3featherbear
Sat through the entire Superbowl to catch The Equalizer with the adorable Liza Lapira.
4featherbear
Damn just realized I missed the latest episode of The Watch on BBC America.
5JulieLill
>3 featherbear: I watched part of The Equalizer but didn't finish it since it was on late. I did like what I saw and am glad to see the lead is a woman this time. I remember my mom watching The Equalizer with Edward Woodward as the lead in the 1985-1989 series and my husband and I have seen the films.
6featherbear
Passion and Perseverance: 1999 Purdue Women’s Basketball Team (2019). I fell in love with women’s division 1 college basketball when channel surfing in the early 1990s and watched part of the championship game of the national NCAA Division 1 tournament. Charlotte Smith sinking the championship-winning 3 pt shot in the last second hooked me. Having lived in Connecticut since 1971, I naturally became a fan of the University of Connecticut’s team and ended up watching the national championship tournaments every year, partly to keep tabs on their progress & partly to see the top U.S. college teams participate in the women’s version of March Madness.
During the regular season I do some channel hopping through various sports cable channels mostly to catch the players on various teams who are getting buzz who might appear in the Big Dance or play professionally. So I was watching an Iowa-Nebraska game earlier this week to see if Iowa’s Caitlin Clark was as good as advertised (I thought she was) and left the channel on after the game ended while working on other things. Looked up and saw the (BTN/Big Ten) cable channel was playing a repeat of a game from the 90’s, when Purdue upset the University of Tennessee.
It was followed by a rerun of the documentary named in the header, about the Purdue team that won the national championship. Surprisingly moving. It was the first division 1 women’s national championship game where the head coach was a woman of color, Carolyn Peck. She became the team’s coach (she was an assistant) when the head left unexpectedly. She would be the third coach two of their stars, Stephanie White & Ukari Figgs would have experienced over 3 tumultuous years. Under Peck, the team got to the final four, but lost. Peck was planning to leave after the season to take a coaching job for a new WNBA team. White & Figgs made an emotional appeal to her to stay for one last chance to win a championship. Peck let her heart rather than her head affect her decision and made arrangements to extend her contract for one last year before taking on the WNBA job.
The focus is on the players: White, Figgs, Katie Douglas, later involved with women’s basketball in college coaching or as professional players. And also an underclassman guard who mostly rode the bench, Tiffany Young, who comforted White after she injured herself in the second half of the championship game and could not continue to play. Young would be killed in a vehicular accident not long after Purdue beat Duke in the championship game. The team became Purdue sports legends – Drew Brees, quarterback of the Purdue men’s football team, was a contemporary fan. It would be the only women’s basketball championship won by a Big Ten team. Very Midwestern tale, somewhat reminiscent of Hoosiers but without the contrivances.
Searching for Italy with Stanley Tucci (2021). A CNN series begun in February, with the well-known actor doing a cook’s tour of regional Italian cuisine. The first episode (the only one issued so far) was in the region of Tuscany. There is a clear divide between food eaten by the wealthy and food eaten by the poor, going back to early modern Europe. I learned that women before WWII were encouraged to drink wine when pregnant for health reasons, and most Italians in the region usually consumed a liter of the stuff daily. The vineyards were established by the aristocrats when Mediterranean trade declined. Tucci dines on expensive cuts of beef and fine wines, traditional food of the aristos. The rural poor lived on beans, tasteless bread, and, once a year, a roast gander. A little too much salt for my blood pressure, but I found it interesting and appetizing.
During the regular season I do some channel hopping through various sports cable channels mostly to catch the players on various teams who are getting buzz who might appear in the Big Dance or play professionally. So I was watching an Iowa-Nebraska game earlier this week to see if Iowa’s Caitlin Clark was as good as advertised (I thought she was) and left the channel on after the game ended while working on other things. Looked up and saw the (BTN/Big Ten) cable channel was playing a repeat of a game from the 90’s, when Purdue upset the University of Tennessee.
It was followed by a rerun of the documentary named in the header, about the Purdue team that won the national championship. Surprisingly moving. It was the first division 1 women’s national championship game where the head coach was a woman of color, Carolyn Peck. She became the team’s coach (she was an assistant) when the head left unexpectedly. She would be the third coach two of their stars, Stephanie White & Ukari Figgs would have experienced over 3 tumultuous years. Under Peck, the team got to the final four, but lost. Peck was planning to leave after the season to take a coaching job for a new WNBA team. White & Figgs made an emotional appeal to her to stay for one last chance to win a championship. Peck let her heart rather than her head affect her decision and made arrangements to extend her contract for one last year before taking on the WNBA job.
The focus is on the players: White, Figgs, Katie Douglas, later involved with women’s basketball in college coaching or as professional players. And also an underclassman guard who mostly rode the bench, Tiffany Young, who comforted White after she injured herself in the second half of the championship game and could not continue to play. Young would be killed in a vehicular accident not long after Purdue beat Duke in the championship game. The team became Purdue sports legends – Drew Brees, quarterback of the Purdue men’s football team, was a contemporary fan. It would be the only women’s basketball championship won by a Big Ten team. Very Midwestern tale, somewhat reminiscent of Hoosiers but without the contrivances.
Searching for Italy with Stanley Tucci (2021). A CNN series begun in February, with the well-known actor doing a cook’s tour of regional Italian cuisine. The first episode (the only one issued so far) was in the region of Tuscany. There is a clear divide between food eaten by the wealthy and food eaten by the poor, going back to early modern Europe. I learned that women before WWII were encouraged to drink wine when pregnant for health reasons, and most Italians in the region usually consumed a liter of the stuff daily. The vineyards were established by the aristocrats when Mediterranean trade declined. Tucci dines on expensive cuts of beef and fine wines, traditional food of the aristos. The rural poor lived on beans, tasteless bread, and, once a year, a roast gander. A little too much salt for my blood pressure, but I found it interesting and appetizing.
7JulieLill
Trans Former
This is a award winning documentary about weightlifter Matt Kroczaleski who came out as the transgender Janae. The film follows her path and records the reactions of his ex-wife, sons and his father. I thought this was very interesting and though most of his family and friends were supportive, some were not including his father. Very interesting!
This is a award winning documentary about weightlifter Matt Kroczaleski who came out as the transgender Janae. The film follows her path and records the reactions of his ex-wife, sons and his father. I thought this was very interesting and though most of his family and friends were supportive, some were not including his father. Very interesting!
8featherbear
B.B. King: Standing Room Only (2007). 62 min. video. Documentary of a concert at the Trump Marina Hotel (was this the one recently demolished?). King with his band, James Toney (keyboards), Leon Warren (guitar), James (Boogaloo) Bolden (trumpet), Melvin Jackson (saxophone), Walter King (B.B.’s nephew, saxophone & band director), Michael Dosten (bass guitar), Caleb Emphrey (drums). Not sure when this was recorded, but I suspect it was before 2007, based on some of the haircuts.* Looks like a PBS music special. As I recall, I’ve only heard King live in concert once, in the late 60’s, though his classic recording Live at the Regal has been in my vinyl & CD collection for many years. What I hadn’t expected was King playing quite a bit of guitar, though he does give Warren generous solo time (Warren leans more toward jazz lines; King is an encyclopedia of electric guitar blues). I think of King’s guitar playing as mostly classic blues fills with unusually rich & striking tone, but here he stretches out quite a bit, constructing well-constructed solos. Playlist, to the best of my recollection: Let the Good Times Roll -- When It All Comes Down -- Paying the Cost to Be the Boss -- Long blues introduction transitioning to Early in the Morning -- Why I Sing the Blues -- The Thrill is Gone -- Love Comes to Town -- Encores: Someone (Really Cares) & Peace to the World. Good sound given the age of the video. Streaming on Amazon Prime.
*On second thought, the 2007 date may be correct. Currently listening to a recording of King's live concert at the B.B. King Club in Memphis, Tenn. in 2006, and the same band personnel are named.
C.B. Strike. Saw the first 3 seasons on Cinemax when it was part of my cable package. Re-watched it this month when it re-appeared on HBO, plus the new season. The series was taken over by HBO possibly because they’re expanding content for their HBO Max venture. Based on the Cormoran Strike novels of Robert Galbraith. Galbraith is a pseudonym of J.K. Rowling. At some point reference is made to an old book being read by one of the characters written by John Kenneth Galbraith, a well-known liberal economist in the 70’s, so this may be a clue to the source of the name. The deep pockets of HBO allowed for a fourth season, Lethal White, based on Galbraith’s latest but one. Her/his last two novels are Victorian-era long, and the Lethal White season was 4 50 min. episodes, instead of the 2 or 3 of the earlier seasons. I’ve read and enjoyed all of the Strike novels, featuring Afghanistan veteran Coromoran Strike, who’s lost a leg in combat. He’s a former military police investigator (recalling Lee Child’s Jack Reacher) now a one-man PI agency in London, until he hires a uni dropout, Robyn Ellacot, first as a temp, then as an assistant, and finally as a partner. Both have messy private lives. Strike, son of a rock star groupie, Oxford drop-out, ex- of an upper class party girl, Robyn engaged out of a sense of obligation to a rather unpleasant accountant. Romance between the partners is sometimes suggested, but hasn’t gone anywhere so far. Most of the mysteries have a Trollopean basis in money. The series might be overlooked due to HBO’s vast database of series, docs, & movies, but definitely worth a look. Although I discovered the books via the series, the books have the benefit of more detail into the PIs interior lives, but the TV series is not bad either.
Caught episode 5 of BBC America nature doc A Wild Year on Earth, beautiful photography, possibly outtakes from Planet Earth II. Each episode focuses on a couple of months in the year around the world, mostly on animals, but also on human responses to the calendar. This episode focused on early summer, with the theme of migrations.
The Watch. Last episode of the season of the Terry Pratchett Discworld series. Not sure if this is going to be renewed by BBC. Although the world is saved & loose ends are mostly tied up, it does end on a literal cliffhanger. Series was not bad, liked the Watch members, except Vimes (Richard Dormer), the leader, who reminded me too much of Conor McGregor. More transgender-appearing characters than your average fantasy adventure in Cheery (Jo Eaton-Kent), a Watch member, sort of the team medic, and the ruthless Lord Vetinari (Anna Chancellor).
Another episode of Searching for Italy with Stanley Tucci Sunday on CNN. The first episode was hinged on his childhood year-long visit to Italy with his parents. The second episode, concerned with Naples, touched on visits with his late wife and has an appearance with his current wife. Lots of pizza, this being the birthplace of the tomato pie. Unlike Tuscany, not as much contrast between food originating with the rich and food originating with the poor. Naples, historically, has been one of the poorest cities in Italy, so the food, no matter how gussied up, originates in poverty. Speculation that preparation of pizza originates as a means to avoid cholera, endemic to the slums of Naples.
*On second thought, the 2007 date may be correct. Currently listening to a recording of King's live concert at the B.B. King Club in Memphis, Tenn. in 2006, and the same band personnel are named.
C.B. Strike. Saw the first 3 seasons on Cinemax when it was part of my cable package. Re-watched it this month when it re-appeared on HBO, plus the new season. The series was taken over by HBO possibly because they’re expanding content for their HBO Max venture. Based on the Cormoran Strike novels of Robert Galbraith. Galbraith is a pseudonym of J.K. Rowling. At some point reference is made to an old book being read by one of the characters written by John Kenneth Galbraith, a well-known liberal economist in the 70’s, so this may be a clue to the source of the name. The deep pockets of HBO allowed for a fourth season, Lethal White, based on Galbraith’s latest but one. Her/his last two novels are Victorian-era long, and the Lethal White season was 4 50 min. episodes, instead of the 2 or 3 of the earlier seasons. I’ve read and enjoyed all of the Strike novels, featuring Afghanistan veteran Coromoran Strike, who’s lost a leg in combat. He’s a former military police investigator (recalling Lee Child’s Jack Reacher) now a one-man PI agency in London, until he hires a uni dropout, Robyn Ellacot, first as a temp, then as an assistant, and finally as a partner. Both have messy private lives. Strike, son of a rock star groupie, Oxford drop-out, ex- of an upper class party girl, Robyn engaged out of a sense of obligation to a rather unpleasant accountant. Romance between the partners is sometimes suggested, but hasn’t gone anywhere so far. Most of the mysteries have a Trollopean basis in money. The series might be overlooked due to HBO’s vast database of series, docs, & movies, but definitely worth a look. Although I discovered the books via the series, the books have the benefit of more detail into the PIs interior lives, but the TV series is not bad either.
Caught episode 5 of BBC America nature doc A Wild Year on Earth, beautiful photography, possibly outtakes from Planet Earth II. Each episode focuses on a couple of months in the year around the world, mostly on animals, but also on human responses to the calendar. This episode focused on early summer, with the theme of migrations.
The Watch. Last episode of the season of the Terry Pratchett Discworld series. Not sure if this is going to be renewed by BBC. Although the world is saved & loose ends are mostly tied up, it does end on a literal cliffhanger. Series was not bad, liked the Watch members, except Vimes (Richard Dormer), the leader, who reminded me too much of Conor McGregor. More transgender-appearing characters than your average fantasy adventure in Cheery (Jo Eaton-Kent), a Watch member, sort of the team medic, and the ruthless Lord Vetinari (Anna Chancellor).
Another episode of Searching for Italy with Stanley Tucci Sunday on CNN. The first episode was hinged on his childhood year-long visit to Italy with his parents. The second episode, concerned with Naples, touched on visits with his late wife and has an appearance with his current wife. Lots of pizza, this being the birthplace of the tomato pie. Unlike Tuscany, not as much contrast between food originating with the rich and food originating with the poor. Naples, historically, has been one of the poorest cities in Italy, so the food, no matter how gussied up, originates in poverty. Speculation that preparation of pizza originates as a means to avoid cholera, endemic to the slums of Naples.
9featherbear
I took a dip into Community some time ago when it was still on TV but didn’t get it. Maybe the problem was I didn’t have enough backstory – it was toward the end of the run. Anyway, started from Season 1, E 1, and having gotten a better handle on the characters, ended up watching the first 3 episodes. Will try to continue if I get a chance. Saw it on Amazon Prime, but it’s also on Netflix & perhaps streaming elsewhere.
Actually don’t recall seeing anything on Netflix for some time, though I have a bad habit of logging in and adding more stuff to my watch list without actually watching any of it. Just started the limited series Behind Her Eyes which is supposed to have a good twist ending. Community is also on Netflix, but I’ll probably stay with Prime for continuity’s sake, assuming I continue.
On CNN, still following Searching for Italy with Stanley Tucci. Episode 3 filmed pre-pandemic, with Rome as the locale. Romans are apparently obsessed with pasta, so Tucci focuses on the basic dishes. I recently noticed that a New York Times recipe for carbonara has been getting a lot of heat from Italians (from Rome?) for using inauthentic ingredients. Learned from the TV series that pecorino (a key ingredient in carbonara or am I thinking of another dish?) is made from sheep’s milk, and that Roman’s don’t like change (bookstore in a gentrifying neighborhood firebombed twice; plus a pasta place run by a Japanese fellow is shunned by the Roman Italians but survives on tourists, even though he can do the basic dishes with great skill).
Episode 6 of BBC American’s A Wild Year on Earth watching a hippo trying to get out of a drying out mudhole while his brother seems resigned to entombment. Plus a pride of lions attacking an old, weak water buffalo, basically taking it down by weighing it down and flipping it over. The episode focuses on the dry season & we learn that lions can take their liquid refreshment by drinking the blood of their prey. Who knew? Sometimes hard not to see wildlife docs as an allegory of human interaction.
Actually don’t recall seeing anything on Netflix for some time, though I have a bad habit of logging in and adding more stuff to my watch list without actually watching any of it. Just started the limited series Behind Her Eyes which is supposed to have a good twist ending. Community is also on Netflix, but I’ll probably stay with Prime for continuity’s sake, assuming I continue.
On CNN, still following Searching for Italy with Stanley Tucci. Episode 3 filmed pre-pandemic, with Rome as the locale. Romans are apparently obsessed with pasta, so Tucci focuses on the basic dishes. I recently noticed that a New York Times recipe for carbonara has been getting a lot of heat from Italians (from Rome?) for using inauthentic ingredients. Learned from the TV series that pecorino (a key ingredient in carbonara or am I thinking of another dish?) is made from sheep’s milk, and that Roman’s don’t like change (bookstore in a gentrifying neighborhood firebombed twice; plus a pasta place run by a Japanese fellow is shunned by the Roman Italians but survives on tourists, even though he can do the basic dishes with great skill).
Episode 6 of BBC American’s A Wild Year on Earth watching a hippo trying to get out of a drying out mudhole while his brother seems resigned to entombment. Plus a pride of lions attacking an old, weak water buffalo, basically taking it down by weighing it down and flipping it over. The episode focuses on the dry season & we learn that lions can take their liquid refreshment by drinking the blood of their prey. Who knew? Sometimes hard not to see wildlife docs as an allegory of human interaction.
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