Tuesday, March 12, 2024

My Favorite Current Artists

I love art museums and classic art, but I wanted to showcase some of the top notch current artists. I tend to like art that is colorful, with a sense of whimsy and energy.
Josh Agle, also known as Shag, based in Palm Springs, California. His work often has a 1960s vibe, with tiki bars and groovy people drinking cocktails.
Melvin McGee, whimsical surrealistic style oil painter. His work caught my eye at a local art festival.
Rob Gonsalves, 1959-2017, was a Canadian painter of magic realism. I first noticed his distinctive work at the Saper Art Gallery in East Lansing, Michigan.
Romero Britto, Brazilian artist whose work portrays a vibrant, celebration of life. His work has been on display in over 120 countries. As an artist, he says that he has a role as an agent of positive change.
Alec Monopoly, born in 1986 and originally from New York City. He hides his identity and paints the Monopoly man from the board game.

Sunday, January 21, 2024

Top Notch Comedy Writers Come from the Harvard Lampoon

Everyone knows that getting into Harvard is very challenging. They only accept the cream of the crop, academically. The average high school grade point average to get into Harvard is a 4.0. Most students take AP or IB classes that make their g.p.a. above 4.0. Many people would not associate super academic people with people who are incredibly funny, but at Harvard, the humorous students write for The Harvard Lampoon. Members must demonstrate that they are funny on paper, by submitting six pieces of humor writing. These are evaluated by the Lampoon members, including the president of the organization. Founded in 1876 by seven Harvard undergraduates, The Harvard Lampoon is one of the world’s longest-running continuously-published humor magazines. The Lampoon publishes five issues annually and occasionally parodies other magazines (People, Time, Mademoiselle, Playboy, National Geographic, and many more) or the day’s popular literature (Bored of the Rings, The Hunger Pains, Nightlight, Lame of Thrones). The publication’s circulation is 30,000. It’s inside a castle-like building (pictured above) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a few blocks from Harvard Square. You have probably heard of The National Lampoon, which once had a magazine and was behind films such as Vacation, European Vacation, Christmas Vacation, Animal House, and others. The National Lampoon was founded by Harvard Lampoon members in 1970. But, everyone associated with National Lampoon was not a Harvard Lampoon member. The Lampoon name was licensed to National Lampoon and that provides much of the revenue for the Harvard Lampoon. The National Lampoon Radio Hour included Chevy Chase, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer. 1973 was the launch of a stage show called National Lampoon; Lemmings which was a launching pad for Chase, Guest and John Belushi. This was a precursor to Saturday Night Live. Alumni of the Harvard Lampoon include: business tycoon and newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst, authors George Plimpton and John Updike, MSNBC anchor Lawrence O’Donnell, and actor Fred Gwynne. Many of the top comedy writers in late night TV and sitcoms are Lampoon alumni such as: Conan O’Brien (SNL, The Simpsons, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Conan), Greg Daniels (The Office, SNL, The Simpsons, King of the Hill, Parks and Recreation), Colin Jost (SNL), Jeff Martin (The Simpsons, David Letterman), Jim Downey (SNL, David Letterman), BJ Novak (The Office), Mike Reiss (The Simpsons, The Critic, Johnny Carson), Steve Young (David Letterman), Bill Oakley (The Simpsons), Josh Weinstein (The Simpsons), Robert Carlock (SNL, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Dana Carvey Show, 30 Rock), Al Jean (The Simpsons, The Critic, Johnny Carson), Jon Vitti (The Simpsons, The Critic, King of the Hill, The Office), Steve O’Donnell (David Letterman, The Simpsons, Seinfeld), Al Jean (The Simpsons, Johnny Carson, ALF, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show), Jon Beckerman (David Letterman, Ed), David X. Cohen (Beavis and Butthead, The Simpsons, Futurama), Andy Borowitz (The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, The Facts of Life, Square Pegs), George Meyer (David Letterman, The Simpsons), Eric Kaplan (David Letterman, The Simpsons, Futurama, The Big Bang Theory, Malcolm in the Middle), Ethan Cohen (Beavis and Butthead, King of the Hill, American Dad). An old copy of the Lampoon was shown in the season four finale of NewsRadio. It was called a "nefarious scandal sheet." Honorary members include: John Cleese, Bill Cosby, Billy Crystal, Jay Leno, Adam Sandler, Tracey Ullman, Robin Williams and more. It's incredible to think about how many Lampoon writers worked on very funny, popular shows, especially The Simpsons, SNL and David Letterman.

Monday, December 18, 2023

Cartoons Can Be Lucrative

I recently saw an article about the richest people in the comedy industry. Some were obvious, like Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, David Letterman, etc. But many of them were people who have made a fortune in animation. Matt Stone and Trey Parker (South Park creators) are worth a staggering $700 million and $600 million respectively. The Simpsons and Futurama creator, Matt Groening, is worth $600 million. Seth MacFarlane, creator of Family Guy, American Dad and The Cleveland Show is worth $300 million. Here is a list of a few full length animated shows.
The Flintsones (1960)
The Jetsons (1962)
The Simpsons (1989)
Doug (1991)
Rugrats (1991)
Ren and Stimpy (1991)
Rocko's Modern Life (1993)
Beavis and Butthead (1993)
The Critic (1994)
Dr. Katz (1995)
Hey Arnold! (1996)
Dexter's Laboratory (1996)
King of the Hill (1997)
Daria (1997)
South Park (1997)
Futurama (1999)
Home Movies (1999)
Family Guy (1999)
Mission Hill (1999)
Sponge Bob Square Pants (1999)
Baby Blues (2000)
Aqua Teen Hunger Foce (2000)
Drawn Together (2004)
American Dad (2005)
Bob's Burgers (2011)
Brickleberry (2012)
Rick and Morty (2013)
BoJack Horseman (2014)

Sunday, December 17, 2023

The Letterman Podcast

If you're a fan of late night TV, and especially David Letterman, I'd highly recommend The Letterman Podcast. They just marked the release of their 100th episode, which consists of a 4-part compilation, looking back on the best moments of the podcast. This podcast is relaeased on Fridays, and sometimes bonus episodes will come out earlier in the week. The host is Mike Chisholm, who is from British Columbia, Canada. He has endless enthusiasm and passion for all things Letterman. I may be a bit biased toward this show, since I have been a guest on two occassions. I have always been a geek who is obsessed with television, especially the late night shows. I love finding people who are as passionate about these type of shows as I am. This show is special since it explores everything about Letterman's career, from the morning show, the NBC Late Night show and the CBS Late Show. Some impressive names have appeared on this show, such as bandleader Paul Shaffer, and comedians Jeff Altman, Dick Cavett and Tom Dreesen. Band members Will Lee, Felicia Collins and Tom "Bones" Malone have also appeared on the podcast. Some of the best guests have been the behind-the-scenes people who worked on Letterman's shows. Producers, writers, a camera operator, a costume designer, a CBS executive, a comedy booker, a promotions director, a technical director, a special effects worker and a graphic artist have been interviewed on the show. Hello Deli owner and frequest Letterman character Rupert Jee appeared on the show. This podcast is the best way to delve into the precise details of David Letterman and how his show operated on a daily basis. This show ran like a well-oiled machine. People who worked on the show were at the highest level of their careers.

Tuesday, December 12, 2023

The Critic

There are a few animated series that I enjoy, such as The Simpsons, Futurama, South Park, Beavis and Butthead, Daria, Family Guy, etc. I discovered that the Tubi streaming service has a program I had not watched in years, but used to enjoy, The Critic. The main character is a New York City film critic (Jay Sherman) with his own cable TV show, voiced by Jon Lovitz of SNL fame. His catchphrase was “It stinks!” The show lampooned actors and the film industry. Jay Sherman is a loveable loser who has challenges with his personal life. He has a tyrannical media mogul boss who was based on Ted Turner. In 1994-95, the show aired on ABC, then Fox, then Comedy Central for a total of 23 episodes. The final 10 episodes were put on a website called atomfilms.com in 2000-01. The Critic spoofed films such as Howard’s End, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, Apocalypse Now, The Lion King, The Godfather, Arthur and more. This show would be enjoyed by film fans, and Siskel and Ebert guest starred in an episode. The duo gave the show a lukewarm review. Film critics Rex Reed and Gene Shalit also played themselves. The show was created by Al Jean and Mike Reiss, who were also the primary writers. These two have an impressive comedy resume. They wrote for Johnny Carson and The Simpsons. Like many successful comedy writers at the highest level, they went to Harvard. Some people from The Simpsons provided voices for The Critic (such as Nancy Cartwright, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Doris Grau etc). This show was the voice acting debut for Billy Crystal. Later, he did voice work for Pixar films Monsters Inc and Cars. Park Overall from the show Empty Nest provided the voice of Jay’s girlfriend Alice. The Critic was intended as a love letter to New York City. Ironically, it did better ratings-wise in the Midwest than New York or other major cities. The show was never a smash hit but achieved a cult status. *Some information from imdb and wikipedia.