The Original Video-on-Demand

Photo: © Norman McGrath

Formerly the Museum of Television & Radio, The Paley Center has two locations (NY and LA) where anyone can view thousands of classic (and not so classic) TV shows at the flip of a switch. Queued up at a mainframe and beamed to individual sets, it not only predates Hulu and Comcast on-demand but surpasses them with the breadth of offerings. (YouTube may have millions of videos, but they're mostly on the DIY level rather than professional commercial productions).

My first visit there, during my early '90s collegiate era, I arrived armed with selections jotted down from pre-world-wide-web research, and instantly became one of the few to witness the only episode of "Turn On." Ahead of its time, yet also painfully unfunny, it took the rapid-fire gags of "Laugh-In" to an extreme postmodern level. Later shows like "Monty Python's Flying Circus" would crib such concepts ad sketches without beginnings or endings and credits shown out of order, while "Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job" would crib the ironic lack of punchlines... or intentionally unfunny ones. Best part of "Turn On"? The parade of headache commercials by the show's sponsor. Most appropriate.

Next up was the second, and final, episode of "You're in the Picture," Jackie Gleason's ill-fated game show. Reception was so bad that he cancelled the show in its second week, live on air. Rather than play the game, he pulled out a chair, fired up a cigarette or twenty, and ad-libbed a half hour of apologies for various failings throughout his career. No wonder he was so well-liked!

The great disadvantage to this collection, of course, is that you have to travel to one of the coasts to see it. There is a small amount online at www.paleycenter.org but it pales in comparison to other websites. So until Hulu, Netflix or your local cable company can offer such delicious rarities, video-on-demand will be left wanting in my book.

– David Gorgos

© TLA Entertainment Group

Lessons from "Mad Men," or It Has Come to My Attention That There Is Entirely Not Enough Booze In This Office

My colleague, Mike, just brought a few ads to my office that he'd like for me to proofread. They're still sitting there on my desk. Now, if he had taken a lesson from "Mad Men", he would know exactly how to get what he wants. Mike would invite me into his office and offer me a drink, preferably scotch on the rocks. His secretary would assure our privacy while we shoot the shit about baseball (even though he's a Mets fan) and our mouths contemplate the nuances of the brown liquor. Firing up a stogie, we are relaxed with our defenses down, when he casually mentions some ads that he's working on, and would I mind taking a look? Why of course not, in fact, it would be a privilege to see a master at work. Checking the colors on "Bangkok Love Story," everything looks good, down to the typeface on the quotes and the correct British spelling on the overseas ads. Oh, what's this? An extra space between the punctuation and the end of the sentence... better take a closer look at that. Stubbing out my cigar, I say that I'll save the rest of this for our next meeting, and that it's always a pleasure to work with him. And could he maybe check out my blog when he gets a chance? Sure.

But there is no booze in this office. No smoking, either... you now must leave your office for a butt, which feels like a chore, and ensures that no work gets done on the smoking deck.

It has also come to my attention that we have no offices either. Just cubicles.

And no secretaries either. I guess in the big picture, the loss of office sexism is a good thing, but in the narrow, old-boys-club picture, you can certainly see why none of the privileged men wanted it to change.

Instead, I will have to keep watching "Mad Men", one of the few shows about the workplace that doesn't feel like work. Hard to believe that escapism can come from stressful jobs and societal expectations, but then, that may be what the elite think when they watch Clerks or High Fidelity. Season One was the best show of 2007, and season two is only getting better.

– David Gorgos

© TLA Entertainment Group

Twin Peaks

(1990-1991, 1501 min) I still remember the night the pilot aired – April 8, 1990. Two days earlier I had just turned 14 and was at that age when I’d probably rather be out vandalizing the neighborhood and pretending to smoke cigarettes than spend a Sunday night with my dad watching some crappy nighttime drama. I was preparing myself for the latest version of "Falcon Crest" or something equally horrible. But Dad put his foot down, muttering something about the fact that one of the world’s greatest living directors had his own TV show.

I will forever be in his debt for making me stay in that evening… plus he let me have a pony bottle of Rolling Rock while we watched. Don’t tell the Feds!

Coming from a fiercely artistic family I was already well aware of the films of David Lynch. Dad had taken me to see Blue Velvet and I was still young enough to think that Dune didn’t suck, but it was "Twin Peaks" that changed my life forever. Hell, my brother and I even forced our family to film a HI-8 remake of the pilot while vacationing in Massachusetts… with disastrously awesome results. We also joined an organization called COOP (that’s Citizens Opposed to the Offing of Peaks) once we learned of the imminent cancellation. And yes, COOP failed.

Few remember what a sad state television was in before "Twin Peaks." I mean, this was a whole different universe compared to the world of "Major Dad" and "L.A. Law"! Not only had television never been so daring and original before, it had never been so weird! If you can show me any pre-"Twin Peaks" show featuring anything close to dancing Dwarves, backwards dialogue, a lady with a pet log, hearing impaired FBI agents (played by Lynch himself) and mind-bending hallucinations I’d be impressed.

Of course, the copycats came almost immediately. Some were bombs (Oliver Stone’s "Wild Palms") and some enjoyed more success than "Peaks" ever would ("Northern Exposure" and "The X-Files").

Getting to the show itself, the First Season (episodes 1-8) is essentially flawless. The episodes directed by Lynch himself stand up to his best theatrical work, and the rest ain’t too shabby either. You all should be familiar with the basic plot, but for you newbies out there, here goes: homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) is found brutally raped, murdered and wrapped in plastic. This shakes the entire town and nearly every citizen is a suspect. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan at his best) is sent to the town to investigate. From his eccentric mannerisms (constantly speaking to his assistant Diane through his tape recorder, or using a rock-throwing exercise to weed out potential murder suspects) to his endless appetite for “damn fine” coffee and cherry pie, Cooper is quite possibly the most original television character of all time.

From one-armed men and eye-patch-wearing housewives to agoraphobic horticulturists and homicidal truck drivers the cast of townspeople encompasses what could be the greatest ensemble this side of an Altman film. The only other show in recent memory that so completely creates a believably rich town environment is "The Simpsons"... and that's a cartoon so it doesn’t count! In the world of "Twin Peaks" you feel just as satisfied watching the supporting cast as you do the stars… except for maybe that abused wife that James Hurley shacked up with in Season Two. She freakin’ sucked.

Speaking of Season Two… the first 9 or 10 episodes are just as good as Season One. Beginning by concluding the amazing season-ending cliffhanger, the two hour season opener (again directed by Lynch) is nothing short of stunning. The Kubrickian final minutes as Ronette Pulaski (Phoebe Augustine) awakes from a coma gave the 14-year-old me nightmares for weeks. Some complain that the Laura Palmer storyline took too long to resolve itself, and to those people I kindly quote Mr. Axl Rose: “All you need is just a little patience.” The slack is soon picked up by an excellent plot thread involving Agent Cooper’s insane ex-partner and the race to a gateway to what may be another world called The Black Lodge. Knowing that the show would not be renewed, Lynch was able to indulge himself at the end of the series without worrying about ratings. And man, did he indulge! If you thought Inland Empire was weird, try watching the last episode of "Twin Peaks"! Who knows where the series would have gone if it would have continued? I like to think that it would somehow involve Pete Martell (Jack Nance) fronting a gangsta rap group with The Giant (Casey Struycken) as his DJ. Hey, this is David Lynch we’re talking about here!

To this day, I still watch the entire series at least once a year, always starting in the fall. Last year we started a "Twin Peaks" drinking game taking a shot every time Sarah Palmer (Grace Zabriski) screamed or a doughnut was eaten. I even judge people based on their comprehension of random "Peaks" references peppered into my conversation. If you give me a wink after I order my coffee “black as midnight on a moonless night” chances are that we’re going to be pals. I like to think it is not a coincidence that every one of my closest friends is a huge fan. I also like to think that they would not be my friend if they weren’t. If you haven’t seen this series yet, you need to. If you’ve already seen it, watch it again. Does the quality fade towards the end? Yeah, maybe a bit. But that’s like saying “Being a millionaire used to be so great, now it’s just alright.” Be thankful for what you have, folks. It’s not going to be there forever, and when it’s gone all you’re going to have is "Northern Exposure"… and that’s just sad.

– Jesse Short

© TLA Entertainment Group

30 Rock

(2006-2007, 950 min) Where did Alec Baldwin come from? Suddenly that magnificent bastard is on my TV every week, smirking and deadpanning his way into my one-liner-loving heart. It’s as if he was in comedy hibernation and has finally come out funnier, wiser and larger.

Ten years ago Baldwin was just a dull leading man who only attracted attention when he was marrying Kim Basinger, socking paparazzi or talking about his Schwetty Balls on Saturday Night Live. And although those bits were hilarious, they were nothing compared to the brilliantly preening alpha male he has brought to life in the first season of NBC’s "30 Rock."

Baldwin’s Jack Donaghy is an obsessive control freak and a high-powered executive who consistently outplays, outmaneuvers and outlasts his competition. Although he is a major player at GE (parent company of NBC) he spends most of his time micromanaging the marginal (and fictional) NBC sketch comedy show TGS and the personal life of its director, the charmingly goofy and antisocial Liz Lemon (Tina Fey). Best described by Salon’s TV critic Heather Havrilesky as “the human embodiment of a bad hair day”, Liz is Everywoman. Or at least, how Everywoman sees herself.

Liz, the kind of person who avoids effort in order to avoid failure, sets her standards early on in the season when she decides to stay with her loser beeper-salesman boyfriend because he is thoughtful enough to buy her a hamburger. She is the embodiment of the sad single lady: awkward, bitter, jealous and willing to settle. As a single lady well on her way to becoming a sad single lady, I heart her. In fact, most people I have encountered who have strong feelings about this show seem to also be women. I am willing to bet a shiny silver dollar that there is a correlation here.

Playing the role of the anti-Liz we have Jane Krakowski as Jenna, the female lead of TGS (short for The Girly Show) who has been abruptly pushed to the sidelines by her new male costar. Jenna is vapid, blonde and desperate for love and attention. Her insecurities cause as much self-destruction as Liz’s do, which makes them a modern-day Betty and Veronica, except neither one gets to go for a ride in Archie’s jalopy. Ever.

Tracy Morgan plays a caricatured version of himself: Tracy “Jordan”. This is as brilliant as it is ridiculous. Tracy fears the powerful cabal known as the “Black Mafia” (chaired by Bill Cosby), pitches a drama to a GE exec about the life of Thomas Jefferson where he plays every character (even Sally Hemmings) and does such a hilarious impersonation of Oprah that I had to rewind it three times. He is goofy and over-the-top and there’s not much more to say about his performance on the show other than it’s comedy at its most basic level. He’s just funny as hell.

To top it off, the cast and writers of TGS (many will recognize the schlumpy Judah Friedlander from Wet Hot American Summer and "Best Week Ever"); wide-eyed Kenneth the Page (who has a Southern accent despite apparently being from Western Pennsylvania) and Tracy’s devoted entourage are all hilarious as well. Look out for scene-stealing guest appearances by Isabella Rossellini as Jack’s ex-wife and Paul Reubens (Pee-Wee Herman) as Gerhardt, the last living Hapsburg.

"30 Rock" is smart, funny and quick. Every episode has left me wishing it had lasted longer than a measly half-hour. I can’t imagine anyone would be disappointed.

– Rachel J. Cox

© TLA Entertainment Group