The West Wing in the Media

[BW Manilowe]

From TV Insider: 'Mom' Stages a 'The West Wing' Reunion with Kristin Chenoweth

They're apparently filming this week; no airdate scheduled yet. Synopsis of the episode plot at the linked article.

Edited January 10, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To fix screwed up italics and to add a comment.

[Zola]

18 hours ago, BW Manilowe said:

From TV Insider: 'Mom' Stages a 'The West Wing' Reunion with Kristin Chenoweth

They're apparently filming this week; no airdate scheduled yet. Synopsis of the episode plot at the linked article.

Quote

The episode will reunite Chenoweth with full-time Mom cast member Allison Janney over a decade after they co-starred on Seasons 6 and 7 of The West Wing. 

I can't believe TWW ended over ten years ago now. Even more shocking is that the show is almost 20 years old from date of first airing back in 1999 (when I was only 6!) I haven't really seen much of Kristin's output since TWW, but will try and keep an eye out for her appearance in Mom, along with Allison of course.

Still makes me laugh when I remind myself of a scene in one of the latter episodes of TWW when CJ and Annabeth are doing a walk 'n' talk, and CJ says something like "I can't believe we're from the same species!", commenting on their respective height.

[Browncoat]

9 hours ago, Zola said:

when CJ and Annabeth are doing a walk 'n' talk, and CJ says something like "I can't believe we're from the same species!", commenting on their respective height.

Is that the one where CJ walks past the open file drawer and Annabeth walks under it?  Without ducking?

[Zola]

8 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Is that the one where CJ walks past the open file drawer and Annabeth walks under it?  Without ducking?

I don't think so. I can't recall that particular episode (probably from season 7), but I'm sure she was doing a walk and talk with Charlie.

The CJ/Annabeth one is from season 6's "Faith Based Initiative"

[BW Manilowe]

Congratulations to Allison Janney! She was announced just minutes ago, as I write this, as an Oscar nominee in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role category, for her role as troubled Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding's equally troubled mother in the film I, Tonya.

And Aaron Sorkin was nominated in the Best Adapted Screenplay category for Molly's Game.

Edited January 29, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To add some adjectives at the suggestion of another poster.

[AriAu]

Quote

for her role as troubled Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding's mother in the film I, Tonya

Is troubled in the right place or does this need another "troubled" before mother!

Quote

And Aaron Sorkin was nominated in the Best Adapted Screenplay category for Molly's Game.

Saw the movie and he wasn't going to win for best director. There were some very good, classis Sorkin speeches.

[BW Manilowe]

4 hours ago, AriAu said:

Is troubled in the right place or does this need another "troubled" before mother!

Saw the movie and he wasn't going to win for best director. There were some very good, classis Sorkin speeches.

All things considered, I could probably go for "equally troubled" in front of "mother ". As I wrote the post I was trying to figure out how to say both Tonya & her mother had their own set(s) of issues, without being too confusing in wording, & couldn't figure out how to do that. So I decided to focus on Tonya as the really troubled person, considering most/all of her life & her amateur figure skating eligibility, among other things, were really screwed up, if not ruined, by (among other things) the choices she made, the company she kept, & perhaps her jealousy of rival Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan's skating ability vs. her own skating ability.

[BW Manilowe]

Today is Alan Alda's (California Senator/Republican Presidential Candidate Arnold "Arnie" Vinick, in S6 & S7, & an Emmy Award winner, for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series, in S7) 82nd birthday. He posted this to his Twitter to mark the day; I just thought I'd share.

[Zola]

I adored Alda in TWW, and despite not bein POTUS, I was pleased he became Secretary of State under Santos.

I haven't seen all of MASH  - way before my time, and the few episodes I have seen I was sort of "meh!" about.

For me, Alda will always be Arnie "Let's go win this" Vinick.

Happy birthday, Alan!

[BW Manilowe]

From the Los Angeles Times: An Article/Review of the Recent All the President's Men Live Reading Involving TWW Cast Members and Others

Edited January 30, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To fix spacing.

[PeterPirate]

Article in Politico:  Anna Deavere Smith: Washington must play ‘big part’ in criminal justice reform

Includes an embedded audio file of her participation in the site's Women Rule podcast.  

 

Quote

“I think that we’re going to see an incredibly robust and creative time from artists right now, who will take this opportunity to make alternate universes, to make really strong critiques and to wish for a better world,” Deavere Smith said. “I think it’s a fantastic time for art. And it’s a fantastic time for activism, obviously.”

She predicted the resurgence of more “hopeful” works of art and pointed to ABC’s “For the People” – a new Shonda Rhimes legal drama slated to premiere mid-March, with Deavere Smith as a veteran court clerk – as an example.

“This television show is about a group of young public defenders and a group of young assistant U.S. attorneys. And it’s very idealistic. It’s not snarky. It’s very positive,” she said. “I think that there will be more works like that, even in popular culture, which are about, “I want to make a difference.”

“’The West Wing,’” she added, “was like that.”

Edited February 21, 2018 by PeterPirate

[BW Manilowe]

From People: Allison Janney Admits She Broke Royal Etiquette When She Called The Duchess of Cambridge 'Honey'

[Zola]

1 hour ago, BW Manilowe said:

From People: Allison Janney Admits She Broke Royal Etiquette When She Called The Duchess of Cambridge 'Honey'

Given that I live in the UK and am therefore deemed a "subject" to the monarchy, I really don't have much time for our Royal Family, especially the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles and all those hangers-on that no one has ever heard of.

That said the younger generation of royalty does have some appeal to me, especially William and Kate; both of them are far more relaxed about stuffy old royal protocols, and I would guess Kate wasn't too fussed about being called "honey".

It would have been totally cool had Kate replied by saying something like "Thanks CJ. Or should I say, Flamingo!" lol

I hope Allison wins an Oscar next month - she deserves it!

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Anna Deavere Smith discusses "Notes From The Field"

[BW Manilowe]

11 hours ago, Zola said:

Given that I live in the UK and am therefore deemed a "subject" to the monarchy, I really don't have much time for our Royal Family, especially the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles and all those hangers-on that no one has ever heard of.

That said the younger generation of royalty does have some appeal to me, especially William and Kate; both of them are far more relaxed about stuffy old royal protocols, and I would guess Kate wasn't too fussed about being called "honey".

It would have been totally cool had Kate replied by saying something like "Thanks CJ. Or should I say, Flamingo!" lol

I hope Allison wins an Oscar next month - she deserves it!

I'm with you. Though I really don't have a problem with Her Majesty, my favorite British Royals didn't really come about until Diana did. And I like William & Harry, not the least of which is because they're her sons, & I like Kate--excuse me, Catherine--& Meghan, who isn't even an official Royal yet. And I admit I like Sarah most of the time. I'm glad, for her, they really can't keep her from being at her daughter Eugenie's wedding, even though she didn't get invited to William's & she doesn't get invited to a whole bunch of royal family stuff anymore; I think she's supposedly invited to either Harry & Meghan's wedding or their reception, but not necessarily both.

It would've been fun if the Duchess had shown herself to be a "wingnut" (fan of the show) somehow when she & Allison met. But I suppose it's as big a no-no for William & Catherine to do stuff like that (especially since he's in line to be King someday--I mean, I suppose they have to try to exhibit a certain kind/amount of dignity, as such, even though they're also trying to remove some of the "stuffiness" from the monarchy) as it supposedly was for Allison to call the Duchess "honey". Not to mention for Allison to also meet the Duke & Duchess in her bare feet (which she apparently also did).

I hope Allison wins the Oscar too. So far I think it looks like she may still be the frontrunner in the category; especially since she's won at least most (though not necessarily all) of the awards that are presented before the Oscars that they say are good indicators of an Oscar win, if those awards are also won (like the Golden Globe, the Screen Actors Guild Award, & the BAFTA, all of which Allison's won this "awards season"). Another of the nominees in Allison's category was thought to have a lock on the Oscar for the longest time; then I, Tonya was released, people with influence (or whatever) saw Alison's performance, & suddenly the original frontrunner has apparently been left in the dust & Allison apparently now either has a lock on the award or almost does.

[Zola]

@BW Manilowe

To be honest I have kind of lost track with Allison's output since TWW ended in 2006. In much the same way as I have for the likes of Martin Shaw, Richard Schiff, Rob Lowe and Bradley Whitford.

This may sound completely dumb, but when the show ended i could never imagine these fine actors to be in any other subsequent show! It just wouldn't be the same for me. because I would always see TWW character in them rather than the character they're supposed to be playing - so perfect were they in their West Wing roles. 

I haven't seen I, Tonya yet, but I hope to do so because I am gradually getting over that West Wing short-sighted view point. 

As for our Royal Family - i always find it quite a paradox that Americans - by and large - seem to love our Family more than we our selves do, and yet you are a republic! lol

[BW Manilowe]

1 hour ago, Zola said:

@BW Manilowe

To be honest I have kind of lost track with Allison's output since TWW ended in 2006. In much the same way as I have for the likes of Martin Shaw, Richard Schiff, Rob Lowe and Bradley Whitford.

This may sound completely dumb, but when the show ended i could never imagine these fine actors to be in any other subsequent show! It just wouldn't be the same for me. because I would always see TWW character in them rather than the character they're supposed to be playing - so perfect were they in their West Wing roles. 

I haven't seen I, Tonya yet, but I hope to do so because I am gradually getting over that West Wing short-sighted view point. 

As for our Royal Family - i always find it quite a paradox that Americans - by and large - seem to love our Family more than we our selves do, and yet you are a republic! lol

Don't forget, before we were our own, independent, Republic we were as loyal subjects (for the most part, anyway) of His/Her Majesty as you are. Just saying.

Edited February 23, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To change a word.

[caitmcg]

4 hours ago, BW Manilowe said:

Don't forget, before we were our own, independent, Republic we were as loyal subjects (for the most part, anyway) of His/Her Majesty as you are. Just saying.

Almost 250 years ago. And if it were "for the most part," subsequent history would have been quite different. Just saying :). It's easy for some contemporary Americans to get caught up in the pageantry and breathless tabloid coverage of royalty precisely because it seems exotic and unlike anything in our own traditions, I think. 

[Guest]

I think Americans see the glamour of the Royal Family while many subjects see the fact that they cost a ton and the younger ones do ridiculously low amounts of work. When you’re outworked by a 96 year old who retired after half a year, you’ve got a problem! :)

I keep seeing commercials for the show Mom, and AJ’s role is so not-CJ that even the commercials throw me!

[Zola]

33 minutes ago, deaja said:

I think Americans see the glamour of the Royal Family while many subjects see the fact that they cost a ton and the younger ones do ridiculously low amounts of work. When you’re outworked by a 96 year old who retired after half a year, you’ve got a problem! :)

I keep seeing commercials for the show Mom, and AJ’s role is so not-CJ that even the commercials throw me!

I think you've hit the nail on the head. The Royal Family is incredibly large and layered, most of them we've never even heard of, yet we have to support them via our taxes. But I suppose they're good for tourism, and I would guess our Royalty is perhaps the most popular of all the royal families around the world. And the benefits probably outstrip the costs. But I am pleased the younger generation of royalty - namely William and Catherine, seem more in-tune with all Britons, and not just the upper classes. 

Anyway, not wishing to take this thread too far off-topic: I really hope AJ gets recognised at next month's Oscars. Not that I'll be watching because I do think these award shows have turned into soapbox agendas by the rich and famous.

And one thing  I love about AJ, is her height! She's 6ft tall (according to IMDb). And its not often I find women that tall! I myself am 5ft 11 in my bare feet, so it would make a nice change looking UP to another woman rather than having to look down, lol

[UYI]

CJ Cregg has an Oscar and I'm a little verklempt.

[UYI]

[BW Manilowe]

Yay Allison! She now has half of an EGOT (see my post in the CJ Cregg thread); she just needs a Grammy (which is fairly easy to get if you do the reading on somebody's Audiobook; she could also be in a Grammy-winning Broadway Cast Recording of a musical she's in on Broadway, or maybe even appear on a Grammy-winning comedy album [like Bradley did once, with Al Franken--he appeared with the former Minnesota Senator on a comedy album of his that was at least nominated for a Grammy]), & she also needs to finally win that Tony award she's missed at least twice before. Then she'll have the EGOT. If you're in the entertainment business, getting an EGOT is like being a pro tennis player & winning all 4 major championships--the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, & the US Open--especially if you can win all 4 in the same calendar year, which is a Grand Slam in the tennis championships. You don't have to win the awards for an EGOT in the same year.

I had forgotten, in all the excitement over Allison's nomination/win, that Aaron Sorkin is up in the Adapted Screenplay category. And he just lost to the guy who wrote the Adapted Screenplay for Call Me by Your Name. Sorkin already won an Oscar, for The Social Network, so it's (kind of) OK he lost (he's also lost another Oscar between The Social Network & the nomination tonight, but I've forgotten what he was nominated for the second time).

Edited March 8, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To fix spacing & add info.

[PeterPirate]

31 minutes ago, UYI said:

Congratulations to AJ!  

Although I think Joshua Malina meant to refer to a jet pack.  

[Melancholy]

Happy that Allison Janney won because she's a tremendous actor who's turned in so many excellent performances for very different types of characters. Aside from how CJ Cregg is one of my favorite TV characters of all time, she's had a great career playing all of these break-out characters. It's also always clear from any industry event featuring her that she's personally beloved and admired and liked by the people who know her i.e. the big applause when she won. Also LOLOL at her "I did it all by myself" line. 

...That said, I was more impressed by Laurie Metcalf's performance in Lady Bird. I'm sure it came from the writing. Laurie Metcalf played a more complex mother than a monster like LaVona. 

I haven't seen Call Me By Your Name. But a big part of me doubts that it was better written than Molly's Game which was superb. 

@PeterPirate, no jet ski is correct. Jimmy Kimmel is doing a gag that the winner who delivers the shortest speech wins a jet ski. 

Edited March 5, 2018 by Melancholy

[UYI]

[BW Manilowe]

On 3/4/2018 at 10:29 PM, BW Manilowe said:

Yay Allison! She now has half of an EGOT (see my post in the CJ Cregg thread); she just needs a Grammy (which is fairly easy to get if you do the reading on somebody's Audiobook; she could also be in a Grammy-winning Broadway Cast Recording of a musical she's in on Broadway, or maybe even appear on a Grammy-winning comedy album [like Bradley did once, with Al Franken--he appeared with the former Minnesota Senator on a comedy album of his that was at least nominated for a Grammy]), & she also needs to finally win that Tony award she's missed at least twice before. Then she'll have the EGOT. If you're in the entertainment business, getting an EGOT is like being a pro tennis player & winning all 4 major championships--the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, & the US Open--especially if you can win all 4 in the same calendar year, which is a Grand Slam in the tennis championships. You don't have to win the awards for an EGOT in the same year.

I had forgotten, in all the excitement over Allison's nomination/win, that Aaron Sorkin is up in the Adapted Screenplay category. And he just lost to the guy who wrote the Adapted Screenplay for Call Me by Your Name. Sorkin already won an Oscar, for The Social Network, so it's (kind of) OK he lost (he's also lost another Oscar between The Social Network & the nomination tonight, but I've forgotten what he was nominated for the second time).

OK... I just now got around to checking what Sorkin's 2nd Oscar nomination was for. He's been nominated 3 times in the Best Adapted Screenplay category, winning once. He was nominated, & won, for The Social Network in 2010; he's subsequently been nominated in 2011, for Moneyball (which is the 1 I forgot the other day), & this year (2018), for Molly's Game.

[Melancholy]

1 hour ago, BW Manilowe said:

OK... I just now got around to checking what Sorkin's 2nd Oscar nomination was for. He's been nominated 3 times in the Best Adapted Screenplay category, winning once. He was nominated, & won, for The Social Network in 2010; he's subsequently been nominated in 2011, for Moneyball (which is the 1 I forgot the other day), & this year (2018), for Molly's Game.

It’s odd that A Few Good Men was nominated for best pictures but Sorkin and Rob Reiner weren’t nominated for writing and directing respectively. 

Sorkin’s screenplay for Charlie Wilson’s War should have been nominated. 

[ProudMary]

For me the Sorkin, non-nominated head scratcher is Steve Jobs.  I sat in the theater watching the film and thought to myself, "they should just hand Aaron Sorkin the Oscar right now."  I was positively astounded that he didn't receive a nomination for it, especially when both Michael Fassbender and Kate Winslet received acting nominations.  Whose words did the Academy think they were speaking?

[BW Manilowe]

1 hour ago, ProudMary said:

For me the Sorkin, non-nominated head scratcher is Steve Jobs.  I sat in the theater watching the film and thought to myself, "they should just hand Aaron Sorkin the Oscar right now."  I was positively astounded that he didn't receive a nomination for it, especially when both Michael Fassbender and Kate Winslet received acting nominations.  Whose words did the Academy think they were speaking?

From his Wikipedia page, here's a list of nominations & wins Sorkin has had in the Academy Awards and similar awards, in the "run up" to the much heralded & revered Academy Awards. Scroll down to the "Accolades" section; sorry I couldn't create a direct link.

Considering Steve Jobs won at that year's Golden Globes for Adapted Screenplay, you would've probably expected it to have won the Oscar, as well. That's the way it usually happens: a win at the Golden Globes usually means said winner will also win the Oscar in the Oscars' counterpart category. But... it also helps if you win some of the other awards you're eligible for (like Allison was probably a "lock" to win the Oscar by the time that came around because she had won pretty much every Supporting Actress award she, & the movie, was eligible for before the Oscars/the Oscar nominations came around, &/or she was predicted to win the awards involved before the Oscars). That's what probably helped bite Sorkin in the ass, where Steve Jobs was concerned: The movie either got nominated & didn't win (like at the BAFTAs & the Critics' Choice Awards), or it didn't get nominated (the Oscars), though I'm still trying to figure out why the Academy didn't nominate it; especially since it won the freakin' Golden Globe (which is supposed to be the biggest predictor of a probable Oscar win).

Edited March 9, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To add some info.

[Melancholy]

Yeah,  Steve Jobs was wrongly shut out too. I do know some Sorkin fans who didn’t care for it though. I think it was critically the least loved of his movies (besides Malice). 

Looking it up, Steve Jobs competed in a good year for movies. For the other adapted screenplay nods, I loved The Martian, The Big Short, and Brooklyn. I merely liked Room and actually disliked Carol and would have happily seen Steve Jobs take either of those two places. 

[czork]

Does anybody know anything about Janel Moloney appearing in Friends (s3e19, Central Perk scene after Gunther "drops a cup"). It might be just me, but even the gestures seem to be hers. 

[ProudMary]

This video clip from the Writers' Guild Foundation popped up on my YouTube feed this evening.  Although it is 11 months old, I had not seen it prior to tonight and wasn't aware of some of the information shared here by John Wells.  I thought it would be of interest to others here and thought I'd share.  
John Wells discusses Aaron Sorkin leaving "The West Wing."

Edited March 12, 2018 by ProudMary

[caitmcg]

2 hours ago, ProudMary said:

This video clip from the Writers' Guild Foundation popped up on my YouTube feed this evening.  Although it is 11 months old, I had not seen it prior to tonight and wasn't aware of some of the information shared here by John Wells.  I thought it would be of interest to others here and thought I'd share.  
John Wells discusses Aaron Sorkin leaving "The West Wing."

Interesting scuttlebutt about Aaron Sorkin vs. Rob Lowe. I didn't watch until years after it aired, so I wasn't up on any rumors swirling around in real time.

[BW Manilowe]

On 3/10/2018 at 2:51 PM, czork said:

Does anybody know anything about Janel Moloney appearing in Friends (s3e19, Central Perk scene after Gunther "drops a cup"). It might be just me, but even the gestures seem to be hers. 

It does look like Janel in profile, though whomever it is is not quite in focus since Jennifer Aniston & whichever male "Friend" she was apparently supposed to have been with in the scene--& it's hard telling which guy "Friend" it is since all the guys in the cast had dark hair, & we're seeing the guy from the back--are the focus of the scene. I think whoever it is is holding whatever they're holding with a Janel-like mannerism, too.

But I looked at the filmography section of her IMDb page & her Wikipedia page, & neither has an appearance on Friends among her credits. They also don't list a Friends appearance on her credits as having been done under a different name, or as being uncredited. If they have that kind of information about a role, they use it. Maybe she did it & just doesn't list it among her credits? I don't know why she wouldn't though, if she doesn't; I mean Friends was the hot TV show for quite awhile. To me, I don't think it would be an embarrassment to anyone to have a Friends credit among their work.

Janel has an 8 minutes older twin sister, Carey. She & Carey also have an older sister, Meeghan (that seems to be a popular name/in the news a lot lately, what with Prince Harry about to marry a Meghan; & the new female lead, for all intents & purposes, on Hawaii Five-0 being named Meaghan, with an extra A in it).

Does anybody know what Janel's sisters Carey &/or Meeghan do for a living? Since Carey's her twin, if she's an actress too maybe it's her, & not Janel, in the background of that scene. Or, depending on how great a family resemblance there is, maybe it's Meeghan. Since there's no Friends credit on Janel's filmography in 2 different sources (though 1 source may actually provide the info to the other source), that's all I have to offer.

Edited March 12, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To add a word.

[BW Manilowe]

4 hours ago, caitmcg said:

Interesting scuttlebutt about Aaron Sorkin vs. Rob Lowe. I didn't watch until years after it aired, so I wasn't up on any rumors swirling around in real time.

It probably was Rob Lowe, at least based on circumstantial evidence. But I can't remember, for sure, if there were any problems between Sorkin & Rob on the set.

I know Rob didn't get a raise that he was promised, at 1 point (I think it was supposed to have been before S3, as I remember), while Allison Janney (excuse me, "Academy Award winner Allison Janney"; I hope she's gotten used to winning it in the last week), John Spencer, Bradley Whitford & Richard Schiff had their salaries raised, almost doubled, before S2 after they all either staged a walkout or threatened to. This article, from People magazine's archives, says the same 4 were supposed to receive 5% raises in subsequent years of the show (which I didn't remember). But I do remember the same 4 tried the "give us raises, or we're walking out" tactic, from the beginning of S2, again at the beginning of S4. And again they were rewarded for their collective strongarm tactics.

I also remember Rob supposedly wasn't thrilled when the cast became more of an ensemble, than having him as the male lead (as originally intended), after NBC & "the suits" saw the Pilot & decided they wanted Martin Sheen, as President Bartlet, to be in the cast for the full season instead of President Bartlet being the recurring character he was originally intended as. But I think he probably did like working with Martin Sheen, as Rob's family had actually been neighbors of Martin's family when Rob's family originally moved to California after his parents divorced.

In This 2005 Interview with London's Radio Times, Aaron Sorkin Says He'll Write Another The West Wing Episode If Rob Lowe Would Do It . And Rob said the only way he'd do it would be if Aaron Sorkin wrote it.

At the time of the interview, Aaron Sorkin & Rob Lowe were in London working on a West End theatrical production of Sorkin's play A Few Good Men, in which Rob played the part Jack Nicholson played in the movie.

[AriAu]

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a19419383/trump-body-man/?src=socialflowFBESQ

Nice TWW reference I think McEntee will have to decide whether he wants to stay with his team.....and now I'll delete any political commentary about this.

Edited March 13, 2018 by AriAu

[ProudMary]

2 hours ago, AriAu said:

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a19419383/trump-body-man/?src=socialflowFBESQ

Nice TWW reference I think McEntee will have to decide whether he wants to stay with his team.....and now I'll delete any political commentary about this.

This was my first thought today when I heard it was Trump's Personal Assistant, "They fired Charlie?"  :-D

[BW Manilowe]

Various former cast members of TWW (Martin, Allison [fresh off her Oscar win], Richard, Bradley, Dulé, Mary [McCormack], Janel, & Jimmy [Smits]) have gotten together to film a 2-minute PSA, on voting rights & fighting voter suppression policies, by Now This for the Political Action Committee Let America Vote, headed by Jason Kander. 

Here's an article about the reunion & Here's a direct link to the PSA (which is also embedded in the linked article)

Kander is the former Secretary of State from Missouri, a former 44th District Representative in the Missouri House of Representatives, & the narrow loser of the 2016 US Senate election from Missouri. He's also a CNN Contributor & Host of the Crooked Media podcast Majority 54, as well as the grand-nephew of award (including Tonys, Grammys, & Emmys)-winning composer John Kander (of the composing team Kander & Ebb).

Edited March 27, 2018 by BW Manilowe
To remove an unneeded apostrophe and comma.

[ottoDbusdriver]

3 hours ago, BW Manilowe said:

Various former cast members of TWW (Martin, Allison [fresh off her Oscar win], Richard, Bradley, Dulé, Mary [McCormack], Janel, & Jimmy [Smits]) have gotten together to film a 2-minute PSA, on voting rights & fighting voter suppression policies, by Now This for the Political Action Committee Let America Vote, headed by Jason Kander. 

Here's an article about the reunion & Here's a direct link to the PSA (which is also embedded in the linked article)

Kander is the former Secretary of State from Missouri, a former 44th District Representative in the Missouri House of Representatives, & the narrow loser of the 2016 US Senate election from Missouri. He's also a CNN Contributor & Host of the Crooked Media podcast Majority 54, as well as the grand-nephew of award (including, Tony's, Grammys, & Emmys)-winning composer John Kander (of the composing team Kander & Ebb).

It's awesome to see TWW cast together again for projects like this.

"I'm Alison 'f**king' Janney and I won an Oscar, now Let America Vote"

[BW Manilowe]

3 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

It's awesome to see TWW cast together again for projects like this.

"I'm Alison 'f**king' Janney and I won an Oscar, now Let America Vote"

I think that line makes the whole PSA. It just does. And she only won the Oscar 3 weeks ago today, so the PSA was done really recently, since I doubt she'd tempt the wrath of the whatever from high atop the thing by saying she won it before it was awarded. You know?

[Bastet]

I continue to like that doing the show woke Allison Janney up.  A lot of these folks were, if not always activists, at least politically aware coming in, but by her own admission she just sort of floated along thinking of politics as this distant, cynical thing that happens in over in D.C. she didn't pay much attention to, and then the show - and the discussion going on around her about the issues explored in the scripts - made her realize how important, and personal, it is.  So I forget the fact she's a little late to the party and embrace the fact she showed up at all.

[Zola]

Probably not for the first time the idea of a TWW reboot has been rumoured, so no real big surprise with the article below.

Would it work? No idea. Depends on the cast I guess. Fans would probably want to see one or two of the old guard, but would it still be the same? But then again the producers might want to go with a clean slate of new characters to appeal to the Millennial demographic. And then there's the question of party-politics. Should the show go with a Republican president given the current real-life incumbent, or will it stick with a Democrat?

Sorkin is also rumoured to be up to the idea of a reboot, but is currently swamped with other projects. So the show may not see the light of day under his watch.

Personally, I won't be watching it, even with Sorkin on board. I'm quite happy with the original, thank you very much 

 

http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/the-west-wing/news/a854028/west-wing-reboot-could-happen-friends-never-coming-back/

[BW Manilowe]

From: ET Online: 'West Wing' Stars Martin Sheen, Elisabeth Moss, & Joshua Malina Talk Possible Reboot (EXCLUSIVE)

[BW Manilowe]

Allison Janney & Mary McCormack will be participating in The National Memorial Day Concert, airing tonight, Sunday, May 27th, on PBS. They will be saluting women in the military.

If you've never watched before & will watch tonight, at least in most markets, it airs live from the lawn of the US Capitol building from 8-9:30PM Eastern/7-8:30PM Central; it's hosted by CSI: New York's Gary Sinise & Criminal Minds' Joe Mantegna, with a taped replay airing on most PBS stations immediately after the live broadcast has ended. But, as always, if you're interested, check your local listings for the correct time & channel for the concert broadcast in your area.

Also... Mary McCormack has the female lead role in ABC's The Kids Are Alright, which isn't connected to the 2010 comedy film, or The Who's late-1970's "Rockumentary" & song by the same name, except through the shared title. It's a family sitcom set in the 1970's, about a large Catholic family (8 kids, all boys), of which Mary's character is the mother; Michael Cudlitz from The Walking Dead is the father.

It's scheduled to air on Tuesday nights at 8:30PM Eastern/7:30PM Central, between the second season of the Roseanne revival & season 5 of Black-ish. The time period competition is: the second halves of NCIS (CBS); The Voice (NBC); The Gifted (Fox), & The Flash (The CW).

Here is the official trailer for the show. At least 1 reviewer whose opinion I read didn't laugh much at it. I didn't really either; but I felt like I was getting a The Wonder Years vibe from the trailer, which I watched twice (so far). I'm thinking this may get pulled from the schedule pretty quickly, or it'll get a timeslot switch, then ABC will pull it. But then again, if enough people get that The Wonder Years vibe from it that I thought I was getting, it may at least make it through the full 2018-2019 TV season.

[BW Manilowe]

If anybody's interested, iTunes (US Store) has the individual seasons on sale right now, for $9.99 each & the Complete Series set on sale for $59.99.

[Zola]

Just happened to do a search on Rotten Tomatoes for an overall rating of TWW, and was shocked to find a score of 65% by the critics!

It gives a season breakdown of the scores and then aggregates them to give an average: season 1 being the highest rated at 93%, and season 6 being the weakest with only 40 (season 5, came in with 50%). And some of the - damning - reviews by some of these "top" critics goes completely against the popular consensus - not only with ordinary viewers, but when compared to other TV review sites (IMDB being the most obvious)

Staggering!

 

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_west_wing?

[Zola]

12 hours ago, BW Manilowe said:

If anybody's interested, iTunes (US Store) has the individual seasons on sale right now, for $9.99 each & the Complete Series set on sale for $59.99.

I wish they could somehow remaster the show because in its current standard format 4:3 aspect ratio it looks a little flat compared to the more contemporary HD 16:9 formatted shows.

Not sure if a remaster is possible, but I would certainly pay for an updated boxset if they could

[BW Manilowe]

36 minutes ago, Zola said:

I wish they could somehow remaster the show because in its current standard format 4:3 aspect ratio it looks a little flat compared to the more contemporary HD 16:9 formatted shows.

Not sure if a remaster is possible, but I would certainly pay for an updated boxset if they could

You can choose between Standard Definition & High Definition with the iTunes videos. HD is $1 more per item.

[AriAu]

The Ringer.com (Bill Simmons's website and pod network) put out a list of the 100 greatest TV episodes of the 2000's

http://besttv.theringer.com/?_ga=2.155561467.1328473227.1533061423-23725661.1484873071

I'll save you time-it's at #12. The rules are only one episode per series.

Personally, I have always felt that Two Cathedrals is over-rated. I would have gone with ITSOTG or maybe B4 A or may In Excelsis Deo or maybe Celestial Navigation or maybe.... And so begins the annual debate as to the best episode.

Clearly this is a flawed list-they have The Suitcase for Mad Men over The Wheel and Sit Down...Shut The Door.