As JEOPARDY! winds down the 38th season of its current incarnation this week, one that began with controversy and the abrupt firing of host/producer Mike Richards after one tape day, news on the fate of its permanent emcee choice finally broke. All season long, both Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik have emceed the show in … Read more
Norman Lear begins his second hundred years today, and based upon the output and resilience he has displayed in his first hundred, I’m not betting against him making a third century just yet. Mr. Lear (and, frankly, with his track record and seniority it’s disingeneous to call him anything BUT Mr–unless, as in my case, … Read more
When Roger Goodell held his press conference earlier this month in Sun Valley to announce that NFL Sunday Ticket will be heading to a streaming platform for its 30th season next fall, it had all been ordained that Apple TV+ or Amazon’s Prime Video would be its destination. After all, both have multibillion (ok, trillion) … Read more
Unless you’re a true afficiando of game shows, you’ve probably not heard of Randy West. But if you’re a lover of pop culture, you’ve likely HEARD Randy West, He has spent decades as a voice-over and radio personality, and was a prolific announcer on numerous, ubiquotously repeated shows during those glory days, more notably on … Read more
An awful lot of my friends and colleagues know far, far more about the specifics of the world of professional wrestling than I do. With passions and opinions usually reserved for family or politics, they can debate the legitimacy and premeditation of any Wrestlemania from the last several decades, which talents were destined for their … Read more
Half measures availed us nothing. Anyone who had ever attended a twelve-step meeting, as I publicly admit I have attended many over many decades, has uttered these words with at least some degree of reverence. I know when I don’t act, I stagnate, and said stagnation nearly cost me my life. In the past 24 … Read more
I’m consistently perplexed at the gravitas that certain media companies seem to have with an investment community that appears disproportionately inclined to believe they have upside. The reaction to Netflix’s earnings reports where they “overachieved expectations” by merely losing 970,000 (heaven forbid, NOT the “roughly 1 million” subscribers in 2Q22, versus the 2 million that … Read more
With every passing Monday night this summer, an era of quality television for basic cable may be winding down for good with a victory lap that continues to improve with each new episode. The final six episodes of BETTER CALL SAUL are being unveiled in the good old fashioned way of one episode a week … Read more
Who’s the most famous graduate of your alma mater? No matter what school gave you your diploma, if you’re one of my readers you’re probably not an immediately recognized public figure. My high school, John Bowne of Flushing,New York, has produced a number of noted TV executives over its 58-year history, some of whom I’ve … Read more
KCBS-TV/Los Angeles’ early morning news has often been fifth in a four-horse race, due in part to the fact that the network morning show that it leads into, CBS MORNINGS, still lags behind both THE TODAY SHOW and GOOD MORNING, AMERICA in popularity. What also hurts network morning news in Los Angeles and elsewhere in … Read more