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Tag Archives: television

Now Normal Chronicles or: Under the Weather

08 Monday Feb 2021

Posted by TGBII in Video

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Tags

Music, television, Video

Salutations™!!

Today is 44th anniversary of Television’s Marquee Moon. It was on the RS list that matters and I think made the new list, too. I like the band and this album. I have it on vinyl. Let’s do the title track. Enjoy!

I was under the weather yesterday and didn’t walk today as I was exhausted. Back at it tomorrow.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I remember how the darkness doubled. I recall, lightning struck itself. I was listening, listening to the rain. I was hearing, hearing something else.” – “Marquee Moon” (Verlaine)

Over Vue or: You’re Tubin’

15 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Fubo, Hulu, NFL, PlayStation Vue, streaming services, television, TV, YouTube, YouTube TV

Salutations™!!

I mentioned a few weeks back about PlayStation Vue ceasing operations at the end of this month and how I was now in search of a replacement service. playstation-vue-shutting-down

I hear there are services on the horizon that will allow a la carte programming. As of right now, however, I don’t find any that actually do a la carte. As I said we really just watch CNN, ESPN, locals, USA, TNT and NFL Network.

NFL Network is really the outlier. That is on DirecTV but not DirecTV Now or AT&T Now, whatever they’re calling it now. It is on PlayStation Vue, but obviously, that isn’t going to do me any good. It looks like I’ll just have to do without that. Luckily, most football games are available otherwise. Also, I have Verizon and, for now, the NFL games are (mostly) available there.

Everything else is available on just about everything, except Fubo which has no Disney-owned channels, so, ESPN, ABC, Disney, etc. are not available there. So, that’s out.

Since everything is available, on most services, price and simultaneous streams become the most important parts. Sling is confusing with its Orange and Blue and some is available on 2 streams and some with a different amount. And, I don’t think Sling has a DVR feature.

So, to bring it all back to a point (sorry), I narrowed it down to two services that I am already very familiar with. It’s Hulu or YouTube TV.  Hulu is $59.99 a month and you can add “unlimited streams” and the DVR is pretty good. YouTube TV is $49.99 a month with up to six accounts and unlimited DVR. Eugene has talked about YouTube TV and so, for now, I’m giving it a shot. I’ll keep you updated.

1920px-YouTube_TV_logo.svg

You may not even care, Dear Reader, and I get that. Really, I just take my role as an “influencer” or one that has a voice to talk about things that may or may not affect my readers. Thanks for indulging me.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“YouTube TV is an American over-the-top internet television service that offers live TV, on demand (sic) video and cloud-based DVR from more than 70 television networks.” – Wikipedia

The Magical Stream or: Animated Heaven

10 Tuesday Dec 2019

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It, Video

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Amazon, Amazon Prime, DC, DC Universe, Disney, ESPN, Hulu, Marvel, National Geographic, Netflix, Pixar, Star Wars, television, Vimeo, YouTube

Salutations™!!

If it weren’t for football and rasslin’ I’d totally do away with any television at all. I mean television programming. Networks, cable channels and all that have no meaning for me anymore. The BCPF watches one channel 90% of the time and when she isn’t she may watch one other but mostly it’s Netflix and Amazon Prime.

disney-plus-logo-1547x1030

©Disney

We both watch Hulu together and I watch USA and football.

After that, I am totally an app person on my Amazon Fire TV. Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, Vimeo, DC Universe which I have talked about several times in the last few months and now… Disney+. Oh, Disney+. I have mentioned several times on this blog and if you know me in person, you know that I love everything Disney.

On top of that, now that Disney owns Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel and National Geographic, they are darned near perfect for me. I got Disney+ with Hulu and ESPN+ (which who knows when I’d watch much of that?) in one package so it’s really cool to have. I’ve gotten into the Mandalorian, the Behind the Imagineering series, a few NatGeo series and of course the animated features.

Because I’m a glutton for lists, programming and streaks, I have decided to watch all the animated films in order from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to Frozen II (I’ll have to wait on the last few, I think). There are a few that I can’t see because they’re not available on Disney+. So far, I’ve missed Make Mine Music and Song of the South, one because it’s not available and the other because there’s a shload of controversy over it (and I’m not sure it’s all warranted). I have them both on DVD so I can see them, but I am trying to watch them all on this awesome new service. I have watched Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Bambi, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad and Cinderella. That’s since yesterday. Being sick hasn’t been all bad.

I will watch all the Star Wars films from the start on, as well as the MCU in order.

Until tomorrow, and more Disney films later…
Scorp out!

—
“Nearly everybody gets twitterpated in the springtime. For example, you’re walking along, minding your own business. You’re looking neither to the left nor to the right, when all of a sudden, you run smack into a pretty face. Woo-woo! You begin to get weak in the knees. Your head’s in a whirl. And then you feel light as a feather; and before you know it, you’re walking on air. And then you know what? You’re knocked for a loop, and you completely lose your head!” – Friend Owl (Bambi)

What to Watch or: Wentworth

30 Tuesday Oct 2018

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

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Aaron Jeffrey, Celia Ireland, Chareena Clanton, Danielle Cormack, Kate Atkinson, Katrina Milosevic, Libby Tanner, Netflix, Nicole da Silva, Orange is the New Black, Pamela Rabe, Robbie J Magasiva, Socratis Otto, television, Wentworth

Salutations™!!

I have been watching a show on Netflix for the last few weeks and I’m really enjoying it. It’s called Wentworth and at first, I thought it was a knockoff of Orange is the New Black, which I liked but got tired of really quick. It is about a women’s prison, well, correctional facility in Australia that shows a lot of the “political” and “hierarchical” situations including “top dogs” and “bosses,” crooked governors, secrets, and revenge.

Wentworth_title

©Fremantle Australia

The actors are great and the storylines are interesting. I’m on season three now (there are six so far). Wentworth is set in Australia and focuses on Bea Smith (Danielle Cormack) when she first enters prison after being charged with the attempted murder of her husband. She is sent to Wentworth on remand, where she lives while awaiting her sentencing. She is in the absolute bottom of Wentworth’s tiered society is forced to learn how to survive.

Other stars include Nicole da Silva as Francesca “Franky” Doyle, Kate Atkinson as Vera Bennett, Celia Ireland as Elizabeth “Liz” Birdsworth, Shareena Clanton as Doreen “Dor” Anderson, Katrina Milosevic as Susan “Boomer” Jenkins, Libby Tanner as Bridget Westfall, Aaron Jeffery as Matthew “Fletch” Fletcher, Robbie J. Magasiva as Will Jackson, Socratis Otto as transgendered Maxine Conway and the most interesting and scariest character is Pamela Rabe as Joan “The Freak” Ferguson. She is scary as heck, actually.

There are only 12 episodes per season and there are only six seasons, as of yet. You can watch them all on Netflix and I highly recommend it. Check it out.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I don’t eat sausage, I’m vagitarian.” – Franky Doyle

Silent Sunday or: The Haul 10/21/17

22 Sunday Oct 2017

Posted by TGBII in Records, Silent Sunday

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Ace Frehley, Chopin, Chris de Burgh, Discogs, Earth Wind and Fire, George Winston, Georgia Satellites, James Taylor, JVC, Leonard Berstein, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Meryl Streep, Music, New York Philharmonic, Patty Smyth, Paul Simon, Peter Paul and Mary, Scandal, Simply Red, television, The Civil Wars, The Mamas and the Papas, Twisted Sister, Underdog Records, Urubamba and The Jessy Dixon Singers

Salutations™!!

Another truncated Saturday but we got the regular stuff in. The BCPF and I went to breakfast (I had already walked my steps this week, plus had played on Friday night in GSO) at Mary’s and then to Underdog Records. Here’s the haul:

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©Elektra Records/Rhino

 

  • Television – Marquee Moon (#130 on the RS Top 500, new)
  • Peter, Paul & Mary – The Best of Peter, Paul And Mary (Ten) Years Together (new)
  • Ace Frehley – Frehley’s Comet (had never heard this on vinyl, reissue, new)
  • Arlo Guthrie – Arlo Guthrie (VG+ copy, $1 bin)
  • Meryl Streep / George Winston – The Velveteen Rabbit (VG+)
  • Chris de Burgh – Into The Light (The Lady in Red was a big prom song, the album was great, VG copy)
  • James Taylor – That’s Why I’m Here (VG+)
  • Scandal Featuring Patty Smyth – Warrior (VG+)
  • The Mamas & The Papas – 16 Of Their Greatest Hits (VG+)
  • Simply Red – Picture Book (one of my favorite finds in the last few weeks, this was one near perfectly produced album, VG+)
  • Georgia Satellites – Georgia Satellites (because why not?, VG+)
  • Earth, Wind & Fire – The Best Of Earth Wind & Fire Vol. I (VG)
  • Twisted Sister – Stay Hungry (VG)
  • Leonard Bernstein, New York Philharmonic – Nocturne – Music For Quiet Listening ($1 bin)
  • Chopin, Ingrid Haebler – Waltzes (Complete) ($1 bin)
  • Paul Simon With Urubamba And The Jessy Dixon Singers – Paul Simon In Concert Live Rhymin’
  • Lynyrd Skynyrd – One More From The Road (just because, $1 bin)
  • The Civil Wars – Between The Bars (10″ EP, VG+)

If you’re looking to get into vinyl again and need a turntable, currently Jonathan has a JVC L-A11 turntable for sale at Underdog Records. Semi-automatic belt drive with auto return. Working cue lever, tonearm counterweight. Brand new Audio-Technica cartridge & needle and a brand new belt. Dust cover is not cracked but has its share of scuffs and scratches. $70. Not a bad deal, at all. He has receivers, too. Ask him about speakers. Don’t forget to listen to The Less Desirables podcast every week to hear what the UDR/TLD special of the week is. All my albums are archived on Discogs where I keep track of my collection, buy, sell (if I wanted) and share with others to see what they have and them what I have. Good resource.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I been laid off from work. My rent is due. My kids all need brand new shoes. So I went to the bank to see what they could do. They said son – looks like bad luck got-a hold on you. Money’s too tight to mention. I can’t get an unemployment extension. Money’s too tight to mention.” – “Money’s Too Tight (to Mention)” (Valentine/Valentine)

Mojique Smells the Wind or: I Want to Take You Higher (RS Part 38)

26 Thursday May 2016

Posted by TGBII in Music Review

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Bob Marley & The Wailers, Janis Joplin, Moby Grape, Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums, Run-DMC, Sly & the Family Stone, Talking Heads, television, The Byrds, The Stooges

Salutations™!!

The last segment was pretty righteous on the countdown of the Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums of All Time. Everything was mostly liked and even the two comps that I didn’t listen to (for the list, anyway) are albums that I have and really liked to begin with. But, let’s stop yakking and get on with it already!

#130 – Marquee Moon by Television. Okay,  big surprise here… I’ve never heard of Television. Never. It is supposed to be old school punk, I know, but I really just heard straight ahead rock and roll. The way Tom Verlaine sings these tunes and the way they’re presented and packaged, I would have thought I was listening to a 1970s Rolling Stones album that somehow I missed along the way. There’s enough whine and tremble in his voice that it could pass for a poor man’s Mick Jagger. I find it to be good music. From the beginning of “See No Evil” all the way to “Tom Curtain,” the music is good. Some of the songs go on a bit long but nothing I didn’t enjoy. The title track is almost 11 minutes in TalkingHeadsRemaininLightlength. That’s okay and all, just wow. Yeah, I don’t know that I’d have gone out looking for this, but I’m glad I listened. Dug.

#129 – Remain in Light by Talking Heads. This was released in 1980 but it certainly sounds more like it’s from 1987, to me. Tina Weymouth is a fantastic bassist; a freak really. Just listen to anything she’s doing on here and it’s evident. Wow. I love “Crosseyed and Painless.” I love the funky rhythm and the soulful, ethereal vocals. I like the Afro-Latin style of drumming. Of course, there’s my favorite Heads song, “Once in a Lifetime.” I asked for that in the upcoming Vagabond Saints Society Talking Heads Summer Spectacular but I’ve not heard word, as of yet, to what I’ll get. Back to my original statement, from what I’ve read (so take it for what it’s worth), this really was ahead of its time and while no one knew what to think of it at first, they really took to it. Letting it “happen” and accepting it. I like it. “Listening Wind” is kind of mysterious and dark. I love that kind of groove in a song. Then, “The Overload” is even more dark and mysterious. It reminds me of David Bowie and how could that be wrong? The feeling, the lyrics, the vocals, the atmosphere. Dark. Dangerous. Delightful. Some of that, I’m sure came from Brian Eno, who produced the album. Really, top to bottom, this is a fantastic listen and I am glad it was on the list. DUUUGGG!!!!

#128 – Raw Power by The Stooges. Holy crap! I think my face is bruised from just listening to the opening bit of the first track, “Search and Destroy.” It’s hostile and it’s abusive. It’s also mastered hot. Everything is almost distorted it’s so hot. I’m sure that’s partly what they were looking for. I’m not positive, though. It was so hot that you can really hear the hiss of the highs. Again, not a bad thing, just very noticeable. “Gimme Danger” has a more laid back sound but when the band kicks in, it’s noticeable there, too. Iggy Pop is up to his normal wackiness and that’s just in his vocals. I can picture him in the studio lurching around and bouncing, either off the walls or flopping in the floor. He has that kind of energy in his voice. One of the best titles to a song, ever, has to be: “Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell.” So far, my favorite song on the album is “Penetration.” Or should I say “Pen-ay-tray-SHAWN!” instead? It’s righteous. “I Need Somebody” is almost scary and I really like that one, too. It’s very reminiscent of some of the sixties stuff like Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs or Animals. I’m sure there was some influence. That’s great stuff. So, when this album was done. I had a headache. My throat hurt, even though I wasn’t the 61nuMAJZXwLone screaming through most of the songs. I don’t know how Iggy has any voice left. It was a decent album with some really good stuff on it, but I wouldn’t say it was great. I will, however, say that I dug it.

#127 – Younger than Yesterday by The Byrds. One of my recent favorite songs of yore is “My Back Pages.” I like the version on this album, not much on the Dylan version, but I’m getting more and more into Dylan. Again, I never heard that tune until a few years ago. I just didn’t have access to that kind of music, which surprises me because it should be stuff that Ma Mère listened to, but she wasn’t one to own a lot of records. Anywhat! It’s guitar-forward power pop (was that even a thing back then?). I like that kind of thing. The weird stop in “C.T.A.-102” threw me off. That had hints of things later in pop music but it was odd, but interesting. “Have You Seen Her Face” is a rock song, pure and simple. You hear shades of what would eventually become a sonic staple of Crosby Stills & Nash with the vocal harmonies, especially “Renaissance Man,” which are prevalent through out the album. “Everybody’s Been Burned” is a haunting tune with a darker sonic atmosphere, yet it seems like it’s trying to crawl out of that the entire song. Following that is the bright arpeggio stylings of “Thoughts and Words.” A somewhat beautifully twangy ditty that has an actual rock bridge/chorus. The backwards solo is a nice touch, too. I always like “nice touches.” I believe the absolute weirdest tune on the album (almost psychedelic) is “Mind Gardens” which sounds like it would be psychedelic, right? Lots of backwards stuff on this tune with an acoustic guitar in the background. Lyrics that sound like David Crosby is tripping as he sings the tune. I don’t know that I like it, but I don’t know that I don’t. Still, after the whole album, certainly “My Back Pages” is still the best song on here and I love it more the more I listen to it. The album is great and I dig it.

#126 –  Catch a Fire by Bob Marley & the Wailers. The opening track, “Concrete Jungle,” is kind of laid back, musically but it is kind of powerful as far as lyrics go. “No sun and a yellow tint around town; no chains around his feet, yet he’s not free” (I am just paraphrasing and not quoting). I think he can’t break loose of the poverty that surrounds the entire island of Jamaica. It seems there’s a lot of heaviness around there for Bob. But, it seems not all is lost on the island nation. There’s a bit of love song relief in the mix, too. Probably the biggest tune on the album, “Stir It Up,” is a happy love tune. And, “Kinky Reggae,” no matter what others may say, is definitely a song about sex. I mean the lyrics talk of: “She had brown sugar all over her booga-wooga,” and “He had a candy tar all over his chocolate bar.” It’s sex. Candied sex. I liked it. I’ve gotten to where I can dig some Janis_Joplin-Pearl_(album_cover)reggae as of late. Really, though, if I’m going to listen, it has to be Marley. The other stuff doesn’t have the same effect for me. But, I’ll definitely go with dug!!

#125 – Pearl by Janis Joplin. Janis Joplin is one of the members of the dreaded “27 Club,” the unfortunate group of musicians/music industry people that passed at the age of 27, mostly from drugs, murder or suicide. The merits of this album were bolstered by the fact that while it is her most popular release, she died while recording it. She started studio sessions for the album at the beginning of September, 1970. She wrote the opening track, “Move Over,” herself. This was the only recordings she made with the Full Tilt Boogie Band, which was also the band she toured with. I do like “Half Moon” a good bit; it’s some serious early-’70s jam. Along the same lines, there’s “Buried Alive in the Blues.” Serious jam. The difference is that there are no vocals. It was left as an instrumental piece because Joplin was scheduled to go in and do vocal tracks but, she was scheduled to do so on a day that was the week after she passed away. So, as homage to her, they left it instrumental to demonstrate the void, I suppose. I have to say this: I have had plenty of people in my life talk about Joplin’s “amazing voice.” Whilst I do find it soulful, I also find it to be one of the most grating and annoying voices I’ve ever heard. It’s like she’s screaming at me the entire time. It’s nails on the chalkboard, constantly. That’s mostly evident to me on the Kris Kristofferson-penned “Me and Bobby McGee.” I’ve never been a fan of that song and listening to it, today, uninterrupted, that didn’t change. However, with that, I struggle with it because, I kind of like it, too. Like I said, a struggle. To me, the most chilling part is knowing that her a cappella send-off (if you will), “Mercedez Benz,” was recorded only 3 days before she died. It was her last recording. Again, I’ll give the soulfulness of her voice is almost unmatched but the grating tone and timbre is hard to sit through, for me. That being said, I actually did like the album, but I don’t care to listen to it again. Dug.

#124 – Moby Grape by Moby Grape. I have never heard of this band before. I had to piece together the songs as, while there are pieces of the album on Rhapsody, there are only pieces. There’s like one song from the album and then bonus tracks from a later reissue. I’m digging what I’ve heard so far. The opening track, “Hey Grandma” was rocking and roaring. I loved the harmonies in there, too. “8:05” is sad song, really. It is about someone’s love leaving (assuming by bus or train) and they’re not going with them. “Come in the Morning” is certainly a ’60s ‘Frisco sounding tune. It reminds me, definitely of the contemporaries of the era. I wasn’t born until 1970 and whilst I do now know a bit of that music, I’m not still not as versed as I’d like to be. “Omaha” was kind of punkish, really. It was in your face and punching you, the way I picture punk being. And it’s funny that it’s immediately followed by the short acoustic number, “Naked if I Want to.” “Ain’t No Use” puts me in mind of Buck Owen’s (or The Beatles) “Act Naturally.” It’s that same kind of country/western rock ‘n’ roll. This band had great harmonies. There’s also some of that ethereal psychedelia that you’d expect out of San Francisco. I picture a lot of mushrooms or something being ingested here. “Sitting by the Window” is such psychedelia and I like it. All in all, I’d have rather seen this band make it big then some of the stuff that did get popular out of SFO, I’m not naming names. I hear it was shoddy marketing that made the general public miss the mark on the band, and that’s 5102vTIYCSLdisappointing. Anyway, I dug this album. It was righteous. My only complaint was that I had to work so hard to find it. I could have listened to it in around 30 minutes, but because it wasn’t readily available on anything (and with some of them album being removed), it took me almost an hour to piece it together. Boo!

#123 – Raising Hell by Run-DMC. Early hip-hop gold here. It came out while I still lived in WV. I heard “My Adidas” right before I moved and then their (better, in my opinion) version of “Walk this Way” came out 2 weeks after I moved to WSNC and MTV ran it in the ground. That’s cool, though. My favorite single they released, on this album and any other by them, is “It’s Tricky.” I know The Knack sued them because they and producer Rick Rubin sampled “My Sharona.” I don’t know that it actually went to court, though. Other highlights are “Raising Hell” and “You Be Illin’.” I like the album and see where its significance in the genre is, but listening now, it sounds like a lot of other stuff. Yes, I realize that it’s a forerunner and trailblazer; I got it. I’m not downplaying it, really. It just seems like it is awfully repetitive. I’d still rather hear this than just about any other rap (Chronic  or Lethal from UTFO excluded) album. So, I’m good with that. Also, some early scratch work by the late Jam Master Jay. I dug it.

#122 – The Harder They Come (Soundtrack) by Various Artists. This is actually a compilation album with only one Jimmy Cliff song being specifically for the film of the same name. I’m sure it’s nice but I’m not writing about it.

#121 – Stand! by Sly and the Family Stone. Yesssssss! A lot of funk and rock. A lot of soul and rhythm. Three mega-hits on this album, too: the title track, “I Want to Take You sly-family-stone-805-lHigher” and “Everyday People.” Larry Graham, you, sir, are a beast of a bass player. I love funk bass and wish I were more versed in it. Lots of grit and dirt on this album and I love it! It’s funny to hear a laid-back “Somebody’s Watching You” right after the flash of “I Want to Take You Higher.” The virtuosity on this album is astounding, to me. Variety and style, too. And, really, I’d never paid attention to the lyrics of “Everyday People,” but holy smokes that’s an awesome song. I’ve always liked the song but when you read the lyrics, especially along with the song, it’s a fantabulous ditty. I’d say it’s coming into my top 1000 or so of songs as we speak. Honestly, I don’t know that I could name 1000 songs off the top of my head. That would be a feat, huh? Sly shows his bass chops on the last song of the album, “You Can Make It if You Try.” Good job, but I prefer Larry Graham. The only thing I could say is wrong with this album is the nearly-14 minute “Sex Machine.” But, really, that moves along pretty easily. This is an album that I’d love to find on vinyl. I know I say that about most funk albums, but this one is heavy and I want it. DUG!!

This segment has been chock-full of bass players that I really enjoy or am newly enjoying. Great stuff. The only snag was the soundtrack. I did research on it and had it been all original stuff for the album, I’d have reviewed it. Again, this  was a great segment and hope the next stretch is as good. Enjoy your week, Dear Reader, and look for the next segment, coming soon.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“There is a yellow one that won’t accept the black one, that won’t accept the red one, that won’t accept the white one. And, different strokes for different folks and so on and so on and scooby dooby doo. I am everyday people.” – “Everyday People” (Stewart)

Total It Up or: How I Did My Part for TV

14 Thursday May 2015

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It, Rant

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Boomerang, Discovery, Food Network, HGTV, Nielsen, Ratings, television

Salutations™!!

Have you ever done the Nielsen Ratings Diary? I was contacted about 2 months ago about interest. First it was a mailing with a survey as to my interest and eligibility. In it was 5 crisp $1 bills. I sent it back, filled out. Of course, who wouldn’t want to be part of keeping certain shows on the air? To be part of this process that almost all of us have heard about all our lives.?

So about 3 weeks go by and I get a call from Nielsen wanting to get some info from me for “demographic purposes.” They ask what some of my favorite shows were and my watching habits. He goes through the script and informs me that I will be 2015-05-14 12.46.59receiving my envelope within the next few weeks; no specific date given. Then about a week after that, I get another mailing that says that I will soon receive my envelope with the diaries included.  Why? Why send that? That’s wasteful. I was already told. It was documented already.

Okay, so I get the big envelope that has three diaries inside. One for the downstairs living room, one for upstairs bedroom and one for 3B’s bedroom.  It’s hard to dictate what he watches because it’s usually something on Discovery Channel and while he’s asleep there are several infomercials playing. When I come in his room on the mornings I have him at home, I put it on Boomerang because it’s usually Tom & Jerry. He leaves shortly thereafter.

Here’s the thing: when I got the envelope I opened it, saw the diaries and another five crisp $1 bills. Do they have their own money printer? Just get $$ by the sheet? I have no clue.  But, what I did was put them aside. Then, on Sunday afternoon, I look to see what I’m supposed to do and the diaries started the Thursday prior. Okay, well, that’s only 4 days, no problem, right? Um, no. Now, I want it to be as accurate as possible, that’s what it’s for. So I had to go back and remember what we watched and when. That took me a few hours. I knew what channels but did I know what? Like Food Network. We watch that a lot in this house but I wanted to be accurate as to what was on. Same with Food’s sister channel HGTV. On the weekends, especially they don’t have a set schedule, per se. It’s more like a guideline as to what you may see.

The diaries are smallish and hard for those of us (like me) with horrible handwriting to make neat and clean marks. Plus, who has to read all this? I know there are worse than me in the John Hancock department and people have to decipher this mess. My question is: Why don’t they offer an alternative online for those who are able to do so? I could fill this out much easier online and no one would have to try to figure what I have written. I think there would be less error and/or better copy & pasting. Results could be even quicker as it would be real-time, I’d think. I don’t know, I got $10 out of it and I’m doing what I can, it’s not up to me to read them.

So, I repeat, have you done one? What was your experience? Hit me up on here, or social media and tell me your experiences or thoughts on the Nielsen ratings. Do you think they could find a better tool than handwritten diaries? Let me know.

Until tomorrow (when I mail the diaries), same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“We study consumers in more than 100 countries to give you the most complete view of trends and habits worldwide.  And we’re constantly evolving, not only in terms of where we measure, or who we measure, but in how our insights can help you drive profitable growth.” – from “About Us” on Nielsen website.

36.099860
-80.244216

After These Messages or: What We Did for a Scooby Snack

06 Monday Oct 2014

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It, Rant

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ABC, American Bandstand, Batman, Cartoons, CBS, CW, DC, Dungeons and Dragons, Filmation, Hanna-Barbera, He-Man, Herculoids, Hong Kong Phooey, Kenner, Life as It is, Marvel, Mr. T, NBC, Pac-Man, Plastic Man, Rant, Saturday morning, Schoolhouse Rock, Shazam, She-Ra, Shirt Tales, Smurfs, Snorks, Soul Train, Space Ghost, Spider-Man, Super Friends, Tarzan, television, Thundarr the Barbarian, Thundercats, Time for Timer, WCHS, WOAY, WOWK, WSAZ, WVVA

Salutations™!!

So, CW, the last bastion of Saturday morning cartoons, has ceased its showings of anything that resembles animated entertainment.  It wasn’t even that long ago (ok 30+ years) that almost every American kid, aged 4-13 or even older, was getting up at some ridiculous hour on a Saturday to watch our favorite superheroes, mystery machine, little blue people, animals, underwater world or outer space adventure.  This, after complaining that we had to get up early to go to school 5 days a week; we had no problem getting up for these hand drawn nuggets. I’m sure there will be animated commercials but not actual cartoons.  So sad.

Super Friends

Super Friends Over the Years

I remember back to when I was only about 4 or 5, my dad would get up to go to work in the coal mines, but before he did, he’d place a blanket over the seat and back of the couch.  He’d then come get me out of bed, even carrying me, usually, lay me across the blanket and then wrap me like a caterpillar in a cocoon.  He’d then turn the TV on to channel 4, WOAY, for those in WV, because that’s where the Super Friends could be seen.  But before that, on the same channel Bugs Bunny and Yogi Bear would come on.  Afterwards, I would work my way out of the very tight wound pocket I was resting in, have some cereal, I was (and if so inclined am still) a Fruity Pebbles kind of guy.  Then maybe I’d work my way to channel 3 (WSAZ) or 6 (WVVA), both were NBC stations to see Sigmund and the Sea Monsters or, my grandfather’s fave, The Pink Panther.  Maybe, I’d switch to Channel 8, WCHS (Now ABC, Channel 13, WOWK, eventually took over) for what CBS had: some Josie and the Pussycats or Speed Buggy or whatever.  It started with ABC.

ShazamIsis1

Shazam!/Isis Power Hour

As I got older, my watching habits didn’t change, just what I watched, or at what time.  I wasn’t wrapped like a birthday present anymore, but Dad still made sure I was up, or my mom may have been at that time.  Super Friends moved to later time slots, but I still watched Bugs, Buggy, and Hong Kong Phooey.  Even though it wasn’t animated, Land of the Lost was big at the time. Oh! and Shazam! I LOVED Shazam! and when Isis was addded, it was extra cool.  Things like The Ghost Busters (with Larry Storch and Forrest Tucker, not the ’80s movie) and Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle and The New Adventures of Batman really turned my key. The latter was part of either Tarzan… or Batman and the Super 7.  Even Plastic Man was so popular at this time, he had a 90 minute show! Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!? was brought back from the ’60s, as well. I’m longing for all that now, the more I write this.

Space Ghost

Space Ghost

When 1977 came along and Star Wars happened, every other commercial was about the action figures, play sets, breakfast cereals, clothing lines or anything else related to the brand.  And that was OK.  I never minded commercials during Saturday morning cartoons because it was stuff that always interested me.  Speaking of space, NBC brought back the 60s hits Space Ghost and Herculoids to capitalize on the outer space phenomenon that was happening.

There was an educational element while Saturday morning cartoons were happening.  ABC played the now-famous Schoolhouse Rock which I was barely old enough to use them for what they were meant for.  The idea was to help students remember multiplication tables, and moved into American history, science and grammar.  I was just going on 3 when they started and didn’t need all that education, but the other thing SR was supposed to do was entertain because that’s how many of us learned, heck, most of us, even.  But, later, when reruns started back, I got through my 9th grade American Studies project of reciting the Preamble of the Constitution by singing it in my head.  But, that wasn’t all.  CBS had 30 Minutes and The CBS Saturday Film Festival.  And Time for Timer!? Who didn’t love Time for Timer?  And Chopper?  I didn’t even know what Peoria was, but I knew I should do pushups if I did know.  Hmmm… We learned and we didn’t mind it.

Thundarr

Thundarr the Barbarian

Even later in my cartoon watching career there was Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Thundarr the Barbarian, The Smurfs, Shirt Tales, Mr. T (he even had a cereal), Pac-Man (also a cereal), Snorks, and Laff-a-Lympics.  I had plenty of Saturdays that my friends had spent the night before and we watched cartoons together, or when we went out to play, we’d talk about how Samurai saved Superman and Apache Chief by shouting the famous “Kaze no Yō ni Hayaku” a time or two and how Darkseid was thwarted because of it.

shirt tales

Shirt Tales

But, with all this, there was one thing for sure: American Bandstand meant it was time to go outside and play.  We still did that.  We went out and played.  Not that I didn’t like American Bandstand.  The first time I heard “Turn Me Loose” from Loverboy was on American Bandstand.  I always thought it was weird that I had never heard any of the songs that Dick was polling the crowd about.  And Soul Train, I liked watching the dancing.  Still, usually, American Bandstand meant, OK! Saturday morning is over; let’s move on.  And we did.

he man

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe

I can remember when things started to fall apart.  It was still mid-’80s.  When He-Man, She-Ra and their respective “universes”, or Dungeons and Dragons, Thundercats and, basically, all those first-run syndication cartoons started playing during weekday afternoons and they brought back the Saturday morning toons for syndication all during the week, many parents stopped letting the kids sit in the house and watch cartoons on Saturdays.  They could watch cartoons all the time at this point.  I loved and hated that.  I loved that I could watch cartoons all the time (and I still watch the old ones when I get the chance) and hated that I could see it was the end of Saturday morning fun.

So back to the original thought here.  Those were the “good ol’ days.”  My son will never know the joys of WANTING to get up on a Saturday to watch cartoons.  He’ll never know the elation of talking about those cartoons with his friends.  Sitting under a blanket, in his Underoos or Superhero pajamas, eating cereal with feelings of suspense to see if Batman is going to escape the Riddler this time… won’t ever happen.  I’m so thankful to my dad, mom, friends, Filmation, Hanna-Barbera, Kenner, Post, Kelloggs, DC, Marvel, ABC, CBS, NBC and many more for making my childhood the fantastic time that it was.  I’m sad that time has passed, but like everything, all good things must come to an end.  There’s still cartoons, yes, and some of them are really good, but NONE can compare with what we had on Saturday mornings.

What are your thoughts/memories of Saturday mornings, dear reader? I’d love to hear your stories.  Comment, if you will.

Until next time, same blog channel at SOME blog time…
Scorp out!!

“Gathered together from the cosmic reaches of the universe – here in this great hall of justice – are the most powerful forces of good ever assembled.”  – Ted Knight, Narrator, Super Friends

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