When I devoted myself wholeheartedly to the television series St. Elsewhere, I didn’t know that the actor who donned Dr. Daniel Auschlander’s white coat brought practically the whole history of Hollywood with him. I just knew the performance was flinty … Continue reading Norman Lloyd, 1914 – 2021
There are many building blocks of the internet, but the cornerstones are think pieces, offhand lists, and other hollow provocations meant to stir arguments and, therefore, briefly redirect web traffic. Engaging such material is utterly pointless. Then again, it’s not like I … Continue reading Bait Taken — Rolling Stone’s 100 Best Sitcoms of All Time
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie: The oral history by Adam Carston The big-screen iteration of Mystery Science Theater 3000 hardly seems to have enough significance to merit a lengthy oral history on the occasion of its anniversary, but I’m … Continue reading Outside Reading — This Island Earth Doesn’t Shine for Me Anymore
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. There are a lot of ills and injustices perpetrated by modern-day capitalism. I am aware of this. … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — American Express, “One Hour Photo”
Today marks five years since Garry Shandling died. There was an immediate outpouring in the comedy community, and that’s been remarkably sustained. There is the occasional recounting of Shandling’s remarkable commitment to a complex joke, even when it was delivered … Continue reading Laughing Matters — Garry Shandling on The Tonight Show in 1981
Sometimes comedy illuminates hard truths with a pointed urgency that other means can’t quite achieve. Sometimes comedy is just funny. This series of posts is mostly about the former instances, but the latter is valuable, too. It’s always a good … Continue reading Laughing Matters — The Kids in the Hall, “Preacher”
Since great television comedy always begins with the script, this series of posts considers the individual episodes that have claimed the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series over the years. He & She is a sitcom … Continue reading Golden Words — He & She, “The Coming-Out Party”
As Marvel took over the movies, their concurrent attempts to expand their universe into television largely floundered. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the much vaunted series co-created by Avengers helmer Joss Whedon, went from an official, canonical extension of the Marvel Cinematic … Continue reading That Championship Season: Legion, Season One
Since great television comedy always begins with the script, this series of posts considers the individual episodes that have claimed the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series over the years. Murphy Brown went into its third … Continue reading Golden Words — Murphy Brown, “Jingle Hell, Jingle Hell, Jingle All the Way”
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. As Christmas approached in 1993, The X-Files was a weird new show plopped onto the Friday night … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — The X-Files Christmas promo
Coffee for Two 