The ever-changing world of audio and video technology

Remember vinyl records? If you're 25 or under, probably not. I recall listening to my brother's 45 rpm records in my room in the 1970s. They liked artists such as Chicago, the Beatles, the Jackson 5, and Stevie Wonder. Some of the first records I bought were "Disco Inferno" by the Tramps and "I Just Want to be your Everything" by Andy Gibb. I endured endless razzing by my older siblings when I purchased a Barry Manilow record. I remember buying the "Out of the Blue" 33 rpm album by ELO which was a double album that unfolded to reveal a cool spaceship photo.

Anyway, the explosion of mp3s and i Pods got me thinking about all the audio formats we have seen over time. Before my time, my parent's generation listened to big band music on 78 rpm records. Then we saw 33 rpm and 45 rpm vinyl. Next were the 8 track tapes from the 1970s. Cassettes ruled in the 80s, and in the 90s we advanced into the digital age with CDs. Some people liked mini discs in the 90s but that format didn't seem to catch on. Just try to find records or cassettes in a retail outlet today. It's not easy. The record labels probably love the different formats since most people don't have albums or cassettes anymore and they have to buy their favorite tunes on CD or mp3. I wonder what format will be the next big thing?

It's the same story with video formats. Do you own mostly DVDs or VHS tapes? Most video stores have just a few VHS tapes, if any. In the 1980s I had heard that Beta format tapes would be the next big thing. My parents asked me if we should buy a VHS or a Beta machine. I said Beta--oops! If you know anything about broadcast television, the Sony Betacam SP and SX are commonly used tape formats, but for home use the public embraced the VHS machines. I remember VHS machines in the 80s would set you back $500 at least. No you can get one for $50. After VHS tapes, some may recall the video disc format, which featured large platter like digital discs the size of 33 rpm records. The smaller DVD format proved to be much more successful. These days it seems like more and more are using the digital hard drive recorders such as Tivo. These require no tapes and they can store more recorded footage than VHS tapes. Also you don't need to worry about dirty tape heads, tracking problems, or the tapes getting creased or worn out.

We're in the age of high definition TV. The FCC has said that by 2009 all stations must be broadcasting in HDTV and people will need high definition sets, or puchase a digital converter. The date of conversion has been pushed back many times and I wouldn't doubt it if it was pushed back further. It seems unfair that all will be forced to switch to the new format. It should be voluntary like the switch from black and white to color TV. I have compared high definition to standard definition and often times the difference is not noticeable.

Entertainment Extra Access Insider! Who cares!?!?

Shows like ET, Extra, Access Hollywood and the Insider seem to thrive on making the most meaningless stories sound like important breaking news. ET and the Insider, which are basically carbon copies of one another, are the most annoying. These 2 are shot in neighboring studios on the Paramount lot. Both shows share the always annoying fashion guru Steven "Cojo" Cojucaro. Pat O'Brien worked as a sports commentator for many years before working as an anchor for Access Hollywood. In fall of 2004, he launched The Insider with co-host Lara Spencer, who had hosted the PBS show Antiques Roadshow. Often the same exact footage will air on ET and The Insider. One will say they have an exclusive story, and then the other will do the same story claiming it's exclusive. The Insider will air a story, and then a few weeks later the same exact packaged story will air! The other entertainment shows don't do this. The Insider seems to have trouble filling their half hour with celebrity footage. They will do stories on botched plastic surgery or home video of wedding bloopers. They will often do stories that have nothing to do with Hollywood, like the glorification of sisters who look like walking skeletons at death's door, calling them the anorexic twins. The thing that's ironic is that these type of shows probably do more damage than any other source when it comes to contributing to the prevalence of eating disorders in America. The never ending images of size zero actresses who still think they are fat is an epidemic. The bone thin entertainers showed on these shows achieve their look through personal trainers, chefs, liposuction, plastic surgery, and eating disorders. They set up unrealistic expectations and give people the impression that looks are all that matter in life.

Leeza Gibbons, John Tesh, Bob Goen, Julie Moran and Maria Menounos have left ET. Were they fired, did they quit, or did they get tired of covering all the meaningless stories day after day? One has to wonder. The stories on these entertainment shows always leave me asking the same question--who cares? Does it really matter where Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were last sighted? Is it really earth shaking news to hear about Lindsay Lohan's latest car accident? I like learning about celebrities, I write this blog about them after all, but these shows are obsessive about the stars. They talk about how intrusive the paparazzi are and how they need to give celebrities their space. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! ET, Insider and the rest are part of the problem as much as magazine photographers.

Entertainment Odds and Ends for February

Not surprisingly, the #1 show ratings-wise for the first week of February was the Super Bowl. This annual advertising cash cow was on ABC and was watched by a whopping 90.7 million viewers! This was the highest rating in 10 years. The postgame coverage was #2 for the week garnering 59.8 million viewers. Following the postgame, the ratings dropped to 37.9 million viewers for the 3rd rated show for the week, ABC's Grey's Anatomy. Inexplicably, the alphabet network's Dancing with the Stars has been a big hit, finishing in 10th and 12th place. Fox's American Idol continues to be a rating juggernaut, attracting 30 million viewers on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. CBS's dramas continue to do well, including CSI, CSI:Miami, CSI:NY, Without a Trace, Numbers, Close to Home and Criminal Minds. The new Jenna Elfman comedy, Courting Alex has done well, finishing in 17th place. Successful sitcoms seem to be so rare these days.

CBS must be desperate for programming. On Valentine's Day they aired The Price is Right in primetime followed by a Dr. Phil special that was basically a one hour infomercial for his new book. How does someone like him have time to be so prolific with his books? One has to wonder if he has a ghost writer to help him out.

Perhaps due to the advent of Tivo, and people skipping over commercials, there seems to be more product placement these days. The worst offender I have seen has to be Yes Dear, Wednesday nights on CBS. During a recent episode, I tallied five verbal and/or visual incidents of brand name mentions. It's like the story is written around the products, and the show has gone downhill quickly. I prefer the show which is on before it, Still Standing, which stars Jamie Gertz. When I see her, I still think of her role in the great 1980s film Less Than Zero, which was based on a Bret Easton Ellis novel. It also starred Robert Downey Jr. as a spoiled kid who gets caught up in the world of drug addiction. Talk about life imitating art! Ellis also did American Psycho, which was made into a brilliant but disturbing movie with Christian Bale. Maybe Yes Dear will get cancelled to make room for a new sitcom being promoted on CBS. It's called The New Adventures of Old Christine. It starts in March and it stars Julia Louis Dreyfuss, an SNL alum best known for playing Elaine on Seinfeld. Since Seinfeld, she tried a sitcom on NBC called Watching Ellie, which was a disappointment. She has appeared a few times on Curb Your Enthusiasm, the HBO comedy created by and starring Seifeld creator Larry David. Some say there is a Seinfeld curse since the characters from that show have not been able to duplicate their sitcom success. Michael Richards (Kramer), tried a sitcom which was ultimately cancelled. Jason Alexander (George) had tried shows on ABC (Bob Patterson) and CBS (Listen Up) that were taken off the air. Jerry Seinfeld has returned to his roots of stand up comedy since leaving television. He documented his return to stand up in the movie Comedian. I'm sure that none of the Seinfeld alumni are hurting for money, due to residuals from reruns, but nevertheless, I'm sure they would like to have hit shows once again.

Many celebrities write autobiographies, especially in their later years, and some can be quite lucrative. Jerry Lewis put out a book called "Dean and Me, a Love Story" which I reviewed in an earlier blog entry. That tome has sold 90,000 copies. Another one I enjoyed was "Between You and Me", by 60 Minutes icon Mike Wallace. That book has sold 64,000 copies. Alan Alda has written a book called "Never Have Your Dog Stuffed" which has sold 116,000 copies. Even more successful has been "700 Sundays", written by Billy Crystal. This has sold 174,000 copies, and the story about Billy and his father has been made into a Broadway show starring the comedian and perennial Oscar host.

*Source information for some material:Entertainment Weekly magazine

Musical Timekeeper for a Generation

If you're a fan of great drumming and/or big band-style jazz, check out the "Buddy Rich Collector's Edition" DVD. It's a 2 DVD set that includes two programs recorded in April of 1985 on King Street in San Francisco. The first is called the "Channel 1 Suite" and the second is "The Lost West Side Story Tapes." Taped 2 years before the drumming icon's death, they were his last recorded performances. Buddy was 67 at the time, and had undergone quadruple bypass heart surgery two years previous. His doctors told him not to perform anymore, but he ignored their pleas. In 1990, a fire swept through the studio where the programs were recorded and it was thought that the master video tapes were destroyed. Ten years later the tapes were discovered and were able to be restored. The latest video and audio technology of the day was incorporated into the high quality project. The lighting director won an Emmy award and the set design had an art deco look that resembled a classy jazz club. Four channel surround sound was recorded by a 12 foot by 4 foot array of microphones attached to a 200 pound plexiglass field. Two half circle domes made of plexiglass were placed above Buddy's drum kit. Each contained a pressure zone microphone (pzm). The director was a musician himself and the music was marked to correspond with the camera shots. There was a camera mounted below Buddy's snare drum looking up to show a unique perspective of the percussion virtuoso at work. It was a first class production with Buddy involved in all aspects.

The discs contain vignettes with interviews with the producer, audio engineer, and Buddy's daughter and wife. Audio commentaries are by drummers Steve Smith and Dave Weckl. One segment reveals that Buddy's grandson Nick is a drummer in a rock band. An interesting profile is included that features Joey DeNoia, Buddy's longtime assistant which shows the softer side of Buddy. Tracks on the DVD include Machine, Best Coast, One O' Clock Jump, Norwegian Wood, and others. There is lots of behind-the-scenes footage and a booklet with photos of Buddy.

Buddy Rich and Johnny Carson were good friends and they each admired one another. Buddy gave Johnny a drum set that was a replica of his own. Rich would appear on the Tonight Show four times per year and the DVD set includes a visit from 1976. Buddy was on the show that night with Don Rickles and Buddy's daughter Cathy, who is a singer, made an appearance too. In 1973 Buddy had spinal surgery and Johnny and Ed McMahon paid him a visit in the hospital. The pair performed an X-rated Carnac bit that left Buddy in stitches. Buddy also was friends with Frank Sinatra and Jerry Lewis. Buddy and Jerry appeared together in the film "Visit to a Small Planet" where Jerry portrayed an alien. Ironically, Buddy was a UFO buff and took his belief in extra terrestrials seriously.

Buddy lived from 1917 to 1987 and amazingly he never read music. He could listen to a piece once and play along with it flawlessly the second time hearing it. He was a musical pioneer and this DVD set is a must have for people who love great music. Fans of Rich should check out the CD entitled "Burning for Buddy." It has today's greatest drummers performing in a tribute to the man known as "Mr. Drums." It was produced by Neil Peart, the great drummer for the Canadian power rock trio Rush.

The Playboy and the Putz

"Dean and Me (a Love Story)" is a book that came out last year which chronicles the 10 year working relationship between Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. I recently listened to the book on CD and found it to be fascinating. Most people of my age group, (I'm 36), have little interest in the world of entertainment before the 1970s. I have always admired the pioneers like Martin and Lewis who paved the way for today's entertainers. My only problem with the book is that the CD version is not read by the author, Jerry Lewis. It is narrated by Broadway actor Gregory Jbara, who actually does good impersonations of Jerry and Dean. Martin and Lewis were partners from 1946 to 1956. When they began it was before the days of television, so their primary work was doing live stage performances. Their big break happened in a club in Atlantic City. Lewis was the wacky guy with all the quips and Martin was the suave straight man, and a renowned crooner. A regular venue for the pair was the Copacabana club in New York. Lewis said that in their day the nightclubs were primarily owned by the mafia, so a performer could not help but rub elbows with the wise guys. Frank Sinatra was accused of being too friendly with gangsters, but Lewis said it was unavoidable. Just 2 years into their partnership in 1948, the duo was making $7,500 per week! They were a show business phenomenon, doing 7 or 8 live shows per day in the venues of the big apple. The pair had great cameraderie and impeccable timing, similar to Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon. Another great book on CD I listened to is "Here's Johnny" by Ed McMahon. As Martin and Lewis performed more and more, Dean felt like Jerry was in the spotlight too much. Jerry had faith that Dean could have success as a singer on his own and he secretly commissioned a composer and a lyricist to write "That's Amore" for Dean. Martin idolized Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra and he wanted to make it on his own as a singer. He was tired of Jerry receiving all the accolades. Martin and Lewis made 16 films together, but Dean grew tired of the hackneyed scripts and longed for more. After their feud and breakup in 1956, Martin had great success as a singer, actor and TV host. His Dean Martin Celebrity Roast and Variety Show attracted the biggest stars of the era. After the split from Dean, Jerry had success as an actor as well as working behind-the-scenes on films. Both Dean and Jerry performed regularly in Las Vegas nightclubs. Dean became part of "The Rat Pack", which also included Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford. In the late 1960s Jerry Lewis suffered an injury on stage and became addicted to the pain killer Percodan. In 1973 he hit rock bottom while dealing with depression and his his addiction, and he considered suicide. After not speaking for 20 years, Jerry and Dean were reunited by Frank Sinatra. It happened on the annual MDA telethon which Jerry has hosted for decades. They made up and were friends until Dean's death. A great movie with Jerry Lewis that I would recommend is "The King of Comedy" in which Lewis plays a Johnny Carson-like late night host. In the Martin Scorsese-directed movie Jerry is persued by a crazed fan named Rupert Pupkin, who is played brilliantly by Robert DeNiro.