard to swallow that if the powers-that-be knew we were up against aliens, they would not beat around the bush with the combat forces going in to fight them, they would tell them outright, and not let them find out by watching TVs as they go into battle. I was wrecked by stupidity for the movie at that point before we even saw any real action. And this is sooo full of dumb, like the victims in a teenage slasher flick.

That's not to say that the effects aren't spectacular, especially on a good TV with HD Blu-Ray, but I was already frowning by the time they actually do show up. What's not news coverage is done with shaky cam, obviously trying to copy the effects of Saving Private Ryan, but it's a loftier target that it should have been trying to attain. It got tired real quick. With all its special effects, the two decades plus old Aliens is a better marines vs. aliens movie, and The Boys in Company C has less war clichés.

On the surface, Battle Los Angeles tries to mix the new knowledge we Americans have of 'real' war and combat footage with the concept of alien invasion. It works for the two-minute trailer, but not for the two-hour movie. Good cliché TV movie about the Iraq war (or Viet Nam) with cheap District 9 and Transformers aliens thrown in for good measure - wait for the free TV viewing, a bowl of hot popcorn, and possible a good nap or two.

RIP Wizard Magazine

This week Wizard Magazine called it quits. In this, the internet age, it certainly is a case of internet killed the magazine star. In a world where you can get all the latest comics news in just a few seconds, and also seconds after it happens - magazine that specialize in such are as much dinosaurs as the newspapers are. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not ringing the death knell for the newspapers yet, but the comics audience is predominantly a computer savy audience. A monthly magazine ain't gonna do it any more.

That said, Wizard had its time. There was a time when folks fought to get the first copies on the shelves. Everybody wanted to see the new interview, the new preview, the new poll, the latest who'd win, the photos from the latest film or even the letters column with the latest feud. Like I said, it had its time, but sadly those days are gone, lost to the much faster satisfaction of the immediate Twitter/Facebook world. Rest in peace, Wizard, you'll be missed.

Pop Culture Poser

Brad Benson, of Brad Benson Hyundai. This guy bugs me. His commercials appear far too frequently on News Jersey 101.5 FM. He does his own commercials, making pop culture references left and right, and trying to be funny, and one would hope (for his sake at least), selling cars.

The thing that bugs me, other than the frequency of the commercials, and his implied agreement with some of the station’s gay-unfriendly hosts (his ad about the pilots who missed their landing is horrendous and irresponsible, and don’t get me started on Dennis and Michele), is that he often gets his pop culture references wrong.

Now it’s one thing for KYW to pronounce Janeanne Garofolo’s name as "Jane-anne Garroh-folloh" or CNN to have commentators at the Michael Jackson memorial who don’t know who Berry Gordy is, but this falls into a whole ‘nother category.

On the surface, Brad Benson saying Susan Boyle was on the British "American Idol" instead of "Britain’s Got Talent," for instance, may seem petty, but look at it this way… Have you ever bought a car? Remember the scary and unreasonable amount of detailed paperwork involved in buying a car? Yeah, that’s a lot of stuff, and a lot of stuff to make sure is absolutely right, T’s crossed and I’s dotted.

Do you want a guy who won’t even do a moment’s research on a commercial he’s paying for to handle details on a car you’re paying for? I don’t. I want someone very detail-oriented, someone who won’t make mistakes and just laugh it off. I guess I’m not buying a Hyundai from Brad Benson.

Dave Roberts and Action News

I was directed to watch 6ABC’s local Philadelphia news at 11 tonight by a message on their Facebook:

Action News turn to 6abc right now! Dave's gonna make the big announcement!

Now aside from the fact that such grammar from a news outlet would have made my Journalism professor choke on his Almond Joy, the announcement was that longtime on-air announcer Dave Roberts was retiring. He’s been with Channel 6 since the late seventies and has always been a friendly informative source for news and entertainment whether he was doing the news, weather, magazine shows or holiday parades. His final day will be December 11th so we’ll get one more Thanksgiving Day parade out of him. Dave will most certainly be missed.

What bugged me was that this was the first full episode of “Action News” I’ve watched in well over a decade. I know I’ve blogged on this before but I’m still shocked at how truly bad local news has become.

“Action News” used to be the local newscast in the 1970s. The witty and hip interaction (pun unintended) between the late Jim O’Brien and his cohorts invited viewers in to this television family. In hindsight, perhaps the much-missed O’Brien was the glue that held everything together for the newscast. He was never truly replaced by anyone his equal. Everyone after was just obviously trying to be him.

The broadcast I watched tonight barely spent five minutes on hard news but spent more than that on a special report about cougars. Then the weather was overshadowed by a longer story about what might be coming this winter. This is news? After all that I could have just clicked over to the station’s website to get the news on Dave’s retirement, and not suffered through this mess. But maybe that’s the point. Between the internet and the various 24/7 cable news outlets, local news is dead.

Good luck, Dave, maybe you’re getting out before it’s too late.

Is Local News Dead?

Is local news dead, or have they just given up?

This afternoon was marred by the tragic shootings in Fort Hood, TX, and details are still coming in. I spent a lot of my afternoon switching channels back and forth between CNN, Headline News, MSNBC and Fox News - and they were all covering the story.

I noted the time, and realized that two of our local network affiliates had news programs on air (ABC had "Oprah" and you don't mess with Oprah) so I turned to them. I was informed of Wyclef Jean was in town and that Sarah Palin is on a book tour. I switched a few times more between channels 3 and 10 and learned that pets can get the H1N1 virus and that Phillies fans are sad.

Wtf? No coverage of Fort Hood??? Shocked, just shocked. Now I know where not to go for my news. Apparently local news is anxious to go the way of the newspapers.

Paula Exits Idol

As if we needed more proof that Twitter moves faster than the news media, Paula Abdul announced was leaving "American Idol" via Twitter earlier tonight.

With sadness in my heart, I’ve decided not to return to #IDOL. I’ll miss nurturing all the new talent, but most of all..Cont'd...

Paula, singer and choreographer, brought her expertise to "Idol" for eight consecutive seasons. She'll be missed. In many ways, with her at times bizarre behavior, her chemistry with the other judges, and her professional guidance - she made the show.

Walter Cronkite 1916-2009

Walter Cronkite's was probably the first face and name from television I knew that wasn't Speed Racer or Batman, and he was trusted just as much.

He visited my living room or kitchen every night at dinner time to explain the events in strange lands like Viet Nam, Cambodia, Watergate and the Moon.

Today the most trusted man in America, still even decades after he retired from giving us the news, passed away.

We have lost probably one of the greatest journalists of our time. He will be missed.

Spider-Man Alive and Well in Bangkok

Spider-Man is real for one eleven year old boy in Bangkok today.

From DannyChoo.com:

A firefighter donned a Spider-Man costume to coax a frightened 11-year-old boy from a balcony in Bangkok, Thailand.

Teachers at a special needs school in Bangkok alerted authorities on Monday when an autistic pupil, scared of attending his first day at school, sat out on the third-floor ledge and refused to come inside.

Despite teachers' efforts to beckon the boy inside, he refused to budge until his mother mentioned her son's love of superheroes, prompting fireman Sonchai Yoosabai to take a novel approach to the problem.

The sight of his hero holding a glass of juice for him brought a big smile to the boy's face.

"I told him Spider-Man is here to rescue you, no monsters are going to attack you and I told him to walk slowly towards me as running could be dangerous," Mr Somchai told local television.

The young boy immediately stood up and walked into his rescuer's arms, police said

Mr. Somchai said he keeps the Spider-Man costume and an outfit of Japanese television character Ultraman at the fire station in order to liven up school fire drills.