What Album Is That?
In Season 2 - Episode 7 of In Plain Sight, entitled Duplicate Bridge,” Marshall Mann walks in to Norman Baker’s house and there’s an album on the turntable. Marshall holds up the album and I recognized it right away:
Count Basie off the album Count Basie’s Finest Hour (Verve), and the cut is Li’l Darlin’. Just in case you were wondering. Scroll down and listen to it.
Goren’s Back!
Tonight is the Season Premier of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. My Mom came over and watched last season’s finale in preparation for tonight. Goren’s back and I’m a happy girl. I’ve missed him.
And this season, we’re getting a taste of Jeff Goldblum on L&W:CI. This should be interesting. I’m hoping there is some interaction between the two characters.
Goren’s back! He’s older and perhaps slightly more imbalanced and quirky. After all, he’s the son of a serial killer. I don’t care. Welcome back, Mr D’Onofrio. It’s time to get your Goren on.
Oprah’s Taking Heat Over Palin
I’ll admit it. I’ve been watching Oprah for many years. I’ve laughed and cried over the shows, and occasionally yelled at the TV in response to some knucklehead. A few years ago, my staff bought me the anniversary CD set and as I watched the shows…I laughed and cried all over again. In the dark ages, I recorded the shows on video tape (VHS not Beta) while I was at work. With DVRs, it’s so much easier to delete the programs with topics that don’t interest me.
Back in 2004, I made the mistake of watching the “Vote” show. It was blatantly political and biased towards John Kerry. If I remember correctly, the guests were: Cameron Diaz, Christina Aguilera, Drew Barrymore, and P.Diddy. The lowest point of the show came when Cameron Diaz got emotional (I’d like to think she was acting but I’m not convinced she knows how) and said:
“We have a voice now, and we’re not using it, and women have so much to lose. I mean, we could lose the right to our bodies. We could lo–if you think that rape should be legal, then don’t vote. But if you think that you have a right to your body, and you have a right to say what happens to you and fight off that danger of losing that, then you should vote, and those are the…It’s your voice. It’s your voice, that’s your right.”
In her little mind, a vote for George Bush meant rape would be legalized. Of all the shows I’ve EVER watched on Oprah, that one got me so steamed I actually posted a comment on the community board asking her to refrain from letting celebrities make idiots of themselves…or something like that. I heard Oprah say that the “Vote” show got more comments than any other show she’d done. Thousands of people, from both sides of the aisle, took the time to comment about the show.
“If you think rape should be legal,
then don’t vote.”
Cameron Diaz
(Oprah, 2004)
Now it’s no secret that Oprah is giddy over Obama. She’s had him on the show twice…and both times she was practically worshipping him. It was a bit much. Feeling nauseated, I hit the delete button a few minutes in to the show. But, I have to give her credit for sticking by her candidate. She believes he’s the man for the job and she’s still worshiping faithfully at his feet.
Drudgereport ran a controversial story about Oprah’s fans asking for a Sarah Palin interview. I went to Oprah’s website and found Oprah’s statement regarding the issue:
“The item in today’s Drudge Report is categorically untrue. There has been absolutely no discussion about having Sarah Palin on my show. At the beginning of this presidential campaign when I decided that I was going to take my first public stance in support of a candidate, I made the decision not to use my show as a platform for any of the candidates. I agree that Sarah Palin would be a fantastic interview, and I would love to have her on after the campaign is over.” – Oprah Winfrey, September 5, 2008
Let’s face it. It’s Oprah’s show. And more than likely, she chose not to use her show as a platform for candidates because of the backlash after the “Vote” show. But now fans are frothing and demanding she interview Governor Palin. She’s a woman. Oprah’s a woman. Blah! Gimme a break.
I may not agree with everything Oprah does and says, but I respect her ambition, her sticktoitiveness, and her passion. After all is said and done, I’ve watched more good shows than bad, I’ve seen her do some great things for people, and, well, I just like her. I’m choosing to give her the benefit of the doubt on this one and I’ll pray that she can withstand the storm.
Hell’s Kitchen Left Me Cold
I’ll admit it. I am a fan of most things Ramsey. But too many strange things happened in Hell’s Kitchen this year and it’s left me feeling cold.
If you dig cooking competitions on TV, you should watch Bravo’s Top Chef, where cooking skills are a necessity and it’s not about finding the best entertainer. The contestants’ cooking skills are tested under tough circumstances, and if they don’t know their food…well, their time on the show is short and they’re told to pack their knives and go home. The contestants are often thrown together to work in teams, and the trick is to be a team player and to capture the spotlight. Never underestimate the ego of a chef.
There are three other similar shows: The Next Iron Chef, The Next Food Network Star, and Hell’s Kitchen. Michael Symon was chosen from eight contestants to be the next Iron Chef and the challenges were brutal. It’s not a regular show on the FoodTV Network for good reason: only few hold the title of Iron Chef. The competition is fierce and the reward is culinary immortality. Okay, so that’s a little extreme, but you get my point. I was hoping Chef Symon would win for his mad skills, but I also think he’s kinda hot. And well, hot does count for something.
In the Next Food Network Star, not only are culinary skills challenged, but also teaching skills and stage presence. You must have that certain *something* that finds its way through the camera lens and out to the viewer. And the reward is your own show on the Food Network. You don’t get a restaurant, but you do rub shoulders with some of the best in the game.
And then there’s Hell’s Kitchen. And at the center of it all is the enigmatic Gordon Ramsey. There’s no doubt the man knows his way around the kitchen, but it’s difficult for anyone else to be in there with him. There’s only room for Ramsey’s ego. As difficult as it is to be around him, I’d work in his kitchen any day. He can yell at me for hours and in the end I’d walk away with culinary skills and restaurant knowledge to rival the best. So on the show you fill a kitchen with a bunch of colorful, over-eager wannabe restaurateurs battling against each other to be the senior chef at one of Ramsey’s new restaurants. And then, if that’s not enough, you toss in one giant cup of Ramsey and stir. The winner of each challenge is not always clear, and often, it simply comes down to the whim of Ramsey. Frustrating…but it is his show and his restaurant.
This seasons’ competitors were not fun to watch. Highly annoying is more like it. Their culinary skills were weak and they didn’t play well with others. I was waiting for a hero to emerge, but alas, there was none. If he wants us to watch next season, he’s gonna have to pick better contestants or the show will continue to lose credibility.
Was I Right or Was I Right?
I’m just sayin’. David Archuleta is cute in a Mouseketeer kinda way. But the kid is not ready for prime time. I will admit if the competition was based on *only* the performances Tuesday, little David stepped up to the mic and even managed to growl in one song. He sang his heart out and he wanted it badly.
I wanted Syesha Mercado to be in the final two, and I was very disappointed when she was eliminated. Her performance tonight, with Seal, was pretty hot. And speaking of hot, somebody’s been feeding Seal and he’s looking all grown up. Heidi’s a very lucky woman.
Now Mr. Cook, *sigh*, he’s is a triple threat. He’s got a great voice, he knows how to work the mic and stage, and he’s got that “something” that all great performers have.
Back on March 12th, I picked Cook to win, and he just kept getting better and better each week. I would have liked to see him pick different songs for the final performance, but he still sang like a rock star.
Tonight, David Cook sang Sharp Dressed Man with ZZ Top, and played his Les Paul guitar, and he was fantastic. The guy *is* a rock star AND now he’s the 2008 American Idol champion.
Hey Chris, I wish you could have been here to share the finale, but Paris is quite the excuse.
