May 9, 2021
I know I keep teasing Australian animals, but with Mother's Day and housework crowding my weekend, doing a deep dive into marsupials and monotremes. I do have a couple of random things to cover.
I put on the Talking Heads Stop Making Sense album when I went for a run this week and I realized that Wayne Coyne and David Byrne share many commonalities. They both care very deeply that the live shows are a truly unique experience and bring a a lot of theatricality and distinct visual aesthetics to their performances. They both tend to write simple, yet not simplistic songs. Byrne has stuck mostly to his original Talking Heads new wave template, while Coyne has been all over the place, from fuzzed out psychdelia to orchestral to twee to anything and everything. You could make an argument that Wayne Coyne was the Gen X David Byrne, but the truth is that the Talking Heads do not predate the Flaming lips by all that much. You could make an argument that they are closer to being contemporaries. It's a shame the Flaming Lips never got Jonathan Demme's Stop Making Sense treatment. I only saw the Lips the one time and the memory fades. I've never seen the Talking Heads or Byrne live, but I feel I have because of that movie.
Which leads me to say that I kind of wish I didn't write what I did about Wayne Coyne last week. I feel like all I did was amplify nebulous rumors about his personal life from years ago, which I shouldn't have done. I think I hedged as I did it which is weak sauce my friends. Throw in whatever platitude you'd like - don't meet your heroes, you can't go home again, people change, you can never really know a celebrity. The truth is, I'm not quite sure why I grow apart from bands I used to love - I mean I can come up reasons. The Arcade Fire turned angry and cynical. Beck got preoccupied with sadness and death. Radiohead became too esoteric to actually enjoy listening to. Anyway, maybe I heard a song or saw a headline when I was going through a difficult period and it just turned me off. The truth is if you love something once, you always will in some way. It doesn't just go away. It may take a different form. The Lips are a great nostalgia trip for me and I should try to hang to the good times, like and old friend.
Also, because it is related to a couple of thoughts that came up while reflecting this and previous weeks segments: what do we do about art or artists that are offensive? I'm not big on censorship. I probably haven't watched it nearly 25 years, but I'm going to use a clip from The Cosby Show later. It's could be the most important TV show from the 80s. As I watched it, a lot of memories of that show from when I was a kid came back. Syndicated rerun's ran on Channel 5 and the commercial jingle would go, "Flip it to 5... at 5... for Cosby!" I remember all the classic bits. I can name all the characters (Heathcliff, Clair, Sandra, Elvin, Denise, Theo, Vanessa, Rudy, Olivia, and even cousin Pam - I forget Denise's husband's name, but who could forget the classic ancillary characters Kenny/"You can call me Bud" and Cockroach.) Anyway, I am actually a little sad that I'll never randomly see those shows on TV again thanks to the transgressions of Bill Cosby. Also, I know Andrew McCarthy wasn't in Sixteen Candles, he was in Pretty in Pink, but I couldn't help think of that other Molly Ringwald movie because I love it. It's also a classic example of a movie that would be much different in a, shall we say, more enlightened society. Do I have to defend liking the movie? Would it be as good with 2020 values? I would argue no. That part of its humor and charm is due to a naiveté that it doesn't know it is being offensive. But still it is offensive. I don't want to lock it away. I think it's ok to continue loving something and at the same time acknowledging its problems. Cancel culture is problematic when it either becomes not ok, or we refuse to acknowledge problems. Cancel culture is also stupid when it gets equated with pointing out facts. I could go on about other things I love that have stood up well to revisionism. (I refuse to use the verb cancelled.) But as I have already gone on too long as I always do.
The CBS SUNDAY MORNING POWER RANKINGS
Faith gets the nod for the top spot for 2 reasons. First, her twitter profile proudly boasts of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine appearance. You may have noticed me a drop a Trek reference from time to time.
Hot take alert: DS9 was the best of the Trek series. Perhaps fodder for a future entry.
Anyway, she proudly links to the clip on her website:
Now if I could just unearth a clip of Andrew WK on Star Trek... I think he'd go against type and play a Vulcan.
The second reason that Faith takes the top spot? Is tap apropos of current events in any way? No? Perfect! To create the perfect episode of Sunday Morning, pick some Trivial Pursuit question cards and do deep dives on 8 or 9 of the questions at random. The best parts of the show often lie in the seeming triviality of the subjects (*COUGH* Bring back Sunday Almanac *COUGH*).
In the list of old movies that I love, Singing in the Rain is way up there. Watching old Gene Kelly or Fred Astaire dance numbers gets me all nostalgic for a time that I have no connection to. The modern film has traded tap shoes for serial killers for tap shoes, so we get SE7EN or Silence of the Lambs instead of Singin in the Rain or West Side Story. Not that there is anything wrong with any of them. All great movies, but sometimes I want something to make me smile.
The semi-modern TV sitcom also has some great tap numbers:
From the Cosby Show, there is the all time classic "Chaaa-laange!" scene starring Sandman Sims:
Clips from a lesser known favorite of mine, Newsradio, are harder to find, but I also wanted to post the bit from the show where they find out Dave was obsessed with tap as a kid. Oh well, I've got it on DVD and I haven't watched it for awhile. I'll have to go back and watch the episode to relive another great moment in sitcom tap. Should I watch that or some DS9 tonight? I'll go with Newsradio as I'm still a few seasons away from catching up to Faith's episode.
2) Joan Axelrod
I was born in the 80s, which makes me too young to remember most of them. However as a youngest child, my elder siblings fed me a lot of pop culture growing up. And while there is an argument to made that the 80s were notable for little more than sheer vapidity, I embrace the highs and the lows of a decade that I really on know about by proxy.
Random 80s stuff: Top Gun, Voltron, The Princess Bride, Jem, Star Trek II, Indiana Jones, Legend, Labyrinth, The Equalizer, Cheers, and films of John Hughes - Ferris Bueller, Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink. Sure he made other movies and Andrew McCarthy was only in Pretty in Pink, which is the only one of those three that I don't know that well. I think I saw it once, but now I have hankerin' to watch it again. I love the other ones (warts and all). I think Pretty in Pink is my sister's favorite of all those. It's worth it just for James Spader's hair:
Speaking of wonderful 80s hair, Rob Lowe:
I'm not sure I'm all that interested in McCarthy himself. It's just an excuse to revel in the borrowed nostalgia of the remembered 80s.
But watch the segment if no other reason than his breakdown of this photo:
Ah politics... where CBS Sunday Morning treads lightly. Although I'm sure with times the way they are, there aren't very many Trumpers that still watch it, if they ever did, after John Dickerson had the temerity to you know, ask a question. Sunday Morning does tend to do more feature stories on more D's than they do R's. I wonder if that's because not as many R's are pushing a cause or are mabye less willing to be interviewed. That being said, I'm not exactly looking for "fair and balanced" in my happy place. The last thing I want interrupting my zen is a shouting right wing conspiracy theorist.
I really like Stacy Abrams. I think she's smart. I think she's funny. I think she fights for a noble cause. I'm a little less interested when she slips into strident talking points mode, which tends to happen to any politician. I don't necessarily disagree with her on the fact that her gubernatorial run in Georgia was not fought on a level playing field, but her lack of concession allowed Republicans to draw a false equivalency to Trump's BS in 2020 so I kind of wish she had just used the word to strip them of that talking point, but whatever. It'd be fun if she became president someday so that afterwards she can write a crazy crazy fictionalized memoir/romance novel mashup afterward its over. I want to go to the Stacey Abrams presidential library and read some Selena Montgomery (Abrams's nom de plume) romance novels. Mo Rocca would have a field day.
Be careful what you wish for, Republicans. I suspect that every voter suppression law passed will only make Ms. Abrams work twice as hard to get people out voting. It maybe kind of says something when your main election strategy is rely on voter apathy/suppression and Stacey Abrams is mighty effective in getting people out there to vote.
4) Mary Pauley
Jane had a little bit of extra air time this week narrating the obit for Jacques d'Amboise. It was the first I had heard of him, but I kind of love it anytime Sunday Morning digs into the into vault and unearths old clips. From the name, I expected Jacques to be a French ballet dancer. It's always delightful when reality subverts expectations, so I smiled when I first heard his distinct New York accent. I don't think New York makes the accent power rankings (1. New Zealand, 2. Australian, and go from there...) but Jacques made it work. It's also very sweet that he made devoted much of his life to working with kids. The program he founded has worked with over 2 million kids. Talk about making a difference. Oh, to have been one of those kids. My dance abilities are very limited and skew very white. In my dreams, I can dance and I have confidence around the ladies. As it stands, I sit down. I'm not a dancer and no one accuses me of being a disco ball. It was a very dance heavy episode.
Also it's Mother's Day and my mom is named Jane. Jane's Mom's name is Mary and Mary Pauley is just a wonderful name. Points for the Pauleys.
5) Sandhill Cranes / Moms
I get to unironically talk about cute chicks without it being sexist! Not just any chicks, Florida chicks! The nature segment doesn't just feature birds, but Florida birds, so you know I gotta put in a link to Audubon Florida again.
The man made water features near my office and gym attract Canadian Geese. When they aren't pooping on my car or blocking traffic to cross the road (Seriously, what is the point of your wings!) at least they hatch some cute chicks of their own:
When I was in high school, I wrote a satirical op-ed for my high school newspaper entitled, "Radioactive Geese Are Ruining Outfield." While explaining the context would take too long, it's one of my favorite things that I've ever written. Maybe I'll dig it out some day and post it for posterity. A few of the faculty got it and apparently thought it was hilarious. Everyone else?
I suppose the birds were Mother's day adjacent. Mothers with their chicks and whatnot, but Sunday Morning did not belabor this point, so it really just sunk in for me.
I did get a little dusty when the end credits were just a list of everyone's Mom. Notice what I'm doing with the rankings this week. For what it's worth, the lateness of this post is at least party due to spending Mother's Day afternoon watching Little Women with my Mom. And just a bit of being lazy for a few days after that.
I went to the University of Louisville for my undergrad. It is predominantly a commuter school and a very low Greek participation. I never got frats or sororities. I guess it's a built in social circle, but I'm not a very social guy. Hanging out in the Arts and Sciences building the frat I was most familiar with was the one to which all the engineers across the street belonged - Triangle. Very low key, very chill. Barely a frat. Until I just looked it up, I honestly thought Triangle was just a joke the engineers made up to make fun of the other frats. I do admit to going out into the remanants of a hurricane passing through Louisville to watch a frat parade around a torn down goalpost after Louisville upset Florida State. (Obey Ragone.) One of the frat guys was definitely not weary clothes. Eh.
It's probably unfair to lay it at the feet of Belushi, but I wonder how much of the hazing problem has to do with college kids trying to recreate "Hollywood" depiction of college life. There have been a lot of college movies, but the progenitor of the modern version was definitely Animal House. You know how with shows like Jackass they have to put a disclaimer up saying not try those idiotic stunts at home. As much as this is for little kids, it's really the 20 somethings that those disclaimers should be for. You're considered an adult, but your brain is actually still developing. Most of us have probably partied till we puked at least once, so part of me doesn't want to condemn young kids. But you know, when people die (and aparently more than one a year is not uncommon) I just want to say get rid of them. They are a weird American thing that do not exist elsewhere. And the perception of exclusivity leads toxic environment.
Hazing has been coming up every year or so for a long time, whether it be in high school, college or the military. In my corner of Ohio, I don't that hazing per se is a big issue, but general binge drinking is problematic on the campuses of Dayton (although maybe not as bad as it used to be), Miami, and Ohio University. So this sort of story pops up locally about once a year. Although we did get a respite from it because of COVID, not that one or the other is preferable. Neither is a perfectly acceptable choice here.
Tracy Smith. In the 11 o'clock spot. Inteverviewing a celebrity. Everything is right with the world again. Or as Tracy would put it, just a couple of gals from Ohio gals having a chat. Allison Janney is from nearby (to me at least) Dayton. So I looked up Tracy on Wikipedia and she's from a Cincinnati suburb. Hey, same!
Allison's Oscar for I, Tonya is great and all, but X-ennials everywhere, she'll forever be C.J. Cregg and I think Allison's OK with that. Maybe it didn't get recognized because it pushed the movie a little too far over the top, but I thought Paul Walter Hauser as Shawn Eckardt stole the film. I died laughing in almost every scene he was in.
8) Pat Pogue
David tries to sidle back towards the top of the rankings with another "art" segment. Well, the convergence of art and technology - the emoji. I know a graphic designer and I'm afraid she'd beat me up if she ever came across this blog and figured who wrote this, but is graphic design art? I guess in the sense that anything, including a commode, can be art in the right context. Emoji often lack that context. It is something artistic that we've made mundane. On the other hand, if Andy Warhol were alive today, I think he'd love emoji. I'm sure the Warhol Museum (a treasure of Pittsburgh, PA) would have an installation dedicated to them.
9) Glenna Hartman / Pat Seftel (tie)
This week Hartman brings us the story of a working Mom. I'm setting this up to make it sound like the heartwarming twist is that the neighbors help out this Mom in her hour of need. Instead, the twist is that the Mom is in her 70s and her son makes a film about her trials and tribulations after being let go from her job in the doc Duty Free. I get the title, but find it a little misleading.
Josh Seftel is filmaker that has been putting zoom calls with his Mom, Pat, on Sunday Morning throughout the pandemic. I just linked to the Seinfeld duty free bit and Josh's family is another manifestation of the Seinfeldian cliché of living in New York while your parents live in Florida. They're all vaccinated now, so he's going to Florida to see his mother soon. Please get vaccinated people. Go see your parents. If you get lost on the way, be sure your car has the Northstar system.
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