Month: January 2006 (Page 7 of 11)

George Takei is my hero

Ok, he’s not my hero, but after listening to him sit in on the Howard Stern show this week, I realize there is a lot more to Mr. Sulu than first meets the eye. I know it sounds like an odd combination, but Takei fits in well on the show. He has a great sense of humor, a velvet radio voice and surprisingly good timing.

But his best characteristic is that he’s a good sport. An Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonator called into the show and, despite the fact that the Governator talked about how he’d like to take drivers’ licenses away from Asians just before asking George for a reach-around, Takei was blissfully naive, happy to have the opportunity to question Fake Arnold about his decision to veto the same-sex marriage bill in California. Fake Arnold finally agreed to sign the bill. After the segment, Takei was excited about the fact that history had been made that day. Howard let George go on and on, but before the show was over, he finally let Takei in on the joke. Takei took it in stride and admitted that he can be quite naive at times.

Howard has already mentioned having Takei back on the show after his week-long stint is over. He was set to be the show’s announcer (from Los Angeles) but having him in the New York studio has helped the satellite version of the show get off to a great start.

It’s neither a bird nor a plane…

…but it IS Captain Video.

Not the guy from ’50s sci-fi TV with the cardboard sets and props that even kids with really great imaginations had trouble believing were real. No, this guy takes videos from the ’80s and gives them a scene-by-scene onceover, with hysterical results.

You’ll be checking back for updates on a regular basis, trust me…

Anyone who lampoons Zip Zap Rap is a friend of mine

Entertainment Weekly sang the praises for this vid a few weeks ago, and rightly so. Morningwood, the latest It Band from New York, has made one of the funniest, most clever videos you’re likely to see all year in “Nth Degree,” with the members of the band imitating album covers both classic (Kraftwerk, Ramones) and ghastly (click here if you haven’t seen the now-famous ‘worst album covers ever’ page). This is funny, funny stuff. The song is pretty catchy, too.

Stern’s debut on Sirius (from an actual listener)

The Howard Stern show premiered on Sirius satellite radio yesterday. For those that have been living under a rock, Stern made the move to satellite because he was fed up with the restrictions of traditional terrestrial radio. The thought of uncensored Stern might frighten some people, but after listening to the first show, it really isn’t all that much different. Sure, instead of saying “the F-word,” he throws in the occasional “f*ck,” but Stern himself said that he doesn’t want the format to revolve around curse words, which just get boring with overuse.

The show’s new announcer is George Takei (Mr. Sulu on the original Star Trek), who will be serving as the “voice of the Howard Stern show.” Aside from being openly gay, Takei has a pretty good sense of humor and seems to fit in well with the rest of the cast.

The show had some technical difficulties early on, feedback and such, but after a few minutes, the show sounded fine. The content was traditional Stern – the highlight being the “revelations” – each member of the show admitted to one shocking thing they’ve done (or had done to them). Stern read the revelations and, in a week, he’ll reveal which revelation applies to which cast member. Considering some of the subject matter (cheating on your wife and getting caught, masturbating in a closet while family members go to the bathroom, waking up in the hospital after having your stomach pumped, only to find a same-sex acquaintance fondling your genitals) the revelations should provide some good material next week.

All in all, it’s good to hear Howard with the freedom he’s always wanted. Only time will tell if this move will be a good one for Stern, but so far, it sounds like he’s rejuvenated and energized, and ready to conquer a new medium.

« Older posts Newer posts »