Oklahoma Senators voted against Sandy relief package

It's one thing to offer thoughts and prayers after a natural disaster but apparently, that's all null and void when one doesn't follow that up with taking action.  Oklahoma was hit by a devastating tornado yesterday but their senators, Coburn and Inhofe, could care less about all those people that had their livelihood destroyed when Sandy hit the coast in October seeing as how they voted against the Sandy relief aid.

I'm sick and tired of hypocrites in Washington that vote against federal aid for other disasters but when it comes to their own home state or district, they want the money.  See Ted Cruz and Bill Flores for the Texas fertilizer plant.

Sorry to bring politics into what should be a time for mourning and cleanup but it's our system that is broken in Washington.

Book Review: TV on Strike

Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Syracuse University Press (January 31, 2013)

It's hard to believe that it has been just over 5 years since the end of the WGA strike against the AMPTP.  What Cynthia Littleton has done in looking back at the events that transpired from November 2007 to February 2008 is nothing short of amazing.

It's fascinating to see just how much has changed in the environment since that happened from a new media perspective alone. Both Netflix and Amazon have really changed the game for content distribution. Heavily serialized shows make syndicated reruns a harder sell then just a simple sitcom or crime drama.  If you look at what the networks have to offer, there are more serialized programs now than ever before.

Also, reruns aren't what they used to be. A lot of this has to do with what kind of ratings they get. Sitcom reruns fare better than that have a serial drama. Just look at a few weeks ago--a rerun of Big Bang Theory did better than the first half hour of American Idol. That said, networks feel that they don't get as much from advertisers during reruns so during the summers--which used to be chock full of reruns--they air unscripted programming or other original programming. Until a few years ago, there hadn't been much offered in terms of scripted programming in the summer on the broadcast networks as far as a first-run episode goes. Then ABC aired Rookie Blue and they now have a summer show to compete with the cable networks.

Hulu started a month after the strike ended and even then, because of the way that the guild contracts were written, anything that is viewed online in the first 6 weeks or so of an episode airing is considered as "promotional." Nobody but the distributor (network) sees a dime of profits off of those episodes being viewed. Sure, it is a legal way to watch shows as opposed to piracy but now I feel just as guilty since none of the people that worked hard are getting paid! With Hulu Plus, they monetized Hulu to where they are able to make money from consumers.

I also learned a new phrase from reading the book: satellite show. Most of these shows air on Friday nights as they have to plug holes on the schedule but otherwise, the network doesn't make much off of these shows. Other times, they are shows that follow an anchor program and would be the sitcom placed between the 8 PM and 9 PM sitcom. Some of these satellite shows are the news magazines or news shows that find their way into a prime time slot.

In the epilogue of the book, Littleton examines whether the strike was worth it in the long term by showing the numbers earned in residuals from new media.  But given how Netflix and Amazon have changed the game with instant streaming compared to the classic reruns airing in syndication, it was bound to have happened sooner rather than later.

CW announces 2013-14 TV schedule

MONDAY
8/7c Hart of Dixie
9 pm Beauty and the Beast

TUESDAY
8 pm THE ORIGINALS
9 pm Supernatural

WEDNESDAY
8 pm Arrow
9 pm THE TOMORROW PEOPLE

THURSDAY
8 pm The Vampire Diaries
9 pm REIGN

FRIDAY
8 pm The Carrie Diaries
9 pm America’s Next Top Model

CBS releases 2013-14 TV schedule

Some series are on the move in the recently released schedule from CBS.

MONDAY
8:00-8:30 PM  HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
8:30-9:00 PM  WE ARE MEN (N)
9:00-9:30 PM  2 BROKE GIRLS
9:30-10:00 PM MOM (N)
10:00-11:00 PM HOSTAGES (N)
INTELLIGENCE (Mid-Season) (N)

TUESDAY
8:00-9:00 PM  NCIS
9:00-10:00 PM NCIS: LOS ANGELES
10:00-11:00 PM PERSON OF INTEREST (NT)

WEDNESDAY
8:00-9:00 PM  SURVIVOR
9:00-10:00 PM CRIMINAL MINDS
10:00-11:00 PM CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION

THURSDAY
8:00-8:30 PM  THE BIG BANG THEORY
8:30-9:00 PM  THE MILLERS (N)
9:00-9:30 PM  THE CRAZY ONES (N)
9:30-10:00 PM TWO AND A HALF MEN (NT)
10:00-11:00 PM ELEMENTARY

FRIDAY
8:00-9:00 PM  UNDERCOVER BOSS
9:00-10:00 PM HAWAII FIVE-0 (NT)
10:00-11:00 PM BLUE BLOODS

SATURDAY
8:00-8:30 PM  COMEDYTIME SATURDAY (N)
8:30-9:00 PM  COMEDYTIME SATURDAY (N)
9:00-10:00 PM CRIMETIME SATURDAY
10:00-11:00 PM 48 HOURS

SUNDAY
7:00-8:00 PM  60 MINUTES
8:00-9:00 PM  THE AMAZING RACE
9:00-10:00 PM THE GOOD WIFE
10:00-11:00 PM THE MENTALIST

ABC announces 2013-14 TV Schedule

In announcing their schedule for this fall's TV season, ABC pits Marvel's Agents of SHIELD against ratings juggernaut NCIS.  They will be battling for the same audience, no doubt.

MONDAY:
8:00 p.m.        “Dancing with the Stars”
10:00 p.m.      “Castle”

TUESDAY:
8:00 p.m.        “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”
9:00 p.m.        “The Goldbergs”
9:30 p.m.        “Trophy Wife”
10:00 p.m.      “Lucky 7”

WEDNESDAY:      
8:00 p.m.        “The Middle”
8:30 p.m.        “Back in the Game”
9:00 p.m.        “Modern Family”
9:30 p.m.        “Super Fun Night”
10:00 p.m.      “Nashville”

THURSDAY:
8:00 p.m.        “Once Upon a Time in Wonderland”
9:00 p.m.        “Grey’s Anatomy”
10:00 p.m.      “Scandal”

FRIDAY:
8:00 p.m.        “Last Man Standing”
8:30 p.m.        “The Neighbors”
9:00 p.m.        “Shark Tank”
10:00 p.m.      “20/20”

SATURDAY:
8:00 p.m.        “Saturday Night College Football”

SUNDAY:    
7:00 p.m.        “America’s Funniest Home Videos”
8:00 p.m.        “Once Upon a Time”
9:00 p.m.        “Revenge”
10:00 p.m.      “Betrayal”

FOX unveils 2013-14 TV Schedule

FOX schedule for the fall below.

MONDAY
8-9 PM – Bones (fall) /Almost Human (new; late fall)
9-10 PM – Sleepy Hollow (new; fall) / The Following (midseason)

TUESDAY
8-8:30 PM – Dads (new)
8:30-9 PM – Brooklyn Nine-Nine (new)
9-9:30 PM – New Girl

9:30-10 PM – The Mindy Project


WEDNESDAY
8-10 PM – The X Factor (fall) /American Idol (midseason)

THURSDAY
8-9 PM – The X Factor Results (fall) / American Idol Results (midseason)
9-10 PM – Glee (fall) / Rake (new; midseason)

FRIDAY
8-9 PM – Junior Masterchef (new; fall)
9-10 PM – Sleepy Hollow encores (fall)

SCHEDULED FOR LATE FALL
8-9 PM – Bones (late fall)
9-9:30 PM – Raising Hope (late fall)
9:30-10 PM – Enlisted (new; late fall)

SATURDAY
7-10:30 PM – Fox Sports Saturday

11 PM-12:30 AM – Animation Domination


SUNDAY
7-7:30 PM – NFL Game (fall)
7-8 PM - The OT (fall)
8-8:30 PM – The Simpsons

8:30-9 PM - Bob’s Burgers
9-9:30 PM - Family Guy

9:30-10 PM – American Dad

NBC Announces 2013-14 TV Schedule

NBC FALL 2013-14 SCHEDULE
(New programs in UPPER CASE; all times ET)

MONDAY
8-10 p.m. – “The Voice”
10-11 p.m. – “THE BLACKLIST”

TUESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “The Biggest Loser” (New Day and Time)
9-10 p.m. – “The Voice” (New time)
10-11 p.m. – “Chicago Fire” (New Day and Time)

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Revolution” (New Day and Time)
9-10 p.m. – ”Law & Order: SVU”
10-11 p.m. – “IRONSIDE”

THURSDAY
8-8:30 p.m. – “Parks and Recreation” (New time)
8:30-9 p.m. – “WELCOME TO THE FAMILY”
9-9:30 p.m. – “SEAN SAVES THE WORLD”
9:30-10 p.m. – “THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW”
10-11 p.m. – “Parenthood” (New Day and Time)

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
9-10 p.m. – “Grimm”
10-11 p.m. – “DRACULA”

SATURDAY
Encore programming

SUNDAY
7:00-8:15 p.m. – “Football Night in America”
8:15-11:30 p.m. – “NBC Sunday Night Football”

NBC MIDSEASON 2013-14 SCHEDULE
(New programs in UPPER CASE; all times ET)

MONDAY
8-10 p.m. – “The Voice”
10-11 p.m. – “THE BLACKLIST”

TUESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “The Voice”
9-9:30 p.m. – “ABOUT A BOY”
9:30-10 p.m. – “THE FAMILY GUIDE”
10-11 p.m. – “Chicago Fire”

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Revolution”
9-10 p.m. – ”Law & Order: SVU”
10-11 p.m. – “IRONSIDE”

THURSDAY
8-8:30 p.m. – “Parks and Recreation”
8:30-9 p.m. – “WELCOME TO THE FAMILY”
9-9:30 p.m. – “SEAN SAVES THE WORLD”
9:30-10 p.m. – “THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW”
10-11 p.m. – “Parenthood”

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
9-10 p.m. – “Grimm”
10-11 p.m. – “CROSSBONES”

SATURDAY
8-10 p.m. – Encore and specials programming
10-11 p.m. – “Saturday Night Live” (Encore)

SUNDAY
7-8 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
8-9 p.m. – “AMERICAN DREAM BUILDERS”
9-10 p.m. – “BELIEVE”
10-11 p.m. – “CRISIS”

Book Review: Dad is Fat by Jim Gaffigan

Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Crown Archetype (May 7, 2013)

Another week, another comic memoir.  Since April started, there have been memoirs released by Kelly Oxford, Jen Kirkman, and Marc Maron, to name a few.  Last week brought the release of Dad is Fat by comedian Jim Gaffigan.

The comedian, his wife, and five kids live in a small 2-bedroom apartment in a five-story walk up.  I don't know how they do it but more power to them.

What Gaffigan does with his memoir is share his observations on fatherhood, revealing the joys and horror of raising five young children in New York City, and how to cope when you're outnumbered at home.

We are lucky that Gaffigan's family life has made for comic material for us.  It's not like he hasn't shared his wit with us before as he shares it on Twitter all the time.  He could have written a book about what it was like to have grown up in Indiana but he didn't.

Some of the topics in the book include his going from a loner to a family man, food, becoming vice president of his household, big families in general, the narcissist's guide to babies and toddlers, how children have terrible taste, plus other subjects like babysitters, critiquing children's literature, survival, and bedtime.

Overall, what we have from Gaffigan is a charming and irresistibly candid take on the ups and downs of parenting, which isn't what one usually expects from a comedian.

Book Review: Attempting Normal by Marc Maron

Hardcover: 240 pages
Publisher: Spiegel & Grau (April 30, 2013)

Marc Maron is a comedian best known for his interview podcast WTF with Marc Maron.  Outside of his former radio show on the late Air America, the comedian had never really hit the bigtime.  Then WTF happened and the rest, as they say, is history.

The publication of Maron's comic memoir just so happens to have coincided with the debut of Maron on IFC.  What he has in his memoir is a collection of stories that are explosively, painfully, and addictively funny...even when they shouldn't be.  Maron the comedian is a disarmingly honest, intensely smart, brutally open comic who just happens to find wisdom in the strangest of places.

It was when Maron had nothing that he turned to his garage and started WTF.

But most of us can relate with Maron.  He's just trying to do better without making a larger mess than he already has.  As with other comic memoirs, Maron is open about his life, including failed relationships, his cats, flying planes in his mind, etc.

Maron has a struggle with relationships from day to day and that's documented in his book.

If you want a better of idea of who Maron is, this book is for you.

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