Last Updated on September 5, 2017
Time for ten more random links from around the world:
1. STICKING STUBBORNLY: Last week, Entertainment Tonight, which used to be a watchable, informative program before it became a tabloid piece of crap, reported breathlessly the EXCLUSIVE that Angelina Jolie’s twins had been born. Jolie’s legal representatives say that someone impersonating Jolie’s assistant — who claimed to be in the delivery room for the births, yet — misled several news organizations, including ‘ET.’ ET, oddly enough, is refusing to back down; its executive producer said they are “waiting to see how the story plays out.” It’s an odd strategy for any program that wants to convince its viewers that it is in any way journalistically ethical, but then again, barring the unforeseen, Jolie will eventually give birth to twins, and ET will then be able to say they reported it first, even before it actually happened.
2. THE ONLY THING WE HAVE TO FEAR…: …is a poor start to what could be a good horror anthology series. NBC debuts Fear Itself tonight, although this early review says that of the first three episodes, the first is the weakest. In the old days, television shows used to get several airings with less-than-excellent ratings before the networks gave up. Nowadays, some shows disappear after a single bad outing. If NBC scheduled the best of the first three episodes third, one has to wonder why. Still, I plan to watch. If it isn’t any good, I still have classic episodes of the Twilight Zone to fall back on.
3. STRANGE HIDING PLACE: Chris of Signal 46 pointed to this oddball story recently: a man noticed food was disappearing inexplicably inside his home, only to find the culprit hiding in a closet. But if you’re thinking he had a pesky mice, think much, much bigger.
4. DID YOU REALLY MISS THEM?: Two of Chuck Barris’s most famous game shows are gearing up for comebacks. The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game are being remade for GSN, formerly the Game Show Network and now just GSN. Comcast recently relocated GSN up to the digital tier, its way of charging more money to get the channel. As much as I love game shows, I like eating dinner more, so I no longer have GSN. I will not, however, miss seeing these remakes. I was never a fan of either show.
5. T M I: Before looking at the clip I am about to link to, you know know that an IFB is one of those earpieces reporters and interviewees wear so they can hear the questions from the studio. IFB stands for interruptible feedback. That’s just a bit of TV trivia. This link is a clip of Brian Williams telling a quick story to his studio crew as he’s preparing for his newscast. It’s a disgusting story. Really. But now that you’ve been warned, if you really, really want to see it, go here.
6. TROUBLE IN NON-PARADISE: “Outwit. Outplay. Outlast.” Just don’t remind the crew from the reality show Survivor about their witty little slogan. They’re in the midst of a string of problems at the location for their next round of production. One of the issues is that shipments to the location have been delayed by a month, which means they’re having to stay in tents instead of a building. Finally, they get a real taste of what they put their contestants through!
7. LONG LIFE: There’s definitely a medical thriller in here somewhere: scientists have discovered a new ultra-small species of bacteria that has survived for more than 120,000 years two miles below the surface of ice in a Greenland glacier. I hope they keep it contained: I suspect there’s no vaccine or antibiotic developed for something that old and apparently that well-hidden.
8. HAPPY LEANING: The Leaning Tower of Pisa is free to lean without worry for at least another three centuries. A multi-million dollar construction project stabilized the structure, which likely would have toppled by 2040 without assistance. Built in 1178, it took just five years for the leaning to begin, so I suppose it’s a miracle it hadn’t already fallen over.
9. PREVENTING ESCAPE: So you run a nursing home populated by Alzheimer’s patients who are likely to try to get away and back to their homes. What do you do to foil their attempts and buy yourself a little more time to find them when they do get away? Simple: do this.
10. BATHROOM BIRDIE: In Japan, women tend to hate the idea of anyone being able to hear them using the bathroom. So the Oto-Hime comes to the rescue with a chirping sound that masks any sounds. It’s sort of an environmentally-friendly idea, because before its introduction, women would simply flush the toilet multiple times to hide the sounds, which naturally wasted lots of water. Click here to see a demonstration of the device in action. Can you imagine?
That’s my 10. Do you have 10 of your own?
It’s not necessarily a Japanese phenomenon. I used to work at a place where the only restroom was attached to the lunchroom. All three of the ladies who worked in the office would turn the tap on full blast while they were in the restroom.