Category: Trivia

The All-Time Best Sitcoms!

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Alan Sepinwall, Maria Fontoura, David Fear and Rob Sheffield at The Rolling Stone took on the monumental task of Ranking the 100 All-Time Best Sitcoms.  Ken Levine (who’s written for shows that made the list) explains why creating this ranking is a fool’s errand.  While I agree with Ken, I’m fool enough to play along. 

Of the top 100 on their list, I’ve seen less than half.  41 to be exact.  Since we’re just going to compare their top 10 to mine, that won’t be an issue since I’ve seen all of their top choices regularly except for two.  So without further fanfare, here are Rolling Stone’s All-Time Best Sitcoms compared to mine.

Rolling Stone Craig
10. Larry Sanders Show (HBO, 1992-1998) 10. Andy Griffith Show (CBS, 1960-1968): Episodes featuring Barney are among the best sitcom episodes ever.
9. Parks and Recreation (NBC, 2009-2015) 9. Mary Tyler Moore Show (CBS, 1970-1977): was must-see tv.
8. Honeymooners (CBS, 1955-1956) 8. Modern Family (ABC, 2009-2020): Started as a fun watch and then became must-see.
7. Mary Tyler Moore Show (CBS, 1970-1977) 7. Frasier (NBC, 1993-2004): I’m one of the folks that prefer Frasier to Cheers.
6. M*A*S*H (CBS, 1972-1983) 6. Big Bang Theory (CBS, 2007-2019): I came to this one late, but then caught up.  BBT became must-see for us.
5.  All in the Family (CBS, 1971-1979) 5. Sanford and Son (NBC, 1972-1977): S&S is often compared to All in the Family, but I think that S&S holds it’s own against AitF (and is better when comparing the later seasons of each)
4. I Love Lucy (CBS, 1951-1957) 4. Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS, 1996-2005): I didn’t start watching ELR until near the end of the run.  It grew on me and I’ve now seen every episode at least once.
3.  Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998) 3. I Love Lucy (CBS, 1951-1957): Every episode until they move to the country is classic.
2. Cheers (NBC, 1982-1993) 2. Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998): was required viewing since everyone discussed the latest episode the day after it aired.  Holds up under multiple viewings. 
1. Simpsons (Fox, 1989-Present) 1. Honeymooners (CBS, 1955-1956): Simple format, perfectly cast and still funny over half a century later.

I was surprised that Two and a Half Men didn’t make the All-Time Greatest list. The years featuring Charlie Sheen would have made mine. It just didn’t work for me once he was gone. Jon Cryer was still funny but, for me, the magic left with Charlie. (And while we’re on the topic of Jon Cryer — wouldn’t he have made a great Barney Fife??)

Ranking the Films of Stanley Kubrick

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Robert Vaux at ComicBook.com decided to look at the Rotten Tomatoes ranking of every film by Stanley Kubrick.  I enjoy this kind of thing and decided to see how I would rank Kubrick’s films..  Here’s how the rankings compare.

Rotten Tomatoes

Craig

13. Fear And Desire

*** Fear And Desire

*** Lolita

*** Barry Lyndon

I haven’t seen the above films so my rating will be for my top 10 Kubrick films.

12. Eyes Wide Shut

11. Killer’s Kiss

10. The Shining

10. 2001: A Space Odyssey: I’ve watched this several times over the decades, but it is just not for me.

9. A Clockwork Orange

9. Eyes Wide Shut: I didn’t care for it. I plan to give it another shot some day to see if my opinion changes.

8. Lolita

8. Killer’s Kiss: I liked it. Another viewing might even move it higher on my Kubrick list.

7. Barry Lyndon

7. Paths Of Glory: I liked Paths of Glory, but not as much as most folks. Perhaps a new viewing will give me a new opinion.

6. Full Metal Jacket

6. The Shining: I think the, uh, shine has come off this one over the years. I still like it although it is more Kubrick than King.

5. 2001: A Space Odyssey

5. A Clockwork Orange: Such a strange film. I look forward to seeing it again since it has been a while.

4. Spartacus

4. Full Metal Jacket: One of my favorite war films.

3. Paths Of Glory

3. Spartacus: Perhaps the greatest epic of them all!

2. The Killing

2. The Killing: If you like crime/noir, The Killing is for you (and me, too).

1. Dr. Strangelove

1. Dr. Strangelove: I love Dr. Strangelove. The perfect mix of humor and drama.

The Greatest 1 Hit Wonders

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Ellen Gutoskey decided to take a look at The 50 Most Streamed One Hit Wonders.  Using just her list here are my five favorites and five more that didn’t make the list but would have made mine.  

First up my fav five from the top 50…

  • “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” by Looking Glass
  • “Play That Funky Music” by Wild Cherry
  • “Escape (Pina Colada Song)” by Rupert Holmes
  • “Walking in Memphis” by Marc Cohn
  • *Hooked on a Feeling” by Blue Swede

And now the five that didn’t make the list…

  • “Born to be Alive” by Patrick Hernandez
  • “Me and Mrs, Jones” by Billy Paul
  • “Kung Fu Fighting” by Carl Douglas
  • “Funkytown” by Lipps, Inc.
  • “Venus” by Shocking Blue

Things We Learned About “Speed” from Director Jan De Bont!

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Art by Edgar Ascensão

Rob Hunter at Film School Rejects turned his sights to the Speed, then posted 24 Things We Learned from the ‘Speed‘ Commentary by director Jan de Bont.  Before you click over, here are three of my favorites…

Keanu Reeves wasn’t all that interested in starring in an action movie, so De Bont had to convince him that it would be fun. How? By telling Reeves he’d be allowed to do as many of his own stunts as possible on Speed.  (Being able to do stunts safely is probably a big lure to many actors.  Some that are known to do most of their own stunts include Robert Conrad, James Caan, and Sly Stallone. – Craig)

It was Dennis Hopper’s idea to stick his fingers in Jeff Daniels’ nose to lift him up, and while De Bont worried it would look silly he agreed after trying it and discovering it’s actually pretty painful.  (Can you imagine Hopper saying to Daniels and De Bont, “I’ve got an idea, why don’t I stick my fingers up his nose and lift him up?” – Craig)

He says sharp-eyed viewers will spot “hidden” cameras during some of the bus action as they often only had single takes and had cameras in cars, trucks, and elsewhere. (I love it when director’s stick in “Easter Eggs”! – Craig)

The Best Movies NOT to be Nominated for the Best Picture Oscar!

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Film School Rejects took a look at The 100 Best Movies That Were Not Nominated for Best Picture.  They came up with a good list of films that they feel should have been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.  Using their list, I came up with my top nine and one that I added that didn’t make their list, but would have made mine.

  • Planet of the Apes (1968)
  • Night of the Hunter (1955)
  • Die Hard (1988)
  • The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
  • The Searchers (1956)
  • Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
  • Touch of Evil (1958)
  • Se7en (1995)
  • Psycho (1960)
    Plus my addition: Cop Land (1997)

The Best Prime-Time Line-Ups of All Time!

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In these days of streaming with hundreds of cable channels and options specifically geared to taste, when we look back at the days of three basic network options, it is funny to think of how limited our viewing choices were.  It also brings to mind how difficult it must have been for television programmers to put together that magical line-up that would keep viewers on their network.

The fine folks at MeTV decided to look at all of the line-ups from the dawn of television through our current options to determine What was the Best Network Television Lineup Ever?  Unfortunately Me-TV’s article is no longer available.  But based on their top ten, here are my thoughts and choices for the best line-ups ever.

10. CBS Friday 1979–1980: The Incredible Hulk – The Dukes of Hazzard – Dallas. (I’ve watched a couple of episodes of The Incredible Hulk and have never seen a complete episode of Dukes or Dallas. – Craig)

9. ABC Friday 1971–72:  The Brady Bunch – The Partridge Family – Room 222 – The Odd Couple – Love, American Style. (I’d watch The Brady Bunch and The Partridge Family, occasionally The Odd Couple and usually Love, American Style. – Craig)

8. CBS Sunday 1956–57: Lassie – The Jack Benny Program – The Ed Sullivan Show – General Electric Theater – Alfred Hitchcock Presents – The $64,000 Challenge – What’s My Line?  (Since I wasn’t born yet, I didn’t see any of them that season.  I am a fan of The Jack Benny Program and Alfred Hitchcock Presents which I’ve seen in reruns. – Craig)

7. ABC Thursday 1966–67: Batman – F Troop – The Dating Game – Bewitched – That Girl.  (I never missed Batman, occasionally watched F Troup and The Dating Game.  I usually would watch Bewitched and occasionally That Girl. – Craig)

6. ABC Thursday 1972-73:  The Mod Squad – Kung Fu – The Streets of San Francisco. (I always watched Kung Fu but neither of the other two. – Craig)

5. Fox Sunday 1999–2000: Futurama – King of the Hill – The Simpsons – Malcolm in the Middle – The X-Files. (I didn’t watch any of these shows. – Craig)

4. NBC Thursday 1993–94:  Mad About You – Wings – Seinfeld – Frasier – Homicide.  (I always watched Mad About You, Wings, Seinfeld and Frasier.  Homicide was the show that kept this line-up from being a clean sweep for me. – Craig)

3. CBS Saturday 1959–60:  Perry Mason – Wanted: Dead or Alive – Mr. Lucky – Have Gun, Will Travel – Gunsmoke. (I was too young to watch. – Craig)

2. NBC Thursday 1984–85:  The Cosby Show – Family Ties – Cheers – Night Court – Hill Street Blues. (I always watched all of these shows.  This was a perfect line-up for me. – Craig)

1. CBS Saturday 1974–75: All in the Family – The Jeffersons – Mary Tyler Moore – The Bob Newhart Show – The Carol Burnett Show. (I always watched all of these shows.  This was also a perfect line-up for me. – Craig)

So there were two line-ups that I stay tuned to for the entire evening, but which was the best?  I give the nod to CBS Saturday 1974-75. 

The All-Time Best TV Friendships!? C’mon, Man!

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 Allison Keene and the Paste TV Writers posted a fun piece titled The 25 Best TV Friendships.  Their list isn’t a bad one and contains many of the tv friendships you’d expect to see including…

  • Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern from The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
  • Hap and Leonard from, uh, Hap & Leonard  
  • Jerry Seinfeld and George Costanza from Seinfeld

But I have to question any list of The 25 Best TV Friendships that doesn’t find a spot for…

  • Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton from The Honeymooners
  • James T. Kirk and Spock from Star Trek
  • James West and Artemus Gordon from The Wild, Wild West

C’mon, man!

Elvis Presley’s Graceland – Facts You Might Not Know!

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I like Elvis Presley’s music and maybe even a few of his movies.  So I’m not what you’d call an Elvis fanatic, but truth be told, I wouldn’t mind visiting Graceland.  There’d be something cool to be able to walk around in Elvis’ mansion (now a tourist hot spot) that has been kept like it was when Elvis lived there.  

Ellen Gutoskey posted 9 Rockin’ Facts About Elvis Presley’s Graceland and it was a fun read.  Before you click over for the full story, here are my three favorites…

ELVIS BOUGHT GRACELAND WHEN HE WAS ONLY 22 YEARS OLD.  (Elvis paid $102,500.00 for the mansion and almost 14 acres of land.  $102,500 in 1957 dollars equals $950,127.58 in 2021.  That shows you how popular and how much dough Elvis was bringing in at such an early stage in his career.  – Craig)

GRACELAND’S JUNGLE ROOM DOUBLED AS A RECORDING STUDIO.  (This is probably the most famous room in the mansion.  Elvis recorded his second to last studio album in the Jungle Room.  It’s cool to know that John Cougar Mellencamp, Kid Rock, and Lisa Marie Presley (Elvis’ daughter) also recorded albums in the Jungle Room. – Craig)

ELVIS KEPT GRACELAND’S KITCHEN STOCKED WITH VERY SPECIFIC ITEMS.  (A lot has been made over the years of Elvis’ love for fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches.  Other items that Elvis wanted to always be available included: banana pudding, ingredients for meatloaf, fudge cookies, fresh orange juice, ice cream, brownies, shredded coconut, hot dogs, ground round steak, biscuits, and gum. 

Looking at that list I’d  say: banana pudding only if it contained Nilla Wafers, meatloaf is a good idea for leftover sandwiches, I’d substitute chocolate chip for fudge cookies, fresh orange juice is good but with Elvis money I would have a McDonald’s Iced French Vanilla Coffee maker installed, ice cream is a must and make sure we have Hershey’s syrup, brownies are a big YES, pass on the shredded coconut, yes to hot dogs (all beef), yes to ground round steak, big YES to biscuits and pass on the gum. – Craig)

2nd COVID-19 Shot; Day Two Side Effects

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Yesterday I posted that my wife and I received our second COVID-19 vaccination.  Like with the first shot we both experienced some pain in the arm that received the injection.  In the afternoon I felt sleepy, but my wife didn’t experience that issue.  We knew that with the second shot many people experienced tiredness, headache, muscle pain, chills, fever, and nausea.  We hoped to avoid those reactions.

Unfortunately, as the night wore on we began to experience them.  We both developed chills, joint aches and hot flashes.  I also had muscle pain (lower back) and nausea.  Neither of us slept well, waking up throughout the night several times.  We took Tylenol and drank water.  It felt like the flu.  It’s a little after 1;00pm and we’re starting to feel better.  I imagine by tomorrow we’ll be back to our normal selves.

Given that in two weeks we should be assured of not dying or being hospitalized if we contact COVID-19, the side effects were a small price to pay and if we have to get booster shots ever year, I’m fine with that.  It sure beats the alternative.

Today We Received Our 2nd Covid-19 Vaccination!

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This morning my wife and I received our second COVID vaccinations.  We arrived at 7:15 for our 8am appointments, which were the first of the day.  For our first shots we arrived at the same time and were the very first car in line.  Today we were probably the 50th car in line.  Like last time it was set-up so that you were directed to a parking spot and then allowed to enter the building.  They had folks monitoring the line so that people went in according to their appointment time.  They even opened things up about 15 minutes early.

We entered the building and it was laid out so that everyone stayed spaced apart.  For my first vaccination I felt some heat when getting the shot and my wife didn’t feel a thing.  For the second shot, neither of us felt anything.  After getting the vaccination we moved to an adjoining room for a 15 minute waiting period to make sure we suffered no ill after-effects.  Neither of us had any reactions so we left and again, the layout made it a breeze.

On day two of the first shot we both had a little arm pain tomorrow, but nothing that Tylenol couldn’t handle.  I felt sleepy this afternoon and took a nap.  Can I blame it on the shot?  My wife has felt no ill effects.  In two weeks our immune systems will have the full effect of both vaccinations and we will be able to start visiting friends and family again. I can’t wait.

The OSCARS All-Time Greatest Best Picture Winners

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Brian Truitt at USAToday came up with his list of The 25 greatest Oscar best picture winners, ranked.  I enjoy lists and playing around with them.  So using just Truitt’s list I came up with my top five.  Here’s a chart comparing our choices:

TruittZablo
1. ‘The Godfather’ (1972)
1. ‘Rocky’ (1976)
2. ‘Casablanca’ (1942)
2. ‘The Godfather’ (1972)
3. ‘Schindler’s List’ (1993)
3. ‘The Godfather Part II’ (1974)
4. ‘On the Waterfront’ (1954)
3. ‘Casablanca’ (1942)
5. ‘All About Eve’ (19/50)5. ‘Gone with the Wind’ (1939)

Pony Express – Facts You May Not Know!

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When I was a kid Cowboys were king. Westerns dominated movie and television screens. Cowboys even regularly appeared in comic books. Kids loved tales of the West. There were so many heroes and we knew their names. Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday, Bat Masterson, and Wild Bill Hickock just to name a few.

What’s interesting is that there was another group of real-life western heroes — Pony Express Riders. We all knew how they rode the mail across hostile country (weather, terrain and Indians) at breakneck speed, only stopping after they’d ridden dozens of mile and only after they had passed the mail on to the next rider.

Its interesting that what we think we knew about the Pony Express is often wrong.  Evan Andrews addresses this in post 10 Things You May Not Know About the Pony Express.  Before you click over, here are three of my favorites and my thoughts on each…

2. It was a financial flop.  (I really never thought about the financial aspect of running the Pony Express.  There’s the cost and upkeep of the horses.  Paying the riders as well as those that ran the relief stations and the cost of keeping them stocked.  Estimates run as high as $200,000.00 were lost for the investors behind the Pony Express. That translates to about $6.5 million today.  Keep in mind the Pony Express was only in operation for about one and a half years! That is another fact that blows many people’s minds. – Craig)

8. Riders didn’t have the deadliest job on the Pony Express. (I found this to be a surprising fact.  More relief station workers were killed than Pony Express Riders.  The relief stations were in remote locations and vulnerable to attacks by bandits and Indians at war.  – Craig) 7. One rider completed a 380-mile run in less than two days.  (Most Pony Express riders rode about 75 miles making horse changes along the way.  They would they pass off the mail and rest up for their next trip.  Robert “Pony Bob” Haslam had ridden his route but the next rider refused to take the mail on.  Paiute Indians had been attacking relief stations and the rider was afraid to head into their territory.  Haslam grabbed the mail, jumped on a fresh mount and completed the run!  After delivering the mail and a brief rest, Haslam completed the return trip, a total of 380 miles in less than 40 hours! – Craig)

The Twilight Zone: “It’s a Good Life” Trivia

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The Twilight Zone is one of my all-time favorite shows.  Some of the original TZ episodes rate with the best television has ever had to offer.  One of the most popular Twilight Zone episodes is “It’s a Good Life” which starred Billy Mummy as a little boy who could read minds and would destroy anyone or anything that displeased him.

MeTV posted 9 Little Details You Never Noticed in the Twilight Zone Episode ”It’s a Good Life”.  I was surprised by some of the facts listed.  Here are three and my thoughts on each before you click over.

It has the longest opening narrative in Twilight Zone history.  (Serling’s intro clocks in at 2 minutes which doesn’t sound like much, but when you consider that is 10% of the episode’s running time, it is quite a bit.  Still I wouldn’t change a word. – Craig)

They made a sequel in 2003. (The sequel appeared on the rebooted Twilight Zone tv series.  Both Billy Mummy and Cloris Leachman, as his mother, returned to reprise their roles.  I had no idea that there was a sequel!  I need to find and watch it. – Craig)

Rod Serling was working on a feature film adaptation when he died. (Sadly, Rod Serling died at such a young age.  I wonder if there is a surviving script?  It would be cool to at least know how he planned to handle the story for a feature length film. – Craig)

Today We Received Our 1st Covid-19 Vaccination!

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This morning my wife and I received our first COVID vaccinations.  I’m happy to report the whole process went smoothly.  We arrived at 7:15 for our 8am appointments, which were the first of the day.  We were the very first car in line.  I thought we would receive the shots without getting out of the car, but it was set-up so that you were directed to a parking spot and then allowed to enter the building.  They had folks monitoring the line so that people went in according to their appointment time.

We entered the building and it was laid out so that everyone stayed spaced apart.  Although I felt some heat when getting the shot, my wife said she didn’t feel a thing.  After getting the vaccination we moved to an adjoining room for a 15 minute waiting period to make sure we suffered no ill after-effects.  Because my wife has a medical allergy, we were required to wait an additional 15 minutes.  Neither of us had any reactions so we left and again, the layout made it a breeze.

We were told that we may have some arm pain tomorrow, and if so Tylenol should take care of any discomfort.  We get our second vaccination on April 15th.  I can’t wait.