Southern Bookman

Farewell, "This Is Us"

I'm one of the many "This Is Us" fans grieving for Rebecca Pearson, who headed to TV Mom heaven in Tuesday's episode.

After six years telling the Pearson family saga with flashbacks and surprise plot shifts, "This Is Us" will end next week.

Showing that network TV is capable of high-quality shows, creator Dan Fogelman's "This Is Us" offered novelistic writing, memorable archetypal characters and virtuoso acting.

I've been involved in many cable and network shows over the years, but only "30 Something" rivaled "This Is Us" in expressing a generation's desires, ambitions and anxieties.

"This Is Us" defined the Miillennials as "30 Something" did the Baby Boomers suddenly finding themselves adults in the early 1980s.

That succession was reflected in "30 Something" star Ken Olin directing the final episodes of "This Is Us" and making a cameo appearance in Tuesday's show.

Mandy Moore deserves an Emmy for her portrayal of Rebecca Pearson, ranging from a winsome, doe-eyed young bride and mother to an elderly woman ravaged by Alzheimer's. As Sterling K. Brown's Randall Pearson says standing besides Rebecca's deathbed, everyone had a crush on her.

Wonderful to see the return of Ron Cephas Jones and Gerald McRaney greeting Rebecca on her wonderfully imagined last train ride.

Milo Ventimiglia as the all-time TV dad Jack Pearson also elevated the show, along with Chrissy Metz, Justin Hartley, Chris Sullivan, Susan Kelechi Watson, Jon Huertas, Griffin Dunne, Alexandra Breckenridge and an endearing troupe of child actors. 

Among so many stories, it's hard to identify a dominant theme, but to me the growth of Hartley's Kevin Pearson from a self-absorbed sex symbol into a compassionate, caring and mature father and husband was central. At the end, Kevin has become an admirable man like Jack Pearson.

I'll always have a special fondness for "This Is Us" because I first discovered the show battling acute insomnia from Afib, which later turned into heart failure and a long hospital stay.

Binge-watching the first season of "This Is Us" was the only thing that let me sit still and stop pacing through the long night. The inter-generational narrative surprises were something new.

I'm much better now, as I say farewell to another favorite TV show that marked an era of my life.

 

Streaming era turns muddy as CNN Plus is subtracted and Netflix subscribers swim toward the shore

The vaunted CNN Plus streaming channel lasted only a little longer than the Minnesota Timberwolves' 26-point lead over the Memphis Grizzlies Thursday night.

Quickly following the Warner Brothers-Discovery merger, CNN pulled the plug Thursday on its streaming service.

Former CEO Jeff Zucker's folly cost the former leading cable news channel millions in promotion and the hiring of stars like Fox's Chris Wallace, NPR's Nudie Cornish and NBC's Kasie Hunt. CNN Plus would have raised more subscribers broadcasting a burning fireplace.

CNN Plus's subtraction followed news of a bloodbath at streaming giant Netflix, which announced a shocking loss of subscribers. The Netflix stock plummeted as if hit by that meteor in Netflix's "Don't Look Up," which like other Academy Award lauded Netflix films bombed with audiences.

Jane Campion's "Power of the Dog" didn't bark as loudly with Oscars voters as expected. Nor did the ponderous Western drama attract viewers to the streaming service viewed as crushing Hollywood a short time ago.

Netflix's expensive movies don't move audiences in the absence of new TV hits like former fan favorites "The Queen's Gambit" and "House of Cards."  Offerings like "Bridgerton" and "Emily in Paris" couldn't keep viewers from saying "au revoir."

The travails of CNN Plus and Netflix don't necessarily signal a shakeout of the streaming industry.

Amazon will undoubtedly cash in this fall from Thursday night NFL football. The announcing team of Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit will add cross-generational star power to the NFL's juggernaut popularity.

Warner Brothers-Discovery's HBO Max, beefed up by revived CNN Plus projects, Disney+ and Peacock will keep hurling compelling  "content" into the arena. Netflix will come back strong.

As streaming hits a bend in the river, cable TV surges on the strength of sporting events like the NBA playoffs. Games like the Grizzlies' crazy comeback against the Timberwolves Thursday night on TNT keep cable vital.  

But baseball is a drag. ESPN's game between the World Series champion Atlanta Braves and San Diego Padres during Easter Sunday prime time received a much smaller viewership than the premier of USFL football on Fox and NBC earlier in the day as Easter egg hunts and family meals commenced.

As a chorus of baseball Cassandras keep crying, analytics and glacial play are killing the former national pastime.

Freddie Freeman welcomes Braves pals to L.A.

The ball flew off Freddie Freeman's bat, slicing toward center field.

Freeman in his 12 years with the Atlanta Braves had made the same swing many times.

The home run, the trot around the bases, had not changed. But Freeman was now a Los Angeles Dodger.

Freeman greeted his old teammates to Dodgers Stadium for Monday night's game with hugs and tears. Freeman hadn't seen manager Brian Snitker and the Braves since the victory parade in Atlanta last autumn celebrating the Braves' unexpected World Series victory.

Any lingering bitterness over the Braves not signing their longtime team leader to a new contract had dissipated.

Freeman sat down for a long meeting of reconciliation with Braves General Manager Alex Anthopoulos, who failed to reach a new deal with Freeman, leading to his signing with the hated Dodgers. In a touching interview with Bally Sports' Kelly Crull, Freeman said his friendship with Anthopoulos remained strong.

Choking back tears, Freeman told Crull how much he'll miss Atlanta fans, whom he saluted for their support during the team's highs and lows. He called "Braves country" one of his favorite places on Earth.

In the first inning, Freeman smashed one of his signature opposite field home runs off Braves starter Huacar Ynoa, sparking the Dodgers to a 7-4 victory.

When the home run ball cleared the fence and bounced back onto the field, Dodgers fans rose to their feet and cheered.

Braves followers were happy for Freddie too, although he now wore Dodgers blue.

ESPN Joey Votto interview shows baseball's decline

TV keeps vandalizing sports.

I was sickened by ESPN interviewing Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto in the middle of Thursday night's Atlanta Braves season opener.

With Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies on base, the announcers and Votto traded banalities about whether the Reds veteran should get a gold tooth. Votto also chattered with a reluctant Albies.

Such intrusions, also done on Fox baseball broadcasts, disrespect the game.

During the NCAA basketball tournament, reporters thrust themselves into the competition by interviewing coaches during timeouts. TV's demands now inhibit coaches from meeting with their teams in the heat of the game.

I can't imagine old-time coaches like Bobby Knight and John Wooden going along with such violations.

For years, TV has sought to reveal the inner workings of teams. Baseball, with its leisurely pace, provides opportunities for players to make comments during games.

Announcers at first talked to managers and players in the dugout, frequently a starting pitcher not involved in the action. Then, players began being interviewed while playing the outfield, or even at bat.

The invasion of sports' inner workings has extended to NFL and NBA players being "miked" during competition.

Baseball panders to fans in allowing stunts like the Votto interview. The practice exposes baseball's decline as a sport, with diminishing action and competitive intensity.

If baseball needs such travesties to survive, let it die.

Farewell, Bobby Rydell, one of South Philly's golden voices

I heard Bobby Rydell's "Volare" recently on satellite radio, marveling at the song's wistful mood of late '50s romance and sophistication.

Rydell, a South Philadelphia crooner we Southern boys sought to emulate when watching him on Dick Clark's "American Bandstand," died Tuesday of pneumonia at age 79.

The TV show "American Dreams" revisited that era when South Philadelphia's Rydell, Fabian and Frankie Avalon ruled the pop music charts. The crooners grew up within blocks of each other. The city also boasted a flourishing a capella do-wop scene, and a rhythm and blues community as vital as Motown's.

Along with Lesley Gore, Chubby Checker, Dion, Neil Sedaka and girl groups like the Dixie Cups, Rydell, Fabian and Avalon flourished in the interregnum between Elvis joining the Army and the arrival of the Beatles.

American cultural energy soared as the cold war grew more ominous and the civil rights movement gained momentum. The John F. Kennedy assassination ended the sunny mood, before the British invasion derailed Rydell and the others' careers.

After the Beatles appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show," guys in my high school combed their hair forward. Rydell's pompadour was abandoned.

Rydell landed a substantial role in the movie "Bye Bye Birdie," starring Dick Van Dyke and the sizzling Ann Margret. But Rydell didn't care for Hollywood, returning to his beloved Philadelphia, buying a home in the area.

In later life, Rydell joined with Fabian and Avalon to perform their hits for nostalgic audiences seeking to relive those golden days hearing "Volare" and other hits on Top 40 radio. They also sang Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darren favorites.

Rydell never lost his South Philly soul. Yet "Volare" speaks to an international cool that emerged during the era, recalling French New Wave cinema, Kennedy style, the glamour of London and Paris.

That South Philly voice spoke to the world.

 

 

 

 

 

Tiger Woods' Masters return stirs universal excitement

Tiger Woods won't leave the stage for a new generation of golfers.

Woods' playing in the Masters brings a level of excitement that no other athlete, politician, rock star or movie idol can match.

Only Muhammad Ali stirred such universal acclaim.

Like Ali, Woods receives intense adulation after undergoing severe condemnation.

Ali was reviled for refusing to fight in Vietnam. Woods was castigated for scandalous sexual behavior.

While Ali excelled in a sport known for black success, Woods dominated golf, the sport most associated with the white upper class. Ali was despised by conservative Americans for his black Muslim religion and anti-military stance. In contrast, the pro-military Woods unites Obama and Trump supporters.

Woods' global admiration grew stronger after his early morning auto accident 14 months ago in which he suffered horrible leg injuries that jeopardized his career. Doctors considered amputating his shattered right leg.

Media and public sympathy was nearly universal, despite questions surrounding the accident. Was Woods high on drugs or alcohol?  Driving recklessly at too high a speed? A police investigation proved inconclusive.

Like Ben Hogan, Woods seeks to come back from crippling leg injuries. Woods said his swing is fine - although he's made technical changes during the years, he always returns to the basic form he learned from his father when he was 5-years-old, but worries about Augusta National's steep hills. Those hoping for an unlikely Woods victory might recall that he beat Rocco Mediate in the 2008 U.S. Open playoff while walking on a broken leg.

Marking the 25th anniversary of his first of five Masters titles, Woods announced Tuesday that he'll likely return to the course "Tiger proofed" after his first success there. With Woods' usual cockiness, he said he plans to compete for another title.

The man is a walking medical miracle. He returned from serious back surgery to win the 2018 Masters.  Overcoming Augusta National's grueling layout appears impossible, but Woods like Ali possesses a champion's heart. Even finishing Thursday's first round will be a triumph.

A huge audience will be watching, far beyond golf fans.

Tiger Woods' spotlight glows brighter than any other.

 

 

 

I was watching the Oscars when a hockey fight broke out

I'm sure "Coda's" a nice, heartwarming movie.

But I doubt it's worthy of the Best Picture Academy Award.

Once, the Academy Awards honored epic popular movies like "The Godfather," whose 50th anniversary received a tepid salute during the Oscar ceremonies Sunday night.

"Godfather" director Francis Ford Coppola, flanked by the silent Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, titillated Hollywood history connoisseurs by crediting Robert Evans. Now that was a man who knew how to make popular, powerful movies.

Studio productions like "The Godfather" were once seen, and loved, by huge national audiences who packed movie theaters. Now, the Oscars ratings plummet and obscure films that fewer and fewer people have seen win.

As Gloria Swanson said in "Sunset Boulevard," the pictures got small. Very small.

A movie mostly streamed on the little watched Apple + Channel, "Coda" probably has the fewest number of viewers for an Oscar winner ever. What next, home movies?

The telecast seemed on course for an hour, then quickly fell off the track and tumbled down the canyon.

Well, we learned that Chris Rock can take a punch. Or a slap.

Will Smith's anger over Rock's not too funny joke, and his self-pitying acceptance speech after winning the best-actor Oscar, displayed the "toxic masculinity" explored in several Oscar-nominated films. When will they ever learn?

Old movie buffs like me keep watching the Academy Awards like a lover who can't quit a toxic relationship.

Each year, hoping that the show regains its old glamour, we watch in horror as another disaster unfolds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mandy Moore deserves Emmy Award for "This Is Us" portrayal of Rebecca Pearson

I join the chorus of Mandy Moore fans calling for her to win an Emmy Award for her memorable performance on "This Is Us" Tuesday night.

Moore, the only cast member of the show who appears in every stage of the Pearson family saga, again displayed impressive versatility.

First known as a pop singer, Moore during the six-year run of "This Is Us" has emerged as one of America's virtuoso actors.

Portraying Mom Rebecca Pearson from ebullient youth to heartbroken middle-age and declining old age, Moore increasingly stands out among an outstanding cast. She shone even brighter in Tuesday's show, especially in a dramatic monologue that should go down as one of TV's memorable moments.

The episode revisits the series' recurring theme of the Pearson family's mythical Thanksgivings. Moore brilliantly explores each stage of a woman's life.

As the young fiance of Jack Pearson, winningly portrayed by Milo Ventimiglia, she illustrates the anxiety of preparing Thanksgiving dinner for her exacting mother.

She builds upon that portrait with an in-depth shading of the middle-aged Rebecca courageously seeking to rebuild her life after Jack's death. Her buoyant spirit is challenged by her children's immaturity and her vulnerable efforts to find new love.  

In the monologue scene, Moore turns into a frail elderly woman in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease bravely telling her adult children her wishes for the last stages of her life. The flawless scene was not done in a close-up, but with her family gathered around a table listening. Her last exhortation for her children to live greatly should resonate throughout America.

Moore, the youngest member of the adult cast, including the actors who play her emotionally fragile grown-up children, also interacts with a strong ensemble of child and young adult actors who portray the Pearsons at different ages.

The Emmys and other TV awards shows more and more honor streaming services and cable channels more than network TV, although network shows like "This Is Us" draw more viewers.

"This Is Us" in its first years received recognition from the Emmys including an acting award for Sterling K. Brown. Moore was nominated for an Emmy in 2019.

With "This Is Us" in its last season, an Emmy for Moore is long overdue. Her Rebecca Pearson is one of American culture's great characters.

 

 

Farewell, Walter Mears, influential Associated Press political reporter

Many reporters of a certain age heard an inner voice when beginning to write a story: "What's the lead, Walter?"

If a writer discovers the most important information withbwhich to begin, the rest will follow.

Facing the terror of deadline pressure and an empty page or screen, I’ve often asked myself that question, taken from Timothy Crouse's "The Boys on the Bus."

The bible for the generation of newspaper people who came of age in the Watergate era, "The Boys on the Bus" made heroes of presidential political reporters Jules Witcover, Johnny Apple, Jack Germond, Hunter S. Thompson and others.

Crouse's brightest star was the Associated Press' lightning-fast writer Walter Mears, who strode through the book's chapters like a sheriff in a Western, upholding the tribe's values. He was the group's leader and conscience.

One of the era's great wire-service reporters, Mears turned out factual, clearly written stories as fast as a candidate gave a speech. Mears thought and wrote at the speed of his rapid-fire typing.

The other newsmen, when writing their own stories after the speech, shouted out to him,"What's the lead, Walter? What's the lead?"

Along with instantly discerning the most important part of a candidate's speech and writing accurately and succinctly, Mears could set a scene with a vivid turn of phrase.

Mears, who won the Pulitizer Prize in 1977 for his coverage of the Jimmy Carter-Gerald Ford race, died March 3 of cancer at his home in Chapel Hill, N.C. He was 87, and had taught journalism at the University of North Carolina, according to obituaries in The Washington Post and New York Times.

During his career, Mears covered 11 political campaigns, from 1960 to 2000. He also served as executive editor of the Associated Press, before writing a political column.

Mears' reporting gave the views of presidential candidates to millions of readers at a time when local newspapers flourished. His stories were also quoted on local radio news stations, and influenced the campaign coverage of TV networks and major newspapers.

 The AP dynamo was a shining hero for newspaper people like me. Walter Mears was our conscience, as if we were forever on the bus with him.

 

 

 

End of February brings return of TV shows

I confess I'm looking forward to the end of February and pleasurable TV viewing.

With the Winter Olympics at last gone, next week brings the return of "Killing Eve," "My Brilliant Friend" and "This Is Us." I'm even looking forward to sayng hello again to those woebegone docs on "Grey's Anatomy."

I'm most excited about the return of Sam Waterston as District Attorney Jack McCoy in another season of "Law and Order” after a decade absence. The recycled show might be a bust, but I'll be watching.

My anticipation over the returning shows is tempered by questions.

Can "Killing Eve" recharge its flagging energy of the last season?

I was glad to see in previews of "My Brilliant Friend" that the same actresses are returning; can they match their previous seasons' mesmerizing performances?

Will Waterston again reach high energy in portraying the twisted, brilliant McCoy?

Hoping "This Is Us" picks up the pace as it heads toward its finish.

I have no doubts that the old network warhorse "Grey's" will motor on without any falloff. Shonda Rhimes' hospital soap is a TV perpetual motion machine that always gets back on track after harrowing detours.

While I have my usual stack of books and literary journals to peruse, I look forward to a happy TV spring.