mrneoluddite/tv

From the page: "The Spark
Learn about stuff you never knew you wanted to know about in The Spark. Yahoo!'s Search Editors dig through the Web and blog about its hidden gems, celebrity birthdays, and bizzare and little-known holidays. Come on in and see what sparks your interest."

From the page: "The Biggest Game Show Question of Them All
By Dave Sikula
Fri, November 7, 2008

Television in the 1950s was different from today. There were four networks and not much else, programs were broadcast live, and quiz shows ruled the airwaves.

The longest-running of all such shows was "What's My Line?," which ran Sunday nights at the ungodly hour of 10:30. Being a simple game (celebrities guessed what people did for a living), it was untouched by the quiz-show scandals of the late 50s. One of "What's My Line?'s" most popular panelists was Dorothy Kilgallen.

Kilgallen was primarily a gossip columnist for the New York Journal-American, and she sparked bitter feuds with stars such as Frank Sinatra. But Kilgallen had ambitions beyond mere gossip; her reporting on the 1953 coronation of Queen Elizabeth was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, and her investigation of the Sam Sheppard murder trial was crucial in freeing Sheppard from prison. What she hoped would be her biggest scoop, though, was revealing the "truth" about John F. Kennedyâ€s assassination.

Kilgallen interviewed Jack Ruby while Ruby was on trial for killing Lee Harvey Oswald, and had somehow obtained a copy of his sealed testimony to the Warren Commission (sparking an FBI investigation). She promised that she had information that would â€oeblow the lidâ€� off of the case. On the morning of November 8, 1965, however, the apparently-healthy journalist was found sitting in bed in her apartment -- dead of either a "drug overdose" or a "heart attack." She was in the wrong bedroom, fully made-up and dressed, with a book she had finished weeks earlier by her side, and her reading glasses nowhere nearby. Her husband claimed she had come home at midnight, but eyewitnesses had seen her out on the town as late as 2 a.m. All her research on the assassination had mysteriously vanished.

While Kilgallen was hardly the only person involved in the JFK case to die under suspicious circumstances, she was the most famous. â€oeWhatâ€s My Line?â€� ran for two years after Kilgallenâ€s death, but never really recovered. She can still be seen on GSNâ€s reruns of the show, and her wit and intelligence make us wonder just what she did know."

From the page: ""I'll Take Shakespeare for $1600, Alex"
By Dave Sikula
Tue, July 22, 2008

Alex Trebek turns 68 today -- looks good, doesn't he? Nice guy; does charity work, never a scandal. But I'm still a little mad at him -- though I have no one to blame but myself.

Let me explain. Like millions of folks, I love Jeopardy! -- going back to the original version with Art Fleming. I also have a knack for memorizing useless facts -- to the point where people were always saying, "You should be on Jeopardy!" (like I had any say in it). In May, 2006, I finally got the call, asking me come in for an interview. Well, I played well enough and was sufficiently personable that they told me I'd be in the pool for a year, and if I didn't hear from them to try again. That year passed and I wrote it off -- until November of 2007, when the magical call came from Culver City. They wanted me!

I went to L.A., and after a morning of instructions, was called on to play -- for real. Thanks to a lucky group of categories -- and a Final Jeopardy that I didn't know, but made an educated guess at -- I was an honest-to-goodness Jeopardy! champion. Then my second game came. I was slow on the buzzer, but the final blow was a Daily Double about Shakespeare. In spite of my background in theatre history -- and Alex trying to help -- I blanked, and it was all downhill from there. I rallied, but it was too late, and after a reign of one day, I was a Former Jeopardy! Champion. I exited the studio with a feeling of "what just happened?" but feeling proud that I'd actually done it.

I can never go back on the show, but if you do, give Alex my best. And watch out for those Shakespeare categories...."

From the page: "Must Geek TV
By David Price
Mon, February 11, 2008

In its early days, science fiction was a niche genre for radio devotees and pulp fiction addicts, and television was a mere plot device. The year 1938, though, saw two major steps toward the widespread popularization of the genre: Orson Welles captured the fear and imagination of American audiences with his telling of H.G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds," and the BBC aired a TV version of Karel Capek's "R.U.R."

The birth of the boob tube placed sci-fi firmly in the mainstream. 1950s viewers followed the adventures of such futuristic freedom fighters and daring space travelers as Captain Video and His Video Rangers and Buck Rogers. By the time Star Trek made its debut in 1966, sci-fi was mature enough to explore distant galaxies in warp drive. Gene Roddenberry's original series lasted only 80 episodes, but has had a lasting impact on generations of TV viewers, spawning unforgettable characters, countless spin-offs, and even a unique language.

Today, science fiction on television is more popular than ever. In 1992, the Sci-Fi channel was launched, and while it has spawned such dubious creatures as the Bone Eater and Beastmaster, it has also revived old classics like Flash Gordon, Stargate, and, most notably, Battlestar Galactica. There's never been a better time to watch some frakking good science fiction TV."

News, reviews, blog, etc. from David Bianculli, the fantastic TV critic often heard on NPR's Fresh Air.

I like hearing what he has to say even though I don't have a TV.

I love British TV

Oh Lord, how I can't stand this woman.

From the page: "Many were angered by her use of the "f-word". Coulter later said she considered it a "schoolyard taunt." She said it was a joke about "Grey's Anatomy" actor Isaiah Washington saying he would seek counseling after using the word to refer to a fellow actor."

S'all right?