"Mad Men" Season 3 Promo -- Action!

Our Mad Men World: Hortense the Neighbor

Betty Draper is surprised when her next-door neighbor makes an unexpected visit. The usually calm Hortense is visibly inebriated, and insists on trying to teach Betty the samba, tipsily demonstrating the intricate steps on the squeaky linoleum floor. All Mrs. Draper can do is try to offer her some coffee, but Hortense is having none of it, and soon wanders back to her own house, muttering something about wanting to watch Virginia Graham on TV. Betty is disturbed but intrigued, and wonders if Don might enjoy a little samba lesson tonight after dinner...

Our Mad Men World: "And Awaaaay We Go!"

CBS TV star Jackie Gleason stops by Sterling Cooper to drop off a pair of airplane tickets to Miami for Don Draper, inviting him to fly down to watch a filming of his show. Don is excited, though he decides not to admit to Gleason that he really preferred Art Carney's Ed Norton in "The Honeymooners".

Our Mad Men World: Mr. Bob, the Evil HR Director

Mr. Bob, the dreaded Sterling Cooper HR Director rolled through the hall to the typing pool, his massive belly leading the way. "I smell fire and brimstone" said Peggy under her breath. Mr. Bob was generally the harbinger of doom. He loved to make people squirm. And he was not above pinching asses in a crowded elevator, if he thought he could get away with it.

"Good morning, girls" he cried out in a hollow booming voice. He always tried to sound so cheerful, but his eyes...dead and flat like dull pennies, told the true story. Mr. B's soul was as empty as a bottle of Alka Seltzer at a chili cook off. Watch your back, Don! Mr. Bob loves to bring the high and mighty to their knees!

Our Mad Men World: Don's Swedish Lesson

Don Draper is visibly impressed when visiting Swedish advertising genius Astrid Svensson helps the Sterling Cooper troupe come up with a new twist for their sagging Playtex account. She holds their rapt attention as she describes a dreamy history-influenced scenario involving King Henry VII, Cardinal Richelieu and Catherine The Great clad in a bejeweled Playtex girdle. The boys love it.

After the presentation and a long productive working lunch at "21", Don slips Astrid the key to a Manhattan hotel room, and a few hours later the no-nonsense Swedish ad exec, now transformed in a fragile and breathtaking Nordic goddess, awaits his arrival...

Our Mad Men World: Don's Drive Home

Don takes to the wheel after one too many with his new Prison Guard buddy at the Manhattan watering hole. The long and winding highway to his suburban haven in Connecticut lulls him to sleep and he turns on the radio to help keep his eyes on the line.

A sweet South American calypso drifts through the speakers...the Girl from Ipanema? His eyes close and the Cadillac swerves towards the dense brush at the side of the road.

Seconds before disaster he turns the wheel and is on the pavement again. Almost home. He's flashes back to the afternoon with Gretchen the frozen food mogul. Nice. But in his reverie she looks more like a Latin beauty in glasses. And her boobs have been deflated. Whoa! What's up with that?

Not for the first time, Don thinks maybe it's time to cut back on the double shots of Johnny Walker Red.

The engine purrs as he pours the car into the driveway.

Our Mad Men World: Danny Kaye Visits Sterling Cooper

The office is abuzz when world famous comedian and UNICEF ambassador Danny Kaye drops by to discuss the new campaign the agency is putting together for his annual Halloween fundraiser. Sterling Cooper employees eagerly agree to donate their time to helping Danny with worthy United Nations effort. Bravo, Don Draper, for being such a good corporate citizen!

"Mad Men" Yourself at AMC's Website!

Flaming Nose favorite Mad Men returns next month on Sunday, August 16th, and AMC has a nifty and very fun promotion going on! Go to their "Mad Men Yourself" website here -- with illustrations created by the talented Dyna Moe (be sure to check out the full set of her Mad Men-inspired work) -- and you can turn yourself into a Mad Men-esque character, or just make one up.

It's tremendously amusing, and you can download your creations and use them as avatars and also they are beautiful as desktop images. You won't want to stop at making one, either. It's addicting! I made several, including a hard-drinking lady who doesn't smile much --

A blowhard guy with an eyepatch and a drink --

And a career lady I tried to make look like Edith Prickley from SCTV --

Definitely check this wonderful website out and congrats to Dyna Moe!

Viral Video Moment: Simon's Cat in "Fly Guy"

We haven't done a Viral Video in a while either, and what could be more perfect than following Lisa's 90 year old TV animated cat tribute to Felix with a very modern YouTube animated cat. The "Simon's Cat" series is up to 5 original episodes now, and each one is delightful. There is even a Thanksgiving version that features (gasp) a dog. This animator is a genius. Anyone who has a cat will instantly recognize that he has captured the very essence of what makes cats simultaneously adorable and maddening.

Below is one of the most popular Simon's Cat episodes, called TV Dinner. It has gotten nearly 8 million views on YouTube!

Nose-Talgia: "Felix The Cat" Cartoons

We haven't tread the nostalgic path in a while, but today feels like a good day to offer the theme song to Felix The Cat, one of my favorite cartoons when I was a kid. I'm sure I loved this because I really like cats and always have, and Felix was resourceful, funny, and I liked his villains The Professor and Rock Bottom. Here's the opening theme, and then one of his cartoons, where The Professor follows Felix to the Arctic to try to steal his bag of tricks and the Abominable Snowman interrupts the plan. I mean...the Abominable Snowman? No wonder I loved Felix's adventures!






The character of Felix The Cat is ninety years old this year, and you can read all about the important role he played in the history of television here! Long before he showed up as a children's TV show that delighted baby boomers, Felix was a mega-star in the world of animation. He's more than deserving of our attention!

He's truly a wonderful, wonderful cat!

BBC America on a Sci-Fi Roll!

Just when Sci Fi changes to that new horrible name and seems to lose its way, BBC America comes on strong with the best selection of incredible British science fiction/fantasy programming around. Doctor Who, Torchwood, Primeval, and now the newest series Being Human give BBCA the edge in out-of-this-world television. (Pictured above, Torchwood.)

If you missed the harrowing new Torchwood miniseries Torchwood: Children of Earth which played this past week, all five parts will repeat tomorrow, Sunday 7/26, beginning at 1pm with a special which will get you up to speed with Captain Jack Harkness and the group. I'm telling you, this special is riveting even if you've never watched the series before, and it's pretty damned shocking, too. Really horrifying in sections, especially from Part 3 onward. Yikes. Some creepy stuff.



Torchwood: Children of Earth runs straight up until 8pm, at which time BBCA presents a Doctor Who special "Planet of the Dead" -- available in HD, too -- and on Monday there's another Doctor Who special entitled "The Next Doctor". (Pictured below, "Planet of the Dead".)

Being Human, a brand new show, premiered earlier tonight. It's about a werewolf, a vampire and a ghost 20-somethings living together in Bristol, England, and the opener repeats tomorrow night at 9:15p after the Doctor Who special.

We recommend taking some time and perusing BBC America's website to find out about these great shows. There's of course no easy way to catch up on forty years of Doctor Who, but just know that there is about to be a change of actors playing the Doctor, and this might be a wonderful time to jump into the series. Torchwood has only been on for two seasons, so you've an easier way in there, and it's definitely recommended. Being Human...well, it's just the beginning, to get in at the start. And let's not forget about Primeval, which is a whopping action adventure show in its second season, with dinosaurs running all over contemporary Britain. Read about that one, too!

Lots to watch! Here's a cute trailer for Being Human, from its run on BBC 3 in Great Britain.

Goodnight Moon: A Final Tribute to Apollo 11

To Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins for your service and bravery 40 years ago, we thank you.

To all the men and women of NASA and related industries who's brilliance and diligence helped put humans on the moon, we thank you.

To all the people of the world who support space exploration and dream (as we do) of going boldly where no man has gone before...we thank you.


To all the television networks and Internet websites who remembered with their coverage this historic day, the Flaming Nose says a very heart felt thank you. Especially to the History Channel which featured the original CBS telecast of the Apollo landing narrated by the unforgettable news anchor Walter Cronkite, who just passed away this week.

Forty years ago people all over the earth put their differences on pause, to watch humans take the first step towards the stars. May it happen again in my life time.

Next stop...Mars. (Imagine how great it will look on HDTV!)

To The Moon!

We've posted this clip from the amazing 2006 British television opera Man on the Moon by composer Jonathan Dove on another occasion, but on this 40th Anniversary of the Moon Landing it couldn't be more appropriate and thrilling. It's the opening minutes of the piece.



Here's another stunning excerpt, entitled "Blast Off".




I can't find the whole opera anywhere yet (I keep hoping Ovation will play it sometime), but if you are fascinated by this amazing piece, there are four segments of conductor Brad Cohen in rehearsal which will give you a taste of more of this incredible production, available here, here, here and here.

Of course, you might like to tune into Turner Classic Movies today for a whole day of space-related movies, including in prime time at 8pm the documentary For All Mankind about the Apollo missions, featuring the words of the astronauts themselves, and following that, the greatest, smartest and most entertaining movie about space and astronauts ever made, 1983's The Right Stuff, directed by Jonathan Kaufman. (Pictured below, from left, Fred Ward, Dennis Quaid, Scott Paulin, Ed Harris, Charles Frank, Scott Glenn and Lance Henricksen, as the Mercury 7 astronauts.)





Take a few minutes today to reflect on the marvelous achievement from 40 years ago. The Flaming Nose salutes the men and women of NASA, past and present!

R.I.P. Walter Cronkite, 1916 - 2009

Moon Walkers - The 40th Anniversary of the Moon Landing - TIME

Be sure to check out Time Magazine's excellent anniversary coverage of the Apollo moon mission!

Moon Walkers - The 40th Anniversary of the Moon Landing - TIME

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Amazing Website from JFK Library on the Moon Mission Anniversary

Be sure to check out this fascinating page that is tracking the Apollo mission that launched 40 years ago today!

Called "We Choose The Moon", it's (I think) a real-time re-creation of the spaceflight, complete with audio transmissions, photos and a countdown clock. Just the weird sound of the website -- a kind of blank radio noise with occasional clicks and sounds -- is fascinating and a little unsettling. Highly recommended!

Entourage Season Six: Bro-TV is Back!

"Entourage" is to dude fantasy as "Sex in the City" is to chick fantasy. Delete designer clothes and cosmopolitans in NYC and replace with luxury cars and tequila shots in Malibu. The Entourage boys have fun like it's their job and they are back in the leather bucket seats for Season Six on HBO (premiered Sunday, June 12th at 10:30pm eastern).

Last season ended with an exhilarating roller coaster, culminating in Vinnie getting the lead in a Martin Scorsese picture. This Sunday found the boys back in LA, struggling to wean themselves from the pack and find their own (homes, girl friends, identities). There was a completely unnecessary arc about Vinnie learning to drive the big black Cadillac sport utility vehicle. Note to producers: a) Gas guzzlers are so 2008 in Hollywood now. The coolest celebrities are all in little Hybrids. And b) why the heck should Vinnie have to learn how to drive? Everybody drives like crap in L.A. anyway, he should stick with a chauffeur since he can afford it. Maybe they are planning a DUI for him in this season? How Lindsay Lohan can you get.

What I liked about the season premier? Shades of "it's lonely at the top" with Vinnie going home to a dark house while his bro's are all out doing their own thing. What I didn't like? Ari's over the top hazing of his hapless gay assistant who is gunning for a promotion. Check out the HBO website for Lloyd's diary and snarky video.

Not the best start ever, but I still love these guys and I'm glad to see them back.

'Big Valley' film rolls out

Good news for fans of this classic TV Western!

'Big Valley' film rolls out

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Apollo 11: 40th Anniversary This Week

This Thursday will mark the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon mission launch. The journey that followed for astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, became one of the most viewed television events of all time, as people from every nation turned to the small screen to see history being made.

I was a geeky little kid with blue glasses when my Dad stuffed us into the family station wagon and drove from NY to Florida to see the launch in person. We woke up before dawn on July 16th and drove as far down the beach as possible, to get closer to Cape Canaveral. I remember thinking how strange it was to see what was normally a deserted beach just covered with thousands of cars and people. We all had transistor radios so we could hear the launch countdown. Ours was a lime green Panasonic Ball and Chain model. Even though the crowd on that beach was huge, you could have heard a pin drop when Apollo 11 lifted off, on that bright July morning in 1969. Look at the fantastic NASA slow motion video posted above and you'll get a sense of the wonder reflected in the faces of the people lucky enough to witness this moment in person. See that fiery glowing rocket in the corner of the sky? That's humanity going to a different world for the first time. Heavenly.

Central Florida around the time of the Apollo 11 mission had "space fever". Half the buildings in the state looked like they were designed by the animators from The Jetsons. You could buy moon pies at the 7-11 and Blast Off cocktails at the beach side restaurants. We even had a beach ball colored to look like the surface of the moon. Here's a picture of it deflated, and being worn like a hat by our dog King.

I had space fever too after the launch, and would run from the beach back to our hotel room to watch the news coverage on a little black and white TV. On July 20, 1969, I sat with my sisters and parents while we watched the Eagle detach and then descend to the surface of the moon. We were part of the largest TV audience ever at that time. It was estimated that over 500 million people around the world watched the Apollo 11 moon landing. Below you'll see an excellent video depicting that moment. Be sure to watch all the way to the end, because there's a wonderful montage of folks from around the world, eyes wide and mouths agape, as Neil Armstrong makes the most famous step in history. I'm amazed that he came up with the line "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" on his way to the moon. Nice to think that not every great quote is from a ghost writer or PR agent.



As we remember the glorious and successful Apollo 11 mission, we actually have a modern day space flight to view tomorrow at 7PM eastern time. If all goes well, the much delayed STS-127 Endeavor mission to install new equipment on the space station will finally launch. Visit the NASA website to learn more or to watch the launch in streaming video.

Both Discovery and History channel websites also have plenty on Apollo 11. And History will be airing an Apollo 11 special on Modern Marvels, July 18th at 1pm.

There is not much to feel cheerful about these days, with millions of people out of work and the economy doing a nose dive. I think we need another shot of hope like that moment when JFK swore that the USA would land a man on the moon before the next decade. We did it then and we can do it again. So...note to President Obama: Please throw a little of that stimulus money over to NASA and we can make the next stop Mars!

If You're in Portland, Oregon, This Weekend, Go Amok Here!

One of the greatest events I've ever heard of is taking place in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. Though I could not claim it's a first of its kind, local art org Atomic Arts is presenting a live performance of the Star Trek episode "Amok Time", starring local actors and with music and sound effects, at the local park. For free, too. Here is part of the iconic fight scene between Spock and Kirk, with Gerald Fried's legendary musical score backing it up.

Can you imagine anything so cool? If you are anywhere near Portland, get thee to Woodlawn Park and enjoy this unique summer treat! Playing the next three weekends, at 5pm.

"Star Trek in the Park". I love it! Wish I could be there!

And if STitP isn't amazing enough, I just found this incredible Star Trek opera on YouTube, also inspired by "Amok Time". OMG -- it's insanely great! If you are a Trek fan, be sure to watch the six parts. Clever, unique...wow. Written by composer Steven Clark, and first performed in San Francisco in 2006, it's terrific. Why hadn't I run into this before? See, the internet is still full of surprises for us, every day!




I also just ran into a great blog called "My Star Trek Scrapbook", which is just that -- a wonderful collection of articles and photos collected by a devoted fan over the years. (I'll have to put my stuff online sometime, too.) It's a delightful site and be sure to visit! Our congrats to Frederick for such an impressive job!

Michael Jackson's Memorial in Downtown LA: TV Hysteria

It would be remiss of The Flaming Nose to not cover the extraordinary live television event that is building to a hysterical pitch this morning. Coverage of the Michael Jackson memorial at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles has gone from breathless celebrity chest beating to an almost apocalyptic tone. It reminds me very much of a classic Nathanael West novel (Day of the Locust) set in Hollywood during the Great Depression.

Every cable news, local news and network news channel appears to be covering the event. It is also streaming live on all news websites. It's not worth listing them all here. If you can't find the coverage within 30 seconds of switching on your set or booting up your PC, then stick a mirror under your nose to see if you're still breathing.

One of the most interesting circus side stories to this amazing public meltdown, quite literally involves the circus. KTLA-TV's website reported that dozens of elephants were paraded through LA at dawn, past the pulsating crowds waiting outside the Staples Center for Michael Jackson's memorial. Barnum and Bailey's circus begins its run at the same venue tomorrow and an elephant walk is part of their tradition. We don't make this stuff up folks, we're just passing it along.

Meanwhile, several news outlets have just reported that Mr. Jackson's casket will be transported to the Staples center for the memorial. Apparently it will be rolled out during a performance of "Thriller". OK, I did actually make that one up. But it wouldn't surprise me.

Superstars scheduled to appear at the memorial include Stevie Wonder and Jennifer Hudson. Elizabeth Taylor respectfully declined.

I don't recall anything like this level of public insanity when past music superstars met their demise. Surely both Elvis and John Lennon were as big, if not bigger in the pantheon of dead celebrities? What makes Michael Jackson's death and subsequent memorial a bigger media event? I offer the following hypothesis:

• The number of media outlets has exploded. There are countless websites, cable channels, social networking sites....one can barely get a Tweet in edgewise. They all contribute to the media uproar like twigs being thrown onto a giant bonfire.
• Similar to "The Day of the Locust" which is set in the great Depression, we are now teetering on the edge of very dark days. If not an actual depression, we are certainly in a deep recession, with massive unemployment in Southern California. Mob mentality thrives in an economic downturn.

There's no escaping it, so unless you're trapped in an office with no Internet connection or hiking in the desert...there will be coverage. The Flaming Nose will be there to watch and report.

The Flaming Nose Covers the "Summer of '69"

Three huge events occurred during the summer of 1969, and they all went on to become formative television moments which helped define the sixties for years to come. The Flaming Nose will be covering all and will be giving you a heads up on where you might find coverage (TV and Web) to mark their respective 40th anniversaries.

The first and most important is NASA's Apollo 11 moon voyage, which took place forty years ago in mid-July. At least three of the Flaming Nose bloggers are confirmed space program fanatics, so you can expect multiple posts over the next few weeks. The nasa.gov website already features some terrific information about the mission. I have a personal connection to the Apollo 11 story, since I was lucky enough to be standing on the beach in Florida when I was a kid to witness the launch with my own eyes. Quick TV factoid about the moon landing 40 years ago; according to Nielsen Media Research it was one of the most viewed live events (worldwide) for decades, with between 600 million and 1 billion watching Neil Armstrong step onto the moon. Immense population growth and greater availability of television globally has seen many additional events surpass that number, including the funeral for Princess Diana, which was estimated at 2.5 billion viewers.

The next event is as dark a moment as the Apollo 11 mission was glorious. On August 9th, 1969, the infamous Manson "family" began its murderous rampage in Los Angeles, by killing movie star Sharon Tate and her friends, and later the LaBianca couple. Captured months later, the trial of Manson and his followers became a television and media circus (and that was BEFORE cable!), as well as spawning the best selling true crime book of all time, "Helter Skelter". Here's another little personal factoid about the Manson murderers. For a while, the family from Hell hung out at the abandoned Spahn movie ranch in Chatsworth, California....a mere mile away from this blogger's current humble abode. I drove up there to see what has become of the ranch 40 years later. The familiar rocky hills are still there, but the ranch location is now a private gated picnic area. There are no buildings left and the only sign that it was once a ranch is a large wooden crossbar made out of railroad ties at the entrance.

The final big event from the summer of 1969 was the long weekend of peace, love and hallucinogenic drugs on Max Yasgur's upstate NY farm. Of course, we are referring to "Woodstock", the muddy four day music festival that rendered a feature length movie, an album, made stars out of many musicians and gave us the most interesting rendition of the National Anthem ever when Jimi Hendrix reinvented it on a rain soaked morning. And now for the final personal connection... I was raised in upstate NY, and I recall very well the hoards of colorful hippies hitch hiking up route 17 to attend the festival that weekend in August. I was way too young to go myself (darn!).

So strange to have connections to all three of these historical moments. I feel a little like Forest Gump right now.

Stay tuned for more on the Summer of '69, right here on The Flaming Nose!

"Twilight Zone" 4th of July Marathon on SciFi Channel Today

Before they make their silly and unwelcome name change to SyFy in the near future, you can still enjoy the SciFi Channel today as it presents its 4th of July Twilight Zone Marathon. Long a staple of the network, however they by no means invented the convention of a T Zone marathon. It was a longstanding tradition to hold Twilight Zone-athons on many of the local stations running the show back in the day.

My old station KTLA was famous for running a most excellent Thanksgiving Day festival, and on other holidays also. Twilight Zone was a particularly perfect show for a marathon -- ideal genre, well-told tales, the iconic presence of Rod Serling, complete baby-boomer cultural immersion, lots of episodes, and familiar guest stars who could be promoted. Wonderful!

We did not originate it, however; T Zone was syndicated all over, and the marathon idea sprang up on the East Coast, in Boston, I believe first, though possibly in a different market. I know that we had the show, and in my policy of always giving credit where it's due, our then-Program Director Brooke Spectorsky who had come from WSB (I think...) had done one there and brought the notion to KTLA. We ran with it and it became a beloved tradition.

And so it goes. Nothing is new in television, believe me!

(Sci Fi's marathon actually started yesterday with eps from the 1980's Twilight Zone redo series, but continues today with the originals.)

Crazy Summer TV: Expedition Africa!

Flaming Nose fans are familiar with our ongoing Star Trek obsession. Here's a series focusing on the re-creation of a very low-tech trek. The History channel's "Expedition Africa" follows four modern day explorers who are attempting to retrace journalist Henry Stanley's (1871) eight month journey through Tanzania to find Dr. David Livingstone. New episodes air Sunday nights on History at 10pm eastern.

On any proper "survival" type reality show, the participants must have distinct and exasperating personalities. Expedition Africa includes the following "characters":

• Navigator: Pasquale Scaturro (cranky, contentious and very bossy)
• Wildlife Expert: Dr. Mireya Mayor (quiet, tiny and dour)
• Survivalist: Benedict Allen (British, snooty, put upon and hates Pasquale)
• Journalist: Kevin Sites (A bit "deer in the headlights" but the most accessible of all the players)
  

There are a number of factors in this premise that require viewers to massively suspend their disbelief. No matter how dire the hot, sweaty, muddy, snake bit and insect eating hike these folks are having in Africa, we can't help but be aware that their crew is standing by with GPS, helicopters and satellite mobile phones. Frankly, the three things that a modern day African walkabout might have that would be far more frightening than what Stanley and Livingstone experienced (AIDs, Ebola and teen aged terrorists toting automatic weapons) are not even remotely explored in this series. That's an unfortunate, albeit politically correct decision on the part of the producers.

Nevertheless, Expedition Africa is worth watching, if only to see the gorgeous Masai Warriors helping our modern explorers find their way. The Masai are master trackers and a hundred times more comfortable in the harsh African environment than the gang of four, even without Nylon tents and Nike hiking boots.