Robert Thompson
Robert Thompson
added almost call element heard perfect sure
Every element of this story added up to what I call the perfect storm. When I first heard about it, I was almost sure it was embellished.
expenses network people perfect production run shows viewers worry
VOD is perfect for established hits, and for reruns of shows that didn't have enough viewers to keep them on the air. 'Freaks and Geeks' had a lot of people watching, but not enough to keep it on the air. With VOD, you don't have to worry about getting a 15 share. If a show already had its network run and the production expenses are paid, anything after that is gravy.
bed calculus dynamic football gets manage mix people perfect roll second start time watching
New Year's Day was the perfect time for football because you could roll out of bed and you could start watching football, even before you manage to mix your aspirin and water. The second (of January) is just not the same. Some people are going to have to get up. The dynamic gets broken. The whole calculus changes.
internet mysteries perfect
It's so dense. There are so many mysteries going on. It's the perfect show for internet speculating.
culture perfect played themes
These are fundamental, foundational themes in American culture. And they all get played out here in ... the journalistic perfect storm.
anchor evening looked news passing rather reading reporters similar single smoke
When all the smoke is cleared, the way the evening news is done after (NBC's Tom) Brokaw, Rather and (ABC News's Peter) Jennings will look very similar to how it looked before -- a single anchor reading the news, passing it to reporters who will do little pieces.
approval less level sleazy star therefore
The star approval in OK! makes it less sleazy on one level and therefore less interesting.
fun oscars
These are the things that make the Oscars fun.
ate becomes claim cultural elvis equivalent life memorial slept time washington
Elvis Presley Ate Here' is the cultural equivalent of 'George Washington Slept Here', ... Every time a place makes a claim that Elvis ate there, it becomes a memorial to his memory, to his life and to his legend.
comic complex great lack longevity quality stopped
Even if it stopped now, its combination of longevity and quality has never been matched, ... is one of the great comic creations. ... He's complex in his own lack of complexity.
anniversary board candy enjoying game games invented land special
Even Candy Land (a child's game invented in 1949) has a special anniversary edition. Old-fashioned board games are enjoying a real renaissance.
beauty goofy huge network peculiar prime saw star
Farrah Fawcett was in the prime of her big-haired, buxom beauty. She was the kind of person who could completely make 'Battle of the Network Stars' work. She was kind of goofy and she was such a huge star and you really wanted to see what she was like. And what you saw was a little peculiar and that made it fun.
attract element enters field good interested movies people simply time
There simply are not a lot of really good movies that people were interested in. Every time a new element enters the field -- movies have to be better to attract people.
far form major next reality stuff taken television
Reality has taken a major hit. But it's far from dead, and some form of this stuff is going to be on television for at least the next century, if not longer.