florida

If you don't remember the presidential election debacle in Florida in 2000, here's a brief summary of what happened:

First, networks declared Gore the winner, then they declared Bush the winner, then they decided it was too close to call, then they decided no one was the winner, then they decided Bush and Gore were figments of our imagination, then James K. Polk was posthumously re-elected and immediately impeached within a six-minute time frame, and then after that it just got really confusing.

Wow, here's something that was COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED.

Judge Larry Seidlin, who presided over the Anna Nicole hearing/circus last week, might get a regular spot on CBS' Saturday Early Show. One of the show's producers, Michael Rosen, sent Judge Seidlin a letter the other day (obtained by The Sun-Sentinel), saying that they want to hire him for a new segment on the show:

"I have been extremely impressed by your compassion in the Anna Nicole case and I would love to discuss with you the idea of being our judge on a new segment, `Morning Justice.' It would be a semi-regular segment in which you would resolve the ethical and legal questions of our viewers who send in the issues troubling them."

Well, this is going to take up a little while this afternoon.

The Game Show Network has a new game on their site called Astronaut Moonstalker, and though it sounds like one of those cheesy movie you always see on The Sci-Fi Channel, it's actually a space game based on the female astronaut who put on a diaper to drive 900 miles and kidnap a romantic rival.

It's a fun, well-designed game. Using the arrow keys on your keyboard, you pilot a spacecraft around rocks, monsters, and space debris to land next to the happy couple and break them up (by telling the woman bad things about the guy). You also get bonus points if you collect the red hearts that are floating through space, and your progress is tracked by a "diaper meter." Play the game after the jump (or play the bigger version at the link above).

I'd just like to take this opportunity to confront Adam Finley about the comments he has made about me on this very blog. Just last week he told you that I had lied when I said that Flipper was coming out on DVD. Well, Mr. Finley, Flipper is coming out on DVD, and here's the proof.

The set will contain all 30 episodes from the first season, on four discs. No word yet on commentaries or other extras. Though it would be cool to see what the Ricks kids are up to these days (Brian Kelly, who played the dad, died in 2005).

I'm not quite sure why Adam doubted my original story. He just doesn't seem to understand the special mind bond I have with dolphins around the globe. Then again, nobody does. It's something I've had to put up with my whole life. Nobody understands.

VH1's popular reality series Hogan Knows Best returns for a third season on Sunday, October 22 at 9pm. The new season will see the family make the move from Clearwater to Miami as daughter Brooke prepares to release her first album and son Nick continues to delve into the sport of drift racing and make a name for himself in the sport. A special online series "Hogans Revealed" will debut on VH1's VSPOT site the same time the episodes air, and a special sneak peek of the episodes will also air on the site four days before they air on television. If you're thinking of having a family of your own some day and think the only way you can learn how it's done is to watch an aging wrestler with lots of money do it in front of a camera crew, then by cracky, this show was made just for you. Personally, I take all my child rearing advice from Randy "Macho Man" Savage, but to each his own.

Oh God, here we go.

Dustin Diamond, aka Screech from Saved By The Bell, told a Florida radio station that a woman mugged him in his hotel room. He says the woman busted into his hotel room with mace, grabbed some PSP games, then ran out. He had her for a few seconds against the hotel room door (she cried "rape"), but then she got away.

Luckily, his T-shirts are fine.

(S01E06) The very fact that you were willing to set a monkey on fire for us, that means a lot. - Kevin Beekin

This episode begins with the team talking to an image consultant about making Kevin look better when he's on camera. It seems most viewers don't find him very attractive and one even sent an e-mail saying his skin was so pock marked it looked like a Band-Aid. The consultant, like everyone else on the show, has no idea the news team is really a bunch of comedians, but she does manage to maintain her cool even when Marty tells her everything she's saying is wrong.

Tillie gets a call during the meeting about a girl who has been kidnapped in Florida, and the team begin to cheer and high five each other since this could be a story that gets them national exposure. It's also good news that she's a young, pretty white girl and not some Mexican grandfather, because no one tunes into the news for that sort of thing. Marty adds that the girl must be either found or killed before a certain date if it's to work into Kevin's schedule. It's a funny scene made even funnier by the fact that there's a woman in the room who has no idea it's all a gag.

CBS is the only network that has opted not to interrupt its programming tomorrow afternoon to cover the launch of Space Shuttle Discovery (FOX is in local access at that time). NBC and ABC will both cut in with reporters stationed in Florida and space shuttle experts on hand. NBC is planning to have NBC Sports break away from the U.S. Women's Open Championship to news anchor John Seigenthaler just before the launch, which is scheduled for 3:39 pm ET. CBS says it will have reporters at the event but will wait until the evening news to air its coverage. MSNBC, CNN, and FOX Newschannel will no doubt be going whole hog with their coverage, constantly reminding us of the shuttle tragedy in February 2003 when Columbia broke up as it entered the earth's atmosphere. Sadly, that tragedy is the reason the news networks even care about this launch, which is delivering two tons of supplies to the International Space Station. It took the deaths of seven brave astronauts for the mass media to remember that America even has a space program.

(S03E03) My brother Rich and I can both tell you about the grudges our grandparents had with people who, in the grand scheme of things, didn't seem to do much to earn that grudge. It could have been something as silly as a birthday card that was a few days late or a remark heard through an intermediary. But the passive-aggressive venom put forth from both sets of grandparents (one who lived in the Bronx, and one who lived in Florida) made it seem like the person being grudged against was the Jewish version of Joey Buttafuoco.

That's why "The Pen" is one of my all-time favorite episodes of Seinfeld. Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David did such a pitch-perfect job of capturing the silly pettiness that goes on in Floridian retirement communities, that when I first saw it, it took me right back to my mother's parents' condo in Lake Worth.

I loved this show as a kid. I know either Nickelodeon or TV Land showed repeats during the 90s, but I haven't seen it around since then. There was an update or two in the 90s too I, I believe, as well as that big screen movie with Elijah Wood, before he got Hobbitized.

The entire Flipper series - all 87 episodes - is going to be released on DVD by a Canadian company, kaBOOM! Entertainment. The first set will be released this fall, and then the other three sets will be released in 2007.

Brian Kelly, who played the father in the series, died last year. Luke Halpin, who played Sandy, is still involved in the movie industry, while Tommy Norden, who played Bud, retired from acting and works in his family business.

Holy hell! Clues to Lost are popping up on other networks! OK, it's not really a clue. It's more of a shout-out. But still, that's pretty cool. Sunday night's episode of The War at Home on FOX showed the feuding family flying to Florida in an Oceanic Airlines jet. As you can see from the screen grab, the actual Oceanic symbol was not on the plane, just the name.

If you're keeping track, I believe this makes the third non-ABC show that has given a nod to Lost. The numbers appeared in Veronica Mars on January 25th and Dwight on The Office mentioned The Others in the 'Boys and Girls' episode on February 3rd, and even blogged about his Lost theory. Of course, Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 was also mentioned in Alias way back during season one of Lost.

[Thanks, Doc!]

Is it wrong that, as a 30-year old woman, I am actually considering going to a Kelly Clarkson concert? Clarkson, my personal favorite American Idol contestant/winner, is hitting the road this summer. She launches a 24-city concert tour, called Addicted, on June 30th. The tour kicks off in West Palm Beach, Florida and wraps up in August in my backyard, Seattle. Clarkson will perform her songs from her Grammy-winning album, Breakaway, and will preview songs from her upcoming album, which should be released in late 2006 or early 2007. Her tour dates are listed on her official website.

I believe a refresher course in common sense is in order: If it's poisonous, don't eat it. If it's hot, don't touch it. If it's called Dallas, film it in Dallas, Texas. Well, now no one can say I didn't try. Apparently, the minds behind the upcoming big-screen version of Dallas have decided to film in, of all places, Jacksonville, Florida. First of all, is a remake of Dallas really necessary? Second of all... Jacksonville?! Wow, all this makes about as much sense as having Jennifer Lopez in the movie... Or having the British director of Bend It Like Beckham head the project. Next up: All the dialogue will be done... in the form of Gregorian chants!

Fake wrestling promoter and all around bombastic personality Vince McMahon is being accused by an employee of a Bocan Raton, Florida tanning salon of showing nude pictures of himself to her and trying to kiss her. The 22-year-old alleges McMahon showed her naked pictures of himself on his mobile phone, then followed her into a room and tried to kiss her and lift up her shirt. A customer who was there the same day described McMahon, whom she didn't know from TV, as "nothing but a gentleman." As is always the case with stories like this, the veracity of everyone's story has yet to be determined. McMahon has so far not been charged with anything.

Special thanks to Doug Stewart for tipping us off.

Jessica Sierra is being stalked by a 59-year-old man who says he fell in love with her when he saw her on American Idol last season. While she was on the show, he sent her jewelry and flowers. Tampa, Florida police say Paul Young left Sierra more than 40 voicemails in the last few months, telling her he loved her and he would go to jail for her. What an odd thing to say. When he showed up at the home of her grandmother recently, he was arrested. Young is currently in a Tampa jail, being held without bail.