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853fisher

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Everything posted by 853fisher

  1. Absolutely! Oh to have had a ticket for these shows in 1958 when they shared the bill with Tom Lehrer...
  2. The specific combination of players must make a big difference in how they approach the game. If nobody else is cutting up, you may not be inclined to, but if everyone else is, you may think you should join in. I preferred the more straightforward approach of the first game - this time, everyone was just too affected, try-hard, and frankly obnoxious for me. Oh well - maybe next game will have a different flavor again. I liked seeing the "hungry i" (always rendered that way) come up. I've been learning about its history in SF recently. The i booked a lot of jazz and folk musicians as well as all the big standup names of the 50s and early 60s. After that scene withered away around 1970, the proprietor sold the name to a strip club operator, which used it until recently. I heard they used to get confused visitors who hadn't been in town in a while!
  3. Detective Cassady was mentioned upthread, which reminded me of my surprise when I noticed a familiar name in the credits: Milena Govich, who played her 15(!) years ago, directed this episode. She also did another, "Filtered Life" (the one where the van life influencer is murdered), last season. Milena doesn't seem to have acted in several years but she's directed over a dozen episodes of different shows. Wikipedia says she is also an executive producer on Dick Wolf's "FBI." Good for her - I don't remember the circumstances of her departure, but it's nice there are no hard feelings.
  4. A more interesting conclusion might have seen the witness refusing protection and going down the courthouse steps into the throng maybe a bit too enamored of the attention - but maybe that would be muddying the waters a bit too much. I did think it was a pretty solid episode. I know L&O has addressed current events / hot topic issues all along, but it just seems more "on the nose" in the last few years. They tend not to say anything particularly fresh when they address these issues either. I'm still sort of processing my perspective on this. Referring directly to, say, "Fox News" takes me out of the show a little - we get it!
  5. I said Kenya and South Africa for FJ. I considered Egypt, but thought I remembered looking at an American airline's route map and seeing that their only African flight went to Nairobi, and therefore assumed that must be "the airport everyone goes through." I know, shocker, the world doesn't revolve around the US! I loved the category on jazz nicknames. The show seems to be wanting to increase their "bonus content" online, and a playlist of one or two songs from each of the musicians mentioned is the kind of thing I'd enjoy seeing. If a few curious people end up popping them into Spotify or YouTube, I'd think that was neat. (Here's my pick for Bix, just for fun. He recorded this 95 years ago next week, when he was 24. 4 years later, he was dead, largely as a consequence of alcoholism. I will have to look for saber's friend's book - sounds fascinating.)
  6. I couldn't help but laugh when they said Rublev was a special consultant to the president (or however they put it - that's definitely not verbatim), Maroun asked "what's that mean," and McCoy replied "that means he's friends with Putin." Something about McCoy's delivery seemed to imply "...you idiot." It was a pretty stupid question!
  7. I was so glad to see this show back, not having missed a beat. I had a perfect opportunity to tell a work friend I wasn't a storage-ass ho, but I decided I'd better not without being sure she'd seen the new episode. ;) Well, I do now!
  8. Another exciting game. I thought Emmett had been just squeaking through, so his all-in wager was thrilling. I liked Martha very much and would love to see her win again. Her $40 in '72 would be worth about $283 now. I think they said he is a freelance writer. His subjects (people, events, what have you) must be pretty spread out. I understand why that lifestyle appeals but it's not for me. I enjoy travel but really need a strong home base. I also noticed that Christopher was smiling and applauding while Martha was absolutely stone faced. To me, it read more as steely determination than being a bad sport, but it was definitely conspicuous, whatever it was!
  9. I thought so too. It was a minor plot point on "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" that one of the so-called mole women, previously kept underground by a kidnapper, took her power back by bottling her mole sauce. I'm not arguing that was some unmissable cultural touchstone, just that if the same joke occurred to sitcom writers half a decade ago, it might just come to mind more easily in general, for whatever reason.
  10. I couldn't quite recall it. I got as far as "the cafe at the end of the world." That must be the store brand.
  11. Maybe I'm mistaken, but it seemed like Emmett had nothing to gain and everything to lose from his DD wager at the end of the second round. He was leading $10K - $8.6K - $8.4K. If he wasn't going to bet enough to double the second-highest score (which might or might not have made sense, depending on his confidence in the category and generally), it seems to me that he should have bet little enough to make sure he would stay in the lead. In other words, no more than $1,399. It didn't seem like he bet $2K for any reason other than that he'd used that for the other betting clues too. I think he got really lucky. Interesting to hear the "Snyder cut" of Justice League brought up. I recently read this article which claims that much of what appeared to be a grassroots movement to get it released was really bots, and authentic fans behaved pretty badly. Not a good look for him, if you ask me.
  12. A 1969 Life cover with Buzz Aldrin and, mirrored in his visor...Louis Armstrong! Yes, thank goodness, I corrected myself in time. The Steinway clue made me recall a recent visit to their dealer here. I dropped by out of curiosity about their new player piano system, not looking to buy (I have a different brand's upright already). Just as well - they are now by appointment only and had just two lonely pianos in what I recall as a packed showroom. I know the luxury market's not all there is to piano sales, but it made me sad to think that so relatively few people seem to want one these days. Hear hear. I was fortunate to see a preview of the documentary at the SF Jewish Film Festival, in partnership with our PBS affiliate, a few months ago. Lynn and Sarah were interviewed about their process and experiences after the screening. I thought they were extremely impressive and certainly deserve more recognition (and I hope Ken uses his platform to this end).
  13. Only 6! Plus "vaccine passport" which someone else might have been able to pick up if it had been ruled wrong immediately. That's my best guess too. Billing is very important in entertainment. I wouldn't be surprised if Mayim's contract required, say, that no one else other than Mike was introduced the same way she was. The intent would have been to apply to a substitute or something, but once circumstances changed nobody would've wanted to bother relitigating that point before the next renewal. (And this is no dig on Mayim - I consider that perfectly reasonable, if a little inflexible, but that's just the way these things are.)
  14. Oh no, April! What a shame. She shared on Reddit about her wagering mistake, which she realized before the clue reveal but too late to fix. Luis and Justin also left very gracious comments. It's an interesting behind-the-scenes look. I loved seeing her get wind behind her sails after her successful DD and I hated to see the wheels fall off at the end - forgive the mixed metaphors. Oh well. I love that kind of game, tightly contested and well played by everyone. Luigi had the highest Coryat score and I think he has potential to continue doing well. Fascinating to see the royal family show up and no doubt recent coverage will have reminded some of the second-last female sovereign. (The third-last before Queen Victoria was Queen Anne.) I'm just really glad to see the show back and running smoothly!
  15. For "Things That Land," how about "a boxer's accurate punch?" I was trying to think along those lines too. "The 'It' movie sewer'"? I'd be worried that "It" wouldn't come across clearly orally. Maybe just "Pennywise's sewer."
  16. The photo definitely evoked the famous curvy block of Lombard St, and its more discreet cousin on Vermont St. That one has one fewer turn but is steeper, and has never taken off with tourists because it's in a less convenient location and was therefore never landscaped and marketed in the same way. They do have a fabulous low-key locals event: an annual "race" down the block on tricycles. All this is to say that, by the time I stopped thinking fondly about those two blocks, it was too late to think "I know it's neither of those, but I guess it's shaped like a snake." I'm so glad you did. I think it's one of the most fascinating places in local history. What I wouldn't do to spend just one day there! Maybe I'll set the time machine to a few weeks after those wool one-pieces ceased to be mandatory. ;)
  17. I look forward to “seeing” everyone again! I missed the show and the commentary during rerun season. I’m glad that Ken is now introduced as simply “the host of Jeopardy” - I assume there was some kind of contractual issue last year. For me the audience doesn’t make a big difference either way, so I’m glad that the people who work on the show and many fans are happy it's back, but it just doesn’t excite me and makes me wonder what I’m not getting. Here’s a silly Pier 39 story for extra local color. Dianne Feinstein, President of the Board of Supervisors when it opened, promised the developers she would cut the ribbon in a bikini if they made a certain deadline. They did, and she turned up in an old woolen suit from Sutro Baths over a turtleneck. To me that still counts as being a good sport!
  18. I never thought Louis would be back on this show. I'm very curious, but not enough for a Disney+ subscription. They suckered me back in when Edyta returned a few years ago, and all I got was 60 seconds of salsa with Geraldo as Trump. I assume, based on past casting, they want him for a mature lady. I wish them luck. Half the apparently confirmed celebs so far are just not of interest to me. Ahnold's kid with the housekeeper, a realtor and Instagram model? A tik-toker who generates lots of BuzzFeed article about her drama, and who danced competitively for a decade? Said tik-toker's mother, a "photographer and former model"? Wayne Brady, Jordin Sparks, and the son from CODA are more like it, but not enough for me to tolerate more Tyra either. I really think we're in the home stretch for this show. I know there have always been relatively unknown or controversial celebs in the mix. I just don't see the show now capturing the younger demographic they've always chased and never caught, and I know they've alienated their old guard more and more over the years. I guess we'll have to see.
  19. Back when "Super Password" did passwords which became clues to a larger puzzle, Bert Convy occasionally gave away puzzles, with comments like "wouldn't it be wacky if it was [the correct answer]?" They loved to leave those in and play them for laughs (and while I'm sure this wasn't a primary consideration, I bet they didn't mind eating up a puzzle's worth of time without having to award money). I don't remember any host giving the password away exactly as Keke did, but I'd be surprised if it hadn't happened. I think it just didn't come to them, for whatever reason. But I'm with you - that's the first thing I thought of.
  20. I think it is smart to publicize that they have killed Murray off. They will probably attract a few people who would otherwise be out but are curious to know how they do it. I wonder, if the want to do a "huge reboot," whether they'll have a change of scenery? An episode or two in the spring made me wonder whether they'd all move to NYC. Seems unlikely, but I don't think it would be a bad idea. I guess it could cost us some supporting characters, but they're mostly underused these days anyway.
  21. "The Final Straw." It's larger-than-life Jenga with elaborate art design - the stacks are themed to a diner, the beach, Wild West, etc. It's not earth-shattering TV but I think it's cute, the kind of thing I like in the background while I do chores. Janelle gets in some jokes and the players do light "trash talk" while they look for what to try to pull next. I think it could have been improved with a bit of play-along-at-home, like some kind of trivia or survey question on each piece you pull out. I've seen very little online chatter and I gather ratings are not promising. I wonder why it wasn't mentioned on this show? In the old days celebs would pitch anything - movie-of-the-week, niche cable show, dinner theatre...
  22. For "types of zones," I thought Pacific Daylight, Eastern Standard Time, etc. I was relieved Lisa and Janelle did OK. Janelle in particular struck me as someone who might get quite good if she could play regularly. I really like "Abbott Elementary" and I'm glad to see much of the cast in the spotlight in other contexts. That contestant was wise to think of that, and then move on quickly when it didn't work out. It would have been a brilliant clue for the right partner. (I am not that partner - I am aware of the connection but probably could not have made it under pressure.) I really liked him and I'm glad he won the money. For some reason I find it funny to imagine some of these contestants who say they want to use buy an engagement ring having to explain to their partner that it will need to be another year or two because they lost on Pyramid. I thought the same. Rachel made a face as if to say "that's ok, I'll tell her later." The captions gave it as "Plezetta." I haven't heard that one before either. Many of these shows don't use last names anymore, which I assume is for privacy reasons, but it occurred to me that someone could probably find a Plezetta without much trouble!
  23. Ooooh! That's pretty good. Some might say it was a stroke of...never mind. ;)
  24. Yes, although I can't remember the last time we had a buzz for "you used a synonym," I assume that is still on the books. Do you think one could get away with a braeburn orchard...a fuji orchard...etc? I can't really think of much else either.
  25. Things that are jolly - "a green giant"! "A fruit-flavored rancher" was also excellent. I think Michael does well as host. I was, however, reminded of how Dick used to handle very low scoring rounds. He'd say something like "it doesn't look good for you now, but why don't you forget about it, and just use the next round to build your confidence, so you can come back roaring in the second game." Sometimes it worked! I'm no holy roller, but I did visit the Vatican and understood that modest dress was expected. What a goofy story for that contestant to share. I also raised an eyebrow at the one who said she was teased by her friends for singing, dancing, and playing the guitar at once. Maybe she needs new friends - I'd be impressed to see one of mine do that. I also didn't get how that made her like Lucille Ball, a fine dancer but famously limited singer (although she wasn't really quite as bad as Lucy Ricardo) who never played guitar. Oh well, Even when the play isn't great and the contestants are a bit annoying, it beats other TV options for me.
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