Quite the Attention Span

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

This will be part of a series I'll do on Mondays for a while: Long-Running Television Shows. For the purposes of this blog, I will be ignoring Soap Operas and Meet The Press -type shows.

It seems appropriate that I'll start off with Sesame Street. This show is about to hit the 40-year mark, and holds the record for longest-running children's program on American television. The name recognition is unbelievable, it is shown in 120 countries, and has won over 100 Emmy awards. As one of the 77-million or so adults who watched Sesame Street as a child, I can vouch for its ability to maintain an audience. Combining live action sequences with puppets and animation, the short segments are designed for preschoolers' short attention spans.

It always bothered me that their "letter and number of the day" did not go in sequential order. One day it could be "H" and "13" but the next it would be "V" and "9." But, it did increase letter and sound recognition, as well as basic math skills. They taught me how to properly cross the street, shapes such as pentagons, how an elephant bathes in dust, and daily words in ASL (a major feat, as Linda was the first deaf actress to appear as a regular on a television show) and Spanish. "Special" episodes that come to mind include Mr. Hooper's death, Snuffy becoming more than Big Bird's imaginary friend, Slimey going to the moon, and the more-recent "hurricane week" episodes and the grease fire designed to help children deal with the tragedy of 9/11.

Gordon and Susan, Maria and Luis, Miles and Gabriella. Molly the mail lady, Mr. Hooper, Linda. Just a few of the more memorable (to me) "real" people in the show. Big Bird, Bert, Ernie, Snuffy, Oscar, Slimey, Elmo, Telly, Roosevelt Franklin, the Dinglehoppers... the list of muppets is endless. I mean, The Count, Grover, Guy Smiley, the Twiddlebugs, Cookie Monster, the two-headed monster, baby Natasha, Herry Monster, Prairie Dawn, Barkley, they just keep coming to me.

Big Bird in Japan, Big Bird in China, Follow that Bird, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, specials with princesses, the Boston Pops, and several celebrities... tons of Sesame Street expanders that came on during Primetime or even on the big screen. Follow that Bird was a scary special for me, because I felt like I could get kidnapped just as easily. I have always loved Christmas Eve on Sesame Street and look forward to watching the DVD with my future children.

Anyway, Celebrate Sesame Street!

"Love TV and Fear the Internet"

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

During the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards, Barry Sonnenfeld (winner of the Emmy for Outstanding Director of a Comedy Series) ended his acceptance speech with the phrase, "Love TV and fear the internet."

This is a very intriguing statement, I think. I agree, of course, because of the censorship that is given to television (although the lessening of restrictions in recent years does make me sad) makes it much safer and fun to love than the treacherous peril that is affectionately termed "the webertubes."

But at the same time, in a world that embraces progression, it's difficult to determine how much longer the art of television will be relevant. Certainly it already has a longer life than the radio program (although it debuted in 1920, the radio is hardly used for storytelling and the like nowadays, it's pretty much reserved for news and music), but with podcasts, videoblogs, and YouTube keeping the tech-savvy population entertained, for how much longer will TV prevail?

Consider the problems in the television industry in the past twelve months. During the writers' strike, the variety of programs which were aired in lieu of over 3 months of striking was rather odd. First, extra episodes of The Amazing Race, Big Brother, and even The Price Is Right were ordered to fill slots left void. American Gladiators was brought back to entertain the mindless. Many shows (everything from Desperate Housewives, 30 Rock, and House, M.D. to CSI and The Simpsons) were shortened when the strike was over so that they did not run into the summer season. Still others were stopped suddenly, with production halted until the Fall 2008 season began (think Entourage, Heroes, and Pushing Daisies for starters). And then, of course, there were shows that died completely because of the strike (I'm sure there are more, but The Suite Life of Zack and Cody is the one that comes to my mind). Oh, and those talk shows that ran late night were screwed up for a while. Too bad comedians don't write more material themselves...

So the American public had to base a lot of entertainment decisions on crap, yet it seems that the new television season is faring well, so not all was lost. Will more be lost in the coming seasons? God, I hope not.

Anatomy of a Television Channel

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

In the past year, I've had the opportunity to watch more daytime television than in years past. And while I've never gotten into soap operas or daytime gameshows (well, except for The Price is Right, of course), I do enjoy the syndicated sitcoms and dramas that air all day. And I think I kinda always have.

Since I first discovered its existence when I moved to Florida in 1993, TBS has been one of my favorite channels. Saved by the Bell, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Home Improvement, Yes, Dear, King of Queens, Seinfeld, and Friends are among the shows which air weekdays on that channel. ABCFamily has Sister, Sister, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Step by Step, Gilmore Girls, and Full House. Hallmark only has Little House on the Prairie, MASH, and 7th Heaven. I only turn to TNT for ER.

I remember when I spent the entire day flipping between Nickelodeon and Disney. But now, Nick's only offer of interest is their Nick @Nite lineup (Home Improvement, Family Matters, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Roseanne on this rotation) and Disney just has Recess, Mickey Mouse's Clubhouse, and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. I used to LOVE MTV and VH1, but ever since their movements away from actual music videos, I might catch My SuperSweet 16, and I Love the 80s/90s. No more Say What Karaoke, old-style pop-up videos, TRL with Carson Daly, Where are they Now?, and Jesse Camp specials. Small tangent: I remember the very early days of TRL, now ten years ago, and am nostalgic about the series' end this November.

As far as the major networks go, I don't know that I really have a particular preference. They all have really bad shows, and they have some good ones too.

Another Season Begins

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

As much as I would love to say that (music) theatre is my preferred form of entertainment, it's not. Television is. I really, really love to watch TV. And I have since I was a little kid. When I was eight years old, I already planned my Tuesdays around the new Full House episode. Before I was in middle school I had a routine of shows I watched, and I did pretty much anything to win over my siblings to my choices. I actually had my dad convinced that I needed to watch Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego for school.
Shows that I love, I tend to watch often. If I've managed to somehow miss episodes here and there in a show, I make sure I've read about the "missing" episodes to ensure that I am an expert on the entire show. I think that the funniest thing about my television-watching history is that I don't think I've ever followed a show from it's series premiere before last season. Full House, Melrose Place, Home Improvement, and Boy Meets World were among the earliest shows I followed consistently, and I started all of them late. 7th Heaven, ER, Jon and Kate Plus Eight, House, M.D. and How I Met Your Mother were also shows I began to love well after they began. Heck, The Facts of Life, Beverly Hills 90210, Seinfeld, and Doogie Howser are just a few shows that I love now that I never saw once in original run.
In the last year, I began Lincoln Heights and The Secret Life of the American Teenager about when they started (had to catch both pilots online, but that's close enough). Interestingly, they're both ABCFamily shows, but I rather enjoy them. Unfortunately, they run at opposite times of the year, so I won't be watching them together regularly.

The stimulant for this post is the fact that my current "main shows" for the upcoming season begin tonight. In less than two hours, House, M.D. will be back in action, and it certainly looks to be an interesting season. In the current Entertainment Weekly, the main featured article questions what the show will do now to maintain its audience (given that it's already pulled some major stunts like killing off characters and re-doing half of the main cast). We'll see. The crowd is headed over, and pizza and cream cheese cookies will abound!
And in case you were interested, other shows I'll be watching this season (mostly beginning next week) will be How I Met Your Mother, Opportunity Knocks, Lincoln Heights, and ER (final season!). I may try out Privileged, but that's going to begin cutting into my time for Jon and Kate Plus Eight, and Little People, Big World when that returns.

Entertainment at Noon

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

I love being entertained. I love comedians, circuses, television, dance, theatre, and tons of other forms. I love the fact that artists have the ability to mold themselves into different roles, and they all work. However, every once in a while you come across an actor in a role, and it is so memorable that every time you see him or her in the future, you can only picture that performer as a previous character.

Case in point: Cheers is on right now. And it's an episode shortly before Woody's marriage to Kelly. Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) has reconnected with her high school boyfriend, played by Harvey Fierstein. Now, for those who were old enough to stay up late enough in 1992 to watch this episode live, it's doubtful Fierstein made much of an impression, as it was relatively early in his television career (though his theatre resume is impressive). However, for those of us who were too young (or just not a fan of a show set entirely in a bar), our first major introduction to Fierstein was in Mrs. Doubtfire in 1993. If the name's not yet ringing a bell, he played Frank, the brother of Daniel Hillard (Robin Williams). At this moment, I'm once again remembering the beauty parlor scene, complete with a short rendition of Fiddler on the Roof's "Matchmaker." He's been in Independence Day, White Lies, even Elmo Saves Christmas. He voiced Yao in Disney's Mulan and its sequel. However, I see him and just cannot see past his role in that early 90s comedy. It amuses me to see him play any other character.