holiday-related stories
Posted Nov 18th 2009 9:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Casting, Reality-Free, Modern Family
There's an old adage in show business that says something to the effect that casting is half the battle. If you cast a part well, you're sure to have a winning finished project. If that's true, then
the casting of Fred Willard on Modern Family is sure to be a hit. I won't reveal what role Fred will be playing til after the jump, so if you don't want to know, don't read on. Suffice to say, the very funny Mr. Willard is being given a great opportunity to shine.
Willard, who was terrific on
Everybody Loves Raymond, not to mention all the Christopher Guest films like
Best In Show and
A Mighty Wind, was on sitcom TV just last season on Fox's
Back to You. In fact, it was on that show that Fred worked with
Modern Family's Ty Burrell. Now they get to do it again.
Continue reading Fred Willard checks in to Modern Family
Posted Sep 27th 2009 5:20PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Video, Commercials, Reality-Free
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.)
Continue reading Macy's magical commercial: 150 years in the making
Posted Sep 4th 2009 6:10PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Programming, Reality-Free
Ah, Labor Day. Isn't it great to have the summer over (yes, I consider Labor Day as the end of summer) and the new TV season about to begin?
Here's a list of the various marathons, specials, and sports that you can see on Sunday and Monday. Let us know if we've missed anything.
Sunday
- At 8 AM, Hallmark has a Golden Girls marathon.
- At 9, USA has a Law and Order: SVU marathon.
- At 10, WE has a marathon of Girlfriends episodes.
- At 10:30, TV Land has a Beverly Hillbillies marathon.
- At 11, CBS has U.S. Open coverage.
- At 1 PM, Discovery has a Planet Earth marathon.
- Bravo has a Top Chef: Las Vegas marathon at 1.
- At 3, Spike has a Band of Brothers marathon.
- NBC has the Deutsche Bank Golf Championship at 3.
- At 5, TV Land has an Andy Griffith Show marathon.
- At 9, it's the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon (check local listings).
Continue reading A guide to Labor Day marathons and specials
Posted Dec 21st 2008 12:20AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Programming, Ratings, Reality-Free
TV Week reports that the ratings for various holiday special repeats are
in decline as compared to last year. I'm curious as to why this is the case.
Network television is a free medium, and all but the most impoverished can afford some form of hardware to watch it. So why is viewership down? Is the recession dulling the holiday spirit? Are people selling their televisions in order to afford the mortgage?
I recall that someone once told me that the pro-wrestling industry always garners worse ratings during a recession. I always thought that was a strange statement to make, but there is some logic to it. Most pro-wrestling is on cable, which people have to pay for and is usually one of the first things to go when money gets tight. These holiday specials are on network TV.
The explanation in the article is the ubiquity of DVD and downloads. Nobody has to wait anymore to watch holiday programs. If this is the case, the television industry better step up their plans to change the medium before the viewership changes it for them.
Posted Dec 9th 2008 10:09AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: OpEd, HDTV, Cable/Satellite, Festivus, Reality-Free
It's approaching midnight, it's in the single digits outside, and I really don't feel like watching regular TV right now. I feel like having something on while I get under the covers and read. Time for the Yule Log!
This season (
Jay reviewed one a couple of years ago), Comcast, Cox, Time-Warner, and Bright House all have the Yule Log on their On Demand service (via iN Demand). It's that scene of a crackling fireplace to get you in the Christmas mood. It's especially good if you don't have a fireplace of your own (duh), and it's in HD! I have Comcast digital, and to access it, go to your On Demand menu, then scroll down to HD On Demand, then go to TV Entertainment. You'll see a "Yule Log & More" category (not sure how to get to the section on other cable systems - maybe it's the same?).
But wait, there's more...
Continue reading Yule Log 2008: A review
Posted Nov 26th 2008 3:09PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, Programming, Reality-Free
Are there TV shows and/or movies that you watch every Christmas? If you're like me, you try to catch
It's A Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street,
Bad Santa, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Rudolph and other specials. And on Halloween we have, well,
Halloween and
It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
But what about Thanksgiving? Do you have any TV traditions for this holiday?
Continue reading What are your Turkey Day TV traditions?
Posted Aug 30th 2008 10:41AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Programming, Reality-Free
Labor Day marks the end of summer (yeah, don't tell me summer ends later in September, if it's Labor Day and the kids are back in school, summer is over), and you could spend the weekend at the beach, having a barbecue, or doing something athletic outside. Or, you could stay in all weekend on your couch and watch a TV marathon! Here's a list of some marathons you can see this Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
Saturday, August 30
- At 6am, TCM starts a marathon of Katharine Hepburn movies.
- At 7, History Channel has a marathon of Ax Men.
- At 9, USA has a Starter Wife marathon.
- Also at 9, Sci-Fi has a marathon of monster movies, including Carnosaur, Reptilian, Beneath Loch Ness, Eye of the Beast, King of the Lost World, and Black Swarm.
- At 10, Bravo has a Shear Genius marathon.
- At 11, History Channel has a bunch of Ice Road Truckers episodes.
- At 11:30, Discovery Kids has a marathon of Flight 29 Down episodes.
- At 2pm, Spike has a CSI marathon.
Continue reading Hey, look! Labor Day weekend marathons!
Posted Apr 4th 2007 11:36PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: OpEd, South Park, Episode Reviews
(S11E05) When this episode began, I figured eventually there would be some explanation as to why it is we color Easter eggs and why a rabbit hides them, some kind of explanation of these traditions and their pagan roots. However, by the end I was glad the story went where it did, because this was both the "worst" episode of South Park this season, and incredibly funny. I say "worst" because of all the horrible gags, like "The Hare Club for Men," and William Donahue's "double cross" that had me simultaneously cracking up and saying, "my god, that was a terrible joke."
Continue reading South Park: Fantastic Easter Special
Posted Dec 27th 2006 6:07PM by Julia Ward
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, FOX, The Simpsons, Animation
A New Year's resolution is a funny thing. On the one hand, resolutions are a great way of beating back seasonal depression. They allow us to put our old ways behind us. Making a resolution is a way of acknowledging that there's hope for us yet - all is not lost. Then, the year begins. The resolution gets left by the wayside. What was once a hopeful promise you made to yourself becomes indicative of failure.
So, why make resolutions at all? Theoretically, because we keep hoping that we can become the best possible versions of ourselves. And, what exactly would be the best possible version of the Simpsons? Lucky for you, Fox has the answer. In an
odd, brief press release promoting the January 7th return of the show, Fox listed the adult Springfieldians' 2007 resolutions. You can check them out after the jump. Perhaps, they'll inspire you to turn over a new leaf this holiday season.
Continue reading New Year's resolutions from The Simpsons
Posted Dec 24th 2006 6:32PM by Julia Ward
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Programming, Comedy Central
Mark your calendars. Sarah Silverman's much-delayed Comedy Central show
The Sarah Silverman Program will finally get its
debut on February 1st at 10:30pm. A six-episode run of the program was scheduled to premiere this past summer - capitalizing on the positive press Silverman garnered for her concert film
Jesus is Magic and her appearance in the documentary
The Aristocrats. I suppose Comedy Central thought the market for clever, offensive comedy from beautiful women was saturated last summer so they waited to spring the goods on us in '07.
Silverman's television outing was conceived by Silverman along with Dan Harmon and Rob Schrab - names comedy fans may remember as being responsible for the failed Fox pilot turned cult favorite
Heat Vision and Jack.
Continue reading Update on The Sarah Silverman Program
Posted Dec 22nd 2006 4:03PM by Julia Ward
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, NBC, Late Night, Animation, Web, Festivus
The third and final installment of
Conan O'Brien and comedian Jim Gaffigan's "Pale Force" animated Christmas episode can now be
streamed online, and it's a classic. Not only does it manage to satirize every single pop culture manifestation of this most precious of holidays, it also throws in a dig about the Eurocentric depiction of Christ, gives us an animated Andy Warhol and poses the question, "What would the world be like if Conan weren't pale?"
The number of sly references in the three-parter is dazzling as are such jaunty songs as "Not Going to Get Me Down This Year" and "Christmas is the Palest Time of Year." So, move over
Scrubs' Charlie Brown Xmas and
SNL's "Dick in a Box," the "Pale Force Christmas" episode has entered the favorite holiday viral race.
Posted Dec 17th 2006 10:34PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: FOX, OpEd, The Simpsons, Animation
(S18E09)
Homer: Why did you let that loser into our home?
Marge: I'll tell you why: Christian charity.
Homer: "Christian Charity?" What does a porn star have to do with this?
I was impressed with the overall holiday motif of this episode, especially the altered opening with snow, Christmas decor and Bart riding a snowboard (across dry pavement, even) rather than his usual skateboard.
Continue reading The Simpsons: Kill Gil: Vols. 1 & 2
Posted Dec 17th 2006 6:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Animation, Festivus, Retro Squad
A Charlie Brown Christmas will always be about eight billion light years above all other holiday specials in my mind, but that's not to say I don't enjoy those other old standards that pop up on TV this time of year. How the Grinch Stole Christmas remains one of my favorites: a perfect blend of all things Seussian and Jonesian.
To be honest, from a visual standpoint How the Grinch Stole Christmas is pretty much a Chuck Jones special. The only characters who really resemble Dr. Seuss' graphic style are The Whos, and even the precocious Cindy Lou Who (who was no more than two) is given the doe eyes and adorable but dopey face that made Jones' characters instantly recognizable. Jones did much the same thing when he took over the Tom and Jerry shorts for MGM which were originated by William Hanna and Joe Barbera: he redesigned the characters and made it his own thing.
Continue reading Festivus Retro Squad: How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Posted Dec 13th 2006 9:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Animation, BBC
Christmas isn't just about hanging stockings, decorating the tree, buying presents, burning the Yule log and cleaning the vomit off your roof from airsick reindeer. Sometimes it's about shooting your wife and son in the face and sawing through your son's skull, or so animator David Firth imagines in this graphic animated Christmas card (extreme cartoon violence, so be warned). This was supposed to appear on the BBC Four program Charlie Brooker's Screen Wipe, but Brooker rejected it. Firth has apparently made animated shorts for the series before, but this one wasn't family-friendly enough according to Brooker. Like Firth says, more people will probably see it on the Web, anyway. I figured I'd help that along and mention it here, because it really is quite funny if you have a twisted sense of humor.
[via Cold, Hard Flash]
Posted Dec 9th 2006 5:41PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Programming
At 8, FOX has a new Cops, followed by a repeat episode, then a new America's Most Wanted. - ABC has Holidaze: The Christmas That Almost Didn't Happen at 8, followed by Jim Carrey in How The Grinch Stole Christmas.
- Food Network has a repeat Emeril Live where he creates a "Christmas Holiday Party," followed by the Nigella Bites Christmas Special and A Barefoot Contessa Holiday.
- There are two new eps of Little People, Big World on TLC, starting at 8.
- At 9, CBS has a new, two-hour 48 Hours Mystery.
- Discovery has a special Holiday Mythbusters at 9.
- Lifetime has Holiday Affair at 9.
- At 10, TLC has the special Crazy Christmas Lights.
- At 11, FOX has a new Mad TV, followed by a new Talk Show With Spike Feresten.
- NBC has a new Saturday Night Live at 11:30, with Annette Bening and Gwen Stefani.
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