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I had no idea about this, though maybe some readers here did. But on New Year's Day, Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon created a couple of characters named Cord Hosenbeck and Tish Cattigan, and hosted the 2018 Rose Bowl Parade for two hours streaming on Amazon Prime. The thing that makes this all the more bizarre and funny is that they never let on who they were. Now, certainly if you know Ferrell and Shannon, it's pretty clear that this was them. But there turns out to have been a LOT of people who didn't have any idea. And they watched the broadcast and were...well, bewildered. Tim Meadows also appeared on the show as himself, and a few other people assisted, as well. Cord and Tish are super-upbeat people who just love the Rose Parade and have been hosting it for 25 years, so this is all very exciting for them. Here are three videos, starting with some of the broadcast. The quality is a little off, since it comes from someone recording off their TV screen, but it's very watchable. And this is from the very end of the broadcast, as Cord and Tish talk over the end credits, unaware that their mics are still on. (If viewers stuck around to this point and didn't know who they were watching, the credits clearly explain that.) Finally, as a bonus, here's Molly Shannon as a guest on Stephen Colbert's show, and she talks about the Rose Parade for the first four minutes of her interview, including the reviews and rating they got on Amazon.
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Best wishes on Memorial Day. It hasn't gotten much attention, but we live to serve here at Elisberg Industries, and so I pass along that this year marks the 100th anniversary of the writing of the song, "God Bless America." Here is its composer Irving Berlin performing the song on the occasion of its 50th anniversary, on The Ed Sullivan Show. Three weeks ago, I wrote here about a wonderful opening number from the 1982 TV special fundraiser, Night of 100 Stars. It featured a wide-array of Broadway legends performing snippets from among their most-famous songs. They did a sequel a few years later, in 1982, and this is that show's opening number. It's not nearly as special as the Broadway medley, but it's still very enjoyable for all the performers who participate. This is a medley of songs about New York City. Also, several of the entertainers get to sing much longer than the few lines in the previous video. A slight "warning." Before the medley begins, there is quite an awful opening song. So, you might want to jump directly to 4:30 when the medley starts. But -- my recommendation is to not do that. A few stars show up in the opening number, and there is a really fun moment at 3:20 when one particular star appears. I suspect most people won't recognize her right away, but wait a bit, and they identify her on screen. (She also appears in the opening sketch, but it's among a group of people, so it might be even easier to miss.) There's also a very clever combination of songs (from "West Side Story") with one performer, which comes at the 13:00 mark. Even though he's not a singer, who he is makes for a very smart and fun moment. Some people today might miss the joke, but I think most people who were around at the time will get it even 30 years later. The guest contestant on the 'Not My Job' segment of this week's NPR quiz show is pop singer, songwriter, Grammy winner Emmy-winner for acting on Mad About You and even a Tony-winner (for writing the score of the musical Kinky Boots) -- Cyndi Lauper. As you might expect, her interview with host Peter Sagal is honest and wide open, veering off to a range of topics that turn on a dime, and a total hoot.
From the archives, this week's contestant is Sara Tillotson from Tulsa, Oklahoma. As I wrote previously, at first I was able to pick out the hidden song by focusing on the proper hand which was playing the tune, though eventually it became perfectly clear without that. As for the composer style, I didn't have a clue -- the same as the contestant. To my surprise, my one offbeat guess was bizarrely close. I wouldn't have ever gotten it, though. It's tough. But perhaps you can get the era and type of music.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. 
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