TVSquad

Recently, when I shared my view about a certain Dell computer commercial, some of you thought I was a moron. Okay, we'll call it a difference of opinion. However, just to show you that I'm not a grumpster, allow me to extol the virtues of the Macy's commercial that celebrates this iconic American department story that's been around for over 150 years.

What makes The Magic of Macy's so much fun is that it doesn't tell you why the place is legendary, it shows you why. All those film clips from movies and television, years before anyone was using mentions like these for commercial purposes, underscore how much a part of pop culture Macy's was.

(It still is, to some extent, but the days of one brick and mortar store dominating the business landscape are long gone.)

How many people remember Dragnet? Or maybe I should say how many people remember actually watching Dragnet, the "just the facts" police show starring the iconic Jack Webb? The reason I ask is because the U.S. Postal Service is immortalizing Dragnet with a postage stamp tomorrow.

In light of the fact that letter writing and postal service are dramatically in decline, my guess is that there will be an older crowd nodding appreciatively when Dragnet is honored. You see, the younger generation (did I really say that?) doesn't have much use for stamps and won't be buying the Dragnet first class stamp.

If you're like me (you have my deepest sympathy), you don't have a dog in this Sunday's hunt.

Thanks to the Arizona Cardinals' first appearance this weekend, my hometown team, the New Orleans Saints, will now be one of only five left in the NFL that have never made a Super Bowl appearance. Three if you don't count the expansion clubs.

So if you're a Cardinals fan and don't have the stomach to endure their slow, agonizing and inevitable defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers, here are some alternative shows you can watch instead of the Super Bowl.

For all you television fans (and I suspect at least one or two read this site) who are also stamp collectors, there is good news. The United States Postal Service is releasing a set of stamps in 2009 commemorating classic American television shows.

I do like the retro design of the stamps and how each looks like an old picture tube. I see a lot of familiar faces in there, including Phil Silvers, Howdy Doody, Rod Serling, Alfred Hitchcock, The Honeymooners, I Love Lucy and many others. Did they miss anybody?

I think the Postal Service isn't going far enough with this. They should release stamps commemorating television shows for each year, or perhaps more appropriately each television era. For the 70's they could include M*A*S*H and All In The Family. For the 80's they could include Knight Rider and The A Team. At least, they would be included if I designed the stamps.

So, did you hear that they did a poll they did to determine which presidential candidate people would like to hang out with at a barbecue? Obama won 52 to 45 percent over McCain, which may not mean very much in the long run, but the day before July 4th it made news.

The thought of barbecues and July 4th parties got me thinking about which TV characters with whom I'd like to spend Independence Day. I wouldn't want them here at my place, though, I want to go to their places. I have high expectations, too, and a vivid imagination.

Here's the six TV characters who could expect me to join them to watch the rockets red glare -- if only they were real live folks and not just my fictional faves.

AOL Television has compiled a list of the 50 Best TV Comedies -- Ever, this week revealing numbers 50-41. Inspired by what they did, I've decided to list my favorite sitcom sidekicks, those funny foils that oftentimes make the star shine even brighter than you might have thought. Coming up with just a ten-pack hasn't been so easy. Many times, I'd look at a show and think, "No, it's more of an ensemble. There isn't one sidekick." Falling into that category were B.J. and Trapper John on M*A*S*H. Neither were Hawkeye's sidekick, really (any more than Radar was). Same thing with Friends -- they were all each other's sidekicks. Also, on The Odd Couple, Oscar and Felix were equal; neither was a sidekick. Ditto Two and a Half Men and Laverne & Shirley. Also, because it's my list, I decided not to include married couples -- sorry Rob and Laura, Ricky and Lucy, Archie and Edith.

Whew, after all that, here, in alphabetical order, are the ten I love -- within my own parameters! Feel free to comment with your choices, if your favorite isn't on my list.

New York, New York -- a place so big that had to name it twice. Isn't that what they say about the Big Apple? Recently, movie critic Leonard Maltin, host of the ReelzChannel original series Secret's Out named his picks for the 15 greatest New York scenes in movie history. That got me thinking about the television shows that are intimately tied to New York, series that are inextricably New York shows. Whether they are -- or were -- filmed in the city, here's 15 absolutely, positively New York TV shows (in the order in which they debuted!). You don't have to agree with me -- and I may have overlooked one or two (which I urge you to comment and let me know) -- but I have good reasons for every one of my choices!

(S06E20) Funny is funny and it never goes out of style. That's really true when you consider the enduring hilarity found in the black and white treasure known as I Love Lucy. In honor of Easter, I offer for your enjoyment memories of one of the most brilliant episodes from a series brimming with classics. The episode is Lucy Does the Tango, and it's all about eggs. Lucille Ball and three dozen eggs to be exact.

Is it really a big surprise that television advertising isn't as effective as it used to be? As TV watchers -- okay, we're uber-watchers -- we know that with DVRs and TiVos we're zooming through ads, or we're channel surfing in between segments of our favorite shows, or renting/buying content in formats that allow us to avoid commercials altogether. Now, according to the Association of National Advertisers and Forrester Research's TV & Technology Survey, we learn that six out of 10 marketers believe that TV advertising has become less effective in the past two years. And it's getting worse.

CBS's daytime drama Guiding Light celebrated its 71st year on the air on January 25. First, on radio, then and now on television, this grand old soap opera has never stopped telling its stories, making broadcast history. Production goes on, but starting February 29, 2008, viewers will be seeing Guiding Light in a brand new light. Led by innovative Executive Producer Ellen Wheeler, Guiding Light it busting out of the studio to starting filming in a more realistic, cinema verite style. "Soap operas have been shot, by and large, the same way since the 1950's, the same way I Love Lucy was shot - with pedestal cameras, in just a few interior sets," said Ms. Wheeler recently. According to her, the "[it's] old-fashioned, and it isn't working anymore."

I think it's a safe bet that's a headline I never thought I'd write and will never write again.

Two Tampa Bay Devil Rays fans are angry at the team for a contest held at the baseball stadium on June 23. The contest was to dress as '50s icons, and Bob Phibbs and Christine Sullivan went all out and dressed like Lucy and Ricky Ricardo, even down to the detailed costumes from an episode and bongo drums. They didn't win, however. The judges gave the prize to a woman and a kid who dressed in standard period wear. And this is why the couple is angry. They say the winners didn't follow the rules of dressing like an icon, and that they should either be disqualified or, at the very least, Phibbs and Sullivan should be given first prize too (they came in third - the first prize is a trip to NYC and tickets to a Yankees game and a Broadway show).

Looking for that special last minute Mother's Day gift? Nothing says Mother's Day like the death certificates of your favorite TV star!

Someone is selling the death certificates and wills of Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley on ebay. These aren't just one page descriptions of the date and manner of death, they are the actual detailed wills that they wrote before they died. Lucy didn't want to be embalmed and wanted to make sure her brother Fred and his wife didn't get anything. Desi made sure his mom was cared for. Vance left most of her estate to her much younger husband, and Frawley's will has a lot of bills and notes from creditors attached. It's probably interesting reading, but creepy.

For more background on the stars, here are the Wikipedia pages for Ball, Arnaz, Vance, and Frawley. Vance and Frawley hated each other.

[via TMZ.com]

Welcome to TV Squad Lists (formerly 'The Five'), a feature where each blogger has a chance to list his or her own rundown of things in television that stand out from the rest, both good and bad.

Ah, the friendly neighborhood drinking hole. In one way or another, they're there to give you that much needed morning/evening buzz before/after work or school. In what order you visit them is up to you. We've seen our fair share of these booze and caffeine shoppes on TV throughout the years, and here's my pick for the top 18 -- why settle for just ten?

1) Cheers (Cheers) -- Let's get right down to it and start with the obvious number one choice before we move on. I'm not going to insult you with dragging you on to the end to see what is very obviously the most famous of all TV bars. And since I'm from the area, I have no business not making this number one.

Everything you need to know about the web site Television Without Pity - and why I hate it so much - can be found in the subtitle of their new book. It's called Television Without Pity: 752 Things We Love To Hate (And Hate To Love) About Television.

Why does it have to be like that? Why do they either have to "love to hate" or "hate to love" what they see on television? Is it not "hip" to really like television? I've long suspected that these people don't really like TV, they just find it a convenient place to use all of their snarky tools and be sarcastic. Of course, that doesn't mean that a book about television, even from them, couldn't hold some promise. But reading through the damn thing, this is what I found out about TWoP's view of television.

This Sunday marks the 95th birthday of legendary comedienne Lucille Ball, and her hometown of Jamestown, NY is having a three day celebration. Not only was Jamestown the birthplace of Lucy, there is also a Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center in the city.

Organizers expect thousands of Lucy fans from around the world to attend, and special guests include writers from the show and actors who appeared on the show too.

Another guest is actually older than Lucy would have been if she was still alive. Charles Lane, an actor you'll immediately know from his face and his resume, is 101, and he'll be attending the party as well.