I love A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS

A Charlie Brown Christmas, based of course on Charles Schulz's masterful comic strip, was made for CBS in 1965. It has been repeated every Xmas for over 40 years (now you can see it each year on ABC), and it must surely rank as one of the most watched (and treasured) examples of animation art ever produced. It is completely unlike anything I've ever seen, and is utterly successful in setting a mood all its very own. There are two elements, initially, that set it apart: the beautifully evocative score by jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi and his trio; and the indescribable vocal performances by the mostly amateur kids Schulz and producer/animator Bill Melendez chose to represent these characters. Incredibly, both elements were originally nixed by the CBS executives, who not only felt that adults should have been cast in these roles and the eventually-million-selling score was too boppy for the mainstream, but that the whole piece would be better sullied up with a laugh track (they even wanted to nix any references to the Bible!). This shows how incredibly goofy and unfeeling these execs were, because it's the SOUND of A Charlie Brown Christmas that really grabs our hearts.

Originally sponsored by Coca-Cola (who ironically tried to fit in a few now-deleted product placements in its first airings), this half-hour piece follows Charlie Brown as he battles a holiday depression brought on by the commercialization of Christmas. Visiting Lucy's psychiatric stand, he's cajoled into being the director of the kids' Christmas play (the way his face lights up when Lucy suggests this is pure joy). Charlie Brown arrives on stage as Schroeder and the gang are dancing madly about. (The dances each of these eight kids are doing have become complete cultural touchstones; these are some terrific moves!)

Charlie Brown struggles to get his cast's attention, but when it becomes clear that they're not getting anywhere near discovering the true meaning of Christmas, it's determined that what the play needs is a big Christmas tree as the stage's centerpiece. It's here that Charlie sets out with Linus to find the perfect tree. But instead of getting a big pink artificial tree at the local lot (as Lucy suggests), Charlie Brown falls in love with an anemic-looking baby tree with barely enough branches on it to hang one ornament on ("Gee, do they still make wooden Christmas trees?" Linus exclaims). It's this little tree that becomes the symbol for what Christmas is all about: love.

Even after seeing it hundreds of times, I decided to pop in my old 1985 VHS copy of the special in this Christmas morning. Being a lifelong fan of Charles Schulz's work, I knew I would enjoy watching A Charlie Brown Christmas again. But I was surprised at how many times I laughed out loud during the piece. Most of these laughs come from Snoopy, who's first seen in the body of the special sitting atop his doghouse, reading the paper and literally eating bones one by one. I treasure the way he imitates on stage a sheep, a cow, a penguin, a vulture, and finally a fussbudgeting Lucy. And when he's caught dancing atop Schroeder's piano, the music abruptly stops and, as he's being stared down by Schroeder and Lucy, the dog turns red and sheepishly slinks away. I'm telling you, this is comedy.

Child actor Peter Robbins played Charlie Brown all throughout the 1960s, up until the comic strip's big-screen outing A Boy Named Charlie Brown. His impassioned, strangely gravelly delivery IS the way Charlie Brown is supposed to sound, and unfortunately, when Robbins quit doing the voice in 1969, he had so embodied the role that none of his replacements could measure up. Ditto Chris Shea (brother of actor Eric Shea, most famous for being the kid in 1972's The Poseidon Adventure). Shea's lispy personification of Linus Van Pelt has precisely the intelligence, humor and warmth this classic character deserve. I swear, when Linus takes the stage ("Lights, please!") and quotes from the King James Bible, his words echoing through a quiet, cavernous hall...my gosh, I tear up every time. This surely must be the most effective use of the Bible's verses ever in pop culture:

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men.'"

The stunning silence after this moment passes is utter sublimity. Blanket in tow, Linus approaches his depressed friend and sagely says "That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown." (Amazingly, the CBS execs even wanted to delete this scene, because they felt no one would sit still for a Bible lesson. But Charles Schulz stood firm: "If we don't say it, who will?")

I could go on and on about the merits of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Yes, its animation and sound are choppy, but charmingly so. I suspect that, for the rest of my life, I will rarely let a Yuletide go by without watching it at least once. That there are millions and millions who agree with me surely must be the highest praise that can be bestowed upon it. Winner of the 1966 Emmy for animation and a prestigious Peabody Award to boot, it's a masterpiece if ever there was one.

Nose-talgia: Superman and the Little Girl

This isn't about the holidays, but it's a delightful clip that will make us all feel like kids again!

Happy Holidays!

My Favorite Christmas TV Special

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer premiered on network TV December 6, 1964, which makes it 44 years old. And yet its message seems as fresh and relevant as ever. Directed by Kizo Nagashima and Larry Roemer, this claymation classic continues to delight kids and grown-ups year after year.

How prescient the makers of Rudolph were to make a holiday special where the primary theme was tolerance (of differences) and power to the individual. Rudolph with his (flaming red nose!) and Hermey the wannabe dentist elf, are at first shunned by their peers, but ultimately persevere and hailed as the hero's of Christmas Eve.

Rudolph has something for everyone. I always found the story compelling, even gripping. There's the family drama between Rudolph and his good ole boy Dad, Donner. There's the beautiful romance between Rudolph and the gorgeous Clarice. For a cliff hanger (literally), you can't beat Bumble, the abominable snowman monster, and for comic relief, we have the irrepressible Yukon Cornelius. But at its core, Rudolph is a buddy piece, with Hermey the dentist and Rudolph off on a winter road trip and excellent adventure.

The most recognizable voice in this Christmas charmer is Burl Ives, who sings and narrates as Sam the Snowman. His "Holly Jolly Christmas" is at least as much of a holiday classic as Rudolph is.

Well it's Christmas Eve folks, and I'd like to wish all our loyal readers around the world a peaceful and happy holiday. I'm off to watch Rudolph again, as I always manage to miss it when it airs, but thankfully now have the DVD.

"I Love Lucy" in Color!

I just had to share this neat vid from YouTube, which is home movie footage taken by an audience member at a 1951 taping of I Love Lucy! It's amazing!




For the whole story of behind the footage, visit its YouTube page!

Cat Dancers: The Strangest HBO Documentary Ever

If you like TV programs about Ebola, chimeras, comets, tsunamis and wild animals that bite, you might consider giving Cat Dancers (HBO) a gander. If you watch Meerkat Manor, Air Jaws, old Judy Garland movies and Oprah only when conjoined twins are making an appearance, then Jane's special algorithm for determining what you might like to watch based on your past viewing choices says, "run don't walk" to Cat Dancers on HBO. If you have ever once searched the web for information on "Plushies" (people who dress up like stuffed animals) trust me, this one's for you. It's very special.

Cat Dancers tells the story of Ron and Joy Holiday, and their lover Chuck Lizza. Their menage- a-trois would be weird enough, but the happy threesome went on to form one of the world's first exotic tiger entertainment acts. That's right, before Sigfried and Roy, there were the Cat Dancers. And without being too much of a spoiler, let's just say both acts experienced similar tragic grand finales.

Most of the film is narrated by Ron Holiday, an enthusiastic but oddly emotionless fellow given to wearing wigs, eyeliner and ballet tights. He was married for over 40 years to Joy and they had a very successful adagio dance team that performed at Radio City Music Hall in NYC. Joy Holiday is a cheerful busty blond who once wanted to be a nun. Chuck, their paramour, was a young man who once worked for the circus. Together they formed the "Cat Dancers" and they performed for 14 years with leopards, panthers and a white tiger hybrid named Jupiter.

Don't read the whole story on the HBO site unless you want to know how this odd documentary ends. I'm not going to reveal it here, because I've been haunted by it for days. It's disturbing on so many levels. As an animal rights activist, I can't endorse the idea of big cats being used as circus performers. If my own little cats Bob and CNN can't stand to be cooped up in a house all day, I can't imagine how bored and unhappy big cats must feel being in a cage.

Nevertheless, if your tastes in TV gravitate to the extremely unusual, then I can't recommend Cat Dancers enough.

Cat Dancers debuted on Dec 15th, 2008 at 8pm on HBO. Check your guide for repeat air dates, or see HBO on Demand.

Cities of the Underworld

While we wait in breathless anticipation for the final episode of Showtime's "DEXTER" tonight, I'd like to give a vigorous nod to a little gem that I've wanted to write about for quite a while. It's called "Cities of the Underworld" (History Channel, Mondays at 9pm).

When I was about 9 years old, I lived in a suburb a half hour outside of New York City. I'll never forget the first time my mom brought me out of our bland Leave it To Beaver landscape into NYC. It was like "Oz" for me, and I fell in love at first sight. The soaring buildings! The honking taxis! Even the smell was electric and appealing, a mixture of Chock Full of Nuts coffee, gasoline and steam. But one of my best memories was of the underground shopping center beneath the Empire State Building. It seemed to go on for blocks and blocks, a whole city underneath the magical metropolis of New York.

If you've ever wondered what lies beneath, "Cities of the Underworld" will captivate you. The most appropriately named host Don Wildman will lead you there, whether it's under NYC's Grand Central Station (pictured) or ancient Rome or even Sin City itself (Las Vegas), which I would have thought to be too new and sandy to have an underworld. Turns out, the relentless heat of the desert makes building part of the city underground practical and more energy efficient.

I've watched many episodes where Don squeezes himself into impossibly tight spots. He's been wedged into narrow caves under ancient druid enclaves , or lowered into appalling sewers far below the streets of London, where Jack the Ripper himself may have escaped from his dreadful deeds. Through it all, Mr. Wildman maintains an absolutely correct tone of enthusiasm and amazement. He's fearless in places that would reduce most folks to claustrophobic hysteria.

Like many cable shows, "Cities" is repeated endlessly, so it won't be hard to stumble across it on the History Channel. It's worth searching high (or low in this case) to find a few dark places where most people never travel.

"The Wall Street Journal" Loves CBS' "The Big Bang Theory"-- and so do we!

Well, weird that it had to come from a business newspaper, but it's at least great to see an extremely positive article about a Flaming Nose favorite series, CBS' Monday night comedy The Big Bang Theory! You can and should read the whole article online at The Wall Street Journal -- it's written by John Jurgensen and it's entitled "A Nerdy Comedy's Winning Formula". We've loved the show here since its premiere in Fall 2007, and TBBT continues to be an adorable and hilarious half-hour that hasn't gone stale yet.

In some ways The Big Bang Theory felt like a two-word, one-joke show -- nerd physicists -- but the characters have been lovingly crafted and are human as well as brainiacs. Actors Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar have managed to simulate the dynamics of a real friendship, and the beautiful girl outsider, played by Kelly Cuoco, is every bit as funny as they are. I defy you not to get several good laughs from every episode. If you're a science fiction fan in any way, then you will particularly love the show. The riffs on various esoteric SF concepts and characters are always...may I say...super funny! The amusing actress Sara Rue has been around for the last few episodes as Leonard's new M.D. love interest, and that's yet another incentive to check out the show. She's always great.

I love the show and I hope that if you don't already watch it, you'll tune in and see what you've been missing. Hey, it's got the WSJ Seal of Approval now, right?

The Big Bang Theory airs at 8pm on Monday nights, on CBS.

Summer Heights High in the Dead of TV Winter

As the Sunday night Flaming Nose favorites flame out with their respective season ends, it is heartening that one bizarre series still has a few episodes left to go. Summer Heights High (Sundays at 10:30p on HBO) is like a half hour Christopher Guest movie with an Aussie accent. It follows the trials and tribulations of two Australian public school students (Ja'mie and Jonah) and one extra flamboyant Drama teacher (Mr. G) all played admirably by comedian Chris Lilley. Of the three, Jonah the Polynesian delinquent is the most believable and sympathetic. He's disruptive, profane and often hilarious as he plots new ways to wreck havoc and amuse his motley crew of budding gangsters. Mr. G, the bitchy and self absorbed Drama teacher is a "Waiting for Guffman" clone, who is developing a high school musical that features pole dancing teens. He is generally accompanied by his adored chihuahua Celine and a Down syndrome student who's innocent affection for Mr. G. is not returned. Least believable (from appearance alone) is Ja'mie, the stuck up transfer student and self described "hot girl" from a private school. Ja'mie towers over her entourage, all of whom seem oblivious to the fact that she looks like a Green Bay Packer in drag. Filling in the cast are assorted teachers, administrators and hapless students. It's cold comfort to see that political correctness and bureaucracy have infected the academic environment Down Under with the same mindless vigor that ails our own US public schools.

True Blood and Entourage are gone already and Dexter has but one final episode to go (watch for our comments after next Sunday). Give Summer Heights a gander, it's an interesting diversion until Flight of the Conchords returns to HBO on Sunday nights.

In Canada, We're Saying Goodbye to "Trailer Park Boys" Tonight

All across Canada, fans of the innovative, original, hilarious and gloriously profane series Trailer Park Boys will be saying a fond farewell to the series, which comes to an end on the Showcase network tonight. The recent decision made by the producers to end the series evidently caught many folks by surprise, including the stars of the show who learned of the cancellation only a day before the news went out on the TPB website. I'm a huge fan of the series, especially some of the earlier seasons, and though in the U.S. it was briefly on BBC America (and completely bleeped for language, therefore hardly watchable) and now fans can seek it out online, it's really a north of the border phenom. I wrote about it four years ago on my original TV blog, and the show has never let me down.

Trailer Park Boys is uniquely Canadian, and particularly Nova Scotian, as it's filmed in and around Halifax and the stars are fairly local boys. The best way to get acquainted with the Ricky (Robb Wells), Julian (John Paul Tremblay) and Bubbles (Mike Smith), if you're not already, is to watch the series. You can read about it, but until you experience for yourself the almost inexplicably effective blend of profanity, lawlessness, friendship, sentimentality, poverty, ingenuity and community that makes up Trailer Park Boys, you'll never understand why this show is so incredibly special. There's NOTHING like it on U.S. TV, and I can't imagine anything like it ever making it there. O Canada!

The Trailer Park Boys are a part of what makes Canada so great, and we look forward to at least another TPB movie, and honestly, this bunch of memorable characters is simply too special to put down easily. I suspect they will return, and of course the entire talented group of performers who brought the Sunnyvale Trailer Park to life will go on to other things, but they should know, and I'm sure do, that they made history with Trailer Park Boys, and are in our hearts forevever.

I'm going to link to one of my favorite episodes from the show here, entitled "If You Love Something, Set It Free" in which a mountain lion plays havoc with the boys latest pot crop and Bubbles, inveterate cat lover, takes the big kitty under his wing. It's from the show's amazing 4th season, which also contained the incredibly insane episode "Conky" where Bubbles comes under the power of his evil childhood hand puppet which has been recovered from a swamp. You must watch both of them! I'll say it again...there's nothing like this on U.S. TV. (There are lots of TPB episodes on Google Video, so check them out!)

I just have to include some video here, so here's a compilation of some of the endearing Bubbles' best moments, from a fan on YouTube:

Trailer Park Boys, you were one of the first things I fell in love with in Nova Scotia!

(Check out all the TPB websites linked in this article for more on this truly one-of-a-kind television experience! They also have a Christmas Show which you should watch at holiday time!)

Roger Corman's "Cyclops" on Sci Fi This Saturday Night!

I'm always up for a good monster, and the Sci Fi Channel loves them, too. Most of their original movies seem to have a CGI beast or two lurking about, and this week legendary movie producer Roger Corman brings us Cyclops -- ferocious, one-eyed and a cannibal, to boot! Cyclops -- "The Rise of the Cyclops...is the Fall of Rome" so sayeth the ads, stars Eric Roberts as Emperor Tiberius, Kevin Stapleton as Marcus, a Roman soldier, and Swedish beauty Frida Farrell as an alluring barbarian warrioress.

Cyclops looks to be, if not quite the quality of HBO's Rome exactly, a toga-filled romp with a monster who looks pretty scary. (I shudder to think what he's packing in that loincloth -- talk about formidable!)

I am going to recommend this one on the basis of nothing else except my firm belief that you can't have too many monsters!

Here's an extended trailer -- I hope it's not ALL the good parts!:

And here's a shorter promo --

Cyclops

Cyclops premieres on the Sci Fi Channel this coming Saturday, December 5th, at 9pm!

New Version of "Star Trek" Trailer -- With a Little Spock

And when we say Spock, we mean the one and only Leonard Nimoy!

Star Trek Trailer 2
by rejectnation

Can't wait to see this next year!!!

Dexter Goes a Little Crazy -- A Great Moment from Last Week's "Dexter" Episode

About Last Night -- Wherein Dexter discovers that Miguel has been playing him, but good.



With HBO's TrueBlood finished until new episodes appear next summer, we can now concentrate fully on the last three episodes of Showtime's Dexter. This season has a been a good one for our serial killer, with a bravura and chilling performance by Jimmy Smits as Dex's confidante and co-conspirator. We've learned that Smits' Miguel Prado has gone rogue, throwing off Dexter's Code to murder his professional enemy, defense lawyer Ellen Wolfe, played with great verve by Anne Ramsay. Seeing her dead at the bottom of the open grave was a grim moment, and especially so for Lt. LaGuerta who had become Ellen's close friend (and though I think they were both supposed to be straight, I felt they might have tumbled into bed at some point, or was I just reading too much into their girl talk?). LaGuerta also took it on the chin last season when her good friend and ex-partner/lover Doakes was murdered by the evil Lila. Lauren Velez as LaGuerta has been especially superb in these last few episodes.

As we've said before, we're not so wild about the whiny wedding planning obsession of Dexter's girlfriend Rita, but we were on the edge of our seat as Deborah and Quinn (Desmond Harrington) raced to save her new boyfriend/informant Anton (David Ramsey) from more torture at the hands of The Skinner. We love that Angel finally has a girlfriend, too, the tough but appealing Lt. Gianna played by Kristin Dattilo. Is she going to be too street-wise for Angel? I don't think he was too thrilled to discover that she hit it off with Masuka, sharing bizarre sex practice information with the enthusiastically pervy forensic investigator.

Considering that we're only three episodes away from the conclusion of this season, it doesn't feel like Dexter's been quite as viscerally involving or richly-plotted as the first and second years of the show, but there have been other pleasures. This season has been more domestic, more emotional, very different but still very compelling and getting more so, thanks so much to Smits' excellent work and his excellent chemistry with Michael C. Hall. Were Smits not so much fun to watch as he sinks further into his mania, with Dexter desperately trying to keep him in check, this season might have been a bit of a let-down. But it's not, not even close.

Don't miss tomorrow night's Dexter episode on Showtime!

Entourage Season Finale--Exhilarating!

The Flaming Nose has given a lot of attention to Sunday night series, and quite a few of our favorites are wrapping up their season's tonight. Let me be the first to say farewell to Entourage, which ended it all on a roller coaster ride of Hollywood disaster and glee, but stopped just short of a cliche cliff hanger.

I hope I'm not a spoiler tonight, but if you're reading the Flaming Nose instead of watching all the great TV out there then you deserve to have your ending stolen.

What I love most about this series is that it has put the fun back into show business. For those sweat shop workers out there who still work in media (TV, Movies, Internet), you know what I'm talking about. Our days are spent hunched over laptops fielding 200 email messages, or hand cuffed to a Blackberry that beeps at us like a Nazi commandant. If it's a weekday; cocktail lunches in Beverly Hills and poolside shenanigans with anorexic starlets have become rarer than rain in Los Angeles. Everybody's too worried about their 401K. But on Entourage, the sun still shines...the Lear jets still roar, and hard bodies still glisten on pristine beaches around the world while they wait for the cell phone call from Ari to tell them that the next picture is a go.

This season found Vince, the action hero with the face of a Greek God and the emotional range of a butternut squash, on the wrong side of La Cienega Boulevard in the hierarchy of Hollywood. He's box office poison, and has been canned by the psychotic German director from the fire-fighting movie that was going to put him back on the A list. How precient, by the way, that while these episodes aired, LA was in the midst of a real fire storm, with the Santa Ana winds immolating so many neighborhoods that even Bel Aire and Beverly Hills couldn't ignore the smell of smoke in the air.

At the end of the tequila drenched day, Entourage is about friendship...the comraderie of the pack. But I like to see it as an homage to the magic of Hollywood. Where a dweeb like Turtle (who looks and dresses exactly like a character out of a Bazooka bubble gum comic) can be romanced by a hot television starlet. Where an actor who was once the top of the heap, can't even get a reading with an indie director, and thinks it's all over. Until Ari the Agent who can part the ocean calls and says..."Scorcese wants you as the lead in his next picture". (Small note to Martin Scorcese's agent; even though he is one of the greatest living motion picture directors in the world, has anyone noticed what an awesome, funny, quirky character actor he is? The American Express card commercial with Tina Fey? This cameo in Entourage? Hello? Just saying.)

A special shout out to Kevin Dillon who plays "Drama", Vince's brother and a budding TV star. He is surely one of the greatest talents of this amazing series, and is consistently hilarious in every episode. The funniest line of tonight's finale belonged to him, as he announced he was going to "jump off the fucking Triborough Bridge" after discovering Turtle's tryst with celebrity Jamie Lynn was real.

Entourage Season 5 is over, and it passed too quickly. If you blinked or didn't TiVo, you missed it. But it was a great ride and I can't wait for the boys to be back in town next year.

NoseTalgia Salutes The Wonder Years

The Wonder Years (1989-1994) charmed from the moment it first went on the air. From the opening theme song (Joe Cocker's fantastic rendition of "A Little Help from My Friends") to the grainy Super 8 footage of a typical suburban family, circa late 1960's, we knew we were in for a nostalgic treat. But there was never anything typical about The Wonder Years, which was ground breaking in its own sweet and gentle way. It was one of the first television programs to routinely feature contemporary artists and songs in the background, which brought a tremendous emotional lift to all the stories. It was the one of the first to have a narrator (marvelous Daniel Stern) in every episode. And long before LOST confused us with endless flashbacks, The Wonder Years was one of the first programs where the entire series was told through the lens of memory.

At its core, The Wonder Years was a show about growing up in that peculiar time of American history when "Duck and Cover" air raid drills were routine and all the junior high schools were named after the Kennedys. Watching Kevin Arnold (Fred Savage), and his friends Paul (Josh Saviano) and the ethereal Winnie Cooper (Danica McKellar) was like flipping through an old family photo album for just about every Baby Boomer on the planet. The experience was funny, touching, and on occasion painfully real.

In my favorite episode (Math Class), Kevin is struggling with a particularly difficult Algebra moment. His teacher (Mr. Collins) is strict and humorless but he is determined to work with Kevin, every day after school, until he "gets" it. Kevin rebels against this regimen every step of the way. But soon enough he realizes, much to his utter amazement, that math isn't as mysterious as he once believed. He wants to thank Mr. Collins, but it turns out that mentoring Kevin was the last act of this dedicated high school teacher, who had succumbed to cancer. With Karla Bonoff's "Goodbye My Friend" playing in the background, Kevin understands that what he learned was a lot more than arithmetic.


I'd like to dedicate this post to my son Tommy, who is about to wrap up his own "wonder years" in a few days when he departs to serve his country as a sailor in the US Navy. I wish him wisdom, laughter and luck as he embarks on this incredible adventure.

The Greatest Show -- A Spectacular Meteor!

Now, nobody loves television more than The Flaming Nose, but boy, do we also love science and space! Did you read about the incredible meteor that flamed out over Edmonton, Alberta in Canada this past week? It was big news north of the border!

It was just after dark, and a police car in Edmonton had the dash cam on and captured the absolutely amazing explosion of the meteor!



Somebody else got it on their digital cam from their home -- you can see it at its maximum brightness then more of the aftermath as it broke up.



And here's an extended TV news report on the event, from Canada's Global Network:



And another newscast from CTV Network, and some great new security cam footage!



So that's your Awesome Science moment for today! Wow! Wish I had seen it!

Update 11/24: Here's a link to another amazing video, captured by a stationary camera, in Biggar, Saskatchewan! Stunning!

New "Star Trek" Movie Trailer!

We would be betraying our natures if The Flaming Nose didn't post this brand-spanking new trailer for the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie -- we're huge fans of everything Star Trek and can't wait for it!



Wow! Boy, do we hope it's great! Though we all grew on up Star Trek: The Original Series and every other one since then, we're always up for a new adventure with the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise!

For more on the movie also worth reading, though only if taken with a huge grain of salt, is Entertainment Weekly's recent article on the new movie. They tried a little too hard to hammer the nail into the Star Trek franchise coffin, with descriptions like "retro sci-fi cheese" and "near-irrelevant cultural joke" and "defunct old property" strewn throughout the article. All right, already...so a series spawned forty years ago needed a juice-up, duh! When you consider the total number of hours of programming which emerged from Roddenberry's vision, Trek is the most vital science fiction property ever. Why didn't EW just go ahead and kick Shakespeare in the nuts while they were pummelling Star Trek -- he's a little dusty, too!


But I digress! We're here to love on the new Star Trek trailer. It's beautiful! We can't wait until May 2009!

Tim DeKay -- Another Good Reason to Watch "The New Adventures of Old Christine"

As if tuning in to support Wanda Sykes weren't enough, there's another terrific reason to watch tonight's The New Adventures of Old Christine on CBS. Actor Tim DeKay, a Flaming Nose favorite, is in the middle of a three-episode run as Christine's new boyfriend. DeKay, who was featured in last year's HBO adult drama Tell Me You Love Me (as the frustrated suburban husband and father), and earlier garnered many fans for his charismatic role as Jonesy in HBO's ambitious and sensational period drama Carnivale, is a welcome addition to TNAoOC, even for a short while.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Christine) and DeKay have done screen time together before, in two segments of Seinfeld -- DeKay played Elaine's boyfriend aka "Bizarro Jerry" in the episode of the same title. Tim DeKay is also on deck to star in a pilot for USA called White Collar about an FBI agent who teams up with a con man (Matthew Bomer). They call it a drama, but in light of jocular adventure dramas on USA like Burn Notice, we'll assume it's also got some lighter moments.

DeKay has an agreeable regular-guy personality and looks that bely his dramatic prowess, and we especially remember the harrowing, horrifying and unforgettable moment in Carnivale where Jonesy was captured and tarred. In terms of sheer agony, the scene of Jonesy's tarring far exceeded even the shock of a similar event in HBO's John Adams miniseries, when the British tax agent got the same treatment, plus feathering.

So please give The New Adventures of Old Christine a look tonight, at 8pm on CBS! How many more reasons do we have to give you? How about just one more -- it's hilarious!


P.S.: On a more serious note, Tim DeKay is also a spokesperson for Artists United for Freedom, an organization which fights modern day slavery in all its manifestations. Here's a short message from him on the subject:

Counting Down to Sunday's "Redemption" of "24"

After a fairly universally-deemed-dismal Season 6 (now in the almost distant past) of the usually spectacular series 24, the series is back in business with a special 2-hour event this coming Sunday night, in anticipation of Season 7 coming in full, in January, to Fox.

"Redemption" is what looks to be an action-packed outing, set in Africa, where Keifer Sutherland's Jack Bauer has been working as a missionary -- cleansing his karma, no doubt. Filmed on location in Capetown, South Africa as well as L.A., "Redemption" also features the always intelligent actress Cherry Jones (The Perfect Storm, Signs) as the U.S. President, intense Brit actor Robert Carlyle (Trainspotting, The Full Monty, 28 Weeks Later, and so much more), Gil Bellows (Ally McBeal), and Jon Voight in the story centered around the real-life conscription of child soldiers by African militia warlords. No doubt a very timely story, I hope that movies like Blood Diamond have given audiences a good idea of how this kind of tale, which I doubt would normally go over that well here, can be an exciting and moving experience.

Let's assume that the 24 folks have fixed whatever tendencies toward meandering that plagued the last season, and that we are looking forward to another dynamite Jack Bauer outing. Nothing -- but nothing! -- on TV has ever been as good or clearly even-better-than-the-movies as a really terrific episode of 24, and that's the level of quality we're hoping for with "Redemption".

"Redemption" premieres this coming Sunday, November 22, at 8pm on Fox. The website for this special event is full of background info and all sorts of extras, so do visit it!

Here's the "Redemption" trailer to get you in the mood!:

National Geographic Channel's "Expedition Week"

Don't miss the always riveting National Geographic Channel's exciting stunt "Expedition Week" which began last night. In addition to all sorts of fascinating specials about King Tut, The Titanic, Neanderthals, Captain Kidd, Amelia Earthart and many other enduring mysteries, you can go online and play an addicting little game called The Expedition Game. You get to create your own character and it's one of those "find the sort-of hidden objects in a landscape" things. If you don't stick around to play more than once, I'd be really surprised!

Wanda Sykes Revelation Becomes Front Page News

Wow! The news that actress/comedienne Wanda Sykes has revealed that she's gay certainly put her in the headlines -- witness the huge number of Google hits on the subject. She publicly came out at a weekend rally in Las Vegas to protest the passage of California's notorious Prop. 8 which bans same-sex marriage. Sykes also announced that she had married her partner in October. Congrats to them!



On the TV front, The Flaming Nose is hoping that this burst of Sykes-related publicity might result in a few new viewers for her CBS sitcom, the Julia Louis-Dreyfus-starring The New Adventures of Old Christine, which airs at 8p on Wednesday nights. This is one of the best sitcoms out there, with Wanda and Julia pure delight together. (Apropos of Syke's recent announcement, a very funny episode earlier this season revolved around the two marrying to keep Sykes' character from being deported.) TNAoOC is consistently hilarious, with a cast -- Clark Gregg, Hamish Linklater (my fave), Emily Rutherfurd -- that knows how to deliver a laugh. Even though there's a kid in the cast -- Old Christine's son, played by Trevor Gagnon -- he's awkward and unusual and not at all some typical smart-aleck sitcom brat.

Let's hope that Wanda Sykes' decision to come out wins her even more fans and draws them to The New Adventures of Old Christine. It's a show that doesn't always get the buzz that it genuinely deserves. The Flaming Nose loves Wanda Sykes and we love The New Adventures of Old Christine!

Ricky Gervais -- We Love Him!

Hope you caught HBO's new Ricky Gervais special on Saturday night, and of course it's repeating many times coming up. There's something so amazing about Gervais, and most of all that he's an incredible actor, in addition to having a gifted comic mind. He has a vulnerable quality -- very much on display in The Office and on Extras -- that's irresistible, along with the perfect absurdist bent that colors his take on the world.

In his special, Gervais displays his fascinating mixture of endearing arrogance, savage empathy, prodigious brainpower and undeniable humanity as he offers up a consistently amusing show. There's something brave and yet gentle about Gervais' stance with an audience; he doesn't command their attention but rather beckons them along. You're not always sure that his bits are going to go over, either, at least I wasn't. He was in front of a NYC audience, and his material is often quite British. I wonder if most Americans know that the word "podge" is an English slang for fat; one of his jokes relies on that. Maybe they do.

Here's a short clip from the special, which we offer with a warning that there's explicit language and all that other good stuff:



All we can say is watch the special. Ricky Gervais is something, all right. Sigh....

Ricky Gervais Stand-Up Special on HBO, Saturday Night

The Flaming Nose has been a fan of Ricky Gervais for a long time -- you might even say that we have a crush on the guy -- and we couldn't be happier to see that HBO is premiering the very first U.S. Ricky Gervais special this Saturday night.

Ricky Gervais -- Out of England: The Stand-Up Special airs at 9pm et/ 10pm pt, and promises to show another side of this multi-talented writer-performer. Like the best of his kind, Ricky combines a keen wit, an absurd sensibility, an immense intelligence, an unbounded empathy, and a uniquely British appreciation for life's eccentricities that makes him unparalleled. We have loved him in his series The Office and Extras, and especially the Extras: Extra Special Season Finale which was one the finest productions of last year, drama or comedy.

No doubt you recall his bit on September's Emmy Awards; he was the highlight of the ceremonies and shook the place up like nobody else could. If you've followed his career you might have read some carping about some of his UK live gigs, but the clips on YouTube are quite hilarious so we'll chalk some of that up to the inevitable sour grapes.

Here is a delightful bit from Ricky who appeared on Late Night with David Letterman last week to present the Top Ten:



And here's a promo from tomorrow night's special:

We'd recommend reading the Ricky interview on the special's HBO website, plus you might like to visit the official Ricky Gervais website, and there's a syndicated column on the special showing up that's also worth a read.

Ricky Gervais - Out of England: The Stand-Up Special is a don't-miss event!

New Book about Ted Turner Just Published

During my career as a television programmer, I did time with Ted Turner, actually about twelve terrific years. I remember him walking the halls of the building, interested in everything that was happening. I could tell that he loved television, and that passion was what I admired so much about him. I fondly recall several meetings in his office at CNN Center with him...well, maybe not that fondly, as there was a time when a few of us wanted to expand TNT's mandate beyond just movies (this was before TCM, which would become the classic movie channel to beat) and add series, which I was advocating most vociferously.

Ted wasn't having any of it at that point. As we left his office, he said to me, and I quote, "When you have a network with your name on it, you can program it the way you want." So true! And of course later we were finally able to expand into series, that tactic continued by the current admin who naturally thinks they invented series on TNT. So much for short memories and huge egos! Plenty of those in television, that's for sure!

But so now there's this new book Call Me Ted, co-written by one of the most terrific Turner execs I ever worked with, Bill Burke. We worked together at Turner Classic Movies, and he was one of the funniest, most accessible, naturally bright, and self-confident but ego-less people I have ever known. (The other one just like him was Greg Nathanson from my days at KTLA -- both men coincidentally from media families, which must somehow instill knowledge and kindness that eludes so many from the outside who have strived desperately to work in television, and subsequently turned into bastards).

Today's New York Times has a nice profile on Bill, and The Flaming Nose wishes him and Mr. Turner the best of luck with this new book. Both Ted Turner and I left the company at about the same time, under different circumstances of course but both rather abruptly handed our hats, as it were. I only hope that those currently at the Turner Networks remember, every day, the man whose name graces their company and without whose passion and foresight they'd be far less smug today. Ted Turner invented this stuff -- they're only living off it.

Check out Call Me Ted for the life of the broadcasting rebel that we all admire. I know I do.

And congratulations to Bill Burke for his contribution; Ted was lucky to have you in it with him.

Animated Fun on HBO: "The Life and Times of Tim"

As if TrueBlood, Entourage, and the new Summer Heights High weren't enough to make up a super Sunday night on HBO, we recommend you stick around for their animated comedy The Life and Times of Tim, which has been airing since the end of September.

I came a little late to the party but have caught up and I'm completely loving this droll creation of award-winning real-life ad man Steve Dildarian. The titular Tim is completely hapless, manipulated by his boss, his girlfriend and everybody else around him into situations that he knows are going to mess him up. Dildarian also voices Tim. Here's an amusing little clip that will give you a hint of the flavor of TLATOT:

I love Tim's hangdog personality, Dildarian's droll delivery, and the strong absurdist sensibility that makes The Life and Times of Tim a new favorite of The Flaming Nose. It's animated in a charming minimalist style, perfectly capturing the everyday near-drabness of Tim's beleagured existence. This show will grow on you!

The Life and Times of Tim airs on HBO Sunday evenings at 11pm, now following the new Summer Heights High which premieres tonight. There's the link to HBO's Tim website where you can learn more about this delightful series.

Nose-talgia: "Hubba Bubba" -- Our Very Own Dean Co-Stars in Vintage TNT Promo!

A treat for us! Back in the day when I was at TNT, we prided ourselves both on our love of television and our insistence on creativity. We had a wonderful crop of promotion producers -- some still there -- who loved TV as much as the Programming Dept. did. This is one of the efforts, an adorable singing promo for the series In The Heat of the Night, starring ITHOTN actor Alan Autry, who went on to become Mayor of Fresno, California; he's still in office now (until January) and also a radio talk show host!

Autry's character was named Bubba Skinner -- he was a hunk, hubba hubba! -- and so was born "Hubba Bubba"! With music and lyrics by Brian Matson, and the Jailbirds played by Dean and Blake (our Dean is the shorter Jailbird), this is a sweet blast from the past!

Enjoy!

Viral Video Moment: A Cat in a Box

cat n box

It has been a while since we've posted a Viral Video Moment on the Flaming Nose. Here's something a little light hearted, after this exhausting week of roller coaster Wall Street, the Presidential election and the ever spiraling economy. It's Friday...enjoy!

Salute to Kenneth from "30 Rock"!

Check out this amusing and enlightening appreciation of and interview with 30 Rock's Jack McBrayer, who plays Kenneth the page, written by Sarah Hepola for Salon.com.

You'll also enjoy this compilation of Kenneth scenes entitled "I Get a Kick Outta Kenneth", produced by YouTube user acb205:



Of course don't forget to watch 30 Rock tonight, on NBC!

Have You Seen the New "Dollhouse" Teaser?

After a rocky production start, evidently the much-anticipated new Josh Whedon series for Fox -- Dollhouse -- is back on track. No official start date has been announced, but Mondays starting in January, after the finally-returning 24, seems to be the best guess.

Starring the always intriguing Eliza Dushku -- Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Tru Calling, the intense movie thriller Wrong Turn -- Dollhouse promises slick thrills done intelligently.

Can't wait!! Take a look for yourself --

Variety Loves "Mad Men" Star Jon Hamm, Too!

Sigh...The Flaming Nose is certainly not the only place touting Jon Hamm's emergence as one of the most fascinating leading men of the day. Variety.com deputy editor Anne Thompson had a terrific article last week about his burgeoning career possibilities. You can read it here.

He's certainly yummy, and talented! As our Jane previously reported, we're crossing our fingers that he does get picked to romance 30 Rock's Liz Lemon, as played by Tina Fey, this season!

The Simpsons Still Going Strong

The other day I went on about how "Survivor" manages to survive. Last Sunday "The Simpsons" annual Halloween episode aired and it was as hilarious and crisp as ever. This year the show spoofed Mad Men (see the brilliant takeoff of the opening credits in the clip above) and the classic Peanuts cartoon "It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown." I scoured the web for a clip parodying the Peanuts opening credits but to no avail. I did find this gem of a clip from the episode though:



All I can say is brilliant. I can't say I watch every week anymore, but it's nice to know that after 20 years, "The Simpsons" is still made of win.

On Tuesday, TV (And the Internet!) Will Be All About the US Presidential Election

The Flaming Nose has tried very hard to be a blog about TV and not about politics. But tomorrow's election will surely be a landmark and extraordinary television event, and we are all about showing the amazing power of television to inform as well as entertain. There is no doubt that Tuesday's airwaves in the US will be dominated by election coverage on every channel that has a news outlet. Just as record numbers of voters will be lining up to cast their ballot, there will surely be record ratings for viewers turning on their television sets to see what's happening at the polls.

But I predict that this election, historic in so many ways, will also be a night of firsts for the web. There will be enormous numbers of people surfing the net for more detailed information, in addition to what they are seeing on TV. I can only hope that my cable company will have the bandwidth to survive the hoards!

In order to assist those who want to have concurrent TV viewing and Internet using, I'm posting a list of all the main news sites I can think of below. No need to vote for TV or Internet; tomorrow night the most perfect flow of information will come from a total convergence of both.

ABC News
BBC News
CBS News
CNN News
FOX News Channel
MSNBC
NBC News
NY Times

Good luck America. All eyes will be upon you tomorrow. And no matter who wins the election tomorrow, we all know who won in television during the course of this campaign.... and that surely must be Saturday Night Live!