Cleverly Titled Blog
Saturday, July 26, 2003
When Icons Go Pop
I admit it, I've been wholly absorbed in VH-1's 200 Greatest Pop Icons every night this week. The series wrapped up this evening. Overall, this is one of the better lists to come out recently when one takes the selection criteria into consideration. To wit:
"What makes an 'Icon?' It’s not enough to just be famous or to have won a couple of awards. You have to pass one or more of the following criteria:
* Do they pass the one-name test?
* Can you dress up as them for Halloween?
* Did they blaze a trail in pop culture?
* Did they create a signature character in pop culture?
* Can you quote them, or their character, in 10 seconds or less?
* Did society imitate their sense of fashion? Hairstyle?
* Did 'SNL' create a sketch satirizing them?
* Did someone write a song about them?
* Was or is there merchandising or paraphernalia that bears their image?
* Can they be connected to Kevin Bacon?"
Given that criteria, I was able to put aside my objections to a lot of what -- at first glance -- seemed like ass-kissing of current stars, etc.
But...
You just knew there was a "but," didn't you?
I still have some suggestions for improvement.
In the interest of keeping myself sane, I kept myself confined to revising the list in 10% chunks, and made my lists in no specific order. It should also be noted that my additions and upgrades aren't necessarily icons I personally like, nor are my subtractions and downgrades necessarily icons I dislike. They just reflect corrections that I think are befitting the grand scheme of pop culture.
First, the Top 20 Icons Missing from VH-1's list:
The Ramones
The Sex Pistols
Quentin Tarantino
Debbie Harry
The Incredible Hulk
Janis Joplin
George Lucas (alternately, Darth Vader)
John Hughes
Bill Murray
Humphrey Bogart
Robert Redford
Monty Python
James Bond
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Gandhi
The Beastie Boys
Orson Welles
The Marx Brothers
Jerry Lewis
The Fellowship of the Ring
And if you're putting 20 more in, you've got to take another 20 back out, so here are the Top 20 that should have been left off the list:
Rudy Guiliani
Ricky Martin
Mariah Carey
Betty Ford
Monica Lewinsky
Judge Judy
Macauley Culkin
Dr. Phil
Reese Witherspoon
The Rock
Christie Brinkley
Ben Affleck
Shania Twain
Barbara Walters
Arsenio Hall
Axl Rose
Gianni Versace
Jane Fonda
Penny Marshall
Calvin Klein
Some icons made the list, but were severely underrated. These are the Top 20 Icons that made the list far lower than they should have:
Bruce Lee
Jim Morrison
Bugs Bunny
Albert Einstein
Run-DMC
Steven King
Harry Potter
Garth Brooks
David Bowie
Dick Van Dyke
The Three Stooges
Tupac Shakur
Bob Marley
Jackie Gleason
Aretha Franklin
Woody Allen
Bob Hope
Mr. Rogers
Charlie Chaplin
Judy Garland
And if we're moving 20 up, 20 need to come back down. Here are the Top 20 that made the list far higher than they should have:
Whoopi Goldberg
Britney Spears
The Friends Cast
The Osbournes
Jennifer Lopez
Pamela Anderson
Celene Dion
Sarah Jessica Parker
Kevin Bacon
Bon Jovi
Ellen DeGeneres
Gwen Stefani
Eddie Murphy
P. Diddy
Fred Flintstone
James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano)
Aerosmith
Justin Timberlake
Will Smith
Katie Couric
Finally, a few corrections: Superman was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster (VH-1 only credited Siegel). Spider-Man was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko (only Lee was credited).
Monday, July 21, 2003
Internet Radio Mecca
I've found the Holy Grail of Internet Radio.
By chance, this afternoon I flipped through the Windows Media Player Media Guide in search of Robyn Hitchcock. While I never did get to hear the estimable Soft Boy today, I discovered something that is arguably better, and likely to include him, as well.
It's Radioio's '80s Channel. And it's freaking amazing. I've had it on for about four hours, and I've heard classic industrial, punk, new wave, rap, indie, ska, and "new" music without a dud among the bunch.
(Okay, they did play The Normal's "Warm Leatherette," but since I seem to be the only person on the planet that hates that song, I'll let it slide.)
Here's a small sampling of what I've heard today: Depeche Mode, Blondie, LL Cool J, Digable Planets, They Might Be Giants, Front Line Assembly, Nitzer Ebb, Joy Division, New Order, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Sugarcubes, Pop Will Eat Itself, GBH, Black Flag, Captain Sensible, The Specials, The Bodysnatchers, The Replacements, Camper Van Beethoven, The Pixies, The Dead Milkmen, The Ramones, Dinosaur Jr., The Lemonheads, Talking Heads, Adam Ant, Jane's Addiction, Information Society, The Misfits, The Smiths, Concrete Blonde, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Oingo Boingo... and geez, this isn't even the half of it. And not only the hits, but obscure tracks, remixes -- the whole kit and kaboodle.
They're also completely listener supported, and I think they've earned my support. I plan on subscribing -- or at least making a donation -- as soon as possible.
If you're a fan of the intelligent music to come out of the '80s (read: not hair bands or faceless pop), you owe it to yourself to check this out. You'll love it.
I just wish I could make it play in my car.
Who cares about the Emmys?
I'm a big awards show geek. Even though they're mostly loaded with self-congratuating excess, I still plant myself in front of the TV for the Oscars, the Emmys, and (worst of all) the Grammys -- to say nothing of a few lesser kudos-fests like the Golden Globes -- root for my few favorites that got nominated, and generally leave feeling unfulfilled.
This year's crop of Emmy noms may change all that. After last year's impressive showing for quality shows like 24 and Alias, and particularly after Michael Chiklis's surprise win for his tour de force work on The Shield, the Emmys have slid back. Badly.
Yes, the aforemnetioned shows still received a few nods. Alias, in particular, gained on the acting noms. But The Shield is limited to basically Chiklis being nomnated again, ignoring the fantastic work of the superb ensemble and the amazing writers of what's probably the best show on television. That it's not nominated for best series is nothing short of criminal.
So what IS nominated? The same old same old: Sopranos (which many fans derided as its worst season until it picked up at the very end), West Wing (despite what even most fans of the show seem to have termed its worst season to date), Six Feet Under (again, which was said to be a disappointment).
And we won't even go into the comedy noms. There really isn't a sitcom on TV that I deem worthy of watching on a regular basis. Malcolm in the Middle and That 70's Show were both highly watchable at one time, but have lived FAR past their primes (despite some cast members still doing fine work, and despite the fact that I think 70's's Laura Prepon is smokin' hot). Any attempt at doing anything fresh or interesting with sitcoms recently has been crushed mercilessly. I am looking forward to the new U.S. version of Coupling, but with that same "god, I hope they don't ruin this too badly" trepidation I feel toward, say, the movie version of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (which I've not seen yet).
How would I change things? Well, let's see:
Best Drama Series:
The nominees are 24, CSI, Six Feet Under, The Sopranos, and The West Wing.
Of these, I'd only keep 24, which is easily one of the most riveting shows on TV, and which had a very strong season. I'm rooting for it to win, but figure it doesn't stand a chance given its overrated competition.
I've actually never watched CSI, so exclude that from my statement. But I remain unimpressed by what I've seen of the other three series.
(Tangent: Given that the Emmys are now recognizing such a broad range of television -- broadcast, basic cable, pay channels -- isn't it time they offered more than five nominees in each category on a regular basis? There are many fine programs that never get so much as a nod -- much less an award -- because the field is so limited. Five nominees made sense when the Emmys only covered three broadcast networks, but hell, we have twice that many broadcast outlets ALONE, now -- to say nothing of cable.)
Keeping it to five, my nominees for Best Drama would be 24, The Shield, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly. The winner would be The Shield.
Lead Actor -- Drama:
The nominees are James Gandolfini, Kiefer Sutherland, Michael Chiklis, Peter Krause, and Martin Sheen. I like all of these actors, but don't care for the shows that Gandolfini, Krause and Sheen are working on. I'd eliminate the three of them. Fill their slots with David Boreanaz, who had a great year on Angel; James Marsters, who did incredible work on Buffy, and Nathan Fillion, who was outstanding on Firefly. I think I'd still give the trophy to Chiklis, though.
Lead Actress -- Drama:
Nominees are Jennifer Garner, Marg Helgenberger, Edie Falco, Allison Janney, and Francis Conroy. The only one I'd keep is Garner. That said, I don't have a whole lot of ideas for replacements. I'd definitely include CCH Pounder for The Shield and Sarah Michelle Gellar for Buffy. After that, it gets greyer. While I gave Fillion a nod for Firefly, that's such an ensemble show that I can't really single out any of the ladies as a "lead," though if I was, I'd give Gina Torres the nod. Likewise, Angel's strongest female role this season was the big bad (also played by Torres), and not a lead (the regular ladies, Charisma Carpenter and Amy Acker, didn't really have "leading" roles, either). So I'm not really sure who I'd give the fifth nod to. I like Kristin Kreuk on Smallville, but I just don't think she's quite there yet. Of this batch, I'd either give the award to Pounder or Gellar. If I'm to go on the past season, alone, Pounder gets it, but I might give it to Gellar for her body of work on Buffy, which has gone sadly unheralded.
Supporting Actor -- Drama:
Nominees are Victor Garber, Michael Imperioli, Joe Pantoliano, Bradley Whitford, and John Spencer. I'd keep Garber. Criminally unrecognized in this category include Michael Rosenbaum, whose Lex Luthor is one of the best things about Smallville; Xander Berkeley, who did an incredible job as George Mason on 24, and Alexis Denisof, who's turned Angel's Wesley into one of the most intriguing characters on television. Give the fifth slot to The Shield's Jay Karnes. The award? I'd probably give it to Berkeley, but this is a VERY tough call between him and Rosenbaum, and the others aren't far behind.
Supporting Actress -- Drama:
Nominees are Lena Olin, Tyne Daly, Lauren Ambrose, Rachel Griffiths, and Stockard Channing. Dump everyone but Olin. In her place, the fabulous Alison Mack from Smallville; the delightful Alyson Hannigan from Buffy; the gorgeous Dina Meyer, who became Oracle on Birds Of Prey (easily the best thing about the show); and Penny Johnson Jerald as the former First Lady we all love to hate on 24. I'd likely overcome my crushes on Mack, Hannigan, and Meyer to give it to the truly deserving Jerald.
The writing nominations are a stew of bad jokes, too. Nothing for Joss Whedon or Shawn Ryan or Mark Verheiden or Jeph Loeb or Jane Espenson or any number of other talented writers. Nope, same old Sopranos, West Wing and Six Feet Under -- between the three, they loocked up ALL FIVE noms.
The one place the Emmys get it right is with three nods for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, including one for Stewart himself as host. Here's hoping for a sweep!
Honestly, I think if I could only change one thing about the Emmys, though, I'd change the fact that nominations are made based on single episodes rather than on the season's body of work. This fact really hurts gener series which tend to have overarching storylines, and allows series that have terrible seasons to be honored for the one good episode out of 22 or so they did. It's not how the rest of us judge the shows we watch regularly. If the system was changed to recognize the body of work for the season, I think we might see some real changes in the nominations.
Until then, they're probably gonna keep sucking.
Wednesday, July 02, 2003
It's Harry's World, We Just Wish We Could Live In It
Updates have been few and far between here as I've been almost totally immersed in the world of Hogwarts for the last week and a half. From the 22nd to the 28th, I devoured the first four Harry Potter novels. Sunday, the 29th, I watched the movie of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (I'd already seen Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone). Monday, I came into work and arranged to borrow Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix from a co-worker who bought it on the release date and has already read it. I started it when I got home last night, and am about 630 pages in. I very nearly called in sick to work today to finish. I'll finish reading it tonight and then get back to regular posting, probably starting with a Hagrid-size Potter post.
Meanwhile, reviews on Dressy Bessy and All Girl Summer Fun Band are up at Ink 19. Go, read, enjoy!
Tuesday, July 01, 2003
When TBS Doesn't Play Fair
Looking for something to veg out and relax in front of this evening, I tuned in the last half of The Wedding Singer, a movie I've seen before and enjoyed -- one of Adam Sandler's better flicks, for what that's worth, and I'm a sucker for the '80s trappings and Miss Drew Barrymore.
But I made the mistake of leaving the TV on after it was over long enough to see what was on next: Ferris Bueller's Day Off. One of my all-time favorites, and, as I don't yet own it on DVD, a movie I will drop everything and watch whenever I note it's on. It's one of the few movies I can even watch despite the lame redubbing to sanitize for TV, something I despise but will tolerate for this one.
So I moved from the living room to the office to check my e-mail, and put the movie on in here. While doing this, I consulted the program guide to find it, as I watch TBS so infrequently that I didn't know the channel number. At that point, I made the mistake of accidently noticing what was coming on after Ferris Bueller.
The Blues Brothers. Another of the few movies that fall into the rarified category mentioned above.
Damn.
It's gonna be a late night.
