Why Will This Man Get Counseling?

I don't even know who he is, but it's been reported that he's going to get counseling.

Why?

Because his "reality" TV show has been canceled.

Awwwww.

"Utopia" was going to go on for a full year, during which these people were supposed to create their own society. This article pretty much explains why, and also reveals that the show's host, for some reason, was the cartoonist Dan Piraro, of "Bizarro" fame. But no one was interested, so it's been canceled, and this was my favorite part of the story in that first link above:

The show’s online live feeds will also shut down later today, though it’s highly unlikely they will show the cast being informed of the show’s cancellation.

Awwwwwwwwwww.

The cast is expected to receive post-production counseling before being returned to their regular lives.

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

A Fox-"Bones"-Romney Conspiracy Theory

I present to you a still image from Monday night's episode of "Bones." Here we see a map on a screen at the Jeffersonian, the fictional institution where all the forensic evidence in the murder cases on the show is analyzed. This map displays an area from which came some of that evidence, based on...well, a bunch of scientific jargon that I usually can hardly keep up with. No big deal, right? But when I watched it, a name on the map caught my eye. In fact, it jumped out at me immediately. So I paused the DVR and took two pictures. Look closely...

If you can't tell what I'm talking about, here's a closeup...

WTF, you ask? Why is Mitt Romney's name on screen? Is it a devious form of subliminal advertising by Fox, or by the show's producers, or a conspiracy planned by both?

Well, I did a Google search and found that the map is of an actual town -- Romney, West Virginia, not all that far from Washington, where the show is based. Still, I can't help but wonder. Can it really be a coincidence that the map used in an episode airing a month before the election is of a town that shares the same name as the GOP candidate for President?

Wait -- on the other hand, we all know that Hollywood is dominated by liberals. So maybe another plot was devised. Maybe the producers threw his name on screen just to rile up the Romney opposition -- maybe Barack Obama even gave them the idea!

What do you think? Should we demand an investigation by the Senate or something?

Sigh

WTF?

I can't bring myself to say more yet. I just want to throw up...

September 11

I'm not going to say much about the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that claimed so many lives. There are many places for you to get every bit of commemoration, analysis, hyperbole, patriotic overkill (I"m looking at you, NFL and Fox), etc. While our nation was briefly united like it hadn't been in a long time, the feeling didn't last and so much has happened since and it's gotten much, much worse. So I'm avoiding as much of the 9/11 anniversary coverage as I can because, even if it's by accident, much of it will be tinged with politics. But I wanted to share some pictures. (Quick note: these are 10 old scans done back then by a friend, which is why they're so small. I may try and find the pictures and re-scan them and any others I took at the time.) I put them in a Flickr set.

A month after the attacks, on Columbus Day weekend, I went to New York. Since Mayor Giuliani asked people to visit and spend money, I heeded the call. That Sunday I watched NFL games at a sports bar with some friends (as it happened, the USA began the war against Afghanistan that day). Earlier that day, I was one of many pathetic gawkers people trying to get as close as allowed to the World Trade Center site. I also took a few pictures of the skyline from the Empire State Building. It's an amazing view. I wish I had gotten to see the view from the Twin Towers while they stood. There's one picture of "The Wall of Hope and Remembrance" outside the now-closed St. Vincent's Hospital, one of the American flags at Rockefeller Plaza, and these two, taken at the West Village firehouse of Squad 18 of the Fire Department of New York. (At the time the firehouse was undergoing renovations so it was closed and the squad operated out of another firehouse.)

The sight of this memorial itself was moving, but when I saw this toy figure left there, perhaps by a child, you can imagine my reaction...

But let's end this on a happier note. In July 2010 Squad 18 went Gaga!

Tonight's Glee: "Never Been Kissed"

The last time I wrote about "Glee" I was concerned with the regular bullying of the glee kids, and Kurt (the always adorable Chris Colfer) in particular, in light of all of the terrible suicides of kids who were victims of bullies. (And despite lots of publicity for the It Gets Better Project and other resources, it's still going on.) So I took notice when, during "The Simpsons" on Sunday, Fox ran a promo for tonight's "Glee" that was much more intense than their usual ads:



My big complaint was that no authority figures in the school ever take any action against these bullies, so this promo was especially of interest. Although by the time I post this it'll have aired on the West Coast, just in case you're recording it or plan to watch online, consider this a SPOILER ALERT. The discussion continues (plus there's a pretty picture) after the jump.

Random Stuff: B-52's, MLB on Fox, McNabb

Just covering a few things at once...

• My ears are still ringing some from last night's B-52's concert. Between their show and the opening act, a Philly band named Gang, the music was really loud. When I blogged about my trip to the box office to pick up the ticket, I had a comment saying the B-52's were now "a tired act." I can understand that a little, since the commenter had seen them perform here in 1979 and 1980. They do look a little older, a little heavier (well, not Keith Strickland -- he looks yummy), but I thought it was a great show and the crowd seemed to agree. I took some video but the sound quality is pretty bad because it was so loud and the camcorder in my cell phone isn't that special, so I don't think I'll bother posting it. (Plus a couple of them are sideways because I held the phone sideways. I have to remember to slide out the keyboard first if I want a wider view.)

• On the final weekend of the baseball regular season, Fox is again showing the less meaningful Yankees-Red Sox game instead of the crucial Giants-Padres matchup. The Padres need to win to stay alive for both the NL West and NL Wild Card. The Giants are trying to clinch the NL West, and at the same time hurt San Diego's chances of catching the Braves for the Wild Card. (If current results -- Padres leading, Braves losing to the Phillies -- hold, tomorrow will be a heck of a day for clinchers and there could even be a one-game playoff on Monday.)
  
  Oddly enough, though the Phillies are also playing at the same time, they're showing the Phils on Comcast Sportsnet. I think they're on Fox as well in parts of the country. Usually if the Phils are one of the Fox games, Fox shows the game locally. It's hard to believe that Fox isn't blacking out a local Phils telecast, and that they're showing us the stupid New York-Boston crap instead of the game that directly affects the Phillies -- the Giants-Padres will help determine the Phils' first playoff opponent. They'd get more people here switching back and forth between Fox and Comcast if Fox were showing the Giants-Padres here.

• I've avoided all of the national sports outlets this week because, not unexpectedly, they're too busy taking potshots at Philadelphia and at Eagles fans. After all, Donovan McNabb returns to the Linc tomorrow for the first time as a Washington Redskin. Between McNabb, drama queen/martyr that he is, and his suck-ups in the national media, there's really no reason to watch ESPN or NFL Network or visit any of the national sports websites. There's no actual journalism there this week as it relates to the Eagles, only misinformation, outright bias and lazy (blah blah blah Santa Claus 40 years ago blah blah blah) writing. Of course, it's not exactly fun listening to WIP either, with the callers and hosts pushing their own agendas re: McNabb. So, many heartfelt thanks to the Phillies for giving me another playoff run to keep my mind off the Eagles/McNabb melodrama.

The X Factor: "Best Friends"

Simon Cowell is bringing "The X Factor" to the USA in 2011 to hopefully vanquish American Idol. (Okay, both shows will be on Fox so they can't air at the same time, but if X Factor turns out to be more popular...) Here's a video of two girls who talk about how close they are, but wait until the end of the audition...



I like the idea of auditions occurring in front of an audience, especially if they're really bad.