Steve Leblang

In 1976, Sylvester Stallone vaulted from obscurity as a struggling New York actor into international prominence with his portrayal of Rocky Balboa, a journeyman Philadelphia boxer who earns a shot at the heavyweight championship.  The stirring Bill Conti soundtrack, the raw emotion that paralleled Stallone’s own personal journey through that of the earnest, family-loyal Balboa, … Read more

Did you know there were actually two animated situation comedies that premiered on broadcast TV networks in January, 1999? One you might have already known about was FAMILY GUY, which joined what was at the time the number one Sunday night TV destination, premiering following Super Bowl XXXIII, and later pairing quite well with a … Read more

You may think I’m a bit compulsive about many things, and there’s probably some very deep issues with roots in my childhood to explain some of them.  One particular thing I freely admit to having a biopsychological need for is bonding, something that’s been exceptionally difficult for me to do in the nearly three years … Read more

Still more shocking revelations emerged from yesterday’s release of Rupert Murdoch’s testimony in the case that Dominion Voting Systems is mounting against his FOX News organization.  As Katie Robertson and Jeremy W. Peters reported in The New York Times: Murdoch, chairman of the conservative media empire that owns Fox News, acknowledged in a deposition that … Read more

It’s been three decades since Woody Harrelson last tended bar at Cheers, where his character evolved from a country bumpkin cast in direct conflict with that of the veteran actor Nicholas Colasanto who he replaced upon that actor’s untimely death into a more nuanced, mature dispenser of advice and reason.  And since then, Harrleson as … Read more

It’s clearly an era of transition for my former colleagues at Sony.  Earlier this week it was learned that THE GOLDBERGS was sunsetting after a 10-season run, and tonight THE BLACKLIST will begin its tenth and final season on NBC.  The show’s tenure has outlasted those of quite a number of its cast members, one … Read more

ABC announced earlier this week that THE GOLDBERGS, its longest-running situation comedy, will end this spring, news that honestly didn’t take me much by surprise.  Its ratings this year have been modest and flatlined (essentially a 0.4 key demo rating and rarely the level of its lead-in THE CONNERS or its lead-out ABBOTT ELEMENTARY, not … Read more

I tend to get inspired for these daily musings when I sift through the alerts I get overnight (or, on many occasions, in real time as I battle insomnia).  The three that stood out today pretty much sum up how creatives and business people are operating in parallel universes: — Our old friend Yosemite Zas … Read more