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Bill Mann: TV Critic's Call: Here Are The Decade's 10 Best Series

2009-12-14T11:21:34Z

Usually at this time each year, my fellow TV critics across the nation assemble our Ten Best TV Shows of the Year lists. But this year, many are issuing their lists of Top 10 best shows of the decade about to end.

Here's this critic's holiday "gift" to readers - my Top 10 shows of the almost-past decade: (Note that many of these were on HBO, which hit its creative stride this decade before fading.)

1. The Sopranos. Great writing plus superb acting equals - ba da bing - uncommon excellence. Normally, I don't watch mob movies or shows. This one I couldn't miss. Adult entertainment at its best. Two staffers told me that producing scripts for this HBO Emmy-winning series was "a writer's dream."

2. Deadwood: This HBO wild-west anarchy drama, which ran, sadly, for far too few episodes, featured stellar performances (most notably, Ian McShane as the cynical boom-town overlord) and jaw-droppingly dense dialogue, almost Shakespearean in its tone and style. (That's not an overstatement, either. Rent it and see.)
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3. The Wire (HBO). Possibly TV's most compelling drama ever, and the fact that this extended story set in Baltimore's drug-saturated inner city didn't win Emmies is, well, criminal and possibly even racist. Another series one must rent, this feels as authentic as a slap in the face. Much more than a cop show, David Simon's masterwork also examined the brutal realities of urban politics and also, inner-city school blight.

4. The Colbert Report (Comedy Central): Currently my one won't-miss show, it combines bright, hip, first-rate comedy writing with a host who's ultra-smart and an unusually gifted physical comic. And no one else is talking about gun control (or Canada.)

5. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart (Comedy Central): This acclaimed and informed faux newscast is a shade behind Colbert in quality - mostly because of annoying and untalented "correspondents" like Rob Corddry, Samantha Bee, and Rob Riggle. But Stewart does some great shtick, and he alone calls out cable news for its too-common excesses and biases. The Republicans and Fox News looneytoons have been comedy gold for Stewart.

6. Mad Men (AMC) Currently TV's standout drama, this stylish ad-agency workplace tale is the one show HBO never should have let get away. It could have perpetuated the proud brand name that's lost some lustre.

7. Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO) Currently TV's funniest show hands down, creator/star Larry David's neurotic daily adventures (Seinfeld's George Costanza is his alter ego) are where I first heard the term "teabagging," and where viewers have found TV's edgiest comedy for several years.

8. Extras (HBO) Rick Gervais' original The Office on BBC remains by far the best version. This, Gervais' follow-up Beeb series, examines in painful (but funny) detail the indignities and insecurities performers bear -- also, the dubious fame conferred by stardom in a dimbulb sitcom was fertile ground for this ultra-bright comedy frequented by big-name guest stars like Kate Winslet and David Bowie.

9. The Shield (FX): Michael Chiklis was brilliant and even scary at times as a pit-bull cop. Along with "The Wire," one of the best two police-centered shows ever.

10. The West Wing (NBC): About the only escape we had from the Bush White House for several long years, it was an understandable, welcome fantasy. Too bad the show went downhill so fast after 9-11 when it began taking itself (like M*A*S*H did) too seriously.

Honorable Mention: Countdown With Keith Olbermann (MSNBC); Weeds (Showtime); Fareed Zakaria GPS (CNN); The Office (BBC version).

Happy Holidays!

Stars Turn Out To Honor Producer Weintraub In LA

2009-12-11T12:54:42Z

BEVERLY HILLS, California — The A-list dinner party drew top performers and singing legends.

George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bruce Willis, Larry David, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie gathered around Jerry Weintraub's table at the posh UNICEF Ball in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel ballroom Thursday night to honor the legendary producer's philanthropic work. Clooney presented Weintraub with the Danny Kaye Humanitarian Award, named after the late singer-actor.

"Curb Your Enthusiasm" Finale Includes New "Seinfeld" Episode (VIDEO)

2009-11-23T09:37:46Z

SPOILERS AHEAD*: It took over a decade, but "Seinfeld"-less fans finally received a new episode. Sort of. This season's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" followed Larry as he put together a reunion in an attempt win back Cheryl, and last night the results were finally unveiled.

For any "Seinfeld" fan, the season has been a dream come true. Not only were the characters reunited, but we finally saw them interact with Larry, the neurotic man who put it all together. Especially hilarious was Larry's ongoing feud with Jason Alexander, who given the character he made famous, can be considered the "Bizarro Larry." The tip at lunch, the borrowed pen, and even last night's competition for Chery's affection - it was all glorious.

Throughout the series, Larry has worn his connection to George as a badge of honor, taking offense when anyone referred to the character as a "yutz" or "schmuck." His pride reached new heights last night as he got the chance to play the character himself when Jason Alexander threatened to quit.

Nothing was left unaddressed as the season even made sure to touch upon topics like Michael Richards' racist tirade at the Laugh Factory in 2006. It also caught us up on the characters' lives since the finale: Elaine gave birth to Jerry's child, George created an iPhone app (the iToilet), and Jerry analyzed it all.

Since plot-lines from the real "Seinfeld" were often based on actual events from the real life Larry David, it was only fitting that there were references to his fake life on the fake reunion. So alas, here it is, in all its glory. New "Seinfeld." New neuroses. New nothing.

*Spoilers for both the real finale of Curb and the fake reunion of Seinfeld

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"Curb Your Enthusiasm" Takes On Michael Richards Fiasco (VIDEO)

2009-11-16T10:58:57Z

Last night marked the penultimate "Curb" episode featuring the "Seinfeld" cast, and while we've learned a lot about what's happened to the characters since the show went of air (Elaine gave birth to Jerry's child who calls him "uncle," George lost all his money in Madoff's ponzi scheme) we've heard little of the actors' real lives...until now. In the episode dubbed "The Table Read," Leon Black and Michael Richards had a run-in. Richards yelled, "I'm so pissed off I could put this hat up your ass...You made a chump out of me...If only there were a horrible name that I could call you that would make you as angry as I am." At this point dozens of people had gathered around them filming him with their camera phones, just like what happened in 2006 when Richards went on a racist tirade at the Laugh Factory in real life. In that instance he yelled at heckler saying, "Fifty years ago we'd have you upside down with a f***ing fork up your ass...Throw his ass out. He's a n***er! He's a n***er! He's a n***er!"

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Lennard Davis: Mickey Becomes a Rat And We All Like It: Why Are Our Heroes All Dark?

2009-11-11T12:47:48Z

As a kid I loved Mickey Mouse -- his high, shrill voice, and his madcap love of life. I wanted to be a mouseketeer and join all those nice, well-kept kids on the Disney TV show who seemed to embody the ideals of what America was all about.

But what's happened to Mickey? I read today that Disney is about to launch a new Mickey video game in which our hero's sunny personality is going "dark side." Mickey, that loveable mouse, will become a rodent and wander through a cartoon wasteland meeting bitter and disappointed characters who resent his success. In making Mickey more sinister, Disney follows in a trend toward media characters who are no longer Mr. Nice Guys. Now television doctors like House, cutthroat lawyers like Glenn Close in Damages, grumpy comedians like Larry David, and philandering working fathers like Don Draper in Madmen -- all have deeply dark, self-destructive sides to them.

When I was growing up and loving Mickey, television characters were meant to be role models of normality and sanity. I and many of my generation grew up feeling that families like those in Leave it to Beaver and Ozzie and Harriet had their ups and downs but were basically havens in a heartless world. Fathers never lost their tempers and always knew, while mothers kept their quiet wisdom and love in their suburban kitchens. Cowboys were good, and the bad guys were bad, and there was no confusing the two.

Of course, my own family living in the multicultural Bronx lived in a walk-up apartment utterly unlike the suburban world I saw on television. My dad worked in a factory and there was only one bedroom in our apartment and surely no den for him to smoke his pipe in. My mom took in sewing to make ends meet, and wasn't the leisurely homemaker that Lassie's Mom was. While it was comforting to see those ideal images, it was also confusing. While they had no dark side, we certainly did. My Dad yelled, my Mom was depressed, both of them were disabled, and I was not particularly agreeable myself.

Now our television shows are filled with confused men and women who philander, masturbate, harbor homicidal thoughts if not actions, take drugs freely, have anonymous sex, sabotage others and abuse themselves. And we like that.

When I was a kid I desperately wanted the normality I saw on TV. It was a strange normal though, with talking mice and unreal people -- but it was something to aspire to. Yet there is a comfort now in the idea that Don Draper and House are no better or worse than I am. They, like all of us, have to live in a morally ambiguous world in which there is no bright star showing the way to the right road. It's tough being a human, or a mouse, and maybe our dark sides, if we acknowledge them, will show us the light.

Kevin Grandia: Laurie David, Will You Marry Me?

2009-10-30T14:17:59Z

I really don't know what to make of this video. At the least it's very entertaining, but I don't know if it will woo the likes of Laurie David to the altar!

Catholic League Angered By Larry David Peeing On Jesus

2009-10-28T15:05:33Z

**UPDATE**

HBO has sent us the following response:

"Anyone who follows Curb Your Enthusiasm knows that the show is full of parody and satire. Larry David makes fun of everyone, most especially himself. The humor is always playful and certainly never malicious. "

---

On Sunday's 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' Larry David was taking a "new pill" that caused him to urinate with excessive force. This caused a lot of splash back, some of which ended up on a Jesus painting hanging on the bathroom wall of his pious assistant, who later sees Jesus "crying" and assumes a miracle has taken place.

Catholics are not amused. Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, said in a statement:

Mention Larry David in a word association game and "Seinfeld" rolls off the lips. That show, which David created, wrote and produced, was brilliant. "Curb Your Enthusiasm" is not. Indeed, last night's episode demonstrates that David's best years are behind him. He ought to quit while he's ahead.

At one point in the show, David goes to the bathroom in a Catholic home and splatters urine on a picture of Jesus; he doesn't clean it off. Then a Catholic woman goes to the bathroom, sees the picture and concludes that Jesus is crying. She then summons her equally stupid mother and the two of them fall to their knees in prayer. When David and Jerry Seinfeld (playing himself) are asked if they ever experienced a miracle, David answers, "every erection is a miracle." That's what passes for creativity these days.

Was Larry David always this crude? Would he think it comedic if someone urinated on a picture of his mother? This might be fun to watch, but since HBO only likes to dump on Catholics (it was just a couple of weeks ago that Sarah Silverman insulted Catholics on "Real Time with Bill Maher"), and David is Jewish, we'll never know.

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Leon T. Hadar: The Shape of Things to Come: War before Peace in the Mideast

2009-10-28T12:19:56Z

Not unlike the local weatherman who was being accused by Larry David in an episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" of falsely forecasting rain in order to clear the golf course, political analysts and financial experts have been faulted for allegedly elevating wishful thinking or biased opinion to the status of reliable forecasts in an effort to promote specific personal or institutional agendas; the Republican strategist forecasting his party's election victory is hoping to influence the outcome of the vote or the investment analyst hyping a favorite company to raise the value of its stock.

So for the record: my predictions about what's going to happen in the Middle East don't reflect any personal interest or political agenda. In fact, as someone who has been committed to bringing an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and to reaching peace in the Middle East, the notion that all these wonderful things are not going to happen anytime soon runs contrary to my own wishful thinking.

But as someone who has been a proud member of the Reality-Based Community I need to maintain a certain consistency when it comes to the Middle East. During the debate over the Iraq War, I challenged the notion advanced by neoconservative ideologues that Iraq could be transformed into a liberal democracy as a first step towards remaking the Middle East, and predicted that the Freedom Agenda would produce a big mess in the region. So as President Barack Obama is creating new expectations about his plans to re-energize the peace process and help resolve the clash between Jews and Arabs in the Promised Land, I wish I had faith in his ability to deliver it. But as a hard-core Realpolitik type I need to face reality and to conclude that Obama's peace-processing has reached a dead-end, and that the next round of diplomacy in the Middle East diplomacy would come only after the next round of war in the region.

Indeed, the two most dramatic and serious efforts to make peace between Arabs and Israelis had transpired only after devastating military confrontations demonstrated that the costs of maintaining the diplomatic status-quo were not sustainable. Hence, while American diplomacy helped advance the Egyptian-Israeli peace process, beginning with the disengagement agreement of 1974 and 1975 and culminating in the Camp David Accord of 1978, it was the 1973 Middle East War that opened this road to peace. And it was the First Palestinian Intifadah or uprising (1987-93) that led directly to the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

In the aftermath of the electoral victory of Obama, I had experienced an acute case of foreign policy schizophrenia. The Realpolitik side of my persona remained skeptical about the new president's ability to revive the dormant Israeli-Palestinian peace process. I recalled that in 2000, when Washington had embarked on its last Mideast peace processing, the United States was at the apex of international power in a unipolar world, and the Israelis and the Palestinians were led by strong and more moderate leaderships than today. But even at that time, the Clinton Administration could not significantly advance Israeli-Palestinian. Hence, there was little reason to expect that Obama, leading an overstretched military and an economy in recession, would become an effective peacemaker in 2009.

But applying Samuel Johnson's maxim about a second marriage, that it was "the triumph of hope over experience," hope seemed to prevail in my thinking. It was possible that using use his charismatic and cosmopolitan persona, including his quasi-Muslim roots, Obama would succeed in re-energizing U.S. diplomatic influence in the Middle East and be in position to bring about Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation.

Ten months into the new administration it seems that notwithstanding his commitment to resolving the conflict, Obama is finding it close to impossible to move toward an agreement at a time of weak political leadership on both sides and when there is no sign of the narrowing of the gap between the two national communities over the core existential issues that have separated them, such as the fate of Jerusalem and of the "right of return" of the 1947 Palestinian refugees. In reality, the Obama Administration has failed to produce the first scene in the movie in which the Israelis were supposed to end the buildup of new Jewish settlements and the Saudis were expected to respond with "gestures" to the Israelis.

I'm familiar with the counter-arguments. Obama needs to stand-up to the nationalist Israeli government and its supporters in Washington. But let's face it. That's not going to happen any time soon as Obama continues to confront major domestic (health care; unemployment) and foreign (Afghanistan; Iraq) challenges and is not ready to start a costly battle on a new political front even if the guys in J Street are going to fight on his side.

So we are back in square one -- the status-quo -- where the road to Jerusalem seems to be blocked. But we've been there before. In the aftermath of the Israeli victory in the 1967 Middle East War, Israelis governments were operating under the assumption that, "It's better to have war with us having Sinai than peace without Sinai," as Israel's legendary military figure Moshe Dayan put it. By launching the 1973 War, the late Egyptian President Anwar Sadat challenged the status-quo and helped transform Israeli strategic calculations. The Palestinian uprising had also shaken-up the status-quo and demonstrated to the Israelis that the long-term occupation of the Palestinian territories ceased to be a realistic proposition.

Hence, expect the current status-quo in the Middle East to be disturbed -- sooner rather than later. Another Palestinian uprising, a new Israeli-Hizbollah war, a confrontation between Israel and Iran -- or a combination of all the above -- would then create the conditions for the next round of Middle East diplomacy. I do hope that Obama will prove me wrong. But I'm afraid that once again, experience is going to triumph over hope.

Larry David And Joy Behar Crack Jokes, Talk About Days In Stand-Up (VIDEO)

2009-10-07T22:30:14Z

CNN posted a preview of Joy Behar's interview with Larry David tomorrow night, and it is hilarious. In the clip they talk about doing stand-up in the old days, and Larry relates how his favorite explorer is Magellan because he circumnavigated the globe - "the others just went to Africa."

David became mortified when Behar told him her producers had dug up an old video of him doing stand-up and begged her not to play it, but of course she did and we were treated to a very young Larry David with a full head of dark hair cracking jokes.

The best was when he was relating how irritable and temperamental he used to be as a comic, and he told the story how he once went on a stage to do his routine, took a look at the crowd, and then shook his head and said, "No, I don't think so," before just walking off stage.

The producers can be heard cracking up throughout the clip. Catch the full interview tomorrow night at 9pm on CNN Headline News.

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Larry David's Fist Fight With Rosie O'Donnell

2009-10-03T08:58:06Z

Larry David and Rosie O'Donnell got in a fist fight, David told Dave Letterman on Friday night's show (pretaped earlier in the week, before the Letterman extortion news).

The fight, it seems, was taped for an episode of David's show "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

"She's a formidable opponent," Larry told Dave with a smile.

The much-anticipated "Seinfeld" reunion begins Sunday on "Curb."

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'Seinfeld' Gang On 'Curb': A Sneak Peek

2009-10-01T09:12:01Z

NEW YORK — You know you want it.

You may never have said it out loud, that you wanted a "Seinfeld" reunion. Why would you, cool "Seinfeld" fan that you are? You know TV reunions are lame. You also know the "Seinfeld" gang is way too cool to stoop to doing one.

Curb Your Enthusiasm, "Funkhouser's Crazy Sister": Reviewing the season premiere

2009-09-20T21:31:41Z

Funkhouser (Bob Einstein) with Larry (Larry David) and Jeff (Jeff Garlin) on the "Curb Your Enthusiasm" season premiere.Quick spoilers for the "Curb Your Enthusiasm" season premiere coming up just as soon as I condescend to you with a tiny pear......

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Curb Your Enthusiasm 's Greatest Moments (VIDEO)

2009-09-19T08:47:56Z

PopEater celebrates the return of Larry David and the seventh season of Curb Your Enthusiasm Sunday night on HBO. We cannot wait to see how David's Seinfeld story line plays out.

In honor of our favorite curmudgeon, we selected highlights from David's remarkable run. The list started off at 10 clips, but quickly became larger as we realized we couldn't leave any of these on the cutting room floor. We'll stress it in bold and CAPS: EXPLICIT, NON-PC, VULGAR, NOT SAFE FOR WORK, NOT SAFE FOR KIDDIES. Consider yourself warned. [CLICK THROUGH TO WATCH]

'Curb Your Enthusiasm' preps for a 'Seinfeld' reunion - Sepinwall on TV

2009-09-17T06:46:28Z

The "Seinfeld" cast reuniting on "Curb Your Enthusiasm" with Larry David."You know those reunion shows, they're so lame, really," Larry David suggests in an upcoming episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm." "They never work. The actors are 10 years older. It...

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Bob Cesca: With a Health Care Plan This Insane, Who Needs Wingnuts?

2009-09-16T15:58:04Z

There's one positive political aspect to this epic fight for health care reform. We now know for sure which congressional Democrats have to be vigorously challenged and defeated the next time they come up for re-election.

The health care reform debate has forced the toxic slag to gurgle to the surface and consequently revealed a few Democratic senators who, at every turn in this process, have proved to be far more interested in protecting their own asses by way of protecting the asses of their bosses in the health care mafia.

Suffice to say, Joe Lieberman has to be sending lots of "thank you" gift baskets and ponies and backrubs to the offices of Max Baucus and Kent Conrad. In fact, Baucus and Conrad -- the matchstick men of health care reform -- have been so insufferable, I almost forgot about Lieberman. Almost.

In fact, apart from the Republicans from whom we expected outlandish lies and cartoonish behavior, Baucus and Conrad have been much more obstructionist and damaging to real health care reform, chiefly because they possess a disproportionate level of power in relation to the nine people in the upper Midwest they represent, and because their ideas would be laughable if they weren't so ineffectual and dangerous.

To wit: Baucus Plan is just as craptastical as we all suspected it might be.

First, Baucus' entire goal was to construct a bipartisan plan. Mission accomplished. Insofar as both parties hate it. Just as we predicted, Baucus tailored his plan to appeal to the Republicans who, as it turns out, don't support the plan anyway. For example, one of his concessions to the Republicans was tort reform language which not only won't work, but has also failed to bring in any Republicans (bad policy -- bad politics). Meanwhile, the bill is so diluted and bad that roughly half of the Democrats on the Finance Committee appear to be opposed to it. Good job, senator!

Furthermore, as I described last week, there are individual mandates, but no public insurance option. Baucus included his buddy Conrad's pathetic co-ops which are destined to fail due to their limited bargaining power.

The government subsidies in the Baucus Plan don't extend deep enough into the middle class in order to protect families from massive health care debt if a family-member becomes sick or injured. Put another way, mandates would imprison families and force them to buy insurance policies that could still bankrupt them if they actually need to use their insurance for an emergency situation like an accident or being diagnosed with cancer.

The Baucus Plan also discriminates against low-income Americans. In one of the most awful provisions of the plan, the "free rider" provision, Baucus taxes businesses for each hiree who qualifies for subsidies. So this tax incentivizes businesses to not hire poor or disadvantaged workers. (How this tax is determined is corrected in the UPDATE below.)

The list goes on and on.

By Max Baucus' own estimation, his plan carries a price tag of $880 billion over ten years. The press is tossing some very serious kudos and political cover his way because this is clearly less than the $1 trillion mark. It's also $20 billion less than the number President Obama mentioned in his address to Congress last week. And it's the Baucus Plan that many centrist Democrats -- the budget hawks and fiscal conservatives -- appear to prefer.

Allow me to underline this again. The centrist Democrats prefer a bill that more closely resembles the Baucus Plan which will cost around $880 billion over ten years. Fiscal conservatives prefer this. Lawmakers who are worried about government spending appear to be supporting a plan that would cost around $880 billion.

But wait. If the centrist Democrats were legitimately worried about government spending and deficits, they ought to be supporting the Kennedy Bill (the HELP Committee bill) instead, which, according to the CBO, clocks in at $611 billion over ten years, due in part to the inclusion of the public option.

Unless we use backwards wingnut math, $611 billion is significantly less than $880 billion. So the incontrovertible reality is that the Kennedy Bill is the more fiscally conservative health care reform bill. So why aren't the self-proclaimed fiscal conservatives in the Democratic Party flocking to embrace it?

The answers are obvious. One, the fiscal conservatives aren't always fiscally conservative (most of them voted for the Bush wars, the Bush tax cuts and the Bush Medicare Part-D blank check). And two, the Baucus Plan forces you and me to pay more cash to their contributors in the health insurance industry. This works out very nicely for senators like Max Baucus who, as Roy Sekoff pointed out, has pocketed millions in contributions from the health care industry.

So how do the blue dogs and conservadems worm their way around the glaring inconsistency between their so-called "fiscal conservatism" and the cost of the Baucus Plan?

Enter Senator Kent Conrad. Ryan Grim reported Tuesday that Conrad is changing the rules in the middle of the game in order give more weight to the Finance Committee bill and, in the process, "kneecapping" the bills with the public option -- the Kennedy Bill and the House bill. In short, Conrad has asked the CBO to use cost projections that span 20 years instead of the 10 year terms the office had been previously employing.

This will make health care reform more difficult to pass because the cost projections will balloon and will be less accurate to predict over an unwieldy 20 year span -- especially the bills with the relatively new public insurance plan. Plus, due to the political stigma on the more liberal bills, the significantly larger price tags will hurt those bills the most, allowing more room for demagoguery.

Put in medical terms, Conrad has infected all of the reform bills with a virus, and he's calculating that the inaccurately perceived "fiscally conservative" bill will have a stronger chance of surviving the pandemic. He's willing to risk crushing the entire reform effort before he allows the Kennedy or House bills to become law. Yeah, and they say the House progressives are the troublemakers. That's rich.

Nevertheless, the Baucus Plan is better than the current system. But that's kind of like saying, to paraphrase Larry David, it's the "good Hodgkins" -- cancerous, but not as deadly. Either way, their obvious and hackish corruption coupled with this awful plan has made it easy for us to pick the villains out of a lineup. We can be grateful for that, at least. Now it's just a matter of what we do with this stockpile of information.

UPDATE: Ezra Klein, whose blog post about the "free rider" provision is linked here, has revised his post summarizing this discriminatory section of the plan. In short: "The employer will pay the lesser of A) the average subsidy in the exchange times the number of subsidized workers or B) $400 times the total number of workers."

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Larry David Talks "Seinfeld" Reunion, Writing Again With Jerry (VIDEO)

2009-09-16T15:34:39Z

CNN caught up with "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star Larry David and asked him a few questions about the hotly anticipated "Seinfeld" reunion that will occur during the new season of "Curb." David said he's been asked for years about a possible "Seinfeld" reunion and always insisted he would never do it until he began thinking it "might be a really good" to do it on "Curb."

Calling the reunion "a pretty ambitious idea," David said the whole cast was "thrilled to be there," and that writing with Jerry still came naturally: "We actually wrote together on the episode. It was great. We got back into it without missing a beat."

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Meredith C. Carroll: The Fading Status of Glamour Gulch

2009-09-15T07:00:00Z

Despite finishing third in this summer's Tour de France, seven-time champion Lance Armstrong remained the big man on campus in Aspen, Colorado, because his son was born a few weeks prior to the start of the race at Aspen Valley Hospital. The cycling legend's presence around town put Aspen back into the conversation as a getaway for the rich and famous.

Other than Armstrong, it appears as if former gossip page mainstay Aspen has fallen from the A-list to the zzzzzzzz-list. Once known as the snowy playground of the Hollywood elite, in recent years the mountain hamlet's celebrity ski conditions have seemed more like mashed potatoes than champagne powder.

One of the area's most legendary dwellers, Goldie Hawn, is more famous lately for being the mother of actress Kate Hudson than anything else. The 1969 Academy Award-winner, whose last memorable hit was likely nitrous oxide in the dentist's chair, complained to The Aspen Times in 2008 that the paparazzi in town had gotten so bad during the holiday season, "They're right on top of you...they follow you wherever you go. It's an insult to your being."

What Hawn might have found more troubling than the paparazzi, however, is that they were probably harassing her so she'd move out of the way, as she was blocking the money shot of her tabloid staple daughter, who was walking next to her.

Melanie Griffith, a recent cover girl for Aspen Peak magazine (ironically and otherwise known as the glossy where Hollywood careers go to die), is an Aspen stalwart. Her husband, Antonio Banderas, who has seemingly done more Nasonex commercials than films, has become best known for being the voice of an animated cat (albeit an adorably feisty animated cat, Puss in Boots) who gets third billing behind an ogre and an ass.

Until a few years ago, Griffith's ex-husband Don Johnson maintained an Aspen-area address, too. But when the tip jar in a neighborhood bar put up a sign asking for contributions to help pay off Johnson's debts at local grocery and liquor stores, the one-time Miami Vice and Nash Bridges star must have taken that as a sign that it was time to move on and out.

More people went to see Aspenite Kevin Costner play with his band at local music venue Belly Up (capacity: 450) in July than his last film, Swing Vote. Homeowner Jack Nicholson is most likely to be featured on Entertainment Tonight only when yet another scantily clad twenty-something is spied helping him stumble out of a nightclub with his belly hanging out over his pants.

Mariah Carey makes her annual 12-minute pilgrimage to Aspen each year at Christmastime, smiles for the cameras outside the Louis Vuitton and Buccellati boutiques and then glides over the slush and ice in her 6-inch stilettos and one-piece mink-lined snowsuit back to her private plane at Sardy Field. Regardless, since her new album's release date has ominously been pushed back twice, it's unlikely Aspen or anything else other than her bra will be getting a boost from her presence.

A smattering of Kennedys find their way to Sardy Field every year, too, but they don't garner the same kind of buzz in Aspen as they do in Hyannis Port (although at 7,890 feet they probably get a better buzz). The Kennedys' Cape Cod neighbor, Martha's Vineyard, continues to maintain its spot as an A-list resort with celebrity denizens like Larry David and Ted Danson.

While Danson has yet to duplicate the kind of success he had on "Cheers," Bill and Hillary Clinton are his frequent houseguests, and they'll always be A-list. Plus the Obamas vacationed on the Vineyard last month, and a visit from a non-working, sitting president is a guaranteed shot of adrenaline to the status of any town (with the exception of Crawford, Texas).

With Ralph Lauren, Oprah Winfrey and Tom Cruise (couch-jumping Scientologist or not, he's still A-list) calling it their (second, third, fourth or fifth) home, Telluride is solidly an A town, too. So is Vail, just because it is.

Neighboring resort and perennial Vail shadow, Beaver Creek, had longtime local Gerald Ford, putting both the resort and the president squarely on the B-list. (You sort of actually have to be elected to something with the word "president" in the title and actually serve a full term in order to be considered an A-list president).

Park City has Robert Redford, but any halo effect of his A-list ranking on the town is canceled out by D-listers like Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan who invade the Wasatch Mountain burg for the swag suites during the Sundance Film Festival. Sun Valley is A-list all the way with Tom Hanks, Clint Eastwood, Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher and Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

At least Aspen has Lance. His bronze showing in France might not have landed him on the cover of Sports Illustrated, but he'll show Puss In Boots who's the man on the washed-up streets of Aspen.

Meredith C. Carroll writes a weekly column for The Aspen Times, Summit Daily News and Santa Monica Daily Press.

Larry David Talks 'Seinfeld' Reunion on 'Curb,' Working With Michael Richards

2009-09-14T16:42:38Z

The 'Seinfeld' reunion on this season's 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' is the only one we'll ever see, Larry David told us during a conference call. But it will last for five of the eight episodes and include a few brief cameos--Bania! George's mom!--in addition to performances by co-stars Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the embattled Michael Richards. The season will also see cameos by Meg Ryan, Rosie O'Donnell, Christian Slater, Elisabeth Shue, Sharon Lawrence and Catherine O'Hara.

Here's what Larry had to say about the 'Seinfeld' reunion, future seasons of 'Curb' and playing golf with President Obama. Season 7 begins this Sunday at 9 pm EST.

Are you happy with how the 'Seinfeld' reunion turned out?
"I'm thrilled. But then I was happy with how the 'Seinfeld' finale turned out, so maybe you've got the wrong guy."

How much have you kept in touch with the 'Seinfeld' cast, and Michael Richards in particular, in recent years?
"I've kept in touch with all of them to varying degrees. Michael went through a very traumatic experience, really. He's been quite chastened by it. What he did on 'Curb' it didn't affect him at all since he was very funny on the show. But I know it's deeply affected him personally."

How many times in the past ten years have you been approached to do a 'Seinfeld' reunion?
"It's come up quite often. People asked me and I said no. That's probably why it was in my head. I never considered it and I never will consider it. ''Curb' Your Enthusiasm' is the only way it could have ever gotten done. We didn't really do a reunion. We did a faux reunion. We're doing episodes of 'Curb.'"

How has your treatment of Jewish humor changed since 'Seinfeld'?
"It's not something I think about. My thinking hasn't changed on the matter since I started doing 'Seinfeld'. If it's something that I can use comedically, I will if I think it's funny. The more people I can offend, the better. The only difference is that on 'Seinfeld' we did have a lot of people watching who did get offended by many of the things we did because it was a network show. But the people who are watching ''Curb' Your Enthusiasm' on HBO are paying, so they want to see this kind of thing."

How much of Larry David do we really see on the show?
"I've always said that my personality is a lot truer on the show than it is in life. So you're really seeing my personality. What you're getting now and what most people get daily is a dishonest human being."

Can you give us a preview of the Larry-Cheryl relationship this season?
"A lot of the season is about that. I don't want to get too specific, but obviously the only reason I'm doing the reunion show is to try to get her back."

Does that reflect some sort of thinking that went on in your real life where you were thinking, 'what if I did something extreme like the reunion show to get my own wife back'?
"You know, I don't think I'm going to answer that question."

Can we expect to see you coming back for another season next year?
"It's possible. I'll think about it in the next couple of months. There's a couple of ideas. I don't think any will be as good as the 'Seinfeld' idea though. It's going to be hard to top that. I'll have to admit."

You were playing golf on Martha's Vineyard at the same time as President Obama this summer. Did you get a chance to check out his game?
"I was actually on the golf course at the same time he was but we didn't cross paths. I haven't seen his golf game but I don't think much of my own. It's hard for me to disparage other swings."

Would you like to challenge President Obama to a game of golf?
"I think it would have been fun. Maybe next summer."

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Waylon Lewis: Is Larry David Right? Can Dogs be "Racist"? This is a Job for Cesar Millan

2009-09-02T14:32:51Z

While my best friend "Redford" is a happy-go-lucky, super-social, tail-wagging, progressive-minded, equal-opportunity pooch, he's deathly afraid of security guards and has taken an unexpected nip or two at the outstretched, friendly hands of homeless people. And he almost always growls at them. How does he even know they're "bums," who are generally just nice gents who want to pet him? And why doesn't he like them? It's embarrassing, and, if he were ever to bite one, dangerous.

Then, there's the common urban myth -- or truth? -- about dogs and African-Americans. Some say that dogs can't see darker faces as well, and so act nervous or hostile. In any case, search "racist dog" on YouTube, as I just did, so as to find the Curb Your Enthusiasm episode below that my friend Lindsey and I watched last night (and that sparked the posting of this question), and you'll find hundreds of videos. So something's going on here.

My question is, what?

And how do we teach our confused furry pals that security guards, homeless gentlemen or African-Americans aren't anything to be afraid of? This is a (strange) job for Cesar Millan, my idol.

Bonus: Cesar Millan, in action.

Seinfeld Reunion Sneak Preview

2009-08-27T10:40:02Z

For the first time since 'Seinfeld' went off the air 11 years ago, the cast will appear onscreen together as Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer--on season 7 of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm.' Larry David, who plays Larry David on the show, wrangles the old crew together for a 'Seinfeld' meta-reunion taping. Entertainment Weekly has a sneak peek.

David is cagey on plot details, and will only hint that "Larry attempts to get [his estranged wife] Cheryl back, and the Seinfeld reunion figures prominently in that." Adds Louis-Dreyfus, "It's the anti-reunion reunion, and I'd like to copyright that."

Michael Richards has been most famous for his racist hate speech and mea culpa in recent years, but he said he had no trouble getting back in character.

"I'd always kept Kramer's shoes," he said. "Once I got those shoes on, and I'm standing behind the door of Jerry's apartment, I was ready."

Jason Alexander likewise slipped right back into being George Costanza.

"Just before we shot that scene, I said to Jerry and Julia, 'I don't know if I can be George. I haven't tried him on in a while,'" recalls Alexander. "And it was freaky how it just came right back out."

The seventh season of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' starts September 20 on HBO. Look for the 'Seinfeld' cast to enter in episode 3 and stick around for five of the final eight episodes.

You can read the entire EW story here.

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Read more: Larry David, Entertainment News

Commence Enthusiasm

2009-08-24T14:06:01Z

Please enjoy this 30-second teaser for 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' in which Larry David furiously attempts to free a GPS receiver from its plastic packaging.

Read more: Larry David, Home News

Larry David Plays Coy About Highly Anticipated Seinfeld Reunion on Curb Your Enthusiasm

2009-07-31T12:30:51Z

We do, however, find out that this will be an extensive plot thread for the show's seventh season.

Read more: Larry David, Home News

Larry David Plays Coy About Highly Anticipated Seinfeld Reunion on Curb Your Enthusiasm

2009-07-31T10:15:54Z

We do, however, find out that this will be an extensive plot thread for the show's seventh season.

Read more: Larry David, Home News

Larry David Talks 'Seinfeld' Cast Reunion

2009-07-31T07:54:22Z

PASADENA, Calif. — Larry David says the on-screen reunion of the "Seinfeld" cast will be "tough to beat."

The "Seinfeld" co-creator and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" creator-star says the cast will appear together in the finale of the upcoming seventh season of the HBO comedy series.

'Seinfeld' Cast To Reunite On 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' Says Larry David

2009-07-30T19:01:49Z