Star Trek: TOS … progressive and regressive … @ Geeksaresexy.net

I’ve just added another post over at Geeks are Sexy, this one a discussion of Star Trek The Original Series, and how it is both progressive and regressive at the same time. Hope everyone enjoys the read … excerpt below …

The original version of Star Trek, the 3 season show from the late 60’s that introduced us not only to Spock, Kirk, and McCoy, but an entire universe made up of Kilngons and Romulans, Star Fleet and Warp drive, has been hailed by many TV historians as a ground-breaking series that shattered many taboos and stereotypes of 1960’s TV and America at large. And rightfully so … Star Trek was decades ahead of other programs in the area of racial integration and harmony as the first TV program to regularly include black actors (and, shock of shocks, a black woman no less) as integral parts of the cast. And even if the circumstances render the effect less powerful than it might have been, ST:TOS must also be hailed for the first ever inter-racial kiss on television, from the episode “Plato’s Stepchildren.”

From Star Trek: TOS … progressive and regressive at Geeksaresexy.net

The last time lord

For me, Tom Baker has always personified “the Doctor” from the classic British SF series, Doctor Who. His bumbling, grinning genius, complete with absurdly long scarf and a bag full of jelly-babies, has always seemed to be sublime casting from my perspective. Tom Baker nailed the character in a way no one else did, before or after. While fine actors like William Hartnell, Jon Pertwee, and Sylvester McCoy did an amazing job defining and filling out the character, and all did admirable jobs of showing the multiple personalities of someone like a time lord, in my mind Tom Baker’s performance has always stood above all the others.

We don’t know Dick …

Jon Stewart is one of those guys that falls into the trap of excellence. The Daily Show is comedy and satire at such a high level so consistently, that it takes something truly great to grab attention and provoke comment. On the August 15th segment of “You don’t know Dick” he really knocked one out of the park.

Extending a story … A review of the Simpsons Movie

Back in 1989, when there was talk of the quirky, dysfunctional family from the Tracy Ullman Show short animations moving from their tiny 1 minute spots on Ullman to a full half-hour show of their own on the Fox Network, the main question everyone asked was whether Groening could sustain the Simpson’s story lines over a full show. One liners are far different from story telling, and there was legitimate concern that an idea that works extremely well as pithy, one minute clips would have trouble finding the range over a full 22 minutes of television. Of course, when the first season debuted in 1989, it was clear that Groening, and the Simpson’s themselves, were up to the challenge.

If I were a Simpson …

With the Simpsons movie less than a week away, I came across this neat little function on the official website for the movie, www.simpsonsmovie.com. By going through a number of options for various different parts of the body, you can put together a Simpsons character of your own choosing. There is an option from that screen to go to another site to upload a photo of yourself, but so far I haven’t tested that version.

Well, theres your Kwik-E-Mart …

As I reported here back in late March, there was a very natural marketing alliance forming between 7-Eleven and Fox around the upcoming Simpsons movie, and the fictional Kwik-E-Mart convenience store chain from the TV series. That alliance came to life this past weekend, as several stores have now been officially re-branded, as seen from the sign on the left. Click on that photo for a link to the “/film” story about it with several more pictures, or click here for a link to the FoxNEWS.com story, or click here for ABC’s story and pictures.

CRTC says “Take off, eh” to the extra 2 minutes

Its more than a little ironic that the CRTC picked this week to announce changes to the advertising rules in Canadian television broadcasting. As of September 2007, Canadian broadcasters will no longer be restricted to 12 minutes of commercial programming per hour, with as much as 14 minutes at their disposal. By September 2008, 15 minutes of commercial time (25% if you’re counting) per hour will be allowed and in 2009, the limits on commercial minutes will be lifted completely by the CRTC.

A life well lived

Last night’s edition of The Hour on CBC contained the final TV interview for one of Canada’s most remarkable people. Dying of cancer, “Canada’s Conscience” June Callwood invited George into her home for a final chat with Canadian television media. It was a wonderful interview that was perhaps a bit more personal than I expected, given her wealth of life experience in social reform in Canada and globally, but regardless of that (maybe even because of it) its well worth a few minutes of your time whether you’ve heard of June Callwood or not.

Who needs a Kwik-E-Mart?

If this story had appeared on Sunday, I might have suspected an April Fool’s joke, although there is a fair amount of marketing savvy behind this idea, in my opinion. What idea is that, you ask? News reports this week have 20th Century Fox negotiating with 7-Eleven to re-brand 11 of their stores as the fictional Kiwk-E-Mart from the TV show the Simpson’s, as a cross promotion for the upcoming Simpson’s movie opening July 27th.

I was hungry, did you feed me?

I haven’t raved much about The Hour this year … I like their new format, and I continue to enjoy George’s direct style (I do wish he’d get a bit more in-depth in some cases, but in others, he does fine), but he’s fallen into the curse of excellence … the expectations are so high, it takes something even more spectacular to provoke comment. This past week, he had an especially wonderful interview with Tony Campolo, Bill Clinton’s spiritual adviser. He said something so profound, I’ve rarely heard it from another “Christian” since the main Man himself …