WORKING TO WATCH

Candace Corner is a writer for CareerBuilder.com and she's listed the top ten jobs for TV Junkies:

1. Animator
2. Camera Operator
3. Broadcast Captioner
4. Broadcast News Reporter
5. Film/Video Editor for Broadcast/Television
6. Executive Producer
7. Promotions Producer
8. Director
9. Staff Writer
10. Casting Director

With each category, she fills in a few details as to what the job entails and approximately how much each of them pays annually. (She got these salary stats from Payscale.com, The Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Writer's Guild of America, CNNMoney and Salary.com.)

But those are all jobs for people who want to work in the business. I've always held the opinion that, like laws and sausages, the production of TV shows should not be seen being made.

For me, a job for a true TV junkie is one in which you can get paid to actually watch TV. And I don't mean TV critics, columnists, professional bloggers, or as part of some research group.

I mean, having a regular job on which you can also watch TV during your shift.

I think that as a hotel night auditor, I've got that type of job. (Maybe Ivan over at the Thrilling Days Of Yesteryear can back me up on that.)

During my lunch hour, there's always the TV in the lunch room, of course. But there are several hours during the shift that is like a "dead zone": after I've finished the audit, but before the first wave of checkouts begin around 4 am. (And even then!)

I suppose I could bring in a small portable and see what kind of reception I get there in the lobby. But with all the skyscrapers in midtown, I'm not sure it would be very good.

However, I do have a small DVD player and with that I'm able to catch up on a lot of shows from the past through their boxed sets.

Right now, I'm "working" my way through the boxed set for 'Naked City' starring Horace McMahon and Paul Burke. In the past, I've watched the boxed sets for 'Goode Neighbours', 'Dream On', 'The Job', and a bootleg set of DVDs for the Ninth Doctor of 'Doctor Who' (culled from bit torrents, I'm told).

It doesn't interfere with the job itself, - nobody's coming to the desk and I'm just sitting there anyway! - and helps me to make some headway in my backlog of shows to watch in order to find more trivial information to expand the TV Universe. (For instance, Detective Arcaro in 'Naked City' was shot in one episode and ended up in Manhattan General Hospital. This same hospital was the central location for 'Kay O'Brien, Surgeon'.)

And best of all, I'm getting paid during that time.

Sweet.

BCnU!
Tele-Toby