No Time for Television!: Mad Men Recapped

I've been trying to get one of my friends to listen to The Hold Steady for the past four years. We have very similar tastes in music, so in my mind I can't imagine him not liking a band that seems to combine everything we like into one package. And so I do what every good friend tries to do when they want to get someone involved: saturation. I've burned him CDs, sent him articles about the band, clips from their performances on Letterman; basically, I've given the full court press.

Last week, I was talking to him and The Hold Steady came up. Again. Only this time, he brought them up: "I *might* like The Hold Steady. I don't want to, but some songs have been backstabbing in my head."

"I don't want to."

I couldn't even fault him for saying that. The acceptance of new ideas, cultural trends, changes in the routine--that part of our brain slowly starts to erode as we get older. It's like how children can learn a language much easier than I can. Personally, I don't think it's because a child is smarter than me (though that is certainly debatable), but rather, because I don't really care to learn another language.

To put it another way: I don't want to.

Don Draper doesn't want to either.

There is a Crime Happening: What Happened to the Ambition of American Film?

The other day while I was rotting my brain at work, I read an article from "The Guardian" which boldly called Martin Scorsese's The King of Comedy, the "Last Great American Film." Apparently of all the movies released in the last thirty years, that was the exclamation point on the end of the 70s auteur period.

Naturally, my eyes bulged.

I'm Not the Only Person Who Hates The Wire: The 2008 Emmy Nominees

To say I love this year's Emmy Nominations is a wild understatement. In fact, with a few exceptions, it's as if I was personally involved in the process. A record number of nominations for 30 Rock? A ridiculous sixteen nominations for the "Hansel" of television, Mad Men? Only one nomination for the final season of The Wire, AKA the "MOST IMPORTANT TELEVISION SHOW OF OUR TIME?!"

And they remembered Michael Emerson.

Swoon!

Onto the nominees.

New York, New York: 42 Inch Television Liveblogs the All-Star Game

Yes, this is a Bill Simmons rip-off, but since he doesn't really write anything anymore that isn't related to the Red Sox or Celtics, I figured I could take over for one night. Who knew that "one night" would turn into six hours. Onto the running diary! Let's go National League!

8:00: Fox starts their coverage mid-stream, like an old person telling a story. I'm barely done with the dishes people!

8:01: Speaking of old people, Hall of Famer Ernie Banks gives a "pep talk" to the National League All-Stars that sounds about as exciting as the reading of a will.

8:02: Douchebag extraordinarie Joe Buck is announcing the Pre-Game festivities, and he burns through the National League reserves. Who let Carlos Marmol in the building?