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From the monthly archives:

February 2006

"Amazing Race": Nerd Power!

February 28, 2006

Great to have the show back, and back the way it should be — traveling internationally, showing off remarkable locations and with teams of two. And, although it's still early, I have a tentative favorite: Dave & Lori, the nerds. It's not just that their nerdiness is so complete that Lori at times seems to [...]

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"American Idol" Tonight

February 28, 2006

Before we get to the report card, a couple of points. Paula Abdul has fallen into her worst habits, especially on that incoherent analysis of Katharine McPhee.
We can figure McPhee did well in rehearsal, since she was opening the show; we can also figure that Paula had planned some remarks based on that rehearsal. So [...]

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I Hate Meredith Grey

February 28, 2006

Before you get out your cudgels, let me be clear about one thing: I like "Grey's Anatomy." I am a devoted watcher. My wife is a devoted watcher. I do post-mortems on telecasts with other people, too. Ithink Sandra Oh is terrific, and that Cristina & Burke are a much hotter couple than Izzie &Alex, [...]

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The Ascent of Neil Patrick Harris

February 28, 2006

This morning, thanks to bad traffic and the scheduling that comes with a teenage son, I spent more than two hours shuttling between my house, high school and the dentist's office. Granted, the news was worse for my younger son, who will be facing the removal of awkwardly growing wisdom teeth this spring. But after [...]

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The Third One: Dennis Weaver

February 27, 2006

Many folks insist that deaths come in threes, and so it wasn't exactly a surprise that the news of Dennis Weaver's passing came today — on the heels of Don Knotts and Darren McGavin.
I don't have as strong feelings about Weaver as I do about Knotts and McGavin, although his resume was certainly impressive.  (He [...]

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"Sopranos" Dinner, Grey Monday, Bobbleheads

February 27, 2006

I think we may have to make Monday "Grey's Anatomy" night at the House of Heldenfels, since Sunday seems to fill up with other commitments. Not that Mondays are always easy, either. It took me almost a week to get to the Feb. 18 episode of "Grey's," and last night's episode is filling a spot [...]

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Darren McGavin

February 26, 2006

To me, the great good fortune for an actor is to find a great role somewhere along the way — a role that sticks in the public imagination, a role that is satisfying to play, a role that other actors can look at with awe. Don Knotts, eulogized below, found that role in "The Andy [...]

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Don Knotts

February 25, 2006

The whole family was out for the evening; when we came home about 11 p.m., there was a message from my office that Don Knotts had died. It went without saying that a beloved TV actor was gone.
And one who has been a regular part of my screen-watching life. I only knew his work for [...]

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More podcasts

February 24, 2006

Just when you've had enough of reading what I think about Thursday's telecasts, I have podcasts up with me talking to Knight Ridder's Jim Arnold about TV. Here, courtesy of Jim, are the links to the individual topics or the whole thing.
* Survivor (02/24/06)
http://www.ohiomm.com/podcasts/tv/survivor_022406.mp3
    * American Idol (02/24/06)
http://www.ohiomm.com/podcasts/tv/american_idol_022406.mp3
    * Dancing with the [...]

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Thursday Night, Part II: "Dancing With the Stars," Olympics

February 24, 2006

As soon as Drew Lachey made that first jump in the freestyle section of "Dancing With the Stars," I knew he was going to win the judges' cards in that round. Like the judges, I had expected more from Stacy Keibler, who has been very good in what I've seen of the competition (which hasn't [...]

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First Part of the Night: "Idol," "Survivor"

February 23, 2006

Pretty nasty little tactic on "American Idol," wasn't it? I'm talking about the two-phased eliminations, where people were led to believe they were spared elimination, only to find that the small group on the block was not, in fact, the bottom two or three. No, only one was eliminated, then a second round was inflicted [...]

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Titanic Clashes, Now and Then

February 23, 2006

"What are YOU going to watch?" my boss asked this morning. She was talking about tonight's clash of the TV titans, where "Survivor," "Dancing With the Stars," "American Idol" and women's figure skating at the Winter Olympics are all head-to-head for an hour.
Such viewing decisions are often painful, though they have a longer history than [...]

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"Idol": More Mediocrity, A Note About "Everwood"

February 23, 2006

I know Ace Young has a following, because I live with part of it. Getting home from my meeting late in "Idol's" telecast last night, I began telling her how things went. She cut me off. Ace was singing.
Weirdly enough, when I went through my recording of the men's performances this morning, Ace seemed to [...]

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Digging Through the Viewing Pile — With a Late Wednesday Addition

February 22, 2006

I actually managed to get a little bit ahead on my work today, finishing a mailbag column and a Tom Amandes story reasonably early. That let me spend the day catching up on new DVDs (the Monty Python "Personal Best" series, a "Drew Carey Show" sampler, "Bleak House," some other things) for my Friday DVD [...]

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"Idol" Scorecard, Lying as Strategy

February 22, 2006

Look, we all know that "American Idol" contestants may not, um, show their true feelings. That some of those hugs-and-tears for an ousted contestant are accompanied by the happy thought that one more competitor is out of the way. That smiling and nodding are not at the top of the emotional heap when Simon is [...]

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"Idol": The Local Angle …

February 21, 2006

Proof yet again that I should never take a day off: My voice mail included a weekend message about an "American Idol" contestant being born in Akron — something that had not been in the information Fox sent out about the top 24. My boss received a similar phone call. I checked it with Fox [...]

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Waiting on "Everwood"

February 21, 2006

Monday night the bride and I went out to Wadsworth for a dinner with the cancer support group there. Both my wife and I lost spouses to cancer, and we were glad to be part of a good cause. But we were mainly there to see "Everwood" star Tom Amandes and his wife, Nancy Everhard.
Nancy's [...]

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Where I've Been

February 20, 2006

Over the weekend I saw some of the Winter Olympics, a bit of the NBA all-star game and a good dose of the Weather Channel. That's about it. Life did not let me near a TV set most of the time.
On Saturday morning, I was up at 4:30 a.m. to deliver my son to a [...]

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For "Future" Idol Reference

February 17, 2006

From today's mail…
The country’s largest talent search has been narrowed down to 24 contestants as the latest edition of American Idol has reached the semi-final round. The popularity of American Idol has never been more apparent as the show has catapulted to the top of the ratings drawing nearly 30 million loyal viewers. Also a [...]

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Bruce Morton

February 17, 2006

I saw this morning on Jim Romenesko's journalism site that Bruce Morton has retired. He did so with as little folderol as possible, according to this report. But Morton had a long and impressive career at CBS and later CNN.
He and I crossed paths once, in 1995, at Kent State University. Here's the text of [...]

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