SNOWGLOBAL II

Earlier today I posted that quote by Guillermo del Toro about the existence of the magical brought about by Belief. And then I mentioned that I wrote about the same thing in my Toobworld novel.

I mention that novel every so often, but I'm not sure when/if I'll ever be ready to send it out.

Oh, it's finished, but I keep coming up with new nitpicks to add or amend to the body of the story. But I thought I'd at least share with you now that same section I mentioned - in which my characters discuss how Belief can bring fictional characters to life.

Hey, it's my birthday party, I'll quote if I want to.....

"I don't see where there is a major difference between literature and television," said Bat. "They're just different ways to tell stories. Mankind has been telling stories since he could first corner an audience. Gathered around their campfires, the tellers of tales would spin their myths about their gods and heroes, monsters and strange occurrences. All to explain the mysteries of the world around them."

Bat leaned forward and as one, The Group leaned into the circle to listen. Obviously, thought Thom, Bat had mastered the art of the storyteller over the years. With their attention focused on the editor, Thom was the only one to notice Keefe get up and leave the room, but he figured the puppeteer still had a few pints to empty.

"Because of the book I’m working on, right now ghost stories are my particular area of expertise," Bat continued. "I believe they may be one of the older forms of folklore. As the cavemen sat close to their fires, who knew what types of supernatural beings lurked in the shadows beyond the fire and in the shadows of their minds? The stories gave them a way to talk out their fears. They were told and retold, embellished and revised, over the ages. Until the audiences came to believe in the ghosts, the demons, and the elves. Mankind put so much of his belief, his faith, into the booguns of his subconscious that it gave them life."

"Get real!" scoffed Mary Ann. She wasn't giving anybody the benefit of the doubt.

But Bat was unfazed. "No? What about the sightings of the Devil during the years of the Salem Witch Trials? And of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster? Au grand seriux, who here can truthfully say that they never were afraid of ghosts, even though they knew ghosts couldn't be real?"

"Not me," Griff admitted. "I still won't go down into our parents' basement if I'm the only one in the house."

"The only one.... LIVING, that is!" Rafe intoned with an evil laugh. Rachel smacked him with a throw pillow.

"En fin, television is a direct descendant of that oral tradition," Bat concluded. "Only the fire is now a flickering blue light with the stories built in."

"Funny you should put it that way," Toob remarked. "Ed Wynn once described television as the 'glass furnace'."

Rachel Wixted was still mulling over Bat's theory. "So you're saying that if enough people believed in Joe Friday and Roseanne Roseannadanna like Toob does, then it would bring them to life?"

Bat nodded. "A gestalt existence."

"The power of the Id," added Nash.

"Horseshit!" sneered Rafe.

Hope you liked that....

BCnU!

BIRTHDAY M*A*S*H-UPS

So.....

Let's have a little fun on my birthday!

You may have seen the "Han Solo, P.I." video mash-up on other sites - scenes from the various "Star Wars" movies synchronized to the music of 'Magnum, P.I.'.

But the guys who put it together have also cobbled together a video that compares "Han Solo, P.I." to the original opening credits for 'Magnum'.

Have a look-see:



I love this sort of stuff! There's another one out there of 'Star Trek: The Next Generation" as if it was the next incarnation of 'The Love Boat'!



And here's the original crew of the Enterprise working as 'The A-Team':



But my favorite combination is that of 'Doctor Who' and 'Quantum Leap'; they just are perfect together, like chocolate and peanut butter!

This is the first one I found at YouTube a few months back:



And here's a more recent one, that's a bit more detailed:



I like 'em both.

BCnU!

SNOWGLOBAL

The BBC interviewed Guillermo del Toro, who's filming the adapation of Tolkien's "The Hobbit". And even though he was talking about his novels and his movies, this quote jumped out at me as being the very heart of why Toobworld exists......

"I believe that creatures and places can exist if they exist in the collective imagination. Although we'll never find a vampire corpse or a real alternate species of human or sub-human, they do exist by virtue of the fact that we have all willed them into reality. The same as dragons and a few other creatures."

It's a point that comes up early in my Toobworld novel!
BCnU!

TVXOHOF, 6/6/09: THE BIRTHDAY HONORS LIST

Today is my birthday!

And as I have done for most of this decade, there is a Birthday Honors List induction into the TV Crossover Hall of Fame.

Last year, the special honoree was Archibald Beechcroft, who entered 'The Twilight Zone' and became every single TV character who was alive on a particular day in the early 1960's. I should have saved that entry for this year - when we're celebrating the tenth anniversary of the TV Crossover Hall of Fame.

But I do have something similar that hopefully should be just as good.....

This year, the Birthday Honors List pays tribute to:

THE INTERSECT

The Intersect is the super-computer repository of all the government's secret files, which is now housed in "ze little gray cells" of 'Chuck' Bartowski's brain.

And 'Chuck' doesn't have just the records of the cases he's worked during the course of the show; his brain has been uploaded with the combined data from agencies working under the aegis of Homeland Security - the NSA, the CIA, the FBI, SID, CONTROL, and probably even those from the World Security Bureau, Section One, UNIT, and U.N.C.L.E.

We know that Chuck, now known as "The Asset" to the NSA, has been able to access the info from those agencies as seen in other TV shows, even those of rival networks. We saw this happen in the second episode from the first season ("Chuck vs. The Helicopter") when he blurted out the cause of the crash of Oceanic Flight 815. This is a reference to 'Lost' (but we didn't get to see Chuck complete the answer).

If he could only access it, Chuck Bartowski could give us the intel on all of the alien invasions covered up by the government and about the Village..... which is where Chuck may wind up some day if he's not careful......

So inside the brain of 'Chuck', the Intersect has all the encrypted files from all of the spy and espionage shows.

My compadres at TV Acres have compiled a dossier on those shows which would probably have had their files uploaded into the Intersect; that is, a list of all of those shows that dealt with spies and intelligence agencies. Click here to see that list. With the possibility that all of those shows have Chuck's brain as their nexus, is it any wonder why it should be in the TV Crossover Hall of Fame.

But even so, this is a Birthday Honors List and one must always obey the mantra....

What I say, goes.

BCnU!

PS:
Hey, for alls I know, they have info from 'Highway Patrol' to boot!

AS SEEN ON TV: SELLERS MARKET, PART SEVEN

For our final entry in this week-long salute to Peter Sellers (as played by Geoffrey Rush in "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers"), we saved Sellers' most famous character for last:

French Police Inspector Jacques Clouseau
from the many "Pink Panther" movies.

Clousseau is seen here "practicing" martial arts with his manservant Kato, who would always attack at the most inopportune time. Kato was played by Burt Kwouk, who in turn is portrayed in the HBO movie by Tom Wu.

Good luck at the Tony Awards, Mr. Rush!

BCnU!

TOOBWORLD: ON BROADWAY!

Despite my fondness for Megyn Price, I had never seen an episode of 'Rules Of Engagement' before. The original previews for the show just smacked of the type of sitcom I just don't have the tolerance for anymore (except for 'The Big Bang Theory' and 'Two And A Half Men'). The ones I do watch now? Besides those first two examples, there are 'My Boys', 'HIMYM', '30 Rock', 'Z Rock', and 'Better Off Ted'. I guess 'Krod Mandoon' too if it comes back.....

Anyhoo, this week I caught a repeat episode because I saw that it would concern going to the theater. And I thought - what the bleep; might as well see if there's anything in this for Toobworld.....

So first off, I have a question, since I don't watch this series..... Does it take place in the NYC area? Everything seemed to lead me to that conclusion - the mention of the theatre district, a yearly boat show, Megyn Price is a magazine editor.....

I just want to make sure.

Because there were three major discrepancies between Toobworld and the real world with this episode!

1] "Wicked" is playing at a Lyric Theatre. The official Lyric Theatre of Manhattan was on 42nd Street but was transformed into a cinema in the 1930's. There's one in Battery Park and one in Brooklyn as well. But in the real world, "Wicked" is playing at the gargantuan Gershwin theatre on W. 50th Street... and has a far more grandiose marquee than seen in this show!

On 'Ugly Betty', Daniel took an advertiser to see "Wicked" on Broadway and you KNEW that was the Gershwin! So for Toobworld purposes, "Wicked" finally moved to a smaller theater, which sometimes happens in the real world. And should a series ever show it again at the Gershwin, we can just say that in Toobworld it moved for restoration purposes....

2] Instead of the official magazine for the theatre-goer being "Playbill", Audrey and Russell and the other people in the audience can be seen reading and clutching their copies of "Castbill". Let's hope that little prop nugget gets used again in some other show! 3] When Jeff finds out that Audrey is seeing shows with Russell, they're at a showing of a new Stephen Sondheim musical called "Bound For Broadway". (Russell mentioned that a problem with these Sondheim shows is that he doesn't write any intermissions anymore - always good for a bathroom break!

BCnU!

ECCE PROMO: WESTEN HOSPITALITY

The USA Network has its own TV mini-dimension going with the promos they cook up featuring the characters from their shows meeting each other. And with their summer series kicking off tonight, they've got a new one out there to introduce Dr. Hank Lawson of 'Royal Pains' to the mix......



Sort of a Welcome Wagon, meet the neighbors, kind of get-together....

BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: SELLERS MARKET, PART SIX

AS PLAYED BY:
Geoffrey Rush

AS SEEN IN:
"The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers"

Peter Sellers was nominated for the 1980 Academy Award as Best Actor for his role as "Chauncey Gardiner" (actually Chance The Gardener) in "Being There". It was a tough category that year - he was up against Roy Scheider, Al Pacino, and Jack Lemmon, and they all lost to Dustin Hoffman in "Kramer vs. Kramer". (I think Scheider should have won for "All That Jazz", but what do I know?)

"Being There" was Sellers' penultimate film role......

THE HAT SQUAD: DAVID CARRADINE

It feels so much better when we can honor a unique contribution to Toobworld while the person involved is still alive, rather than after they're dead.

Not that David Carradine ever knew about it, but in July of last year, his character of Kwai Chang Caine was inducted into the TV Crossover Hall Of Fame.

And we've lost another TV icon this year.......

Apparently the Darkness had been with him a long time; he talked of suicide during interviews in the past. I don't know what pushed him to finally go through with it this time, especially after seeing him in a recent TV interview to plug a Hallmark TV movie in which he starred with Bruce Dern and Rip Torn. I haven't read any of the articles; not sure I really want to know.....

Goodnight, and may God bless......

THE HAT SQUAD: KOKO TAYLOR

Legendary blues singer Koko Taylor, of "Wang Dang Doodle" fame, has passed away from post-surgery complications. She was 80 years old.

In Toobworld, she made fictionalized appearances as herself in two series - one set in the live-action Earth Prime-Time, and the other one in The Tooniverse.

In "The Enforcers", a 1996 episode of 'New York Undercover', she showed up while Detective Williams was investigating the murder of his son's tutor.

As usual, things were a little different over in The Tooniverse: for starters, Koko Taylor was now a humanoid animal in an episode of 'Arthur'. She stopped in to the ice cream shop and later helped "Big Horns George" find his voice in the Blues.....

Good night and may God bless.

Wang Dang Doodle.....

WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE!

Found this on YouTube, and after writing about the original version and what might have been, I thought it would be cool to feature this side-by-side comparison of the Cinverse vs. the Tooniverse.....

BCnU!

COSMIC COINKYDINK

When I posted a status update about "Inner Toob" to my Facebook page on Tuesday, I was asked to copy out these two words.

Which is a bit o' serendipiteevee, as I mentioned a post about the new 'Star Trek' movie!

BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: SELLERS MARKET, PART FIVE

There's a reason why we're showcasing Peter Sellers this week, and it's not because of the late comic genius.

Rather, it's a celebration of Geoffrey Rush, who played the lead role in the HBO movie "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers". Rush is currently on Broadway in Ionesco's "Exit The King", for which he has been nominated for the Tony Award as Best Actor.

If I time my arrival just right, I can sometimes see him as he exits the theater [which is right across the street from where I work.....]

BCnU!

MEMORY LANE: PATTY & CATHY!

How come nobody wrote in to Toobworld Central to let us know about this blipvert?

I guess that just shows to go ya how big a fanbase we really have, despite those impressive Site Meter numbers.....

Anyhoo, at least we're finally mentioning this during the month for the sign of the Gemini....

Since January, there's been a PSA for the Social Security department starring Patty Duke as her classic TV cousins Patty and Cathy Lane. They're both seen in black & white moments in their lives as mentioned in the show's theme song, as well as in recreations of actual scenes from the opening credits. And then as they are reunited in the kitchen, color is restored. Patty - who is still married to Richard - complains about having to trudge down to Brooklyn Heights with all the paperwork needed to sign up for Social Security. But Cathy - always the practical one (who at 62 is looking like Cloris Leachman!) - clues her identical cousin into doing it all online. No matter what question Patty has about the process, Cathy always answers with "Online."

Patty: How did you get so smart?
Cathy: Online.

You can see her/their PSA blipvert at the Social Security site.


At YouTube, there are several variations on the original blipvert, including one in which Patty makes a serlinguist pitch to the audience about how it's easier to apply online for Social Security than it is to re-learn the Watusi. And in another, it's Cathy who takes the advice from Patty about applying online - which means that it must take place in an alternate TV dimension.

This makes Patty and Cathy Lane eligible for induction into the TV Crossover Hall of Fame, since Patty Duke also played both roles in a 1999 TV reunion movie special "The Patty Duke Show: Still Rockin' In Brooklyn Heights". (Because he was mentioned, I think Richard should be eligible as well someday as an honorary inductee.)
Considering they're twin cousins, I would think a June induction might be in order someday......

Suddenly I have this craving for hotdogs!

BCnU!

THE DELTA VEGA DISCREPANCY

In the second 'Star Trek' pilot ("Where No Man Has Gone Before"), Delta Vega was a planet near the edge of the Galaxy which had an automated lithium-cracking station. It was here that the Enterprise stopped to make repairs, and where Kirk hoped to strand his friend Gary Mitchell and Dr. Elizabeth Dehner after they both became imbued with dangerous powers from contact with the Great Barrier. But in the new "Star Trek" movie, Delta Vega is an icy planet in the same solar system as Vulcan, which can be seen quite plainly with the naked eye from the surface of Delta Vega.

"We moved the planet to suit our purposes," said Robert Orci in an interview with TrekMovie.com. "The familiarity of the name seemed more important as an Easter egg, than a new name with no importance."

Even so, they should have realized that die-hard Trekkers* would know the origin of that planet's name and complain that it would be impossible for a planet at the edge of the Galaxy could also be that close to Vulcan.

No amount of rebooting the 'Trek' timeline could reconcile that discrepancy - or could it?

Here's a "just maybe": because everything else - especially the technology - was put into high-speed advancement in the new timeline because of the interference by Nero and his revenge-seeking Romulans, some other Starfleet vessel sought out the Great Barrier at the edge of the Galaxy before Kirk and his crew had the chance. Rather than Mitchell and Dehner, somebody else on that "wessel" gained similarly heightened powers and proved to be a danger not only to the ship but to the entire Federation as well.

I'm thinking that somehow those new meta-humans combined their powers to "fling" Delta Vega through the Galaxy until it finally "came to rest" in the same star system shared by Vulcan.** As it shot through space, the climatic conditions on the planet were radically altered, so that it was basically an ice-ball by the time it settled into orbit. This would explain why such an arctic environment would have a creature evolve that looked to be more at home in a tropical atmosphere.

This would have happened long before the movie takes place, so that it's reasonable for nobody to feel the need to mention it. And that lithium-cracking station would now be buried under the ice, but still operational - a perfect gulag where Scotty could be banished - er, assigned.

It could also have been due to an earlier reboot of the timeline caused by the crew of the Enterprise, led by Captain Picard, dabbling in the affairs of Zephraim Cochrane (as seen in the earlier "Trek" movie, "First Contact".)

Upon arrival in the Vulcan star system, the abrupt gravitational pull of Delta Vega could have caused major upheavals to the surface of Vulcan. And this could serve as a splainin for the difference in the landscape between the original episode "Amok Time" and the re-mastered version........

BCnU!

*By the way, I don't mind being called a "Trekkie". No stigma to that in my mind.

** Hey - if it could happen in Commander Koenig's coma dream in the Toobworld version of 'Space: 1999', why not in the "real life" of the TV Universe?

AS SEEN ON TV: SELLERS MARKET, PART FOUR

Here's something a bit different for the "As Seen On TV" feature - Peter Sellers as he looked in a role he never got to play.

For "Dr. Strangelove", Peter Sellers was originally supposed to play four roles in the movie. We've already seen him (as portrayed by Geoffrey Rush in "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers") as the United States President and as Dr. Strangelove himself. He also appeared as RAF officer Lionel Mandrake, a British observer at the military base where General Jack D. Ripper initiated the nuclear strike on the Soviet Union without authorization. But he was also supposed to play Major T.J. "King" Kong, the pilot of the fighter plane that was able to break through the Russian defenses and drop the bomb on its secondary target.

Here's how Wikipedia describes what happened:

"Ultimately, Peter Sellers played three of the four roles initially written for him. At the start of production, it was expected that he would also play the role of Air Force Major T. J. "King" Kong, the B-52 Stratofortress aircraft commander, but from the beginning, Sellers was reluctant to do so. He felt his workload was too heavy, and he was concerned that he would not be able to reproduce the Texan accent required for the character of Kong. Kubrick pleaded with him, and asked screenwriter Terry Southern (who had been raised in Texas) to record a tape with Kong's lines spoken in the correct accent. Using Southern's tape, Sellers managed to get the accent right, and started shooting the scenes in the airplane. However, Sellers sprained an ankle and could not play the role, as technical constraints would have confined him to the cramped space of the cockpit set."

Veteran cowboy actor Slim Pickens was hired (after the role was turned down by John Wayne and Dan Blocker), and so one of the greatest scenes in movie history was immortalized.

Had Sellers been able to play the role of Kong, he would have been involved in all three areas of activity in the movie, basically being present for our mass destruction on all fronts.

Even though I prefer seeing Slim Pickens in the role, I would have been curious to see Peter Sellers ride out the finale.....

(MAJOR KONG'S MAJOR SPOILER!)




Yee-Ha!

BCnU!

ECCE PROMO: AMC's "THE PRISONER"

I didn't think it would ever be possible, but I'm really excited about this project and can't wait for November to get here!

(But hopefully two weeks in August will take forever to pass.....)

BCnU!

TVXOHOF, 06/2009-A: JOHN RITTER

This is the month of my birth. And so for the tenth anniversary celebration of the TV Crossover Hall of Fame, I wanted each week's inductee to be somebody - or place - that was special.

For the League of Themselves entry this week, we have John Ritter - a very sweet and very funny actor who left us long before his time upon this stage should have played out. He was just reaching his prime as a dramatic actor, but had already proven his skill as a comedic master on TV.

And he played L. Frank Baum, the author of "The Wizard Of Oz" books! As that's my favorite movie, that goes a long way in my book!

Here are the TV shows in which he appeared as himself:

"TV Funhouse"
- Chinese New Year's Day (2001)

"Dave's World"
- The Accidental Tourists (1995)
- A Room with a View (1994)

"The Larry Sanders Show"
- The Fourteenth Floor (1994)
- Off Camera (1993)

"Life with Lucy"
- Lucy Makes a Hit with John Ritter (1986)

And in that TV dimension in which our TV shows are depicted as TV shows (thanks to behind-the-scenes TV movies), John Ritter was played by Bret Anthony in "Behind The Camera: The Unauthorized Story Of 'Three's Company'". This may not be much of a tribute, but 'twill serve.....

BCnU.....

"STAR TREK XI": A GAILA CELEBRATION

Because I don't want to be TOO corrupted by outside opinions regarding Toobworld (I won't say no to some influence/inspiration!), I usually tend to stay away from most forums centered around particular TV shows. I'm a member at Outpost Gallifrey (a site dedicated to 'Doctor Who') for example, but it's been so long since I've visited that I don't think I even remember my password. (I do remember that my icon is of a Menoptera, however!)

But since I came back from vacation - during which I saw 'Star Trek' - I have been finding online discussions about various topics regarding the movie: like about the little alien Keenser, for example. And yesterday it was all about Gaila. You know her - she's that hot Orion cadet with the green skin whom Kirk almost gets to bed, except for the unexpected return of her roommate, Uhura. The last we see of her, Gaila turns to smile at Uhura as she finds out her posting before the big confrontation with Captain Nero and his ship, the Narada.

And that's where the discussion is focused concerning Gaila: to which ship was she posted? Can we determine from her smile what her fate was?

Some argue that she was smiling because she was posted to the Enterprise - considered the prize of the newest ships. (Some even say that even though Gaila and Uhura were roommates, that doesn't mean they were such good friends that they were above a bit of catty rivalry. Gaila's smile could have signified "I made the cut and you didn't." (At that point in the storyline, Uhura was still posted to the Farragut.)

Or it could be that Gaila was just happy to get a posting on any ship. Which means that if she was posted to any of the other starships, there's more than likely a chance that she was killed in those surprise attacks by the Narada as they jumped out of hyperspace - just as most of her graduating class of cadets were.

Starfleet lost a lot of its best and brightest that day, which is another reason why Kirk was promoted to his captaincy at such an early age, straight out of the Academy basically. But I would hate to think that Gaila was among the lost.

First of all, let's face it - she rates a "Homina Thrice" a la Ralph Kramden. This is one hot alien chick!

But also, I think she's deserving of being added to the cast for the next movie in this new, rebooted franchise. I'd hate to think that Admirals Abrams, Lindelof, Orci, and Kurtzman went to all this trouble to refresh the entire series just to have it be about the same old seven crew members - even if they are all portrayed by new actors.

Let's get some fresh blood on that bridge, besides the coppery fluid flowing through Spock's veins. And an added female presence can only help the dynamic to bring in more female viewers (who aren't already coming back because of the hot young actors attached to the project).

And with Rachel Nichols having played the role, I'm sure you're not going to get much argument from the guys in the audience either. So here's an open shout-out to JJ Abrams et al: bring back Gaila for the upcoming sequel and make her a regular member of this new Enterprise team!

There must be somebody out there who shares this opinion. And hopefully somebody else who can make sure the word reaches the producers......

Time to work the "wish-craft", as Tabitha Stephens would say!

BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: SELLERS MARKET, PART THREE

For today's "As Seen On TV", here's another "Dr. Strangelove" character played by Peter Sellers - who in turn was played by Geoffrey Rush in "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers" on HBO. Here he is seen as President Merkin Muffley in the War Room, talking on the Red Phone with Soviet Premier Dmitri Kissov.

In the expanded screen capture, we see the Russian Ambassador sitting next to him. In the original movie, the Ambassador was played by Peter Bull, but I could find no listing for the actor playing Bull in the bio-pic's credits at IMDb.com. The guy looks a little like he could be Fred Dalton Thompson's brother!

BCnU!

BLEEPED UP LINK-UPS

I don't know why the embedding function for that story about "Hotel Insecurity" from the CBS website didn't work in my "Conned Edison" story. Their Facebook link didn't work for my page either.

But you should be able to see the report if you follow this link:

http://www.cbs.com/daytime/the_early_show/video.php?cid=The%20Early%20Show&pid=6PQwGPToNV4ahynKmjCJOKOjd1vgbcRS&show=all&offset=2&play=true

Give it a shot. And just to make it a plug for my place of employ, the Edison was the only place to show how good our security is for travellers.

BCnU!

IT'S A WONDERFUL NIGHT - IN TOOBWORLD

My Iddiot friend Rich, master of the Horrid Chair Sap, clued me in to this wonderful bit of Craig Ferguson insanity.

Hey! It's got PUPPETS!!!!



BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: SELLERS MARKET, PART TWO

Another in our series of pictures which showcase Geoffrey Rush in the HBO movie "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers".

This time we see Rush in one of Sellers' most famous roles, that of Dr. Strangelove in Stanley Kubrick's dark but hilarious masterpiece "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb". Mein Fuhrer! I can blog!

BCnU!

CONNED EDISON

Oh sure!

While I'm gone on vacation, THAT'S when my place of employ shows up on TV!

I'm just glad we came off in a good light in this 'CBS Early Show' report, thanks to Norman in Security. NORM!



From a "reali-tv" standpoint, we can add this to the Edison's credits along with:

'Becker'
'Seinfeld'
'The Incredible Hulk'
'Sex And The City'
and maybe 'McCloud'.....

BCnU!

ECCE PROMO! SHIRLEY'S LIFE OF CINE

Another dear friend of mine is showcased in an ad for an upcoming movie!

"Post Grad" is about 'Gilmore Girls' star Alexis Beidel and her character's quest to find a job, and her own place, and probably her sense of identity after leaving college. Shirley Jordan, whom I've profiled in "Inner Toob" in the past, has a cute scene in the clip now playing on YouTube:



More than likely, this pretty much sums up her total involvement in the movie, but within the context of a blipvert, it's a great display for her! And for once, she's not playing a nurse or a doctor - as she usually does in Toobworld. (Which is great for me - her characters can link plenty of shows together!)

By the way, Shirley just closed last night in "Munched", a play that was running in Los Angeles to generally good reviews and hopefully may be heading East.

BCnU!

IN THE NEWS: MY BUDDY TELE-MARK

While I was off on vacation, one of my best friends took a dip into the more realistic side of Toobworld: by getting interviewed on WABC here in New York.

Mark Thompson was at the rally for gay marriage on Sixth Avenue in midtown a few Sundays back and presented a reasoned argument as to why he should be allowed the right to be as miserable as everybody else. And he even got the chance to show off a photo of himself and his boyfriend Michael Cleary, another of my good buddies. (The three of us are uncles to the lovely little Rhiannon over in Taiwan - but I get the official distinction of being her god-father as well!) Click here if you want to see the news clip......

As Mark says, "Build high for happiness!"

BCnU!

AS SEEN ON TV: A SELLERS MARKET, PART ONE

For the rest of this week, as I get back into the groove of blogging after my two week hiatus, the "As Seen On TV" feature will be showcasing Geoffrey Rush's portrayal of Peter Sellers in the HBO bio-pic, "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers".

Today, we have the legendary comic chameleon pondering his sense of self..... BCnU!

"STAR TREK XI": NOT SO KEEN ON KEENSER

I had a problem with a particular element of the new "Star Trek" movie which I saw on vacation - that of the introduction of so many new alien life forms among the crew or at the Shipyards bar. Even with a reboot of the "Trek" timeline, where were these aliens in the original series? And why couldn't there have been more aliens from the original series?

We got an Orion girl - and I hope Gaila comes back (Huzzah!) - and the Vulcans and Romulans, of course. Plus there was mention of the Klingons.

But where were the Andorians? Where were the Tellarites? Howzabout a Medusan tucked away in a box somewhere?

I think most annoying was Keenser, Scotty's little buddy on Delta Vega (seen above). Online, "Miroslav" has suggested that he's a Jem'Hadar midget. Not an idea I like since it brings Gamma Quadrant into the "Trek" timeline way too soon. (The Jem'Hadar were introduced in 'Deep Space Nine', my favorite 'Trek' series, by the way.) We're stuck with Keenser as is, so who knows? Maybe he is a midget Jem'Hadar who found his way through the Bajoran wormhole. (They do know of the Cardassians in the movie, as Uhura orders a Cardassian Sunrise at the bar.)

But if I had my space druthers, I'd have opted to design his look to be that of a midget Tellarite. Where would the harm be in that, save to the ego of the make-up effects designer who would probably make his mark by going boldly where none had gone before. (As far as action figure potential goes, the Powers That Be would have made money on him whether he looked like he does or was seen as a Tellarite.) So reluctantly, I'm going with Keenser being the Jem'Hadar Munchkin.....

BCnU!

"STAR TREK 11": SIBLING RIVALRY?

For those who have seen the new "Star Trek" film....... Lorenzo James Henrie plays the young Vulcan bully who goads Spock into giving him a good thrashing by calling Spock's mother a whore.

He's only listed in the credits (to be found at the IMDb.com) as "Vulcan Bully #1". But I put it to you that he is, in fact, Sybok - the elder son of Sarek.

He never really says anything bad about Sarek, only of Amanda Grayson and by extension Spock (who would be his half-brother). So if he was Sybok, he would not have been trashing his father, only the choices he made after his Vulcan princess mother passed away.

Just an idea.....

Live long and BCnU!