Small Talk: The Mess

[betsyboo]

Also - ICYMI: (I am double posting in All Episodes - mods, please delete one if that is not cool)

 

[AriAu]

Purely based on favorites, for me it is, in no particular order:

The Short List, In Excelsis Deo,He Shall from Time to Time, ITSOTG (I&II- but counting as one episode), Shibboleth (and I will watch it in the next week), Galileo, Bartlet for America, 20HIA (I&II, but I count it as 1), Commencement and The Supremes.

But wait, I left out Celestial Navigation and H. Con 172 and What kind of Day has it B and the Pilot and Drought Conditions and 25 and 17 People (and Toby's bouncing ball) and the Midterms (just for "psychics at Cal Tech...ummm, I 'm pretty sure that is physicists") and Game On and ....

 

Edited since I should know better than to spell Bartlet with 2 T's

Edited November 19, 2014 by AriAu

[Aethera]

I have a Favorite Episodes list on my computer, and every time I rewatch the list gets tweaked as I do. It's tiered, but the eps within the tiers aren't in any particular order, and I did just rejigger the tiers just opening it now to look at it. The numbers next to each are their seasons. A lot of these are in here because of a particular moment or scene I enjoy.  Internal Displacement, for instance, is about the humor, and Doug Westin bangin' the nanny. Mr. Willis of Ohio is due to the bar scene and its aftermath.

 

Mr. Willis of Ohio – 1
In the Shadow of 2 Gunmen: Part 1 – 2
And It’s Surely to Their Credit – 1
Life on Mars – 4
Bartlet for America – 3
Stirred – 3
The State Dinner – 1
He Shall From Time to Time – 1
Internal Displacement – 7
17 People – 2

 

A Proportional Response – 1
Inauguration:  Over There – 4
Two Cathedrals – 2
Pilot – 1
Debate Camp – 4
Requiem - 7
A Good Day – 6

Shibboleth - 2

 

Third Day Story - 6
Celestial Navigation – 1
In Excelsis Deo – 1
Holy Night – 4
20 Hours in America – 4
The Stackhouse Filibuster – 2
18th & Potomac – 2
The US Poet Laureate – 3
Night 5 – 3
Dead Irish Writers – 3

 

I do feel a lot better about being obsessed after seeing that 17 People site. Good thing I'm not into graphic arts.

[A Boston Gal]

A series that can boast of its pilot as one of its most loved episodes is a rare bird indeed.

[Moose135]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/12/01/elizabeth-lauten-nbc-obama-girls/19730421/

Republican Party staffer Elizabeth Lauten has resigned from her post as communications director for U.S. Rep. Steve Fincher, R-Tenn., after making controversial comments about Sasha and Malia Obama, Fincher's chief of staff confirmed Monday...

The Facebook comments that created a media firestorm asked for the Obama girls to "show more class" during the annual event.

"Dear Sasha and Malia: I get you're both in those awful teen years, but you're a part of the First Family, try showing a little class. At least respect the part you play," Lauten wrote in a post on the social media website, which was later taken down.  She added, "Rise to the occasion. Act like being in the White House matters to you. Dress like you deserve respect, not a spot at a bar," NBC News reports.

Jed would have called in the 82nd Airborne...

[PeterPirate]

For reasons that I won't go into, I found myself parked at a bar that was showing the E! channel with the sound off. Lo and behold, Lisa Edelstein (Laurie) appeared on screen with Janeane Garofalo (Louise Thornton). A subsequent IMDB search revealed that this is LE's new show, Girlfriend's Guide to Divorce. Not my usual fare by any stretch.  But, I gotta say, they both looked really good.  

 

Also, after that show ended, a repeat of Sex And The City came on. The things we endure for family.  

Edited December 6, 2014 by PeterPirate

[Bastet]

Janeane Garofalo was in WW?!  This is like when I found out Jane Lynch had appeared on The X-Files after I quit watching.

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

Janeane Garofalo was in WW?!  This is like when I found out Jane Lynch had appeared on The X-Files after I quit watching.

 

She appeared regularly in S7.

[BizBuzz]

Janeane Garofalo was in WW?!  This is like when I found out Jane Lynch had appeared on The X-Files after I quit watching.

 

Sorry, I can't tell if you are joking or not?  If you aren't, then, yeah, she was part of the Matt Santos campaign in Season 7. 

ETA: JINX @Deputy Deputy CoS

 

::giggle::

[Bastet]

I quit watching some time in season five, so I had no idea she'd come to have a recurring role.  Cool.  Not cool enough to make me watch, but cool.

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

I quit watching some time in season five, so I had no idea she'd come to have a recurring role.  Cool.  Not cool enough to make me watch, but cool.

 

Your loss.

[Bastet]

Oh, I'll muddle through somehow.

 

Edited since I should know better than to spell Bartlet with 2 T's

 

I just noticed this upthread, and I do that sometimes, too, for some reason. 

[clarkbar]

Janeane Garofalo was in WW?!  This is like when I found out Jane Lynch had appeared on The X-Files after I quit watching.

 

And Jane Lynch was in WW as well.

[AriAu]

I quit watching some time in season five, so I had no idea she'd come to have a recurring role.  Cool.  Not cool enough to make me watch, but cool.

 

Season 5 almost got me to quit watching....but thankfully did not.

Jeaneane/Lou was a very good and interesting character and she would have been even better if Sorkin had been writing for her!

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

Season 5 almost got me to quit watching....but thankfully did not.

Jeaneane/Lou was a very good and interesting character and she would have been even better if Sorkin had been writing for her!

 

 I thought Lou was the character Sorkin tried twice, and failed, in Mandy and Amy. 

[oceanblue]

Who did Jane Lynch play?

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

Who did Jane Lynch play?

 

A member of the White House press corps in ITSOTGII

[BW Manilowe]

I thought Lisa Edelstein's new show, A Girlfriend's Guide to Divorce, was airing on Bravo (former home of TWW repeats) not E!; maybe it airs on both channels since they have the same corporate parent, NBC-Universal (shrugs).

I also thought I saw Jane Lynch as 1 of the reporters in CJ's Briefing Room in more eps than ITSOTG II. I'm probably wrong about that too.

Anyway... Now for the real reason I'm posting...

If you've ever wanted to see what Bradley Whitford would apparently look like as *a blonde female*, check out the picture/screencap used with this Tweet (Bradley's on the far left in the pic/cap):

https://twitter.com/variety/status/554466962625933312

The Tweet was posted last night by Variety (1 of the major entertainment industry publications) after actor Jeffrey Tambor won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a TV Series, Musical or Comedy.

Jeffrey won for his role as a late in life, male-to-female, transgender person in the series Transparent, which airs/streams through amazon.com Prime Instant Video (according to the amazon.com site; I think you may have to be in their Prime [2-day guaranteed merchandise delivery] program to watch it, but I'm not positive). It just started airing in September, 2014. The pic/screencap involved is from an ep of the series.

According to Bradley's most recent TV filmography in his Wikipedia page, which I saw *before* I saw the screencap & realized he was in it, Bradley played a cross-dressing (male dressing as female) character called Marcy, apparently in more than 1 ep of the show (I think his TV filmography said he only did 2 eps though).

Edited January 13, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[eyebleach]

Bradley Whitford was GREAT in "Transparent" - if you've not watched the show, I highly recommend it.

[Moose135]

There was an inadvertent TWW reference on Jeopardy! tonight. The category was about TV quotes, and clue was "If I had a gun, with two bullets, and I was in a room with Hitler, Bin Laden and Toby, I would shoot Toby twice."

 

Two contestants rang in, guessing Sam Seaborn and Jed Bartlet...the correct response was Michael Scott from "The Office".  Oh my...

[BW Manilowe]

According to this Tweet from Entertainment Weekly magazine, Bradley Whitford has been cast as the father of the character Jake in an upcoming ep of Brooklyn 99, which airs on Fox.

https://twitter.com/ew/status/555073373135728640

Edited January 13, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

Dule Hill tweeted this

 

https://twitter.com/DuleHill/status/555137966818209792

 

I chuckled at this response 

 

https://twitter.com/_alex_casey/status/555144279879081984

 

 

 

According to this Tweet from Entertainment Weekly magazine, Bradley Whitford has been cast as the father of the character Jake in an upcoming ep of Brooklyn 99, which airs on Fox.

https://twitter.com/ew/status/555073373135728640

 

Also, Showtime ordered a show, Happish that he stars in.

 

Janel Moloney is guest starring on Blacklist in the Superbowl post show

[Artsda]

West Wing reunion at @funnyordie,

 

http://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/west-wing-cast-reunites-nine-years-after-finale-photos-2015141

[Moose135]

The crazy part about that?  "West Wing Cast Reunites Nine Years After Finale"

 

Nine years? Are you kidding me? How the hell has it been nine years???

[BW Manilowe]

The crazy part about that? "West Wing Cast Reunites Nine Years After Finale"

Nine years? Are you kidding me? How the hell has it been nine years???

It'll be 9 years in May; the show ended in May, 2006 & it's now 2015. Time flies, huh?

And, sadly, it wasn't even the entire surviving main (or popular recurring) cast members involved in this reunion. Among others, Stockard Channing & Rob Lowe don't appear to have been involved in whatever brought them together this time (since they weren't in the cast pics that have been released from this, & Rob hasn't Tweeted about it); nor were Bartlet's VP's, Tim Matheson & Gary Cole. But neither were Alan Alda or Jimmy Smits, who were also main title actors in their time with the show.

It seems every time someone reunites cast members from the show for something (the Entertainment Weekly cast reunion, for their annual "Reunions" issue, a few years ago--soon after Janel had her son, who's apparently gonna be 5 next month [according to her Wikipedia page]; the video that supported the candidacy of Mary McCormack's sister for a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court [which she won, by the way]; or this thing for Funny or Die), they always get a different "configuration" of actors/characters to participate (some perhaps due to availability; some perhaps due to *possibly* wanting to put the show behind them/not wanting to be further typecast as "political types").

Yes certain actors have been involved with all 3 of those things, or 2 of the 3 at most, but others have only been involved in 1 of the "reunions". And the actors/characters involved are always from the "Bartlet Presidency" era of the show, not from the era involving the election to succeed the Bartlet Presidency (probably because the Bartlet Presidency was when the show was most popular).

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

I don't know, whenI think of West Wing, these are who spring to mind. 

 

 

Everyone else is a hanger oner.

Edited January 16, 2015 by Deputy Deputy CoS

[BW Manilowe]

I don't when I think of West Wing, these are who spring to mind.

Everyone else is a hanger oner.

Yeah. When I think of the show, the "original" cast members, if you will, are who I normally think of too. And I think the same could probably be said of others who watched the show regularly & others who didn't necessarily watch regularly but who still get a smile on their face when they read or hear that some (or all) of the surviving cast members have gotten together again, to promote/benefit some cause near & dear to their hearts or for whatever other reason there may be.

I don't frequent the Funny or Die website--which it seems they were recording the thing for. If somebody here does, could you post when whatever they were taping the other day shows up (not sure if it's gonna be "big" enough to get coverage on the ET-type shows so interested people know when it's finally released to the public). Thanks!

[maraleia]

This is the video they did

Promoting the White House's Big Block of Cheese Day.

[BW Manilowe]

This is the video they did

Promoting the White House's Big Block of Cheese Day.

Pretty cool. Thanks for linking it. The real (supposed to be real?) WH guy (at the beginning of the thing) is the current Press Secretary (they called him Josh, I think, & I think Josh somebody is the current WH Press Secretary)? I recognize a lot of the Obama Cabinet, staff, etc., but I don't really recognize him.

[maraleia]

Pretty cool. Thanks for linking it. The real (supposed to be real?) WH guy (at the beginning of the thing) is the current Press Secretary (they called him Josh, I think, & I think Josh somebody is the current WH Press Secretary)? I recognize a lot of the Obama Cabinet, staff, etc., but I don't really recognize him.

Yeah that was Josh Earnest the real life WH Press Secretary.

[HyeChaps]

I still don't count Mary as a cast member worth noting.

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

I still don't count Mary as a cast member worth noting.

 

And I have no shame in admitting that a big part of why I feel this way is how her character was shoved down my throat. At least Ryan and Rina went away.

[ProudMary]

Apropos of nothing, I've become a regular watcher of the ABC series, Forever.  During the most recent episode (1/13) who should pop up but Lord (later Ambassador) John Marbury!  It's always good to see Roger Rees.  He was definitely a favorite recurring TWW character of mine.  

[AriAu]

This could go in lots of the forums here, but I picked this one because.......I don't know why.

Just a little SOTU fun, but a day late

 

 http://www.nationaljournal.com/white-house/who-said-it-obama-or-jed-bartlet-20150120

[betsyboo]

Happy Big Block of Cheese Day!

 

 

ANNNNNNNNNNND I see it's already posted in All Episodes. Sorry! (I thought it was weird no one had posted yet since you guys are johnny-on-the-spot.)  Leaving it here, too, unless the mod wants to remove it. What's next?

Edited January 21, 2015 by betsyboo

[BizBuzz]

This could go in lots of the forums here, but I picked this one because.......I don't know why.

Just a little SOTU fun, but a day late

 

 http://www.nationaljournal.com/white-house/who-said-it-obama-or-jed-bartlet-20150120

 

HA!  I got them all right ... it wasn't all that hard.  ::giggle::

[BW Manilowe]

I follow at least most of the cast--the ones who are there, anyway (& it's at least most of them, with Janel Moloney being the newest Tweeter that I know of)--on Twitter (along with a number of people who, for whatever reason, Tweet "in character" as various people in The West Wing's universe--Josh, Donna, Sam, Jed, CJ, Danny, Elsie Snuffin, etc.).

This item I'm linking was Tweeted about a week ago by Peter James Smith, the actor who played the Ed half of White House staffer duo Ed & Larry. After thinking about it for a few days, & almost forgetting it was posted, I decided it was too good/funny not to share.

Peter apparently went to see the Dame Edna Everage show, which is currently playing/recently played in LA (if you didn't know, Dame Edna is a funny as hell--my opinion--character played, for many years now, by Australian actor Barry Humphries). He Tweeted this in honor of having seen the show.

Anyway... I'm not sure how Peter got it, but the Tweet is a pic of Martin Sheen backstage with Humphries (I don't know if Martin & Peter went to the same performance, or what), either before or after a show. Humphries is dressed as Dame Edna... & Martin's dressed as Dame Edna's pretty much identical twin! I laughed my butt off when I saw the pic. Here's the link:

https://twitter.com/pjsactor/status/561055750559391744

Edited February 7, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[marriedaniac]

Thanks for that twit pic, it is amazing! LOL

 

One small note - Barry Humphries is Australian, not English. (Though you could be forgiving for thinking otherwise.)

[BW Manilowe]

Thanks for that twit pic, it is amazing! LOL

One small note - Barry Humphries is Australian, not English. (Though you could be forgiving for thinking otherwise.)

Thanks. I happily stand corrected.

I'm pretty sure I knew enough about Barry Humphries to know he's an Aussie (I've been something of a Dame Edna Everage fan for a number of years now), so I'm not sure where him being English came from either. At least they're both countries where Queen Elizabeth II is the titular head of government, so I wasn't that far off.

Maybe I thought he was a Brit because he did his own programs for British TV? But he's also done some of his own shows/guest starred on other TV shows here in the States (most recently, the daytime show The Talk which airs on CBS network here; he was on it, as Dame Edna--of course--within the last week or so, I think) & that doesn't make him an American (shrugs).

You're welcome for the TwitPic of Martin in drag. But I can't take all the credit for it.

That goes to Peter James Smith (aka Ed on TWW) who posted it & presumably also took the pic (assuming he & Martin went to the same performance--though not necessarily together, of course--& were backstage at the same time) &/or it goes to whomever else may have taken the pic & passed it along to him.

I just thought it was worth sharing 'cause I suppose we always think of Martin as being so "dignified" & whatever; probably thanks to his playing Jed Bartlet for 7 seasons/years (though, yeah, I know he's not entirely like that in real life, nor in other roles--like when he played the father of his real son Charlie's character on Two and a Half Men & that character was off his rocker, mentally) & it's kind of unexpected when we see him do something like dress in drag (I don't even remember him ever playing a role where his character dressed in drag... just saying).

I loved how, despite the fact Martin & Barry Humphries look nothing alike, when they were in drag (in my opinion) they were fairly close to identical twins.

Edited February 7, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[AriAu]

On the radio yesterday, they were debating what it would be like if we had an unmarried POTUS and they had people guessing whether it had ever happened. I wanted to call in and answer "Andrew Sheppard."  Yeah, I know not The West Wing, but AS and kinda, sorta, the lead up to TWW.

 

By the way, the answer is Buchanon was never married and Grover Cleveland married while in office. Jefferson, Jackson, Van Buren and Arthur were widowers coming into office, while Tyler, Harrison and Woodrow Wilson lost their wives while in office.

[marriedaniac]

Dame Edna did do a lot of TV in the UK, which could be why she feels British. I remember when she was on Ally McBeal too.

 

I think I've finally figured out which one is Ed and which is Larry.

 

 

On the radio yesterday, they were debating what it would be like if we had an unmarried POTUS and they had people guessing whether it had ever happened. 

 

Weird, I was thinking about such a scenario just yesterday (and couldn't handle the thought of no Abbey). Perhaps they didn't want a President who was dating/courting ladies, and maybe Monica Lewnsky put a damper of anything too sexual happening in the White House? ;)

[AriAu]

Perhaps they didn't want a President who was dating/courting ladies, and maybe Monica Lewnsky put a damper of anything too sexual happening in the White House? ;)

 

They let Sam accidentally sleep with a prostitute, but then again, that wasn't actually IN the White House.

I think anything they did with that would be redundant with The American President. Sorkin had pretty well played out his "nothing but a white dress shirt" fantasy with Sydney Ellen Wade and Natalie Hurley.

[BW Manilowe]

Dame Edna did do a lot of TV in the UK, which could be why she feels British. I remember when she was on Ally McBeal too.

I think I've finally figured out which one is Ed and which is Larry.

Weird, I was thinking about such a scenario just yesterday (and couldn't handle the thought of no Abbey). Perhaps they didn't want a President who was dating/courting ladies, and maybe Monica Lewnsky put a damper of anything too sexual happening in the White House? ;)

Ed's the slightly heavier 1, played by Peter James Smith (who Tweeted the pic of Martin in Dame Edna drag); Larry's the thinner 1, played by William Duffy.

[kassygreene]

Ed's the slightly heavier 1, played by Peter James Smith (who Tweeted the pic of Martin in Dame Edna drag); Larry's the thinner 1, played by William Duffy.

 

This is the essence of Ed & Larry.  I thought I had them sorted out, and your post made me realize that I have (yet again) confused them.  

 

So:  Ed is played by the actor who had a part at the beginning of Serenity (the Firefly Big Damn Movie), and Larry is played by the other one...

 

But the whole point of Ed & Larry was that they were a smoothly functioning partnership, and they provided a lovely background continuity to the Bartlett administration.  

 

And that no one could tell them apart.

[fastiller]

But the whole point of Ed & Larry was that they were a smoothly functioning partnership, and they provided a lovely background continuity to the Bartlett administration.  

 

I've been doing a full series re-watch and really love the continuity of Ed & Larry and the other 'secondary' characters: the press corps, Ginger, Bonnie, Carol, etc.  It really added to the feeling that this was a cohesive group of people.

[BW Manilowe]

This is the essence of Ed & Larry. I thought I had them sorted out, and your post made me realize that I have (yet again) confused them.

So: Ed is played by the actor who had a part at the beginning of Serenity (the Firefly Big Damn Movie), and Larry is played by the other one...

But the whole point of Ed & Larry was that they were a smoothly functioning partnership, and they provided a lovely background continuity to the Bartlett administration.

And that no one could tell them apart.

Yep. The actor who played Ed was in the Firefly movie, or the actual show, or something related to Firefly. He even mentioned it in a Tweet or so that I remember reading sort of recently. And Larry's the other guy.

I totally agree that part of their "thing" was, although they were mostly unobtrusive, almost background players, & didn't get the "big" storylines of many of the other actors, they were--or at least were played as--a smoothly functioning partnership (or even unit). And the fact no one could tell them apart, & didn't really bother trying, was a great sort of "running joke" throughout the series. At least until Jed's "final walk" around the White House scene in the series Finale, when he went around to Charlie & various other staffers, who were lower level than Charlie, to say goodbye. During that walk, Jed had some individual time with both Ed & Larry, & he used each character's name when talking to them. So if you never knew who was Ed & who was Larry before, you did after that scene... If you paid attention to it.

[BW Manilowe]

Here's a link to a really cool (I think) show-related T-shirt. It's a shirt that maybe doesn't really SCREAM "West Wing fan" if you have times you wanna show you're a fan, but maybe need to be subtle about it. It's just the last names of Bartlet & his Senior Staffers... Which wouldn't necessarily mean anything to people who really aren't that familiar with the show. Heck, they could think it's a shirt for a law firm or something!

I initially saw it when I recently got a pic on my Twitter feed of a *non*-TWW actor wearing it; someone else then linked to the online store/site where you can buy it from.

http://www.redmolotov.com/catalogue/tshirts/all/the-west-wing-line-up-tshirt/lightoxfordtshirt.html

If you don't like the color/style of shirt pictured, it appears you can change the color & style.

They also apparently have other show-related shirts. A "Bartlet for America" logo shirt is at the bottom of the same page.

NOTE: The store/site is in the UK. Prices are in UK £.

Edited February 18, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[eyebleach]

I am about to buy that shirt :)  

[BW Manilowe]

I am about to buy that shirt :)

Cool! I hope the size translates OK for you, since it's not from a US site. And if it doesn't fit, it's still a neat reminder of the show. You could turn it into a pillow or something.

Like I said, it's "subtle" regarding the connection to the show. Which is a reason why I like it. If someone seeing it knows enough about the show to know the last names of the original Bartlet Administration Senior Staffers, then they'll "get" it; if they don't know enough to know their last names, then they'll either think it's just a weird shirt or it's for a law firm, or corporation of some sort, or something. You know?

I went poking around the site after posting the link. They have the same type of shirt (a "line up" shirt, I think they call it) for characters from other TV shows (i.e. Cheers, I think from the Shelley Long era) & members of current (i.e. Bon Jovi) & not-so-current (i.e. The Osmonds & The Carpenters) musical groups.

Edited February 18, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[eyebleach]

I could totally make it a pillow - my kittens Leo and Toby can destroy it ;)