The Hunter Becomes the Hunted
After 44 years of fearless showmanship, Steve Irwin, the quirky Australian zookeeper known to the world as the Crocodile Hunter, met his untimely fate today while filming on location. Though he was best known for wrestling with crocs, it wasn’t the monstrous reptiles that did him in but a rather harmless sting ray whose stinger pierced his heart.
It always seemed more en vogue to imitate Irwin’s over-the-top Australian accent than his dogged determination to preserve wildlife. But beneath the cries of “Oy” were true attempts to protect nature, and that’s something that he should be remembered for. Instead of seeing ten more goofy, khaki-clad Animal Planet hosts take his place, let’s hope that we see some kind of fund for conservationism formed in his name.
Crikey.
Jaws, Madden Together at Last
Ain’t It Cool News posted today that the theme music for NBC’s Sunday Night Football broadcasts has been written by none other than…John Williams. Yes, that one. Of Star Wars fame. You can hear the audio here.
Now, I’m not going to question Williams’ ability to connect with sports; after all, he wrote the Olympic theme, and who hasn’t carried a tiki torch humming that to themselves? No, just me? Fine, then. But I’m not sure this music is enough to get me ready for some football. It’s right in line with the NFL Films music that’s so popular with Harry Kalas’ velvety baritone pouring over it, but it’s not something that pumps me up, like any of the industrial FOX sports themes (NHL, NFL, or MLB), or the glorious NBA on NBC theme. I’m sure we’ll learn to love, or at least ignore, Williams’ NFL theme. At the very least, it will soothe our nerves as we go to commercial hearing John Madden stating the obvious…yet again. “Sometimes, when the quarterback throws directly at the other team, the ball is intercepted…”
Non-Williams themes courtesy I Love WAVs.
Sweeping the Clouds Away
One of the great things about my job is that I have to do the same thing every morning: post the electronic events newsletter. After two-plus years of doing this, it’s become a rather mindless task (the posting of the newsletter, not the writing of it), and I can do a few other things to entertain myself while I go through the motions.
I’m not sure how I got around to YouTube this morning, or how I got to searching for “Sesame Street” videos from there, but that’s kind of the point of YouTube. Anybody who is in their 20′s or early 30′s knows the glory days of “Sesame Street” and will recognize the clips linked below. On the “explore more videos” section of each clip is a wealth of links to other genius clips. I could even make it a regular feature, akin to Huge Tiny Mistake’s “Boy Meets World” Mondays feature, but won’t. Enjoy these highlights.
- Guy Smiley and Count von Count on “Beat the Time”
- Cookie Monster on “Beat the Time”
- “C is for Cookie”
- The Beetles sing “Letter B”
- “I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon”
- “Dance Myself to Sleep”
- Bert and Ernie explore a pyramid
- “Put Down the Duckie”
- The National Association of W Lovers
- Mourning Mr. Hooper
Pictured, of course, is Super Grover, who isn’t involved in any of the clips.
Be Like the Brits
It’s a recurring problem in American television: a show makes a gigantic splash, becomes the “must-watch” show to most of the public, earns its actors a ridiculous amount of money per episode, then…overstays its welcome. By the time series like Friends left the air, even the most ardent fans had noticed a drop in quality. An entire internet phenomenon was formed out of deciding when a show “jumped the shark” – that now-overused term referring to the episode of Happy Days where Fonzi waterskied over the man-eating marine life, symbolizing a downturn in the show’s appeal. There is a simple solution to this problem of TV overpopulation: follow the British example and cut the show short before it’s too late.
Little Victories
It’s almost hard to believe that the Gin Blossoms were a major force in music. Ten years removed from their last album, they are remembered as little more than the harmless 90s adult alternative rock that you hear in the background of a party. While their new release Major Lodge Victory might not enlarge the stamp on musical history, it fits well into the mold of nice, forgettable pop.
The album’s opener, “Learning the Hard Way,” takes you right back to the mid-90s – its sweet harmonies and janglepop rhythm make it as if the Blossoms never went away. Ditto with the follower, “Come Down Hard,” packed with their signature, radio-ready sound. “Long Time Gone” and “Fool for the Taking,” co-written with Rembrandts founder Danny Wilde, are fresh despite their familiar beats and lyrics that are just a bit too cute.
The majority of the rest of the album echoes the fun, breezy vibe, but with less substance. “Let’s Play Two” is a wasted effort to encapsulate the Blossoms’ summery sound in a baseball setting and “Heart Shaped Locket,” while commendable for its emotion, seems more suitable stuck in the 90s than bringing the pop sound up to date. Fans of the Gin Blossoms’ other albums will rejoice in hearing the sound structured in new songs; the rest of us will simply enjoy it as it plays in the background, then forget it as soon as it’s over.
Rating: * * * of 5
