As I've written, I like The Graham Norton Show on BBC America. (I have a feeling that James Corden loosely based his show's interview structure on what Norton does. He's added his own twists, and many of them are terrific. But the core of Norton's show, which is the conversation, is leaps and bounds better -- but then, I find it better than pretty much most of the shows.) Anyway, this is a wonderful segment from what I believe is an upcoming episode in the U.S. The guests are actors from Mary Poppins Returns -- Emily Blunt, Lin Manuel Miranda, Emily Mortimer and, I believe, Ben Whishaw. This has nothing to do with the film, though. I won't say that half the fun is Emily Blunt's reaction -- because what she's reacting to is so good and deserving of her response, but it's fun. Actually, the whole thing is fun.
0 Comments
Though the move went well, there still has been a bit to do to get things proper and ready, as you can imagine. So, although I've been able to focus on writing and work to a reasonable degree, I've nonetheless been a bit distracted to dive in fully, properly. Besides which, it's still the holidays. And besides which, being the holidays and still dealing with the move, I don't have complete spirit yet to deal with Trump full blown. So, instead, here's a piece from 60 Minutes Australia that's a reworking of a wonderful segment that was originally done by the Mother Ship here on CBS. It's about something called "Superior Autobiographical Memory," and it's quite fascinating. In the past, the James Corden show has done fun, elaborate sketches with the host and an actor zipping through the movies of the guest's career. This is a bit of a change on that -- with Emily Blunt and Lin Manuel Miranda (who star in Mary Poppins Returns), the three race through excerpts of 22 musicals in 12 minutes. And they toss in a couple of fun twists along the way. I think it's very good that Trump visited the troops in Iraq. I just think he should have done it two years ago. Or last year. Or any time before now. But it's at least good that he did it. What isn't good is anyone making a big deal out of him doing what is supposed to be done and that all other presidents did since the Iraq War began.
But yes, it's good that he's there. What's not good is lying to the troops about them getting pay raises for the first time in ten years, when the truth is that they've gotten one every year for almost the past 30 years. (One has to figure they know that and know they were lied to.) What's also not good is posting a video of his official Twitter account that revealed a picture of him with covert U.S. Navy SEAL Team Five deployed there, putting lives at risk. Also not good is turning his troop visit into a campaign rally. Not good too is coming to Iraq and not meeting with any Iraqi officials. And not good is being cavalier about the government being shut down and not concerned when it will re-open so that people can actually get paid, just so he can get his big, beautiful all. Or artistic slat structure. Or beaded curtain. Or whatever it is now - that Mexico was supposed to pay for. And which he's not going to get. Not good too is not a single word from Trump about there now being a second immigrant child who died in U.S. custody. And as a bonus Not Good from the Trump family is that although there is a White House directive that no one is to take a vacation while the government is shut down, Ivanka and Jared Kushner were seen ignoring this and leaving on vacation. Or to put it another way, we can let Charlie Sykes, a well-regarded radio host and contributing editor of The Weekly Standard -- and a regular contributor to MSNBC -- have his say on MSNBC's Hardball last night. "I wish he had done it earlier. I wish they did not have to shame him into doing it. But after a weekend of being alone in the White House, being petty and petulant...Unfortunately, at this moment where you could have presidential grace and leadership on display, he chose to be petty and petulant as well. I mean, standing in front of troops describing America's commitment as being "suckers" is really deeply offensive when you think about it. Not only did he lie to the troops and politicize the event -- lie to the troops about the salary increases -- but to describe American commitments as being suckers. I mean, you just step back and reflect on the crass transactionalism of a President of the United States who would imply that men and women who have served their country in the Middle East, perhaps given their lives, were suckers. And I mean, this is the tone deafness that he has. So to your point, yes, I think there are a lot of Americans who are more than willing to draw down, but he way it is being done: the betrayal of our allies, the lack of a process, the lack of consultation with the military, the lack of respect for somebody like General James Mattis, and that performance today. ...Yes, the pictures are wonderful, and maybe that's all that people will take away from it, but I think it was an unfortunate event on top of a series of unfortunate events" But yes, it's good that Trump finally went to visit the troops in Iraq after two years, because he was forced to. Late every year, the Broadway Cares organization culminates its fundraising with a "Gypsy of the Year" production. Shows that are then playing on Broadway put on spoof sketches and compete for the best, generally using the casts' "gypsies" (or chorus members). This is a number put on by the cast of Come From Away -- basically using the regular cast, since there aren't chorus members for the 12-performer musical. It's a very funny take-off of the show's opening number which I posted yesterday, "Welcome to the Rock." The joke here is that the cast is made up of actor/singers who aren't required to be dancers. There is some choreography -- more like coordinated movement -- that's very lively and important to the show, but it's extremely down to earth, although thoroughly effective for that, fitting beautifully into the tone of the show's realism. So, officially it's choreography (and the show even got a Tony nomination for choreography!), but dancers they most definitely are not. Which is the joke here that they acknowledge. One other note: periodically, the cast shouts out city names. Those are to denote where the production was at the time in its pre-Broadway tour, as the show went through its rehearsals. If you haven't seen the final opening number that I posted, just scroll back to yesterday (or click this link here) and watch it. It will make the Gypsy of the Year performance all the more pointed and fun. This past Friday, Trump sent out a two-part tweet, the first of which read -- "The Democrats are trying to belittle the concept of a Wall, calling it old fashioned. The fact is there is nothing else’s that will work, and that has been true for thousands of years. It’s like the wheel, there is nothing better. I know tech better than anyone, & technology....". There is SO much to say about everything he wrote here. But one thing stands out, so much so that the concept of Full Ridicule of Trump over the past two years -- indeed over his entire professional career, and probably his entire life -- can be understood by just one single statement he makes, honing down All Things Trump to just six words. And that's: "I know tech better than anyone." Let's just repeat that a moment. "I know tech better than anyone." There's no mistaking it, it's as clear as could be, his very own words which he typed out all by himself. "I know tech better than anyone." Better than Bill Gates? Than Steve Wozniak? Vint Cerf? (Does Trump even know who he is? Vint Cerf is one of the two scientists who literally did invent the Internet.) Trump couldn't even touch my brilliant tech pal Ed Bott who -- among many things -- actually wrote the book on Windows 10, everything about how it all works, for Microsoft Press. "Better" than anyone??? My guess is that Trump likely knows tech LESS than most. But then that's Trump. So profoundly insecure that he has to claim he knows any subject in all of human knowledge better than anyone else in the world, including its top experts. Does Trump truly believe he knows tech, and ALL of these things he brags about better than anyone in the world? Honestly, I really don't know. Of course he may not -- but just as "of course" he may. Because he's Trump and has convinced himself that he doesn't need other peoples' advice and expertise. But the important thing is, he clearly wants you to think he does. And I do suspect that, at the very least, there is a part of him that does believe he's the best expert in the room, wherever that room is, whatever everyone in that room is talking about. And if he doesn't understand it, it's not important or wrong. (Like the 99% of world scientist who rails about the dangers of Climate Change that he dismisses.) Because if it was important, then he would know it. At least now we know where Melania got the idea of her whole "#BeBest" campaign from. Listening to hubby every single day claiming that he, in fact, is.the best At every-ever-every-every-every fricking thing that every was, and probably every will be. Jeanne Moos of CNN did a video about this very subject. |
AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
Categories
All
|
© Copyright Robert J. Elisberg 2024
|