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A Record of Human History: The Hey-Side
For around a year, I’ve been waiting for a particular package to arrive. Patiently…waiting. No, it wasn’t late. This time, the package just took a while, and for legitimate reasons. The contents of which were going to be amazing and, honestly, out of this world when opened.
Well, at least a spectacular replica of something that was literally sent out of this world 40 years ago.
And this package arrived today!
As expected, the book, the albums and the disc sleeves are spectacularly designed and produced. It’s surreal to receive such a cool piece of history in the mail, courtesy of a Kickstarter campaign.
The fundraising and reward-based company Kickstarter has been good to a lot of innovators, dreamers and customers (like me) over the past several years. Thanks to Kickstarter, I’ve ridden a real-life hoverboard (no wheels, but an actual hoverboard that hovered above the ground in Silicon Valley), possess a limited edition board game inspired by Christopher Nolan’s epic film Inception (that came inside a silver briefcase) and can now play NASA’s famed Golden Records on a turntable and/or digitally.
Simply incredible.
If the Golden Record was re-recorded with a few new songs, images and earthly sounds today, one specific thing comes to mind above all the worthy contenders…
the B-movie masterpiece Independence Day.
Just as a nice reminder, in case the aliens ever got any ideas.
Just Back! in Time to Reopen That Bottle
A return to the past in the future is almost here…
Will & Grace (Part II?) looks like it has, somehow, replicated their lightning-in-a-bottle magic from their original run from 1998-2006. Perhaps this magic can be traced to the fact that all the original cast, crew, writers, producers and director(s) are rumored to have returned for a second-go in 2017.
And beyond.
A second season has already been ordered by NBC.
From all the promos and teasers, that preemptive decision seems like a wise move by the former “Must-See” TV network. Let’s not forget that Will & Grace (Part I?) was one of the sitcoms that made up “Must-See” television on NBC. And NBC, with a two-season revival planned before the pilot of Will & Grace (Part II?) even airs, is hoping their network’s bottle from its sitcom golden age will catch a spark to begin its own revival.
On a completely unrelated note that’s likely floating around the heads of every NBC exec these days:
Just how impossible is would a Friends reunion be?
RIP Don Rickles
Comedy just got a little less insulting.
Famed insult comic Don Rickles died today at the towering age of 90. While many might have suspected being in his cross hairs would be a terrible thing, it was quite the opposite. As a matter of fact, receiving the Don Rickles burn became a badge of honor. One of the greatest gifts a comedian can achieve is the elasticity to say just about anything to anybody and have the audience laughing every time.
Robin Williams was one of these very rare comics.
It’s difficult to attempt to encapsulate the storied career of Don Rickles, but the following video does a commendable job at this trying feat.
Particularly in the modern PC Era, we needed Don Rickles now more than ever. Let’s all remember and honor the magic of his insulting (yet heartwarming) comedic style.
RIP Don Rickles.
Will’s Coming Back…with Grace
A must see revival is in the works.
“NBC has ordered a 10-episode limited revival that will reunite stars Debra Messing, Eric McCormack, Sean Hayes, and Megan Mullally during the 2017-2018 TV season, the network announced at the Television Critics Association’s press tour on Wednesday.
Original series creators Max Mutchnick and David Kohan will act as showrunners and executive producers, while prolific director James Burrows, who directed every episode of the show during its initial eight-year run, is on board to direct and executive produce.”
–Natalie Abrams, Entertainment Weekly
This kind of return for Will & Grace may combine the best of both worlds:
Satisfying fans of the revered sitcom with a return of the original cast and crew, as well as making the updated walk down memory lane a limited comeback as to not overstay their welcome that’s powered almost entirely by nostalgia (you’ve seen those hilarious reruns on TV).
Recreating lightning in a bottle has proven to be a nearly impossible feat, even for beloved sitcoms of the same era as Will & Grace (ie – Girl Meets World, Fuller House, the Seinfeld non-reunion reunion). The one difference with Will & Grace is that the cast were full-fledged adults during the height of their success and impeccable comedic timing…and the cast of Will & Grace are still full-fledged adults who proved their timing is still gold with their recent reunion in a video posted online a few months back.
Amazingly, the structure of their triumphant return to network TV on NBC by way of a 10-episode stint is, ironically, modeled after the highly successful cable television model of 10-episode seasons for some of the most successful and groundbreaking TV shows in the modern era.
This experiment by NBC, a TV network clearly aware of the evolving realities, struggles and competition with the likes of HBO, Netflix, Amazon, original shows by Apple (really) and a laundry list of cable TV networks, could become a bellwether for the future of revivals regarding other popular shows from the past that people want to see years later.
Frasier? Cheers? Dare I say it…Friends?
For Ted Danson’s sake, a 10-episode revival would put him in an actual good place on NBC.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 