23 Year Old Michael Jordan With David Letterman

Posted in David Letterman, Michael Jordan on June 16th, 2012 by Willie

I just tuned into the fabulous new documentary on the 1992 Dream Team, the magical group of Olympic All-Stars led by Michael Jordan.  If you grew up as a kid in the 90s like I did, Michael Jordan was the closest thing to experiencing Babe Ruth.  It didn’t matter what team you were a fan of, watching Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls dominate basketball was a thrill right out of a comic book.  Jordan played with passion, creativity, and inspiration, and he came to represent the icon of American achievement, proudly setting the bar for success higher and higher.  The thing I like most about Michael was that he never shrank from the spotlight and never felt embarrassed to be who he was.  Many icons of sports and popular culture exude a bitterness and resentment in the face of overwhelming media attention and praise, but Michael embraced it and owned it.  Criticism did grow around Jordan, concerning the colossal commercialization of his name and likeness, but I always felt that criticism was a bit wrong headed. While it was certainly true that Michael lent his name to anyone with a big enough paycheck, he never pretended that it wasn’t anything other than enjoying the spoils of money and fame.  His appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman when he was then just a 23 years old emerging phenomenon, shows Michael constructing this public identity, which was a cross between a crass walking commercial, and, somehow, an unpretentious everyman burning with the universal desire to be great.  Letterman, also young and spry, does his part in helping create the myth and legend, and the clip below is just a lot of fun.

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Nancy Sinatra, You Only Live Twice, Mad Men Season Finale

Posted in Mad Men, Nancy Sinatra on June 11th, 2012 by Willie

Mad Men is a hell of a show.  When it first premiered, I was intrigued because I loved the Sopranos, and knew that Matthew Weiner, one of that shows head writers, was behind its creation.  At first I wasn’t hooked.  I thought many of the characters were overly stylized and inauthentic.  I also thought much of the first season’s hook was portraying the chauvinistic and racist world that world that was very much in full swing in the early 1960s.  So, after a few episodes, I stayed away from Mad Men, casually sympathizing with those who thought the show to be an over-hyped and empty experience.  The show drew me back though after the conclusion of season 2.  I had caught a few more episodes, and was reluctantly entertained.  When I made an effort to follow up on several of the episodes’ smokey cliffhangers, the reluctance was gone, and I was hooked.  This past week, in gearing up for the season 5 conclusion, I found myself looking back at season 1 with fresh eyes, re-watching classic moments from other moments of the show, like how the characters react to the Kennedy assassination, and all around just soaking in the smugly rewarding atmosphere that indulging in this show offers.  Season 5 ended last night, and I am a bit sad because it was my favorite season by far.  At last, in the midst of season 5, and to apparent great expense, the Beatles were heard on the show.  Hearing “Tomorrow Never Knows,” from Revolver, finally filled a great cultural void that existed only due to the near impossibility of getting all the Beatle heirs to agree to allow a real Beatle master tape to be played on television.  It was immensely satisfying as a Beatle fan to hear the group that could not be avoided in the real 60s, to finally find a place in the fictional Mad Men 60s.  Then there was the inevitable LSD episode, also executed brilliantly, capturing an unsensationalized and mature look at that curious drug’s power, a welcome change of pace from the countless overblown depictions of the drug and its effects across the span of pop culture history.  Those highlights aside, the season was full of the same witty writing, stunning dramatics, and impeccable set and prop design which are the show’s hallmarks.  Season 5 ended like many Mad Men episodes do, with a montage of our favorite characters in their most private and isolated moments, all set to “You Only Live Twice,” by Nancy Sinatra.  Nancy had some spellbinding hits throughout the 60s, really capturing the more “swinging” side of the 60s through her cinematic cool anthems.  This song, known mainly as a James Bond theme song, finds new life spilling over the secret worlds of our favorite group of spiritually desolated protagonists.  I’ve got the song below, but I do want to close by saying that if you’ve had reservations about Mad Men, drop them.  Start with season 2 and either work yourself forward or backwards.  Like I said, its a hell of a show.

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Raymond Taylor, Best Wheel of Fortune Contestant Ever

Posted in Fun and Crazy, Wheel of Fortune, Youtube Favs on December 15th, 2011 by Willie

So the story goes that while on the road in Chicago, the Wheel of Fortune game show had a contestant drop out at the last minute.  The producers found some guy named Raymond Taylor on the street, gave him a suit, and propped him on the stage.  I have no idea if this is true or urban legend, but legend is the operative word when describing Raymond Taylor’s exploits on Wheel of Fortune.  Raymond was a skinny Chuck Berry clone who could never look anyone in the eye, and was constantly fidgeting around the set.  He was also TV gold.  He was genuinely witty and cutting in all his remarks and timing, and he was a stunningly adept “Wheel” player.  Many people assume, with racist underpinnings, that Raymond was a crack addicted clown.  I’m not going to go that far.  Television has a way of either making people conform with fear, or bringing out their inner star.  I think this was the case of the latter.  Raymond ended up winning over 80k in cash and prizes, and actually began to stalk the Wheel of Fortune studios looking for a job.  The studio ended up putting a restraining order against him.  It’s a bizarre end to a hilarious and peculiar story, but check Raymond out yourself in his best moments on his unreal Wheel of Fortune run.

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Seinfeld, How it Began

Posted in Curb Your Enthusiasm, Fun and Crazy, Larry David, Seinfeld on July 28th, 2011 by Willie

The “Seinfeld” obsession continues, this time with a great documentary on it’s unlikely creation and even more unlikely smash success.  It’s a revealing 6 part look into how the show started off as a quirky experimental program whose premise was wrapping a sitcom around a standup comedians act.  It was a totally novel creation springing from the minds of Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld.  The documentary is great because you see the enormous strain and pressure Larry David was under in the creation of this thing countered with the unnatural calm and ease that Jerry Seinfeld exuded during the whole creation.  The whole video series is great, a must for “Seinfeld” fans, which should just about include the entire human race. Sadly, Part 3 and 5 cannot be embedded! Stupid youtube censors. Don’t worry, I’ve provided links so you won’t miss out. Enjoy.

PART 3, Click here!!!!!!!

PART 5, CLICK HERE!!!!!!

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Curb Your Enthusiasm, Season 8!

Posted in Curb Your Enthusiasm, Fun and Crazy, Larry David, Seinfeld on July 8th, 2011 by Willie

Larry David is coming back, this Sunday, to HBO.  Seinfeld, Larry’s first masterpiece of television an amazing 9 seasons, so it’s equally incredible that Curb Your Enthusiasm is about to enter its 8th glorious season, and by the looks of it, Larry hasn’t lost his touch one bit.  The write up today in the nytimes proclaims that the new season is just as brilliant as any other, and these trailers I’ve provided below seem to indicate the truth of such statements.  From what I gather, Larry travels back to New York City, comes across Michael J. Fox, Ricky Gervais, and even former disgraced Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner!  Unreal.  I am dying with anticipation for these episodes.  DYING!  My enthusiasm will not be curbed…Check it out!


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