The Remote Patrol for Monday, December 8, 2008 by Thomas Allen Heald, Secretary of the Coaxial All times Eastern, for PBS programs, check local listings ---
TOM'S TWISTED TOTALLY TRIVIAL TV THINGY "Try this for a deep dark secret: The great detective Remington Steele... He doesn't exist. I invented him. Follow: I'd always loved excitement, So I studied and apprenticed, and put my name on an office. But absolutely no one knocked on my door. A female private investigator seemed so... feminine. So I invented a superior. A decidedly masculine superior. ... I don't even know his real name!" Steele's last name was inspired by the Pittsburgh Steelers. From whom or what did Laura Holt take her imaginary bosses first name? A) A chain of private schools B) A jazz/classical music record label C) A razor D) A shotgun E) A typewriter The answer on Taco Tuesday. === 8 p.m. The blockhead buys a twig nailed to a pair of boards on "A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS" (ABC). But what he doesn't know is that the twig has been lying to him, and is secretly a 4-foot-tall dwarf spruce. Gary Cole makes a midnight call to "CHUCK" (NBC). Season 11 of "TOP GEAR" (BBC America) tests the mpg of insanely expensive vehicles. 8:30 p.m. Someone from "MADtv" guests on "HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER" (CBS). Maybe it's the white spy? 9 p.m. Denny's dyin' who's got the will? "BOSTON LEGAL" (ABC) ends with a trip to the Supreme Court, and wedding plans. Let's see, it is Massachusetts, will Denny and Alan make it legal? A man born on the day Mumia Abu-Jamal was arrested probes his innocence on "IN PRISON MY WHOLE LIFE" (Sundance). Hiro and Claire travel back in time 16 years to erase the season's major arc on "HEROES" (NBC). In other news, "PRISON BREAK" (Fox) is apparently still being broadcast. It just seems like it's been broadcast my whole life. 10 P.M. Oh that Spencer, whomever he is! "THE SOUP PRESENTS: DUDES BRO: THE WHACKED OUT MEN OF REALITY TV" (E!). NIGHT LIGHTS * Matthew Alexander is great on "The Daily Show." * Geoffrey Canada borders on "The Colbert Report." * Annie Leibovitz and Arianna Huffington make Tavis's A-List. * Jennifer Connelly, Anderson Cooper, and the Duke Spirit swim upstream to Dave. * Will Smith, Paula Deen, and T-Pain pound sevens with Jay. * Chi McBride and Seal read the secret diary of Craig Pferguson. * Stephen Colbert, Keri Russell, and the Lee Boys are felicitous to Conan. === REMOTE RECOMMENDATIONS "The Dark Knight (Two-Disc Special Edition + Digital Copy)" http://tinyurl.com/tvornottvDarkKnight Comic book movies get a bad rap for being simplistic. But as one character notes near the end of "The Dark Knight" (on DVD Dec. 9), Batman is "the hero that Gotham (City) deserves, but not the one it needs right now." Why has a "Batman" film made close to a trillion dollars worldwide and been the recipient of Oscar talk? It;s not just because of Heath Ledger;s passing. Regardless of how he ultimately met his end, the spectacle of Ledger;s death should not overshadow his spectacular, if all-too-brief, career. While the 1980s and ‘90s were conquered by Toms Hanks and Cruise, the ‘00s were the decade in which Heath Ledger grew from a shaggy-haired "Tiger Beat" pinup into a full-fledged star. Had he not made a single prior film, "The Dark Knight" would have cemented Ledger;s place as a Hollywood legend. His Joker is unlike those of Cesar Romero and Jack Nicholson. This Joker, from writer-director Christopher Nolan, his brother Jonathan Nolan and TV scribe David S. Goyer stays true to the darker, most powerful depictions of the character;s 69-year run. Despite his appearance, this Joker is not a silly foppish clown. This Joker is a violent murderous sociopath, an intellectual bad guy who always has the next half dozen chess moves planned out, and someone who not only commits crimes for his own amusement, he commits acts of evil for one reason: amusement. Comics scribe Frank Miller has said that the character is "a terrorist whose methods we happen to agree with." Batman goes beyond the bounds of the law in the name of justice. The Joker, in the hands of Ledger, is a more traditional "terrorist." But while he;s always wearing the proverbial "black hat," it doesn;t mean that his motives or actions are comprehensible. Over the two-and-a-half hour course of "The Dark Knight," the wrong people die, the bad guys (including two additional villains) live to fight another day, and the good guys lose their faith in humanity and heroism. It;s like ... the real world. While he did some work on Australian TV, Heath Ledger;s Hollywood career lasted a mere decade -- though it encompassed a wider range than just about any working thespian. His stateside debut was a forgettable "Xena" ripoff called "Roar" that aired for two months on Fox in 1997. This led to a Clark Gable-ish role in the dopey teen comedy "10 Things I Hate About You." As "The Patriot," he was the equal of his film "father," Mel Gibson. "Monster;s Ball" was a more supporting but equally powerful role as the abused and unloved son of Billy Bob Thornton. The anachronistic "A Knight;s Tale" sent him in Errol Flynn and Danny Kaye;s direction. He seemed to thrive in historical costume pictures whether or not the public appreciated the work. "The Four Feathers" echoed the work of Peter O;Toole. "The Order" was his turn as Gregory Peck. In "The Brothers Grimm," he;s the "Crosby" to Matt Damon;s "Hope." Ledger was hesitant to take the role that would bring him his highest praise. Not because of "Brokeback Mountain;s" sexual elements, but because he couldn;t accept himself as being a romantic dramatic leading man - be that character gay or straight. "The Dark Knight" is beautiful, dark, lush, awe inspiring, euphoric thriller. Much of the Joker;s madness comes from the page, but Heath Ledger;s creation is also inhumanly part snake. There;s a Dustin Hoffman-esque lilt to his voice at times, but it;s unlike any other performance I;ve ever seen, even his own prior work. Give him an Oscar, even if he can;t claim it in person. === TTTTTT ANSWER Scott Bakula played lawyer / acupuncturist Bud Lutz, Jr., on the sitcom "Eisenhower & Lutz." Who played Eisenhower? Nobody, Just as Laura Holt did in putting "Remington Steele's" name on her door, Bud Lutz, Sr., figured that if his son's firm had "two" partners, it'd seem more credible. === But the conversation doesn't end here, add your own suggestions or discuss mine on the "TV or Not TV" Google list or at TVorNotTV.net. "The Remote Patrol" is copyright© 2008 Thomas Allen Heald and Gigantic Rear Projection, Ltd. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Like TV only smarter. You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. 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