Neil deGrasse Tyson’s marvelous “Cosmos” reboot comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray this week and it is well worth adding to every family and classroom library. It is a very worthy successor to Carl Sagan’s classic PBS series of the 80’s, updated to make use of the latest technology and to present the most exciting discoveries about our world and the worlds beyond.
Dazzling graphics, mind-blowing outer space images, and clear, frank presentation of core principles of the scientific method not only cover what we know but why we know it. We also learn about the fearless men and women who made these discoveries, with nothing but passionate curiosity and fierce intellectual integrity to guide them. We learn that answers are important but that it is questions that drive knowledge forward.
This weekend my husband and I are attending a reunion at our alma mater, Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. Our son also graduated from Sarah Lawrence, and our niece will enroll in the MFA program in writing there in the fall.
Characters in movies like “Diary of a Mad Housewife,” “Baby, It’s You,” “The Notebook,” and “10 Things I Hate About You” and in the television series “Will and Grace” and “Entourage” attend or have attended Sarah Lawrence. By the way, any alum immediately spotted that “Notebook” scene set in a Sarah Lawrence classroom as a fraud. But Brian De Palma’s “Home Movies” had scenes actually shot on campus. Some very talented people in the entertainment industry are fellow alums, including:
1. Brian De Palma, director of films like “Blow Out” and “Scarface”
2. Oscar-winner Jane Alexander (“All the President’s Men”)
3. Cary Elwes of “The Princess Bride,” “Twister,” and “Robin Hood: Men in Tights”
We bid a sad farewell to the wonderful actress Ann B. Davis, who died today at 88 following a fall in her home. She is best known as the beloved housekeeper Alice in the blended family sitcom, The Brady Bunch. She was the six kids’ confidante, co-conspirator, and best pal. Davis was a deft comic actor with a down-to-earth quality who most often played self-deprecating characters who were not confident about romantic relationships. Before “The Brady Bunch” she played the girl Friday (as they used to be called in those days) to Robert Cummings’ playboy photographer in “Love That Bob.” She was constantly surrounded by beautiful models, maintaining a bemused, slightly envious air. Davis was awarded two Emmys for this part.
Davis was perfectly cast as the unflappable Alice, who enjoyed living with six rambunctious children and a dog. She said, “If there’s anything I can’t stand, it’s a perfect kid. And SIX of ’em, yecch!” She was so identified with the role that she even published Alice’s Brady Bunch Cookbook and later appeared in commercials for cleaning products. She was also a real-life friend to the young actors who grew up on the show, and whose real lives were not as uncomplicated as the sit-com, where all problems were solved with a hug in just 22 minutes. Davis was a devoted Christian who took great strength from her faith. May her memory be a blessing.
SNL/”Bridesmaids” star Maya Rudolph has a new variety show premiering tonight on NBC with Sean Hayes, Andy Samberg, Chris Parnell, Fred Armisen, and Kristen Bell of “Frozen.” There couldn’t be a better choice for bringing back the kind of skits and songs and guest star shows that Carol Burnett and Donny and Marie Osmand used to do and I can’t wait to see it.