Category Archives: Television

My Weekly Spock: I Wonder…

I wonder where Leonard was when this funny one was taken!  No doubt in the  ’70s and a local channel was airing In Search Of… It must be odd to see a huge head of yourself in public, but looks like Leonard enjoyed it!

How many here watched In Search Of… back in the day or since.  Do you think it aged well?  I”m looking forward to the new reboot of the show with (appropriately) Zachary Quinto  as host!   I’m sure Leonard would approve!

Woody, Buzz, and Memorial Oscar Tribute to Leonard

If you stayed up late enough to see the Memorials on this years Oscars, I’m sure you were pleased to see Leonard featured there, and they saved him for last  🙂 .   It was a quiet tribute with David Grohl playing a beautiful acoustic version of “BlackBird”.  They chose one of my favorite pictures of Leonard, too.  You can see the video here.

However, this wasn’t the only  nod to Nimoy in the broadcast; when best animated feature was ‘announced’ by Woody and Buzz from Toy Story, the pre-created animation for the segment had Woody giving the Vulcan Peace Sign as he mocked Buzz. It was a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, but I caught it on freeze-frame!  Nice touch.

12801421_1258708044142779_7354959057836351897_n

Sign 1Sign 2

Nichelle’s Doing Great!

Nichelle Nichols posted on her Facebook page earlier today — she’s doing much better and thank all of her fans for their good wishes and support! Rock on Nichelle!

Hello everybody. I just wanted to take a minute to thank you personally for all of your love and support over the last two weeks. Please watch ET tonight to get a full update on how I have been doing. I’m looking forward to meeting my fans in Miami next week.

Much love, Nichelle

And be sure to watch Entertainment Tonight this evening (6/15) for  a Nichelle update!   🙂 http://www.etonline.com/news/166183_nichelle_nichols_on_her_recovery_after_suffering_a_   stroke_i_m_feeling_the_best_i_ve_felt_a_long_time/ Nichelle_n

Wideo Wednesday: Assignment: Earth- Two Opening Sequences — If Only!

These two videos were brought to my attention by reader “Supervisor 194” (David Thomas) who created these two splendid opening sequences to the series that never was:  Assignment: EarthI love the music to these; the first being the original arrangement, and the second, a jazzier, ’70’s version.

I think Assignment: Earth would have made a wonderful series.  A lot of people see Gary Seven as an American version of Dr. Who, and I can see that quite easily.  Now if only someone in Hollywood would make this  real — I think Benedict Cumberbatch would made a fine Seven!

My Weekly Spock– Nimoy in Marco Polo (1982)

The late 1970’s and 80’s were a prime time on TV for the miniseries. With the success of  Shogun there was a rush of other grand adventures created. Here is Marco Polo from 1982.  An all star cast included Leonard Nimoy as Lord Achmed –  who is sort of good and evil, a bit conniving.  (Well, of course he’s evil, look at that beard!) He did well with a moderate part, although he first comes off as a bit…Shatner-esque?  (A bit breathless with lots of pauses in his speeches) But by the time his character dies we at least get a feeling for some of his personal traits! Nimoy never got the girl in these movies, and was again relegated to a ‘heavy’ – but hey, he got a free trip to China!

Colbert Report – Two Bad Inventions! Baby I-Pads and Potty Chairs

Had to share this —Probably the two WORST baby inventions EVER. Baby seats and potty chairs that incorporate I-Pads! At this rate, the next generation will all turn into the obese layabout cruise ship inhabitants in WALL-e! This is so wrong (Colbert makes it funny in it’s inanity). If future generations only look at I-Pads and spout corporate logos, we’re in trouble. I really hope these don’t catch on.

(For those of you unfamiliar , Stephen Colbert is a very funny American comedian who portrays a conservative news reporter on his fake news show “The Colbert Report”. His ‘Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger’ segments hilariously skewer American lifestyles).

http://on.cc.com/19PcX88

Spock sight gag on The Simpsons

I just got a chance to catch last Sunday’s new (Christmas themed) episode of The Simpsons– and in a parody of a bad Christmas game, an evil snowman was slashing up a video display of bad Christmas specials!   Note our Vulcan pal on the left! (Actually, I think that Jingle Bell Spock would make a great special!) 😀

IMG_8111 copy

(Video) Captain Kirk Watches Miley Cyrus Performance…

A timely mash-up!

I was thinking of using this idea for a comic, but this is better than anything I could think up!  (I might still do one, but why draw any more attention to her?)

I had see photos of the actual VMA performance, but until seeing this had steadfastly avoided watching the video — God help her generation.  I did make this collage last week:

sad stateSad, isn’t it?

My Mad Men Side (and site)

The main cast of Mad Men for Season 5. (l-r) Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks),
Roger Sterling (John Slattery), Lane Pryce (Jared Harris), Pete Campbell
(Vincent Kartheiser),Don Draper (Jon Hamm),Bert Cooper
(Robert Morse),Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss)

Hi Kids!

Some of you may know that I am also a blogger for the site Basket Of Kisses, which is an excellent blog for Mad Men and other quality entertainment! I have been posting articles about Mad Men here, for a couple of years now.  I also now post the  Fan Art page every Thursday, which features art from around the web that has Mad Men, Downton Abbey, and other great shows as its focus.  And soon I will be starting a new feature, Retro Reel Review, where I’ll take you back to the glorious old days of Classic Movies.

Now, for the uninitiated, Mad Men is a drama about  the ad executives of Madison Ave in the 1960’s.  The series began in 1960, and Season 5 is beginning in June of 1966; just three months shy of Star Trek‘s premiere on September 8, 1966 (I would not be surprised to see a reference to Trek).  The main character of the piece, Don Draper, is a brilliant Ad man with a secret past, you’ll just have to watch to see how it all evolves.   Mad Men often mentions current events of the Sixties, but doesn’t hit you over the head with them. It’s Subtle, Smart, and Sophisticated, and it is my favorite show ever. (Yes, even more than Star Trek)

Here’s a listing of my Basket of Kisses articles to date, (start at the bottom) and I’ll add more to my Mad Men category here as they appear.  If you haven’t seen Mad Men yet, I highly recommend that you start with Season 1, Episode 1, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, and strap yourself in for the ride.  It is one of the best written shows on TV, and it has won the Emmy for Best Drama 4 years in a row now!

George Takei Dream

July 15, 2011

I don’t usually dream about Mr. Takei, but I’ve been working on my ‘StarTreKomics’ so much for this website, that he was bound to pop up sooner or later.

The dream began with me and my sister (K) at a beautiful old theater palace, to watch what we think will just be a lecture by George Takei.

It turns out to be a magnificent production of a play where George is the protagonist.

When the curtains open, we see George rise from a futon on the floor, dressed in light blue satin pajamas.  He is a rich man, but a spiritual one. He does some yoga stretches, then the scene changes.

We are now in a lush Polynesian village where little children dance in a circle, dressed in white, waving white origami bird puppets and streamers above their heads. It’s so beautiful it chokes me up.

The mothers and fathers of these children smile and join in the dance.  George enters shirtless, in white pants, with a red tattooed symbol over his heart. He joins in the dance, and this is a very happy place.

Yet every time I try to take a picture, my camera dies! (Naturally!) I’m also trying to get my sister to watch this lovely scene, but she’s moved to a corner of the auditorium, busily editing manuscripts.

Yet the next scene is as tragic as the last was joyful.   George is alone, head down, slowly walking from the now empty village, where we assume he was the only survivor. There are bare, thin black tree silhouettes against a gray sky, and traces of smoke billow around him.  He has lost everything.  He stops, looks to the sky, inhales deeply and straightens his shoulders. Standing tall, he walks determined toward his future.

(Now the dream gets goofy).

Suddenly the stage is empty, and a podium appears with Leonard Nimoy behind it (Wha-a-a?) He’s about to give the epilogue of the story. But as I try to take a picture, Nimoy and the podium are no longer live in front of us, but projected as a movie image that gets smaller and smaller until it’s gone.

The curtains close, and George comes out in a silk taupe colored ghi like the one David Carradine wore on Kung Fu!   He sits serenely cross-legged on the hardwood floor in front of us and asks the audience for questions about this profound performance.

(Camera’s not working again)

I try to tell him how moved by the show I was, but I hear an obnoxious woman ask him a stupid question about Star Trek.

George graciously ignores the question, closes his eyes, smiles thinly, and fades into nothingness.

He leaves us asking, “Was any of this real?”

Then I woke up.

The most startling thing to me about this whole dream was how vivid and cohesive it was. Dreams like this are few and far between, but what a nice surprise! Wishing you all sweet dreams.