TV
3.13.16 20 Years in NYC, Part 2: Be the shark, never stop moving
If life isn’t giving you what you want, find a new path. Be the shark, never stop moving. That path may not take you where you want to go, but on the road you may — if you’re lucky — run into a fork that actually leads you forward.
Read More3.11.16 Clickbait, Kim Kardashian, and the opposite of ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’ magic
Every time you click on a dopey picture of a dopey reality star (or egocentric musician or ridiculous media-hogging actor), the opposite of the It’s a Wonderful Life magic happens. An angel does not get his (or her) wings. Instead, an angel keels over, choking.
Read More1.8.16 ‘I needed, like, a beginning middle and end’
I’m having a weird moment: There’s very little TV on my DVR right now. The net I’m throwing out and trawling just isn’t catching anything worth watching, and I’m so grateful when it does that when The Blacklist returned to my lineup Thursday night (don’t judge me, there’s nothing wrong about this completely nonsensical wish fulfillment show) I was thrilled.
Read More12.22.15 ‘They’re both a little unhinged’
Peter Quinn has long been a favorite of mine. I wrote about him here, in a column from October 2014, as one of TV’s most interesting secondary characters. I like the ones who aren’t precisely second bananas or sidekicks, who have significant roles but who don’t necessarily propel the plot — and therefore can be much more interesting than your average hero or anti-hero. I love Doug Stamper on House of Cards; I love — loved– Peter Quinn on Homeland.
Read More10.17.15 ‘What do you think is so bad about ‘girl’?
This is a request for reevaluation of the use of the word “girl” for human beings who are clearly “women.”
Read More8.31.15 “That is your real name, is it? Not just advertising?”
Monty Python, President Obama meets Bear Grylls, and a thought on why being a woman on campus is so difficult these days.
Read More8.26.15 “It’s nice to look down and see a new piece of jewelry on my finger”
Current wanderings in my brain, links, and photos. Come on in.
Read MoreHere’s how the story doesn’t end: TV adaptations that make it up as they go along
TV’s rapacious interest in book adaptations has been expanding lately. Today, novels are seen as springboards and not holy writ, and TV shows are happily going way off the reservation.
Read MoreDavid Letterman’s caution in the name of comedy: My visit to the first ‘Late Show’ in 1993
So I guess this is how it happens: You do something long enough and you start being able to flash back on your own work. In 1993 I wrote to Late Night With David Letterman in the hopes of being able to get a ticket to one of his last NBC shows before he jumped…
Read MoreLet’s get retro: My 2007 ‘Mad Men’ review for The Hollywood Reporter
Back in July of 2007, I was about a year and four months from getting laid off from The Hollywood Reporter after a pretty good run at the troubled trade publication (which has very much bounced back in the years since after going through a visionary rethink). But they were at loose ends in a…
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