Tuesday, November 21, 2006

TV Newsy Bits - Monday, November 20, 2006

So, did you watch Heroes? Save the cheerleader, save the world. Oh my, my namesake Jackie had her brain removed. I know sometimes I feel like I'm mindless, but...!

On The Late Show with David Letterman tonight, there's an unusual happening. Jerry Seinfeld is the guest, but apparently Michael Richards (Kramer on the series) went into a rage at a heckler in a comedy club and hurled racial epithets and all. Yikes. He's going to appear via satellite to apologize. I've seen bits and pieces of it on the evening news, but Letterman has the whole thing.

In other TV Newsy Bits:
  • I found a Singapore online newspaper article interviewing Mary and David Conley (The Amazing Race). The questions were mostly about Kentucky's relationship with the Cho Brothers. It's an interesting read.
  • Heh, both the O.J. Simpson book and FOX network special have been canceled, as they should be. However, I'm still left with the nagging question regarding ethics in this situation. No, not O.J.'s ethics. It's not like he himself has anything to lose at this point. But what was going through the minds of the people who approved the project? Dollar signs, for sure. They should have thought about the reaction of the world. Sheesh.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am so happy that News Corp. did the right thing and cancelled the whole thing! And Jackie in regards to what were the producers, et al, thinking in the first place, ReganBooks, an affiliate of News Corp., is known for gossipy best-sellers such as Jose Canseco’s “Juiced” and Jenna Jameson’s “How to Make Love Like a P ornStar.” So the bottom line $$$$$$ is what was the objective.

Sydney said...

I watched Heroes -- the show really is starting to get good. It was slow in the beginning but I am liking several characters more... the fact that they finally gave us a bone and made some real action happen this ep was great, and it looks like as much will happen next week. So now the question is... was it the right cheerleader? It must be. While we don't know if the world has been saved yet, we would lose the tag line that now identified the whole show if it weren't!

Can't wait for Sulu to join the cast... brilliant!

I was thinking of the ad meeting when they must have come up with "save the cheerleader, save the world". Did they have any idea then it would actually CATCH ON when they tossed it out with all the others in that brainstorming session?

Anonymous said...

Heroes. The advertising was false again for Heroes. I have to keep learning not to trust what "they" say, not one iota. They said we'd learn what "Save the..." meant. ....Um, we did not.
I too am liking the show more and more. The mellow-drama still irks me, but such is (TV) life. Drama is fine, but the other is worse than fingernails on a chalk board. And the thing is, I don't think they really need it for what they might think they need it for: the children viewers. Anyways...

Michael Richards. I love Letterman, even though he's less apolitical and more liberal these days. Seinfeld is fine. But I have to say: on the one hand Michael Richards going on Letterman is fine, I suppose; on the other hand, Chris Rock rattles off "Cracker" (the "C" word) in his gig, like there's no tomorrow. So, our culture is still in an absurd alter-reality about race, denying that there is Black racism and having no understanding for Whites when they are purely raceless (though veiwed as completely racist) by judging people according to the content of their character instead of the color of their skin... or even by judging by performance instead of color. Not that M.Richards was being raceless. He lost control and said the worst word there is.
Where are the White colleges? How about the Men's clubs? (My family is involved in a Women's College Club.) How about a White Men's Club?? Sadly, people would be prejudice against that, believing that the club would be racist and sexist. BUt there are Black Colleges. Freedom of association is one of the most precious freedoms in our country, next to owning private property. I am a minority in my greater neighborhood, similar to Jackie. So, seeing M.Richards doing his apology was kind of pathetic, not for him, but as a comment on the ("other") racism of America. There I went and did politics again. We'll see if I should let it stand, but... "it is what it is"(Danielle BB All-stars). It's pertinent...... not to mention important. If this provokes thought, good. It doesn't have to provoke an argument.

Anonymous said...

Fox started to do it for money, sure. But Fox is the channel that gets attention, because the rest of the Media is liberal while they do the same things.
(I will at least stay away from direct contention with people over politics.)

Jackie S. said...

Holly - Ah, I figured it was something along those lines - not my reading cuppa!

Sydney - The right cheerleader to save would have been Claire. Jackie was not "special" so she was the one to be sacrificed. I like the idea that Peter picks up powers from those around him. Cool!

Quistian - I think the whole Michael Richards incident is sad. He obviously lost it during his performance. I believe the difference between what he said and Chris Rock is the fact that Richards' comments were said in anger. It's one thing to joke about things, but what's said in anger has to come from deep within. Watching his apology, he seems to be out of touch with the black community. As a friend of mine says - "Afro-American? What am I? A fluffy bad haircut?" I know phrasing is often solely politically correct. But, from living in a very ethnically charged area, it's black and white on the streets.

Anonymous said...

Jackie, ya know... I not only agree with you, but once again you're observations are the same as mine. You have keen observation. Well, thank you, quistian, that means you must have good observation skills, too. But seriously, even about "Afro-American". I thought the same thing: he's out of touch. Now, I think being out of touch would be fine if he didn't have the racist problem.
I guess I was commenting on our culture's hypocrisy. But, certainly I have to admit, the comparison is not even. Though... Chris Rock "joked" about thoroughly *hating* "Crackers". Moreover, when Blacks *do* speak racism in anger it doesn't get *nearly* the same coverage. So, I have a problem with Richards and with our *American* culture and I'm not sure about Rock... by default, I'm fine with it, but I wonder about the effect from him of words becoming meaningless, in light of the absurd one-sided acceptance of racism (e.g. Blacks by definition are incapable of being racist).
Anyway, again, I really appreciate your distinctions. You are right. And I love clarity, like my favorite radio talk-show host, Dennis Prager.