Come and Knock on Her Door
It began when a pal posted a Facebook event. And down the rabbit hole I went. I discovered that I share my fondness for a 1970’s TV icon with thousands of other people.
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The Sounds of Silence From Broadcasting’s Corner Offices
Listen to the audio version of this post or skip it and read on as usual.
I’ve been sitting with this for a while. Broadcasting sisters message each other. We share stories of the horrors we’ve endured and how we tried to get our managers to do what was right. And how all too often, those managers squelched us. Treated us like we were trying to cause problems. Sent us back into the situation with no new tools to resolve it. No intervention from our so-called “leaders”.
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The Pain/Pleasure Principle
People often ask me why I’m no longer on the radio and whether I miss it. Radio and I had a long love affair. I loved it and it mostly loved me back. After a long career for which I’m eternally grateful, I grew frustrated with corporate owners who didn’t care about radio. When these giant companies swallowed up smaller players, the CRTC forced them to take radio stations even though all they wanted was TV. TV – specifically flagship TV stations in Toronto – is the favourite child. Radio is an afterthought. No, I don’t miss it. I miss the people, not the culture or the work.
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Fifteen Shades of Grey’s
In the early days of the pandemic, we started binge-watching Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix.
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Mr. Rogers’ Life Lessons
It’s taken me a while to digest the movie, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood. We saw it in Palm Springs with Rob and Erin and while I think we all enjoyed it, Mr. Rogers was such an unusual man that I needed to sit with the story for a while. The movie was quietly moving and its message deceptively simple: be kind.
…Rhoda and Me
Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern was my TV idol. As a sometimes-chubby, almost always self-conscious kid, she represented what I could become: confident, outspoken, and perfectly imperfect.
…All Hail Alejandro
American Idol – I know. Some people hate it. It’s been fascinating and annoying and – when Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj were on it – a waste of airtime. The show deserves the cynicism it attracts, too, with too many so-called Idols having faded into nothingness. Now it’s a little too sweet but I’ll take that over mean any day. And it’s almost over for another season.
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Regrets, I’ve Had a Few
Recently, as I scrolled through the headlines on news websites, regrets appeared in several headlines. They happened to involve celebrities but they’re certainly not particular to the famous.
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Throwback Thursday – Here’s The Story
Not only did I love The Brady Bunch TV show, sometimes I fantasized about being a Brady. Maybe a cousin, who visited often and hung out with Marcia and Jan as they did groovy things and had groovy sister fights. But being a Brady cousin was too close. How could I marry Greg if I was his cousin? Ewwwwww! …
Living History
Looking for something different to do last Friday, my pal Jenn suggested we check out the new broadcasting exhibit at Museum London. At the time, we didn’t realize it was the second anniversary of the death of our then-patriarch at Free-FM, Richard Costley-White. Fitting that we had stood in front of his photo at the Museum and remembered what a good guy he was. …
Long Gone Happy Days
Erin Moran never would have made it on a sitcom in this era of instant critics on social media. She was cute but she was ordinary. She didn’t have a 22-inch waist or DD boobs. Unless she could write her own show and work nude, like Lena Dunham, a girl like Erin Moran wouldn’t have been able to stay afloat in the Kardashian sea.  It’s simply a sad fact. …
Stuck in a TV Rut
What are you watching? Seriously…I need a show to get hooked on. …
Throwback Thursday – Rula Lenksa
I can’t remember how we got onto the topic on CJBK’s First Thing, although I am the queen of diverting the topic into semi-related subjects. I mentioned Rula Lenska, and the guys’ eyes all went blank. Rula Lenska separates the 50-somethings from those who are younger, because I got tweets and emails from listener/peers who knew exactly who I was talking about. …
Idle Television
Except for the first couple of seasons and one when Nicky Minaj was a judge, I’ve been a pretty faithful watcher of American Idol. The success of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Daughtry legitimized the reality show/talent hunt and it’s fun to watch these impossibly young kids develop into potential stars. …
Throwback Thursday – One Day at a Time
“Always remember, and please never forget…” With those words, Duane Schneider on the sitcom One Day at a Time would leave the room with some parting wisdom. …
Halt and Catch Fire
We’re a fortunate bunch, we TV viewers of today. We don’t have to suffer through endless summer reruns anymore. We can actually discover excellent new series and enjoy them when it rains or it’s too cool or buggy to be outside. …
Because I’m Not Busy Enough…
I’ve agreed to cohost a TV show for Rogers London, airing this fall. But production is already underway due to the enthusiasm of my cohost. …
Super Steamed
This steams me like Marilyn Monroe’s butt over a sewer grate.  And although it happened one week ago, my outrage has only grown. …