Friday, May 29, 2020
Thursday, May 28, 2020
Dirty Criminal Mind
I don't care for the show Criminal Minds. To me, it's just another generic crime drama with a group of eccentric intelligent people. That being said, I've heard of some issues that strifed on the set. Firings, particularly. And this has grown now into a lawsuit from California themselves in regards to Gregory St. Johns, who was a director of photography for it. California Department of Fair Employment is going after some producers, Disney, and CBS.
St. Johns, from what I gathered from articles, worked on the show for a very long time until being fired a couple years ago. What he would do is no doubt sexual harassment. And not going after women, mind you. Allegedly, he touched men inappropriately and a few other disgusting things. That alone should be enough to be considered very toxic. But how does this escalate into him staying for well over a decade? I'm assuming workplace harassment has become a bigger hot button topic throughout the world. Hollywood being a cesspool of liars and actual harassers.
With this a CBS thing, this network does not escape this sort of stuff or any real controversy. Les Moonves getting ousted in 2018. Charlie Rose and his issues. The difficulties of Mark Harmon on NCIS and other cast members not being comfortable around him. Criminal Minds was one of their biggest shows during its 15 years. Maybe people are opening up about what went down after its final episode aired in February. Having St. Johns on for that long. No one saying a damn thing if they wanted to keep their jobs. Until we hear more, this hurts the show tremendously from a post airing standpoint. If I'm Ion Television, I'd be removing it from its schedule and not airing it after a few years.
I hope this isn't a case of batting a blind eye because its men. If it is, then it shows the double standard of Hollywood. Unless you're someone like Terry Crews, how many will go out of their way to speak up about being harassed? Both sides can be victims. And if the alleged is true, a lot of people, mainly the producers, will probably not work in the industry again. Simply horrible. They could have done something, but didn't, and it made a show for actors to work on stressful.
St. Johns, from what I gathered from articles, worked on the show for a very long time until being fired a couple years ago. What he would do is no doubt sexual harassment. And not going after women, mind you. Allegedly, he touched men inappropriately and a few other disgusting things. That alone should be enough to be considered very toxic. But how does this escalate into him staying for well over a decade? I'm assuming workplace harassment has become a bigger hot button topic throughout the world. Hollywood being a cesspool of liars and actual harassers.
With this a CBS thing, this network does not escape this sort of stuff or any real controversy. Les Moonves getting ousted in 2018. Charlie Rose and his issues. The difficulties of Mark Harmon on NCIS and other cast members not being comfortable around him. Criminal Minds was one of their biggest shows during its 15 years. Maybe people are opening up about what went down after its final episode aired in February. Having St. Johns on for that long. No one saying a damn thing if they wanted to keep their jobs. Until we hear more, this hurts the show tremendously from a post airing standpoint. If I'm Ion Television, I'd be removing it from its schedule and not airing it after a few years.
I hope this isn't a case of batting a blind eye because its men. If it is, then it shows the double standard of Hollywood. Unless you're someone like Terry Crews, how many will go out of their way to speak up about being harassed? Both sides can be victims. And if the alleged is true, a lot of people, mainly the producers, will probably not work in the industry again. Simply horrible. They could have done something, but didn't, and it made a show for actors to work on stressful.
Wednesday, May 27, 2020
The Ghost of Oswalt
This is a follow up from yesterday's blog about Paul Feig making excuses for why his Ghostbusters reboot failed four years ago. There was huge backlash well over a year before its release and the backlash escalating two months prior to its July 2016 release involving comedian Patton Oswalt and YouTube personality James Rolfe. It blew up into a huge story regarding misogyny and sexism, resulting in unfortunate social media war between Oswalt and so called "fans". Very unfortunate.
Rolfe has a site called Cinemassacre. It's home to a lot of videos he has done for over 30 years. I've followed the guy since the fall of 2006 and he has grown from doing fictional work into being himself and doing regular movie reviews. One of his early examples came in 2007 with the animated TMNT film. He had done a review a month prior of the third live action film and fans wondered his thoughts of something brand new. This applied in May 2016 when fans asked about the then upcoming Ghostbuster film and if he would do a review. He said he wouldn't and went into detail of why.
To put this in perspective from watching this guy for 14 years, Rolfe is a big Ghostbusters fan. Very big that he wanted to find stuff in New York that they may have filmed scenes at. Big film guy. Nothing in the video from what I remember was sexist, let alone misogynistic. He's been married for 13 years and has two daughters. Rolfe is simply a fan who had no interest. There can be fans who may not find a film interesting after watching a trailer of it, especially for a franchise that is very dear to him. Whatever the case, Oswalt went after him with a sarcastic tweet, and that's when it blew up and people went after both and both sides started verbal sparring. This was something you heard for a couple weeks.
The way Oswalt acts on Twitter is hugely dangerous. This is someone I would like to see get suspended and understand why his very awful behavior is a problem. There was no reason to go after Rolfe. And Rolfe was not under contract to review something he doesn't care for. Trailers have existed for a very long time and can dictate most of the time whether you want to see a film or not. But actions can also dictate that and I wouldn't be surprised if Oswalt's horrible attitude turned more people away from Ghostbusters. To be a little fair, his wife passed away a month prior. I've heard Michelle Mcnamara might have had some involvement, but I don't even know if that's true. It is upsetting and people have different ways of grieving. But to go after someone in that altered state of mind is very messed up. The ones mocking Oswalt for his dead wife didn't make the situation any better. All this over an opinion that shouldn't have been controversial at any point and become huge attention.
Both Oswalt and Rolfe are continuing to do what they love doing. But in regards to Oswalt, this is something celebrities will have to understand. Just because you think you can say whatever you want doesn't mean there won't be consequences. That is what I notice. Oswalt has a big mouth and doesn't know when to keep quiet. I think one of these days, he is going to be criticized very heavily for something he tweets that goes over the line. Whether he wants to accept what he did was wrong is up to him, but I could see him acting like a giant baby because he doesn't have any restraint. I'm not calling for unnecessary censorship, but we do need to take celebrities down a peg or two when they go overboard on social media. What he did four years ago was inexcusable and I feel bad for his young daughter. It's not the environment you want your flesh and blood to see and to see it from their own parent.
I hope that incident has some meaning at some point as a way of how not to act from one side and both sides fanbases.
Rolfe has a site called Cinemassacre. It's home to a lot of videos he has done for over 30 years. I've followed the guy since the fall of 2006 and he has grown from doing fictional work into being himself and doing regular movie reviews. One of his early examples came in 2007 with the animated TMNT film. He had done a review a month prior of the third live action film and fans wondered his thoughts of something brand new. This applied in May 2016 when fans asked about the then upcoming Ghostbuster film and if he would do a review. He said he wouldn't and went into detail of why.
To put this in perspective from watching this guy for 14 years, Rolfe is a big Ghostbusters fan. Very big that he wanted to find stuff in New York that they may have filmed scenes at. Big film guy. Nothing in the video from what I remember was sexist, let alone misogynistic. He's been married for 13 years and has two daughters. Rolfe is simply a fan who had no interest. There can be fans who may not find a film interesting after watching a trailer of it, especially for a franchise that is very dear to him. Whatever the case, Oswalt went after him with a sarcastic tweet, and that's when it blew up and people went after both and both sides started verbal sparring. This was something you heard for a couple weeks.
The way Oswalt acts on Twitter is hugely dangerous. This is someone I would like to see get suspended and understand why his very awful behavior is a problem. There was no reason to go after Rolfe. And Rolfe was not under contract to review something he doesn't care for. Trailers have existed for a very long time and can dictate most of the time whether you want to see a film or not. But actions can also dictate that and I wouldn't be surprised if Oswalt's horrible attitude turned more people away from Ghostbusters. To be a little fair, his wife passed away a month prior. I've heard Michelle Mcnamara might have had some involvement, but I don't even know if that's true. It is upsetting and people have different ways of grieving. But to go after someone in that altered state of mind is very messed up. The ones mocking Oswalt for his dead wife didn't make the situation any better. All this over an opinion that shouldn't have been controversial at any point and become huge attention.
Both Oswalt and Rolfe are continuing to do what they love doing. But in regards to Oswalt, this is something celebrities will have to understand. Just because you think you can say whatever you want doesn't mean there won't be consequences. That is what I notice. Oswalt has a big mouth and doesn't know when to keep quiet. I think one of these days, he is going to be criticized very heavily for something he tweets that goes over the line. Whether he wants to accept what he did was wrong is up to him, but I could see him acting like a giant baby because he doesn't have any restraint. I'm not calling for unnecessary censorship, but we do need to take celebrities down a peg or two when they go overboard on social media. What he did four years ago was inexcusable and I feel bad for his young daughter. It's not the environment you want your flesh and blood to see and to see it from their own parent.
I hope that incident has some meaning at some point as a way of how not to act from one side and both sides fanbases.
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Ain't Fraid of No Election
Around this time five years ago, I remember the backlash surrounding the 2016 Ghostbusters film. There had been off and on stuff regarding it. A lot of backlash on both sides that ultimately made it lose 70 million for Columbia Pictures due to a very expensive budget despite making 140 million domestically and nearly 300 mil overall. Now, I don't share the same feeling as most people regarding the two 80s films. The first is good, but massively overrated. I think there's better sci-fi films and better comedies. And the second was okay, but nothing noteworthy. And honestly, I don't have an intention to watch the reboot.
Recently, there was an interview that the 2016 director Paul Feig did. One thing I'll agree with is that it wouldn't feel right if you had two of the four actors back. But going the direction he went with his own script and stuff is where I see the problem. He is capable of directing great films. Being on a roll during the last decade beginning with Bridesmaids and his most recent at the time being Spy, he is one you want for comedies. But he's blaming his Ghostbusters take on Trump and the 2016 election. It screams to me a cop out excuse for why the movie failed as there are plenty of reasons.
First and foremost, this is a finicky thing to do. Ghostbusters is one of the most beloved franchises of the 80s and all time. There were plans for a third one that was in development hell. People wanted a true sequel and the 2009 video game was essentially the third film. This is also a geekdom. Anything nerdy that has drastic changes is going to see a hell of a lot more criticism. The all female stuff is an eye raiser, but it's the choices in who they got that's the issue, though I hear Kate McKinnon was highly praised the last I remembered. It's not the type of people that you think would headline a franchise reboot. Also, the humor not being as strong. My point is, there is more issue pertaining to the fanbase and what they thought was bad. Blaming it on Trump is brain dead stupid. Even if proof surfaced of him badmouthing the film, did he really make an impact on it failing? That's something that I don't think could be proven.
But one thing people forget about Feig is that he acted like a huge baby in terms of backlash. Social media is a great tool, but can show a darker side of Hollywood people. He did not show any restraint and went after many because of the backlash. It adds fuel to the fire of why it did not do as well. Both sides turned it into a full blown social media war. There are trolls. No doubt about it. But you also have people who have no interest, regardless of it being a female cast and the direction it went. And even if you genuinely had no interest, others could perceive you as sexist and misogynistic.
A big example was two months prior to its release involving comedian Patton Oswalt. He can be funny, but his mannerisms and actions on sites like Twitter are a bit on the dangerous side. Personally, I think his behavior is very unwarranted and I feel bad for his daughter. That being said, there was no reason to go after a huge YouTube personality (James Rolfe, Cinemassacre) because he had no interest and didn't say anything controversial. That caused a big uproar and both Rolfe and Oswalt were given shade and praise. If memory serves me, this was Oswalt's way of venting because of his first wife passing away not too long before he ranted. The trolls who made fun of him for losing her don't deserve any sympathy. But much like Feig, it adds more fuel to a fire that is out of control and makes people not go see it.
What I'll end on is this. Feig has no clue still of why he failed on this film. The backlash came well before Trump announced his presidency and the whole election. It ballooned over a year and a half to the point where it reached his breaking point and he caused even more issues. Even though he had no involvement with them, Oswalt's incident made it way worse. The way they responded to criticism probably influenced some who were on the fence to either see it or not. There is good female led stuff. It didn't translate well for something like Ghostbusters, which is funny because Mad Max had a female lead and the original creator of it working on Fury Road, which was a huge hit in 2015. The president did not make the movie fail. Bad choices, backlash, manchild antics, and poor responses to criticism killed it.
After this one, I will do a follow up and talk more about the Oswalt and Rolfe incident as that was blown up to the point of it being a center of attention for a short while.
Recently, there was an interview that the 2016 director Paul Feig did. One thing I'll agree with is that it wouldn't feel right if you had two of the four actors back. But going the direction he went with his own script and stuff is where I see the problem. He is capable of directing great films. Being on a roll during the last decade beginning with Bridesmaids and his most recent at the time being Spy, he is one you want for comedies. But he's blaming his Ghostbusters take on Trump and the 2016 election. It screams to me a cop out excuse for why the movie failed as there are plenty of reasons.
First and foremost, this is a finicky thing to do. Ghostbusters is one of the most beloved franchises of the 80s and all time. There were plans for a third one that was in development hell. People wanted a true sequel and the 2009 video game was essentially the third film. This is also a geekdom. Anything nerdy that has drastic changes is going to see a hell of a lot more criticism. The all female stuff is an eye raiser, but it's the choices in who they got that's the issue, though I hear Kate McKinnon was highly praised the last I remembered. It's not the type of people that you think would headline a franchise reboot. Also, the humor not being as strong. My point is, there is more issue pertaining to the fanbase and what they thought was bad. Blaming it on Trump is brain dead stupid. Even if proof surfaced of him badmouthing the film, did he really make an impact on it failing? That's something that I don't think could be proven.
But one thing people forget about Feig is that he acted like a huge baby in terms of backlash. Social media is a great tool, but can show a darker side of Hollywood people. He did not show any restraint and went after many because of the backlash. It adds fuel to the fire of why it did not do as well. Both sides turned it into a full blown social media war. There are trolls. No doubt about it. But you also have people who have no interest, regardless of it being a female cast and the direction it went. And even if you genuinely had no interest, others could perceive you as sexist and misogynistic.
A big example was two months prior to its release involving comedian Patton Oswalt. He can be funny, but his mannerisms and actions on sites like Twitter are a bit on the dangerous side. Personally, I think his behavior is very unwarranted and I feel bad for his daughter. That being said, there was no reason to go after a huge YouTube personality (James Rolfe, Cinemassacre) because he had no interest and didn't say anything controversial. That caused a big uproar and both Rolfe and Oswalt were given shade and praise. If memory serves me, this was Oswalt's way of venting because of his first wife passing away not too long before he ranted. The trolls who made fun of him for losing her don't deserve any sympathy. But much like Feig, it adds more fuel to a fire that is out of control and makes people not go see it.
What I'll end on is this. Feig has no clue still of why he failed on this film. The backlash came well before Trump announced his presidency and the whole election. It ballooned over a year and a half to the point where it reached his breaking point and he caused even more issues. Even though he had no involvement with them, Oswalt's incident made it way worse. The way they responded to criticism probably influenced some who were on the fence to either see it or not. There is good female led stuff. It didn't translate well for something like Ghostbusters, which is funny because Mad Max had a female lead and the original creator of it working on Fury Road, which was a huge hit in 2015. The president did not make the movie fail. Bad choices, backlash, manchild antics, and poor responses to criticism killed it.
After this one, I will do a follow up and talk more about the Oswalt and Rolfe incident as that was blown up to the point of it being a center of attention for a short while.
Friday, May 22, 2020
Thursday, May 21, 2020
Pasqually's: Falling for Franchise Chain
So this is something I heard about and it's too good of a story. This is hilarious, but at the same time, I can understand why they are upset. There have been people recently that have ordered food from a place called Pasqually's Pizza and Wings. Sounds kind of local in a way. What they didn't realize is that it is the alternative name to Chuck e Cheese. Some have considered it to be deceptive and ruining local businesses.
When you think Chuck e Cheese, you think of kids going there, arcade games, and a little bit of pizza here and there. That or watching the one Married... with Children episode where Al Bundy wants free food from the place. After all, the founder is Nolan Bushnell, who founded Atari and wanted to create a safe environment for parents and families. The 70s weren't exactly a great time and arcades were a good while from getting safer areas like malls and movie theaters. Maybe they told people ahead of time of the name change. But no one would want Chuck e Cheese pizza if they used the original name.
Going with the name Pasqually's makes them look a little better if they want people to get their food. There isn't the name recognition compared to a McDonald's or a Wendy's. I had Chuck e Cheese once or twice. Do remember eating the pizza once and it wasn't too bad back in 2008 when my nephew had his birthday party there. Is it that deceptive? Maybe, but I don't think it was meant to be malicious.
People just need to be aware of what they're getting and look up the names before ordering. I know some can be really stupid, but we can't that stupid to not look up Pasqually's and realize it's Chuck e Cheese just under a rebranding name. It's hilarious what's going on, but big chains do need to make money, too. It's not like you're forced into supporting local businesses 24/7. There is nothing with supporting both. But nothing beats having a meal at home that you make. A healthy balance of all three and you can be a satisfied customer.
When you think Chuck e Cheese, you think of kids going there, arcade games, and a little bit of pizza here and there. That or watching the one Married... with Children episode where Al Bundy wants free food from the place. After all, the founder is Nolan Bushnell, who founded Atari and wanted to create a safe environment for parents and families. The 70s weren't exactly a great time and arcades were a good while from getting safer areas like malls and movie theaters. Maybe they told people ahead of time of the name change. But no one would want Chuck e Cheese pizza if they used the original name.
Going with the name Pasqually's makes them look a little better if they want people to get their food. There isn't the name recognition compared to a McDonald's or a Wendy's. I had Chuck e Cheese once or twice. Do remember eating the pizza once and it wasn't too bad back in 2008 when my nephew had his birthday party there. Is it that deceptive? Maybe, but I don't think it was meant to be malicious.
People just need to be aware of what they're getting and look up the names before ordering. I know some can be really stupid, but we can't that stupid to not look up Pasqually's and realize it's Chuck e Cheese just under a rebranding name. It's hilarious what's going on, but big chains do need to make money, too. It's not like you're forced into supporting local businesses 24/7. There is nothing with supporting both. But nothing beats having a meal at home that you make. A healthy balance of all three and you can be a satisfied customer.
Wednesday, May 20, 2020
Geeks and Jocks: Episode 38
The newest episode on Anchor
https://anchor.fm/ryan-sullivan1gaj/episodes/Episode-38-Strange-Racing-Gobbler-eea0uq
https://anchor.fm/ryan-sullivan1gaj/episodes/Episode-38-Strange-Racing-Gobbler-eea0uq
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
Spoiled Snell
One complaint I have about sports in general is some players getting ridiculous salaries for a number of years or even a single year. You got ones that deliver and are worthy, and then you got complete busts. For someone as young as Blake Snell, he might have hurt how the players association and union act following last week's tantrum. He doesn't want to get paid a reduced salary of seven million and would rather not play this season unless he gets his full yearly pay.
Snell has played for four seasons. Nothing special and his stats are rather mediocre. He had a great 2018 campaign that included a Cy Young and the ERA title at least for the American League. He gets a contract of five years and 50 million dollars. Struggles last year. So far, has not lived up to the contract. This guy acted like a brat who doesn't like what he's getting. Unfortunately, he's got supporters in Bryce Harper and Nolan Arenado. Two that have bigger paychecks and the former having way bigger temper tantrums.
What Snell doesn't understand is that teams are not in a good situation. They know they will have to play games without fans, resulting in what I read was 600 thousand a game. Both sides are trying desperately to get the season going as soon as possible. And Snell does not understand that people are suffering. Plenty of have lost jobs and are not living a normal life. He's still young enough to get a clear head on what is going on, but his attitude can have consequences.
As I said, mediocre stats in his four seasons. Combined with the tantrum, some teams will not want to deal with him in 2024. Tampa Bay, his current team, is not known for a huge payroll. They could dump him if he continues to struggle. I wouldn't have said anything. It'd be nice to be paid fully, but not in this time of need. Snell has a bit of growing up to do if he wants to not embarrass the league and the players association.
Snell has played for four seasons. Nothing special and his stats are rather mediocre. He had a great 2018 campaign that included a Cy Young and the ERA title at least for the American League. He gets a contract of five years and 50 million dollars. Struggles last year. So far, has not lived up to the contract. This guy acted like a brat who doesn't like what he's getting. Unfortunately, he's got supporters in Bryce Harper and Nolan Arenado. Two that have bigger paychecks and the former having way bigger temper tantrums.
What Snell doesn't understand is that teams are not in a good situation. They know they will have to play games without fans, resulting in what I read was 600 thousand a game. Both sides are trying desperately to get the season going as soon as possible. And Snell does not understand that people are suffering. Plenty of have lost jobs and are not living a normal life. He's still young enough to get a clear head on what is going on, but his attitude can have consequences.
As I said, mediocre stats in his four seasons. Combined with the tantrum, some teams will not want to deal with him in 2024. Tampa Bay, his current team, is not known for a huge payroll. They could dump him if he continues to struggle. I wouldn't have said anything. It'd be nice to be paid fully, but not in this time of need. Snell has a bit of growing up to do if he wants to not embarrass the league and the players association.
Monday, May 18, 2020
Watching Prospects
I am not a huge fan of the New York Mets. That being said, I have seen some of their prospects play in their farm system prior to them hitting the majors. A couple notables I would like to talk about.
The first one that comes to mind is the great David Wright. He could do a lot of things and that's why he got called up during the 2004 season. He was good with Binghamton. And the early years showed a lot of promise in terms of power and putting in the work to be one of the more beloved Met players. Unfortunate his last seven years with the team were marred by injuries in most of them. It's all what ifs in this guy. That's all I can say.
These last two are ones from 2018. First is Jeff McNeil. He was good with a glove and had strong plate discipline. Rarely did he strike out. And that's why he got called up that summer. Made a huge splash and last year continued his excellence. All round hitter that showed some power. Doesn't strikeout as often compared to most players. Great arm. So far, not many errors. He has a huge future waiting and the Mets need to keep him for many years.
What's tough is last year's big rookie, Pete Alonso. A lot of what makes him good is through his bat. He was built to hit home runs. Tremendous power. The first real rookie (by that, not a second year with rookie status like Mark McGwire and Aaron Judge) to lead in home runs, the first Met to hit 50 home runs in a season. Broke Darryl Strawberry's rookie record by a mile. Home Run Derby champ. Rookie of the year. Maybe his fielding could have work for improvement, but this raw talent is enough to let it slide for now. But defense should be a priority to go along with some plate discipline. But Alonso should enjoy the fame and the Mets need all they can to keep him as well.
Got any stories about prospects who went on to play in any major sport? Leave a comment.
The first one that comes to mind is the great David Wright. He could do a lot of things and that's why he got called up during the 2004 season. He was good with Binghamton. And the early years showed a lot of promise in terms of power and putting in the work to be one of the more beloved Met players. Unfortunate his last seven years with the team were marred by injuries in most of them. It's all what ifs in this guy. That's all I can say.
These last two are ones from 2018. First is Jeff McNeil. He was good with a glove and had strong plate discipline. Rarely did he strike out. And that's why he got called up that summer. Made a huge splash and last year continued his excellence. All round hitter that showed some power. Doesn't strikeout as often compared to most players. Great arm. So far, not many errors. He has a huge future waiting and the Mets need to keep him for many years.
What's tough is last year's big rookie, Pete Alonso. A lot of what makes him good is through his bat. He was built to hit home runs. Tremendous power. The first real rookie (by that, not a second year with rookie status like Mark McGwire and Aaron Judge) to lead in home runs, the first Met to hit 50 home runs in a season. Broke Darryl Strawberry's rookie record by a mile. Home Run Derby champ. Rookie of the year. Maybe his fielding could have work for improvement, but this raw talent is enough to let it slide for now. But defense should be a priority to go along with some plate discipline. But Alonso should enjoy the fame and the Mets need all they can to keep him as well.
Got any stories about prospects who went on to play in any major sport? Leave a comment.
Friday, May 15, 2020
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