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- Remember the good "identical cousin"? Well, never mind. He's booted due to a prior marijuana possession case. Didn't Bo have some drug charges in his past?
Fri, 09 Feb 2007 14:53:44 -0800 - American Idol Week 4 Recap: San Antonio and the "Rest of the Best" It's the end of the audition shows as we know it, and I feel fine!
Tantalizing us with scenes from hollywood, the American Idol team deliver one more week of the good, the bad, and the tone-deaf. And don't be fooled by the "Best of the Rest" description of Wednesday's episode. They really meant "The Best and the Worst of the rest." or perhaps even "The Best, Worst and Weirdest of the Rest."
Starting with Brian...a young man in fatigues with a very passionate rendition of Billy Idol's "Rebel Yell." Passionate, but not pleasant, let's be clear.
And continuing with Jasmine, she of the major camel-toe issue...and the membership in a gospel choir which we can only assume is open to all skill levels. Jasmine seemed very very depressive and shy...until they rejected her, after which she turned very nasty. And I'd like to thank the producers of American Idol for perpetuating the "Ugly American" stereotype by showing so many rejected contestants talking about Simon being British, and telling him to "go back to England", which is especially ironic coming from African Americans who have been subjected to such hateful language themselves. I felt dirty aftr watching the Jasmine segment.
Which was somewhat ameliorated by the Hayley and Baylie show.
Hayley sang the Bonnie Raitt heart-breaker, "I Can't Make You Love Me", one of my personal faves. She had a nice voice and used lots of dynamic range. I wouldn't say she always seemed deeply connected to what she was singing, but she definitely deserved her golden ticket.
Then we met Baylie, the country mouse who wants to be a city mouse. We got to see some shots of their farm and the animals, including some bulls that looked like they were wearing do-rags, a la Prince's Super Bowl halftime show. anyone know what was up with that? Baylie is only 16, and she sang a Faith Hill tune, "Stronger." Baylie was really pretty good, and definitely seems to feel what she's singing. But she expresses that emotion by closing her eyes and shaking her head. She needs to find a way to break that habit pronto.
After the Hayley and Baylie show we had the "identical cousins" segment, featuring William and Akron. This had all the earmarks of a horrible humiliation, but actually it turned out OK.
First we had William, who sucked, no question. And Paula and Randy were laughing during his audition in that way I really hate. Difference is that William didn't think he was actually any good. he was there mostly to hang with his cousin. But he did tell them that he had to represent by calling them out, so quiet, polite William started yelling in at the judges as he opened the door and left. Which was really funny in a had-to-be-there kind of way.
So, when cousin Akron came in, I'll admit I did not have high hopes. He sang "Change is Gonna Come", and he nailed it. He was a really nice, warm singer. Simon found him boring, and I'd agree he was pretty mellow, but i didn't care given his voice. But to answer Simon's complaint Akron broke into "Let's Get It On" and poured on some sexy energy, which did indeed wake Simon up. Akron has a really nice and individual vibrato, which gives him not only the benefit of being talented, but being a little different. So, this identical cousin was on his way to hollywood, with his cousin's full support.
The highlight of this episode perhaps came during Ashlyn's audition. Not because of Ashlyn, who was indeed blessed with a smoky, quality voice, but also did indeed make weird facial expressions while singing. No, the highlight came when Simon absent-mindedly rubbed his own man-boobs in a circular fashion while talking. The S.O. and I skipped backwards and watched that several times, howling with laughter. Oh, yeah, and they brought Ashlyn back in, gave her a second chance, and then decided to send her to Hollywood...with many admonitions that she needed to work on her weird tics while singing. But the man-boob rubbing. Best AI moment this season!
The show closed with Jimmy, singing "Cupid." I agree he had a nice tone, and "little, fun Ruben" was sort of appropriate. I'd be concerned he's not quite individual enough. Just your average smooth, soulful singer. ho hum :)
"The Best of the Rest" was roughly broken into a series of "Lessons" for American Idol contestants;
Lesson 1: The Look
We had Christa, with the wacky cigarette-girl outfit and no sense of melody. At. All.
At the other end of the spectrum we had Tami, a 29-year-old (did they raise the age limit again?) wearing jeans, a simply button shirt and basic flat Doc Marten-type shoes. She sang Janis Joplin's "Whipping Post" and nailed it with a bluesy no-frills-or-unnecessary-melisma approach. Golden ticket please!
Lesson 2: Seek inspiration
Paul Kim, from my neighboring city of Saratoga, CA, was anti-inspired by William Hung, saying he didn't want Hung to be the lasting impression people had of Asians as performers and singers. thank god he could back it up with a perfect boy-band rendition of "If I ever Fall in Love Again."
Too bad Jack couldn't back up his inspiration taken from Bo Bice's a capella performance two years ago...let's just say he might have achieved a single note in tune had he had accompaniment.
Lesson 3: Never give up
This was a segment on returning auditionners. Some of them had never made it to Hollywood, but some had. Many of these seem driven to return by crushes on judges. We had Gina crushing on Simon (and making it to Hollywood.) and we had Edward crushing on Paula (and definitely not making it.)
Lesson 4: Audition on your own
Here we meet the three roller-skating waitresses (inspired by Kellie Pickler, no doubt) Heather, Ashley and Ebony.
Heather went first, singing "God Bless this Broken Road." I actually thought she was fine and had a nice, strong quality. But by the time the trio had finished she had faded from the judges' memories.
Ashley sang Sarah MacLachlan's "Angel" and also was serviceable and talented. She was also younger, taller and prettier than Heather, so I'm guessing that may have given her the edge over her friend.
Lastly, Ebony sang "I Believe in You and Me." So, I know this will sound blasphemous, but I really didn't get why they were falling all over themselves over Ebony. OK, she was hot. And yes, she had a nice voice...very nice. But to consider her that much better than her buddies? Nope, I didn't see it. She had a shaky vibrato too.
Lesson 5: Shake Your Moneymaker
This segment was much-enhanced by the clip of Ryan showing off his horrible white-man dancing moves. not as funny as Simon rubbing his man-boobs, but amusing and endearing. [Side note: am I the only one who finds myself shocked at how much I actually enjoy Ryan Seacrest? When you think about the first couple of seasons...I mean, who'd a thunk?]
Lesson 6: Clarity
Many shots of unintelligible singers ensued.
Finally we closed with Lakisha, who sang Aretha Franklin's "Think." She did have that annoying loud-exhale-at-the-end-of-every-phrase habit, but other than that she had a great voice and a really pleasant stage presence.
Lakisha apparently is joining 171 other contestants in Hollywood, and we'll start to separate the great from the only good next week. I can't wait!
Fri, 09 Feb 2007 14:19:23 -0800 - Top Design Recap: Week 2: The Top 10 design a bedroom for a surprising client Can the designers adapt? Um, not so well
So, I'm just going to leave alone the opening drama of contestant John telling the others that he has HIV, and that an over-dosing of testosterone was responsible for his jerk-ish behavior the previous week. You can read about it in USA Today if you're interested. Suffice to say that I was a bit shocked that a gay man would speak so disparagingly about the other gay male contestants, practically calling them nancy boys, leading me to think he was actually a homophobic hetero-, not a homophobic homo-sexual. Is that attributable to a shot of testosterone too?
The twist for this week's challenge is that each designer was given the dossier on a client who wanted a new bedroom. They had to make a design and purchase $8K worth of furniture before meeting said client. And when the clients rolled in for their consultation...they were all 10 year old children.
The point of the challenge:
-Design Concept
-Execution
-Adaptability to the change in client
Let me just give you a preview of the episode: almost every designer talked about how "sophisticated" their 10 year old client was. Yes, that was an attempt to explain away how little they adapted their designs to their new-found knowledge about who the client really was.
Each designer got an extra $300 to spend at what looked to be a Target...to buy more kid-friendly accessories. And we learn that there was some benefit to the winners of last week's episode, as they each got an extra $100 to spend at Target.
The sole drama in this episode, post John-HIV-revelation, also involved John...who simply didn't have it together in a couple of key ways. Mostly, he had no flooring. Other than that we got to see a little more of Todd Oldham wandering around and trying to Tim Gunn the contestants.
We learned that the guest judge was Liz Lange, most well-known for her maternity line. We also learned that apparently Liz can't walk to well in high heels. and we learned that kelly has a more eclectic personal style than was in evidence on episode 1 (and scenes from next week look like she gets even wackier...what with the brightly colored leg warmer accoutrements!)
On to the rooms...
1. Goil goes all modern for his kid
The room is white with brightly colored accents. And it is also all low and straight-lined modern. Everything is on wheels and caster, and I can only assume that there were stops on those wheels, os the kid could get a good night sleep without rolling around. This was a fairly minimalist room, and while I could appreciate the sense of fun, it did seem a little spartan for a kid.
2. Carisa went for function and fun
She had a long desk built into the foot of the bed, and hanging pillows from which to swing. There wasn't a ton of storage, but this was a common theme of almost every room. I was, in fact, disappointed that the judges chose not to comment at all on the fact that not a single room had all three items that most kids, functionally, really usually have, namely:
-sleeping space
-homework space
-storage space for both toys/books and clothing
Not a single room had all three. Carisa's was missing storage space altogether. But the colors and the patterns were fun and kid-friendly without being theme-park-like.
3. Andrea created a pretty-blah room
There was lots of shelving, and a clothing trunk, but no homework space. and the blue panels on the wall, plus the strangely sterile dining room chairs made this room seem impersonal. And the judges' comments that it wasn't very girly were also right on the money.
4. John simply didn't finish
His room might have been going somewhere, with a large mirror leaning against the wall and a pretty ribbon headboard. But the whole thing seemed strangely off-center (and not in a cool way.) and there was the above-mentioned floor. Or lack thereof. It looked like crap, what else could oyu say?
5. Felicia really made it work
She addressed the twin bed in the most creative way, turning it lengthwise against the wall. It looked like it could be a couch/lounging area during the day, and a bed at night. She went a little theme-y with the chess board plus the chess board headboard, and the room was a bit dark and somber for a child. But overall I liked the configuration and function of the room, and I liked the design aesthetic as well.
6. Elizabeth went way over the top
This was an Extreme Makeover: Home Edition room. the kids likes soccer, let's build him a soccer field room. Like last week when she added a sandbox element into the floor, Elizabeth also toyed with the floor this week...by adding an astroturf element. All of which made me say "whatever." There was shelving, but no storage, and I really just didn't like it.
7. Ryan pleased me more than the judges
I liked Ryan's room. I like the painted waves on the wall. I liked that the room had a sense of motion and whimsey. As a cat lover myself I think the client would have been very happy with all of the cat elements...and so would the cat have been. I also liked the tall platform bed, and think most kids would like that too...the further away from the monster under the bed, the better!! Anyway, I would never have bottom three'd this design.
8. Matt went quite mature
matt was another one who basically said "my client is very sophisticated for a 10 year old." That was his story, and he was sticking with it. the room was less glamorous and more institutional in my opinion. I liked the large circular lights embedded in the walls, but that was about all I liked. The beige/black color combo did nothing for me. But I guess the "sophisticated" client liked it.
9. Erik went way over the top too
All pirates, all the time. he certainly went with a cohesive design, and he executed a lot of design in a short time. But if last week's losing room was called too theme-y I cannot understand how this one wasn't. And that kid is going to get tired of that room in about 6 weeks!
10. Michael confuses children with another era's elderly
By creating a room that was sedate and near-Victorian in feel. Even he called it "quaint." Kids don't really want to be quaint, do they? This room also had no work space nor any storage, so it was completely non-functional.
In the end the judges and I clearly didn't fully agree.
They had Goil (the minimalist) Carisa and Erik (the theme park designer) as the top 3. And Erik won! (I bet the designers are thoroughly confused now!) This also gives him immunity for next week (and for the record: I hate immunity.)
They had John (the unfinished work) Michael (the granny room) and Ryan (the whimsical painter) in the bottom 3.
And John was out.
Really, either John or Michael could have been out, and I wouldn't have cared.
I also find that I don't have a strong favorite or favorites yet.
How about you?
Thu, 08 Feb 2007 18:58:23 -0800 - This month's Silicon Veggie A compendium of my favorite veg*n online resources
After two articles compiling reader suggestions to help me go vegan, I decided to repay them with some recommendations of my own in this month's Silicon Veggie article.
Not exactly a wonderful exercise in creative writing, but hopefully extremely useful...and perhaps even inspiring to some prospective veg*ns out there.
Wed, 07 Feb 2007 15:00:52 -0800 - Random link for the day: how a Broadway show relies on Apple products Spring Awakening was created, rehearsed and performed relying heavily on Apple products.
You can read this profile of how Apple products played a role in the new Broadway hit, Spring Awakening, over at the Apple site.
It's a pretty fascinating read.
I saw Spring Awakening last month and gave it a rave review. Most critics think it is breaking new ground, and in many respects I agree. But reading this piece on their creative process indicates that it might be breaking new ground in how shows come together too. Apparently composer Duncan Sheik is not a write-it-down kind of guy, so parts were recorded and distributed using Garage Band and iTunes, and the cast and director relied on their iPods to learn the music. The score is played by both live musicians and recorded tracks that are mixed on an Apple. The soundtrack was recorded using Apple software. The list goes on and on.
It's not too often a story brings together my longtime theatre interest and my rather newborn Apple fanaticism. If you're interested in any of the above I think you'll find the above article pretty interesting too.
Wed, 07 Feb 2007 13:30:15 -0800 - Fun post on the "reality" of American Idol auditions What? You mean Simon, Paula and Randy don't listen to thousands of people every day? say it isn't so!
TV Squad has the scoop.
OK, so I actually knew that there was this whole winnowing process which happens before any contestant steps foot into the triumvirate's presence. Which of course means that the producers are purposely sending lots and lots of people who suck in to be sacrificial lambs to the reality TV gods.
But there are still surprising nuggets in the article...including in the comments, so keep reading.
Tue, 06 Feb 2007 18:28:39 -0800 - Best. Super. Bowl. Halftime. Show.Ever. Prince is the man!!!
I am motivated to get up from my sick bed and come over here simply to say that Prince is a fucking national treasure. That is all.
Sun, 04 Feb 2007 17:28:26 -0800 - American Idol Week 3 Recap: Birmingham and L.A. I was hoping this was the last week of auditions, but now, now we have to go to Texas!!!
Is it just me, or do you think the AI producers listened to the uproar over how mean the judges have gotten this season, and they went to the trouble to find every scene of the judges being kind to people who sucked?
It's not like they showed fewer people who sucked. It just seemed like the judges were a little less vicious. Or...at least what they showed us. You know we're just being manipulated, right?
Birmingham, AL is the home of Ruben, Bo and Taylor...which they reminded us of incessantly, but this is the first time they've held auditions there. Everyone showed up, like:
Erica Skye, who sparked my disdain my referring to "LeeAnn Rimes' Unchained Melody"...and then really earned it by murdering the song.
Erica was the first in a long line of crying people that they showed, before introducing us to:
Katie Bernard, she of the cartoon voice. Actually when she sang she showed there was a glimmer of talent in there. it was obscured by so much vocal affectation, though, that the judges couldn't see past it...especially given her weird cartoon speaking voice. Think Paris Bennett...only more so.
Younger, but more mature, was Tatiana. She seemed to have a good head on her shoulders, particularly when she referred to this audition as the most important thing to happen in her life, and added "all 17 years of my life." Thank you! that was awesome. She then went in and sang "Never Loved a Man" and pretty much rocked it. It was a little mature, given she is actually only 17, but she was through to Hollywood, and who could blame the judges?
Diana Walker wasn't nearly as smart with her choices, screaming out a rendition of "Saving All my Love For you" that would send dogs running for the hills. Somewhere in there she probably can carry a tune and sound nice enough, but she fell prey to the "I must sing as loud and as high as I can" syndrome that fells so many contestants.
Bernard Williams sang "Rock With You." The S.O pointed out that whenever someone tries to sing Michael Jackson, it's almost never good. But I thought Bernard had it going on. He also had a nice pleasant, low-key personality. and it was Paula that said "no"??!! Wha'??!! Yeah, I can't figure it out either. Too bad for her...he's through.
Then we had Margaret (aka Big Bird...the 26 cum 50 year old in yellow feathers.) I think they showed her just to show that the judges weren't horrifically cruel to her despite her lack of talent or appropriateness for the competition.
Jamie Lynn is a 17 year old girl who normally I would say has parents who let her leave the house in a very tight t-shirt that says "blue-eyed bombshell." Only in this case she lives wit her grandmother and her paralyzed daddy, who it turns out is paralyzed because he shot her step-mother and them himself, because the step-mom was cheating. They don't make clear whether this was a murder-suicide attempt gone wrong on one or both parts of that equation, and since this girl is 17 and a minor, I did find this pretty exploitive. She sang fairly well...a little nasally, just as the judges said, but they let her through. So, either we'll get more details on this or (hopefully) they will just let it lie.
Chris Sly is a 28 year old guy with Justin Guarini hair, a far-from-hunky appearance, and a great sense of humor. None of these qualities encouraged us that he would also be able to sing, but in fact he could. He sang "Kiss from a Rose", which is oh, so easy to mangle, but he pulled it off pretty well. Lots of dynamics, a wide range. He sounded rough occasionally, but mostly it was a good, solid and melodic performance. So he and his non-traditional beauty are on their way to Hollywood.
Day 2 finds us inexplicably without Paula in attendance, due to a "family obligation." Hmmm. Without Paula as his foil, Simon isn't inspired to as great heights of cruelty, so he and Randy spend a leisurely day hearing mediocre performances. A lots of mature looking young people in Birmingham, including Victoria, the girl with hair down to her feet. She sang a Josh Groban song, which was her first mistake....we're not talking Pseudo-Operatic Idol here, after all.
Then we have Nichole, another 17 year old who seems to have a good head on her shoulders. She sang "Something to Talk About" with a deep, mature voice. Yes, it did look a little odd coming out of her young, slight body, but I thought she had potential, and I would have sent her through, personally. Randy and Simon disagreed.
We close down Birmingham with a trainwreck by the name of Brandy, who sang "Like a Virgin." Note to future contestants: Singing "Like a Virgin" pretty much never works out. FYI.
So, we're on to Los Angeles, which I thought was the last stop in this Audition episode journey. I mean, it would make sense right? The L.A. episode had few memorable moments, most of them not good.
Like Phuong. See, i don't get the point of showing us some poor girl whose mother tells her she's not "TV-pretty" and that she'll never make it, unless she's going to go into that room and knock their socks off. It's just cruel to have her actually suck just like her mom said. No, the Hollywood ending would have been for her to rock! No such luck. I guess this answers the question that the S.O. and I always ask, which is: "Don't these people have friends or family who will be honest with them and spare them the humiliation?" The answer is "yes", but we're not usually treated those kinds of scenes.
Luckily, the antidote to Phuong is Brandon, a back-up singer who wants to come up front, and starts on his way by singing a nice, easy rendition of "Always On My mind." It was a tad too smiley, and there was a lot of breath in his tone, but you couldn't deny the nice and easy feeling that came over you watching him perform.
Unlike Brian, a Hollywood contestant from last year who is back to try to make it a little further this year. He sang "Change is Gonna Come." And he was, I must agree with Simon, utterly forgettable.
And just so you don't think I'm completely heartless, yes, Sherman the 64 year old contestant with a petition did indeed have me all teary and weepy while singing "You Belong to Me" to his just-deceased wife.
The warm fuzzies were quickly eradicated with the antics of Covett, Darold and Eric...a trio of irredeemably horrible singers with non-charming personalities.
Los Angeles thus ended on a low note...made lower when I realized that we have another city of auditions, San Antonio, TX.
Maybe I really should skip these early weeks...I'm feeling AI-fatigue before we even get to the good part!
Fri, 02 Feb 2007 09:07:42 -0800 - Top Design Recap: Week 1. An inner sanctum for a reality TV regular Todd Oldham is no Tim Gunn...or is that Heidi?
Welcome to the inaugural recap of bravo's new reality TV talent show: Top Design.
Top Design is intended to be the Project Runway of interior design, and those are some pretty big shoes to fill, no?
Speaking of big shoes: Top design has decided to save money on the hosting/mentoring personnel roles, by combining them both into one Todd Oldham. He both introduces the challenges, but also walks through while they're at work and comments. Todd is a cool designer who was using non-animal-based fabrics long before it was cool, but he could use some coaching on the TV presenting. He's got a habit of ending every sentence on an up note, as though he was asking a question...so he sounds pretty tentative and nervous, even if he might not be.
While they saved money on staff they certainly didn't on the challenges, which is kinda one of the problems. One of the most fascinating things about Project Runway is how they do so much with so little. At most they get a couple of hundred dollars to create some fabulous outfit. These interior designers, though, get $50,000 to spend on furniture and accessories. $50K!!! Plus another $1200 on lumber and paint. I mean, that's real money. Yes, they're still stuck pulling it all together in 2 days, but still!
But I'm getting ahead of myself...
First we learn that the prize for winning Top Design is a spread in Elle Decor magazine, a new car, a design at some charity function, and $100,000.
Then we meet the 12 designers, as we get the obligatory scenes of them showing up at the "boy's" loft and the "girl's" loft. There are the usual warm greetings that mask a wary sizing up of one another. There is a fairly diverse age range and diverse experience range too. Some are students, some are already professional interior designers. There's a film production designer. And there's an unappealing homophobe. hail, hail, the gang's all here.
Unlike Project Runway we don't really get a look at the "audition" process, so we are given no clue as to what qualified someone from the show, or what criteria the applicants were judged for.
Todd introduces Challenge #1: Build an inner sanctum for a mystery celebrity client, based on 5 objects from that celebrity
The objects are wacky, eclectic...one would say pop art if one were being kind, and kitschy if one were not. They include a bright green pinned butterfly, a large shiny metallic buddha head, and I forget the rest.
The second part of the challenge is that, unexpectedly, they are paired off into teams of two based on the paint chip cards they selected.
They get 30 minutes as a team to confer, sketch and choose paint colors. They get the aforementioned $50K and $1250 in paint and lumber, and they get two days.
They also have 2 hours to spend that $50K on furniture, fabric and accessories at the Pacific Design Center.
Lastly, we learn that there will be 2 sent home, not 1.
Almost immediately we are treated to constant conflict between the homophobe, John, and his teammate...the young and apparently untested Michael. I will totally give Michael that John seemed overbearing, patronizing and arrogant for no good reason. I will totally give John that Michael seemed petulant, lazy and arrogant for no good reason. Bottom line: it was kind of unbearable watching them both. We saw less of the creative process from anyone than I would liked, of course, because they were really focused on us seeing how John and michael were at each other's throats.
At the end of the 2 days we meet our panel of judges:
Jonathan Adler, an interior designer
kelly Weast;er, an interior designer
Margaret Russell, Editor-in-Chief of Elle Decor
and the mystery celebrity client: Alexis Arquette.
In an interesting twist John, who made several disparaging comments about the other contestants which led to my "homophobic" moniker, seemed to love Arquette, who is transgendered. I just thought it was surprising, given he seemed like such a Neanderthal.
So, now on to the rooms:
1. Felicia and Matt
Felicia & Matt created a room that was nice, classy, but went more for the function than the flavor of the client. They used space and architectural elements to provide plenty of space for Alexis to display her various knick knacks and collectibles, but the overall tone of the room was so subdued. You could say that this would allow the collectibles to stand out more, but it was a little too sedate.
2. Heather and Lisa
Heather and Lisa were led along by Lisa's insistence that "an inner sanctum" had to mean Asian-Zen style. The result, unfortunately was an Asian theme-park room dominated by this ornate and huge Chinese day bed. Add to that an over-reliance on symmetry, and the room, again, had no flavor of the client.
3. Erik and Carisa
Erik and Carisa's room was also slightly Asian in feel, but they added one element that changed their room from ho-hum to at least interesting, and that was the long wooden mantle-esque treatment they did to the entire back wall of the room. Without that element I actually think they would have been in trouble, but with it they showed creativity and achieved drama in what would have otherwise been a lackluster attempt.
4. Michael and John
All their bickering aside Michael and John constructed a perfectly reasonable room...for a meeting while traveling on business. It did not look at all like an inner sanctum, it looked far more like the second room of an executive suite in a hotel. That being said I did like the wall treatment that turned one wall into a deep, brown, leathery looking thing.
5. Ryan and Andrea
Ryan and Andrea spun up Alexis' objects in a blender and spat out the results across the room. It was quirky, but utterly NOT cohesive. The judges actually appreciate it more than i did, because at least they attempted to inject some personality into it. I thought it was just a mess. And not even visually attractive. random dorm room is right!
6. Goil and Elizabeth
Goil and Eilzabeth took a minimalist approach, and really went the furthest to design with an unmistakable point of view. Everything form their accessory choices to the inclusion of a sand box in the room spoke to their attempt to be original. It seemed like a Fellini movie of a room...which could have been good or bad depending on how Alexis liked the very distinct and strong direction they went in.
It was clear that the judges' didn't like the Heather and Lisa theme-park room at all, and that they were confused by the Michael and John meeting space approach. These were the bottom 2, and it was no surprise.
The top 2 were Goil and Elizabeth and, almost by default, Felicia and Matt. Of those two it seemed clear that the choice would be the more creative, the more innovative Goil and Elizabeth, and sure enough they were the winners of the challenge.
Between Heather and Lisa and Michael and John it also seemed obvious that despite all the focus on the crappy personalities and lack of teamwork with Michael and John, their room had more creativity to it. it might have been creative for some other client, but it was creative. meanwhile Heather and Lisa's room did unfortunately look like a Chinese restaurant, or a showroom display. They got the boot.
I hope we get to see more of the creative process, and that Todd offers more substantive commentary when reviewing what the designers are up to in coming weeks. Project Runway certainly doesn't completely eschew the personality and conflict aspects, but it does tend to be more of a condiment than the main course!!
What did you think?
Thu, 01 Feb 2007 18:57:57 -0800 - More gratuitous shameless plus ego-links Toby Bloomberg interviews me...and interviews me...and interviews me...
If you ever doubted how verbose I could be, doubt no more.
Toby Bloomberg has the proof with a two part interview on her Diva Marketing blog. It's basically a written recap of a conversation she and I had over breakfast while both in D.C. in December. She kindly offered to turn it into a blog interview because she thought maybe other folks would be as interested as she was in:
Part One: The Blogher back story, and why we're doing a Business Conference (and how it's different from the annual conference.)
Part Two: The BlogHer Vision and Future Direction
Enjoy. You know, if you want to.
Thu, 01 Feb 2007 13:05:50 -0800 - Yesterday was BlogHer.org's 1-year Blogiversary What a difference a year makes
A year ago yesterday we unveiled the new BlogHer.org. Up until that point BlogHer.org had been a conference blog. Lisa, Jory and I blogged there about everything having to do with the conference. And occasionally we branched out and blogged about other relevant events in the blogosphere, or in the world, but mostly it was about conference planning and gathering feedback from the community.
After BlogHer '05, though, it was clear that that community wanted to "meet" regularly...and didn't feel like waiting for the next face-to-face event. That's when we started coking up the "new" BlogHer. Now, it's one year later and there are dozens of contributing editors writing original content across over 25 topics, sending link love to the thousands of site members and their blogs. Those original founding contributing editors were chosen on a first-come, first-serve basis, and we continue to add new editors and new topics as the community seems to demand.
Lisa has written a Happy Birthday post that captures the growth of the site over the last year.
She also reveals that we have a site re-design in the works right now, and that we're looking for new and better ways to continue to engage everyone in our community, from the lurker to the regular contributor.
Here's to 2007...as a community I'm sure we'll make BlogHer.org year #2 even more memorable than year #1!
Wed, 31 Jan 2007 10:22:45 -0800 - Grease: You're the One That I Want Recap: Top 12? No! 14! They brought those two poor people back just to send them home again, didn't they?
OK, so my dreams came true this week...we actually got to see the finalists sing entire (abridged) songs. And I think I understand why they've been keeping us from them all this time: a lot of them really aren't that great! Oh, sure, they're not wretched like an early-episode American Idol contestant, but they're only OK. we can only hope that this was a case of Week 31 nerves, because I saw a whole lot of what Simon Coewll might have called "cabaret" or "karaoke" or "lounge" or "drunk guest at a wedding joining the band" performances!
We kick off with Billy "Bland Billy" Bush (who would earn the wrath of my S.O. and me all night long by assigning inane nicknames to each contestant...so I have returned the favor here) and Denise Van Outen, wearing something that resembled a Gunne Sax nightie.
We are then subjected to mud wrestling. Well, not really. But we were "treated" to a live re-enactment of the opening credits of this show...where are the Dannys and Sandys fight with each other for camera time, starring our 12 finalists in tacky outfits that mimic the final Danny & Sandy outfits in the movie.
I'd like to note that in response to my questioning whether, in fact, this contest could be rightfully said to feature the "biggest" prize on TV, they have now changed their messaging to be that it's the most "unique" prize on TV. OK. More believable.
Olivia Newton-John is on hand, and looking quite stunning really, to be a guest judge.
And we are introduced to the evening's format. they will have two contestants go one after the other, after we see a brief clip about them. They are then spoke to by the panel, but there is in fact no comparison or judging one against the other, so it's a bit odd to go two by two as they are.
And Billy "Bland Billy" Bush will give his nicknames to each contestant in an oh-so-unctuous-and-not-at-all-charming way. Sometimes I thought of better nicknames by the time the contestant was done, though, which I will be hypocritical and share!
So, let's get to it...first with the Dannys
1. Derek (aka "Wholesome Danny") sang Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Now, my nickname for Derek might have to be "Homophobic Danny", considering his weird, smirking statement that being in musical theatre wasn't what his dad "had in mind for his son", but that he supported him anyway. Gag!! I also think they should re-think the "wholesome" label, given how many pelvic gyrations Derek threw into his performance. Derek looks like a younger John Stamos (and side note: isn't John Stamos much hotter now as a grown-up?) and gave his all, but unfortunately he gave his all into a lounge-y performance. It's hard not to do with this song, I know, so pick a different more original song. OK, but cheesy.
2. Austin (aka "Hot Danny") sang Mony Mony
Billy "Bland Billy" Bush declared that he named Austin "Hot Danny" himself, and I thanked him for sharing. Now, i expected a lot from austin, as he is the one who has been positioned to be the guy with the most professional experience. but Oh. My. God. I couldn't decide whether he was channelling a Chippendale or some of the dancing girls in Flashdance. It's not like this song gave him a chance to show off range either...I mean Billy Idol sang it, so you know it only covers about a 5 note range. I actually really like the song. I just don't think it's a great one to show off vocal prowess. And since he used it to show us he could be a stripper of either gender, I don't think it proved his dancing prowess either. which lead me to re-nickname Austin as "Disappointing Danny."
3. Twist Alert!! Matt (aka "Second Chance Danny") sang Pretty Woman
Yes, the producers brought back two of the rejected Grease Academy-ites to have another try, and Matt the jock was the Danny they brought back. I'm not surprised they chose him. If you recall I actually thought he'd be in the final 12. But, oh, is my (and the producers') face red!! He pretty much sucked wind, poor guy. Tuneless, excruciating, really really nervous and uncomfortable. he might squeak by because he is such a great visual type for the role, but he really doesn't deserve to. Call him "Out-of-his-depth Danny."
4. Jason (aka "Boy Band Danny") sang Faith
So, they finally reveal to us that Jason, too, has professional experience, having appeared in the long-running off-Broadway hit Altar Boys. (Think of it as sort of a Nunsense for boys.) But rather than "Boy Band Danny", I think Jason deserves to be called "Vegas Danny." More lounge singing coming right at you. And towards the end it seemed that he lost his breath,m and therefore his pitch, a little bit. one thing these singing competition shows do is make you appreciate original artists a little more. It's harder than it sounds to sing a song all the way through on key and with interesting, entertaining phrasing that doesn't sound lounge-y. Now, I realize the studio is helpful, but I've seen a lot of my favorite artists live, and generally speaking they pull it off live just as well as on record. And even if they're experiencing vocal issues...hoarseness, for example, their sense of pitch is usually spot-on.
5. Max (aka "Slacker Danny") sang Summer of '69
Max really has a good voice. He is right on pitch. His voice sounds easy and effortless. He's certainly make a gawkier Danny than you'd expect, but who knows, maybe max will be "Unexpected Danny."
6. Kevin (aka "Bellhop Danny") sang Walking in Memphis
Kevin really should be named "Soulless Danny" as he smiled and grinned his way through the melancholy song choice he made. nice enough voice, sure, but no connection whatsoever to what he was singing.
7. Chas (aka "Ambitious Danny") sang Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours
This was a bit boy band, but I liked the way he let himself get more loose and wild as the song progressed. One might even call him "Spazzy Danny" At least he gave the performance some dynamics and some shape. He has a more natural approach than most of the other guys too. Bottom line: I liked him, although it took me a while to warm up to him.
Now the Sandys:
1. Allie (aka "Baby Sandy") sang I Love Rock and Roll
"Baby Sandy"? Bleh. And then she comes out in a total 'ho outfit. Ironic much? I couldn't believe the judges dug this performance. It was totally a DisneyWorld version of rock and roll. Meaning there was not an ounce of rock and roll in it. Can she sing? She can sing fine. But strutting around in a skimpy outfit while singing a gutless version of a rock song doesn't add up to a mind-blowing performance IMHO. "Disney Sandy" has to do some work to convince me, if not the judges.
2. Kate (aka "Serious Sandy") sang All By Myself
Again, not sure why the judges were all over this. She exhibited my pet peeve: smiling blankly during a heart-wrenching song. Plus holding a note a really long time isn't enough all by itself (no pun intended.) It helps for it not to be screechy. Sandy really doesn't screech in the show. Just FYI. So, to me, Kate was "Screechy" not "Serious" Sandy.
3. The next "Twist" victim: Ashley A. (aka "Emotional Sandy") sang Still the One
Another brought-back-from-elimination chance wasted, as Ashley struggled big time with pitch. She could actually be talented, but it was obscured by the erratic vocal in this performance. Call her "Not-Ready-For-Primetime Sandy."
4. Laura (aka "Small Town Sandy") sang Why Do Fools Fall in Love
OK, let's just do Laura a favor and leave aside her white ankle boots, OK? Or let's not, and call her "Stuck-in-the-80s Sandy." Besides her atrocious footwear choices and a slightly cutesy performance, I will say that Laura had a good vocal.
5. Kathleen (aka "Spiritual Sandy") sang Suddenly I See
What an odd, odd song choice. Was I the only one who found it jarring that they were all over this contestant's church-going persona, giving her a nickname to match, and then she sang a song full of "Why the hell" lyrics? I will say that Kathleen did as good a job as could probably be done with this song choice and the arrangement. But then asking her for a "spiritual tip"? Argh.
6. Julianna (aka "Rock Chick Sandy") sang The First Cut
I don't actually get the "rock chick" moniker, other than the fact that Julianna is brunette, and everyone knows we brunettes are naughty rock chicks, right? I'll be unimaginative and simply call her "Brunette Sandy." The judges were actually pretty spot on with their critique of Julianna. Nice voice, and lots of vocal control, but she seriously needed to let go. I trust she'll make it through and do better next week.
7. Ashley S. (aka "Ballerina Sandy") sang It's In His Kiss
Really bad song choice, because the vocals are very uninteresting. But it's no coincidence they decided to close with Ashley S. i'm guessing we should all be calling her "Front-runner Ashley."
In the end they asked each judge who they would cast if going on that evening's performances. They answered as follows:
David: Derek and Ashley S.
Kathleen: Austin and Allie
Jim: Chas and Kate
Frankly I was shocked at Kathleen's choices.
If I had to choose, I'd probably pick: Chas and Ashley S.
And if I had to choose who to boot? Matt and Ashley A.
Do I think they will be the ones who get booted?
Well, audiences love underdogs, and they're both very attractive people, so while i think it was obvious that they were the weakest links, I wouldn't be shocked if one or both of them evades elimination for another week.
What's your guess?
Tue, 30 Jan 2007 16:22:55 -0800 - American Idol Week 2 Recap: Memphis and New York City Some major psychos hit their mark on this week's episodes
I'm having more and more trouble getting my S.O. to sit through these early episodes of American Idol with me, at least not in their entirety. He keeps begging me to fast forward through the crazies and psychos. Are the judges meaner this year? Do they simply have less patience with the folks who are either clear publicity whores or sadly deluded? Or is my tolerance lower? What do you think?
And is it also just me or are the judges seeming more capricious than ever...telling one contestant he's over the top, but digging on the next guy who seems just as over the top?
Perhaps American idol is like childbirth. You forget how painful these early weeks are, and watch them every year to get to the fun stuff. Of course, unlike the pain of childbirth one could certainly spare oneself the pain of watching these audition episodes.
But i didn't spare myself, so I'm not going to spare you...
Memphis is the home of the blues and of Elvis. But we saw precious little of that potential.
The show kicked off with Frank 'n' Beans, the cheerleader dude. They hated him, saying he was way over-the-top (or rather Simon said that, then the other two judges parroted him with that blank brainwashed look in their eyes.) Frankly, (heh) we kinda liked him!
A few people later Danielle McCullough walked in and was just as over-the-top. But being a hot chick Simon was intrigued rather than irritated, and Paul and Randy followed right along.
Quirky Talented contestant #1 was Sundance. Yes, his name is Sundance. His dad was some R&B hippie dude during the sixties, who had a hit single and a penchant for strange names for his kids. Sundance may have looked a bit scary, but he did indeed have the chops. I have to give Ai some credit...they have gotten more and more accepting of non-traditional beauty over the years. Yes, there will always be the ration of hot chicks and hunky dudes who get through despite only average talent, but when you saw the montage of people who had the golden ticket you saw people of every race, every color, every size, every personal style aesthetic. So, good for them.
Now if they would stop mocking the non-traditional folks that they decide not to put through, I'd be really happy, thanks.
Another surprising talent was Sean michel, the Fidel Castro-looking guy who sang Johnny Cash's "God's Gonna Cut Them Down." While the S.O. was entirely sold on him, I dug his voice quite a bit. He had some real soul coming out of that skinny anarchistic body. Plus he did a Molly Shannon "Superstar" impression in the confessional booth that cracked me up. So, yeah, I'm rooting for this odd duck.
Melinda the back-up singer rocked the house with a great song, Stevie Wonder's "For Once in my Life." Great tone, smooth controlled vibrato and a wonderful, humble attitude. Sure, they carped on her about confidence, but I'd take one Melinda who can really sing and isn't quite as sure about it over 100 of those people who are average at best, but think they deserve the world.
Seemed like AI didn't want to offend Memphis, because they actually showed more good folks than crazies.
But wait, there's New York City to take care of the crazy quotient.
In New York we're joined by songwriter Carole Bayer Sager. She goes back a long way. She wrote the lyrics for the musical They're Playing Our Song, which is purportedly based on her real-life relationship with the show's composer, Marvin Hamlisch. I learned last night that she was also married to Burt Bacharach, so clearly she finds talent an aphrodisiac (and don't we all?) Carole was a little more forceful and involved than most guest judges, which I appreciated.
I was at a dinner the other night where someone uttered my favorite new catch-phrase, "High school called, it wants its drama back." And that phrase could be well-applied to the contestants of New York.
We start off with the New York caricature and no-talent, Ian, who also graced So, You Think You Can Dance with his presence last year. Way too much time was spent with this diva-in-all-the-bad-ways. Stereotypes are created based on the existence of these odd, extreme characters.
We then descended right into exploitation-city by focusing for a really really long time on Sarah, the runaway teen. Her dad doesn't know she's there auditioning. he's going to kill her. He never says he's proud of her. She can't live up to his standards. All accompanied by copious tears, in and out of the audition room. I was glad to discover she was 19 years old, because if she had been a minor it would have crossed a line, IMHO. So, was Sarah talented? Marginally. Her machine gun vibrato was way distracting, but unlike most of the folks that go in there with a sob story, the judges were somehow touched by hers, rather than annoyed. So after she gets her golden ticket she calls her dad to tell him, and they've got it on speakerphone. So, I'm sure mild-mannered people can be abusive and cold or demanding too, but he did sort of sound like a mild-mannered regular dad, not the ogre she was painting him as. Anyway, the drama was tedious after about 5 seconds.
But can we really explain rationally why they bought Sarah's sob story and not Ashanti's? Ashanti was arguably more talented and had a great look, and was just as desperately needy, if that is what floats their boat. But they were dismissive of her. Which then led to way too much time spent with her begging and pleading and generally humiliating herself. High school kept calling and calling, but there was no way Ashanti was giving the drama back until she had wrung every last drop of it out her body. Simon eventually told her to "get over it", and for once I was saying "right on" to his harshitude.
To cleanse our palates after that episode they then treated us to a pair of BFFs, Amanda and Antonella. After gratuitous beach bikini shots and obnoxious stories about shopping and tanning, they got down to the singing. Now, it was entirely predictable that the "untrained" Antonella was going to outshine the trained Amanda. I could see that one coming. They were both good enough to get through, but Antonella will likely get much farther. She had a soulful, natural quality...way more "real" than her BFF.
We got a few more good ones in, including Kia Thornton...who was a bit yelly, but had a really great tone. And then we had Jenry (pronounced Henry.) Jenry was that tall, hunky African American guy who certainly made me sit up and take notice. And then who promptly made me feel like a dirty old woman, because it turns out he's only 16. Yikes. Oh, and by the way: he can sing. So, I will try to stop objectifying this young man and hope he lives up to his very high potential in Hollywood.
Not so lucky was Nakia...who managed to charm them with a personality-filled Dancing in the Streets, and then erased all that good will with a really rough and off-key ballad. And I would have felt sorry for her if she didn't turn into yet another one of those folks who stands there and argues with them for an eternity, and then leaves the room for more drama and whining.
Now, I have to ask: did anyone else wonder how a 47 year old guy got on the show? did they get rid of the age limit? Or did they just make an exception to mock someone with a strong accent?
OK, back to the actual contestants.
Jory Steinberg was an example of another singer who was as affected and over-the-top as some previously rejected contestants, but she did have a good voice and used a lot of dynamics in her singing, which is probably what they saw in her that they did not see in the others.
Now we have Porcelana. This is the New Yorker who was working out like Rocky Balboa for a year to go to the AI audition. they focused a lot on her physical training in her bit, but never showed her singing, so of course the first thing the judges wanted to know was whether she devoted as much energy to training her voice as her body. She said yes, but I'll be honest: I had doubts. I fully expected her to suck. but she did not suck. She sang a Mary J. Blige song and actually did it justice. It kicked in after a verse, and then Bam! She had the look, the attitude, a nice gravelly quality that took it out of pop and gave it some substance. She was probably the biggest surprise of the week to me.
We then had the annual mocking of the sexually ambiguous on AI, one of the many things that happens in these early weeks that is pretty appalling. not that Christopher Henry was physically androgynous, but his voice was that of a woman. his speaking voice was quite high, but his singing voice was pure female impersonator. And Simon, being so insecure about his own masculinity, can never pass up a chance to tell someone to go wear drag.
Rachel Zevita was the teenage opera student. She actually IS the Molly Shannon Superstar character, with some actual talent and eclectic musical taste. I loved that she picked a Jeff Buckley song. I also really liked her vibe and voice while singing it. her get Her (Oleta Adams) was nice too. I actually think her odd-duck personality will see her get booted pretty quickly if she makes it through the Hollywood round, but perhaps she'll prove me wrong.
Before getting to the final psycho of the evening they actually shared with us two fine male singers. Christopher Richardson sang a great Donny Hathaway via Leon Russell song, "A Song For You." (Elliott sang it last year and only mentioned Hathaway, leaving the actual composer/original artist out in the cold...which always bugs me.) Then Nicholas Pedro, who dropped out of last year's Hollywood round because he couldn't learn his words (?) came back for another try and blew them away with a nice, sincere "Fly Me To the Moon."
Wishing we could end on a high note was in vain, though, as they closed with Isadora (aka Julie.) Yet more wasted time on a sadly deluded, perhaps even unhinged, contestant.
Does anyone know about many audition episodes are left? Because my patience is wearing as thin as the judges'. Let's get to the real talents, and let's hear 'em do their stuff. Who's with me?
Thu, 25 Jan 2007 09:37:11 -0800 - Grease: You're the One That I Want Recap: Grease Academy I just want to hear a whole song, or at least a verse...is that so wrong?
The top 50 Danny and Sandy hopefuls were sent to L.A. to attend "Grease Academy", an intensive singing, dancing and acting training camp. And this show continues to do as much as it can to prevent us from getting to actually know (and therefore root for) anyone in particular!
We are treated to various extremely brief vignettes, featuring tiny snippets of them singing, and teeny segments of them in the "confessional"-style talking to the camera.
I just want to hear a whole song, or at least a verse...is that so wrong?
What do we learn in the first 45 minutes of thei 60 minute show?
-That professional performer Austin is the love child of Project Runway's Austin Scarlett and Adrian Zmed.
-That one apparently doesn't need a vocal coach or instructor in a singing class.
-That apparently teenagers have eschewed blue eyeshadow since I was a teen, but not over-doing the raccoon-like eyeliner.
-That Jim Jacobs is a geek. Or perhaps dork. (What would the right parlance have been back in the days of Grease?)He shares such never-before-heard pearls of acting wisdom as the fact that on stage it must be "fresh every time." Ooh. Aah.
-That the marginalization of Kathleen Marshall, director/choreographer, and two-time Tony winner, continues...with contestants (and voiceovers) confirming that the competition gets more "real" when never-produced-on-Broadway-but-definitely-a-pompous-Brit David Ian shows up.
-That even when they proclaim to have a sing-off to cut the group from 50 to 24, we are not allowed to get in on the game. They have everyone sing simultaneously, and like some old dance contest David Ian walks and taps people on the shoulder to send them out. (Actually that happens during the dance scene of Grease, so perhaps that was a bit meta-!)
As you might suspect, most of the people being tapped on the shoulder are people we've seen little to no footage of. There were perhaps 2 or 3 of the 26 that were cut that I remembered, including the of-course-he'll-get-cut-he's 42-years-old Dominic.
So, we're down to the last 15 minutes, and it's time for a "showcase" in front of a random assembly of semi-stars. Now some of them have connections to Grease, including the original Danny Zuko, Barry Bostwick, and other Grease cast members, from Jeff Conaway to Marilu Henner. (Also, it was apparently a mini-Taxi reunion.) At any rate, it's not clear that the audience was there to do anything other than clap politely when required.
We see 6 groups of 4 singers, divided by gender, singing an assigned song together. Again, it's fairly predictable who will make it through, because some singers are shown singing an entire verse, while others are never shown singing more than a line solo, if that. Way to telegraph and remove all suspense!
I marked the 6 men and 6 women that I thought would get through. This was based partially on talent, but also taking into account how much we'd been shown of the performer (following my theory that they spent more time on people they wanted us to recognize next week when the live, voting shows begin.)
I guessed 5 of 6 men, and 4 of 6 women correctly, and here are your finalists:
Women:
-Kate R., who was really, really loud.
-Juliana, who I think is the lone dark-haired Sandy choice remaining, and who has a very focused, intense energy.
-Laura O., who I would not have put through because she was bland and expressionless, nice enough voice notwithstanding.
-Kathleen, who was good but not amongst the most memorable.
-Ashley Spencer, who was obviously going to make it through. Not just because she was, in fact, very very talented, but because she is the one we've really seen the most of from day one.
-Allie, another nice, but slightly bland option that I would not have advanced to the next round.
I incorrectly thought Cara might get through, given the time they spent with her. And I also thought Lexie would get through, first because she had the best emotional investment in what she was singing, and second, because I thought they'd keep at least one woman of color in the mix for God's sake!
Men:
-Derek, who was only OK and was not on my list, despite fairly good and Danny-like looks.
-Max, who really isn't the right type, and who is even not really appropriate vocally, sounding way too operatic.
-Chad, who has nice hips :)
-Jason, who was strong, but not wildly great.
-Kevin, who I made note has a nice voice, but who I can't even visually remember right now.
-Austin, who's really just a little too smooth for Danny, but is still obviously among the most well-rounded.
Frankly, I would have put the "jock" Matt through instead of Derek.
There you have it. So, will you watch? Will you vote?
Tue, 23 Jan 2007 10:44:22 -0800 - Pet Peeve for the day: read an entire email string before weighing in, m'kay? You know who you are: you people weighing in with outdated or now-irrelevant opinion that sets the conversation backwards...don't you?
OK, I don't really blog about random things that annoy me that often. Yes, yes, I blog about political things that bug me, or animal rights things that bug me, but not just normal everyday things.
But I'm making an exception to beg you all to please please make sure you've collected all the emails in thread and seen where the conversation has landed before weighing in. I know it's hard. Group emails are really not the best avenue for communication amongst an even moderately sized crowd of people. I have a slide in my regular presentation about blogging that shows how far astray an email conversation can get (of course making the case that product and other teams might well benefit from an internal blog for group communication and discussion, rather than relying on email.)
It only takes one person coming to an email discussion hours after it occurs, and responding to the first email in the thread, to muck up the works and set progress on a decision backwards.
In my personal life, I tend to bow out at that point and just let everyone else fight it out and let me know when and where to go.
But when you're talking professional conversations you can't always let things slide or just go with the crowd.
So, rather than feel annoyed all day I'm sharing this and asking: does this bug anyone else too? or am I just waaaay uptight?
Fri, 19 Jan 2007 07:55:05 -0800
