Tuesday Tidbits

Just a few random items today!



I received yet another reminder this week that I am, indeed, the parent of a teenager, and that, as a whole, teenagers are not nearly as innocent in thought as we would like to think they are. My 15-year-old were discussing his friend group - perhaps 8 to 10 strong - who like to hang out on weekends at various town centers and go to movies and whatnot. It's more or less an equal mix of boys and girls, so naturally, I asked him if there are any boys in the group who "like" any of the girls in the group. He told me he doubted it, because two of the girls are self-proclaimed lesbians, and one is bi-sexual. O-kayyy. He then found it incumbent to inform me that HE is straight. Not that there's anything wrong with that.



I considered doing a full-blown piece on Nadya Suleman, aka "Octomom". But I realized as I read some news stories about her that there's no real need to blog on her, because the woman is a media whore and just plain nuts to boot. I find it hard to believe that most people don't already have the exact same opinion of her, so what would the point be in blogging? Her children are going to grow up with significant developmental delays and psychological problems, and she's out there trying to pitch a reality show out of it? Spare me... and spare the rest of us, too!

Speaking of reality TV, the newest season of "Dancing With The Stars" debuted last night, and for a show that had made its fame by going after C-list celebrities, let me tell you. Producers have sunk straight down to the D-list. You might not find some of these people even if you googled their names! I always enjoy watching the competition, and frankly, I watch more now for my favorite pros (Julianne, Mark, Cheryl, Maks and Derek) than I do for the stars. But the casting has become predictable. I can tell you now that 3 of the final stars will be Shawn Johnson, Lawrence Taylor and the girl who just got dissed on the Bachelor. Everyone else - lambs for the slaughter.

Finally - this may be funny to no one but me, but I made a ha-ha, and I have to share it. My former boss posted this as his status message on Facebook on Saturday:

Chris Berry is in Chicago for Paul Harvey's funeral and memorial service.

If you are at all familiar with Paul Harvey, you know how he opened every broadcast... So, with that in mind, knowing that Chris would be spending several hours in church, I responded with this:

Stand by - for PEWS!

You may or may not find that to be funny, but I think it is... and I think Paul would have as well.

John Matthews... Good Day!

Sayonara To Sequins And Sambas!

Well, the latest season of "Dancing With The Stars" has wrapped up, and I am digging deep into my testosterone-driven courage to write a blog entry about it! There is nothing unmanly about enjoying a good paso doble - and if it's manly enough for ESPN, then it's manly enough for me.

I have been a devoted fan of the show from the start, and as such, I have long since given up on any notion that it is a fair competition. In fact, I firmly believe it is fixed - but I still enjoy the spectacle of it all... and I think the show's producers have done a good job of picking a winner each time who brings the right combination of talent and popularity to the show.

This season was weaker than most... The best dancer, TV host Brooke Burke, was the best but this was a fairly sad bunch compared to some recent seasons. Burke was pushed by former NFL star Warren Sapp, who had little talent but massive appeal with the audience... and third place went to N Sync's Lance Bass, who I truly cannot stand to look at any longer. He was played up as a villain this season - perhaps unfairly - but he and his professional partner, Lacey Schwimmer, went out of their way to be "different" - so I guess they got what they deserved.

Here's Brooke Burke's winning freestyle dance that sealed the deal for her this week... the perfect Dancing With the Stars combo of cheese and talent! Enjoy!

Reality TV Roundup

I have always found myself on a bit of the defensive because I am a dedicated consumer of reality television. In fact, I've avoided discussing it on this blog so far out of worry it might forever stain me as some sort of cultural idiot. The fact IS that television is entertainment... and whatever floats your boat is OK by me. My wife has her own TiVo filled to the brim with every cop show on the air... Never mind the fact that THOSE shows are about as far from REALITY as you can get - that's what she enjoys.

What really sticks in my craw are the people who insist on dismissing any program that is placed in the "reality TV" category out of hand. My brother-in-law, Todd, is one of these people. He won't tolerate 10 minutes of "Dancing With The Stars", but he'll watch every single Yankees game! Can you really tell me that three hours of baseball on TV is either more exciting or more entertaining than one hour of celebrity ballroom dancing? Again - whatever floats your boat.

Now - just a couple of quick riffs on current and future reality TV programs...

We're down to the final three on "Dancing With The Stars", now that Marissa Jaret Winokur has been shown the door. I was a big fan of the Tony-winning actress ... Like me, she is loud and fat... but she didn't let that get in the way, and she obviously enjoyed every minute that she was on the show. The great thing about Marissa is that she knew she probably should have been gone several weeks ago, and she appreciated that America kept her around as long as it did. As for the remaining stars, if Kristy Yamaguchi doesn't win, it will be a crime!


I've never been a big fan of American Idol... To me, it's always taken too long to go from early auditions to the finals, and there's something about all three judges that bug me. Having said that, I have dipped in and out of Idol this season... and I believe it's David Cook's competition to win.





If Reality TV is uncool, "Survivor" must be downright frigid. Just a few years ago, the granddaddy of reality programs was standard watercooler conversation in the office, but I knew almost no one at WMAL who would admit to watching it in recent years. The TV ratings are starting to bear that out. The finale of the latest season, "Fans vs. Faves", failed to finish in the top 10 programs for the week. That's a shame, because for those of you who snuffed the torch on Survivor years ago, I can tell you that this season - number SIXTEEN! - was one of the most entertaining seasons ever, including a four-week streak of tribal council blindsiding that has never been matched in the show's history! Again - I'm a big football fan - but you can't tell me that some of these shows are not just as competitive as TV sports!

Finally - I'm happy to hear that the Mole is making a comeback on ABC this summer. "The Mole" is almost as old as "Survivor", but it never achieved the same kind of ratings success. The original series was hosted by Anderson Cooper, who at the time was an overnight news anchor on ABC, and not yet a CNN megastar. The show itself is kind of hard to describe. There are about a dozen contestants who are given missions to perform... However, one of the contestants is a mole... someone whose job it is to spoil the missions without being detected. The winner of the program is the person who survives the longest, and who can identify the Mole. This show, more than others, was an acquired taste, but I highly recommend it. The new version will be out next month, but you can catch a marathon of the original series this Sunday on Game Show Network! Here's a promo for the original series:


By the way - a big shout out to my friend Ann Wog, who produces the Grandy and Andy Morning show on WMAL - She is my one and only true reality confidant! If it's reality TV, it's on Ann's TiVo!