[Stefan S]

The Sundance Channel is showing a series of an hour long programs they call "Spectacle." It's in part a talk-show and in part a concert in fron of teh live audience in the fameous Appolo Theatre in Harlem, NY.

Usually, Elvis Costello is the master of ceremony and his guests included, so far, Herbie Hanckock, Smokie Robinson, Bill Clinton (the President), Tonny Bennett, Jacob Dylan, Kris Kritopherson, Nora Jones, Diana Krall (intervied by Elton John, most likely, I guess, because Krall and Elvis are married) and many others. The usual format involves an introduction, a song by Costello with his band (sometimes they do a cover but usually they play Costello's music), an extended interview with an invited artist or artists, and several musical pieces that feature the invited guest frequently in duet with Costello.

Elvis is a brilliant interviewer, alwas putting a spotlight on his guests. Today they are going to show again the program with Herbie Hanckock, which is among my favorites. (The other one I like the most featured Smokey Robinson.) It includes plenty of great jazz, ranging from straight-ahead to some fuzzion, and lots of interesting insights coming from both HH and EC. Herbie, in particular, tells some very interesting anecdotes about jazz giants like Miles Davis, Tony William, Donald Byrd, and others. I already new many of these stories from several jazz bios I read. But it was great to hear them from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Plus, the music was really good, including even the fusion part. Its' 5 stars in my book.

[Lou Stefanic]

I DVR that show and often find myself watching repeats again and again. I don't think Costello is a great interviewer by any means, but he has so much enthusiasm for his subjects. It's a great show.

Strangely, I have not seen the episode with Krall. Is Costello in that episode too, or is it just Elton John and Krall? Costello's "North" is pretty much an album about her, so it'd be pretty interesting to see him perform something from the album with her in the room.

[Stefan S]

It was Elton John interviewing Krall, and Costello had no seeming involvement in that show. Also, I did not think that Elton is nearly as good as Costello as an interviewer.

I think I like his (i.e., Costello's) interviews quite a bit more than you, Lou. Essentially, he really keeps the spotlight on his guests and let them talk. But, also, he is able to stear the conversation towards some really interesting aspects of music, human relationships, and so on. I think it's great.

[Money23]

But I know what Lou means, because Elvis seems raw and real, not like someone who's been doing that type of thing for a long time. GREAT show, one of the best of it's kind around right now.

I also love The Directors. Not sure if they still make new ones, but they're on quite a bit on the Reelz Channel. Informative and well made docs.

[DTH]

I wasn't happy with Joan Rivers winning Celebrity Apprentice. I thought Annie Duke should have won.

BTW it was nice of Dennis Rodman to mention Chuck Daly on the live show last night.

[TJPiston]

What'd he say DTH?

The two shows I follow currently are 24 and Entourage.

There are others I'd like to get into: The Wire,etc.

Most of my favorite shows are from the late 80s/90s though.

I still miss shows like Perfect Strangers!

[DTH]

Trump asked Rodman how he was doing. He said good, but he had just lost a close friend. He said some nice words about Chuck. Said Chuck was like a father to him. It looked like he would have got emotional if he went on any longer.

Most of my favorite shows are from the late 80s/90s though.

Have you checked out Hulu.com. They have a lot of shows from the 80-90's.

[TJPiston]

Thanks for the tip, DTH.

Yeah, I've been on Hulu here and there. Great site.

[GC_STONES]

I've been following the Fringe's first season, the finale is tonight, should be a good one if you're into that stuff (a hybrid X-files/CSI with some JJ Abrams touch of Lost)

[THE PISTONS]

I like Entourage, The Ultimate Fighter, Deadliest Warrior on Spike is cool.

On the History Channel I like Axe Men and Ice Road Truckers.

[DTH]

I like a lot of those man soap operas like Axe Men, Out of the Wild Alaska, Lock up abroad, etc.

I like that Jimmy guy on Axe men. He makes money from logs he finds floating in the river. I read a story that he got busted for taking those logs. According to the state those logs belong to them.

Aqua Logger In Hot Water | KIMA CBS 29 - News, Weather and Sports - Yakima, WA - Yakima, Washington 29 | Local & Regional

[Stefan S]

Also on the History Channel (or one of them), "Warriors."

The premise is to introduce ancient and medieval warrior cultures. The guy who puts it together is an ex green beret. He travels to various places all over the world to investigate their sometimes ancient military history. Usually he finds there some contemporary geeks who train using the old methods and weapons. They introduce him to the training of their ancient warriors, kinds of weapons they used and how to use them, strategy and tactics, and all the rest. Some of the episodes dealt with the Vikings, the Spartan (Greek) hoplites, natives from Hawaii, some warrior cultures from Latin America (the Incas, if I remember correctly), and so on.

[pif]

I never got into X-Files, but I love Fringe.

[GC_STONES]

Originally Posted by pif

I never got into X-Files, but I love Fringe.

Did you catch the Fringe finale last night, Pif?

Not going to spoil it.

[Lou Stefanic]

There was nice little bit in Fringe there for basketball fans at the end. I won't spoil it, but it was a nice touch.

On another topic, I freaking love Lost. I cannot get enough of that show.

[pif]

I saw it and enjoyed it. Great show!

[Money23]

Awesome episode of The Office last night.

[DTH]

On another topic, I freaking love Lost. I cannot get enough of that show.

So who/or what do you think Jacob is?

[DTH]

Originally Posted by Money23

Awesome episode of The Office last night.

Office was good this year. I thought Russell 'Stringer' Bell from the Wire played a good part. I liked the soccer episode.

[Lou Stefanic]

Originally Posted by DTH

On another topic, I freaking love Lost. I cannot get enough of that show.

So who/or what do you think Jacob is?

Well, he would appear to be some type of ancient Egyptian god, or at least something that the Ancient Egyptians worshipped. I suppose there's a chance that he's the biblical Jacob and that the other guy who wanted to kill him could be his brother, Esau.

And then again, I would note that the episode started out with Jacob slicing and cooking a red herring on that rock. So that could very well mean that he's not what he seems.

[DTH]

Yeah, it's tough to tell where they are going with this. I was thinking he might be an alien from space that got stranded on Earth. Hence the name "Lost".

[Money23]

Originally Posted by DTH

Office was good this year. I thought Russell 'Stringer' Bell from the Wire played a good part. I liked the soccer episode.

The whole thing with Charles and Michael was great. Michael starting his own company, hilarious stuff.

[Dave Bing]

Great 30 Rock this week. Kidney Now!

[Money23]

LOL, yes that was awesome.

[GC_STONES]

Originally Posted by Lou Stefanic

Well, he would appear to be some type of ancient Egyptian god, or at least something that the Ancient Egyptians worshipped. I suppose there's a chance that he's the biblical Jacob and that the other guy who wanted to kill him could be his brother, Esau.

And then again, I would note that the episode started out with Jacob slicing and cooking a red herring on that rock. So that could very well mean that he's not what he seems.

Didn't catch that red herring; I've been meaning to watch that beginning part again

[Money23]

Caught an episode of Chris Isaak's show the other day. Yusuf Islam was the guest so that was automatically intriguing. Isaak is an enthusiastic host, sometimes a little overbearing, but I think mostly he was just excited to have Yusuf on his show. Yusuf played some tunes; that was cool. I think one of Ricky Nelson's sons was playing guitar with him, which is kinda weird.

[Dave Bing]

Jimmy Kimmel Demolishes ABC’s Upfronts
By Dave Itzkoff

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

Jimmy Kimmel, for the time being the host of ABC’s late night series “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”If Jimmy Kimmel still has a job at ABC on Wednesday, he is either a very lucky or very deft comedian, or he has great blackmail photos of the network executives.

At Tuesday afternoon’s upfront presentation in New York, Mr. Kimmel, the host of ABC’s late night talk show “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” delivered a withering, blistering monologue that took direct aim at ABC, its potential advertisers and his NBC late-night rival, Jay Leno. The assembled advertisers received his performance with a mixture of uneasy laughs and the occasional gasp.

Bouncing onto the stage at just after 4 p.m., Mr. Kimmel self-deprecatingly declared, “All of ABC’s late night comedy talent is assembled here on one stage.” After rattling off a few statistics about the affluence of his viewers, he then admitted that he’d made all the numbers up. (He said so in a more obscene way.)

Then, in a “Jerry Maguire”-like moment of clarity, Mr. Kimmel said, “Everything you’re going to hear this week is” nonsense. “Let’s get real here. Let’s get Dr. Phil-real here. These new fall shows? We’re going to cancel about 90 percent of them. Maybe more.”

If ABC is so confident in its new fall shows, he asked, why is it announcing them at the same time it announces the midseason shows that will replace those fall shows? “This show ‘Shark Tank’ has the word tank right in the title,” he said.

To the ABC advertisers, Mr. Kimmel said, “Every year we lie to you and every year you come back for more. You don’t need an upfront. You need therapy. We completely lie to you, and then you pass those lies onto your clients.”

Mr. Kimmel then took a verbal swing at his own network, reminding the audience that ABC had attempted to hire away Mr. Leno when his tenure ended at NBC’s “Tonight Show.” But, according Mr. Kimmel, NBC said it would not give up Mr. Leno, “even if we have to destroy our own network to keep him.”

By devoting its entire 10 p.m. lineup, Monday through Friday, to Mr. Leno, Mr. Kimmel said NBC is “giving Jay’s viewers exactly what they want. An early-bird special.”

By deciding on their fall schedule in April, Mr. Kimmel said, “NBC got such a head start, they’ve already had time to cancel half their schedule.”

Mr. Kimmel also aimed a couple of zingers at Fox. That network’s action series “24,” he said, was “a head butt away from cancellation.” Next season, he said, Jack Bauer would have a new sidekick “played by Kiefer Sutherland’s probation officer.”

Returning to ABC’s advertisers, Mr. Kimmel said, “Next year on ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ your product could kill Dr. Izzie. It just depends on how much you want to pay.”

In closing, Mr. Kimmel said, “I think all our shows are going to work this year. I really do.” He paused. “I don’t, really.”

Before departing the stage, he said: “The important thing to remember is: who cares, it’s not your money.”

[JMab]

Originally Posted by DTH

On another topic, I freaking love Lost. I cannot get enough of that show.

So who/or what do you think Jacob is?

The black rock of the island has special properties that can be manipulated by humans with psychic powers. Jacob was a kid with psychic abilities who was brought to the island by the scientific group who preceded Dharma. He died on the island but had his consciousness absorbed by the black rock. Jacob uses castaway's memories and the black rock to appear as people from their past. He also manipulates dust of the black rock as the "Black Smoke Monster", who protects the island.

Just my guess

[King Mob]

There isn't an actual black rock on the island though, is there? That was just the name of the frigate or whatever that ran aground there.

[El Axe]

Originally Posted by Dave Bing

Jimmy Kimmel Demolishes ABC’s Upfronts
By Dave Itzkoff
<snip>

Is he trying to commit career suicide?

[Whisper]

He probably should have just posted his thoughts in The Drunk Tread and called it a night. He could login as "your name there".

[Money23]

Lmao...!

[tin mad dog]

Sorry Money, "My Name is Earl" has been cancelled. I haven't watched this season but it seemed like it was starting to lose it's steam.

[Orwellian O.]

The finale of "24" sucked. A bad end for what had been a generally great season.

[JMab]

Originally Posted by King Mob

There isn't an actual black rock on the island though, is there? That was just the name of the frigate or whatever that ran aground there.

The name of the ship was a clue - the ship was drawn to the island by the magnetic properties of the black rock of the island.

Bah, who am I kidding. That explanation is surely just as bogus as all the other theories.

[Orwellian O.]

Just watched "House"....it finale was awesome...

[Money23]

Originally Posted by tin mad dog

Sorry Money, "My Name is Earl" has been cancelled. I haven't watched this season but it seemed like it was starting to lose it's steam.

Yeah, I heard about that. Very surprising. I think they were different than pretty much any other sitcom, and they never fell into and stayed with the absolute same gimmick as the first season. The writers were talented at finding new ways to integrate Earl's experiences and not just relying on "the list".

It was good all the way to the final episode. Which was a huge cliffhanger, BTW. Would be a weird yet somehow fitting way to end the series.

[tin mad dog]

I've been working Thursday nights and have missed most of this season so I'll have to catch up on it.

[TJPiston]

Originally Posted by Orwellian O.

The finale of "24" sucked. A bad end for what had been a generally great season.

Agreed. I was suprised athow they ended the season. It was a huge rebound over last season but finale could hav been better.

[Lou Stefanic]

While I welcome the message of 24 -- that in times of crisis, we need great patriots making the hard decisions -- I completely agree that the show needs better, smarter plotting at this point.

You can see that there is a strong push (probably from network executives) to make the show as episodic as possible, so people who haven't watched all of the episodes can tune in and understand what's going on. The plot suffers as a result, and in retrospect, it's kind of easy to go back and point out the plot holes, some of them laughable. If next season is truly the final season, I hope that they'll go for broke and take some real chances with the storytelling, give us a truly complicated thriller, and do away with some of the cliches.

And then, maybe better yet, give us some Jack Bauer movies.

[DTH]

Will Ferrell on Man Vs. Wild. June 2nd premiere.

[Money23]

Heard that TBS or Fox may pick up Earl.

[tin mad dog]

Cool. I don't really get what NBC is thinking. Even if it's not as good as it was (which I'm not sure is the case) it's still probably better than whatever they are going to replace it with.
Is this fallout from the Leno early night show? I hope not. I've never been a big Leno fan.

[Money23]

Yeah, same here.

[The Guy]

Leno's a tool.

[TJPiston]

Leno's a good dude.

I've enjoyed his show.

He has a lot of critics yet has dominated the ratings game for more than a decade.

[Hobbs]

Burn Notice season 3 starts tonight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8TJoY0DsGE

[DTH]

I like Burn Notice. I started watching it during season 2. Last seasons finale was good.

[Stefan S]

I agree, it has a right mixture of irreverance and action. Plus, the main character is super charming. The firts episode of the new season was pretty good, too.

[Stefan S]

A few days ago, IFC (if I remember correctly) had a mini festival of several classic movies by Ingmar Bergman. Some of his stuff is really hard to watch, it requires lots of concentration, and the plot develops in a snail pace.

"The Seventh Seal" is one of my favorite movies of all time. It includes a mesmerizing image of the knight returning from the Crusaides to the continent ravaged by a plague and playing chess with Death. For me, meditations on death and dying are rewarding and seeing Death playing chess, well, that's a special treat. Still, if I had been in the knight's position, I would have chosen black and force Death to play white, just for the aesthetic value of seeing Her struggling with the white pieces. Then, I would spring on Her the Najdorf Sicilian (sacrifice variation), because it's exciting and unbalanced, and I am sure Death does not know how to play it. Not that I think the outcome would ever be in doubt.

he other movies included "Persona" (with an incredible footage of the Vietnamese Buddhist monk setting himself on fire ss a form of protest against the atrocities of war and Christian oppression of Buddhism) and "Wild Strawberries."

Overall, 3 or 4 5 star movies. Great stuff!