Google Maps Street View Hollywood Tour

Google maps is amazing, especially the street view feature. Pick a city anywhere in the world and you can go there via cyberspace. I was "exploring" Hollywood and took some screenshots of some landmarks. Here's the famous Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard where you can see the hand prints and footprints of some of the biggest celebrities in the cement.



Next is an overhead view of Hollywood and Highland, where the red carpet is installed for the Academy Awards ceremony at the Kodak Theatre.



Next is a street view image of the Hard Rock Cafe and the Kodak Theatre.



Across from the Kodak Theatre is the venue where Jimmy Kimmel does his late night show.



Next I traveled to Sunset Boulevard to find the legendary club where some of the biggest comics have performed, The Comedy Store. Notice the KNBC-TV van out front.



Finally here's the famous Whiskey A-Go-Go club where bands like Van Halen have performed. Elton John was discovered here.

Late Night TV Changes Lead to NBC Lay Offs

As the changing of the guard takes place at The Tonight Show, NBC lays off the 164 employees who work for Jay Leno. The show is moving back to New York, and Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show starts on Monday, February 17. The show has not been based out of New York since 1972. The 164 employees are encouraged to apply for other positions with NBC. Fallon's inaugural guests will be Will Smith and U2. He will get paid $12 million per year, while Leno made $15 million. Ironically, the highest paid late night host is on basic cable. Jon Stewart makes $25-$30 million per year hosting Comedy Central's The Daily Show, according to TV Guide. Seth Meyers' late night show will premiere the night of February 24, after Fallon's program. His first guest will be fellow Saturday Night Live alum Amy Poehler. NBC has a legacy for the 12:35 am time slot dating back to the 1970's and Seth Meyers will become the fifth person to host a show in that time period. The 12:35 am time slot on NBC has been occupied by Tom Snyder (The Tomorrow Show), Late Night with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

Information from http://www.thewrap.com/nbcuniversal-tonight-show-burbank-lay-offs-new-york-jay-leno-jimmy-fallon.

NPR's Fresh Air: Showbiz Radio

Fans of movies, television, music, entertainment and culture owe it to themselves to check out "Fresh Air" from NPR, National Public Radio. This show covers all of those topics and more through in-depth, insightful interviews by host Terry Gross. She has hosted the Peabody award-winning program since 1975. The show originates from WHYY radio in Philadelphia. "Fresh Air" features intimate interviews, and music, television and movie reviews from various contributors. 4.5 million people hear this show every week and it airs on 450 NPR affiliates. This show airs Monday through Friday, check your local listings for times.

Information from http://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/

End of an Era for NBC Burbank

The legendary NBC studios at 3000 West Alameda Ave. in Burbank will be vacated with the end of the Jay Leno era for the Tonight Show. Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show will be based out of New York. Also, the Los Angeles owned and operated NBC affiliate, KNBC-TV 4 is moving to the Universal lot due to the merger between NBC and Universal. KNBC has operated out of Burbank since 1962. Click here for a look at the new set for KNBC. You can watch a short video tour of the Burbank building here. The NBC building was the home of Johnny Carson's Tonight Show from 1972-1992, Days of Our Lives, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In and many other shows over the years. It is truly one of the iconic facilities in the world of broadcasting. Above are photos from the walls of NBC studios that show the various celebrities who worked in the building.

Information from the 2 links above plus the Facebook page, "Eyes of a Generation"

Spike Jonze's Film "Her" is Thought Provoking and Engaging

"Her" was written and directed by Spike Jonze. It has been said that the best artists are not afraid to take chances. A failure is not truly a failure if an artist takes risks and makes art they believe in. No one can say that Jonze does not take chances. People first niticed his creative flair when he made music videos for some of the biggest music stars. He directed the video "Buddy Holly" for Weezer. That video incorporated scenes from the classic TV show "Happy Days". He directed "Sabotage" for Beastie Boys. That video had the 3 rappers posing as 1970's-era cops. He also directed videos for Bjork, Fatboy Slim, The Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk and more. He directed the films "Being John Malkovich" and "Where the Wild Things Are", based on the children's book by Maurice Sendak. His latest film is "Her" which has been nominated for 5 Oscars.

This movie stars Joaquin Phoenix (Theodore), Scarlet Johansson (Samantha, the operating system, voice only), and Amy Adams (Amy). This takes place in future Los Angeles. It's not too far in the future since their technology is not that different from what we have now. The film is about technology and how we utilize it in our lives. Theodore is lonely, going through a divorce and looking for female companionship. He buys a new operating system for his computer. One can choose a male or female voice for the system. Theodore chooses a female voice and it is the voice of Scarlet Johansson. The operating system is named Samantha. This operating system is not like what we use today. The future operating system has a personality and actually discusses things with the user. Theodore likes the companionship and not surprisingly, falls for Samantha. But this gets complicated. How can one have a true relationship with an operating system that is not flesh and blood?

This movie will make you think about technology. Things like social media sites, cell phones, tablets, laptops, and the internet in general give us a certain amount of entertainment and convenience as far as getting things done. But they also have made us depend on technology to the degree that we do not have as many personal, one-on-one, face-to-face interactions. Some people work from home, some never set foot in a bank since they can do everything online, some do not call others, they only e-mail or text. How many people on your Facebook friends list are true friends that you actually see on a regular basis? How many of them are people you have not seen in 10, 15 or 20 years? How many times have you seen someone at an event who is too occupied by taking pictures, taking videos or spending time on their cell phone to pay attention to the event? What do you value more, talking to someone in person or talking via e-mail or on a social media site? Some get obsessed with a virtual world since in a virtual world of video games or websites we are protected, we can't get hurt. Technology has led us to crave the attention and approval of others. People want others to notice their Facebook posts or tweets. People are less private than they used to be, often sharing everything online. Technology is not going away. There is no turning back. We are in too deep. Our technology has brought us together in certain ways, but I think it has also split us apart and it has isolated us in many respects.

Information from www.imdb.com.