Apparently, it's Retirement Day

Tom Brady announces his retirement from the NFL (again). 

Dr. Phil announces he's retiring his show after 21 years on the air. 

And Ozzy Osbourne says he's done touring. 

They say things happen in threes . .  .

Cindy Williams

It's hard to put into words how much I loved Laverne and Shirley when I was a young kid. I really did. And now they're both gone.

Cindy Williams - Shirley - has died at 75 after a short illness. 

RIP

Alec Baldwin has been Charged

Legally, I think this is warranted. He didn't intend to hurt anyone, but the standard for involuntary manslaughter is when a person recklessly or negligently commits an act that results in the death of another person. He seems to have ignored industry standards when he handled the gun (reckless) and moreover, as the executive producer, his failure to properly vet the firearms staff and supervise their work would satifsy the standards of criminal negligence. 

Do I think he'll be found guilty? He's got good lawyers, plenty of access to the press, and the death was a tragic accident, of a kind rare enough for the public to be divided on its merit. So I think he'll plea down to a lesser charge and avoid time, be that right or wrong. 

A Potential TV Appearance for the DanDan

This morning interviewed by WTMJ TV 4, donating our  Christmas tree at a neighborhood event that will use it to mulch the community gardens. I said on-air that Lisa gave me the idea,  and better yet I twice mentioned that it was a 9.5 footer lol

Facts

The Wednesday Addams dance is cringe. You can say otherwise. But you'd be a liar.

LuLu says:

The way every scene that doesn’t have Khaleesi in game of thrones is irrelevant to me. - LuLu

Stephen 'tWitch' Boss

Stunning news today: Stephen "tWitch" Boss,, the DJ on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, has died of a self-inflicted gunshot at age 40. 

I remember him best as a contestant on So You Think You Can Dance, which we watched religiously that year.  He later went on to marry fellow SYTYCD alum Allison Holker, who reported to police yesterday that he'd left their home without taking his car, which she considered highly unusual. 

RIP

Is this true?? I love him! From way back even he was a contestant on so u think u can dance! So so much talent and good will it oozed from him. Mannnn - Lisa

Kirstie Alley

Kirstie Alley, who rose to fame on Cheers, has died of cancer at 71.

RIP

Bob McGrath

Aw man.  Bob McGrath, the wonderful Sesame Street actor that was an icon of my childhood, passed yesterday at age 90. 

RIP

60 Years Ago

60 years ago tonight Johnny Carson took over The Tonight Show

Stranger Things Season 4

I finished watching Season 4 of Stranger Things last night. Season 4 didn't disappoint, and I continue to be grateful for tuning in and getting invested in these characters when the show first premiered. 

That's not to say the season was perfect. For every hint of a Steve/Nancy Rekindling there was a Wil crying and moping, and for every Eddie Munson there was the ridiculous Russian smuggler. 

You take the good with the bad, what can I say.  SPOILERS AHEAD

The Good: I enjoyed Steve's continued renaissance, my only issue with it being that he's become so dang close to mature and wise that they HAVE to be setting him up to die miserably, right? 

The Bad: Seriously - when did the Robin of Season 3 become an intelligent but scatterbrained comic foil? 

The Good: pretty much every scene set in and around Hawkins

The Bad: The California expedition seemed bleh, minus the shootout, anytime Eleven wasn't around.  

The Good: Nice revelation as to the identity of Vecna. I didn't see it coming. 

The Bad: I like Hopper. But he should have stayed dead at the end of season 3. Resurrecting a character cheats the audience out of the emotional impact of the death and plays with their trust.  

The Good: the scenes with Papa

The bad: Eddie dies for, essentially nothing. Which, in the real world, of course, is what most deaths amount to. But to "buy time?" To "not run away."?  The gang had already been captured. What a waste. 

The Good: how neatly the three divergent storylines merged to take on Vecna, even when separated by continents.

The Bad:  Max dies, but doesn't, and may awaken, or may not. Bah. Another Hopper. She opened the fourth gate, she should have remained lost to the group. 

I eagerly look forward to season 5. I imagine the grand finale will be quite the doozy. 

 

Running up the Hill

There’s a kids bop cover of running up the hill playing rn [at the 3rd St Market] - Smiley - Kate Bush's 1980's release has found a new life with Season 4 of Stranger Things

Obi-Wan Kenobi

I finally finished watching the last episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi, and my opinion is mixed. There were certainly highlights - heck, just seeing Ewan McGregor back playing Kenobi was a highlight - but I thought it was a bit too ramshackle a storyline overall. Too many ideas all tied together with a bit of shellac and a gum wrapper, and few of them even original. [spoiler] Even the much ballyhooed fight between Vader and Kenobi - which I thought was great - was just a remake of the Ahsoka duel from Rebels. [end spoiler]

This isn't a bad show, and all six episodes are fun. But Kenobi is the greatest Jedi of all time, IMO - bruh, he beat Maul 2x, Grievous, Anakin, etc. 

He deserved far better.

A Beef about Stranger Things - mild mild spoiler

I think the most unrealistic scene in four seasons of Stranger Things was Steve and company, trapped in the Upside Down,  finding four working bikes in the Wheeler house that were capable of traveling seven miles.  FOUR. 

No flat tires? No slow leaks? No janky brake cable or loose chain?  BAH. Not in my world, and certainly not in the Indiana. 

Moon Knight

 

Out of all the thousands of comic books I've read- and yes, I do think "thousands" is accurate - the number that I remember featuring  Moon Knight is exactly . . . zero.

So color me super shocked when I found myself really enjoying this  limited series. 

Maybe it was the acting. For one, Oscar Isaac is superb as Steven Grant/Marc Spector, and kudos to Disney for giving him something more than a sh**ty Star Wars script to work with.  Ethan Hawke is no slouch himself as Arthur Harrow, portraying a convincing mix of cold menace and weary duty. 

My only real complaint about the series was its length: six episodes, making the entire run roughly the length of a long movie. I wanted more. 

My grade: A

Thanks Spectrum

Weather forecaster on Spectrum News last [Saturday] night: "High of 88 tommorow with a chance of cloudiness. We won't see precipitation tho, until Tuesday at the earliest." 

Today, after taking my laptop outside to work on the patio:

RIP Kathryn Mays

Actress Kathryn Mays has died at 88.

She played matriarch Kim Hughes for 28 years! on the great soap opera As The World Turns.  It was my Mom's favorite soap and I admit a great fondness for it as well. 

RIP

         (Mays with her onscreen husband)

Farmhouse Fixer

 Can’t wait! - Lisa

Howard Hesseman

 

RIP Howard Hesseman, age 81. He played Johnny Fever on WKRP, and the teacher on Head of the Class.

Peter Scolari

Peter Scolari, star of Bossum Buddies alongside Tom Hanks, and a 3 time Emmy nominee for his role on Newhart has died of leukemia at age 66.

RIP