I Liked the Cute Older Couple in the Swiffer Commercials But I LOVE This New Couple

Posted on January 12, 2014 at 6:07 pm

The 90-year-old lovebirds Morty and Lee are adorable, but this new couple, the Rukavinas, is even more heartwarming. Zack Rukavina is from South Dakota. He lost part of his arm to cancer. If he looks familiar, you may have seen him as a veteran in an episode of Switched at Birth. He has also appeared on Damages, Parenthood, Client List and others. He even proposed to his wife Afi on television.

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Advertising Behind the Scenes

Exclusive Director’s Cut of Salinger Biography on PBS

Posted on January 8, 2014 at 8:00 am

American Masters launches its 28th season with the series’ 200th episode: the exclusive director’s cut of Shane Salerno’s documentary, Salinger, premiering nationally Tuesday, January 21, 2014, 9-11:30 p.m. on PBS (check local listings) with 15 minutes of new material not seen in theaters.

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Television

SNL Adds A New Cast Member: Sasheer Zamata

Posted on January 6, 2014 at 4:34 pm

Saturday Night Live has added Sasheer Zamata to the cast. She graduated from the University of Virginia and has performed with the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater. SNL producer Lorne Michaels has been criticized for the lack of diversity in the cast and has recently been auditioning several women of color. The recent episode hosted by Kerry Washington spoofed SNL’s failure to have a black woman in the cast since Maya Rudolph left five years ago by having Washington keep running off stage to play several different roles. Sasheer Zamata looks like a terrific addition to the cast and I hope the audition process produced several other candidates we will see later on.

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Actors Gender and Diversity Television

Television to Watch for in Winter 2014

Posted on January 3, 2014 at 3:59 pm

Yes, I want you to limit everyone in the family’s screen time, even when it’s cold out. But there’s something to reward you — some great stuff to watch for your select television time.

Returning favorites:

Community: Creator Dan Harmon is back, which is very good news for the mega-fans of this meta-comedy.

Episodes: The wickedly funny Showtime series about English writers who come to Los Angeles is back with a reunited Beverly and Sean dealing with their star — Matt LeBlanc in a hilarious version of himself — in a career slump.

Switched at Birth: “Breaking Bad’s” R.J. Mitte joins the cast as a possible love interest for Daphne and Sandra Bernhard shows up as a mentor for Bay.

Downton Abbey: Six months after the birth of her baby and the death of her husband, Lady Mary and her family struggle with financial and emotional upheavals as the Jazz age and its upheavals dawn.

Sherlock: Benedict Cumberbatch returns for three 90-minute mysteries.

Justified: Sheriff Raylan (Timothy Olyphant) copes with first-time fatherhood and trouble with his frenemy Boyd.

Intriguing newcomers:

True Detective: Real-life pals Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey star in this dark crime drama as Louisiana state cops on the hunt for a serial killer over a 17-year period.

Being Mary Jane: The always-watchable Gabrielle Union takes the title character from made-for-TV movie to series as a news anchor whose personal life can get chaotic.

Rake: Greg Kinnear plays a top criminal defense trial lawyer who has a lot of problems outside the courtroom, including IRS trouble and a gambling addiction. This is the US version of a hugely popular Australian series.

Under the Gunn: “Project Runway” mentor Tim Gunn and two of the series’ most creative designers, Mondo and Anya star in a new fashion competition series.

Star-Crossed: Alien teenagers infiltrate a small-town high school and hotness ensues.

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Television

Big Bang Theory en Francais est Magnifique!

Posted on January 3, 2014 at 8:00 am

Salon has an article about the success of American television series in France.

It’s hard to underestimate the impact of “Friends” in paving the way for “The Big Bang Theory” and “How I Met Your Mother,” not just in terms of structure but international appeal. Throughout the ’90s, the show was so popular with viewers abroad that foreign policy advisers felt it was helping warm foreigners’ views toward Americans, furthering American global influence. Harvard scholar Joseph Nye coined the term “soft power” in 1989, arguing that American culture and values “remain attractive,” even when our governments prove internationally unpopular.

“Friends” has been key to the changing marketplace of global television. Research from Kaplan International in 2012 showed that “Friends” was the most popular show in helping foreigners learn English, with 26% of English students saying that watching episodes of the program helped them pick up on American idioms.

The program is so embedded in how foreigners understand English that Kaplan’s Martin Hofschroer claimed he once heard his Arab cab driver use Chandler Bing’s famous catchphrase. While stuck in New York’s infamous auto congestion, his cabbie shouted, “Could there be any more traffic?”

Because “The Big Bang Theory” is similarly popular with French speakers, some professors are even integrating it into the classroom.

I like to think that the idea of brilliant characters who understand the mysteries of the universe but struggle with relationships has universal appeal. And I like even better the idea that it is what we laugh at that brings us together.

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Television