Last night (Wednesday, February 22, 2017), Abby Lee Miller and Dance Moms  hit the news again.  Deadline posted that Abby has been given a slight reprieve from sentencing.  The judge, for some unknown reason or her infinite wisdom, decided to postpone sentencing of Abby Lee Miller for her bankruptcy fraud and bringing money in from other countries.  Many people commented back on both the article and FaceBook that Abby didn’t deserve to be punished.  I was taught from an early age that if you “do the crime, you do the time (read punishment).”

I’m not sure why Abby hasn’t been sentenced yet.  I thought it strange that they called witnesses on why she didn’t deserve jail time.  I thought it strange that someone who is facing sentencing is allowed to travel.  I thought it strange that she was going to England just days before sentencing but I’m not the Federal Court of Pennsylvania.  I do know that Abby has admitted her guilt and should face her sentence.  Is it because she is a celebrity?  If so, it is wrong.  Others have done the same thing she has and done their punishment.

Celebrity status shouldn’t put you above the law. Celebrity status makes you more responsible to the law.  If you have committed a crime, the celebrity feature shouldn’t play a role in whether you face the charge or not.  Average people get caught for speeding and drinking and face lost of license and jail.  Celebrities on the other hand think they are immune and now Abby thinks she is immune because she is on a reality show.

Let’s review her crimes shall we:

She declared bankruptcy knowing that she would get money for doing
Dance Moms.

She brought in money from Australia which she didn’t declare.  To make matters worse, she put it in some of her students and staff’s suitcases making them mules at the worst and accomplices at the least.

She wrote emails to her lawyers and others saying let’s keep Abby out of jail.

And there was more which I can’t remember.  But let’s also add a few crimes which wasn’t addressed.

She served as manager for the girls and took a good chunk of the change for herself without giving most of them any benefits of her “managerial style).

She intentionally tried to hurt some of her “clients” when they got more attention than the chosen few.

She used physical defects and bullying to make girls self-conscious or quit the team.  One of the children and mom who left gave Abby the chance to do the show in the first place!

She claims never to be the person portrayed on television and it is edited to make her look bad.  Abby, dear, unless you have a script, you acted that way during filming and got caught on camera.

Abby never takes responsibility for anything.  She doesn’t feel she’s being fairly portrayed on television and that the crimes she committed were because of fame.  Hey, Debbie Allen in a promo for the television show warns, that “fame comes with a price.”  Abby, pay your price for fame. It’s way overdue.

Dance Moms is at a crossroads with where it will go.  You probably have heard by now that the show is filming again.  This is on top of the fact that Abby faces sentencing on February 24, 2017.  There are hints the judge is going to let her off but I hope that isn’t true.  If you do a crime, you pay!

The reason I’m beginning to think the rumor is true can be seen in how easily Abby got permission to travel.  Granted, she’s been traveling all over the world while facing her trial and sentencing but the trial is February 24th.  So where is she heading — jolly old England who seems to love her.  The whole time she is there she will be doing Meet and Greets and other money making projects.  If she’s doing this, I hope it is to pay her legal expenses but somehow I think it will just go in her pocket.

In the past, she has traveled with the team or at least one of the girls.  This time, it looks like Abby is going solo.  She has also promised to talk about production of the show.  Anyone reading any of her press in the last few months knows that she is claiming Lifetime or the producers of making her do things she doesn’t agree with.  This includes giving Maisi and Camryn jackets.  When they pulled the mini-team, she brought back two and put them with the “elites.”  I’m beginning to wonder if management is getting tired of the shenanigans that Abby has done and listened to fans about her abusive behavior.

I’m not sure where we are heading with this story, but something tells me that Abby has a wonderful “get out of jail” free card that she plans to use.  Whether this is right or not is for the wheels or weights of justice to decide.  I know other reality/athletic/movie/television stars have done their time.  What makes Abby different?  If you have opinions, please share.  I’d like to know others take on this.

 

Okay, I admit it.  I’m a fan of E!’s The Royals and there’s something really bothering me with the plot as we move toward the end of the third season.  Here we have had all the drama about whether Liam and Eleanor being Simon’s son.  Then we have her apparently working with Simon’s brother, Cyrus, to allow him to become king only to have Helena turn on him and want Liam on the throne.  Granted, I know that the first reason was that Liam was typically young man — drinking, doing drugs, chasing women — but I never quite understood her change of heart.  Whatever!  This brings me to my real purpose behind this piece:  Robert.

Let’s review The Royals up to this point.  King Simon and Queen Helena had lost their son, Robert, tragically in an air force practice.  King Simon decided that he wanted to do away with the monarchy but Helena and Cyrus disagree and hatched a plot for Cyrus to become king.  The people didn’t like that at all and Liam stepped up to be king.  Cyrus ran a maneuver that tricked everyone into thinking that Liam and Eleanor was not Simon’s children so he took the throne.  Okay, we’ve got the plot so far and it’s really nothing new.  Power always corrupts.

So this season has been the struggle to prove that Simon was Liam and Eleanor’s dead.  If the proof could be found, they Cyrus is off his throne and back into being an ordinary royal.  That’s not Cyrus has in mind.  He gets rid of Simon’s body (in the Thames).  He shaves his head so Helena can’t get a DNA sample but forgets his personal trophy which she grabs.  His unmentionable proves the lie.  Liam and Eleanor are Simon’s children so Helena plans the announcement of the DNA results and Liam being king.  Sounds like everyone is happy so far, right.

Wrong!  Now here’s where the  problem lies.  Robert, it seems didn’t die but has been washed up on a deserted island.  We see him lying on the shore at the end of season 2 but we have no confirmation of it until mid-way through season three.  He’s been on that island for months with a flare and wants us to believe that no ship came by in that time frame.  Suddenly, Robert sees that fishing trawler and signals it for rescue.  Does something sound fishy to you?  Well, it does for me and his return couldn’t have been timed better.  Helena not only gets to reveal that her children do belong to her husband but the one true king is back.

Now, we have Robert on the throne thanks to the Privy Council.  While not surprised, I started noticing things.  Robert has that sly little smirk that is common with Cyrus. He has that look that he’s capable of everything.  We’ve seen him torment Liam and threaten Jasper.  Jasper knows something about the crash and Robert doesn’t want him to tell it.  Robert now has control over Jasper by saving him from prison and giving him a job.  I’m so hoping Jasper can bring Robert down but the next question is:  Where will that leave Liam?  Do you think the show has another season in it?  If so, who is going to be King?

Growing up, I wasn’t supposed to watch soap operas.  Let me ask a rhetorical question:  During the summer, how do you stop teens from watching said soap operas.  You can’t and we watched which is where all the girls fell in love with Richard Hatch.

All My Children was in its infancy in the late 60s/early 70s with stories that were hitting my age group close to our hearts.  We were teens and the “teens” on the show spoke to us.  When Tara and Phillip, fell in love, we loved Phillip also.  Richard Hatch played Phillip Brent with a sincerity that came through the screens and reach all of us.  When the decided to address the Vietnam War and send Phillip off to fight, well that hit home.  All the teens I grew up with knew of at least one family who had lost a loved one to the war.  So when the show wrote that Phillip had died, not only his television mother but all of us went into shock.

I followed Richard Hatch’s career to Battlestar Galatica“.  Richard was Captain Apollo and the hero of the piece.  He was determined, brave, and fearless.  Plus, after losing his wife (during the pilot no less), he became a caring father.  I will always remember the “Ship of Lights” episode.  That one pointed out just how important the Apollo character was to the show and to the theme of goodness.

I watched Richard on shows like Streets of San Francisco.  He never seemed to want the star treatment.  He came across as humble and caring.  He was a quiet man who didn’t seek fame.  To me he should have served as a role model to those who came after him.

Rest in peace Richard Hatch.  You were a gentleman and respected.  Your wisdom came through to my generation and I hope others see it too.

I’ve been casually watching many articles over the past few days about the viewership of shows and the potential of cancelling shows.  It all started with the rumors that Once Upon a Time might either see it’s last year this year or be changed with a new theme next year.  Now, I’m hearing the same thing on other shows that either have shown potential or are getting older.  So it started my brain thinking and here’s what I see as reasons for this is happening.

1.  Money — a standard contract for a television show with actors is 5 or 6 years.  Usually this doesn’t matter as the show doesn’t last.  Yet, at the end of that 5/6 year cycle you have to negotiate a new contract with the actor.  If the actor is major to the action, they may hold out for a big pay increase (Friends era comes to mind).  So the executives can either pay or threaten that character with the elimination of their character.  If the show revolves around the character, then the show could face cancellations (think Castle).
2. New honcho — new thoughts —  in the past when a new head of a company comes into play, they make changes.  They want to shape the network to their view of what the public wants.  Sometimes this works but that hasn’t really been the case since the writer’s strike.  Here’s why.  During the writer’s strike, people found out that cable/satellite has more programming options.  While the Big Four/Five were using reality shows, the cable stations were offering more original programming.  People suddenly realized that they didn’t have to rely on the traditional stations for programming.
3. Lost in the past — not moving to the times — While there have been some instances of new shows standing out, most of the time programming seems to be looking to the past.  I found this trend applicable in the 1990s when I did soap opera research.  The shows that were moving forward and addressing present topics on soap operas were actually better than the ones that relied on affairs and kept things in the 50s.  I’ve been this bouncy ball happen in programming since then.  We need to accept that things are not geared the way they were.  People want excitement and adventure.  While murder/crime shows are good and seem to prevail on television,  I like a good mystery now or then.
4. Ratings — Ratings aren’t what they used to be for the big 4/5 networks.  Sorry about that folks.  There are other options for viewing on cable.  And guess what!  More and more networks are going with original programming and using buzz over ratings to decide if a show will succeed or fail.  Do you think that shows like The Librarians or The Royals last.  Would they be the same show under a network/big 4/5 theme.  The answer is no.

If I was a bigwig television producer, I’d rethink my whole approach to television.  Don’t lie and say “The ratings are bad” but why the show really isn’t being renewed.  Don’t look at the salary increase and use the threat of cancellation to get someone to sign a contract.  And don’t rely strictly on what you like to judge what people like.  We have enough of that going on in other places.

Riverdale has changed.  It looks more like Twin Peaks than the Happy Days town of my youth.  I’m a little surprised that a production that is getting help from the comics would change the story so much.  I’m not sure why I’m surprised really.  They have done three alternate stories in the last five years.  First there is the gothic edition known as the Afterlife version. Then they took on who alt realities in Life with Archie where he married Veronica in one reality and Betty in another.  And that’s the version that saw the death of Archie which is why I read the final two editions of this series.  And then there is the latest in which the story if modernized and the characters appear more — let’s say current — than ever before.

I think Riverdale may just shake up the story more.  And I’m only focusing on the adult characters because they have changed the most.  Let’s have a quick go now at the major ones.

Hiram Lodge–we haven’t even seen him yet (if we do at all).  He’s been arrest in New York for fraud.  If you look at the old comics, he’s just a rich dad.  In Life with Archie, he’s out for revenge because in the Veronica edition, Archie is aware of shady business dealings.  In the Betty version, he’s upset because Archie broke Veronica’s heart.  In the new edition, he seems to be shady in business and a big bully when he doesn’t get his way.

Hermonie Lodge — Married to Hiram, she leaves New York in the Riverdale series and escape to the one place she has a place that isn’t in her husband’s name or been taken for his crime.  The place is nice but she needs cash.  First she tries Archie’s dad but ends up working at Pop Tate’s.  There isn’t much to point out in the new versions (which I have scanned for this piece).  Let’s see where Riverdale takes it.

Fred Andrews — Instead of working for an named company which is how Fred is portrayed in the comics, Riverdale’s Fred is a business contractor who has his own business.  And he’s not overweight.  Played by a former youth heart throb, Luke Perry, he does continue the concerned father but Riverdale has him as the up-and-coming business man.

Miss Grundy — I’m going to stop with this one tonight probably because it is the most disturbing.  In all the drawn comic strips, Miss Grundy is a late-in-life teacher who has a crush (I think) on Mr. Weatherbee.  With gray hair which is worn in a bun, she would never be having an affair with a student.  Riverdale’s Miss Grundy looks to be in her 30s, has no gray hair, dresses not as demurely as the one in the comics, and has a thing for young men.  Having had an affair with Archie, you have to wonder if this one has had other affairs with other young men along the way.

I chose to focus on these tonight because of two things:  (a) they’re the most changed and (b) we’re still getting to know the students.  I had not intended to watch Riverdale but I will if I’m home and don’t have anything else that I must do.  The reason:  it’s interesting to see how they change something from my childhood and I did so love Twin Peaks!

I’m going to say more about this later, but I just have to express my sadness at the loss of Mary Tyler Moore.  As a child, Mary Tyler Moore was on one of the only television shows during prime time that I was allowed to watch.  The Dick Van Dyke Show introduced her to the American public.

As a almost teen, she got her own show — The Mary Tyler Moore Show.  It inspired me, and many other young people, to reach for the stars.  She was an inspiration that took bad times and made them good.  She made us happy as she “turned the world on with her smile” and gave us hope that “we might just take it after all.”

Mary, for being an inspiration, I thank you.  For being a voice for the people who suffer with diabetes, I thank you.  For being a voice of reason in a time when things, I thank you.  I wish we had your smile now as never before!

Rest in peace and know that your memory will live on as long as television exists.

A New Year!  I hope it is better but I do have concerns.  I want to take a minute and remember the celebrities and some heroes we lost last year.  It’s not a complete list but these are some people I wanted to single out.  They’re not in any particular order just as I thoughtof them.  For me, the month of November was hard as we lost family friends and then December saw the death or many famous people I grew up watching.  I’m going to focus on my icons who left their legacy behind this year.

David Bowie — David Bowie was a musical genius.  Not only did he offer a reinvention to rock and roll, he also brought together a style to embody the stages of his style.  From “Space Oddity” to “Modern Love” to his latest “BlackStar”, David put his life out there for all to see.  While there may be an artist who matches him, I doubt they will do it with such style and grace.

Prince — It seemed we were still reeling from Bowie’s lost and we got hit with Prince’s death.  Prince left us also too soon and left his image forever on pop music.  From “Purple Rain” to “Little Red Beret,” his style of playing the guitar and music won’t die.  It will survive and live on.

Gene Wilder — I always enjoyed Gene Wilder.  He was funny.  He was serious.  And I was very lucky to see him live on stage in London.  When he looked at the audience, he grabbed you and all you saw was his bright blue eyes.  His life with Gilda seemed to be a comic match made in heaven.  Of course, he lost Gilda and seemed to become sadder.  He will always be remembers for Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, and his films with Richard Pryor.

Alan Rickman — Everyone knew him as Snape in the Harry Potter series but Alan made very good villains through out his career.  I remember him well as the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and the villain in the first Die Hard movie.  Everyone said the person was different from the character which shows what type of actor he was.

Debbie Reynolds — As a child, I wasn’t allowed to go to movies except those approved by my parents.  There was no G or PG rated movies.  Debbie Reynolds was allowed and Singing in the Rain is one of my all time favorites.  Debbie had a troubled life but like her Molly Brown character in the Unsinkable Molly Brown she never gave up.

Carrie Fisher — I returned to science fiction with Star Wars.  I remember thinking I was too old for it but Carrie and company drew me back to a love of space travel.  She was the leader of my dream women’s movement.  She was strong, brave, and stood up to every many she met in the original Star Wars movie.  She also wasn’t afraid of admitting how rough her life was in her books.

Speaking of Star Wars, we also lost our little R2 D2 actor this terrible 2016 also. Kenny Baker, the poor man who rolled around in the computer suit also passed away this past year.

Leonard Cohen — Leonard wrote the song “Hallelujah” which has become such an anthem in every generation.  I had to include him on this list.

Robert Vaughn — Was there ever a better secret agent.  Robert was part of the team that made spies sexy and carried on the legacy of Bond.  Man from U.N.C.L.E became a staple viewing of mine but I found him hilarious also.  Who can forget him as CC Babcock father on The Nanny.

Florence Henderson — Florence will always be mom to many of my generation.  The Brady Bunch was the nice family that everyone likes (even if they are strange).  She was even amazing on Dancing with the Stars.

Garry Marshall — Garry Marshall was everything.  He was Laverne’s father on Laverne and Shirley.  He produced/directed such films as Pretty Woman, The Princess Diaries (one and two), Runaway Bride, Beaches, A League of Their Own, just to name a few.  Without him, we wouldn’t have laughed or cried.

Doris Roberts — Many remember her only as the brass mother of Everybody Loves Raymond, but before that she was a private investigator on Remington Steele.  She had class, style and wit.  She also was the ultimate “Girl Friday” and mom.

Alan Thicke— If Florence was the ultimate mother, Alan was an ultimate father.  While not of my generation, he did comes across as the calm center of an otherwise chaotic 80s/90s home.  With his understanding he mentored and taught.  He gave advice and skill.  In later days, we’ll always remember him trying to get us to visit Las Vegas.

George Michael — What can I say about George?  In some ways, he was like David Bowie, reinventing himself.  I loved him in Wham.  His solo career was mixed.  He wasn’t afraid of speaking his mind, telling the truth, and trying to create new things.

William Christopher — William will always be the ultimate religious leader.  As Father Mulcahly, he offered advice and put with the crazy doings of a camp of misfits on M*A*S*H.  He never forgot that people came first.

Patty Duke — What can you say about the ultimate twin?  Patty Duke was a 60s character that I was allowed to watch.  Even though she got into trouble, she always had an excuse (usually her sister).  I may best remember her though for her portrayal of Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker.  She couldn’t speak and had to play anger and did a wonderful job at it.

Just as we lost stars, we lost two of my heroes this past year.  John Glenn thrilled me as a child for going into space.  His life continued that path with a seat in the Senate and another trip into space on the shuttle.  While I didn’t agree with Nancy Reagan’s husband politics, she was inspirational in the White House.  A survivor, she stood up for people’s rights.

As an English major, I saw two of my favorites die this year.  Elie Weisel, who wrote Night, I heard speak before.  Pat Conroy wrote of the South and the Charleston area.  Both brought an unique voice to literature and their ideals.

 

 

Okay, so I got a blip from an old Pop Culture friend who was questioning the show Riverdale.  We both grew up during the “cartoon” version of the show and she wondered what was going on.  Fortunately, I work at a college with an American Studies professor who had noticed some changes to the Archie strip over the past five years and so I was a little more familiar with what to expect than she is.  Here’s what I know about the franchise.

The entire Archie franchise has been a part of American culture for 75 years.  While the strip has changed in appearances, the storyline hasn’t changed much until a few years ago.  There is still Archie, who is in love with Betty and Veronica (and Cheryl and who knows who else).  Reggie who wants Veronica and a prankster. Jughead, the food machine, who eats anything he sees.  Then there are all the friends plus added friends like Kevin to keep the comic current.  Standard comic stuff which has seen the characters develop and the decades echoed.

A few years ago, though, the series took off into two alternate universes.  In one, Archie married Veronica and went to work for Lodge Industries but didn’t agree with Mr. Lodge’s business practices.  The other universe had Archie marry Betty, become a teacher, and Mr. Lodge trying to destroy Archie for breaking his daughter’s heart.  Along the way, Reggie got falsely accused of a crime and ended up in jail, Jughead and Midge own Pop Tate’s, and Dilton disappears.  The story culminates in the death of Archie Andrews.  Regardless of who he married, in fact the last comic which I bought hinted that he married no one, Archie died saving his friend Kevin’s life from an assassination attempt during Kevin’s senate run.  Did you keep up with all that?  Wish I had but I didn’t buy all the comics.

Let’s just  say that the killing of Archie had people concerned about the comic book’s integrity and future.  While the double digest came out with new art work, it seemed that the stories were stuck in the past.  That is until last year when a new line of Archie comics began to appear drawn in a modern style, with characters like Veronica coming in late.  While I haven’t read many of these, I see the stories changing in a few way I never expected.  Dr Lodge is darker.  Archie and his band haven’t formed.  The characters and artwork have more current look and stories.

So I guess it is no surprise that Riverdale will shake things up some more.  From the hints I’ve seen and been told, Riverdale will open with a murder.  Jason Blossom, Cheryl’s rich brother, will die and the story will revolve around his death.  The actors in this is outstanding but the real surprise for me was who they have playing Archie’s dad.  Everyone knows that Mr. Andrews has a slight weight problem.  There’s no way Luke Perry can carry that off.

Riverdale will premiere in January on the CW channel.  The murder mystery is intriguing enough to get me to turn in.  Let’s see how they redraw the comics again!

 

All weekend, I’ve been seeing posts about how Once Upon a Time should be cancelled due to ratings slump.  Ratings slump?  Of course, ratings are slumping but it’s not just for Once Upon a Time.  It’s across the board.  So let me give you some insight into what I have seen.

Ratings slump:  Viewership.  I have DirecTv.  DirecTv gives a television reviewer like me an interesting feature.  I can go in at any minute and see what is being watched on Eastern time and locally.  Guess what folks!  The network television shows very rarely show up.  It’s always cable, movies, Disney or sports.  So you can’t say that Once upon a Time is in a slump unless you want to say all National shows are in a slump.

The main reason for this is because of one simple fact.  More and more people have gone to cable and satellite dish.  I admit, I went to dish back in the 1990s when cell towers ruined out outdoor antenna and while I can’t say I like ALL the shows on cable, I do have my favorites.  And guess what!  One is up against Once Upon a Time so some Sundays I struggle to choose between The Librarians and Once Upon a Time.

Why is viewership down.  I’m breaking this down into several subsections.

Sunday night football:  This right here has affected viewership.  I admit it.  If my Panthers were playing, I’m watching.  And for the foreseeable future, we’re going to have to expect sports to override everything.  With the Super Bowl approaching and teams really struggling, everyone will be watching football.  Then we have college hoops and March Madness.

The advents of shows like The Walking Dead.  Granted, I’m not a horror fan but some of the cable shows are drawing viewers away.  They say:  “We’ll catch up during the week or when the DVDs come out.”  Granted these shows are cable but more and more people are getting cable and that will always affect the National numbers.

The changing times at ABC.  Personally, I liked the old way that Once Upon a Time did their seasons.  I loved season one because it was like a book chapter with a beginning, middle, and end.  I loved the seasons that could be labeled A and B.  If one half of the season was bad, I had the second part to look forward to and hope for improvement.  If the second part of the season was bad, I knew it was only a matter of time before the new season started.

The break-up/make-up/destruction of couples.  We have the Captain Swans who aren’t happy because Emma disappeared.  We have the Rumbelle’s who are upset over everythingt that has happened to this couple.  They either want Belle to accept Rumple’s faults or move on.  Then we have the Rebel Queen group who say they will never watch again because their beloved Robin died.  I have opinions on all three but for me, this is never a determining factor on whether I will watch the show or not. Plot for me is much more important than many other reasons.

From what I’ve seen, Once Upon a Time’s ratings are good and better than some other shows.  As I have said, no network (CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX) show seems to be ruling the overall guide unless you only look at National networks.  Personally, I watch a show to be entertained or to have something to think about.  Once Upon a Time gives me both!