Her Dad would have been so proud....

Fresno's best export in the world of entertainment (NO, not K-Fed. As if) is about to hit the small screen full-time in the Grey's Anatomy spinoff series "Private Practice":

Broadway actress Audra McDonald is set to co-star in ABC's Grey's Anatomy spinoff, Private Practice, where she will replace Merrin Dungey.

The new medical drama centers on neonatal surgeon, Addison Forbes Montgomery (Kate Walsh), who moves to Los Angeles and joins the private medical practice of her once-married, newly divorced medical school friends, Naomi and Sam Bennett.

McDonald will play Naomi Bennett, a role played by Dungey in the two-hour "Grey's" episode that launched "Practice." (Sam Bennett is played by Taye Diggs.)

McDonald has won four Tony Awards, and was nominated for a fifth this year for her lead role in the Roundabout Theatre's revival of the musical "110 in the Shade."  She next appears in ABC's adaptation of the play "A Raisin in the Sun," reprising her role as Sean Combs' wife in the 2004 revival of Lorraine Hansberry's 1959 play about black identity.

While I only met Audra briefly, years ago, her dad was my HS principal, and a pretty good dude. He died earlier this spring, and I know this news would have made his day, as a prouder Dad of all his kids you would be hard pressed to find.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 05:02 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Fred Thompson "gets" the new media

If the left tries to push the "Fairness Doctrine" down people's throats, the market will simply migrate to new media: Podcasts, web radio, and the like.

We've been hearing threats to use the obsolete Fairness Doctrine to go after talk radio ever since the left-leaning talk radio network, Air America, failed. Ironically, I think Air America might have had a shot if its target audience hadn't already been served so well by many in the mainstream media. But regardless, giving the government veto power over radio stations' programming decisions is wrong. I don't think forcing the one sector of the media where conservatives have a clear voice to provide equal time to liberals is the American way. At the very least, it has a chilling effect on station owners.

I understand how the left feels though. For most of my life, the big broadcast television networks and almost all the major newspapers and magazines presented only one side of a lot of issues. Talk radio is a relatively small part of a bigger media picture, but I imagine it aggravates the new congressional majority to hear their opposition's arguments without the old filters.

I would remind them, though, that a few Republicans were elected even when the entire mainstream media was painting us as heartless Neanderthals. I would also remind the current congressional leadership that they managed to win the last election despite talk radio.

Americans are smart enough to recognize news that's biased -- even when journalists pretend they're not. New polls show that more than seven in 10 people recognize that the news comes with an agenda. So maybe we should welcome a new Fairness Doctrine. We could start by requiring that every broadcast television news show be co-anchored by both a liberal and conservative; and all major newspaper staff be evenly divided.

Not much chance of that happening. Nor should it in a free country -- but I'll tell you something that those who want to control the media apparently don't know. Everyday, more people are listening to streaming radio on the Web and downloading podcasts. Some popular talk shows skip radio altogether and go straight to the Internet. You can even hear talk shows on Web-enabled telephones if you want, and that will get much easier and cheaper quickly.

If the current stars of talk were pushed off the radio dial, they'd get their audiences anyway. The era of controllable media is over, and nothing will ever bring it back.

I agree 100%. A free media is NOT controlled by anything but the market. And the market will seek out whatever outlets it can for the exchange of ideas. Including the web. And Fred gets it. Which, I suspect, is why Fred is the ONLY major candidate doing any of the blogging himself.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 04:31 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Robot Chicken

So there's this show on Cartoon Network that's part of adult swim, and hubby and I have been catching it occasionally, and laughing our asses off at it every time we run across it. But we had no idea what it was called...

Last night we finally found out it's called Robot Chicken.

If you grew up in the 80s and had way too many action figures, this show is for you.

Holy crap, it's funny. It's filthy, too.

As proof, I offer Robot Chicken: Star Wars:
(PG-13 for violence and some language)

Part I:

Part II:

Part III:

Posted by: caltechgirl at 12:04 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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You heard it here first...

Given all of the chatter going 'round about the UK bombings, and how this hearkens back to the heyday of the IRA and all that, I can't help but wonder two things:

1. Did these bomb plotters actually hire former IRA bombmakers to teach them what to do?

and

2. Did those IRA bombmakers intentionally fuck them over so they wouldn't hurt anyone and would get caught?

I mean, the IRA hates the UK, but it's their island. Letting muslim terrorists blow it up kind of negates their point, right?

Posted by: caltechgirl at 11:42 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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