By Rick Morris
I missed most of the EliteXC debut on CBS Saturday night (which was breathlessly stated repeatedly by the announcers to be the first MMA card on network prime time -- OK ,we get it already!), catching only bits and pieces prior to the main event because it was going head to head with Game Four of the Stanley Cup Finals. As someone who's only begun to follow mixed martial arts in the past few years, I was interested in the spectacle and really intrigued especially to see how the main event would unfold and I was glad that it came on after the hockey game was done.
Internet sensation Kimbo Slice, perhaps the most polarizing man in the sport, was the man around whom this broadcast was being built. Scoffed at by many UFC superstars and fight purists as an overhyped junkyard brawler, Slice was under the microscope like never before when he stepped in to the ring to face veteran James Thompson.
I would guess strongly that the fight unfolded in a manner that few expected. With confidence bolstered by his training with MMA legend Bas Rutten, Kimbo willingly got on the mat and mixed it up to fairly mediocre results. He almost got choked out at one point and he subsequently almost choked out Thompson, but could not. When on his feet, Slice had some good sequences with punches, but was not able to land a finisher through the first two rounds. To make a long story short, there were a lot of near-misses on both sides through the first two rounds in terms of ending the fight, so that did lead to a certain level of excitement. You could just feel the CBS executives soiling their underwear in fear as Kimbo neared the precipice a few times inasmuch as they staked so much of this venture on his perceived invincibility.
Early in Round Three, Kimbo came out firing and landed a few blows to Thompson's head. One of them ripped his cauliflower ear wide open, causing a gusher of blood. I've frankly never seen anything quite like that; the way that the ear almost seemed to explode with blood and some kind of freaky substance. Don't watch this clip on a full stomach.
Play-by-play announcer Gus Johnson strongly questioned the stoppage, and it may have been somewhat premature, but one wonders how much longer Thompson could have gone on with a freaking bloody alien popping out of the left side of his head.
On CBSSports.com, the event was panned as something of a disappointment in a tribute to the intellectual honesty of the network. Of course, this sets up a rematch scenario with Thompson, which works to their benefit. All in all, while the overall card did not live up to the hype based on all reports I've seen, by Kimbo surviving, EliteXC on CBS at least lives to fight another day. Everyone involved better hope that Rutten can continue to help him become a legitimate all-around fighter if this venture is to have any legs, though.
Showing posts with label CBS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CBS. Show all posts
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Defecating on tradition
By Rick Morris
For many years now, CBS's vaunted daytime show GUIDING LIGHT has been rumored to be on the brink of extinction. Ratings have been poor relative to other shows of the same genre, and the program has received the proverbial kiss of death in terms of attractiveness to advertisers: the perception that the demographics are disproportionately skewed towards the elderly. As a fan of Saturday afternoon PBA broadcasts when I was growing up, I know full well how that view can sink even a series with high ratings, much less the poor numbers of GL.
[Now, full disclosure here -- I was a longtime fan of GL, which is certainly not perceived in some quarters as the manliest thing to cop to, but I've always believed that true manliness lies in telling the truth and letting the chips fall where they may in terms of perception. So yes, I watched GUIDING LIGHT for almost half my life, do with that what you will!]
In my youth, when I discovered GL though my exposure to it when I came home from school every day to find my mom checking it out, I enjoyed it almost immediately. To my friends who ragged on me for watching "a crappy soap opera," I replied that it was certainly much less over-the-top than other shows allegedly so similar. As a budding writer, I appreciated the fact that the show generally paid at least a modicum of attention to character continuity and the storylines were at least a bit more down-to-earth than other daytime shows. I attributed these qualities to the lineage of GL, which is the oldest TV drama in existence and dates back to its form as a radio program in the 1930s.
In the late '90s, when the show digressed into the DYNASTY-like silliness of the San Cristobal storylines, I tuned out. I only resumed watching seven years later when the Phillip Spaulding character was being prepared to be killed in a "whodunit" storyline. I always believed that Phillip was one of the greatest and most complex characters in TV history and I was fascinated to watch his character's demise and the subsequent fallout that ensued (in a twist I should have seen coming, Phillip ended up not being dead after all, but due to the incompetence of the show's writers, they alienated him so much that he ended up not wanting to come back and the storyline never fully achieved closure). Along the way, I became acquainted with the Gus Aitoro character, Phillip's half-brother (hey, they only do half-brothers and half-sisters on soaps!), who I also found to be well-written and well-portrayed. Subsequently, poor writing again drove me away as a viewer, this time after less than two years.
The looming cloud of cancellation due to the rating situation has hovered over the show for years and whether I have been an active viewer or not, I have always wished for the program to achieve at least enough success to keep from disgracing the aforementioned lineage -- or at least to go out with a bang if it does get cancelled. Sadly, the mediocre direction embarked upon a decade ago and re-embraced in the last two years was almost enough to erase the memories of greatness from before. Just recently, GL killed off Gus Aitoro in completely asinine fashion after completely obliterating the direction of his character over the previous year. But never before has GL gone as far off the rails as they have recently, and in a way that makes "death with dignity" when the show inevitably ends irretrievable.
What did they do that was so bad? Well, this once-classy program, with an unmatched television heritage, decided that their return to relevance was contingent on adopting choppy, MTV-style filming with awkward camera angles, epilepsy-inducing shot segues and random zoom-ins that leave one with the ability to count the pores on an actor's face. At least now there is a sad consistency -- the lazy rewriting of history to fit today's stupid storylines is now matched by a presentation style equally infantile.
Upon learning of the changes and deciding to see them for myself, I taped a recent episode and was, as you can tell, horrified. It's not too much of an exaggeration to say that I felt like I did when I drove by a half-demolished Cleveland Stadium in 1996 and felt like my childhood memories had been crushed in the rubble. It makes me ill to think of the hours I spent watching this show growing up with my mother and seeing it defiled like it has been now -- and knowing that the alienation of more core viewers is just bringing the day of reckoning that much closer.
What's most sad is the fact that when the show inevitably gets axed, it won't be remembered for the television classic it once was, but for the festering piece of putrid garbage the present Powers That Be have devolved it into. The end of the road will be richly deserved for the hacks who have presided over this mess, but GUIDING LIGHT and its 75-year legacy sure don't deserve it. For shame.
For many years now, CBS's vaunted daytime show GUIDING LIGHT has been rumored to be on the brink of extinction. Ratings have been poor relative to other shows of the same genre, and the program has received the proverbial kiss of death in terms of attractiveness to advertisers: the perception that the demographics are disproportionately skewed towards the elderly. As a fan of Saturday afternoon PBA broadcasts when I was growing up, I know full well how that view can sink even a series with high ratings, much less the poor numbers of GL.
[Now, full disclosure here -- I was a longtime fan of GL, which is certainly not perceived in some quarters as the manliest thing to cop to, but I've always believed that true manliness lies in telling the truth and letting the chips fall where they may in terms of perception. So yes, I watched GUIDING LIGHT for almost half my life, do with that what you will!]
In my youth, when I discovered GL though my exposure to it when I came home from school every day to find my mom checking it out, I enjoyed it almost immediately. To my friends who ragged on me for watching "a crappy soap opera," I replied that it was certainly much less over-the-top than other shows allegedly so similar. As a budding writer, I appreciated the fact that the show generally paid at least a modicum of attention to character continuity and the storylines were at least a bit more down-to-earth than other daytime shows. I attributed these qualities to the lineage of GL, which is the oldest TV drama in existence and dates back to its form as a radio program in the 1930s.
In the late '90s, when the show digressed into the DYNASTY-like silliness of the San Cristobal storylines, I tuned out. I only resumed watching seven years later when the Phillip Spaulding character was being prepared to be killed in a "whodunit" storyline. I always believed that Phillip was one of the greatest and most complex characters in TV history and I was fascinated to watch his character's demise and the subsequent fallout that ensued (in a twist I should have seen coming, Phillip ended up not being dead after all, but due to the incompetence of the show's writers, they alienated him so much that he ended up not wanting to come back and the storyline never fully achieved closure). Along the way, I became acquainted with the Gus Aitoro character, Phillip's half-brother (hey, they only do half-brothers and half-sisters on soaps!), who I also found to be well-written and well-portrayed. Subsequently, poor writing again drove me away as a viewer, this time after less than two years.
The looming cloud of cancellation due to the rating situation has hovered over the show for years and whether I have been an active viewer or not, I have always wished for the program to achieve at least enough success to keep from disgracing the aforementioned lineage -- or at least to go out with a bang if it does get cancelled. Sadly, the mediocre direction embarked upon a decade ago and re-embraced in the last two years was almost enough to erase the memories of greatness from before. Just recently, GL killed off Gus Aitoro in completely asinine fashion after completely obliterating the direction of his character over the previous year. But never before has GL gone as far off the rails as they have recently, and in a way that makes "death with dignity" when the show inevitably ends irretrievable.
What did they do that was so bad? Well, this once-classy program, with an unmatched television heritage, decided that their return to relevance was contingent on adopting choppy, MTV-style filming with awkward camera angles, epilepsy-inducing shot segues and random zoom-ins that leave one with the ability to count the pores on an actor's face. At least now there is a sad consistency -- the lazy rewriting of history to fit today's stupid storylines is now matched by a presentation style equally infantile.
Upon learning of the changes and deciding to see them for myself, I taped a recent episode and was, as you can tell, horrified. It's not too much of an exaggeration to say that I felt like I did when I drove by a half-demolished Cleveland Stadium in 1996 and felt like my childhood memories had been crushed in the rubble. It makes me ill to think of the hours I spent watching this show growing up with my mother and seeing it defiled like it has been now -- and knowing that the alienation of more core viewers is just bringing the day of reckoning that much closer.
What's most sad is the fact that when the show inevitably gets axed, it won't be remembered for the television classic it once was, but for the festering piece of putrid garbage the present Powers That Be have devolved it into. The end of the road will be richly deserved for the hacks who have presided over this mess, but GUIDING LIGHT and its 75-year legacy sure don't deserve it. For shame.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Politically Incorrect Icons of Yesteryear: "Shock Jocks"
By Tony Mazur
A lot of people feel that radio is dead. I don't believe the industry is dead, but the thought is not far off. Back in the day, radio show hosts were able to be creative and open-minded. Nowadays, they're a bunch of corporate zombies who read liner notes. There's no question that radio content (or lack of) forced listeners to purchase iPods and satellite radios.
A shock jock is a radio show host who gets a rise out of listeners by broadcasting politically incorrect content. They tend to push the envelope of decency, and have heard the phrase "you've gone too far" more times than they can count. Shock jocks receive much of their criticism from special interest groups who find their particular program offensive. This form of radio is not new. Disk jockeys have attempted to shock their audience since the beginning, most notably with Orson Welles' "War of the Worlds" stunt.
Don Imus became somewhat of a pioneer when it comes to "shock jockery" back in the 1970s. Opie & Anthony have suffered through a couple of firings and a few fines, but they remain as "offensive" as ever. Perhaps the biggest shock jock of them all is Howard Stern. Howard has been fined more times than anyone for his suggestive content on his nationally syndicated program. He has since moved to Sirius Satellite Radio where there are no FCC guidelines to abide by.
This form of broadcasting had a run of 30+ years, beginning in the 1970s all the way until the early part of this decade. We all know where this is going. The Super Bowl XXXVIII Halftime show with Janet Jackson's exposed breast. I personally did not watch it live, and I really don't think two things about it. Anyways, in the wake of that fiasco, the FCC cracked down on "indecent programming". That means, if a show host broadcasts over-the-line content, they must be dealt with accordingly (fines, firings, license of station revoked).
Since then, the successful shock jocks of the past three decades have to look for new jobs. Some changed the entire outlook of their show. Others flocked to satellite or internet radio. Many just retired.
While special interest groups dance in the streets, radio has plummeted, mainly because the programming is garbage. Companies voice track DJs from other cities to make them sound local. Instead of a free-spirited morning show, jocks are forced to give weather and traffic reports, introduce pre-programmed songs, and give away junk prizes. All of that creativity isn't worth a damn in this business. As long as you play by the rules, you're buddy-buddy with the company.
The problem with radio is the fact that it's in every car, and each household owns about four radios total. Companies like Clear Channel and CBS think they can get away with terrible programming because radio will not go away.
Another issue regarding the demise of shock jocks is the fact that these "mighty and all powerful" broadcasting companies cater to the smallest of special interest groups. Not only CBS Radio, but MSNBC, a subsidiary of NBC, kowtowed to Al Sharpton and his insignificant group after Don Imus's "racist and sexist" remarks towards Rutgers' womens' basketball team.
Here's another thing to think about when it comes to shock jocks. They're all white. I've heard some offensive content on all-black stations, and the hosts openly admitted that they have a hatred toward white people. But shows like that are still on the air. Womens' shows spout off about how they are superior to men, but nothing is said. And why is that? Because big business is afraid of minorities and women for fear of being called bigoted. So they target white men who make jokes about pornography.
I salute those shock jocks who put their careers and the station's license at risk just to entertain their audience. Now that the content is horrendous, I look to other mediums to be entertained. I certainly hope radio executives can get it together and produce better programming, instead of hearing a jock from Tampa, Florida introduce the next Metallica song and tell me what the weather is like in my backyard.
A lot of people feel that radio is dead. I don't believe the industry is dead, but the thought is not far off. Back in the day, radio show hosts were able to be creative and open-minded. Nowadays, they're a bunch of corporate zombies who read liner notes. There's no question that radio content (or lack of) forced listeners to purchase iPods and satellite radios.
A shock jock is a radio show host who gets a rise out of listeners by broadcasting politically incorrect content. They tend to push the envelope of decency, and have heard the phrase "you've gone too far" more times than they can count. Shock jocks receive much of their criticism from special interest groups who find their particular program offensive. This form of radio is not new. Disk jockeys have attempted to shock their audience since the beginning, most notably with Orson Welles' "War of the Worlds" stunt.
Don Imus became somewhat of a pioneer when it comes to "shock jockery" back in the 1970s. Opie & Anthony have suffered through a couple of firings and a few fines, but they remain as "offensive" as ever. Perhaps the biggest shock jock of them all is Howard Stern. Howard has been fined more times than anyone for his suggestive content on his nationally syndicated program. He has since moved to Sirius Satellite Radio where there are no FCC guidelines to abide by.
This form of broadcasting had a run of 30+ years, beginning in the 1970s all the way until the early part of this decade. We all know where this is going. The Super Bowl XXXVIII Halftime show with Janet Jackson's exposed breast. I personally did not watch it live, and I really don't think two things about it. Anyways, in the wake of that fiasco, the FCC cracked down on "indecent programming". That means, if a show host broadcasts over-the-line content, they must be dealt with accordingly (fines, firings, license of station revoked).
Since then, the successful shock jocks of the past three decades have to look for new jobs. Some changed the entire outlook of their show. Others flocked to satellite or internet radio. Many just retired.
While special interest groups dance in the streets, radio has plummeted, mainly because the programming is garbage. Companies voice track DJs from other cities to make them sound local. Instead of a free-spirited morning show, jocks are forced to give weather and traffic reports, introduce pre-programmed songs, and give away junk prizes. All of that creativity isn't worth a damn in this business. As long as you play by the rules, you're buddy-buddy with the company.
The problem with radio is the fact that it's in every car, and each household owns about four radios total. Companies like Clear Channel and CBS think they can get away with terrible programming because radio will not go away.
Another issue regarding the demise of shock jocks is the fact that these "mighty and all powerful" broadcasting companies cater to the smallest of special interest groups. Not only CBS Radio, but MSNBC, a subsidiary of NBC, kowtowed to Al Sharpton and his insignificant group after Don Imus's "racist and sexist" remarks towards Rutgers' womens' basketball team.
Here's another thing to think about when it comes to shock jocks. They're all white. I've heard some offensive content on all-black stations, and the hosts openly admitted that they have a hatred toward white people. But shows like that are still on the air. Womens' shows spout off about how they are superior to men, but nothing is said. And why is that? Because big business is afraid of minorities and women for fear of being called bigoted. So they target white men who make jokes about pornography.
I salute those shock jocks who put their careers and the station's license at risk just to entertain their audience. Now that the content is horrendous, I look to other mediums to be entertained. I certainly hope radio executives can get it together and produce better programming, instead of hearing a jock from Tampa, Florida introduce the next Metallica song and tell me what the weather is like in my backyard.
Monday, February 11, 2008
50th Annual Grammy Awards: PLEASE Don't Let There Be 50 More...
By Tony Mazur
Last night the 50th Annual Grammy Awards was broadcast live on CBS from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony honors the musical achievement of artists from all genres. The Grammys feature many performances by today's hottest singers or groups, and sometimes collaborations, and awards are presented by music legends, even though most of the awards were handed out prior to the broadcast.
I watched it. Needless to say, I wasn't impressed. Tony Mazur is not impressed by an awards show?? Preposterous! It was one of those situations where it's extremely cold outside, there's nothing else on TV (see Pro Bowl...), and I'm eating dinner. Otherwise, I would have tuned into the same reruns of Family Guy. Don't get me wrong; I love Family Guy. But Seth, make some new ones already!
Anyways, onto what I did like from the Grammys.
I do like Alicia Keys. She sang a "duet" with Frank Sinatra to start the show, and she later performed "No One", her Grammy Award-winning single. Morris Day and The Time did their 1984 hit, "Jungle Love", with Rihanna, leading into her Top 40 songs, "Umbrella" and "Don't Stop The Music". The Band, Bob Dylan's band, received a Lifetime Achievement Award, so that was cool. The Foo Fighters won Best Rock Album for Echoes, Silence, Patience, and Grace, and performed "The Pretender" outside of the Staples Center, by far the best performance of the night.
Oh, and I also loved the music playing off Kanye West was he was gloating to the world about his Grammy Award. What a pompous piece of garbage.
Now onto the bad parts of the evening.
Can Aretha Franklin never appear on a stage again? With a yellow dress, she honestly looked like a school bus.
Bruce Springsteen won three Grammy Awards. Why?! The Boss is so far removed from being that blue collar man from New Jersey. He used to be this high energy, brilliant songwriter from Asbury Park, thanking WMMS's Kid Leo for first playing his music. Now he's this cranky, Obama-supporting communist who hasn't put out anything halfway decent since Born To Run.
Speaking of Osama- I mean, Obama (who hasn't gotten that one wrong?), he won a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for his book, The Audacity of Hope. Please don't tell me this is going to be his year. I have hundreds of reasons why I do not want Barack Obama to be our next president, but I'll save that for further FDH Lounge posts.
Just a question. Why does every awards show have to be political? Can someone answer me that question?
After losing American Idol, Chris Daughtry has blown up the music world with such songs as "It's Not Over", "Home", "What I Want", and "Over You". However, he got screwed out of an award. The aforementioned Springsteen won his deserved award.
Everyone made a big deal about Amy Winehouse not being able to perform in the United States. I watched her perform "Rehab", and it didn't blow me away. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't breathtaking.
I don't know who performed The Beatles' "Let It Be", but I started cringing. They turned a wonderful song written by Paul McCartney into a Negro spiritual. And that brings me to my next point. I understand that February is Black History Month, but do we have to have a constant reminder ever ten minutes? I acknowledge the month. But please don't pound it into my head 24/7.
A miscellaneous thing I got out of the ceremony was the good time Tina Turner had with Beyonce. Now that Ike is six feet under, Tina enjoyed herself for the first time since 1962.
50 years of the Grammys. 50 years of fraud and phoniness. This must be why I watch sports. Oh wait, steroids, gambling, thug lifestyles. I guess there's no escaping it.
Meanwhile, here is a video of the Foo Fighters performing "The Pretender" in England.
Last night the 50th Annual Grammy Awards was broadcast live on CBS from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony honors the musical achievement of artists from all genres. The Grammys feature many performances by today's hottest singers or groups, and sometimes collaborations, and awards are presented by music legends, even though most of the awards were handed out prior to the broadcast.
I watched it. Needless to say, I wasn't impressed. Tony Mazur is not impressed by an awards show?? Preposterous! It was one of those situations where it's extremely cold outside, there's nothing else on TV (see Pro Bowl...), and I'm eating dinner. Otherwise, I would have tuned into the same reruns of Family Guy. Don't get me wrong; I love Family Guy. But Seth, make some new ones already!
Anyways, onto what I did like from the Grammys.
I do like Alicia Keys. She sang a "duet" with Frank Sinatra to start the show, and she later performed "No One", her Grammy Award-winning single. Morris Day and The Time did their 1984 hit, "Jungle Love", with Rihanna, leading into her Top 40 songs, "Umbrella" and "Don't Stop The Music". The Band, Bob Dylan's band, received a Lifetime Achievement Award, so that was cool. The Foo Fighters won Best Rock Album for Echoes, Silence, Patience, and Grace, and performed "The Pretender" outside of the Staples Center, by far the best performance of the night.
Oh, and I also loved the music playing off Kanye West was he was gloating to the world about his Grammy Award. What a pompous piece of garbage.
Now onto the bad parts of the evening.
Can Aretha Franklin never appear on a stage again? With a yellow dress, she honestly looked like a school bus.
Bruce Springsteen won three Grammy Awards. Why?! The Boss is so far removed from being that blue collar man from New Jersey. He used to be this high energy, brilliant songwriter from Asbury Park, thanking WMMS's Kid Leo for first playing his music. Now he's this cranky, Obama-supporting communist who hasn't put out anything halfway decent since Born To Run.
Speaking of Osama- I mean, Obama (who hasn't gotten that one wrong?), he won a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for his book, The Audacity of Hope. Please don't tell me this is going to be his year. I have hundreds of reasons why I do not want Barack Obama to be our next president, but I'll save that for further FDH Lounge posts.
Just a question. Why does every awards show have to be political? Can someone answer me that question?
After losing American Idol, Chris Daughtry has blown up the music world with such songs as "It's Not Over", "Home", "What I Want", and "Over You". However, he got screwed out of an award. The aforementioned Springsteen won his deserved award.
Everyone made a big deal about Amy Winehouse not being able to perform in the United States. I watched her perform "Rehab", and it didn't blow me away. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't breathtaking.
I don't know who performed The Beatles' "Let It Be", but I started cringing. They turned a wonderful song written by Paul McCartney into a Negro spiritual. And that brings me to my next point. I understand that February is Black History Month, but do we have to have a constant reminder ever ten minutes? I acknowledge the month. But please don't pound it into my head 24/7.
A miscellaneous thing I got out of the ceremony was the good time Tina Turner had with Beyonce. Now that Ike is six feet under, Tina enjoyed herself for the first time since 1962.
50 years of the Grammys. 50 years of fraud and phoniness. This must be why I watch sports. Oh wait, steroids, gambling, thug lifestyles. I guess there's no escaping it.
Meanwhile, here is a video of the Foo Fighters performing "The Pretender" in England.
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