Retail Eternity

I know death is part of life - but this is just bizarre to me; I just learned that Walmart is selling caskets online. As if people didn't dislike Walmart enough. Just as an aside - I think that more people shop there then will admit. Anyway, that's right, you can choose from a selection of caskets on Walmart's website and have your choice delivered. The model that is displayed above is called, "Executive Privilege Steel Casket." It comes with a pinstriped interior and costs $1,699.00.

If I were going to go with any particular retailer whom I would choose to purchase my own casket from, I would probably pick Kmart. I know it sounds odd, but Kmart features the Martha Stewart selection. Anything from Martha, even a casket, would have to be classy. Maybe she could call them her, "I know it stinks to be dead but at least some part of it can be a good thing," collection.

Speaking of Martha and Kmart - here is a little snippet of an early comercial pairing the two:

Mad Men, Booze, and Cigarettes

I am a fan of Mad Men, the AMC original series that depicts the work and home lives of the employees of Sterling Cooper, a fictitious advertising agency in the early 1960s. Today, CNN's website features a story on Mad Men's set designs, entitled - Astonishing Detail in Time Gone Mad. It is a fascinating piece, that includes tours through many of the sets used on the show. I am attaching the link to the CNN video below:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/10/26/mad.men.set/index.html

Although I have not watched the series from its start, I have watched all of the shows this season, and have become completely addicted. Speaking of addictions (talk about your subtle segways), the source of two major addictions that often take center stage in the series, are those of booze and cigarettes. I thought it would be interesting to share two commercials from this time period. I will include one for booze and one for cigarettes. Enjoy:

Oppsite Ends of the Spectrum

Ann Coulter was interviewed by Joyce Behar the other night, and it reminded me of the expression - you know the one - about "opposite ends of the spectrum." Okay, they are both women (although some of argued that in regard to Coulter, but I digress) and both media personalities; but, other than that, there ain't much there that is similar. I am including a snippet of the interview below:


This got me thinking about what other media events have included two personalities who seem to be on two different ends of a spectrum. I am including some of my top choices. Hope you like them:



OK, OK - I admit it - Donny and Marie are not exactly opposite sides of the spectrum. But, remember, she was a little bit country and he was a little bit rock and roll. That must count for something. Have a good weekend!!

Bernie Madoff and Santa Claus

Some additional information is coming out today regarding Bernie Madoff's workplace environment; I bet there is plenty more where that came from. Anyway, CNN is reporting the following:

A new lawsuit alleges that convicted swindler Bernie Madoff financed a cocaine-fueled work environment and a "culture of sexual deviance," and he diverted money to his London, England, office when he believed federal authorities were closing in at home.
The complaint alleges that some employees and investors were aware of the drug purchases, and that BMIS [Bernard Madoff Investment Services] was known by insiders as the "North Pole" in reference to the excessive amount of cocaine use in the work place.

Isn't that nice? - the North Pole. Can't get more in the holiday feeling than that. I grew up watching those 1960s and 1970s holiday specials. Even a Jewish kid from Northeast Philly loves a good cartoon. Back then, you could only see them once a year too. That was before the age of videos and DVDs. My favorites were Charlie Brown, the Grinch, and Frosty.

Several years ago, Saturday Night Live featured a satire of those old clay-mation classics, and something about Bernie Madoff running the "North Pole" reminded me of it. I hope you enjoy:

The Droid and the Pinto

Did you hear that Verizon is coming out with a new phone in November to compete with the iPhone? I guess that this means that the iPhone won't be going to Verizon anytime soon. Anyway, here is the commercial that is being shown for the "Droid" - the hopeful iPhone competitor:


I wondered how telling it is that the commercial is basically comparing the benefits of the Droid to the what the iPhone lacks. Is any form of comparison actually a compliment? It probably is, to some degree. I started to think about what other product had begun its commercial campaign by comparing itself to an already well-loved and successful product. Here is such an ad or, "blast from the past:"


OK, maybe the Droid will have a better run than the Pinto, but it is fun to wonder.

Who the Hell is Wolf?

No explanation needed. See video below:

Lyndon, Ladybird, Fred, and Ethel

This time of year always brings with it a flourish of Kennedy specials; not the awards show - but the specials that focus on the JFK assassination, the "curse" of the Kennedys, etc. I have to admit, I am a sucker for anything regarding the assassination. I was about a month old when it happend in November of 1963. In fact, I was at the pediatrician for my month check up. That is what my parents tell me - I don't actually remember it (as you probably already know).

Last night the History Channel featured a show called, "The Kennedy Assassination: 24 Hours After. It was excellent, and focused on the first 24 hours after President Kennedy was killed. It particularly described Lyndon B. Johnson's (Kennedy's then Vice President) actions. It was the first show that I have seen in a long time about this topic, which actually brought new information to light. One fascinating subject that was addressed, was how the United States, and the world for that matter, had to adjust to seeing two such different people in the White House. They compared the youth, suaveness, and New England charm of John and Jackie Kennedy, with the not-so-much youth and southern styles of Lyndon and Ladybird Johnson.

Something about seeing those two couples compared, reminded me of the I Love Lucy Show. It is like John and Jackie Kennedy were Ricky and Lucy Ricardo, and Lyndon and Ladybird Johnson were Fred and Ethel Mertz. Everyone liked Fred and Ethel, and they even had some qualities that Lucy and Ricky lacked; but, did you want to see them in their own series? Naah, not really. It was kind of like LBJ got his own spin-off, but it only last one season. Well, anyway, here is a snippet of an I Love Lucy Show, that features the whole gang (I mean Lucy, Ricky, Fred, and Ethel - not Lyndon and Ladybird):

Mr. Balloon Man

Hey - Mr. Balloon Man - if you are going to create this fake news story about your son being carried away in a weather balloon just for the media attention - don't ask your six year old son to lie for you. Six year olds are not great at lying. In the video below, you don't do really well at lying either. Wolf Blitzer is like Santa or a Rabbi - you can't lie to Wolf.
I am attaching a snippet of the interview below:


I am glad that the little boy is alright and that he actually wasn't in the basket of that weather balloon. Yesterday, every time I heard or saw the phrase "balloon boy," I kept picturing George Costanza and the Bubble Boy from the Seinfeld show. By the way, George Costanza is a much better liar than the Dad in this news story. Remember what George said, "it's not lying if you believe that it is true." Maybe you should have taken George's advice, Mr. Balloon Man. Well, anyway, here is the Seinfeld clip:

Huffington Post and Green Acres

The picture of Vice President Biden posted above, is plastered on the Huffington Post Website this morning. The accompanying story is Arianna Huffington's take on why she feels that VP Biden should resign. The reason for this resignation, she believes, is Biden's conflicting view with President Obama on sending more troops in Afghanistan. He is a short excerpt from her post:

Well, how about making the mea culpa unnecessary? Instead of saving it for the book, how about future author Biden unfetter his conscience in real time -- when it can actually do some good? If Biden truly believes that what we're doing in Afghanistan is not in the best interests of our national security -- and what issue is more important than that? -- it's simply not enough to claim retroactive righteousness in his memoirs.

I don't think that Vice President Biden should resign. To me, that is Obama's main point in supporting a Lincoln-esque - "Team of Rivals" - type of approach. If everyone agrees with the president and just says, "yes" - you end up with what we had for the previous 8 years.

Now that the mature, political stuff is out of the way, I have to move on to the more immature matter at hand. As un-PC as it is, whenever I see Arianna Huffington on television, I immediately think of Green Acres. Why Green Acres? I think of Green Acres because Arianna Huffington's way of speaking reminds me of Eva Gabor's style. I grew up in the 60's and 70's, and Green Acres - as silly as it was - was part of my childhood. I know that Arianna Huffington is brilliant and one of the most influential females in the political writing world today - but I can't help myself. Take a look for yourself, and see if I don't speak the truth. Video snippets of both Arianna and Eva are linked below:

Elizabeth Cheney and Michael Moore

I don't know about you, but I feel that Elizabeth Cheney's (Dick Cheney's daughter) group - Keep America Safe - seems to be borrowing a little bit from Michael Moore. Take a look at their website's video below, and see what you think. Don't the implications seem to mirror those from Moore's Farenheit 911? The link to the NPR story regarding the Keep America Safe group is here:
http://www.stumbleupon.com/s/#2ZlhP4/www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2009/10/cheney_obama_keep_america_safe.html?ft=1&f=103943429/stumblethru:undefined

As NPR writes, Elizabeth Cheney's group says it aims to "provide information for concerned Americans about critical national security issues." Her co-founders are conservative commentator William Kristol and Debra Burlingame, sister of an American Airlines pilot who was killed on 9/11. Burlingame is co-founder of 9/11 Families for a Safe and Strong America.

Carly Simon and Starbucks

Ok, it seems that over the past year or so, that neither Starbucks or Carly Simon have been doing that great. Who I am to judge? I know, I asked myself that too. But lets face it, Carly hasn't been on the top of the charts for years now, and Starbucks is losing business to Dunkin Donuts. So, what do you do when two brands are struggling - you team up. I don't think that sounds like a good idea either - but Carly Simon did. Now she is suing Starbucks, saying that terrible sales of her latest album, This Kind of Love, was a result of Starbucks (music label - Hear Music) mismanagement. The link for the NYT article is below:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/arts/music/12simon.html

Well, however the legal aspects work out, I prefer to look back to a time when both Carly Simon and Starbucks were more cool - or hot I guess. Here are a couple of videos below:

Wilson, Obama, and the Nobel Peace Prize

President Obama was awakened today to learn that he had won the Nobel Peace Prize. Congratulations are in order. The conservatives are already mocking this decision; good thing that Chicago was not picked as the next city for the Olympics, or it would have definitely pushed the Republicans over the edge (not that far of a reach, in my estimation).

Well - one question that naturally arises, is who was the last sitting US President to win the Nobel Peace Prize? I checked, and it was President Woodrow Wilson in 1919. Wilson was chosen for his work in the development of the League of Nations. Interestingly, and also ironic, is that Woodrow Wilson was not a supporter of equal rights for blacks; that is putting it mildly, actually. His record on race relations was not very good. You know what they say - "karma is a bitch." Well, anyway, here is a snippet (no sound) of Woodrow Wilson in the White House in 1917 (see video below). The sheep on the front lawn are real.

President Obama and HRC

This is the big story posted on the website of the HRC - the Human Rights Campaign:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, announced today that President Barack Obama will deliver the keynote address at the 13th Annual National Dinner on Saturday, October 10th, in Washington, D.C. U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy will also present the first-ever Edward M. Kennedy National Leadership Award to Judy and Dennis Shepard. The award is named in honor of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA), a champion in the fight for LGBT equality.

The 2008 video below is a snippet of President Obama (before he was President) talking with Rick Warren at Saddleback Church regarding his views on gay marriage. He explains that he supports civil unions, but defines marriage as a sacred union between a man and a woman. Wonder how this will play out on the 10th? What is about people that they are OK with gay couples doing the sad stuff (visiting each other in hospitals), but not in the fun stuff - like having a wedding?

Vanessa Redgrave and Israel

Vanessa Redgrave's recent backhanded support of Israel regarding the Toronto Film Festival's decision to showcase the films of Tel Aviv, reminds me of her Academy Award appearance back in 1978. Below is the link to the recent article, as well as the snippet from the Oscars:

http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/20721/vanessa-redgrave-slams-israeli-film-boycott

Baby Laugh a Lot

I wonder how many of these dolls - given as Christmas presents in 1969 - ever made it to New Years Day 1970?

Doctors and Camels

Remember the good old days when smoking was good for you and doctors made housecalls? OK, I don't either - but this commercial does.
Oh - just as a side note - 4 out of 5 physicians choose the 357 magnum as their gun of choice for gifts for teens.

Things that make you go awwww...

I love old political commercials. When I watch this, I can almost taste the saccharine in my mouth.

Flintstones and Winston

This is too bizarre not to include. Fred and Barney pushing Winston cigarettes. I guess that is why Dino died of complications from second hand smoke.