Affion Crockett, Great Example of Online Branding/Marketing
Comments Off Who is Affion Crockett?
Before this video I thought he was just a funny guy on Wild’n Out. I now know he is also a musician, oskamill, and was recently in the movie Dance Flick. Affion is using the internet to show off his versatility as an entertainer. Best of all, he is slowly eliminating the middle man (studios). He has over 47,000 subscribers on youtube (his latest video has about a million views as of now), over 7000 friends on myspace, about 7000 followers on twitter, and has 5000 friends on facebook ( i couldn’t find a real fan page). He has a, almost instant, connection to about 70,000 fans. Fans who will most likely share, retweet and email anything he puts in his feeds.
Heroes Tonight!…nah not the bar…
1 Comment It’s a new show on NBC…In my opinion, the only show on NBC.
I am running short on time…
Watch it! I will make myself available for your Disdain If I have steered you wrong on this…but my m oney is on this being good. The JApanese character’s name is Hiro! HIRO! It’s genius!
BTW Ben told me over the weekend that the first episode was downloadable before it was aired on the itunes…it was a dirty hoax and part of an apple plot to get me to sully my lucious PC with their software. The episode will apparently be available for download after it airs.
Firefly and Serenity Documentary
Comments Off Done the Impossible is the title of a documentary about how my favorite canceled show (Firefly) turned into a movie… Free download!
BitTorrent Link: http://www.legaltorrents.com/bit/done-the-impossible.torrent
Teachers
Comments Off I just finished watching the premiere of Teachers on NBC. I’ve read a review that speaks truth about the shows lack of creativity.
Aside from mediocrity in creativity and writing, there was good chemistry between the stars; their timings were excellent; I think it’s going to save the show, if the show is to be saved. And although it’s nice to see Sarah Alexander in something, I do miss seeing new episodes of Coupling; I’d rather have a new Coupling series.
PS – I laughed at all the stupid predictable jokes regardless. Is there something wrong with me? Probably not, we all need to turn off our brains at some time or another.
Yellow’s Anatomy
Comments Off I confess, I actually like watching Grey’s Anatomy [1] [2]. The show has the winning combination of writing (dialog and character development), acting, and being on after a highly watched tv show (I don’t watch that other show, but it helps with the ratings). Grey’s Anatomy really is a surprisingly good show.
The one thing I’ve noticed about the show is that it has an Asian flavor, while not really being an Asian Show; Sandra Oh (Sideways, 2004) plays a strong Asian main character; many guest roles are given to Asians; some stories deal with some Asian ideas. Being Chinese myself, I think that it’s a probably a good thing to have a show such as this to get away from the old Asian stereotypes in TV and movies.
And it was a pleasant surprise to see my friend’s wife, Natalie N. Okamoto, appear as the World Champion Eater on last night’s episode. She didn’t have a big part and only a few lines, but she did get face time; as opposed to her super duper small uncredited voice part on The Day After Tomorrow.
I wonder if all this is the continuation of a Asian trend, or if this show’s just a fluke. Either way, I’m hooked on Ellen Pompeo, Katherine Heigl (congrats on a landing this role, as opposed to that crappy Roswell tv show), and Sandra Oh’s performance on this show.
For The Last Time…Entertainment is Neither New Nor Evil!
1 Comment So I’m a fan of the Kotaku and while perusing the site recently I saw this thread.
It’s bad enough to have all the politicians and reactionaries, calling Television or video games dangerous…but now it’s gamers doing it! I understand limits for children, and I don’t merely love the idea, I am in fact In Love with the idea. I just want to make a few points about some arguments for those limits that I disagree with.
I understand that many people believe that Television/Video games “Rot your brain”(I don’t even like typing it), and many people also believe that gaming and television hamper a child’s social abilities. I do not intend to demean or belittle either these beliefs, or the people who hold these beliefs. What I intend to do is give some food for thought to those that might not recognize a few real benefits of being well versed in modern entertainment. I assure you the situation and results of media consumption are not as simple as Black and White.
I would like to start off with the “Television will Rot your Brain” outlook on Entertainment. I am probably simplifying this outlook some due to lack of understanding and time/space constraints, for this I apologize, once again I do not mean to attack…merely to bring to light a contrary possibility.
Now entertainment has existed for as long as humanity…and most of it is far from new…Television is mostly a digital version of ages old morality plays and news reports. Have you ever noticed how being gathered around a television would be similar to being gathered around a glowing fire listening to an elder spinning mythical tales or retelling the events of a hunt? Seriously folks…it’s not that new, it is less interactive and personalized…but that in and of itself is not bad and I will argue later as a bonus.
Now Video games are essentially an amalgam of T.V. and just straight up Play. The T.V. brings the visuals…which it took from plays, ballet opera or any other visual performed art, and combines it with action, and interactivity of say, tag or catch. The themes and gameplay used in modern video games tend to be addictive because they are built on an ancient tradition of crafting rich entertainment. God of War’s respectable story was obviously enriched and inspired by Greek Mythology…so does reading it in a book make it any more valuable, worthy, or enriching than seeing it on a screen? How is analog more wholesome than digital when it comes to entertainment?
If the argument is that entertainment makes humanity, and specifically children lazy…then the “Rot your Brain” line is an improper phrase and “Rot your body” is more appropriate…and I believe a much stronger argument…though I believe the comfortable sedentary lives most of us lead are much more powerful tools in making us lazy than Entertainment alone.
If the argument is that Games/TV make humanity or children less thoughtful or creative…well that is in my opinion “poppycock”. Studies have shown that gamers have better reaction times, are better problem solvers, and are better at tasks involving “Spatial relations” than non gamers…now about creativity. There is a funny thing about creativity…most people think of the act of creation(I mean imaginative not religious) as being revolutionary and not evolutionary. Any literature student can tell you this is not the case, old mythologies were used as the basis for new ones, all the way up to the present day. From George Lucas to Stan Lee, modern storytellers are admittedly inspired by the old, each new iteration adding it’s twist, Romeo and Juliet becomes West Side Story becomes Grease, and Norse mythology’s Volsung Saga becomes The lord of the Rings, becomes D&D the game becomes D&D the movie. So yes some times good things get ruined but the cost of inspiration is the acceptance of imitation.
BTW the fact that we have phrases like “Art imitating Life” and “Write what you know” in our cultural lexicon does not give much weight to the “Eureka” instant moment of solitary creativity belief either.
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Now on to my argument against the damaging social skills aspect and the argument that the non-interactivity of TV is actually healthy for society…I know it sounds preposterous, but please hear me out. Have you ever been in conversation with a stranger feeling awkward and clumsy until one of you said “Duck Tales” and without missing a beat the other filled in the “woo-hoo”? Well probably not that exact scenario but most of us have had a moment when we were instantly able to share a connection with a stranger over some shared childhood or entertainment or even modern entertainment.
Now you might be thinking “So What? What does is matter if we watched the same show as kids?” Well it matters a lot, shared or similar experiences create powerful bonds, and since these shows were not interactive, we all had the same experiences. Have you ever been traveling abroad and met someone from your home town? or even state? It creates a true and meaningful bond…the bond may be shallow, but even the Grand Canyon was shallow once, you have to start somewhere.
Sharing bonds and culture–Even Pop Culture–with each other is what makes us a society. The funny thing is as we assimilate more and more entertainment from other cultures(Anime, Foreign Films, Monty Python), we will have more and more in common with the cultures that created the entertainment, and more understanding of the culture and their society.
Through these unintentional cultural exchanges the entire world will begin to gain understanding of and bonds with each other. Yeah I just said that Popular Culture could lead to world peace…and I refuse to un-say it.
BTW just another tidbit for the entertainment haters out there.
Researchers find that people serving time for violent crimes typically consume less media before committing their crimes than the average person in the general population.
Simpsons Neologisms
2 Comments Apparently someone created a Wikipedia page that lists made-up words found in The Simpsons. Cool.
Cancelled
3 Comments Well my television watching woes continue. ABC cancelled Night Stalker after only airing six episodes. That is not really a big deal but the fact that the last episode was the first part in a two parter is a real killer. Now that one other guy and myself watching the series will never know what happens to the photographer kid as the shotgun wielding motorcycle ridding killers find him in the back of the Korean convenience store. Oh well, at least ABC hasn’t cancelled Freddie yet.
Top Five: “TV Rapist/Molester Personalities Of All Time”
4 Comments Have you ever pondered about how unusual characters on some of your favorite television shows were. By unusual, I mean rapist/molester types. I complied a list of top 5 in no particular order. Before you start reading let me apologize. If you do not find the below funny, I am truly sorry that you do not have a good sense of humor.
Just The Ten Of Us: Coach Graham T. Lubbock
“Im just more man to love baby…just more man..now rub my head”
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Where do I start? Let us start where most guys would, his hot daughters. They weren’t just hot but “coach†had them attending boys’ catholic high school. Why didn’t he just come out and say, “Hey you know, I want that highschool to masturbate with my girls in mind.†He was fat and bald; I feel that is an important point. He was catholic and hung out with Father Frank Hargis all the time. Enough said. If you are catholic and find that offensive, please complain to your church. It would not be funny if it wasn’t true.
Adam’s Family: Uncle Fester
“Come on kid…put a light bulb in my mouth”
- Uncle Fester had rapist written all over him. The weird coat and mysterious sleeping hours was just the tip of the ice berg. He would always have his “special” rooms and what not. If you saw Uncle Fester in an alley, if you heard that voice of his backed with those strange eyes, would you run? To top it off the writers used the light bulb lit in the mouth bit. Let me break down the subliminal messaging in that. We all know that a lit light bulb is the universal sign of a good idea. Fester would open his mouth (really wide) and stick the bulb inside. Suddenly, it would light up. No wonder those two kids were so messed up.
Mr. Belvedere : Mr. Belvedere
Shine your “shoes” governor?
- He was an over weight British housekeeper who looked like he good throw his weight around. I suspect that he did a little extra when he tucked Wesley in. Every time he made that angry face I felt bad for young Wesley. Plus, he always had that suspicious moustache. No wonder Wesley ended up becoming the lead singer in Marlyin Manson. Oh wait that wasnt true? Or was it…
Boy Meets World: George Hamilton Feeny
“Corey you have detention…now take off your pants and hug your best friend shawn”
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They should have called the show “Boy Meets a World of Trouble.” Note, the suspicous moustache here also. Feeny was the principal and neighbor to Corey Matthews, a young lad in the wilds of his youth. I always found it strange that Feeny happened to be in his backyard when Corey was outside. How he just happened to be the substitute in all of Corey’s classes. Not to mention the detentions, I wonder how Corey was punished when the cameras were off. However, I think the real problem lies a bit deeper. Feeny was the original voice of “Kit†from the famous TV show Knight Rider. Who did Kit talk to all the time, David Hasselhoff. David happened to be the old creepy guy on Bay Watch. I wonder what Kit and David talked about when they were riding around for young girls. What is worse, the fact that I analyzed this or that I actually have seen episodes of Bay Watch?
Gilligan’s Island: The Skipper
“Hey little buddy, first mate of mine. You think we both could fit in that hammock?”
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Obvious choice. It is just like the crazy guys in prison. We all know that the professor was hitting up Ginger and Mary Ann. Well maybe Ginger was trying to get with money bags Howell, she did seem like the gold digging type. None the less, they weren’t going to give it up to the Skipper. The man can only take so much. Gilligan was so weak and fragile. I bet Skipper gave it to him every time Gilligan foiled one of the rescue attempts. I can imagine Skipper laying in his hammock just staring up and Gilligan in his. However, I will have to say the blame has to go to Ginger and Mary Ann . They should have rationed themselves out or something. They would prance around in those cute little outfits. Now I am not saying I condone such behavior, but I can understand. A man has his needs. Wow, I sound like a rapist.
You missed one
2 Comments I have being watching The Incredible Hulk since May as it is run during the daily rotation on The SciFi Channel. I only started watching because (A) The Incredible Hulk was a favorite of mine when I was a kid and (B) because I knew that SciFi was showing every episode in order. Well they missed one and now my plans are in ruins. I am sure that SciFi will eventually show the missing episode but it probably will not be until next summer. I have work so hard watching all the other episodes that not seeing one is a failure.