Better than that Train Wreck

It's official. Seattle's own Gary Busey imposter Jeff Swanson, is still in better shape— and a helluva lot more sane— than the actual Hollywood star, now frightening audiences on Celebrity Rehab.

Topics: TV

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MSNBC Gets Its Freak On

Following the success of his original story that explored ways in which high schools are cracking down on less modest forms of dancing, SW's own Huan Hsu has made the leap to cable news. Click here to see Huan Hsu—now an official "freak dancing expert"—offer his take on the entire matter, including the 45 degree rule, on MSNBC.

Also of note is that when I first landed upon the link via MSN Video's "Most Watched" clips, it was #6—more popular than both the clip of Rosie O'Donnell and colleague Elisabeth Hasselbeck sparring on "The View" and the clip of a security tape in which a woman on a motorized scooter snatched another old lady's purse. Congratulations, Mr. Hsu!

Update: Sadly, I've since been told that the above link is dead! This one, or Googling Huan Hsu and MSNBC, might work.

Topics: TV

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Three and Out

I love Friday Night Lights. I love it. There isn’t much must-see TV on my list, but I almost never miss FNL. If I do, I make sure to catch it online the next day. And since NBC has the entire season available for free , I’ve been running through the first episodes again, which are a pleasingly different experience given the context they now have. Even better for FNL fans, it now looks like we’ll get at least part of a second season of FNL.

Last night’s season finale was downright chill-inducing, and brought the first year to a satisfying close. If you haven’t yet seen FNL, or think it’s just a dumb show about football, I implore you to give the pilot a shot (even I gave the O.C. a chance before I decided it stunk). But since I seem to have acquired a newfound reputation as a contrarian, I’ll play the part a little: it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if NBC decided not to renew FNL.

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Topics: TV

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Must See HDTV

These days, you can buy a big-ass flat panel HDTV for under a grand, but if you still need an excuse to drop the money, I give you Discovery Channel's "Planet Earth" series, airing Sundays at 8 p.m. It's been compared to Jacques Perrin's "Winged Migration," which is apt in terms of their cinematography, but the comparision doesn't do justice to "Planet Earth's" grandiosity and sheer visual awesomeness. I watched the first episode last night, and while it's not perfect (the narration is pedestrian; the film sacrifices depth in favor of breadth—we're talking the entire planet Earth, after all; and the directors are a little too quick to toot their own horns), I was transfixed for two straight hours (the infrequent commercials also helped). It would take me thousands upon thousands of words to try and describe some of the scenes, but just about every shot was amazing, and I was left with a sense of wonder, marvelling at the fact that I actually inhabit the same world depicted on television. Anyway, I can't imagine watching "Planet Earth" without high-def, but it doesn't mean you should skip it if you've got regular TV.

Topics: Environment and TV

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ESPN Fires Harold Reynolds

The New York Post is reporting that ESPN has fired former Seattle Mariner Harold Reynolds (pictured) from Baseball Tonight, and no one is saying why.

Dave Cameron over at the USS Mariner blog speculates that if it turns out not to be for scandalous reasons, the Mariners might want to hire Reynolds to shore up their broadcast-booth bench. Reynolds was with the Mariners for almost his entire career and played second base.

Topics: Sports and TV

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Bonnie Jean

The Washington Post has a story today about how it's actually hard to find a good male local-news anchor candidate these these days—that women are ruling the chair. This, of course, is quite a change from 34 years ago, when Jean Enersen (pictured) became the first woman to anchor a local evening newscast, at KING-TV (5). The Post has a sidebar about that era and cites Enersen's breakthrough.

Topics: Media and TV

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What the Fiti?

I wandered into the venerable, all-hours Hurricane Cafe at about 9 this morning to attempt to do what only a heaping plate of Hurricane hashbrowns can do: squelch a murderous goddamnhangover. For those of you who've ascertained from this blog that I have something of an affinity for hooch (last night's poison: Tuaca, Kentucky Bourbon, Tequila, Rainier, and Busch), a gold star. Moreover, I generally loathe technological advances that impede chance human interaction and real-time, face-to-face dialogue. So just where do Hurricane hashbrowns, my affinity for hooch, and new technology come to a crossroads?

Wiffiti, ma'am.

The Hurricane, you see, is the guinea pig for what could well become the next megafad in the handheld communication realm. In short, it's like text messaging meets karaoke meets Jean-Michel Basquiat. Behind the breakfast bar at the Hurricane, in front of an old man with a straw cowboy hat nursing a good-morning Budweiser and hot dog, was a mysterious plasma screen with multiple, frequently updated messages in variously-sized fonts like "my ostrich had a current affair with Ali," "the bonesmith haunts my dreams and Chula Vista," "Nose-pierced fox in booth four: Tu eres en fuego" and "Tito loves Cory, but only if she drops 24 lbs." Stuff like that—mostly gobbledygook. The messages are specific to Hurricane patrons and those who've got the screen's access code plugged into their cellies and handhelds. Theoretically, if one thought the guy with the frosted tips and Abercrombie abs two booths down was shagworthy, one could say so on the Wiffiti screen (tastefully, mind you—the messages are moderated/edited for naughty lingo).

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Topics: Business, Media, TV, and Web/Blogging

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KOMO-TV's New Sibling

Seattle-based and closely held Fisher Communications (KOMO-TV, KOMO-AM, KVI-AM, KPLZ-FM, plus nine TV stations elsewhere) is buying KWOG-TV (51) in Bellevue for $16 million and converting it to a Spanish-language Univision affiliate. KWOG presently carries ShopNBC and is owned by African-American Broadcasting of SeaTac.

Topics: Business and TV

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