Hollywood’s Summer of Junk - The VP Flavor Of The Week - Radio Haters
Some fantastic columns lately on the reality garbage that is appearing on Summer TV. How about Hollywood? Have you tried to look for a good movie lately? They are simply not there. Which means that if you want great entertainment, see a ball game, or watch Video on Demand or Cn 8 (The Plug Zone.)
I mean, take a look at the movie listings. Do you see anything that will make you want to rush out and see a movie? Indiana Jones? That’s the past. “Sex and The City’? Fun, but hardly worth eight bucks. That leaves us with a pile of junk. My suggestion: see “RECOUNT” on HBO or read a book. The movie industry needs to get its act together. And by the way, Hollywood is ignoring the generation of “mature” film goers, also known as the plus 50 group. We need something a little more scintillating than the current special effects fare to get us to the movies.
Final recommendation : Hot independent movie, available On Demand: It’s called DINNER RUSH. You won’t forget it.
On to politics. Latest hot buzz from the locals on the Democratic VP pursuit. Sam Nunn, Conservative former Senator from Georgia. Sam has the qualities: an expert on the military and foreign affairs. Downside? Jimmy Carter is pushing him. The other name we hear, and this is a surprise: Former Secretary of Defense William Cohen, the Republican who served Bill Clinton. And I might add that there has been more Joe Biden buzz from Chicago (Obama Central) in the last few days.
Some broadcasting comment. I continue to be startled by the amount of race-baiting by some nationally syndicated radio talk show hosts. You know who I’m talking about. There is no room for racial incitement on the radio. Fortunately, our local radio hosts are a lot smarter. They don’t abuse the freedom of speech that we have to take shots at minorities and immigrants, two of the favorite targets of extreme radio. The FCC is more interesting in the indecency of profanity and nudity than it is in the indecency of radio hosts who use their bully pulpit to incite hatred. This is just a reality check as we head down the road to the fall campaign. I’m sick of it. And you should be too.
Larry,
It has been several years since we last spoke. I was working at Delta in PHL at the time when Tony Niccolo intruduced us. I must say that reading you articles are a true breathe of fresh air, & I concur with your sentiments on the radio garbage that’s heard daily. Driving to JFK everyday I get to hear alot of trash on the XM stations. Keep up the good work, but that’s like telling an eagle to keep flying you do it naturally anyway.
Larry, in a sense, we grew up together. I was a young guy when you started working in Philly. I’m pleased to see that you have an eye of junk (as well as a keen nose for it). No matter where you turn, it’s rare that a critic or commentator departs from the popular and nails our downhill trend in entertainment. Keep it up.
Best,
ron
Larry, you claim Indiana Jones is the “past,” yet you fault Hollywood for ignoring the AARP crowd. AARP is also the “past.”
You never miss a chance to take a cheap shot at Jimmy Carter, do you? I figure you probably watched Don’t Mess With the Zohan eight times already.
Since when are local radio show hosts “smarter”? Hasn’t at least one of them lost his job recently for playing racially insensitive material?
Larry, TV is garbage generally. You know what’s even worse than reality TV? The local news.
The movie target audience is 16-25 year olds. They by far control the marketing. Although I would agree that films have dramatically slipped in quality (and content) over the last 25 years, a lot of it has to do with number of movie studios and actor/actress salaries… That being said, Larry, Sex in the City is a chick-flick, dude…
You must be refering to that wanna-be Al Franken on the radio. Liberals need to rethink trying to offset the Rush Limbaughs and Sean Hannitys of the world with complete losers spouting liberal babble. Or are you speaking about Howard Stern? Now that is a waste of air space.
BTW, Larry, I have a new bumpersticker for you:
Free Tibet! Free Air!
Leo, the local news is the ultimate reality show. Local news programming:
6:00-6:05 Lead local story with on-the-scene reporter/Weather teaser
6:05-6:07 commercials
6:07-6:11 Local fire (lots of fire trucks, smoke and neighbor interviews)
6:11-6:14 Local burglary (scenes outside building and neighbor interviews)
6:14-6:16 commercials
6:16-6:21 Weather ( the new bell winner!)
6:21-6:23 commercials
6:23-6:26 Sports (barely the local scores)
6:26-6:27 Local accident (lots of flashing lights and wreckage)
6:27-6:28 Local shooting (panning neighborhood)
6:28-6:30 Human “Interest” Story (cat in tree)
Next day… same thing only the locations change. Must see TV…
Can we return the topic to the national crisis concerning 50 cent air machines?
No Country for Old Men, Charlie Wilson’s War, Juno, Bucket List. Larry here are four movies from last year that I would recommend for a man your age, they are good to excellent and you can rent them so no expensive theatre tickets for you and the wife (you know how much tire air that savings will buy you?) Let’s cut the old man carping, parents were saying the same thing about movies back the in 1970s. Hollywood produces 90+% crap, you need to be a better educated consumer and ferret out the good movies.
Joe Biden buzz coming out of Chicago? Larry you need a dream catcher in your bedroom to catch these inane thoughts before you write them on a blog. There is a buzz coming out of Joe Biden alright, but its not a VP buzz, it’s the buzz of a washed up, plagerist, racist pol, who thinks he’s still relevant. Not a chance in hell Obama would be so stupid. Do you even know who Jim Webb is? Not one mention of him from you yet, but you better mention him soon so you can tell us how you got the Jim Webb for VP call right too.
Dem VP - Gov Kathleen Sebelius
Rep VP - Gov Mitt Romney
Book it Danno…
Tom Brokow hosting meet the press! Larry the local news directors need to pull their fingers out of their rear ends and hire you to do political commnetary this fall. Brokaw is more of a dinasour than you and he’s much more liberally biased.
Row house and Main Line Philadlphia will welcome Larry back,I can see the promos starting in August during the Olympics, and then Larry pops up after Labor Day when the final leg of the election begins. Shall I contact the news directors and negotiate this deal on your behalf? A 30% cut for me Larry, but I’m worth every dollar!
Biden made a fool of himself on Meet the Press today, hopefully you’ll stop that crazy talk about him Larry, there are much better candidates. Who is Kathleen Sebelius Free Tibet? Educate us, it’s gotta be more enlightening than Joe Biden’s sickening lies and arrogant ego, what a tool, he had to stop the opening of the show to talk about Russert’s son Luke, who he didnt actually know any more than the rest of us. Larry, Joe Biden is actually a Dick Head in addition to being a bad politician.
Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas. Executive experience as Governor. Female so Hillary supporters won’t feel left out.
Kathleen Sebelius (born May 15, 1948) is currently serving as the 44th Governor of Kansas.[1] She is the second female governor of Kansas, the 2008 respondent to the State of the Union address,[2] and chair-emerita of the Democratic Governors Association.
Sebelius has endorsed Democratic presumptive nominee Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. She has also been mentioned as one of Obama’s potential running mates.[
In 2001 Sebelius was named as one of Governing Magazine’s Public Officials of the Year while she was serving as Kansas Insurance Commissioner.[13]
In November 2005, Time named Sebelius as one of the five best governors in America, praising her for eliminating a $1.1 billion debt she inherited, ferreting out waste in state government, and strongly supporting public education — all without raising taxes, although she proposed raising sales, property, and income taxes[14]. Also praised was her bipartisan approach to governing, a useful trait in a state where Republicans have usually controlled the Legislature.[15]
In February 2006, the White House Project named Sebelius one of its “8 in ‘08″, a group of eight female politicians who could possibly run and/or be elected president in 2008.[16]
Thank you Free Tibet! But for you, I’d never have heard of this VP possibility. God knows, if I relied on Larry for VP candidates he would have never mentioned her, since she was likely born west of the Allegheny River in Pennsylvavia.
Larry is very parochial as you know. His sphere of interest is a 100 mile radius of Philly. Larry is focused on free air and SEPTA at the moment and the presidential campaign is merely a distraction.
I have been a life long Demoocrat but the older I get the more conservative I get. I used to support the Democratic ticket because I came from a middle class working unionized family. I hate how far left my party has gone. Today’s party is not the same as when I was a kid. Too many special interest groups. You can’t tell me there is not ONE Democratic senator somewhere that wants to drill in ANWAR. The problem is it’s all about getting re-elected from the day you take office and if these guys break rank, they get crucified. There has to be a Chuck Hagel or John Warner out there on the other side. I don’t dislike Obama, but I don’t think he has enough experience for me. Reagan didn’t either but he was smart enough to surround himself with quality people. I don’t know if Obama will take that approach. Biden has the experience to be VP but his problem is his ego and the fact that he can’t shut up. He did look bad on Meet the Press. I think McCain is a one term president if he gets in. I think his ego will be satisfied and he is far from Bush on most issues. I have a problem in that I will be voting for the strongest VP candidate.
Davegas, I’m a lifelong Republican. I have similar feelings about my party. In order to get elected, you have to please the ultra conservative faction of the party that has views so extreme that they are polarizing. That faction now includes the moral majority, strict religious groups.
I don’t think Ronald Reagan could get the nomination in 2008. Take 3 examples. Mitt Romney represented the GOP’s best hope to win in 2008, aside from his flip-flopping. Exerience, ideas, smarts, looks but not the support of the right. Mike Huckabee was almost the candidate because he best represented the beliefs of the hard right. John McCain is the nominee but 1/2 the party can’t get behind him because he’s not conservative enough.
hello Larry,
George is right Bucket List movie was a good movie,also The Savages(laura linney) was a good movie and it can hit a nerve,both movies have some truth and value.
I know last week we lost Tim Russert a great TV personality, but today we lost a true giant the great George Carlin.
Unlucky week for the Irish JR! George Carlin did a lot more than just comedy, he made us think while we laughed.
I came up with a pitch for a Hollywood film that will appeal to mature audiences. It’s called The Kane Mutiny. It’s a story about a man who chafes at the injustice he sees in society, especially around his home and on the public transit line he rides on, where some wealthy commuters are forced to sit in cars without fresh paint. Sacre bleu! As others around him struggle with the pressures of a sagging economy, he comes to their aid by starting a campaign to get them free air at all gas stations. Political bosses and a corrupt system cause him to suffer setbacks, but, after joining forces with the love interest, a young Latina newsreader who has had some scrapes with the authorities herself, he is able to get the word out on the streets: THEY’RE CHARGING YOU FOR AIR!!! The AARP gets wind of the campaign and mobilizes its forces. Soon, our hero leads numerous “mature” people into the gas station, where they all fill their tires and drive off into the sunset.
Now I’d pay $8 to see that. Wouldn’t you?
Oops. I was so excited about this new genre of “mature” action/drama that I forgot to close my bold tag.
LB,I like your movie idea. Can we cast Charles Grodin as our hero and Amanda Peet as the latina newsreader?
FTFA, maybe, but I think Eva Longoria would be more credible. (I hear she also shouts condecending things at police) I think Mel Gibson could play the interloping guy in the Latina newsreader’s newsroom. You know, the guy who tries to intercept her e-mail communications with the hero. Despite the fact that he gains access to her e-mail files, he fails to realize that the most important details of the “free air” scheme are encoded in bikini photos of the Latina newsreader because the photos themselves distract him, so he doesn’t get the scoop.
LOL
I think Regis Philbin instead of anti-Semite Mel Gibson.
Leo-You’ve got too much “free time “.
FTFA, the hero’s foil would have to be an anti-Semite. And I hear Carter won’t do films. And Henry Ford and T.S. Eliot are dead, as is Ezra Pound. So I think we’re stuck with Mel.
YAP, isn’t that what it’s all about? Free _____.
The ugly, malicious trash that is voiced from these national radio personalities should be a concern to all of us.
The damage that they do is quite scary when you realize how many people actually tune in to these hate mongers for their news.
It’s time someone finally swiftboated these unpatriotic radio hosts, and the the FCC or some other agency view their race baiting as the profanity that it truly is.
I have to augment my movie pitch. The interloper who intercepts the e-mails between the Latina newsreader and the hero gets fired for bumbling so badly.
LB, looks like you are really getting into your role as movie producer. The dearth of other contributors seems to indicate it’s time for Blog King Larry to move onto another subject/s.
BS, you totally missed the point of Larry’s blog. It’s all about free air, dude.
leo-imus will be available soon-can you fit him in your movie ?
YBP, Imus could be one of the AARP agitators, spewing hackneyed phrases (and racial insults) from days of yore as he inflates his tires on his monster truck with FREE AIR.
The lack of free air is what could be causing certain professional athletes and entertainers to be getting in so much legal trouble. And we know from science, that different ethnic and racial groups react differently to the lack of free air. Sadly, some groups of people are prone to wonton violence and other anti-social behavior when their voracious appetite for air is not subsidized by the government or private sector.
Larry’s concern that the govermnet now mandate free air is mainly to circumvent the civil unrest that might arise in certain areas of the city, especially as the heat, and lack of fire hydrants opened without spinkler attachments adds further agitation to Philadelpians. Larry was a reporter when Camden NJ burned in the 1970s, and Mayor Rizzo kept Philadelphia calm, he knows what the flash points are and he’s warning us that this summer its “Free Air- Stupid!”
Watch for the Obama campaign to coin this phrase too as we go into the general election.
I thought it was North Philly that burned in the 80’s. Where was Larry when that was going on? Siphoning air out of his neighbors tires?
As the firebombs go off on the MOVE roof, our hero rushes to the scene to deliver the relief that will quell racial tensions and prevent a riot: FREE AIR.
Another thing free air machines can be used for, and many don’t realize, is they are great for self-administered colonoscopies. Just pump yourself full, to about 40lbs of air, if you feel tight inside, that’s good. If you don’t feel tight inside at 40lbs there’s a high chance you have colon cancer and should see a doctor immediately for further tests. Now, I paid over $2,000 for one of these so-called colonoscopies out at Penn Radnor, and thank God it came up clear. However, I could have found the same test results at my local gas station for $.50, and ultimately such self-administered tests will be free once Larry gets his legislation passed for “Universal Free Air Coverage for all Americans.
Maybe he’s going to change the title of this blog to The Airy Kane Report.
George, maybe if 40 lbs of air is not enough, you are batting for the wrong team… I think you are on to something though. If each gas station could schedule 8 inflation virtual colonoscopies a day at $1500 each, I think they could afford to offer free air the rest of the time. Just wear latex gloves next time you fill your tires!
Getting ready to release 2008 sequel version of horror show starring Donovan McNabb. More bone chilling than ever before. Ending promises not to please.
By the way Larry, stop by our practice facility and we’ll put air in your tires for free!
Larry, you can borrow my bicycle pump…
Stop by and my pit crew will fill your tires for free! Anyday excepts Saturdays.
Larry, Sears is having a sale on home air compressors this week. You can get a small plug in model to keep in the gargage for about $60 bucks. They are easy to use and it will pay for itself given the number of cars you have and the obsessive frequency with which you check your tire presure. The home models also work for self administered colonoscopies. There is also a spray attachement that allows you to blow air, to clean everything from key boards to leaves on your driveway.
You will have to pay for electricity to run the home compressor, but perhaps you could get PECO to give owners of air compressors a credit on their electric bill for usage for pumping air, and the government could send all Americans a coupon for a free home air compressor, just like they are doing for the digital TV switch-over, which I’m sure you are getting since you have an older TV with whitch to play old Beta -max tapes of 1970s Action news programs (I know the cost of digitizing those thing is crazy)
You were some Anchorman, back in the day when the term AnchorMAN was not politcally incorrect. They need to bring you back to cover this election! Make sure you do a deal that includes transportation to and from the station to save gas and wear on your cars or septa passes, and a free air compressor for you office. Also request a peeled orange be brought to you everday at 3pm. It’s one of th
ose things that reminds people of your importance!
Larry: George drink your milkshake!
I’m confuse. Does George work at Sears or Burger King?
I work at McDonalds and I drink the milkshakes!
See, Larry had a milkshake (FREE AIR flavor, a limited edition at McDonald’s, sort of like a shamrock shake only with more air in it). George had a long straw . . . and he drink Larry’s milkshake!
What does Free Air flavor taste like? Chicken?
FTFA, FREE AIR tastes like VICTORY with the zesty tang of FREEDOM!
And just in time for the 4th of July, LB!
I guess Larry deserves this abuse for attempting a rerun.
Leo got it right! I use a long straw to drink Larry’s milkshake, just like in that movie, “there will be blood” with daniel day lewis. Except LArry never saw the movie becuase he thinks they are all crap nowadays. That’s probably why he doesnt know what we’re talking about, or why his air filled milkshakes always seem to be less full- it’s my long long straw drinking all of your milkshake Larry! By the way Warren Buffet like milshakes too!
George, that award-winning movie obviously didn’t target “mature” audiences. It didn’t have James Garner in it. Or Bea Arthur. Or the reinvented Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman of The Bucket List. It was for young punks. Now get off Larry’s lawn!
My theory is that Larry saw The Bucket List and decided that–come hell or high water–he would get FREE AIR before he died.
Okay gentleman, this discussion is getting a bit inane,even by my low stadards. Larry, perhaps you could put on your thinking cap and serve up a few warm chestnuts for us to dabate tomorrow,and if you deliver your loyal followers might even treat it seriously! David Koresh came up with something good everyday -until the government burned me and my family out of there, now all we have is to follow you!
hello Larry,i just got back from Anderson Cooper ac360 anchor desk tonight he is a gentleman just like you Larry,he treated jack russell with respect and I am grateful and Anderson treats all his bloggers with respect just like you Larry.
I find I am blacklisted from philly .com to a block of columnist,they seem to sensor
anything that is not pro obama,not that I use these columns very often but when i do they block it,why they blacklist jack russell is hard to see.
Larry,
you need to change blog.
jr, the ban is because of the paper’s commitment to fighting rabies. Cable news is all about rabid pundits, so you fit in better there.
While you were on Anderson Cooper (his leg?), I hope that you made the pitch for FREE AIR. If we’re going to break this economic downturn, we need to put some FREE AIR in people’s pockets.
That’s interesting JR that they censor you on the other blogs, you never say anything profane, so it’s gotta be just blocking your point of view. It’s also funny how you talk about yourself in the third person, it makes me wonder if it’s really you. I knew Jack Russell, Jack Russell was a friend of mine, sir, you are no Jack Russell!
Can’t be JR. JR does not use captial letters. It’s a fraud!