// Category Archive for: TV

When Community Is A Commodity

By Less Lee Moore

A couple of weeks ago, Community fans rejoiced when the ratings-challenged show was renewed for a fourth—albeit truncated—season, but the relief was tempered with concern, as by May 17, it was still not confirmed whether showrunner and creator Dan Harmon would be returning.

On May 18, Deadline reported that David Guarascio and Moses Port would be the new showrunners. It was disappointing for fans of the show, admittedly a group of people more aware of and invested in the behind-the-scenes goings-on than your average TV viewer.

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Ode to a Poet’th Poet: Ernie Kovacs, Percy Dovetonsils . . . thpeaks

By John Lane

Let’s start the proceedings with a heartfelt ode to Omnivore Recordings for bringing to light a long-lost and rumored (but now real!) holy grail in comedy history. That grail is Ernie Kovacs: Percy Dovetonsils . . . thpeaks
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Assemblog: May 18, 2012

Donna Summer, 1948 – 2012

New on Popshifter this week: Reviews of the remastered reissues of The Bill Evans Trio’s Moon Beams and Thelonious Monk’s Misterioso, plus some righteous indignation about women and guitar culture.

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Assemblog: May 11, 2012

Livide

New on Popshifter this week: Reviews of Turing Machine’s latest release What is the Meaning of What, the remastered reissue of Hey Little Richard, and You and I in Heaven, the new EP from Tyburn Saints.

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Assemblog: April 27, 2012

Velvet Goldmine, 1998

New on Popshifter this week: reviews of the recently reissued Beginnings, Rick Springfield’s 1972 US debut album; Theresa Andersson’s latest album Street Parade; Beatles documentary Strange Fruit; The Apples in stereo’s Chris McDuffie’s solo release as Whitejacket, titled Hollows and Rounds; and The Ian Hunter Band’s Rockaplast concert on DVD.

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Ian Hunter Band Featuring Mick Ronson, Live At Rockpalast

By Hanna

While lately the BBC and specialized music channels have finally been repeating and showing their collected musical material, German TV has been far ahead of them, broadcasting their music shows such as ZDF’s disco and comprehensive DVDs of shows like Musikladen, while the BBC still fails to release anything like a Top of The Pops DVD, and its Old Grey Whistle Test issues are limited and, annoyingly, themed.
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My Five Favorite Controversial and Hilarious Pop Culture Moments on TV

By Ann Clarke

I rarely care about what the famous (and the infamous) do that stirs up controversy or awkwardness . . . but sometimes that shit is just hilarious! I am not talking about “Reality TV” either; I’m talking about the stuff that you weren’t really expecting—but were NOT surprised once it happened—and over which you had a good laugh. There have been plenty of moments like this in pop culture, but I’m only going to list the ones that I could watch over and over again and still laugh at hysterically. In fact, some of these things get funnier upon multiple viewings!
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Why Sinéad Was Right

By Emily Carney

On October 3, 1992, Sinéad O’Connor was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Her first performance of the night was the song “Success Has Made a Failure of Our Home” from her album of standards, Am I Not Your Girl? Nothing seemed remotely untoward until her second performance of the night, an a capella version of “War” by Bob Marley. Most of us know what happened at the end of that performance, but in case you missed the show or don’t know anything about Sinéad O’Connor, let me refresh you: She took a picture of then-Pope John Paul II, ripped it in half, and shouted “Fight the real enemy!” The performance was never replayed again. Sinéad was attacked mercilessly by Catholics the world over for her gesture and, to this day, this incident remains one of the most controversial things ever aired on live television in the United States.

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Suffering, Defeat, and Justice: Why You Should Care About Pro Wrestling

By Paul Casey

Professional wrestling reached the high water mark of its popular and critical acceptance in the late 1990s. Since then, the Internet has bypassed the crude elitism of the dirt sheets and allowed fans the world over to step inside the shoes of a failed sports journalist with a disregard for both style and skill. When Vince McMahon admitted the pre-arranged nature of professional wrestling, he hit upon a unique way to market his World Wrestling Federation. “Sports Entertainment” is an athletic display, a “male” soap opera, a comedy showcase, and supposedly has more in common with Saturday Night Live than it does with Greg “the Hammer” Valentine vs. Roddy Piper in a Dog Collar Match.

Lou Albano, Cyndi Lauper

This was probably true in the 1980s, when Cyndi Lauper was palling around with Lou Albano and Mr. T was teaming with Hulk Hogan. It was probably true in the late ‘90s when The Rock and Steve Austin were at the top of their game. We’re a living cartoon. We’re real life super heroes. We’re a magic show. The successful marketing term of “Sports Entertainment” was an obvious, calculated attempt to redefine a business which had fallen between the cracks of popular culture. “Do they really expect us to believe this is real?” Although people can appreciate the commitment of magicians such as Penn & Teller and David Blaine in maintaining the illusion, the confusion over what wrestling actually is led to a long period where the public liked to believe that they were simply too sharp to be fooled.

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Your Pretty Face Is Going To Sell: Iggy Pop’s Marketing K.O.

By Cait Brennan

In the twenty-first century, commercial endorsements are everywhere. For the right price, for the right product, every indie band would wrestle an angry bear for the chance to front an ad campaign, disregarding what was once the cardinal rule of rock and roll: Doing commercials isn’t cool. Even Hollywood stars know it, which is why in the pre-YouTube era, big shot showbiz weasels would don “Fargo North, Decoder” trench coats, phony accents, and Archie McPhee mustaches and skulk off to Thailand to bank a cool million for appearing in a 30-second carbonated hemorrhoid cream ad, knowing it would never see the light of day on American TV.
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