My ears have regained their ability to hear now that a decent interval has passed since the visiting Target Demo shrieked her rage at "My Humps" winning an award. So here are the notes on the night.

Things I liked: Jack Black's deliberately fouled-up opening (although I was surprised at the lack of a censoring lip-flap on him in the elevator). … Diddy's suit. …  That Justin Timberlake is not K-Fed; he can sing and has better fashion sense. … The Raconteurs generally, but especially with Lou Reed. (But how many of the people watching actually know "White Light /White Heat"?). …  OK Go live. …  T.I. …  Beyonce's camel coat. …  All-American Rejects' merry (if fueled) attitude at winning. … Snoop demonstrating once again that he is the Dean Martin of modern music. … Jack Black's linking Paris Hilton to "independent film." … Kanye West's tribute to Hype Williams. .. The way the Moon Man awards broke (more than once, I think) … The Killers … Sarah Silverman! Sarah Silverman!

Things that have not delighted: That point when Beyonce appeared to be blending Pat Benatar in "Love Is a Battlefield" with early Janet Jackson (although the moves got better later). … Pink's "I totally won" acceptance speech — and her irked look when she won; I was wondering if her acceptance was a satirical commentary on "Stupid Girls" or just stupid. I voted for stupid. … Most of the rest of Jack Black's work. … John Norris's "Hey, I'm Young and Semi-Hip" hair; when Clay Aiken changed his look, did John decide Clay's old one was available? … Jessica Simpson's wobbly appearance. I wondered if she was drunk or stupid (although she avoided the eternal "Animal House" trifecta). I voted for stupid. … Jared Leto; he could have conquered the world after "My So-Called Life" and has opted instead to be, well, thin. … Britney and Kevin's bit ….  Al Gore's slide show, especially since the telecast didn't show the pictures well … The chicken, long-distance shots of the Jackass guys live; if you invite them on the air, you should be prepared to put what they do in the show … Axl Rose looking like Conan O'Brien playing Axl Rose … Paris Hilton's hair bump. … MTV's hyping the online stuff … That the VMAs are still an awards show and have to fill time with nominees' names and acceptance speeches that for the most part aren't very interesting.

Just because I find it so laughable that Sci Fi considers wrestling part of its mandate, I pass along this announcement:

SCI FI Channel today announced it will keep its new hit program, ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling®), on the network through at least the end of 2007. ECW is produced by World Wrestling Entertainment®, the producer of the No. 1 weekly basic cable TV series, "Monday Night RAW®" on USA Network. 

ECW debuted on SCI FI as a summer series in June on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT, providing an alternative brand of wrestling suited to fit the Channel's commitment to fuel the imagination.  The program met with immediate success, with its premiere attracting more than 1.8 million new viewers to SCI FI; 43% of the ECW's premiere audience had not watched the SCI FI Channel during the prior 4 weeks. The debut also set a Channel record for a series premiere attracting 1.07 million viewers 18-34, the most ever in the demographic.

My awareness of Glenn Ford's career was based mainly on seeing him in features on "Saturday Night at the Movies," "The Million Dollar Movie" and various late-late shows on TV. When I read that he had died (one obit is here), it took me a little time to remember if I had ever seen one of his films in a theater; only when I looked at a list of his work did I go, oh, yeah, "Superman."

That Christopher Reeve movie is all you have to see to get what a Glenn Ford character was about — thoughtful usually, especially about the way the world works, showing grace in a crisis, often carrying moral authority that made him someone who could be pushed only so far. That's central to, say, his work in "Blackboard Jungle," or the original "Ransom," later reconfigured for Mel Gibson. (While I said I didn't see Ford in theaters, I still saw plenty of him. A lot of my movie education was in those late-late shows.)

As Jonathan Kent,  he brought those qualities, notably when he explains to young Clark that he has come to Earth for a reason. Plenty of actors could have played the role, and done a fair job with it, but Ford worked especially well because he carried so much onscreen baggage; the audience, at least the older part of it, knew him in a certain way, respected and liked him because of it.

Things seem right for a multiple elimination tonight — so many contestants, so few weeks left. And midway through the show we've had a surprise of sorts: Everyone except Magni has been "at risk" in the vote.

Before that announcement, we got Lukas singing with Supernova on a new song that had me making a list of combinations I would go see before Lukas with Supernova. There were many, including in reverse order of importance:

6. Lukas with the House Band.

5. Toby with the House Band.

4. Magni with the House Band.

3. Storm with the House Band.

2. Dilana with Supernova.

1. Dilana with the House Band.

Toby, by the way, got the encore.

Ryan's the first one in the bottom three. He opts for "Baba O'Riley." Horribly, horribly so.

Storm's next in the bottom three. She's making it seem OK, taking the chance to sing again. "Helter Skelter" is the tune. Marvelous is the performance. I am ready to change my list.

3. Dilana with Supernova.

1 (tie). Dilana or Storm with the House Band.

But I'm getting a bad feeling about Dilana's fate…

And yes, she is in the bottom three. Does "Psycho Killer" for her song. Probably the worst I have ever heard from her.

But they can't take her down on musicianship overall. I'm imagining a speech from the guys about her not being a team player to rationalize her rejection…

Whew. It's Ryan. And only Ryan.

Back in July, Katie Couric tried to demonstrate her seriousness in front of reporters by wearing pants — a distinct difference for someone who was so leggy on the "Today" show. In doing so, she probably encouraged viewers — like me — to study her wardrobe even more when she makes her debut on "The CBS Evening News" next week.

Now, CBS has formally taken umbrage at wardrobe-related questions, suggesting they are sexist. But the network itself has managed to make this issue even bigger — and about more than Couric's legs — by the distribution of a digitally altered photo meant to make Couric look thinner. (You can see the photos and some of the heat around them here).

So many hot buttons pushed here.

Couric is hardly hefty to begin with, so to suggest that she needed to be thinner to appeal to viewers is off-putting to (a) anyone who believes people should be judged on their work, not their looks, (b) people who suspect Couric's regular-woman televising style is belied by a fashion-conscious, upper-class life, (c) women who worry constantly about their weight and looks because they are not Katie Couric, photoshopped or unphotoshopped, (d) anyone who has seen a woman struggle with an eating disorder because of an extreme case of (c), (e) the people who love the women in (c) and (d), and (e) well, just about everyone else.

Here's the essential part of the announcement:

The Cleveland Cavaliers and FSN Ohio have reached a new, long-term television rights agreement that greatly expands the 17-year relationship between the team and the network, it was announced today by Steve Liverani, Vice President and General Manager, FSN Ohio, and Len Komoroski, President, Cleveland Cavaliers and Quicken Loans Arena.

Under terms of the agreement, FSN Ohio has acquired the rights to televise 70 Cavaliers games per season, beginning with the 2006-07 campaign, an increase of 30 games per season over the current agreement. The new agreement also calls for five of those 70 games to be simulcast on WUAB TV43. Financial terms were not disclosed.

[R}eturning next season is CAVALIERS COUNTDOWN, providing fans with commentary, features and in-depth pregame coverage of the Cleveland Cavaliers, 30 minutes prior to every game telecast. Wrapping up the action is CAVALIERS IN THE POST, a postgame show featuring highlights, interviews and analysis immediately following each telecast. And rounding out FSN Ohio’s Cavaliers coverage is CAVALIERS FAST BREAK, a Cavaliers-produced show featuring all the behind-the-scenes information a true fan needs.

FSN did not release the names on its announcing team, or exactly which games it will carry. That will come later, possibly next week.

Fingers crossed on technology: Since I saw tonight's season finale last week, I'm posting this with a timer set to display it after the telecast. Hope it works. If it doesn't, well, I warned you in the header about spoilers.

So let's consider tonight's show. I liked the bit on the dock. Very funny, especially since they were willing to keep it going. And the business with the 9/11 firefighters' memorial, contrasted with the gaping hole nearby, made a good point about what people can accomplish privately versus what politicians cause on the public stage. (There is, by the way, a firefighters' memorial  in New York City — but the one in the show is a facsimile.) And Franco's scene with his daughter worked well at showing how completely he had given her up — although the scene also felt a little contrived because we never saw Franco talk to Susan Sarandon's character, which I guess resulted from availability issues.

Now for the bad stuff. Every guy is staying at the firehouse? Every one? Yeah, there's the hint that the chief's ailments are getting insurmountable (and that was series writer-producer Peter Tolan playing Pecher, the fill-in chief). But an FX rep told me all the cast is signed up for next season. And the core guys are still there, after all the plots this year indicating one might move on. And at least one should have.

Then there's the fire. Does anyone believe that Gavin was going to die in that fire? In a telephone press conference with Tolan and Denis Leary, they joked that death actually gives characters a bigger part — but Tolan came as close as he could to saying Tommy's not dead without saying it outright. Are they willing, then, to sacrifice Sheila when she has been such a part of Tommy's dramatic arc? Leary loves working with Callie Thorne, and I don't think he's ready to be done with her.

Even so, ending the season with a fiery cliffhanger felt lame. Anyone want to agree/disagree?

Tom Arnold and his wife are separating. (The story's here.) After reading that, I reached onto my bookshelf for "How I Lost 5 Pounds in 6 Years," his 2002 autobiography. There I found that the woman he is now separated from is "loyal, honest, stunningly beautiful, and the sexiest woman I've ever seen." Also ''smart, hardworking, funny, and close to her family."

"The quality of my life is so much better with Shelby in it," Arnold wrote. "It's calmer, simpler, more real. Making and keeping her happy is job one for me."

Now, I'm not dumping on Tom Arnold by bringing up this stuff. It's pretty easy to do this with just about anyone who uses the printed page to declare true love after anything less than 45 years of marriage.

After all, right next to Tom's book is "My Lives," by Roseanne when she was Roseanne Arnold. It starts with a poem for Tom ("I feed you and am nurtured. …/ I float through you,/My love."). We all know how well that worked out.

Of course, there are times when I think people shouldn't try to be perceptive about anything. Often when I'm reading my old columns. But hey, this is about Tom Arnold. And his book begins with a description of another Tom that echoes interestingly today:

"I wish this were a book by Tom Cruise. I'd like to know what makes him tick. But he probably wouldn't tell us. Doesn't have to; he's too smart and too successful. Real movie stars have an air of mystery. It's probably best that we don't find out the real truth about Tom …"

The Dilana melodrama continued tonight, and I'm not buying it. As the field of singers gets smaller (six tonight), the show wants more narrative to fill the hour. And, I still suspect, the show would like to dampen Dilana's vote totals some, or at least give the appearance of dampening it, so viewers go to the final show with a little suspense. But she still comes across as the most logical person to front Supernova, and by drawing out her drama, "Rock Star" also let her close the show. Though she wasn't, to my great surprise, the best performance of the night, maybe not even second best.

To the scorecard: Lukas led off with "Lithium," prefaced by the acknowledgement that Dilana had done it before. In fact, this "fan vote" night found a lot of singers performing songs that other singers had done before. Maybe that's meant to let fans see the contrast in styles and ability more clearly, but it still makes me think the show didn't license many songs.

Anyway, Lukas did a lot of posturing, showed a lot of attitude, went from mild to menacing — and I was still pretty much bored by it. (And to all of you would-be musicians in the audience, if you believe in doing that soft/screaming/soft contrasting stuff, check out the legendary Cactus performance of "You Can't Judge a Book By Its Cover." From 1970. All groundwork laid. Hard to top, too.) Lukas gets a C.

Magni. "I Alone." OK, I like Magni, and not just because he downplayed the scratch on his head. He's able to invoke Cat Stevens and rock hard. But when he went into the crowd, it felt phony — strolling through but not making contact. Reminded me of a time the bride saw Jim Brown at Cleveland airport; he walked through the crowd, and the crowd carefully made way for him. C plus for Magni.

Ryan, "Clocks." By this performance, I made a note about "comic book night," because all three of the performances so far had their cartoony moments, and Ryan was the worst caricature. I'd give him a C, and most of that is for the House Band, which killed. I'd go see them play this song anywhere, with or without Ryan.

Storm. "Bring Me to Life." The no-argument best performance of the night. Amazed that the judges were harsh. She's a terrific singer and dramatic to boot, and this was high drama. If the House Band was playing "Clocks" on one side of town, and Storm was starring in "Evita" on the other, I'd go see Storm in "Evita."

Toby got a double-dip tonight, backing Storm and then doing "Rebel Yell" on his own. Doing it reasonably well, too. But bringing the women onstage was clumsy, broke his momentum in the song and made the remainder look terribly unspontaneous. I didn't buy the women's enthusiasm for a second. This would have been a B, but the stunt dropped it to B minus.

Dilana. "Mother Mother." Technically, pretty good. And the showmanship — aside from some hokey climbing on the set and the band — was another reminder of why she'd fit with Supernova. But it didn't do it for me overall. B, maybe, B minus. Too much melodrama setting it up.

The quickie vote results at the end of the show had Ryan, Lukas and Storm in the bottom three.

All told, I was disappointed in "Rock Star," especially after sampling "Celebrity Duets." So many things wrong with that show. The judges — David Foster, Little Richard and Marie Osmond — were giving a lot of the singers a free ride on this special premiere. Marie is calculatingly sweet and Little Richard was obviously told not to talk too much, but Foster was a tart presence on "American Idol" and I expected more here. I also fear one of those how-they've-grown arcs is already in the works, keeping the hideous Carly Patterson around just to chart her progress from bad singer to — well, based on that first number, I'm not convinced she'll grow all that much.

I have more of the show to see, but in what I've seen, my favorite moments were Lucy Lawless singing (because she can), Smokey Robinson (because Hal Sparks at least had the good sense to know Smokey was going to crush him long before the duet began) and Chris Jericho's awkward body language with Lee Ann Womack. Womack was having none of his reaching out during their song, and had to be stopped from fleeing the stage when the song was over.

For those of you who have not forgotten a single frame of video from your childhood, comes this press release:

­Alpha Home Entertainment is pleased to announce the DVD premiere of the classic O60¹s serial, Diver Dan. The Diver Dan DVD will feature fifteen episodes of this fondly remembered undersea
adventure.  Diver Dan will be available at retail and online outlets on
September 26, 2006 with a SRP of $7.98.

Diver Dan debuted in syndication in 1960 and became a favorite with children across the country.  The stoic hero, Diver Dan, and the lovely mermaid, Miss Minerva, are the only live actors; the rest of the cast who inhabit the Sargasso Sea are fish marionettes including Dan¹s friends, Sea Biscuit,
Finley, Doc Sturgeon and the treacherous villain, Baron Barracuda and his simple-minded sidekick, Trigger. Amazingly, all of the deep-sea puppets (and even Diver Dan, himself!) are voiced by veteran voiceover actor, Allen Swift ("The Howdy Doody Show").

As Diver Dan¹s theme song states:  "He protects and he saves his friends under the waves" and in these episodes Diver Dan thwarts several of Baron Barracuda¹s more nefarious plots which involve a haunted pirate ship, a deadly sea plant, an underground volcano, a stolen pearl and a kidnapped
goldfish.

Although many of the Diver Dan episodes have been lost over the years, this wonderful DVD, painstakingly compiled by Alpha Home Entertainment, offers a generous sampling of this charming black and white series in which heartfelt lessons about honesty, friendship, and the importance of determination are illustrated by humorous characters in a fantastic world beneath the sea. (end announcement)

Based on the description, I don't really remember this show. But it may be that I have to see footage to jog my brain. "Hilarious House of Frightenstein" didn't ring any bells, either, until I saw the old episodes on DVD.  Anyone out there recall "Diver Dan"?