Philip Carey and Estelle Bennett Pass On

Actor Philip Carey, who co-starred in the Sixties Western TV show Laredo, and Estelle Bennett, who was one of The Ronettes, have both passed on.

Philip Carey passed on January 6 at the age of 83. The cause was lung cancer.

Philip Carey was born Eugene Joseph Carey in Hackensack, New Jersey on July 15, 1925. He grew up in Long Island. During World War II he served in the United States Marines. He also served in the Korean War. Carey studied drama at the University of Miami, and acted in summer stock in Long Island. Eventually a talent scout from Warner Brothers asked him to try out for a supporting role in Operation Pacific, starring John Wayne.

Signed to Warner Brothers, Carey spent much of the Fifties appearing in movies such as I Was a Communist for the FBI, Springfield Rifle, Calamity Jane, and Mister Roberts. He made his television debut in 1953 in an episode of Schlitz Playhouse of Stars. By the Fifties he was appearing regularly on television in shows such as Four Star Playhouse, Celebrity Playhouse, and The Ford Television Theatre. He starred in the 1956-1957 TV series Tales of the 77th Bengal Lancers as Lt. Michael Rhodes. He also played the title role on the 1959-1960 TV show Philip Marlowe.

By the Sixties Carey spent most of his career on television. He guest starred on such shows as Michael Shayne, Thriller, The Rifleman, Cheyenne, 77 Sunset Strip, The Virginian, Daniel Boone, and Ironside. He still continued to appear on film, in the movies FBI Code 98, Dead Ringer, Town Tamer, The Great Sioux Massacre, and Once You Kiss a Stranger. He co-starred alongside Peter Brown and Neville Brand on the Western comedy Laredo. Carey played the commanding officer, Capt. Edward Parmalee, who had the thankless job of keeping three rather reckless Texas Rangers out of trouble.

In the Seventies Carey guest starred on such shows as All in the Family, Gunsmoke, McMillan and Wife, Room 222, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, McCloud, and Little House on the Prairie. In 1979 he started a long stint on the soap opera One Life to Live, which lasted until 2004.

While Philip Carey wound up doing a long stint on a daytime soap, I really think he belonged elsewhere. With rugged good looks, he was perfect for the Westerns in which he appeared. With a gift for timing, he was perfect for comedy. Indeed, besides playing the straight man to Neville Brand on Laredo, Carey also appeared in a number of humorous Granny Goose potato chip commercials on California television in the Sixties. A versatile actor, he was the perfect leading man for Fifties and Sixties television.

Estelle Bennett, one of the legendary Ronettes and Ronnie Spector's sister, passed on February 11 at the age of 67. The cause was colon cancer.

Estelle Bennett was born on July 21, 1941. She and her younger sister Veronica (AKA "Ronnie") grew up in Washington Heights in New York City. She started singing at a very young age, encouraged by her family. Along with their cousin Nedra Talley, Estelle and Ronnie formed a singing group called The Darling Sisters. In 1959 they won a talent contest at the Apollo Theatre. In 1961 they started performing at the Peppermint Lounge. The group received a record deal from Colpix, and released their first single "I Want a Boy" as Ronnie and the Relatives. during this period they also sang backup for such singers as Del Shannon, Bobby Rydell and Joey Dee. Later renamed The Ronettes, they continued to record single and even an album for Colpix.

It was in 1963 that Phil Spector noticed The Ronettes, who was looking for a replacement for his girl group The Crystals. Spector signed them to his Philles label and remoulded the group into a "bad girl" image. Their first single for Spector was the classic "Be My Baby," which went to #2 on the Billboard chart and #4 in the United Kingdom. The Ronettes followed this success with another hit, "Baby, I Love You." In 1964 The Ronettes were successful enough to tour England not only with rising rock group The Rolling Stones, but The Beatles as well.

It was that year that The Ronettes would produce even more hit singles, including "The Best Part of Breaking Up," "Do I Love You," and "(Walking) In the Rain." Unfortunately, with girl groups on the way out and the British Invasion well under way, The Ronettes' career faltered in 1965. Their first single of that year, "Born to Be Together," only went to 52. Other singles would not even chart. The Ronettes broke up in 1966.

The Ronettes were nearly as known for their fashion sense as their vocals, and much of that fashion sense was provided by Estelle Bennett. She had attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan, and as a result helped a good deal in the group's choice of clothing.

Following the breakup of The Ronettes, Estelle Bennett recorded one single for Laurie Records, "The Year 2000/The Naked Boy." It did very little business. She then retired from entertainment, married, and raised a family. When The Ronettes were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Estelle Bennett did not perform with her sister and her cousin, being in declining health. According to Nedra Talley, however, it was the happiest she had seen her in a long time.

The Ronettes are my favourite girl group of all time. In fact, "Be My Baby" would rank in my list of the top ten greatest rock songs of all time. While much of the attention was concentrated on her younger and more outgoing sister Ronnie, much of The Ronettes' success was due to Estelle. Like her sister and her cousin, Estelle was gifted with an voice and could well have led a group of her own. While The Ronettes developed their look together, there can be little doubt that Estelle's education at the Fashion Institute of Technology helped a good deal. As a member of one of the most legendary vocal groups of all time, Estelle Bennett will no doubt be remembered.

myNetworkTV Shifts Towards Reruns

MyNetworkTV, the lowest rated of the American networks, announced that it would largely show established programmes rather than original TV shows. Put more simply, it will primarily show reruns. MyNetworkTV also plans to have a movie night and to give Saturday night back to its affiliates. Despite this, myNetworkTV President Greg Meidel insists it is not becoming a rerun network.

For those of you who have never even heard of myNetworkTV (which is quite likely), it was a network which arose after The WB and UPN announced their intent to merge to form The CW. Fox had acquired various UPN affiliates in the early Naughts, including WPWR-TV in Chicago and KCOP in Los Angeles. Their agreement to UPN affiliation expiring in 2006 resulted in the fact that none of the Fox owned affiliates would become part of the CW. It was then less than month after UPN and The WB announced their intent to merge that Fox's parent company, New Corp, announced the creation of myNetworkTV from UPN stations and WB stations left out of The CW.

MyNetworkTV started broadcasting on September 5, 2006. Originally the network aired telenovelas made in the English language. The telenovelas aired five nights a week through a thirteen week cycle. Despite covering 96 percent of the country, myNetworkTv found its ratings at the bottom of the barrel. By March 2007 they abandoned the telenovelas for a format meant to attract young males. Its programming shifted largely to reality shows and sports programming. By 2008, still the lowest ranked network, MyNetworkTV tried a more mixed approach to programming. They aired yet another version of The Twilight Zone, the sketch comedy show The Tony Rock Project, the sitcom Under One Roof, and WWE Friday Night SmackDown. Even then, much of its programming consisted of reruns.

So far myNetworkTV has agreed to only two series, WWE Friday Night SmackDown and two hours worth of reruns of Law and Order: Criminal Intent. There has not been any word as to what will happen to its original series.

I must confess that I find it hard to believe that myNetworkTV has survived this long. The network began with the risky move of airing American telenovelas as its primary programming, a format which never caught on with English speaking audiences. They later shifted to reality programming at a time when the reality show cycle had run its course and the networks had already been glutted with them. Their attempts at original programming, even the new version of The Twilight Zone, have never caught on. In fact, it seems to me that the only programming on myNetworkTV that has any kind of viewership are the occasional movie and WWE Friday Night SmackDown. I must confess that save for a few specials and movies, I have never watched much of anything on myNetworkTV. As harsh as it sounds, it sounds almost as if myNetworkTV should simply cash in its chips and allow its affiliates to become independent stations. After nearly three years, it seems to me that myNetworkTV simply cannot find its niche among the American broadcast networks.

Facebook Turns Five

As hard as it is to believe, this month Facebook turns five years old. It has become one of the most popular social networking sites on the Web. In fact, while MySpace surpasses it in popularity in the United States, Facebook is actually the most popular social networking site in English speaking countries.

Facebook grew out of a Harvard University website called Facemash, created by Mark Zuckerberg in October 2003. Facemash was essentially a Harvard version of the rating site Hot or Not--it placed two pictures of people side by side and asked users to decide who was hotter. Facemash was shut down by Harvard University officials after only a few days, who charged Zuckerberg with breach of security, copyright violations, and violating individual privacy. The charges were ultimately dropped.

Zuckerberg had developed the idea of Facemash while looking at the Kirkland Dormitory facebook. Zuckerberg then came up with the idea of an online facebook that would cover all of Harvard. The Facebook, initially located at thefacebook.com, was launched on February 4, 2004. In the beginning it was limited only to Harvard, but the next month it expanded to include Columbia, Stanford, and Yale. Eventually The Facebook would be opened to the entire Ivy League, and eventually it would be open to nearly every college and university in the United States. It was in August 2005 that The Facebook became simply Facebook after buying the domain name facebook.com. The following month Facebook was opened to high schools. Facebook first expanded beyond schools by allowing employees of various companies such as Microsoft, Apple, and so on to join. On September 26, Facebook was finally opened to everyone.

Even though it is now open to everyone, Facebook still shows that it was originally set up as an online Facebook for universities. Facebook is set up along the lines of networks based on school, workplace, or geographic region. And it is the networks that largely determine who and who can see one's profile. A person in the London, England network would not be able to see the profile of a complete stranger in the Seattle, Washington network. This is probably a holdover from the days when Facebook was open only to universities and only students at the same university could see each other's profiles.

Facebook has generated controversy among its users from time to time. When Facebook introduced its News Feed feature in September 2006, it caused consternation among its users. The News Feed featured news of nearly every action taken by a user's friends, which led to the complaint that it provided too much information. In response Facebook issued an apology and gave users the choice of what information would appear on the News Feed.

Another controversy developed in November 2007 over an advertising programme called Beacon. Beacon would report back to Facebook its users activities on third party sites which participated in the Beacon programme. It made no difference if a user had logged off Facebook or what his or her privacy settings were. The controversy grew so great that Facebook was eventually forced to allow users to opt out of the programme.

A more recent controversy regarded the new design for Facebook that was introduced in July 2008. The new Facebook was supposed to be simpler and cleaner, but many users actually found it and still find it more complicated and harder. Initially Facebook allowed users to stay with the old Facebook design, but in September 2008 they forced everyone to change to the new Facebook, whether they wanted to or not. Needless to say, this only intensified the controversy. In the end it would be covered in such venues as BBC News and Forbes. I have to admit, I still hate the new Facebook design (I even wrote it about here). Sadly, Facebook has yet to return to its old design or even given its users a choice of returning to the old design.

Like other social networking sites, Facebook has also faced other sorts of controversies. One of these occurred early, when Divya Narendra, Cameron Winklevoss, and Tyler Winklevoss, creators of the website HarvardConnection (later renamed ConnectU) sued Facebook alleging that Zuckerberg had broken an oral contract in which they would have built Facebook and copyright infringement. The case was settled in February, 2008. More recently controversy arose when Facebook banned breastfeeding photos, ruling that they violate its policy on "obscene, pornographic or sexually explicit." The pictures in question apparently showed the areola of the breast.

Since it was founded in 2004, Facebook has seen dramatic growth. Currently Facebook claims more than 150 million users. In the United States it is second only to MySpace as the most popular social networking site. Facebook has survived several controversies over the years. Even after the controversy over the new design, user still visit Facebook daily (I still do, even though I still detest the new look). It looks as if Facebook will be around for a long time to come.

James Whitmore R.I.P.

Prolific actor James Whitmore passed yesterday at the age of 87. The cause was lung cancer.

James Whitmore was born in October 1, 1921 in White Plains, New York. His family later moved to Buffalo, New York. He attended Amherst Central High School in Snyder, New York and then the Choate School in Wallingford, Connecticut, on a football scholarship. He attended Yale University as a pre-law student on an athletic scholarship. He had to quit playing football after two injuries to his knees. While at Yale he helped start the college's radio station.

During World War II and during his senior year at Yale, Whitmore joined the Marines. He served in the South Pacific. Following the war Whitmore moved to New York City and started studying at the American Theatre Wing on the G.I. Bill. By 1947 Whitmore had made his debut on Broadway, in the play Command Decision as Tech Sergeant Harold Evans. Whitmore would spend much of his career on stage. He returned to Broadway in the plays Winesburg, Ohio (1958), Inquest (1970), Will Rogers' USA (1974), Bully (1974), and Almost an Eagle (1982). He also appeared in the play Give 'Em Hell, Harry, which debuted in Webster Groves, Missouri in 1970.

Whitmore appeared in his first film with The Undercover Man in 1970. He would go on to appear in such films as The Asphalt Jungle, Across the Wide Missouri, Kiss Me Kate, Them, Oklahoma, Black Like Me, Madigan, Planet of the Apes, Tora! Tora! Tora!, The Harrad Experiment, Give 'Em Hell, Harry, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Majestic. He was nominated for two Oscars, for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in his debut role in Battlefield and for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role as Harry Truman in Give 'em Hell, Harry.

James Whitmore appeared extensively on television, starting in an episode of Crossroads in 1955. Over the years he appeared on Studio One, Lux Video Theatre, Kraft Television Theatre, Climax, Playhouse 90, The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor, The Twilight Zone, Rawhide, Combat, The Wonderful World of Disney, Burke's Law, The Invaders, Tarzan, The Big Valley, Bonanza, The Virginian, Gunsmoke, Ray Bradbury Theatre, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (his last appearance on screen). He was one of the leads on the 1960-1961 series The Law and Mr. Jones and the 1969 series My Friend Tony. He was twice nominated for Emmy awards and won the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for an appearance on The Practice.

If James Whitmore was a legendary actor, it is perhaps he was very much a chameleon. Over his career Whitmore played such diverse roles as Harry S Truman, Will Rogers, and Teddy Roosevelt, and he was extremely convincing in all three roles. Such was his talent that he carried he entire film version of Give 'Em Hell, Harry by himself, and was nominated for an Oscar for it. And while Harry Truman, Will Rogers, and Teddy Roosevelt are arguably heroic figures, Whitmore could play villains. In guest appearances on The Big Valley, in which he played such things as corrupt sheriffs and politicians, he could be downright sinister. Besides his talent, much of what set Whitmore above other actors was simply his authenticity. Whitmore had the ability to pick up the slang and body language of historical eras with ease, making him all the more convincing whether he was playing Harry Truman or a corrupt sheriff. There can be little doubt that James Whitmore was an actor matched only by a very few.

Actor Clint Ritchie Passes On

Clint Ritchie, who appeared on TV shows from The Wild Wild West to Dallas, passed on January 31 at the age of 70.

Ritchie was born in Grafton, North Dakota on August 9, 1938. His family later moved to Washington. In his teens he moved to California and too acting classes.

His first appearance on the small screen was in the pilot for The Wild Wild West, "Night of the Inferno." He went on to appearances on Batman (as one of The Joker's henchmen), Felony Squad, Daniel Boone, The High Chapparal, Ghost Story, Switch, and Roseanne, among other shows. He played a significant role in the mini-series Centennial. He was a regular on the 1977-1978 series Thunder. He appeared on the soap opera One Life to Live from 1979 to 1998.

Ritchie also appeared in movies, making his debut on the big screen in a small part in 1967's Alvarez Kelly. He went onto major roles in The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (as gangster Jack McGurn), Bandolero, Patton, Joe Kidd (as Deputy Sheriff Calvin), and Midway. He retired in 1998.

Clint Ritchie was one of those actors who just never seemed to get a fair shake. There can be no doubt he was talented. I have always suspected that he may simply have been born at the wrong time. Quite simply, he was born to do Westerns. The parts in which I remember him best were those from the Westerns in which he appeared. Indeed, while it seems as if nearly every obituary for Ritchie I read mentioned his role on One Life to Live, I will always remember him as Messmore Garrett, the head of the sheep herders on Centennial. I rather suspect that had he been born in an earlier time, he could have made a very good living making Westerns. Regardless, he was a very talented actor.

What It Was, Was Football

Andy Griffith certainly did not come to fame with The Andy Griffith Show. He did not even come to fame with No Time for Sergeants or A Face in the Crowd. Instead his first brush with fame came with a comedy routine released in 1953, entitled "What It Was, Was Football."

Andy Griffith began his career as a monologist, telling humorous stories of the sort he sometimes did on The Andy Grffith Show. In the early Fifties what well may have been his most popular monologue was "What It Was, Was Football." It is simply a description of a college football game by a simple country bumpkin, who has not only never seen football, but has apparently never even heard of the game. Griffith recorded "What It Was, Was Football" in 1953 in Raleigh, North Carolina and credited to "Deacon Andy Griffith." It was released later that year by Capitol Records. The single proved to be a hit, selling 800,000 copies.

"What It Was, Was Football" essentially made Andy Griffith a celebrity. Largely due to its popularity, he appeared on The Colgate Comedy Hour, The Ed Sullivan Show, and The Steve Allen Show. Two years after the release of the routine, Andy Griffith was performing on Broadway in No Time for Sergeants.

"What It Was, Was Football" has also proven to be one of the most enduring comedy routines of all time. It was printed in full in Mad Magazine #40, July 1958, with art by George Woodbridge. "What It Was, Was Football" was adapted as a comedy short directed by Duncan Brantley in 1997.

I cannot remember the first time I ever heard "What It Was, Was Football." When I was growing up it was still widely played on radio stations of all formats, particularly during football season. As a kid I thought it was one of the funniest things I ever heard, and certainly Andy Griffith's best monologue of all time. Apparently I wasn't the only one. "What It Was, Was Football" is still played during football season on radio stations, and references to it are still plentiful in the media. In the end, along with Abbott and Costello's "Who's on First" and George Carlin's "Seven Dirty Words," it has proven to be one of the most enduring comedy routines of all time.

Super Bowl Commercials 2009

When it comes to the Super Bowl, the commercials are nearly as anticipated as the game. And while the general consensus seems to me that it was a good game, it seems to me that many people were disappointed with this year's commercials. In fact, it seems as if many of the commercials aired during the Super Bowl were no different than commercials aired at any other time during the year. Even the GoDaddy commercials, usually very outrageous, were disappointing.

This was one of the few commercials I found funny which aired during the Super Bowl. It is an add for Coke Zero entitled "Brand Managers," which parodies a classic Coca-Cola ad from the Seventies.

Coca-Cola - Brand Managers | Viral | SPIKE.com

Anheuser Busch is well known for its great Super Bowl ads, and this year they produced one more good commmericial. "Clydesdale Returns Home" portrays one of their famous mascots as being in love with a circus horse.

Budweiser - Clydesdale Returns Home | Viral | SPIKE.com

Another good Anheuser Busch spot proved that Clydesdales, not dogs are man's best friend...

2009 | Super Bowl Ads | SPIKE.com

Bridgestone has also produced a few good Super Bowl commercials over the past few years. This one, entitled The Potato Head Family, features Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head out for a drive..

2009 | Super Bowl Ads | SPIKE.com

What was the best commercial aired during the Super Bowl was not created by Madison Avenue, but by two unemployed brothers from Batesville, Indiana. The brothers had won Doritos' online contest for commercials, open only to amateurs. The commercial, entitled "Crystal Ball," was the most popular advert aired during the Super Bowl. According to USA Today's Ad Meter.

2009 | Super Bowl Ads | SPIKE.com

This year's commercials were over all disappointing. Some have blamed the economy, but honestly I think they have been stuck in a rut for some time. That this year's most popular commercial came from two amateurs may confirm something I have suspected for a while. At least for now, Madison Avenue has run out of ideas. Well, there's always next year's Super Bowl.