May 2008 Archives

Admittedly, I was originally interested in watching Numb strictly because of the involvement of Friends star, Matthew Perry. I knew nothing about the films storyline or its writer/director, Harris Goldberg. Upon receiving the DVD, I decided to look up Harris Goldberg on IMDB.com. My heart sank when I realized he was responsible for writing The Master of Disguise, a terrible film starring Dana Carvey as a man named Pistachio, who does a lot of voices and impressions. At first glance, this would seem to serve Carvey's talents well, except Pistachio appears to be on an acid trip throughout much of the film. Oh, well I thought as I put the DVD in my player. One bad writing credit shouldn't define a career.

By the time 1970 rolled around, Peggy Lee had been making records for nearly thirty years, been nominated for an Academy Award, and several Grammy Awards. She took home a Grammy in 1969, for Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Female for "Is That All There Is?"

Having accomplished so much and with musical tastes changing so rapidly, Peggy's fans probably would have understood if the singer had settled for singing hits from her large catalog of recorded music for the rest of her career.

Comedy Central's Drawn Together was originally conceived as a cartoon spoof of reality television series such as Big Brother and The Real World--eight distinctly different characters are flu8ng together and forced to put up with each other . Throughout many strange and outright bizarre adventures, the eight roommates push each other's buttons and tear each other apart.

Bill Engvall is a stand-up comedian probably best known for his participation in the Blue Collar Comedy Tour (BCC).Engvall's stand up routines mostly concerns his observations about comments he finds stupid and shtick about everyday life. Given the success of BCC, it is no surprise that TBS gave Engvall a shot at his own series.

The premise is simple: Bill Pearson (Engvall) is a family counselor struggling to understand his own family. His wife Susan (Nancy Travis), is a stay- at- home mom determined to keep her family on the straight and narrow. The couple has three children, a teenage daughter named Lauren (Jennifer Lawrence), Trent (Graham Patrick Martin) and their youngest child is a second son named Bryan (Skyler Gisondo). Lauren and Trent are typical teenagers pushing the boundaries and trying to get away with everything they possibly can, while Bryan is younger, precocious and very intelligent, which seems to get him in trouble at every turn.

Gunsmoke is one of the most beloved shows in television history. The series ran on CBS from September 10, 1955 to March 31, 1975 for 635 episodes. Gunsmoke actually began as a radio show in 1952 and remained on the air until 1961. On radio, actor William Conrad (Cannon), played marshal Matt Dillon and was initially the first choice to play the role when the series made the transition to television. However, concerns over Conrad's ballooning weight caused producers to consider other actors. Denver Pyle was considered for the role and Raymond Burr was looked at, but he was ultimately considered to heavyset for the role.

As a music fan and collector, I've always enjoyed live albums. There's nothing quite like a musician or a band playing at it's peak, with the audience responding to the music. There are literally thousands of live recordings out there that would fall under the rock genre. As a result, picking the 100 greatest among them was a difficult task. This list ended up being the albums I would choose. Alongside each selection, I've tried to explain my reasoning, but please feel free to let me know if I've placed one in the wrong spot, or missed a great album all together.

The compilation All Aglow Again! was originally released on Capitol Records' discount-priced Starline label in May of 1960. At the time, the goal was probably to get Lee's 1958 mega-hit "Fever" on LP for the first time. Previously, the song had only been released as a single, so Capitol Records executives likely saw a way to cash in on Peggy Lee's popularity.

On May 27, 2008, Collector's Choice Music will release a newly remastered version of All Aglow Again! which will also include six bonus tracks, three of which have never been on CD. The album starts out with the brilliantly smoldering "Fever." The opening snaps of that song has to be one of the best known openings in music history. The single's equally sultry but bluesy B-side, "You Don't Know" is also on the album. The song was recorded at the same recording session as "Fever" and was one of Peggy's favorite songs. She recorded "You Don't Know" on two more occasions; once in the 1960's and again in the 1980's.

Twister is now one of my favorite pointless movies of all time. The plot is non-existent and the characters have absolutely no substance, but it doesn't matter. The picture and sound on Warner Brothers' recently released two-disc special edition will rock your home theater. As any DVD collector knows, you have to have a few titles in your collection used for the sole purpose of showing of your system. Trust me, Twister will impress everyone!

As a major Tears for Fears fan growing up, I was curious what the bands co-founder, Curt Smith's first solo album in ten years would sound like. Smith freely admits that his new album Halfway, Pleased is semi-autobiographical and explores his relationships with his children, parents and friends. "It's where I find myself at this moment," he says. Making the transition from my carefree thirties into the responsibility of being a father; from the need to protest into the desire to protect."

Tina Sinatra recently said of her father, "Dad had no interest in writing a memoir: "What good would that do?" he'd say. "My life and music are the whole of me." Of course, he was right. Film was the only way to go. His music transcends time and intensifies what the screenplay reveals in words."Tina was referring to the 1992 mini-series, "Sinatra," in which she served as executive producer and had the blessing of 'Ol Blue Eyes himself.

As a series of Sinatra films and CDs are reissued to commemorate the tenth anniversary of his death, Warner Brothers has released Sinatra - The 2-Disc Collector's Edition. With no autobiography or truly authorized biography available, Sinatra stands as the most definitive portrait of Frank Sinatra from the Sinatra family that the public is likely to get.

Genealogy is a fascinating thing. The more you learn, the more you realize we are all interconnected in ways that most of us never would have imagined. In 2006, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. a Harvard professor and writer served as co-producer and host for the PBS series, African American Lives. The series used genealogical resources and DNA testing to trace the lineage of notable African Americans.

While the first series focused on the following prominent African Americans, Whoopi Goldberg, Quincy Jones, Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Ben Carson, Oprah Winfrey, Mae Jemison, Chris Tucker and T. D. Jakes and Gates himself, the prominent individuals in the second series are no less impressive: Morgan Freeman, Tina Turner, Tom Joyner, Chris Rock, Don Cheadle, Peter Gomes, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Maya Angelou, Bliss Broyard, Linda Johnson Rice, and Kathleen Henderson, a college administrator who was selected from more than 2,000 applicants of ordinary people to have her family history researched and DNA tested along with the well-known guests. Gates also continues the genealogical research into his own family history.

I knew nothing about Paper Rival until I was sent a copy of their self-titled EP last fall. The Nashville band--vocalist Jacob Rolleston, bassist Cody McCall, guitarist Brent Coleman, drummer Dillon Napier and guitarist Patrick Damphier--immediately impressed me with their lush pop melodies and alternative rock rhythms. The band has said from the start that they all love the music of such great artists as Bob Dylan and Bruce Cockburn. Rolleston's spare, gentle delivery seems influenced by the likes of Dylan, but marked by his own reflective style.

Rawhide premiered on January 9, 1959 on CBS and ran until January 4, 1966. The series was produced by Charles Marquis Warren, who also produced several early episodes of Gunsmoke. Warren used his 1958 film Cattle Empire as the basis for the series. Charles had directed the movie, and screenwriter Endre Bohem would become a story editor and consultant on the series. Further, Paul Brinegar, Steve Raines and Rocky Shahan who had all appeared in Cattle Empire, would later join the cast of Rawhide when the series premiered in 1959.

Though Rawhide had completed its original run a few years before I was born, I have vivid memories of the show. When I was a little girl, Clint Eastwood had become a huge star with "The Dollars"series of films he made while on his summer hiatus' from the series and subsequent mega-hits such as Dirty Harry, Magnum Force, Every Which Way But Loose and many others. As a result, episodes of Rawhide were aired frequently on TBS, which my brother and I watched whenever we could.

I never watched The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles when it began airing on television back in 1992. Now, having watched the series, repackaged as a series of films for the DVD release, I regret I didn't watch the show much earlier. Based on the early life of Indiana Jones as he was growing up and experiencing his earliest adventures, The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones represents one of the most ambitious television series I have ever seen produced. With George Lucas overseeing the project as the series executive producer, I suppose nothing but the best would do.

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones was filmed on location all over the world. Locations included England, Russia, Spain, Czechoslovakia, Kenya, France, India, China, Austria, Egypt, the United States, Morocco, Ireland, Italy, Africa, Turkey, Greece and Thailand. The scenery alone makes the Young Indy series a worthwhile viewing experience for Indiana Jones fans.

Sometimes you come across the kind of movie that leaves you completely spent and emotionally drained but glad to have seen it--the film is the kind of movie you'd volunteer to go see over and over again, but you recommend it to all your friends. Schindler's List did that to me back in 1993, and in a different but profound way, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly created a similar emotional response.

Jean-Dominique Bauby lived a life of glamour. As the editor of the French magazine Elle, he was at the epicenter of the fashion world in Paris. But his entire life changed in an instant, when at the age of 43 he was struck by a massive stroke. By all rights, the stroke should have killed him. Instead, he survived and was diagnosed with a rare condition called "Locked-in Syndrome," where his mind remained fully functional but the brain stem was destroyed, leaving his entire body paralyzed with the exception of one eye. The film's story revolves around Bauby's (Mathieu Amalric) determination to fulfill a book contract with the help of a translator.

Ricky Nelson would have turned 68 today, had he not been killed in a plane crash on January 1, 1985.

Here he is singing "It's Late" on Ozzie and Harriet. The song peaked on the charts at #9 in 1959.

Hilary Swank's recent film career is sort of like a championship runner; they either win the gold medal or finish completely out of the top three. In 2000, at the age of 26, Swank won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her portrayal of Brandon Teena in Boys Don't Cry. Hilary repeated the feat in 2005 for her role as Maggie Fitzgerald in Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby. Aside from those performances her film choices have been largely forgettable: The Core (2003), Red Dust (2004) The Black Dahlia (2006), and The Reaping (2007). While none of those movies will be largely remembered by the masses, Swank does deserve some credit for not sitting around on her Oscar winning laurels and trying to diversify her portfolio.

With a slew of new Peggy Lee releases due out later this month, I've been listening to the upcoming Lee releases and drawn back to one of my other personal favorites, Judy Garland. Miss Garland often said how much she admired Peggy as a singer/songwriter and Peggy expressed her admiration for Judy in kind.

In my opinion, The Judy Garland Show was truly one of those rare television gems that "got away." Where else are you going to find someone with the talent of Miss Garland joined by other legends such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett and so many others?

As a long time music collector in my thirties, I've always had an appreciation for what I like to call "pure vocalists"--singers who seem to be able to belt out any song and make it their own. This talented group tends to cross musical genres: standards, jazz, pop--their tremendous vocal range gives them a vast catalog of songs to chose from. While many people will automatically think of Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland as being great vocalists in modern time, Peggy Lee deserves a mention on that list as well.

Peggy Lee is considered one of the most important musical influences of the 20th century. Artists including Madonna, Paul McCartney, Dusty Springfield, Elvis Costello and others have cited Lee as a mentor. To influence such a diverse group of well known entertainers Peggy Lee was obviously a special performer. Duke Ellington once said, "If I'm the Duke, then Peggy's the Queen."

I'm very little! You cheat very big!

--Short Round

After the colossal success of Raiders of the Lost Ark, Steven Speilberg and George Lucas teamed up again in 1984, to create yet another Indiana Jones adventure. Maligned by fans and critics alike, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a much darker film than the first, designed to unearth the ugly side in man. Regardless, Temple of Doom still has something to offer and deserves repeated viewings by any Indy fan.

Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes?

--Indiana Jones

On the beaches of Hawaii in the summer of 1977, George Lucas and "director for hire" Steven Spielberg decided to make an adventure movie that hearkened back to the old, cheaply made adventure serials of the 1930's. George Lucas had a story idea for an adventurous archaeologist named Indiana Jones, and Raiders of the Lost Ark was born.

Indiana Jones has become an iconic figure in film history; Right up there with Luke Skywalker, E.T., the shark from Jaws and Rick Blaine from Casablanca. Perhaps the genius was in making him both an adventurer and a scientist--a stud and a thinker--a winning combination. By being equal parts wits and brawn, Indy broke the mold of the traditional action hero. While John Wayne spent countless films tromping the west and being the strong hero, bookish intelligence was never his thing. Indiana Jones' obvious intelligence gave the character an extra dimension and believability. By making Indy the prominent archaeologist, Dr. Jones, Lucas made the audience believe that Indy was smart enough to get out of any situation.