January 11, 2010

American Idol is Coming, Up In the Air is Good, Jay Leno is Moving, and 3-D TV Will Survive.

Another Stu & The Dude's "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast has come, and the boys talk about porn.  Well, they sort of talk about porn, namely a sexbot and 3-D-ness, and if anything else at the CES show last week will be a staple of tomorrow because of sex.  There is talk of a new computer, about computer server issues, about beer, about movies bad and good for kids, i.e., The Pink Panther 1 & 2, about movies for adults, i.e., Up In The Air, about TV catching up with "Chuck," and the return of "American Idol."  The dudes don't talk about Jay Leno that much, what with him losing his show and all, but hey, it's topical, and Stu's not really a fan, so why not, there is some Jay Leno talk as well.  So much, so little time, yet Stu and The Dude figure a way to squeeze it into a 20-minute podcast.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:05 PM | Comments (0)

December 8, 2009

A Tiger, A Reunion, A Bed, A Toilet Paper Holder, and Getting Old(er).

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz got together for a fraternity reunion weekend, so their “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast deals with a lot of that.  They also discuss beds, getting older, and improperly designed placement of toilet paper holders before getting to other fun stuff, like new shows on Hulu (21 Jumpstreet, The Commish, and The Greatest American Hero.)  Neither of them have yet to see “The Blind Side,” Stu saw the “Monk” finale but tried not to ruin it for The Dude, and sure, this week there is some Tiger Woods talk as the boys jump on the “Bash Tiger” bandwagon.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:05 AM | Comments (0)

November 24, 2009

Black Friday Shopping Advice, The Winner of Dancing With the Stars, Movies and Monk!

Black Friday is coming and during their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right give their shopping advice, tell you where the great deals aren't, and only one of them might be up at 5am on Friday. Neither of them aren't watching "Dancing With the Stars," although they do give their analysis of the winner, or at least who of Donny Osmond, Mya, or Kelly Osbourne should win, and Stu almost saw dancing at the circus. The boys talk Facebook picture posting, good deed doing, and even though they didn't venture out to the movies, Stu did see "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," so the kid in both of them sort of comes out. Finally, they'll both miss "Monk" when it comes to a close, Oprah is leaving over a year from now, and the Chicago Bears still suck. Such is another podcast as Thanksgiving is upon them!

Posted by Rightdude at 5:47 PM | Comments (0)

October 12, 2009

A Peace Prize, Couples Retreat, Where's My Sidekick Stuff, and Stupid People!

Stu Gotz doesn't really tell The Dude on the Right much about his weekend during their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" Podcast, but that's okay because there is enough stuff going on that even if Stu did have a boring weekend, the boys have lots to talk about. It seems The Dude did do something this weekend, namely seeing "Couples Retreat," so he tells Stu if it's a movie to take Mama Gotz to see, but Stu is more interested in what The Dude thinks about President Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, if he knows what is wrong with people's Sidekicks, and if he ever saw Alyssa Milano naked. The both have TV woes, the dude wonders about the flu shot, and Stu sees stupid people, but what else is new?

Posted by Rightdude at 8:43 PM | Comments (0)

September 28, 2009

The Chicago Olympics, Monday TV Viewing, Surrogates, Jim Cantore Calls Stu, and More!

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz have a busy weekend, but thankfully a lot of it during this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast isn't about politics, although there is talk about President Obama going to Denmark to cheer on the Chicago Olympic folks, although we doubt he'll be giving Chia Obama's as parting gifts. The Dude is bummed he missed the F-Bomb dropping during Saturday Night Live, Stu wants The Dude to watch Pawn Shop, and who knew Stu Gotz would spawn some talented kids, but he did!

They talk about flu shots at strip clubs, how they both didn't like the movie "Surrogates," options to record/watch all of their TV shows, and happily Stu's personal phone call from Jim Cantore wasn't necessary for his family's safety this time, but he was glad he got one. Somehow, even with all of this, they even get some time to talk about The Chicago Bears, and Stu makes the discovery of a lifetime, namely he found where you can buy Franken Berry, Boo Berry, and Count Chocula. All is well with the world.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:12 PM | Comments (0)

September 21, 2009

Goodbye Summer, Lots of TV Talk, Melting Cars, and A-Holes.

Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right get together for their last "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast of summer, and right off the bat Stu needs The Dude's help as to what he can call a Chicago Cubs' player without getting sued. The Dude isn't a lawyer, so he uses Penn & Teller logic, but the podcast quickly shifts to movie watching as Stu gives his feedback if "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" is good for the kids. The boys do a lot of talking about TV, what with the Emmy Awards being the night before, The Dude liking "Community" and "Survivor: Samoa," and they both have TiVo setting to do with the next couple of weeks kicking things into high gear. The Dude watched "Smart People" with his BFF, Stu went to a Demolition Derby again and saw a car melt, and they both wonder if the side effects of Latisse, a drug that gives you longer, fuller, and darker eyelashes is worth it. Luckily for them, neither of them need it.

Posted by Rightdude at 10:13 PM | Comments (0)

September 15, 2009

Jay Leno, U2, Football, Extract, Mini Porterhouse Steaks, and Pee.

Who knew there were tiny porterhouse steaks, but during this podcast episode of Stu & The Dude's "Weekend Wrap-Up!," The Dude on the Right tells Stu Gotz all about it. They both deconstruct the new Jay Leno show, Stu saw "Extract," The Dude isn't off to a good start this football season with losses by the Bears and Buckeyes, Stu has grill issues, The Dude is cheering on The Fab Five on America's Got Talent (though he thinks The Texas Tenors will win), and the fall TV season has both of them scrambling for TiVo options. Their life's are so simple, yet so complex.

Posted by Rightdude at 9:20 PM | Comments (0)

August 24, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A Lot of Trees, Crashing Cars, Inglourious Basterds, The Fab 5, and Don't Forget the Boobs

Who knew you have to now account for installed body parts, or at least breast implants, so The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz talk about it during this podcast episode of their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" Along with boobs, the boys both are able to talk about "Inglourious Basterds" because they both caught the movie, only The Dude is able to talk about "Monk" this weekend, Stu is getting his boys hooked on demolition derby's and the Boy Scouts, while The Dude saw a lot of trees, and appropriately, went to the new Apple store in Naperville. Summer is winding down, The Dude is cheering on The Fab 5 on "America's Got Talent," and the boys keep things going, at least for another weekend.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:18 PM | Comments (0)

August 17, 2009

The Goods, Monk, Harry Potter, and a Light Fixture.

Stu Gotz wonders why there aren't any science explanations at the "Harry Potter" exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, but during this podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", the boys at least have something in common - their laughing during "The Goods," a movie most nobody went to see. The Dude tells Stu about "The Rocker" and "The Soloist," Stu can't figure out when "Monk" ends on TV, and Stu is sort of amazed that The Dude didn't burn the Dude-Pad down while doing some home improvements. All of that and more for your listening pleasure.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:25 PM | Comments (0)

July 14, 2009

What's New? A Movie Review of "Bruno" and A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!

Well, The Dude on the Right reviewed "Bruno," if you so desire to read his review, but Stu Gotz and The Dude also talk about it during their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. Along with the movie, the boys also have some discussions about water slides for the little Gotz's, new shows hitting TV this summer (Stu is liking "Hung," while The Dude is getting sucked into "Big Brother"), and The Dude also had a great time seeing Tom Jones, which isn't that unusual.

Posted by Rightdude at 9:18 PM | Comments (0)

June 22, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A 50th Anniversary, A Father's Day, A New iPhone, and Movies!

A Father's Day has come and gone, and surprisingly Stu Gotz, who has kids, well, he sort of wishes he had the day The Dude on the Right had, especially as they talk about it during this podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" The Dude got a new iPhone and spent some quality time with his BFF while Stu, well, he got a card. The Dude also had fun at a 50th Anniversay party while Stu, well, his TV shows he wanted to watch got erased. The Dude, he had a good time at "The Proposal," Stu, well, he scared his kids when he took them to see "Land of the Lost." Two people about the same age; two different worlds.

Posted by Rightdude at 9:38 PM | Comments (2)

June 18, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Drinking & Jelly, The Hangover & Up, Flight Attendants and Underwear, with Patti and John

The Dude on the Right took a while to get this episode of the "Stu & The Dude Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast posted, with reasons possibly to be revealed during next week's episode. In the meantime, what better way to kick off a podcast than to talk about drunk people in England who wrestle in jelly. Sure, Stu Gotz and The Dude aren't that exciting, but Stu is looking for a Taiwanese basket, both of the boys went to see "The Hangover," and thoughts about on the David Letterman v Sarah Palin controversy that is now over. The Dude finds himself hooked on "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here," especially with local celebrity Patti Blagojovich seeming to be working her womanly charms around the camp. All of that and more for your listening pleasure.

Posted by Rightdude at 9:27 PM | Comments (0)

June 8, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! The Hangover, Terminator, Idle Hands, and Bonne Terre Mines

The Dude on the Right is back from Houston and Stu Gotz is sad that his favorite Irish American Pub closed, so they both talk a bit about it during this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast episode. They also have a weekend to talk about with a lot of Stu's dealing with scuba diving at some abandoned lead mines in Bonne Terre, MO, while The Dude gives some movie recomendations in the likes of "Up" and "The Hangover." The podcast, in fact, contains an abundance of movie talk with Stu revisiting a not really naked Jessica Alba in "Idle Hands," some preview talk about "G.I. Joe," "Bruno," and "Toy Story 3," and why not, let's talk about some TV, especially The Dude's latest obsession with the "I'm a Celebrity..." show. There's more, but sadly The Dude forgot to talk about the new iPhone that came out today. Maybe next week.

Posted by Rightdude at 9:05 PM | Comments (0)

May 4, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A Birthday, Camping, Cubs, and Apprenticing.

The Dude on the Right had a Birthday, and even though Stu Gotz failed to acknowledge it on Facebook, B-Day wishes abounded and cake was shared during this Podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" The Dude gushes a lot about how he has the greatest BFF, and also got to catch a Chicago Cubs game, while Stu Gotz spent some quality family time at Jellystone Park in Amboy, IL, and got to wake up Yogi Bear. Stu also caught "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay" via Netflix, while neither of the boys caught the "Wolverine" flick. Hopefully, though, next week, The Dude will write a review of "Star Trek," especially since Stu might not be around since he'll be hanging at the House of Mickey Mouse.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:43 PM | Comments (0)

April 27, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! No Swine Flu, Dirty Uniforms, Movies, a Brickhouse, and Jesse James.

Swine Flu probably would keep Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right from doing a "Weekend Wrap-Up" podcast, but since neither of them have it, well, they decide to talk about the flu since, well, everyone else is, and since everyone else thinks they are an expert, the boys try to be experts, too. Thankfully their weekend escapades bring them away from pig talk and on to other conversations like a Confirmation ceremony, T-Ball pictures for the Gotz boys, Stu finding a restaurant called The Brickhouse, and The Dude finding out his BFF cooks some kick-ass ribs. Of course they have some movie talk, and who knew they were both fans of Jesse James on Celebrity Apprentice?

Posted by Rightdude at 8:50 PM | Comments (0)

April 20, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Seeing the Chicago Cubs, Seeing 17 Again, Seeing Slumdog Millionaire, and Seeing More!

Crappy traffic couldn't keep The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz apart this morning, especially since they had a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast to record! Stu had quite the adventure because he took The Gotz family to see The Chicago Cubs play the St. Louis Cardinals, and little did he know but Wrigley Field would be invaded by seagulls. The Dude tells Stu that "17 Again" isn't that horrible and Matthew Perry might actually be a really good actor, and Netflix queuing abounded with Stu seeing "Slumdog Millionaire" and The Dude seeing "The Secret Life of Bees." Stu missed out, though, because The Dude saw Donald Trump make fun of Jesse James on "Celebrity Apprentice," but the both of them got to see some large breasts during The Miss USA Pageant. Such are their weekends, sometimes.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:55 PM | Comments (0)

April 6, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Being Tired, Adventureland Talk, and The Dude Can't Mix Crap.

The Dude on the Right is pretty tired from being up all night with a dog that wanted to lick carpet. During this podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-up!" he tells Stu Gotz all about it, and then realizes he is happy it wasn't Stu licking carpet that kept him up all night. The boys also have movies to discuss, mostly "Adventureland" but a little about "Monsters Vs. Aliens," and TV is also a topic of discussion as the boys talk the return of "Rescue Me" and then analyze "Celebrity Apprentice." All that and more in this week's episode, so listen up!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:19 PM | Comments (0)

March 16, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! FedEx & Starbucks Woes, Fun at Disney, Parties, TV, and a Scrumpy's Can Huggy.

Stu Gotz turned 41 last week and what better way to spend your birthday than at Disney World, and what better way to tell the world about it than during a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, even if the trip wasn't over the weekend. So Stu tells The Dude on the Right about some of his Disney travels, The Dude tells Stu about the demise of a "Scrumpy's" can huggy, and they both have problems with a couple of major corporations, though neither of them are AIG and them giving themselves some year-end bonuses. They both are watching "Celebrity Apprentice" and are awaiting Dennis Rodman's meltdown next week, Stu doesn't want the little Gotz's playing soccer, The Dude (and his BFF, but mostly his BFF) are cleaning the, well, soon to be Dude & Dudette Pad, and Steve "The Woz" Wozniak can't dance that great, but he is "fantastic" on "Dancing With the Stars."

The boys pack a lot of topics into twenty minutes of a podcast, so go ahead and listen.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:29 PM | Comments (0)

March 10, 2009

What's New? Blu-ray DVD review of: South Park: The Complete 12th Season

The Dude on the Left has been absent for a while, but there's nothing to bring him out of hiding like a request to review "South Park: The Complete 12th Season," and since he's got a Blu-ray player, he busts his butt to give a complete review of all aspects of the 3 DVD set. And since he figures most "South Park" fans have already seen the episodes, he begins his review immediately commenting about the special features of the set, and then delves into the various episodes (like "Britney's New Look," "Major Boobage," "The China Problem," and "About Last Night"). The boys of "South Park," Cartman, Kenny, Kyle, and Stan, looked better on Blu-ray, but The Dude on the Left is bummed a little because other than really looking good, there really isn't that much extra in terms of special features on the Blu-ray version.

Posted by Rightdude at 11:24 PM | Comments (0)

March 5, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: The Dude on the Right & The BFF: Tatiana is Back, The Suburbs, Home Improvement, and a Toaster.

The Dude on the Right and The W.G.N. couldn't align their schedules to podcast today, so The Dude enlists the help of the most special of special guest podcasters, his BFF! The Dude is a little off his game because, well, his BFF gives him butterflies, but he powers through and discusses, with her, things like "American Idol," "Dancing With the Stars," and "The Real Housewives of New York City" which then diverts the podcast into talk of how the suburbs are different from city life (Why are the stop lights so long in the suburbs, anyway?).

Since they have family things coming up, The BFF reminds The Dude of some upcoming events, and since they have home improvement going on at The Dude-Pad, they also talk some painting tips and toaster alignment. Somehow The Dude thinks The BFF's toaster alignment will win.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:40 PM | Comments (0)

March 3, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Casimir Pulaski & Dupa's, Square Roots and Pi's, The Bachelor and BSG, iMacs and Flooring, and More!

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz are a day late for this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, but it's only because they were celebrating with their people, thanks to Monday being Casimir Pulaski Day. They tried to celebrate Square Root Day, but Stu had trouble with his math, so instead, for most of the podcast they talk about Stu catching up on his TV viewing without Mama Gotz being around, The Dude saw "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" and some other movies on TV, but neither of them hit the movie theater. There's a huge shout-out to The Dude's sister (well, maybe not huge, but at least a "good job") for her latest accomplishment, The Dude has to re-enact "The Bachelor" finale since Stu didn't watch it, and a new iMac isn't as important as other purchases that The Dude on the Right is planning to spend his money on, at least, until, The Dude wins the Mega Millions jackpot.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:37 PM | Comments (0)

February 26, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: I Twitter, I Facebook, I Cubs Tickets, I TV, I Tiger Woods Lost, and I Don't Know Why!

The Dude on the Right is lonely again tonight because he has to podcast alone, but much like many lonely nights, he sometimes finds that he has a lot to talk about. With that, The Dude is fascinated about his Twittering, his Facebooking, and his TVing. He is kind of bummed that Tiger Woods lost today so he doesn't have a justification for watching golf this weekend, wonders why Bob was crying on "The Biggest Loser," and is perplexed how you can be out of the "Virtual Waiting Room" on tickets.com, to the area you are supposed to be able to actually order tickets, and then be told you can't order tickets yet. Sadly The Dude didn't think quick enough that when he realized The W.G.N. couldn't podcast with him tonight, well, he should have sent out a Tweet to see if anyone out there in Twitterland wanted to podcast with him. Maybe he'll be on the ball next time.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:37 PM | Comments (0)

February 23, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Getting Domestic, Oscar Talk, SCUBA, and Playboy for the Articles

First The Dude on the Right has all of his testosterone taken away on Saturday afternoon, and then Stu Gotz can't help but rub it in during this episode of Stu & The Dude's "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. Domestication aside, it's the day after The Academy Awards, so the boys also give their take on the good and the bad, although if they really dived into it, this podcast would be about three hours long only discussing the Oscars. And speaking of diving, Stu was sad he missed the Friday evening portion of the "Our World Underwater" SCUBA expo over the weekend. The boys also compare notes on "Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay" and "He's Just Not That Into You." and The Dude questions Stu about proper attire at a Confirmation ceremony. Last but not least, The Dude on the Right got a new issue of Playboy, and relates to Stu that he reads it for the articles.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:09 PM | Comments (0)

February 16, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Valentine's Day, Lots of Movies, and Not Spoiling SNL - much.

Stu Gotz is back from vacation so The Dude on the Right has a partner for this episode of their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. Since Valentine's Day was last weekend, well, the both of them talk a bit about their weekends, with The Dude's being a little more romantic than Stu's, and it included a meal fit for a King. They also settle into a lot of movie talk, with Stu seeing a bunch of rentals that didn't get high reviews from many reviewers, The Dude seeing "High School Musical 3: Senior Year," and neither of them realizing that Ben Affleck was in the original "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" movie. Since Stu was back from vacation, well, he didn't get to watch too much TV, and so as not to ruin the surprises, The Dude tells Stu to check the website for links to a couple of pretty funny Saturday Night Live skits, and that even The Jonas Brothers were funny on the show, too.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:57 PM | Comments (0)

February 9, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: The Prez Screws Up TiVo, Who is Dancing with the Stars, and Are You Sleeping with Barack Obama?

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this "Weeked Wrap-Up!" podcast, and wonders what women are dreaming of having sex with President Obama. Okay, The Dude doesn't make this podcast all about sex, he also blames The Prez for any problems with his TiVo viewing this night, and wow, how the mighty "Dancing with the Stars" has fallen, at least in terms of contestants, although maybe this is exactly what the show needs to do to bring people back - bring in wacky people. The Dude on the Right better re-edit his TiVo schedules.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:49 PM | Comments (0)

February 5, 2009

What's New? A podcast of: The Dude & The W.G.N. - It's Relative: Tires, Fat, Scary Movies, Racing, and Jillian Michaels' Clips of the Week!

The W.G.N. is back for another "It's Relative" podcast, and even though The Dude on the Right talks too much, The W.G.N. does remember that he was an important part of office camaraderie. The Dude reminds them both that they can't be commercials airline pilots and that he isn't such a wus when he can't change a flat tire, The W.G.N. went to see "My Bloody Valentine 3D," Bikini Girl is gone from American Idol, and even though you might be sad that Joelle and Carla are gone on "The Biggest Loser," at least Jillian Michaels is in fine form for the "Clips of the week" segment. Happy listening.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:45 PM | Comments (0)

February 4, 2009

I'm Ready for the Digital TV Resolution and Can't Take any more Commercials. Can You, for Four More Months?

By: The Dude on the Right
And so the United States House of Representatives decided to delay the switch to digital TV, just like the Senate did, and now President Obama will most likely sign the bill into law, just like in the Schoolhouse Rock cartoons.   What does that mean for you and me? -   Four more months of inane commercials asking if we are ready for the switch to digital TV.

Here’s what I don’t get…  So they set up this date for the transition, it was supposed to be February 17th, and the government web site still says that’s the day (because it’s a bill, it’s only a bill, and it’s sitting there on Capitol Hill as of my typing this), we got bombarded by tons of commercials asking if we were ready for the switch (my favorite is the one with Vanna White, Pat Sajak, and Alex Trebek, because, well, in my mind, that one probably applies to most of the 20 million people who haven’t made the switch yet), and now, because millions of morons watching analog TV didn’t pay attention to the commercials, because millions of morons let their $40 coupons expire, and the government ran out of coupons, because, and I’m just assuming, millions of morons let their $40 coupons expire, we will get 4 more months of some of the dumbest “public service announcements” about the digital TV transition bombarding our airwaves, thus taking up quality commercial time where we could be seeing Danica Patrick and other scantily clad dudettes in low-cut tops on TV.

My proposal is this:  On February 17th, switch all programming to digital TV for most of us, so that most of us can be spared any more stupid commercials telling us how stupid those that didn’t figure out this switch are, yet.  The bill should state that rather than instantly abandoning those who didn’t switch, or get their coupon, or listen to Vanna, Pat, and Alex, well, still beam an analog signal for two months, without the TV show people were expecting, instead broadcast a simple, text message that scrolls the screen saying, “You are stupid.  We’ve been telling you for months to upgrade your TV, or get the damn digital box to be able to receive your TV program.  Since you are reading this message you might now realize you can’t see someone win a million dollars on “Wheel of Fortune” because you didn’t get that little box, and/or ask your grandson/neighbor to hook it up because you don’t want to change your little world.  Since you are reading this message it is also probably obvious that you don’t have Internet access, so asking you to visit www.dtv.gov will be stupid, but instead, in XXX days, if you don’t do the upgrade we’ve been telling you about for months, well, this screen will be blank and you won’t be able to yell at your TV “What is ‘The St. Louis Arch?’”  Have a nice day!”

I don’t think I can take four more months of people asking me if I’m ready for the switch to digital TV, and I wonder, can you?  You better be, because I’m guessing President Obama will sign this bill.

There will be people screwed over by this transition, I understand that, but in the words of Larry the Cable Guy, git r done! You know what, maybe he should be the spokesperson for this digital TV transition!

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!   L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:12 PM | Comments (0)

February 2, 2009

What's New? A podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Groundhog Day, a Super Bowl, Disney is Dirty, and Playboy For the Articles!

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz are back for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz are back for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz are back for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. Oh wait, this isn't "Groundhog Day," the movie, this is a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast on Groundhog Day, and Stu Gotz is here! With the Super Bowl over The Dude and Stu talk about the game, how The Dude's BFF has a few more M&M's, and how Stu watched the commercials even though The Dude didn't pay that much attention. And even though the Super Bowl was on TV, there is a lot more TV talk for the two of them to have, Stu wonders why Google thinks he is German and why Disney World is dirty, complete with a lot of gum, while The Dude is happy that Manuary is over and talks about why he reads Playboy for the articles. Oddly enough, Stu asks The Dude if he could borrow his Playboy later to read the interview with the dude from "House," Hugh Laurie, and not to investigate who the centerfold is. Odds are Stu is lying and will check out the centerfold before even looking for the Hugh Laurie interview.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:36 PM | Comments (0)

January 29, 2009

What's New? The Dude & The W.G.N.: Gov. Blago, Las Vegas, the PBA, Super Bowl, and Jillian Michaels' Clips of the Week!

The Dude on the Right is joined by The W.G.N. for this podcast, but The Dude is in way-talkative mode so The W.G.N. does a lot of listening. There is talk, though, of the Nephew's trip to Las Vegas and meeting members of the PBA, and his abiltity to be a decent tour guide in Houston, while The Dude talks of the imminent destruction/sale of his Second Life property, if the Pittsburgh Steelers should win The Super Bowl, and debuts his brief song parody about ex-Governor Rod Blagojevich. And as much as both The Dude on the Right and The W.G.N. probably need some inspiration, sadly the Jillian Michaels' Clips of the Week didn't seem to do it for either of them.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:56 PM | Comments (0)

January 22, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Idol, Loser, Lost, Survivor, Twitter, and a Lava Lamp!

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this podcast, and if he's not careful his BFF might just break up with him. The sad thing is it would be over a Lava Lamp, and not something serious like putting the toilet seat down. But relationship difficulties aside, The Dude is also sucked back into all kinds of TV, like "American Idol" (He wants them to get to Hollywood already), "The Biggest Loser" (He hates Joella, likes Jillian's butt-crack, but misses Jillian being a hard-ass), "Lost" (He wonders what the hell is going on), and "Survivor: Tocantin's" (He wonders how you actually say "Tocantin"). And even though The Dude Twitters, he wonders how you can actually "follow" 20,000+ Twitterers.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:09 PM | Comments (0)

January 15, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: The Dude & The W.G.N.: A Haphazard Opening, Terrorist Geese, Las Vegas, American Idol, and More!

The W.G.N. is back, and no thanks to The Dude on the Right, he sounds great. Yup, The Dude screwed up this podcast by not recording the first 5 minutes of their conversation, and then tries to sum it all up with some talk about the US Airways plane landing/crash in the Hudson River in New York City, but since The W.G.N. knew nothing about it, well, he just tries to reiterate the undocumented story that The Dude told about the terrorist plot of the Canadian Geese. Geese aside, The W.G.N. took a trip to Las Vegas and talks about winnings and losings, about a non-trip to "Thunder From Down Under," and how he really wants to take a college final exam, while The Dude is obsessed with "American Idol," sort of, but at least recognized that Bikini Girl had a nice body though not a great voice, while The W.G.N. professed that he only listened to Bikini Girl, because he only has eyes for one girl. Hmm?

They also talk about the weather, what with Chicago in a deep freeze for The Dude, while The W.G.N. is bitchy about the 50 degree weather he has, but with the schedule The W.G.N. has, well, he might be a more frequent guest for Thurday podcasts, so feel free to comment him at will.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:36 PM | Comments (0)

January 12, 2009

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A Lot of Movies, Manuary has Changed The Dude, and The Golden Globes

The Dude on the Right is changing during Manuary, but probably not in the way Manuary is supposed to change a man, so during this episode of Stu & The Dude's "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, well, The Dude takes a little while to get out of his weekend transforming, thanks to going to Nordstrom's, seeing "Bride Wars," and watching DVD's of "Funny Face" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's." Stu Gotz does his best to get The Dude back into the real meaning of the month, although really, does his "listening" to "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Chipettes," really count? The both of them do talk about some exercising things, The Golden Globe Awards, and Tina Fey's boobs, so maybe Manuary is back on track.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:04 PM | Comments (0)

December 8, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A Fraternity Dinner, TV Talk, and Girls in Skimpy Outfits

The Dude on the Right shirked his duties for a few days to reunite with some friends from his fraternity days, and since Stu Gotz was also a friend in The Dude's fraternity days, and since friends came in from near and far, for this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, Stu & The Dude reminisce a bit, reflect on a weekend with friends, and aren't really sorry that they can't party any more like it's 1999.  And as they reflect on a weekend of getting together with old friends, they don't forget new things, like the Chicago Bears beating a different football team, Stu seeing some old movies like "Bring It On," "Stick It," and "The Day the Earth Stood Still," and they both love TV, with The Dude really loving "Chuck," even if it is very predictable, and Stu eagerly awaiting the return of "Battlestar Galactica" to the TV airwaves.

Who knows what they'll talk about next?

Posted by Rightdude at 7:34 PM | Comments (0)

December 1, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Black Friday, A Walnut Room, Painting, Gambling, Movies, and More!

Thanksgiving led to the lack of a Thursday podcast last week, but The Dude on the Right & Stu Gotz do their best to make up for it during this episode of their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast.  The thing is, with an extended weekend, they talk about a lot of the same things, like movies ("Bolt," "Tropic Thunder," "Iron Man," "Delta Farce," and "Australia"), music (Britney Spears has a new CD, "Circus," coming out), TV ("The Big Band Theory" and "How I Met Your Mother"), and The Chicago Bears losing, but the holidays brought some new stuff like a visit to the Museum of Science and Industry for the Gotz's, a new holiday tradition that should probably stop in its tracks (it's a visit to The Walnut Room at Macy's, which used to be Marshall Fields), The Dude having dinner and lunch with a variety of friends, and both Stu and The Dude disgusted at people who helped lead to the death of a dude at Wal Mart on Black Friday.

They both cover a lot of ground, but the podcast is under 20 minutes, so what the hell, go ahead and give the podcast a listen.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:01 PM | Comments (0)

November 20, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Here Comes Britney Spears' Circus, Here Comes "Twilight," and Here Are "Jillian Michaels' Clips of the Week!"

The Dude on the Right is a little melancholy for this podcast, what with Thanksgiving coming up and his not traveling to the Old Country this year (and it's not even because he's a Radio Shack Manager anymore), but at least he'll be spending time with his BFF, which is nice.  It's also nice for him that he'll be thinking about seeing "Twilight" and "Bolt," rather than actually seeing the movies "Twilight" and "Bolt," but nothing beats his anticipation like getting the initial word that Britney Spears might be showing up on her "Circus" tour in the Chicago area, in March of 2009.

Thankfully he still watches "The Biggest Loser" giving him a new batch of inspiration thanks to "Jillian Michaels' Clips of the Week!"  The Dude is now inspired to fight another day!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:43 PM | Comments (0)

November 17, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "Quantum of Solace," The Chicago Bears Suck, A Crabman, and More!

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz got together for another wrap-up about their weekend, and they discuss it for their podcast.  Stu kept things with the family, watching "27 Dresses," wondering about TV shows like "Entourage" and "My Own Worst Enemy," and wasn't allowed to upload copyrighted music to YouTube, whereas The Dude on the Right saw, with his BFF, "Quantum of Solace," the NBC Travel Expo at Navy Pier in Chicago (complete with Crabman  and Catalina from "My Name is Earl" and Mike Adamle eating popcorn), and cleaned his garage.  Okay, The Dude's BFF didn't help The Dude clean his garage, but that's okay, because at least neither Stu nor The Dude, nor The Dude's BFF, watched enough of the Chicago Bears getting trampled by the Green Bay Packers to really care about football over the weekend.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:26 PM | Comments (0)

November 13, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Werewolves, Bears, Turkeys, and Jillian Michaels.

The Dude on the Right flies solo for this podcast, and he keeps it kind of short, with some quick warnings about werewolves, some cheering on the Chicago Bears, not comprehending that Turkey Day and Christmas are right around the corner, and still being a fan of "Survivor: Gabon."  The Dude, however, is not a fan of "The Biggest Loser" still being two hours long, actually feels hatred for a contestant on the show named Vicky, and was so happy Amy flipped and sent Vicky's husband, Brady, packing.  The Dude is happy, though, that he remembered to play his "Jillian Michaels' Clips of the Week" segment, whereas inspiration is normally the name of the game, but he loves her "One of them has immunity" line.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:25 PM | Comments (0)

November 10, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Bubble Tea, Families, Movies, and an Injury. And a Full Review of "Role Models."

In the immortal works of Harry Caray, "Holy Cow!"  Yup, Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right got together to for a new podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!," and they talk about so many things in about twenty minutes, well, it's almost scary to write about them all.  In any case, there is talk about bubble tea, The Dude's BFF, a family gathering, "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa," "Role Models," and some heart-shaped pubes in "Zack and Miri Make a Porno."  They don't forget to talk about the Chicago Bears, the upcoming James Bond flick "Quantum of Solace," and Stu injuring himself playing Wii, and not playing with his Wii.

In conjunction, The Dude on the Right did see "Role Models," and liked it, in the R-Rated kind of way some movies are being made nowadays.  If you don't like swear words and boobies, you probably won't like it, but The Dude does like swear words and boobies, and well-written comedies, so he liked it, liking it.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:42 PM | Comments (0)

November 6, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Another Reason to Avoid Lorain, OH, eBay Stupidity, Oprah, and South Park.

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this Thursday podcast, and he ponders life in his home town, Lorain, OH, where the folks there decided $15 a year, for those who own cars, was too much money to fix the roads, which really need it, because it's almost worse than driving on the moon when you visit.  He also explains why sometimes people are standing around on a work crew.  The Dude is also impressed at the boys who make South Park, what with their having an episode instantly timely with the election results, sort of, of is happy he didn't waste a couple of hundred bucks buying copies of the Chicago Sun Times and the Chicago Tribune, hoping to make money with them on eBay.  Then again, there would probably be one sucker who might pay $500 for his copy.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:28 PM | Comments (0)

November 4, 2008

What's New? A "Stu & The Dude Weekend Wrap-Up!" Podcast and a Movie Review of "Zack and Miri Make a Porno."

After a few weeks of being apart, Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right get reunited for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast.  They talk a little about the death of Mom on the Right, Stu's weekend turned out to be mostly about his kids as they ended up at a jumpy place for youngins and at another place called "Space Golf," while The Dude is still trying to learn how to use his new MacBook. And even though The Dude tells Stu about the movie during the podcast, there's also a full written review of  "Zack and Miri Make a Porno" that got posted.

Stu did get to tell The Dude that he was spot on about his earlier review of "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," even with the excess wiener footage, and TV is always a topic for these guys, since they don't really like to read, which leads to some Studs Terkel talk.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:48 PM | Comments (0)

October 9, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stock Market Woes, Movies I Won't See, and Jillian Michaels' Inspirations of the Week.

The Dude on the Right is just as flustered about the stock market as you might be, but he just tries to make you remember the motto - "Buy low.  Sell high."  Sure, his other tip is "Don't pet a burning dog," but if the stock market is nearing its low, you know what, ten years from now, unless the world totally falls apart, your buying now will be flying high!  Inspiration is a big topic of this podcast, granted it might not have to do with "South Park," or any of the movies opening this weekend, or if you are a subscriber to "Rolling Stone" you now have batteries to properly dispose of, but The Dude is now fascinated with Jillian Michaels from "The Biggest Loser," and introduces his new feature, "Jillian Michael's Inspirations of the Week."  Go ahead and add it to your iPod for some inspiration just when you are thinking of quitting.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:47 PM | Comments (0)

October 2, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Elevator Etiquette, Duh, Steve Fossett Isn't Found Yet, and Simple Math.

The Dude on the Right is fired up for this podcast but it's not about the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox losing their first games in the baseball playoffs.  Nope, The Dude can't understand the actions of a dude in an elevator, he's worried that he missed out on some easy grant money for studying people at a Chinese Buffet, and even though Steve Fossett's plane has been found, he wonders about Steve Fossett actually being found.  And if you have found, in your e-mail, how you might be better off getting a financial windfall rather than AIG getting their bailout, you might want to pull out your calculator to figure out how you're going to be spending your "windfall" of $425.00, and not $425,000.  And if you are a dudette or a gay dude, you might want to start watching "Survivor: Gabon" and tell the PTC (Parent's Television Council) to butt out of your newfound hap-penis.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:39 PM | Comments (0)

September 29, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Lots of Movies, Sports, and Spelling Julio.

It's a Monday so it must be time for a new episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, and right off the bat Stu Gotz decides to put a different spin on a romantic moment that The Dude on the Right and his BFF shared while having dinner at "Uncle Julio's Hacienda" in Chicago.  Stu tries to make up for it with a not-that-humiliating story about not hanging up his phone after leaving a message, but as the podcast goes on there is a lot of movie talk, with "Hoot," "Eagle Eye," "The Hammer," and "Ghost Town," being some of the topics.  There is also some talk about the new design of the Chicago Tribune, and the both of them discuss sports, especially since, in Chicago, it's been weird with the Chicago Bears beating the Philadelphia Eagles, the Chicago Cubs waiting for the post-season, and the Chicago White Sox needing to win things in the weirdest ways to keep the nightmare of a Cubs-White Sox "World Series" alive.

The Dude also does his impersonation of Tina Fey impersonating Sarah Palin, but, well, The Dude's not that good.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:23 PM | Comments (0)

September 25, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Remote Control Madness, "Survivor: Gabon," and Who's to Blame?

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this podcast, but that's okay, because his life is now in turmoil thanks to his buying a new T.V., and Canada.  It seems that getting a new T.V. also required getting a new cable box, and now his way-cool remote control isn't way-cool anymore because it needs some major reprogramming.  And as much as he can still control his T.V. viewing with 4 different remotes, and as much as he can now record 5 shows at one time, the success of the Chicago Cubs, and the impending doom of the Chicago White Sox, throws a small monkey-wrench into The Dude's viewing plans because sports are best watched live.

The Dude also had a nice weekend planned, but as things are in turmoil in the United States, in the end, it might just all be Canada's fault.  At least it was on "South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut," a movie he didn't let The W.G.N. see when he was youngin.  Sometimes The Dude tries to be a good uncle.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:28 PM | Comments (0)

September 22, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Bears, Emmy's, T.V., TiVo, and No "Buddy Christ" Explanation.

The Dude on the Right is lonely, and flying solo for this podcast, and doesn't even explain to the audio world why "The Buddy Christ" is back where he belongs, at least in the world of The Dude on the Right.  He does, though, talk about his football team, the Chicago Bears, still sucking, how the Emmy Awards sucked, but the only thing infiltrating the mind of The Dude right now, other than wondering how his BFF will accept him into the fall season, is how he will be able to TiVo all of his favorite T.V. shows, especially since he now owns an HDTV.  On a Monday when The Dude could have probably used someone to talk to, namely Stu Gotz, especially to tell him about the secret to maybe relieving his congested nose during allergy season, well, The Dude is relegated to viewing television, on a crystal clear, high-def TV screen, yet wondering how to record "Survivor: Gabon" in high-def.

The Dude really needs to win the lottery.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:32 PM | Comments (0)

September 15, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Rain, Movies, TV, and A Loud Starbucks.

Stu Gotz somehow convinced The Dude on the Right that they should record their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast at a Starbucks, and even though the music was loud, it did make for some nice, background music, even if it distracted The Dude.  The both of them, though, overcame the background music to talk about the boatloads of rain that were dumped on the Midwest over the weekend, they both talk a bit about Hurricane Ike and the people who want to be rescued in Galveston now that the storm is gone, and hey, why not critique Tina Fey playing Sarah Palin on "Saturday Night Live?"  Sure, they both liked Tina, didn't think Michael Phelps did that great on SNL, Stu's got questions about the ending of "3:10 to Yuma" while The Dude thinks Stu might piss his pants during one scene of "Burn After Reading," but a podcast with Stu and The Dude wouldn't be complete without some talk about TV, and The Dude on the Right needs to quit reviewing his visits to church.  The Dude does give a shout-out to his BFF, if you followed The Dude's Twitter you would have been texted to see Carlos Zambrano of The Chicago Cubs get a no-hitter, and if you're looking for Sarah Silverman in skimpy underwear, go ahead and rent "I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With."  Just don't ask The Dude what a "Hoagie Shack" is because he couldn't remember the term during his "review" while talking with Stu.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:02 PM | Comments (0)

September 8, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Bears Win!, A Dead TV, The MTV VMA's, and no Stu Gotz.

This should be a "Weekend Wrap-Up!", but The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this podcast because Stu Gotz decided to see Mickey Mouse. Actually, it was mostly Mama Gotz and the LIttle Gotz's that wanted to see Mickey, but, in any case, The Dude is left to lament about his TV woes by himself now that it is confirmed that his TV is really dead. And as The Dude contemplates purchasing a new TV, he sort of wonders why he should, especially since he fell asleep while watching the Chicago Bears beat the Indianapolis Colts, it was probably easier to watch the Cleveland Browns lose on a smaller TV, and there really didn't seem to be a reason to watch the MTV Video Music Awards, especially since Britney Spears wasn't a train wreck this year, she was just inserted into a lame skit. And yea, blah, blah, blah, the joke is old, but why is MTV still having a Video Music Awards ceremony when they don't show many videos anymore?

Posted by Rightdude at 6:21 PM | Comments (0)

August 14, 2008

What's New? The Chicago Air & Water Show, "Tropic Thunder," Mark Your Calendars, and The Olympics!

The Dude on the Right flies solo for this podcast, though talking about flying is exciting him about seeing the "Chicago Air and Water Show" this weekend with his BFF.  Hopefully that will go well, and Monday's podcast will be all about fun at North Avenue Beach in Chicago.

The Dude also does a large rant on The Olympics with Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz, the Chinese deceiving us, and his loving Fencing and not Women's Beach Volleyball.  He is also strangely fascinated with the Norwegian weightlifter who blew out his arm during his competition.

"Tropic Thunder" talk also is in the podcast, though The Dude is worried that if you don't see the movie, well, you must be a reta$#, though, never mind, he doesn't want to get boycotted.

Maybe you better just listen to this podcast to find out when "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince" will be in theaters in 2009.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:08 PM | Comments (0)

August 11, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! RIP Chef, Calliope Music, and Stu Doesn't See "The Scorpions" but Does Eat Tamales!" also A Movie Review of "Pineapple Express."

A long weekend leads to building blocks of newness, so for this Monday The Dude on the Right posts his weekend review of "Pineapple Express," noting that as much as he liked the stoner aspect of the flick, once it turned into a gunfight, well, the movie turned just a little too over the top for him.  The funniness was in the stoners, and all of a sudden they had guns?  The Dude on the Right is so critical, sometimes.  But newness isn't only about a movie review, since postings happen on a Monday it's also time for a Stu & The Dude "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, and they've got a lot to talk about. The boys have a different tribute to Isaac Hayes, The Dude one the Right, again, reviews that "Pineapple" movie, Stu wishes his tamale wasn't so spicy, and The Dude will probably be struck down by lightning soon for his comments of attending mass at Holy Name Cathedral (while it is under construction).

And who knew Stu Gotz actually wanted to see The Scorpions?  The Podcast lets The Dude on the Right know that he doesn't know Stu as well as he thought he did.

Oh well.

Have fun reading and listening!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:42 PM | Comments (0)

July 14, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! The BFF Meets the Family, Lots of TV Talk, and an iPhone Update.

The Dude on the Right took his BFF to visit some of his family in the old country, while Stu Gotz missed a Cubs' game, and those are just some of the topics they both cover in this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!"

Sure, they also talk about miniature golf, give a shout for The Dude's mom to "Get well soon," the uber-coolness of the iPhone update, and The Dude is psyched to see "The Dark Knight," but let's not forget Stu's love of "Burn Notice," SCUBA, and the younger Gotz's love of "Mr. Men."  Now if only The Dude would have talked about his and his BFF's lottery winnings, well, this podcast might be complete, but that might just have to wait for The Dude chatting with The WGN, and explaining to said The WGN why opening car doors for girls could be fixed by more-advanced, door-unlocker key fobs.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:31 PM | Comments (0)

July 1, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! RV-ing, Penn & Teller, Movie Talk, Toilet Paper, and More!

Some travel issues delayed Stu Gotz getting back in town so the podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" was a day late, and even with some extra time, well, The Dude on the Right screwed up the opening.  But that's okay because they have lots to talk about, including some movie talk about "Wanted," "Wall-E," "Presto," and "Letters from Iwo Jima."  The Dude relates to Stu that he really should get Showtime so he could see "Penn & Teller: Bullshit," and Stu should also get Sirius Satellite Radio so he could hear ABBA, 24/7, for a couple of weeks.  Stu, on the other hand, relates his woes of toilet paper at airports.  They both talk about a fight at the Cubs/White Sox Crosstown Classic, they talk about tattoos, and with the 4th of July weekend coming up, they talk about how it looks like The Dude's BFF still won't get to meet any of The Dude's friends, even with the lure of REO Speedwagon.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:54 PM | Comments (0)

June 26, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: A Special Guest Podcaster, The WGN, Joins for TV, Comedian, Gun, and Socially Inept Talk!

The Dude on the Right was joined by The WGN for this Thursday podcast, and they talk about a lot of things. The Dude introduces The WGN to "America's Got Talent," the both talk about George Carlin, and The Dude learns that The WGN is making contacts for his future. They both talk about guns (how topical, what, with the Supreme Court decision today), family gatherings, and if The Dude's family is socially inept. The Dude is also happy to hear The WGN knows who Night Ranger is, hopes the two of them might be able to see Radiohead at Lollapalooza, and fears he might get sucked in to "Dolphin Olympics 2." Maybe The WGN is a worse influence on The Dude as apposed to The Dude being a worse influence on The WGN?

Posted by Rightdude at 7:24 PM | Comments (0)

June 19, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: A "The Swell Season" Preview, Meeting Family, The Bachelorette, and Missing "Nessun Dorma" on "America's Got Talent."

The Dude on the Right could really use a nap before this podcast about, mainly, going to see "The Swell Season," especially since getting back home was past his normal bedtime, but that's not important because this podcast isn't a full review of the show, just a quick blip at his still liking the folks from the movie "Once." The Dude also talks about some BFF family stuff, he's still watching "The Bachelorette," and is bummed he missed the premier of "America's Got Talent" where some dude did a great version of "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's Turandot, complete with Jerry Springer interrupting it, because, well, it's on TV.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:52 PM | Comments (0)

May 29, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: The World's Greatest Nephew Needs a Nickname, Some Politics, Some Eddie Murphy, and Some Toilet Talk!

The World's Greatest Nephew is still in college, so The Dude on the Right might have to send him a few bucks to get a new headset, but even though the audio quality isn't the greatest, The Dude is happy to be able to do a podcast, through the magic of the internet, with his nephew. The WGN is pretty much tired of politics, but that doesn't stop The Dude from playing a clip of Father Michael Pfleger, but then they nicely settle into some banter about college, summer, movies, sex, and toilets. What better things are there for an Uncle and his nephew to discuss?

Posted by Rightdude at 8:05 PM | Comments (0)

May 26, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! The Dude sees "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and Fireworks, Stu Wonders if He Can Get "Wii Fit."

Thanks to the internet, Stu and The Dude were able to record their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast via Skype, and although not the most exciting of Memorial Day weekends, some things for them were the same, and some things for them were different.  Duh.

Stu is nursing a cold, which kept him keeping up with his Netflix queue, namely watching "Wild Hogs" and "Cougar Club," while The Dude on the Right ventured into Chicago to see "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," fireworks, and have a nice dinner.  Stu couldn't go backyard camping with his kids, and The Dude needed to buy a new filter for his kids.  And Stu probably didn't use his Wii Fit, while The Dude doesn't own a Wii.

Now that they know the Skype thing works, there really isn't an excuse for Stu and The Dude to not ever do a podcast again.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:57 PM | Comments (0)

May 22, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: The Best Singer on the "American Idol" Finale Didn't Win, and Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

The Dude on the Right is still flustered about yesterday's "American Idol" finale during this podcast, and it's not because David Cook beat David Archuleta. Nope, the The Dude is flustered at wasting 2 hours and 5 minutes watching a 2 hour and 2 minute commercial for Fox related programming, or singers we don't care about. Luckily Ryan Seacrest was able to announce the winner before the TiVo programming ran out, but more luckily was that Renaldo Lapuz was given the chance to regale us all with his version of "We're Brothers Forever," or "I Am Your Brother," or who cares, he was great. Other than "Lost," the Spring TV season is now over. Hooray?

Posted by Rightdude at 7:14 PM | Comments (0)

May 21, 2008

David Cook: This is your American Idol!

By: The Dude on the Right
For you west coasters, wondering who won "American Idol" this year, I would like to apologize for spoiling it for you, but for the love of any God, space alien, or cosmos wondering about how we are here on this planet, PLEASE DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME WATCHING THIS FINALE!!!!! (Although, if you TiVo it, head straight for the one hour and eleven minute mark to hear the greatest Idol singer ever).  I watched (some) of it, and here's how it went.

Yes, Ryan Seacrest bragged about how many votes were cast (something like 97.5 gabajillion, or at least 97.5 million votes), split between 56% for David, and 44% for the other David, they did a "here's what's happening in their hometown" clip, and then another lame sing-a-long.  Then David and David did a bad duet of Chad Kroeger's (he's the lead singer dude from Nickelback) version of "Hero," and then a bizarre, crappy, piece of shit, plug for the next Mike Myers film "The Love Guru,", trying to say that Guru Pitka is actually a real person, influencing our two finalists.  Oh my f-ing God!  What in the hell is this total crap? Mike Myers, you are no Sasha Baron Cohen.

The Idol folks then let Syesha come out to show she probably should be the winner, doing a duet with Seal of "Waiting for You," with, of course, Paula Abdul dancing her butt off.  And after about about a 4 minute commercial break we got Jason Castro back, singing "Hallelujah," again.  Yippee, although most of us probably already bought the Jeff Buckley version on iTunes.  And here we go, it's just want we want to see after another song, a product placement commercial for some Ford cars!  Another "Yippee" is in order!

Now we get the girl contestants singing Donna Summer's "She Works Hard for the Money," in group fashion, only letting us remember how hot some of these dudettes were before they got booted from our memories because they couldn't really sing that great, and then, for more lameness, having Donna Summer come out looking almost dazed and confused singing what is going to be her new single.  Do we really want Disco back?  Out of the groove of her latest "hit," Donna's now into "Last Dance," with her having the excitement of, well, I'm sorry for being mean, but having none, letting Syesha show that yes, she is actually a singer.  And now, with the Donna Summer debacle done we get a Diet Coke commercial from like what, 3 summers ago?

Uggghhh!!!  (Can you tell I'm really flustered watching this show?)

At least we got a T-Mobile commercial from like a year or two ago where Dad says to his daughter "Maybe you should have uglier friends."  And then with another commercial break I TiVo'd through, we get Carly Smithson and Michael John singing an overproduced and "why the hell is this being done as a duet" version Joe Cocker/The Box Tops "The Letter."

And at the 43 minute mark, thank the Lord for Jimmy Kimmel!  Oh, my God, it's only the 43 minute mark!  That means there is probably another hourish left before we actually get to find out who is the next American Idol.

Now the guys get to sing Bryan Adam's "Summer of '69."  What the hell is it with having Ameircan Idol people sing songs released when they weren't even born yet, and now, yes, we actually get Bryan Adams to sing something new from him, "I Thought I'd Seen Everything."  Don't get me wrong, I like Bryan Adams, but Bryan Adams?

Yay, now David Cook gets to sing with ZZ Top, doing "Sharp Dressed Man."  For some reason, I don't think I can actually hear David's guitar.

Oh my God, I just can't take it anymore, now I'm getting Graham Nash singing "Teach Your Children" with Brooke White.  Actually, I almost like this performance, but I still can't take it anymore, can't blog about this anymore.  I'm going to watch some baseball now to see if the Cubs, White Sox, or Indians win, and will be back later to just announce who won.

Thank God for TiVo!

Okay, yes, I couldn't resist, I checked back, seeing that the Cubs were losing, and I'm torn between the White Sox and the Indians winning their game, and what do I see back on American Idol, but the greatest singer of all time, the "I Am Your Brother" dude, Renaldo Lapuz.  I actually have him as ringtones for some of my friends!  Screw Fleetwood Mac, Renaldo singing "I Am Your Brother" with the USC Marching Band is a hell of lot better than "Tusk."

It's back to baseball....

Okay, the baseball is boring, it's back to Idol.  Oh crap, it's Jordin Sparks showing, and damn, I hate to be mean again, but why can't she lose a couple of pounds to make herself a totally hot singer?  There's that, and I'm no fashion guru, but what's up with the outfit that explodes her hips?

Oh, thank God, another "product placement" commercial filtered in to the American Idol broadcast.  Yup, there's a movie coming out called "Tropic Thunder," and you might know it now.

Okay, never mind, Carrie Underwood is now on the show, showing why I might want to convert to vegetarianism, with a skirt that, well, umm, I'm going to pause this really quick.  Did I say I love my Tivo yet?

Okay, I'm back, that was quick....

Another group song - it's back to baseball...

The Cubs are still losing, the White Sox are now beating my Cleveland Indians with a home run, I guess I'm back to Idol...

Ughhhh!  Just give me the winner already!  It's been an hour and 47 minutes already!  This is really why I'm starting to hate this show.  And oh my God, they just brought out George Michael, who, surprisingly enough, has a tour to promote, and he's singing "Praying For Time."  Okay, he did a nice job with that.  But, of course, we have to promote his tour!

Finally, please, oh for the love of God, please, just tell me who in the hell is the winner!

Final thoughts from me - get back to why we actually watch the show, quit with the crap.  The result's shows should only be a half an hour long, the contestants should be able to sing full versions of the songs and be given a chance to be performers, and if you are getting mentors for these people, get actual mentors.

And so, David Cook wins "American Idol."  Good for him!  I'm tired, I have to get this posted, and I hope you didn't waste your time watching this two-hour, bloated, version of a finale, and just TiVo'd your way to the end.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:04 PM | Comments (0)

May 20, 2008

Who Will Be Your Next "American Idol"?

By: The Dude on the Right
Yippee!  We are down to the two David's, Mr. Archuleta and Mr. Cook, and I'm only still here because, well, it's a Tuesday, there really isn't anything on TV, and I've been doing this damn "American Idol" recap for the entire season so I might as well hang in there for the last of the singing.  Who will win, who will you vote for, will any of them trip and fall on their face (God, that would be great, wouldn't it?), and how much did they have to pay Michael Buffer to say "This... is... 'Americaaaaan Idooool...'",  so...

Let's go...

First thought, quit with the "Oh, we need a theme, let's make this like a boxing match" motif.  We don't care.  We just want to hear them sing, and why are we still going back to Andrew Lloyd Webber?  Yes, I admit, I like "Cats" and "Jesus Christ Superstar," but how many 12 year old girls do?  Just frackin' sing!  And it took them over 14 minutes to get to the ...

1st Round of Songs - Picked By Clive Davis
David Cook
 - Sings "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2
 - It finally looks like he might actually want to be a performer instead of just a singer.  He sounds good enough, is working the stage, and little David might have some problems if big David keeps the night like this. 

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on My" by Elton John
 - This song so much fits into his wheelhouse, and he's trying to keep his eyes open and not squint, but he fades back and forth on the eye-squinting thing that I just can't help but notice it.  He finally worked to break out of his shell, also, actually being a performer, but you still see a little more apprehension, mostly just from lack of experience, I suppose.

Here comes the...

2nd Round of Songs - From the Song Competition
David Cook
 - Sings "Dream Big" by Emily Shacklton?
 - David gets to play guitar, to a song I actually like, in the pop-rock kind of way.  Man, this could almost be a song by Jim Peterik for a "Rocky" soundtrack.  It's kind of cheesy (in a good way), but one, with the right band, could end up on every iPod of people who exercise for inspiration.  I'm guessing Simon isn't familiar with any of the "Rocky" soundtracks.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "In This Moment" by Ryan Gilmore?
 - Oh crap, David A. is back into his "I need to be the next Josh Groban" moment.  The song is nice enough, but we know exactly where Mr. Archuleta is looking to take his career - to an Oprah Winfrey performance hoping to supplant Sr. Groban.  He is still trying to open his eyes, but it still isn't working.

Here comes the...

3rd Round of Songs - Picked By The Singers
David Cook
 - Sings "The World I Know" by Collective Soul
 - Dude, if you win this thing it will only because you have the most loyal fan base because why in the hell do you pick a sort of obscure song for your finale?  Sure, you sang it nice enough, but do you actually think any of the viewers who would actually vote for you know a song that was popular in, what, 1995?  Let's see, the 13 year old girls weren't even born yet.  So much for converting any of them to your side.  I think Simon still realizes that David Cook, right now, has the best potential for a music career.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Imagine" by, umm, duh.
 - Oh, hell, who cares anymore?  He still squints, he still "croons," and the 13 year olds who aren't voting for David Cook probably heard their parents actually play the original version of this song, and are voting for this David anyway.

Let's wrap this up...
I think David Cook is the better performer, David Archuleta needs to really learn how to open up his eyes (that comes with experience), but the more curious thing will be to see, in the year 2013, who might still have a career?  I'm guessing it will be Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, and Kellie Pickler.  And maybe next year's "American Idol."  One of these David's will win, but I just don't see long lasting careers in front of any of them.  Maybe they'll prove me wrong.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:46 PM | Comments (0)

May 19, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: I Could Have Won $0.40, or even Millions, I've Got Too Much Stuff, and Here Comes Indiana Jones!

The Dude on the Right realized, over this weekend, that he has too much stuff, and some of that stuff should have been thrown out years ago, like a phone book from 1995, so for this podcast he laments on seeing a movie he didn't care that much about, namely "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," how he didn't win millions, or at least $0.40, and wonders why he still has a hand-held scanner that only scans in black & white. At least he still has a film idea on a 3 1/2" floppy and his hope that "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" will be good.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:59 PM | Comments (0)

May 15, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Shania Twain is Unattached, Starbucks Almost has Nudity, David Will Win American Idol, and a Tease for Monday.

The Dude on the Right is trying to figure out, during this podcast, how he will skirt the authorities in his trying to woo Shania Twain in either Switzerland or Canada, since he doesn't have a passport and she is breaking up with her hubby. He also steals a story from "The Roe Conn Show" about Starbucks and their naked mermaid, gets some audio he heard on "Howard Stern" as a tease for Monday's podcast, but does know that David will win "American Idol."

Posted by Rightdude at 6:41 PM | Comments (0)

May 13, 2008

A Judge's Pick, A Personal Pick, A Producer Pick, and Yes, Ryan, We know, This is "American Idol."

By: The Dude on the Right
So we've got the final three, it's David Cook, Syesha Mercado, and David Archuleta, and I'm starting to not care that much because this show really has lost the reason why we watch it. 

Let's go...
1st Round of Songs - Picked By The Judges

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "And So It Goes" by Billy Joel
 - So, Paula Abdul tosses David a bone for this song, because all David can sing well seems to be ballads, and David thinks it is a really pretty song.

He still can't open up his eyes if it could save the world, he's pigeonholed himself into his recording contract as a balladeer, and the underlying problem is still that he can't actually be a performer or work the crowd.  He sings nice, he squints, he just can't seem to approach the audience and get the girls to toss their underwear at him.

David, open up your f&#$ing eyes!

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "If I Ain't Got You" by Alecia Keys
 - Randy Jackson throws a song into the wheelhouse that is Syesha, and she does her hair right keeping it straight, and dresses nice, and more importantly she sings nice.  I do wish she would have "performed" a little more, but the only problem I had was she let her "glee" at being there mess up the "emotionish" of the song.

David Cook
 - Sings "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack
 - Simon actually gives someone a challenge, and David Cook took this song and almost even made me want to download it.  What the hell is wrong with Randy?  Simon actually knows how this contest works, and...

After the first round I'm going, in order, David Cook, Syesha Mercado, then David Archuleta

Here comes the...

2nd Round of Songs - Picked By The Contestants

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "With You" by Chris Brown
 - He decides for something new, and who the hell told him that this would be the song to make him a star?  He looks so damn uncomfortable now trying to be a performer/singer, and, I'm sorry, he dances like a white guy.  He sings nice enough, but damn, he needs a few more years under his belt to actually be a star.  Sorry, I know the young girls and grandmas like him, but Randy and Simon called things right for him.  He better hope the Producer people pick the perfect song for him or else he better hope his fan-base is super-strong.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Fever" by, Peggy Lee
 - She needs to quit smiling, although I can understand how happy she might just be to be there in the final three.  She breaks character to be happy, then flips back into serious mode, then back into happy mode.  She's flaunting her voice, flaunting her, hmm, dress and body, but can't hold the "performance" side.  Quit smiling, stay in the "serious" character, and it would have been perfect.

David Cook
 - Sings "Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot
 - He still likes picking slightly obscure songs, decides he'll try to be a rocker with the guitar strapped around his neck, and does his best to rock it out, but sadly, someone has done this before on "American Idol," and they don't give him enough time to actually develop the song.  He could have been great with this song, if he could have actually done the entire song, but if the "American Idol" folks want to know why we are tired of watching the show, it's because the only get half a song to sing.  He could have been so much better.

Second Round: Syesha, David Cook, and then David Archuleta

Here comes the...

3rd Round of Songs - Picked By The Producers of the Show
And "American Idol" Producers, you have now put yourself into "We have to cram as much as possible into this one hour show so we can't actually let them sing a full song and actually develop it, so lets rush right into...

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Longer" by Dan Fogelberg
 - He squints, but who cares anymore?  I'm almost wondering if he has eyes under those eyelids.  A lame song, he still can't be a performer for it, and still just sits there, on a stool, instead of hitting the end of the stage and wooing the girls.  And no, Randy, he can't sing the phone book.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Hit Me Up" by, Gia Farrell?
 - So, the "Idol" folks are trying to turn Syesha into a Beyonce/Rihanna?  Do you people even know what you have here?  Gosh, she tried to work it, she worked to sing it, but this is not a song you give someone who you want to be the next Beyonce/Rihanna to try to pull off in a minute and a half, nor try to rehearse in less than a week!  Ughh you "American Idol" producer people, Ughh!  Syesha tried so hard, though, unless David Cook becomes a magic man, I want Syesha to win.

David Cook
 - Sings "I Don't Want To Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith/Diane Warren
 - He's screwed by a lame arrangement with the "American Idol" band, and he is so trying to work it.  The orchestra sucks, he only has 90 seconds to work it, and as much as he tries to promote it, I thought it was kind of lame.  I guess it sounded better on the Idol stage, because in my home, well, I hated it.  I've seen Steven Tyler sing this song, and David Cook is no Steven Tyler, mostly thanks to the band.

You know what, I'm tired of trying to figure out who might win this thing...  So...

Let's wrap this up...

My advice for the "American Idol" folks is to simply quit trying to make the show complicated, quit with not letting the singers sing full versions of songs, and I want Syesha to win because if anyone has grown during this competition, has come out of her shell, and has actually worked to be a performer, it is Syesha.  If you want my opinions on how to get "American Idol" back to actually getting people to watch, I'll just say something simple - quit with the crap, let every contestant sing the full version of the song, and keep the results-show to 1/2 hour.  All we care about on the results-show is who is getting booted.

If you want someone who is a pop-idol, that person is Syesha.  I'm rooting for her!

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:45 PM | Comments (0)

May 12, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "Speed Racer," The Dude Leaves his Bunker, and Baseball Nuts.

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz are finally reunited for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, and they've got a lot to talk about. Sure, Stu saw "Speed Racer" and gives his review, The Dude has to explain that he had a great time shirking his duties and meeting up with a dudette from his school days, and Stu relates that he still can't understand sport uber-fans. The two of them talk about "Survivor," about "American Idol," and Stu tries to give a Netflix review of a movie that The Dude could care less about. Ah, such are Stu & The Dude!

Posted by Rightdude at 6:09 PM | Comments (0)

May 8, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: So, Like, It's Like Idol, Survivor, TV, and Like, So, Girls Just Want to Have Fun!

The Dude on the Right was mesmerized during this podcast because he was intrigued by a dudette who liked to say "like" and "so" a lot while he was eavesdropping on a conversation at Starbucks. The Dude is also a little melancholy about the end of the TV season, what with "Survivor" wrapping up on Mother's Day, and "American Idol" coming to a close soon, but thankfully the Jack Johnson wannabe, Jason Castro, is done singing.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:41 PM | Comments (0)

May 6, 2008

Umm, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame week? What the Hell is That?

By: The Dude on the Right
Ryan Seacrest says we must vote, and I'm saying I don't care how poorly Syesha might do, but vote for Syesha because do we really want a top three finish of all dudes?  It's obvious we don't always vote for the best singers, so for the love of God, don't let "American Idol" become a sausage fest!

It's "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame" night, which I really don't understand, except I guess it's songs you can pick which are from the R&R HoF.  But why are the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions still held in New York City instead of Cleveland which is where the Rock Hall is located?  I guess that is a story for another time.  And Paula must be happy because the format is back to normal where she only has to do her talking one performer at a time.  Hooray!

Let's go...
1st Round of Songs

David Cook
 - Sings "Hungry Like the Wolf" by Duran Duran
 - He is singing okay like he usually does, but he has all of the charisma of, well, he has none.  And why in the hell do you pick a song where the lyrics we all know are "Do do do do, do do do, do do do, do do do, do do...", or something like that.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Proud Mary" by, Tina Turner
 - She is so much looking better with the straight hair, has nice gams, and almost has seemed to have come into her own as a singer and performer and might now just be the person to be reckoned with if the dudes don't step things up in a big way.  VOTE FOR SYESHA!  Simon didn't like it, but the heck with him, every week is a bad interpretation of someone famous.  Let's just revel in the fact that someone seems to actually want to perform.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "I Shot the Sheriff" by Bob Marley
 - Yea, go figure, Jason Castro thinks he can sing Bob Marley.  He's trying to finally be a performer, but he's smiling during lines like "I shot him down."  We will see if people don't give a crap about his singing because if after this performance he stays alive well, we know all of the stoners are voting in force.  Simon was dead-on with "utterly atrocious" and "the only similarity was the hair."

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Stand By Me" by Ben E. King
 - He's still squinting, but at least is trying to perform.  I'm not saying he should get all "crazy eyed," but dude, get used to the lights, open your eyes, and this performance would have been a hell of a lot better.  David's singing is good, but he's still got to learn to work the girls in the front row.  If he worked just one girl to show true confidence with the ladies it would have been fantastic, and his possibilities would be endless.

2nd Round of Songs

 David Cook
 - Sings "Baba O'Riley" by The Who
 - No, this song is not called "Teenage Wasteland," though many people think it is, and sadly for David he only had a short amount of time to actually sing this song.  What is really starting to piss me off about "American Idol" is they are not having the show done so the contestants can actually perform a song.  This is a song that can't be chopped into pieces for a couple of minute piece.  Ugh, the AI people are ruining this show because I almost thing David could have made this song great had he not had to chop it up.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "A Change in Gonna Come" by, Sam Cook
 - Well, Syesha is starting to show she might actually be the person out of all of these contestants who could actually have a recording career because she was fantastic.  Screw you Randy, Paula loved her, and Simon actually agreed with Paula.  As much as I say VOTE FOR SYESHA!, it might almost be better if she gets booted so she can get out of the "winner of the "American Idol" spotlight" and develop a career like Chris Daughtry.  In any case, Syesha, if you do win, don't let them drag out your career like they did with Jordin Sparks.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Mr. Tambourine Man" by Bob Dylan
 - He forgot lyrics, he just doesn't seem to give a damn about being in this competition anymore, and how in the hell did he even think he could pull off Bob Dylan and Bob Marley, so if he is not the one getting booted tomorrow we have found out that this show doesn't really matter anymore because the public just likes a pretty boy, or a stoner-looking boy.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Love Me Tender" by Elvis "and do we even need to end that with Presley?" Presley
 - Wait a minute, did he just say, or was he mocking me, that "I haven't really sung a romantic love song on the stage before?"  He's still squinting, the little girls and old ladies still probably love him and will text their hearts out for him, and I'll give him a few props for changing the arrangement a tad, or give credit to whomever might have changed his arrangement.  Whoever did the changes knew David would only have a short time to put this song out and hopefully made it work.  David, dude, you still need to learn how to open up your eyes.

Let's wrap this up...

All I can say is that the "American Idol" producer/director/whoever the hell is in charge of this monster is really screwing this up.  I say that because between last week and this week our contestants don't actually get to sing, nope, they get to sing a bitty-small portion of a song instead of actually getting a chance to perform a song.  The culmination of this was David Cook singing the worst, chopped version of "Baba O'Riley" ever.  Idol people, please, stop.  Get this show back to how we loved it in year one and two, because if next season is like this, well, I don't know if I can stick with it.  "Dancing With the Stars" lost my viewership, my Mom has already ditched "American Idol," but if you don't get back to actually letting the contestants learn to be performers, or at least sing an entire song, I might be done with it next year.

In any case, VOTE FOR SYESHA!  And other than being a dudette, she actually deserves it.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:17 PM | Comments (0)

May 1, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Happy Birthday to Me!, Vote for Syesha, Jason was Dumber, and Here Comes "Iron Man!"

For this podcast The Dude on the Right talks about getting a haircut, in anticipation of his birthday and having to renew his driver's license, by a dudette who blamed her sounding like she was stoned on a cold rather than, well, being stoned. He is also throwing all of his support to Syesha on "American Idol," thinks Jason might be the dumbest "Survivor" contestant ever, and wonders who he would beckon to visit him during "family reunion day" had he been a "Survivor" contestant. But as his birthday looms, and he gets out of his 40's, The Dude knows it is now movie season, and he can't wait to see "Iron Man" over the weekend.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:22 PM | Comments (0)

April 29, 2008

Neil Diamond is In the American Idol House! But Why?

By: The Dude on the Right
I love Neil Diamond.  I've seen him in 1996, 1998, 2001, and 2005. I've taken some nice photos of the man, I've done some cartoon drawings of the man (scroll down for it), and I have even taken my Mom to his concert back in 2001 which would have been a better experience for her (but maybe not so much of a story), had I splurged on a limo.  He is a singer, he is a songwriter, but hopefully for our last five folks in this contest it will be his performing skills that he can impress on them.  We'll have to see how that goes as the show goes on, so let's just get to it, and here's how I thought the five folks did...

ROUND 1
Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Forever in Blue Jeans"
 - Good choice for him.  It's bouncy, light-hearted, and works with him playing guitar, but he still isn't being much of a performer. 

David Cook
 - Sings "I'm Alive"
 - Good, pick obscure Neil Diamond songs people don't know by a performer who most people know all of his hits.  David did good with the "I'm Alive" song, but most people probably don't want to hear Neil Diamond songs they don't know.  Quit trying to be so "original."

Brook White
 - Sings - "I'm a Believer"
 - "I'm a Believer" is just so wrong for a song for her to sing.  She couldn't hit the low notes, it might have been in the wrong key, and these people playing their own instruments limit themselves because they are stuck behind the mike and can't actually work the crowd.  So far the performing side of anything isn't coming out.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Sweet Caroline"
 - So David tried to bust out of his melodic groove with maybe the biggest karaoke song in existence, and he didn't even fill in the "So Good, So Good, So Good" part.  He almost wanted to work the crowd for this song, but then hunkered back to just singing, almost seeming to hope he wouldn't forget the words.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Hello Again"
 - It's nice enough, but just seems to be lacking some kind of punch that Neil puts into it even though it's a ballad.

On a side note, Paula Abdul has finally hit an all-time high for being clueless.

ROUND 2
Jason Castro
 - Sings - "September Morn"
 - Yea, we get the performer you want to be - the laid-back, hippie dude.  We get it, the dudettes probably like your laid-back attitude, and you picked good songs this week even though I found you lame.  You're lucky the chicks probably dig you.

David Cook
 - Sings "All I Need is You"
 - Yup, another obscure Neil Diamond song, what the hell are you thinking?  Sure, you might be trying to separate yourself and be original, but in a week you had two songs to pick maybe you should choose an obscure one for the first song (good choice though), and then bring reality back with a Neil Diamond classic so everyone could remember that.  You're probably lucky that you are a pretty-boy, rocker-dude, because that is the only thing you bring.

Brook White
 - Sings - "I Am, I Said"
 - You know what, I hate the fact that the band actually joined in because for her, doing this solo, on the piano, was really working for me.  The back-up band ruined it, because as a solo song this was actually a song I liked.  I still hate that she won't shut up when the judges give her their critiques, and I only wish I could see her do this song in a smoky bar, all alone on a piano, just being herself.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "America"
 - I know you are young, but who in the hell is coaching you on the songs for you to sing?  Of all of the Neil Diamond songs this is probably the worst choice in my head for you.  I guess it sounded better for his live performance because on my TV I didn't like it at all.  Am I hearing something different?

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Thank the Lord for the Night Time"
 - She's at least coming out of her shell and trying to also be a performer, but I think it might be a little too late because, as I'm listening to her, Syesha could have probably turned "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" into a fabulous number, but the problem is the American Idol folks forced these people to do two songs in an hour.

Let's wrap this up...
As much as I love Neil Diamond I still have absolutely no idea why he was involved in this show.  The crappy part is that our contestants didn't need to try and fit two songs each into an hour, they really needed just one song each to fill in this hour - and perform the hell out of that song.  I hate to say this but the "American Idol" folks haven't seemed to realize why we love this show, and it's not for seeing people sing a verse and then a chorus and then being judged by Randy, Paula, and Simon, clipped because of time constraints.  Our time is precious, don't let us feel cheated.

I've pretty much given up on "Dancing with The Stars," and now I'm almost not caring about "American Idol."  Idol Producers, at least let these people try to sing.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:24 PM | Comments (0)

April 24, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Lee Elia Rants, Carly Smithson is Booted, and RIP Kenneth Keith Kallenbach.

After hearing about the passing of Kenneth Keith Kallenback during The Howard Stern Show this morning, The Dude on the Right realized he actually has a "blowing smoke through his eyes" story, and doesn't do his best to tell the tale during this podcast. He does, though, warn you as you are listening that you might want to watch your podcast volume during his visiting of the Lee Elia tirade about Chicago Cubs' fans. The Dude is also happy TV is back in full bloom, happy that Carly Smithson is finally off "American Idol," and is looking forward to seeing Neil Diamond as the A.I. mentor next week.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:01 PM | Comments (0)

April 22, 2008

It is Andrew Lloyd Webber Week. Shouldn't We Be Paying Attention to the Pennsylvania Election Results?

By: The Dude on the Right
So as a good American I suppose I should probably be hunkered down watching the Pennsylvania Primary Results to see if Hillary Clinton somehow pulls out a chance to solidly beat Barack Obama if only to further confuse who will be the Democratic nominee for President, but, dammit, it is Tuesday night, it is "American Idol" night, and there is more important voting going on in just about an hour.  Sure, it is Andrew Lloyd Webber Week for A.I., and Andrew Lloyd Webber is fantastic, legendary, a mega-force when it comes to musicals, and fine, I'll admit it, I'm a fan of "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Cats."  Hell, I even saw "Cats" on Broadway back in 1985, although part of it is blurry as we took a high school bus ride from Ohio to New York City, and since I can't sleep on moving transportation and "Cats" was the first play we saw out there the evening we arrived, let's just say I was nodding off during part of it, at least I think so.  Man, some of those memories are blurry now, and unless my mind is really messed up, we also saw "Noises Off" out there, which I can still watch today and laugh my ass off if done even close to right.  But I digress.

So as much as I do appreciate the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, maybe the "American Idol" folks realize no one there has the personality/performance quality to make it as a pop singer so they're trying to see if they can make some money with them on the Broadway stage.  Maybe Andrew Lloyd Webber will actually get these shlubs to be performers, but I'm still praying for "Bruce Springsteen Week" when he can teach this group about performing, and then Artie Lange from The Howard Stern Show, now that he reneged on his resignation, will have to answer to this equation:  Bruce Springsteen + American Idol = Ball Shocking.

Enough reminiscing, enough praying, let's see how our last six folks sing...

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "One Rock 'n Roll Too Many"
 - My prediction is that even though she sings nice enough, and she is trying to perform it as if she were on stage, she's the first singer of the night and only her diehard fans will stick by and vote for her.  Sadly, or maybe happily, she has shown she will be able to make it on Broadway, just not the pop/Idol scene.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Memory"
 - This is not a song for "laid-back"-ness, which Jason Castro is all about.  The thing is that people who know the song (like me), will probably think it sucked, but fans who have no concept of the song might actually love it.  He needed to hit the "Jesus Christ Superstar" soundtrack and become Jesus, rather than singing anything from "Cats."  Horrible song choice.

Brook White
 - Sings - "You Must Love Me"
 - Does "forgetting the song" lend her to the bottom of the pack?  Does singing a Madonna song save her?  Once she got over forgetting the lyrics she did okay, but the performance aspect waivered.  Paula seemed crushed, Simon was correct about the stopping thing, and now we will see how strong her fan base really is.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Think of Me", I think.
 - So Andrew Lloyd Webber gave David the best bit of advice ever - to open his eyes, and yet he can't.  I guess he's a squinty dude who can sing well, but still lacks the performance skills because if the dude just approached the front of the stage, worked the girls in the front row, he would have shown everyone that he is better than just a good singer.  Simon again is correct.  David has to break out his shell and be a performer - quit standing in the center of the stage.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "Superstar"
- This song fits in her wheelhouse, but there is still something about her that makes her "over-the-top" for the show.  She still shouts too much, she still seems to have this attitude of "I deserve to win this," and this song was probably a better choice for her, even though I still didn't like it that much.

David Cook
 - Sings "Music of the Night"
 - Yea, fine, you could be on Broadway, too.  You will probably stick around for another week, and at least you seem to try and work the crowd a bit, but you have shown that there isn't a pop-idol in this group.

Let's wrap this up...

Great, this week has shown that we've got six people who could probably be on Broadway, but not one of them has shown that they have the star power to be a pop singer.  Sorry, but I really don't care that much about these people anymore.  We don't need Mariah, we don't need Broadway, now we just need to see if these people can perform, and as I have been re-iterating from week to week, we really need a performing mentor for these folks.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:15 PM | Comments (0)

April 21, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Movie Talk, Artie Lange Talk, End of the World Talk, "Survivor" Talk, and more Talk.

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, mostly because of his own fault, but he still tries to blame Stu Gotz a bit even while he talks about penis and "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." The Dude also talks some martial arts with the movie "The Forbidden Kingdom," how he is happy Artie Lange is back on The Howard Stern Show," that the end of the world is coming, and last week might have been the best tribal council on "Survivor: Fans vs. Favorites." The Dude also gives his tribute, sort of, to Pope Benedict coming to the United States of America.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:11 PM | Comments (0)

April 20, 2008

At First I Wondered "What Was I Thinking?" An Hourish Later My Legs Weren't Screaming "Frack!"

By: The Dude on the Right
Today was one of those weird days when I had everything planned.  My normal morning routine would easily be in place, complete with starting laundry, reading the Sunday Chicago Tribune while eating breakfast, and, at the same time, catching up some some TiVo viewing.  Okay, I realized I still can't seem to get recording the new "Battlestar Galactica" correct, muttered "What the frack!", then tried to set up a season pass I screwed up before, hoping it didn't miss this week's episode forever, or at least until the DVD season comes out.

But my Sunday also had a lot of errand-running planned, which, I know, is kind of lame, but the Sunday also had planned a one hour walk in my favorite Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve.  I was sort of curious to see how things were looking after they torched the place a few weeks back, except with a slight wind blowing from the northwest I knew heading north would make my walk back a little easier so I wouldn't get to see the result of the torchness.  And I'm walking, and I'm walking, and I get to the thirty minute mark and realize that I'm feeling good, my legs feel spry, I've got over half a bottle of water left, and I say to myself, "Self, why don't you just do the entire loop?  Why turn back now?"  Then I said to myself, "Self, What the hell are you thinking?  Do you realize that it will add another hour to this walk and your Sunday is already scripted."  Then I said to myself, "Self, it's a gorgeous day, with a slight breeze, and it hasn't started to heat up yet."  Then I said to myself "Self, shut the hell up.  We're going for the six miles."  Yes, I'm nuts.

And so I did my first six-mile walk of the year and it felt great.  I mean, my legs didn't get fatigued, I planned my water drinking properly, and it was actually more refreshing walking into the slight breeze on the backside of the loop than letting the breeze bring me home.  I also got to see that the crispy prairie was starting to turn green, the recent warm weather has instantly put trees into budding mode, and sure, there might be one more cold snap, or a crappy day or five here, but it looks like we have really, finally, turned the corner into the Spring and Summer season.

And also and, the walk was not perfect because there was one miscalculation, especially since my original plan didn't include a six mile, one hour and fifty minute walk, and that was I was wearing jeans.  I woke up this morning, didn't get myself a gun, didn't figure for the six mile walk, and haven't put myself back into "shorts mode" yet, so I pulled on my Levi's, put on a t-shirt, embraced the subtle, slight chill in the air, not thinking that less than two hours later I would be a little sweatier than I planned, had people on the trail looking at me like "What the hell is that dude wearing jeans for?", but you know what, at the end of it all, I got to see some deer frolicking in the prairie, and sure, you can't see the mallard in the upper picture of the pond but I did (I so have to bring my better camera gear), and the burnt prairie is starting to sprout grass.

So what if my running errands were bumped by about an hour.  So what if I was the dork wearing jeans on a six mile walk.  And so what if my iPhone photos aren't up to my normal standard.  It was a beautiful day, it was great to enjoy it, and it's almost time to get my white, pasty legs in some shorts.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:30 PM | Comments (0)

April 17, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Kristy, Priscilla, and a Cougar are Gone. But Not Google.

The Dude on the Right is in a lamenting mood for this podcast. First he's sad that Kristy Lee Cook got booted from "American Idol," then he really doesn't care that Priscilla Presley got booted but is still sad that Adam Corolla was knocked out of "Dancing With the Stars" competition, he is a little torn that a cougar got shot to death in Chicago, but what makes him most sad is that Google profits makes him remember that he could be worth about $50 million bucks.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:49 PM | Comments (0)

April 16, 2008

The Gloves are, Umm, Sort of Off?

The Gloves are, Umm, Sort of Off?

By: The Dude on the Right
So as I'm updating some stories over on the "Mostly Entertainment" site while I'm waiting to see who is getting booted from "American Idol," I've got the Democratic debate between "Crazy Eyes" Clinton and "Don't Call Me Osama" Obama on, and as far as I can tell it's still the same old crap: A question is given, the candidate responds and then somehow shifts their answer to because I will help "Bring back the troops," "Save the economy," or "Fix health care," no matter what the question was. Just once I would like some fire and brimstone, and one of them, or at least in this case Barack, to just slam back "Who taught you how to down a shot.", or Hillary to blast "Nice bowling form."

At this phase I almost just really want "down and dirty."  John McCain is just kind of floating around, like "La, la, la, you know what, if I am President I'm going to get rid of the gas tax!  Won't that be swell!"  Why, because right now he has no competition, he doesn't know who he is running against, and he just needs to try to stay in the news.  Hillarity and Barackability keep going back and forth, subtlety trying to say "I'm better than they are, nyah, nyah, nyah!", but deep in their heart don't you really want to know what they really might want to say, something like:

"You're Pastor is an idiot."
"Oh yea, let me go and videotape your Pastor for a bunch of sermons."
"Well, your wife is finally happy to be an American."
"Yea, well your hubby got his pickle whistled right under your nose."
"Fine, I hate 'Crown Royal.'  That's why I didn't down it."
"Me neither, you know why?  It's from Canada!"
"Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
"Look, let's just go to the corner bar and get a shot.  You in?"
"You got it buddy.  What do you suggest?"
"The old Number 7, a shot of Jack Daniels."
"Ummmmmm, Jack Daniels."
"You do know why the bottle is square?"
"No, why?"
"So that when you get pulled over by the cops it doesn't roll out from under your car seat."
"Wow, that's cool.  How did you learn that?"
"In colle.. I mean, on the internet.  Yea, on the internet.  Man they've got a lot of good information there.  So truthful."
"Look, I'm sorry about that 'elitist' remark."
"Yea, I'm just sorry I wasn't a better bowler."
Both together: "Over the lips and through the gums, look out America here we come!"

Look, that is a joke, but everyone, in a Presidential race, especially as I have been paying somewhat attention to these races over the years, just tries to tell us what they think we want to hear.  For a change I really wish someone would quit with the posturing and just be a real person.  The sad thing is that person has no chance to win.

And if Hillary plugs her website once more during this debate, I'm going to puke.

I've got to go now and see who gets booted from "American Idol."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:37 PM | Comments (0)

April 15, 2008

It's "Mariah Carey is in The House!" in Your Best Randy Jackson Impression Week

By: The Dude on the Right
I used to be a fan of Mariah Carey back in her singing days, when she was soulful and just different enough from Whitney Houston to make me like them both.  Now she seems to be a lot more about club and dance music, but I guess that's where the money is at.  She's the mentor of this sad-sack of singers, and, fine, most of them aren't sad sacks, but most of them really need to learn how to perform because they can already sing.  I wonder if Kristy Lee Cook will turn a Mariah song into a country song... I guess we'll find out as the show goes along.

Let's go...

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "When You Believe" by Mariah/Whitney?
 - Mariah thinks his singing is just beautiful, and David keeps things slow, which has become his forte.  Nice leather pants, he knows his element and is working it (though I would like to see him branch out and try to rock).  Right now the biggest problem I have with him is he can't open up his eyes enough to look like he is confident.  He's a squinty guy.  Hopefully being first won't hurt him so people don't forget about him by the end of the night.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "Without You" by Badfinger/Harry Nilsson
- She covered up the tattoo, which is nice, and she picked a song that isn't really a Mariah song which lets her sort of get out the shadow of Mariah for us older folks.  She did good, looks better tonight as a singer, but this is a song that needs a performance, which she didn't give.  Her hope is that Mom's are remember this song from its original heyday, and vote for her.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Vanishing" by, well, Mariah Carey
 - Sings nice enough, but this song doesn't lead one to be a performer.  I think I'm stuck on the performer part because so far, for the many weeks, no one is looking to be one.  She's "whoa, a whoa, a whoa-ing" all over the place, but even though she sang nice enough, where is the being a star?

Brook White
 - Sings - "Hero" by, umm, Mariah Carey
 - Boo hoo, so your sister didn't plan her wedding properly to not interfere with your being on "American Idol" plans.  She kept it in a key she could sing, did the smart thing and stuck herself at the piano, which I liked but don't know if the public will like it.  She sang nice enough, but there are only a few piano players who can connect with an audience, and she's not there yet.  And she still won't shut the hell up when the judges give their opinions, and now there is some kind of reference to a juicy burger in a bun.  Hmm?

Kristy Lee Cook
 - Sings - "Forever" by, let me guess, Mariah Carey
 - What the hell kind of hug was that, the one she gave to Mariah?  The key seems to be to sing songs no one knows on Mariah Carey night, which makes us not give a damn.  You know what, we want to compare these people to Mariah Carey, and we want them to sing Mariah songs we know even if they are from over ten years ago.  She still looks good, the performance was bland, but I don't mind her sticking around because, well, she is purty and probably has a nice career ahead of her on the country side if she doesn't screw it up.

David Cook
 - Sings "Always Be My Baby" by damn, Mariah Carey, again.
 - Yup, the dudes do have it easier this night because there is no way we want to compare them to Mariah.  His problem is the key seems wrong, just a tad too low, so he can't punch it up to the level this song could be.  He tried to do it at the end, but it's either too flat or too sharp (I always had problems figuring that out).  Sorry David, Daughtry would have done this right.  I guess it sounded better in the studio because Simon, Paula, and Randy loved it.  I found him droning. 

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "I Don't Wanna Cry" by, who would have guessed, Mariah Carey.
 - Good enough, especially for the last song so everyone will remember him, but as nice as it sounded I found him boring as hell.  It must sound better in the studio than on TV because even Simon like him.

Let's wrap this up...

I'm past the singing part because all of us know these folks can sing otherwise how in the hell did they get here, and thankfully Kristy Lee Cook seems to have gotten over her "not being able to sing" stage and is starting to dress hotter, but the bad part about this year is none of them are transforming themselves into performers.  The other crappy part is that they don't need a singing mentor, like Mariah Carey, pimping her new album, nope, these boys and girls actually need someone who can teach them to the next level, of how to touch the audience, and as much as I've been pimping Bruce Springsteen showing up on "American Idol," I'm thinking Neil Diamond, who has a new album coming out that he can promote, might not be that bad a choice, either.  Skip the "Here's how to sing" crap, let's get to "Here's how to perform."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:33 PM | Comments (1)

April 14, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Golf, Movies, Religion and More!

Stu Gotz had some questions about religion for this podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-up!", part of it related to priests, and part of it developed because of the news of Pope Benedict coming to the United States. Maybe Stu should forget about religion and just worry about the best way to raise the little Gotz's. The Dude on the Right gives his two cents about religion, wonders about the dislike of "Scooby Doo," but for The Dude, well, his weekend was filled with watching golf and a buttload of movies. Such is another weekend for Stu & The Dude.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:47 PM | Comments (0)

April 12, 2008

But on What Occasion Would I Wear a "MILF Island" T-Shirt?

By: The Dude on the Right
So I'm watching the TV show "30 Rock," as I am wont to do because I enjoy it, and the episode dealt partly with the "finale" of "MILF Island," with "20 super-hot moms, 50 kids, and no rules," and the first part of me, as a fan of "Survivor," knew that if there was actually a TV show called "MILF Island," I'm sure I would be watching.  The second part of me knows, now that NBC has screwed it up and probably copyrighted the concept somehow, FOX won't be able to actually make it a series, nor will CBS, who did their own exploitation of children with "Kid Nation" and all they would have to do would be add some super-hot moms.

In any case the episode of "30 Rock" made me laugh, but then quickly reminded me that I am old.  Why?  They advertised that you could actually buy a "MILF Island" t-shirt, I found that very funny, and I even thought of jumping online to order one.  Then I quickly caught myself saying "Self, you're not in college anymore, even though you may think you are.  Where in the hell do you think you could actually pull off wearing a 'MILF Island' t-shirt?"  And in listening to myself I realized there isn't any place in the entire Universe where I could pull off wearing that t-shirt, although it would be sort of funny to try, especially if I could be a fly on the wall, listening to the comments wearing it had brought about.

I might still buy it anyway since I need a new t-shirt to wear while I'm exercising at home, and I know that every time I would look in the mirror while wearing it, well, it will make me laugh, but could I wear it in public?  Maybe I should just buy one for Stu Gotz. I'm sure he would wear it, out in public, and be able to make the ladies laugh.  He has that way.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 6:20 PM | Comments (0)

April 10, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Artie Lange, Tiger Woods, and Paula Abdul. How About That Mix?

Lucky for The Dude on the Right he was listening to the West Coast Feed of The Howard Stern Show, so he was able to hear the entire Artie Lange meltdown, resigns, quits episode during the show, especially since it appears Howard might have put the nix on the replays of the show during the rest of the day. With no new information on the fate of Artie Lange, during his Thursday podcast, The Dude talks about it, doesn't relate his theories on what is going on well, but there will probably never be another day when "Artie Lange" and "Stern Fan Network" are #1 and #2 on Google Trends. Tiger Woods and The Masters were dropped in rankings, thanks to Artie, and from The Dude's observation, Kristy Lee Cook did not have a nip-slip during last Tuesday's "American Idol." Neither did Paula Abdul, but the podcast does have a new edition of "Paula Abdul Clips of the Week."

Posted by Rightdude at 6:58 PM | Comments (0)

April 8, 2008

It's "Inspirational Song" Week - Oh I Hope Someone Sings "Gonna Fly Now!"

By: The Dude on the Right
Because this is the week we are supposed to give money to the "American Idol" crusade of "Idol Gives Back," to make them look or maybe just feel better about themselves even though the Idol folks, Fox, and AT&T are making boatloads of money off of us just by our watching and texting in our votes, (can you sense my bitterness at their crusade), this week our contestants will be singing "Inspirational Songs."  I'm wondering if one of them will really put the concept over the top and sing "You're the Inspiration" by Chicago.  I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see and then, tomorrow, give all of our money to "Idol Gives Back" instead of paying our mortgage, because who pays their mortgage nowadays even though they have a big-screen TV to watch "American Idol."  Can you still sense my bitterness in their having a charity and asking us to give them money?

Anyway, let's go...

Michael Johns
 - Sings - "Dream On" by Aerosmith
 - Good song choice for him, but he's no Steven Tyler.  Any singing issues could get tossed aside if he was a better performer, with a better outfit.  He so needed to work the crowd better, somehow.  And Paula won't shut up.  Please let her keep it up, this could be a banner week for Paula quotes.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "I Believe" by Fantasia
 - So, let's suck up based on a previous Idol contestant, that I would say a majority doesn't know her music anyway.  Again, singing well enough, she did hit the high note, but I don't think she performed or connected with the crowd the way she needed to in order to make her a star.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Over the Rainbow" the Israel Kamakawiwo'ole version.
 - I'll leave out the "Meet Joe Black" reference, and the fact that I know the version he is doing first because of the radio dude Steve Dahl, and the fact that you would never picture a dude like Iz singing this song, which is actually wrapped with "A Wonderful World," but Jason did a version consistent to the surfer dude he portrays, and Iz would probably be proud.  Too bad he didn't have enough time to do the full version Israel does - do yourself a favor and get Israel's version from his "Facing the Future" album on iTunes.  Make sure you get the right version with both songs.

Kristy Lee Cook
 - Sings - "Anyway" by Martina McBride
 - Sticks with the totally country side, which works for her, but unless the country fans rally behind her, this song might be her downfall because she still doesn't perform.  She sings well, she looks well, but I don't give a crap.  I guess I had to be there because she didn't come off as a performer which is where I think all of these folks need to now work now.

David Cook
 - Sings "Innocent" by Our Lady Peace
 - Can these people pick any more obscure songs?  What the hell are you doing?  He's probably got enough of a fan base to keep him here, but this is a song that is all over the place musically, the band and singers had no clue how to pull it off, and maybe it's one of his favorites, and I will give him credit for probably being the best performer so far, but this was just too all over the place.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "The Show Must Go On" by Queen
- First off, how do you not tell the history of this song when Freddy Mercury was dying at the time he sang it.  Sure it's inspirational, but Freddy's story about this song is more inspiring.  She's a singer, she knows what she's doing, and she's got a fan base.  This will keep her floating around for a while, she overdid it, but if you want to know about this song, and the ending days of Queen, head to the Wikipedia article.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Angels" by Robbie Williams
 - I'll give the dude credit for pulling out songs that people won't really remember until the chorus, and then singing them nicely, and this week he almost put an "Elton John" vibe into his performance thanks to staying at the piano.  The thing though, is if you look at his eyes, he still looks a little lost, in a "How and why and I'm here?" mode.  With this performance, though, he's back to being the one to beat.

Brook White
 - Sings - "You've Got a Friend" by Carol King
 - She sings purty, she looks purty, and you can connect with her.  It was a nice, slow song, but she still doesn't shut up when the judges critique her.  There still seems to be the lacking of performance with her.

Let's wrap this up...

The week was about inspiration, no one sang "You're the Inspiration" or a song from a Rocky movie, and for the most part, none of them, sans David Cook, seems to know how perform outside the safety of the microphone stand.  Carly had a chance but she blew it, and if David Archuleta wins, I don't care what any commenters post, he seems to be trying to set himself up as the next Josh Groban instead of, well, being better than Josh.  Rumors give David's life a complicated story, which is perfect for "Oprah."  His goal should be to get there.

Real singers show up on tomorrow's "Idol Gives Back," or at least popular singers, and then we are back to these people who sing nice enough but can't perform.  Now I've got to go back to my TiVo to see who got booted from "Dancing With the Stars."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:37 PM | Comments (0)

April 3, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: An NKOTB Warning, Adam's Still Dancing, and Paula Abdul Clips of the Week!

Even though The Dude on the Right is kind of lonely, he does find the time to put together another podcast complete with a quick warning about the return of NKOTB. Boy bands unite! Warning aside, most of his podcast is about TV with the return of "Survivor: Fans vs. Favorites," no London Bachelor, the booting of Steve Guttenberg while Julianne Hough is wearing too many clothes on "Dancing With the Stars," but, most importantly, The Dude got off his ass, or at least paid attention to his TiVo, and brings back "Paula Abdul Clips of the Week!"

Posted by Rightdude at 6:25 PM | Comments (0)

April 1, 2008

As Much As I Love Dolly, These Singers Need Bruce.

By: The Dude on the Right
Tonight's mentor was Dolly Parton, and I know if I were there as a contestant I would be screwed because rather than listening to anything she said I would be just mesmerized with her, umm, voice.  Yea, her voice.  The only thing I would be focusing on would be her big, giant, voice.

In any case, these contestants overcame Dolly's voices, I mean voice, and here's how I thought they did. (And, yes, the opening "April Fool's Joke" during the she show was really lame.  If they really wanted to do it right they would have teamed up with ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" and have millions of people wondering what was wrong with their TV sets.)

Let's go...

Brooke White
 - Sings - "Jolene"
 - A great song for her, and as much as I like her doing the acoustic guitar thing I think she would be more potent if she wasn't sitting on the stool and able to "work" this song more.  She's already got the fan-base so I don't think it will hurt her, but for "American Idol" this needed to be a "performance" song.

David Cook
 - Sings "Little Sparrow"
 - So David, this week, decides to actually do his own arrangement, and Dolly had nice things to say about it.  The country fans might not like it, I did, and although the singing was off a bit at time, who the hell cares?  His confidence is growing and it shows, and for him, I hate to say it, but like a dude named Daughtry, it might be better if he loses.

Ramiele Malubay
 - Sings - "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind"
 - She sings nice enough, but what a wrong genre for her to be in after last week's issues.  She's not country, and she's not rock and roll; I think she needs a "Rihanna Week" to pull her out of her funk.  Sadly she will probably be gone by that night because even though I like her spunk, but she still seems scared.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Travelin' Through"
 - Simple enough song, but I don't think he has the fan base to keep him going much longer.  For me I can't envision him on a big stage, but rather doing a lot of acoustic shows in the smaller clubs, with fans that love him.  He hasn't shown himself to be able to command a 20,000 seater, on a big old stage.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "Here You Come Again"
- This might sound wrong, sexist, or whatever, but she doesn't have the look to pull off this song.  Sure, her voice is good enough, but this song doesn't seem to to in her genre of music.  Randy and Paula (especially Paula) really liked her, but Simon had his issues.  I agree with Simon.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Smokey Mountain Memories"
 - Dolly really loves him, she almost even cried.  Damn, I really like this young dude, and even though his voice cracked a bit, on the slow songs he seems to be fantastic.  I still, wish, that he would do something up-tempo to see if can turn into a true performer instead of just wowing the dudettes.

Kristy Lee Cook
 - Sings - "Coat of Many Colors"
 - Please tell me she is going to get off her butt and sing this song to the audience because she is singing great enough in the country genre.  Okay, she got up, and is still singing nice enough, but she needs to learn a lot about performing, and if she wanted to get any mentoring from Dolly it would be how to be a performer and not a singer - if I were her, for this song, I would ask Dolly how I could touch her, umm audiences.  Sadly Kristy was boring as usual.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "I Will Always Love You"
 - She sings purty enough, and I like her sitting on the piano.  She comes across better looks-wise this week, but I really wish she could have pulled off getting her butt off the piano for the ending of the song to really blast it out for the crowd.  She almost had a chance to blow this song out of the house, but instead just sang it.

Michael Johns
 - Sings - "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right"
 - As much as I didn't like a lot of his carrying on with this song, as a "performer" and not a singer he was probably the best of the night, and since Paula talked to long, and my TiVo flipped to "Dancing With the Stars" and "The Biggest Loser," I'm not sure what Simon said.  Doesn't matter, he did great and should stick around until next week when I can re-adjust my TiVo Season Passes so Idol doesn't get clipped.

Let's wrap this up...

The thing that sort of makes me sad is that pretty much everyone on the show right now is great, or at least good singers, but only a few of them seem to have the personalities to be performers.  Every one of them you can picture singing in a smaller club, with a group of fans, but none of them have shown the step to the next level.  I suppose Dolly Parton week wasn't the time to see that (although a lot of them should have gotten tips from her about being a performer rather than a singer), but if the "American Idol" folks want to truly groom any of these kids, bring on a Bruce Springsteen as a two-week mentor to help them become a small-club person, which most of them already are, to a stadium rocker, which he is.  Pimp The Beatles if you must, but teach them Springsteen or The Rolling Stones.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:22 PM | Comments (0)

March 27, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Welcome "Tripping the Rift" Fans, Poor Chikezie, and "The Biggest Loser" Talk.

The Dude on the Right keeps this podcast kind of short, but he finds enough time to welcome visitors finding Entertainment Ave! thanks to looking up sixsells.com, the website for "Tripping the Rift," which is in the site because of their DVD review. He is also getting frustrated with "The Biggest Loser," and thinks Chikezie was robbed on "American Idol." Hopefully The Dude will quit worrying about the singers and get back to making fun of Paula Abdul.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:22 PM | Comments (0)

March 25, 2008

Is Seeing "American Idol" Live That Much Better than On TV?

By: The Dude on the Right
So it is "Songs the Year You Were Born" night.  Oh, goody, it is "Songs When I Was in College" night, or thereabout.  I'm sure flashbacks will be in order, but I'll only type about them if I think they will be okay for my Mom to read.  Here we go...

Ramiele Malubay - Born in 1987
- Sings - "Alone" by Heart
- A song I totally love, but man she doesn't have the pipes to pull off the chorus for this song and the bombastic sound the Wilson sisters had.  Totally wrong song choice, and I'm sorry she is sick.  Ramiele, quick shaking hands with people and then touching your eyes or picking your nose.  That's how you get sick.

Jason Castro - Born in 1987
- Sings - "Fragile" by Sting
- Does a good job by playing the guitar, it keeps him behind the mike and not having to perform.  The singing is good, the song is sort of boring, but it should be enough to keep him going, especially because I think the dudettes dig him.

Syesha Mercado - Born in 1987
- Sings - "If I Was Your Woman" by Stephanie Mills, I think.
- A really nice R&B performance.  Vocal range was good, performance was good, and this was a great performance that should keep her to the next week.
- What the hell is with all of these 21 year olds?  I remember, sort of, my 21st birthday, and I wasn't singing in 1988.  Thankfully the picture people supposedly took of me on my 21st birthday has disappeared, I hope.

Chikezie - Born in 1985
- Sings - "If Only For One Night" by Luther Vandross
- Chikezie is showing he might be the next R&B singer to blow up across the Universe.  From week to week he shows differences he can tackle, and he actually needs to lose this competition to make his own career, a la Daughtry.

Brooke White - Born in 1983
- Sings - "Every Breath You Take" by The Police
- How boring can you get.  Sure, it's nice on piano, and she screwed up the start, but unless she does something special to get her butt off the piano stool, or straddles it like Tori Amos, as much as I think she is purty, sings purty, and has talent, this week wasn't her best.  So much potential that went away.

Michael Johns - Born in 1978
- Sings - "We Will Rock You " by Queen
- Only a few words need to be written - You are no Freddie Mercury.  I guess a few more words are needed - the band didn't help.  I don't know what the judges heard, but he just doesn't seem to have the persona to be Freddie, at least on TV I guess.  For whatever reason I thought he wasn't that good.  Maybe I should just wonder what is wrong with me, or I need to be there, live.
- I was 10 or 11 when this song came out, the first album I ever bought was "Night at the Opera," and I found "News of the World" fantastic as the years went on, especially with the album art.  I always loved reading "No Synthesisers!"

Carly Smithson - Born in 1983
- Sings - "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler
- A simple choice for her, but for me it just brings back flashbacks of high school.  Ugh!  Okay, singing wise Carly was good, but she just seems to be singing, not performing, and for Jim Steinman songs, as much as it is about the song, it's more about the performance of the song.  She just sang it, whereas Meat Loaf knows how to perform.  She needed to really find Jim Steinman history and how Meat Loaf made those songs performance art.  That is what Jim Steinman did.

David Archuleta - Born in 1990
- Sings - "You're the Voice" by Farnham Johnny?
- Is he just trying to get other people money by singing obscure songs?  That said, I really like the song, like the performance, and I was graduating college when this dude was being born.  He tried to branch out, but I'm guessing in 1990 there are better songs, that people might actually know, that he could have really blown out of the competition.  We'll see if his good looks still keep him in the competition.

 Kristy Lee Cook - Born in 1984
- Sings - "God Bless the U.S.A." by Lee Greenwood
- Gosh girl, I like you, but how the hell did you get this far in the competition.  You sing nice enough, at least this week, sort of, but you aren't a performer in any sense of the word.  Thank your lucky stars you got to the final 10 to go on tour because a lot of other singers are better than you.  And from the judge's comments, what the hell am I not hearing nor seeing on my screen tonight.

David Cook - Born in 1982
- Sings - "Billy Jean" by Michael Jackson
- Nice change of a Michael Jackson song.  If anyone ever says "How do I make a song my own?" this is the performance they should show.  He works the stage, he sings like a rocker, and if he doesn't win he will probably have a fantastic career anyway.  He actually got in touch with a song with the year he was born, and if I had a dollar I might actually download that song version from iTunes. (Dude note: As I laid in bed last night I couldn't sleep because I just had to figure David's version probably wasn't his own arrangement. Sure enough, I did some quick research this morning and guess I missed at the beginning where they said it was Chris Cornell's version. Thought he did a good job, anyway. DOTR)

Let's wrap this up...

From a lot of the comments I'm guessing that the performances came off a hell of a lot better live than on my TV because, well, when I thought some of them didn't do well, Simon-Paula-Randy thought they were great.   I know live is better than TV, but is there that much of a difference.  If the "American Idol" folks want to prove it to me, fly me out for next week's show, otherwise, I don't think anyone did that well this week except David Cook.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:26 PM | Comments (0)

March 24, 2008

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: The Dude's a Handyman and Stu's Bad Days.

Both The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz survived their respective Easter Weekends, and here they are for their Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast! Stu has been having some bad days, with today's reason being because he had to poop, while The Dude shows he still can be a handyman although he isn't very good at picking winners during March Madness. They both talk about movies they didn't see, talk about "South Park" which they did see, and Stu celebrated Easter on Friday - Find out why by listening.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:24 PM | Comments (0)

March 23, 2008

Davidson and San Diego - I Hate You. And I Love You.

By: The Dude on the Right
I'm back!  It was an Easter Weekend, and with my Dad's passing in January, and my sister making her way to the cold weather, instead of normally visiting a week earlier to avoid the holiday traffic, well, I ventured to Ohio this Easter Weekend just in time for about 6 inches of snow to shovel.  I also changed a bathroom sink faucet, but those are both stories for another blog or maybe a podcast.  This blog is about basketball, and my not being able to scream at my internet screen.

You see, for the first time in years, I wasn't able to sit at work and waste the bosses money, umm, my money, by paying attention to the first weekend for the NCAA March Madness tournament.  And then, when I was able to take a look, my picks were already looking bad.  Siena beating Vanderbilt hurt me a lot, although it probably hurt a lot of people, except those folks who were Siena alumni, but what really hurt in that first round was San Diego beating U Conn, one of the teams I had in the final two.  I figured I was sort of screwed, but who, other than San Diego fans, were actually thinking San Diego could win?  And as my brackets started to fall, it was today that I knew I was done, because, well, my final four is left at a final two, with one of them not getting to my finals.

That said, Davidson College, University, whatever the hell you are, I hate you, because my last chance for maybe a couple of big screen TV's, or some cash, well, was left with Georgetown.  If you had a fun college name like Gonzaga, or a fun mascot name like the Saluki's, or maybe a name referenced with God (Like St. Mary's who didn't seem to have God on their side losing to Miami), I would have picked you, but you were playing Georgetown, Hoyas, and you were a 10 seed, v. a 2 seed, whom I had at least going to the final four.  In my goofy name category, Wildcats v. Hoyas, I'm picking a Hoya.

And I lost.

And so, pretty much, I'm done with this year's NCAA March Madness season.  Davidson and San Diego, you both took me out of winning cool stuff, but with that winning I can quicklier get back to my life after one weekend.

For me it's one weekend and done for my NCAA Tourney picks, and now I have to go back to the Mega Millions this week, with a jackpot of $95 Million on Tuesday.  With numbers like 65, 87, 69, 87, 96, and a Mega Ball of 102, I know I can win.  Oh, wait, I don't think I can pick any of those numbers.  Maybe I'll just go with 1,2,3,4,5 and a Mega Ball of 6.  I think it has the same odds.

Happy March Madness!  Umm, it's almost April.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 10:16 PM | Comments (0)

March 19, 2008

It's March Madness Baby! And I've Got North Carolina? And Politics?

By: The Dude on the Right
It's March Madness Baby!  I suppose I could go back and look at the calendars, but doesn't this College Basketball tournament season seem to be a week later, we all know Easter is at its earliest, and my being on the road tomorrow is going to drive me crazy because I won't have an instant wireless connection to update the scores of every NCAA tournament game so I know that I'm still alive to win $5 Million bucks thanks to Yahoo!.  That, and it's also snowing at home (the picture on the right I stole from my sister).  I am also torn because I entered about six online pools and wondered if I should go for broke, with the same picks on every site, winning tickets to next year's Final Four, about $20,000 bucks, a couple of flat-screen TVs, and something else, or should I change my picks for every site hoping to just win something.  I went for broke.  Come sometime in April I will have a very cool Dude-Pad with money to spare and TV's, that is, unless, Michigan State can't get through a few rounds and Kansas State can't, at least, beat USC in the first round.

Also, with it being Easter weekend and today being the 5th year anniversary of our looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq (at least we found Saddam Hussein, but where is Osama bin Laden?), I still wonder if I should get into political thoughts on my website.  His wacky Pastor aside, especially because as I have been sitting in a Church and took what my Pastor said with a grain of salt, I still think Barack Obama shows himself as a better states-person.  There, I said it again, I'm a Barack Obama man, and why in the hell can't we just get rid of all of this delegate crap since we seem to know how to count votes in 2008.  Maybe.

Good luck with your March Madness picks, especially since I have Vanderbilt beating Kansas.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:24 PM | Comments (0)

March 18, 2008

Watching Singers v. Dancers

By: The Dude on the Right
Last night I sort of watched "Dancing With the Stars," especially for my favorites, Julianne Hough, Edyta, and Kym Johnson.  Isn't it kind of funny that we don't need to reference Edyta with her last name anymore?  Anyway, I don't care about any of the "celebrity" female dancers much (nor the dude celebrities, but I did find Adam Carolla and Penn Jillette fun to watch), wonder why Julianne wore a giant, yellow outfit (rather than a skimpy, yellow outfit), and Kym actually looked hotter than Julianne.  But tonight the dancing is over because tonight is about singing (and cuter dudettes).

My brilliant dancing analysis will come later as their Spring season goes on, but here are my musical musings about tonight and singing, and it's The Beatles night, as opposed to John Lennon and Paul McCartney night last week.  How much did the "American Idol" folks pay for the rights to use these songs that mediocre singers could butcher, anyway? ...

Amanda Overmyer
- Sings - Back in the U.S.S.R.
- Something just sounds wrong, like she's not in synch with the band or something, but it's not working for me.  This song doesn't need a southern twang to it.  And I don't like her bouncing up and down while she is singing.

Kristy Lee Cook
- Sings - You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
- What the hell did you ever listen to on the radio?  You picked the song based on title.  You don't know any Beatles' songs?  It's kind of "new" to you?
- She's cute but the song is in the wrong key (she can't hit the low notes), and if she keeps going on it's because she is cute.  She did hit the high note at the end, but the performance seemed kind of lame.  At least Paula thought she looked gorgeous.

David Archuleta
- Sings - The Long and Winding Road
- You thought "Dang it!" when you forgot the lyrics last week.  Luckily you didn't think "Oh, F&^$, how in the hell could I forget the words to a song in front of 30 million F$#%ing people?"
-  He shows his vocal pipes this week (again) so we know he can sing the slow songs, and if this keeps up he's the next Josh Groban.  He needs to prove he can sing something up-tempo in my book to make it to the ultimate pop level.  He'll be in it for the long haul even if he sucks just because the girls like him.

How stupid was that iPhone commercial.  I understand product placement, but Ryan Seacrest should be fired because he isn't even trying anymore.  Last week he busted on Jim Carrey promoting "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!", and this week it was the iPhone.  Either he is the worst pitch-man ever, or he is the greatest at scripts written up as "Promote this by having the attitude of "What the hell is this shit?"

Michael Johns
- Sings - A Day  in the Life
- This is not a good song to trim, though I thought he did a decent job trying to pull it off.  To do it his way he probably needed a month to work to rehearse it (and a different band), but I think the dudettes will find him cute enough to pull him to the next round.

Brooke White
- Sings - Here Comes the Sun
- She's married.  Damn, so much for fantasies about my future wife.
- No matter what, I think we have already found our next "Carrie Underwood Country Star" no matter if she wins or not.  She performs, is purty, and somehow seems to be able to put her mark on every song.  I don't care what Randy says, what Paula says, or what Simon says, because I really liked her "fly-a-way" performance and her attitude, but Brooke, don't beat yourself up so much because for me it worked.

David Cook
- Sings - Daytripper - The Whitesnake version
- He's sticking with the rocker mode, and this is a song that works for him, but I'm thinking the kids in the audience don't understand the voice box thing.  He should have just stuck to rocking and not gone Peter Frampton on our ass.  There's still something I don't like about him because it just seems he is copying people.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - Blackbird
- She's starting to get that "crazy-eye" look, where I can see the tops of the whites of her eyes, and it well, isn't a good look.  I will, every week, be not liking her only because she had a major recording contract before.  I know that is kind of petty, but for some of the other contestants where this is their first chance, someone who actually has gotten to the precipice, and even though the record company supposedly was her downfall, she has at least gotten there before.  And you know what, I didn't really like her performance this week, either.

Jason Castro
- Sings - Michelle
- He just seems giddy rather than in love while he is singing.  His smile is actually almost scary.  Dude, you need to learn how to drop that smile and make it sincere rather than a plastered-on smile.  The singing was okay, and although Simon thought he looked good, I thought the goofy look sucked.

Syesha Mercado
- Sings - Yesterday
- She's cuter with the tighter hair, with the ponytail.  The straighter hair was okay, but she just needed to pull it back.
- She sings nice, but the performance was boring except for the high notes.  The better place would have been at the front of the stage, not on the stool.  The singing should keep her going on through next week.

Chikezie
- Sings - I've Just Seen a Face
- He has just turned into my favorite "American Idol" contestant ever.  He works every genre, tries to step over party lines, and just seems to try to show that he can try anything.  He's a kind of bizarre dude, but sings perfect for every side.  The only problem is he doesn't know if he should settle into being Usher or Cowboy Troy.

 Ramiele Malubay
- Sings - I Should Have Known Better
- She was the last singer of the night, which is usually the one who is supposed to do the most fabulous version, but I thought her performance was boring, even though she sang alright.  Just an "Umm" for me.

Let's wrap this up...

Why does everyone take this season to bust on Simon.  It seems like an easy joke, but it's not appropriate for people to pretty much dismiss everything he might say.  I really hope they get away from The Beatles' songs, no matter how much they paid for them, because we have now found out that there are a lot of people who can't sing, or arrange, Beatles' songs.  Please let us get to wacky mentors again, because as much as they sucked, they were better than a lot of these people singing songs they couldn't learn from John Lennon nor Paul McCartney.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:03 PM | Comments (3)

March 11, 2008

The Pressure Starts to Hit the American Idol 12

By: The Dude on the Right
We are finally down to the final 12, thank whatever God you pray to, because now I can finally to actually try and get to know the "American Idol" contestants, or at least identify them better, even if it isn't really by their name.  It also helps freeing up my Thursday night TV viewing, especially as "30 Rock" and "My Name is Earl" returns pretty soon, because Idol is back to its appropriate two nights a week.  Enough prologue, the theme of tonight is the Lennon/McCartney songbook, so this night has the potential for some train-wrecks.  Let's get to the show...

Syesha Mercado
- Sings - Got to Get You Into My Life
- Better hair, nice look, bad earrings.
- Thought she started well, but then kind of messed up making it "her own" during the chorus.  Even though, she has the looks, the voice, and has tons of potential, she's starting to be a performer.

Chikezie
- Sings - She's a Woman
- He is really coming into his own and I think he did a great job.  He works the stage, acts just a tad goofy for the song, and at first, when "Idol" started, I didn't like him, but slowly Chikezie is becoming one of my favorites.  Somewhere the "confidence" drug hit this dude.

Ramiele Malubay
- Sings - In My Life
- First impression - wrong song.  Her voice is nice, but after following Chikezie's performance it's almost like following Jerry Lee Lewis back in the old days of rock & roll.  She looks good, sings okay, but the performance was bland.  Paula thought she looked pretty.

Jason Castro
- Dude, you sound like a surfer, a stoner, like, well, you just want to sing, and keep the karma.
- Sings - If I Fell
- He's got the Jack Johnson vibe but with a reggae look instead.  He sings well enough, I like that he's also a musician and maybe sticking to the surfer/reggae attitude will do him well.  I don't think it will get him to the finals, but Paula at least feels his heart.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - Come Together
- As much as I don't like her being in the competition, but damn, I love that accent.
- The voice is there, because it always is, and I do like the version she put together, but even though she almost had a career before, there is something about her look that bothers me.  I think it's her hair.

David Cook
- Sings - Eleanor Rigby
- There's just something about him that I don't like.  I don't know if it's his look, or maybe his attitude, or just seeming to be like Chris Daughtry.  Paula thinks he's a horse, but I just find him, umm, done before.  I don't see him winning but still getting radio play.  The only problem he has right now is not seeming to have a previous band career like Daughtry did.

Brooke White
- Sings - Let it Be
- Good song after a long commercial break to let us forget performances.  She sings pretty, plays pretty, and does that half "playing to the camera" but still "I'm wrapped up in the song so leave me alone" performance well.  Nice.  I like her.  She sings purty.

David Hernandez
- Sings - I Saw Her Standing There
- He seems to try too hard to be a performer, and his singing for this song isn't that great.  I think this was just a total wrong song choice for him from the Beatles' catalog he was given.  He better have a good fan base otherwise he will be gone.

Amanda Overmyer
- Sings - You Can't Do That
- It's the first song that she heard this week.  Bad pants.  She stays true to who she is, but I don't see it getting her to the end of the competition - just not "pop" enough for the show.  She does have the attitude, and the voice, to hit her nitch, but I don't think it will be with "American Idol."  Good week for her, though.

Michael Johns
- Sings - Across the Universe
- It's not a performer song, but let's see what he does with it...  So far it's stale because he can't separate himself from his microphone stand.  Like everyone else, he sings nice enough, but it's not a performance to remember.

Kristy Lee Cook
- Sings - Eight Days a Week
- She knows what to do with the songs, but it was a crappy arrangement.  She's a country singer, she knows it, and looks to follow in the footsteps of Carrie Underwood, but this was not a song that could be turned into a country song in a week.  The song sounded forced, she looks purty, sings purty, but everything sounded wrong.  It was all over the place.

David Archuleta
- Sings - We Can Work It Out
- My advice for him, because he has so much potential, is don't let the "American Idol" folks fuck you up because they let you fuck it up this week.  Forget the hair styling, forget the clothes, forget the pressure, and just, for every week, let yourself have fun.  Sure, it's easier said than done, but that is your forte.  Bounce back to a few weeks ago when you just sang.

The pressure of competition has hit a couple of contestants, some of them picked wrong songs, but the next couple of weeks will start to tell who gets the popularity vote.  And next week come the Mentors.  God, for Howard Stern fans we can only hope that one of them is Bruce, as in Bruce Springsteen.  Artie Lange knows why.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:56 PM | Comments (0)

March 10, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "10,000 B.C.", DST, Stu's Netfilx Movies, Killing a Hawk, Some Politics, Arena Football, and More!

So it looks like Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right were able to work through their busy schedules and put together a new podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" They talk about a lot of stuff like movies ("10,000 B.C.", "Next," "Live Free or Die Hard," and "Spiral"), Daylight Saving Time (They hate it), A Pro Golfer killing a hawk (the animal people are pissed), Arena Football (Stu went over the weekend - The Dude almost 20 years ago), politics, and boobs - with the last two kind of intertwining. And even though this podcast is just over 20 minutes, they also talk about more. How do they do it? It's a mystery of the Gods.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:48 PM | Comments (0)

March 5, 2008

No Reports, yet, of the Dudettes Being Strippers (Damn!), but It's Their Turn for "American Idol" 80's Night

By: The Dude on the Right
So it's 80's night, and it's ladies' night, hope they're feeling right, and wearing clothes that are tight.  I'm gonna stop now and just get to what I thought of the signing...

Asia'h Epperson
- She fell on her roller skates, wow.
- I Wanna Dance With Somebody - Whitney Houston
- Sings well enough and is smart enough to know she isn't Whitney, but she performs well.  Paula is on her feet.  Yay!
- Randy has to show how cool he is.  Dude, we get it.

Kady Malloy
- Who Wants to Live Forever - Queen
- One of my favoritist songs ever, and singing wise I thought she way great.  If she actually did the entire version instead of a shortened version I might actually buy the thing on iTunes, but sadly it was shortened.  The other problem is that I guess they aren't letting these people actually perform, seemingly being restricted to that small circle in the center of the stage.
- And Paula knows where the magic is, but Simon kind of gets it right on the personality side.

Amanda Overmyer
- I Hate Myself for Loving You - Joan Jett
- She almost seems to have lost her confidence and keeps looking at something at the edge of the stage likes she's not sure of herself.  Too bad because she should have bolted this song out of the ballpark.  The singing was okay for it, but for me it seemed timid.
- I guess the judges saw something different or maybe she was singing to them, and for that it would work, but for my TV it didn't.  She almost looked out of it.  Guess we'll see.

Carly Smithson
- On a personal note I don't want her to win because she already had her chance at a recording contract and has the performing experience, but I digress...
- I Drove All Night - Cyndi Lauper (1989), Celine Dion (2003)
- She sang great, her tattoo bugs me, and fine, give her a recording contract but get her off the competition.
- Paula thinks Carly is a dependable dog.

Kristy Lee Cook
- She thought she was a dog?
- Faithfully - Journey
- What are the odds on Randy mentioning he worked with Journey?  We'll see.
- She's a girl, but can't hit the high notes like Steve Perry did?  And what's up with the red tongue?  She would have done better trying to turn this "Faithfully" into a country version.
- Yup, Randy called Steve Perry, "Perry." Paula thinks it could be a country hit, but for me it wasn't country enough except for maybe the looks.  Maybe the red tongue is from medication as it sounds her voice is having problems.

Ramiele Malubay
- Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) - Phil Collins
- I like her, thinks she sings well, but man, this song didn't work for me.  Worst song choice of the night, mostly because she couldn't sing the entire thing to work it.
- Paula is, well, in full Paula mode.

Brooke White
- Love is a Battlefield - Pat Benatar
- She sings purty, she is purty, but this song is all about passion, and her performance totally lacked it.  And what's up with the giant "looks like one of those candy, sucker" rings on the girl's fingers.  I guess I'm just not a fashion guru.  She needed to kick butt on this song, and didn't.
- Randy proves that he doesn't know things, again, and I don't agree with Simon on his take on her performance.

Syesha Mercado
- Saving All My Love for You - Whitney Houston
- At times she sings like an angry Whitney Houston, which is okay, and does a fine job with the rest of it..  She should move on, and with no real comments from the judges I'm guessing they are running out of time, but if you watch her doing Whitney compared to Asia'h at the top of the show, you can see Syesha being the better singer.

Once again I question some song choices because I seem to remember that during the 80's there were many a decent, power song for dudettes to sing, in just about every genre.  Fine, I don't know if they were given a list of songs and were told "Here, pick something from this list," or at least were able to make some suggestions before being told they couldn't sing them, but then again, as I think about it, how many of these girls actually know any decent songs from the 80's because while I was attending high school and college, well, some of them weren't born yet.

Right now most of any of them can be voted off the island tomorrow, I mean booted from "American Idol," because I have no emotions tied into their stories, but when the final 12 time comes next week I think this competition turns in to "cute dudettes" v. David Archuleta.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see for a week.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:29 PM | Comments (0)

The Dudes are in Turmoil, but the "American Idol" 80's Live On

By: The Dude on the Right
So it's 80's night, not to be confused with Ladies' night, and dude scandals are all over the place, from David Hernandez once being a stripper to someone looking like Danny Noriega spouting stuff about Santa.  Doesn't matter, here comes the singing...

Luke Menard
-  Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - Wham!
-  Dude, what in the hell were you thinking?  I know the 80's is a weird place to find music, but umm, Wham!?  Very boring, lame, and how in the hell does this make you shine?
-  Paula Abdul is starting to look to be in rare form tonight.  I hope it keeps going.

David Archuleta
- Another Day in Paradise - Phil Collins
- Does his own piano playing - nice, then works from the piano to the stage to work the crowd.  Outfit blows, but he's got everything this competition wants in someone to win and take control.
-  Simon is correct, though, that David needs to pick things up a bit with a "happier" song.

Danny Noriega
- Tainted Love - Soft Cell
- The problem is that when you try to cover an 80's song, and be an 80's poser, unless you were living in the 80's, you probably can't pose like the 80's.  The song was boring, and at this point I would like to see the list these dudes were given of the songs they could pick.  If he picked this song on his own it's another "Dude, what in the hell were you thinking?"

David Hernandez
- Dude, I know it's embarrassing, but we don't want to know about your boogers.
- It's All Coming Back to Me Now - Celine Dion (and Meat Loaf)
- You are not Meat Loaf, and you are not Celine Dion, because you're not a performer like Meat Loaf, and, well, you're not Celine Dion.  David sang nice enough, but this is a performance song, and for me he fell flat.  He'll still, probably, go on to the final 12, but if you want to know how to be a performer, find some video of Meat Loaf singing this song, or any song.

Michael Johns
- Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds
- I'm guessing, so far, that every one of these people have to pick a crappy song from the 80's because why else would all of these dudes be singing these songs?  I liked "The Breakfast Club," but songs from that soundtrack aren't the best songs of the 80's.
- The other thing I wonder is why Randy Jackson is referencing Michael Hutchence from INXS for this song, unless I missed something, or Randy just thinks this Michael is being Micheal Hutchence.

David Cook
- Hello - Lionel Richie
- I'll give him credit for trying to turn this song into his own, and playing the guitar, but the problem I had is that for him this should have been a 90's theme, with him turning it up another notch and being possessed by either the spirit of Nirvana or maybe The Offspring (ala their version of "Feelings") for the song.

Jason Castro
- Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen (I think).
- Sure, this song has been done by the likes of U2, and Jeff Buckley, and tons of other folks but do you really think any of the kids have heard this song before, except from maybe "Shrek"?  He did a nice job, but is pulling out an obscure song the way to go for "American Idol"?  You sing well, the judges loved it, but will the kids like it?  Hmmm?

Chikezie
- All the Woman (Man) I Need - Whitney Houston (Luther Vandross)
- He did good enough singing, is coming into his own knowing where he needs to be in the R&B nation, but as an "American Idol" finalist, he still has some work.

Part of the problem is that the singers are in that mode of "too many singers, trying to fit too many songs, into a one hour show" so they have to cut the songs pretty much in half.  This doesn't let anyone really be able to state the song, work the song, and then show they are fantastic doing the song.  I don't care what anyone says, and especially if he can pull out some spunk, David Archuleta already has this thing won.  And I still want to see the list of songs these dudes could pick from the 80's because there was some decent music from that decade, but you wouldn't know it from watching the dudes sing.

We'll see how the dudettes sing tomorrow.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:28 AM | Comments (0)

March 3, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: RIP Jeff Healey, GWS Eddie Van Halen, Oops Jimmy Buffett, and Oprah.

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this weekend wrap-up podcast, and as it turns out, the podcast isn't about his weekend at all. Nope, this podcast is about music and Oprah.

On the music side The Dude comments about the passing of Jeff Healey, a fantastic guitarist who also happened to be blind. You might remember his hit "Angel Eyes," but if you love guitar, he is so much more. Continuing on the music side The Dude talks about Van Halen maybe not canceling their tour, just re-arranging a few dates, and laments that he probably won't be seeing Jimmy Buffett at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, IL, because, well, he's an idiot.

And what would a podcast be without him commenting on Oprah's latest conquest, namely "Oprah's Big Give" winning the ratings for Sunday night Primetime TV.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:09 PM | Comments (0)

February 28, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Lying is a Crime, Paula Abdul Needs to be Watched, and Dumb Robbers in Australia

For this podcast episode The Dude on the Right is upset that the federal government can't find Osama Bin Laden, won't make a decision on the Sirius/XM Satellite Radio merger, but instead seems to be worrying about who is lying, Roger Clemens or Brian McNamee. He is also a fan of the boobs on "Survivor: Micronesia," but is worried for the safety of David Archuleta on "American Idol" now that Paula Abdul seems to want to decapitate him.

And, oh yea, he tells a story of some stupid robbers in Australia.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:35 PM | Comments (0)

February 27, 2008

American Idol - The Ten Dudettes Who are Left

By: The Dude on the Right
The dudes tried their best for 70's music, and didn't do to well, so now it's time for the dudettes.  Here's how I thought they did...

Carly Smithson
- The Irish dudette who had a recording contract before. There’s still something wrong about that.
- Crazy on You – Heart
- Like the bouncing, don’t like her tats, picked a good song for her, but I wonder why she doesn’t work the stage more.

Syesha Mercado
- She does do a pretty good baby cry.
- Me and Mr(s). Jones – Billy Paul
- I actually liked the song, even though the judges didn’t seem to like it. Maybe it came across better on TV than in the studio. She still needs to come into her own.

Brooke White
- You’re So Vain – Carly Simon
- Almost seemed to be in the wrong key for her because she couldn’t hit the low notes, but even though, it was good. I still like her, but if she’s going to be working with the guitar she needs a wireless headset and work around the stage because this ain’t no coffee shop.

Ramielle Malubay
- We are happy to know she can hula dance!
- Don’t Leave Me This Way – Thelma Houston
- Maybe they aren’t allowed to actually work the crowd because so far they all just stand in that middle circle, but I am liking Ramielle and thought she did a great job. I don’t know what the hell is wrong with the judges, but I liked it.

Kristy Lee Cook
- As opposed to seeing what the dudes are in their real life, we like knowing what the dudettes are like, and I like that she’s a tomboy.
- You’re No Good – Linda Ronstadt
- Nice outfit, and she’s doing her best to work the song. I think she sings purty as well. Please, voters, keep her around for a while!

Amanda Overmyer
- She's a bookworm, and a Harley chick, and a nurse.
- Carry On Wayward Son - Kansas
- Sure, she's a rocker chick, but this was a horrible song especially with the "American Idol" band being her back-up band.  She's looking scary, and in the end, that won't work for this show.

Alaina Whitaker
- Our staff member Big Cooter doesn't like food touching each other either, but at least he doesn't use a different fork for each food.
- Hopelessly Devoted to You - Olivia Newton-John
- Stop the hunch back (it shows in the side shots), fix the gap in your front teeth, but it just wasn't a performance kind of song.  She was good, should have done "You're the One That I Want" from "Grease," in tight leather, but needs work.  Head to the dark side - country music.

Alexandrea Lushington
- If You Leave Me Now - Chicago
- It's a nice, simple song, but the key to this song is it being from Chicago, the band.  She did a decent job, but nothing spectacular for me.  There are probably so many more songs in the 70's that she could have done that are more in her wheelhouse, it was almost sad she did a song from Chicago - the band, not the city.  If she had done a song from the city, not the band, umm, sweet.

Kady Malloy
- She sings opera - does she know Orff?
- Magic Man - Heart
- Since it seems the singers aren't let loose to actually work the crowd, Kady just looks like some chick singing a Heart song.  It really didn't work for me.  She's cute, but man, bolt into "Carmina Burana" in the middle and really make the song your own.

Asia'h Epperson
- She was a cheerleader.  Ready, o kay.
- All By Myself - Eric Carmen
- It was nice and all, but she couldn't hit the power ballad of it at the beginning, instead worked it into the ending.  I think she got shorted because she didn't seem to do much of the song at all.  Simon was right in his comments, even if she was coming off being sick.

Hell, at least some of the dudes seemed to pick up on what to sing with the 70's era, but the ladies were all over the place and none of them kept up with some of the dudes.  The voting will be interesting, and I won't give you my take on who should get the boot, but unless someone steps up in a huge way, or he totally fucks up, David Archuleta has this season already in his back pocket.

Then again, if next week is the 80's, at least some of these folks will be singing songs released when they were alive.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:53 PM | Comments (0)

American Idol - The Ten Dudes Who are Left

By: The Dude on the Right
So last night was the night for the remaining dudes on "American Idol, and here's my rundown of what I thought of the dudes.  We'll see if have enough gumption to do a synopsis for the dudettes this week.  Here we go...

Michael Johns

Go Your Own Way – Fleetwood Mac

Wrong song, can’t sing it, I really didn’t like it.

Jason Castro

Hates doing interviews – Dude you better get used to it.

I Just Want to be Your Everything – Andy Gibb

Don’t even think of doing a Gibb family song if you can’t do the high notes, and you can’t. I do like that he plays a guitar, but damn, is this a classic from the seventies with an acoustic guitar you should be trying to pull off?

Luke Menard

Killer Queen – Queen

Singing was okay but dude, can you at least try to be a performer? How do you do that – you work the stage. Quit standing there.

Robbie Carrico

We don’t really care that you drag race cars.

Hot Blooded – Foreigner

He just sounds boring as hell. There’s no inspiration in the performance. For me he was lame.

Danny Noriega

Don't You Remember You told me you loved me Baby? – The Carpenters

What the hell is going on? Can’t any of these dudes be a performer? And he couldn’t sing the song well, either. Maybe the judges heard something else, but on my TV it was lame.

David Hernandez

Papa was a Rolling Stone – The Temptations

So far he’s the best performer out of the boys, but he dances like a, well, he doesn’t have soul. Singing-wise he was alright.

Jason Yeager

Long Train Running – The Doobie Bros.

He at least is trying to be a performer, but it doesn’t look genuine. Everything seems to be wrong with the song choices, or the fact that we don’t give a damn about he 70’s anymore.

Chikezie

I Believe to My Soul – Ray Charles

Did a hell of a lot better than last week. Seems to be coming into his own and might be a force to be reckoned with if he can keep it up. Still likes busting on Simon though, which might be fun.

David Cook

We don’t care that you’re a word nerd.

All Right Now – Bad Company

Did okay, but it’s hard to be a rocker with the "American Idol" band as your backup. Needs to work it more.

Dude, don’t bust on Simon. Chikezie is starting to quip with Simon well, but you just sound like an ass.

David Archuleta

He’s got everything working for him – the boy band looks, the voice, and the "I’m so humble attitude.

Imagine – John Lennon

Unless he screws up royally, or one of the hot dudettes gets millions of dudes to vote, he pretty much has thing already wrapped up. Somehow he made "Imagine" his own, and that’s not an easy thing to do.

Some of the dudes showed they might have a chance in this thing, but a lot of them still don't know how to pick a song.  If next week is about the 80's, at least some of the songs might have been put out after these dudes were born.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 6:59 PM | Comments (0)

February 25, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Oscar Talk, Who's Jimmy Kimmel "F"-n, and Stu Won't Shut Up.

The Dude on the Right is back from his weekend in Lorain, Ohio, a city where both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are making campaign stops, but The Dude didn't stay long enough to see either of them. Instead he got back to the Chicagoland area as quick as he could so he and Stu Gotz could put together a new episode of their "Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast!" The Dude would have liked to have stayed to see Barack speak and Hillary flash her crazy-eyes, but instead he gets to listen to Stu not stop talking (maybe Stu should be a politician?).

But because Stu wouldn't shut up this podcast is all over the place, including talk about The Academy Awards and who should have won an Oscar, movies like "The Ex" and "Be Kind, Rewind," buying a meat slicer, "Saturday Night Live," starting a porn site, a non-bachelor party, Jim Cantore from The Weather Channel calling Stu in the middle of the night, and Mama Gotz almost falling out of bed. At least The Dude got to tell Stu that Jimmy Kimmel is fucking Ben Affleck.

So many things are in this podcast, and probably a few more. Go ahead, give it a listen.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:47 PM | Comments (0)

February 20, 2008

There Are Still Too Many American Idols for Me to Care.

By: The Dude on the Right
As a fan of "American Idol" I have to agree with my mom that there are still too many contestants for me to really care.  Sure, they trimmed it down to 24, twelve dudes and twelve dudettes, but after watching the dudes do their singing yesterday, I could care less about them.  The dudettes are tonight, but other than checking out which ones are doing the smart thing, namely trying to look hot as well as sing well, I don't think I care about them, either.

The other thing, and maybe I'm wrong about this (go ahead, correct me), but I don't think they used to start right off the bat with a theme, at least not for the top 24.  I always thought that, at the beginning, they let the kids pick any song, from any genre, from any time period, as long as it was on the approved "we've got the rights to this" list, to kind of show what these people thought they could sing well.  Instead the boys were dropped right into the fire, with it now being 60's week, where most of the dudes seemed to struggle because A) They didn't seem to realize they were suppose to make it their own, nor 2) I'm guessing most of them had no idea how to make it their own, what with now being with the band and all.  The judges kept blasting them for singing the song as the song was originally done, but I didn't think that, at this stage, most of our twelve dudes would be comfortable enough saying something like "Hey, band people, I'm singing Elvis' "Suspicious Minds," but I want it done in a hip-hop style that maybe Kanye West would do.  I don't really know what that means, but since I have to make the song my own, and you're the band, well, you figure it out."  Some of the dudes did okay, I don't think anyone sucked that bad, but it seems odd, at this early stage of the competition, for the contestants to have to reconfigure classics (and oh, by the way, the folks at "American Idol" need to look at a calendar because Danny's version of "Jailhouse Rock" belonged in 50's week, as it was released in 1957, I believe) into something contemporary.

We'll see how the ladies do tonight, and after yesterday I can probably guess there might have been a lot of scrambling, with maybe one of them saying "I am now doing "Baby Love" by The Supremes, and you better figure out how to make it sound like a version that Amy Winehouse would do."  Somehow I don't think that would actually happen. My guess is the judges will be saying the same thing as yesterday, with maybe a couple girls, hopefully the good-looking ones, somehow making the song their own.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:02 PM | Comments (0)

February 18, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Lindsay Lohan is Naked, TV for Kids at Night, and Idols on iTunes.

The Dude on the Right was happy when he read Lindsay Lohan was getting naked, but for this podcast he states that he doesn't like Lindsay trying to copy Marilyn Monroe, that she should be her own woman. He's also frustrated because he ruined most of the animation of his and Stu's animated review of "Sweeney Todd," questions the decision to run a show geared for families, namely "My Dad is Better Than Your Dad" at a time-slot when the kids should be getting ready for bed, and wonders who will be buying "American Idol" performances on iTunes.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:16 PM | Comments (0)

February 14, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Why Johnny Fairplay Might be Gone, Goodbye Josiah, TV is Almost Back, and Getting Howard Stern off the Air.

The Dude on the Right is here for his Valentine's Day podcast, and he doesn't talk about love. Instead The Dude gives his analysis on Johnny Fairplay being booted from "Survivor: Micronesia" last week, feeling bad for Josiah who's back living in his car after "American Idol," and being happy some of his favorite TV shows will be back, soon. He is also worried that Howard Stern might be off the air soon recalling the movie "Spies Like Us" and the government looking to shoot down a "broken, spy" satellite.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:58 PM | Comments (0)

February 11, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! At the Movies, Watching the Grammy's, A Song Not for The Grammy's, and The Dude isn't a Pimp.

Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right finally got back together for their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, maybe just to stay warm. The Dude talks about The Grammy Awards and then spotlights a song that probably has no chance to win one, while Stu worries if his kids should see "The Spiderwick Chonicles." The Dude can't help with the "Spider" movie, but he does tell Stu about "Fool's Gold" and the Vince Vaughn comedy movie, while Stu saw "Atonement" and "The Nanny Diaries," but warns The Dude that those who hire a nanny might not get the funny of the latter.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:59 PM | Comments (0)

February 7, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Idol's Going to Hollywood, "Survivor" Has Fake Boobs, and Why I Voted for Barack Obama, and a DVD Review of "Once."

The Dude on the Right is still trying to get settled in to doing DVD reviews, so this time he watched a movie he already loved, and still loves, and thinks you might love, namely the movie "Once." He also did a solo podcast about hope, where he hopes Paula Abdul finally gives good audio now that "American Idol" is going to Hollywood, hopes the dudettes with the fake boobs stay awhile on "Survivor: Micronesia," and as much as he hopes for the future of the United States, he also gives, during the podcast, some reasons why he likes Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton. Bring on John McCain!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:12 PM | Comments (0)

February 4, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Lot's of Super Talk About a Bowl and Voting, Bob's House Was the Best, and I Could Be A Stripper.

For another Monday The Dude on the Right is flying solo for a weekend wrap-up podcast, but that's okay because this podcast is all about Super. The Dude talks about the Super Bowl, about Super (thanks for asking) Tuesday, his almost being a Super Stripper, and Super Bowl commercials. And speaking of those Super Bowl commercials, he thinks the most creative of the bunch actually came during the Super Bowl Pre-Game, a spot titled "Bob's House" from Pepsi, which The Dude thinks they actually screwed up just tad. The hell with Justin Timberlake, if Pepsi wanted to make a stir they should have run "Bob's House" during the big game, without the pre-explaination of what it was about.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:51 PM | Comments (0)

January 31, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: It's Snowing, TV Talk, Paula Abdul is Slutty, and I Wish "Hello, Hannah Montana."

The Dude on the Right does a podcast, but thankfully none of it has to do with Apple Webclips because with that topic he's already wondering what he might have done. For the podcast, though, he is happy to see the snow that Chicago is getting and thinks an older lady might want to move. Some TV shows are coming back, namely "Lost" and "Survivor: Micronesia," but The Dude is still having a problem getting excited about the Super Bowl. He was excited about Paula Abdul looking slutty on "American Idol," but isn't excited about the movies opening this weekend, except for one he didn't get tickets for yet, namely "Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert in Disney Digital 3D."

It looks like no screaming teens are in store for The Dude on the Right. There are so many things about that previous sentence that sound so wrong. Umm, let's get back to hot chicks on "Survivor."

Posted by Rightdude at 8:10 PM | Comments (0)

January 24, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Get Me To Hollywood, Amy Winehouse, and TV is Back, Sort Of.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right admits that this one is kind of lame, but he does do a short parody of "Rehab" in honor of Amy Winehouse. He's also a bit flustered with "American Idol," is looking forward to the return of "Lost" and "Survivor" to fill up his Thursday nights, and wonders about the writer's strike and will it ever end.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:05 PM | Comments (0)

January 21, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Lots of Movies, Mama Gotz's Issues, A New Ringtone, and Peeing on a Stick.

Being away from each other for a week sure doesn't put a kink in the conversation Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right can put together for a "Weekend Wrap-Up" podcast, and they get right back into things for this episode. The weekends usually include a lot of movie stuff so they talk about that, Stu got a picture from Mama Gotz so they talk about that, Stu saw a pregnancy test commercial so they talk about that, The Dude has a new favorite ringtone so they listen and talk about that, and even though The Dude on the Right doesn't give a damn about the upcoming Super Bow, they talk about that anyway. And if that isn't enough they have other things to talk about, and they talk about that, too.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:21 PM | Comments (0)

January 10, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: 2008: What a Strange Year It's Already Been

The Dude on the Right is already flabbergasted at how strange 2008 has been, and it's only ten days in. For this podcast he leaves the family stuff for later but instead delves into Britney Spears and Dr. Phil, wants The Academy Awards to go on but only if the writers get their stuff, and now that Sony/BMG is going to let Amazon sell music/mp3s with no copyright protection, why no love yet for Apple who, sure, wanted to sell a bunch of iPods, but showed the world some people would actually buy music over the internet.

The Dude is also flustered by the elections and the influence Iowa and New Hampshire have on the entire picking a President process, but he has at least 11 reasons why he is looking forward to this season of "Survivor: Micronesia."

Posted by Rightdude at 7:33 PM | Comments (0)

January 7, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Movies & TV, Britney & Lindsay, Weather & Delilah.

Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right finally get back together after weeks of being apart to do another "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. If they didn't trim things down this podcast would probably last a few hours, but they cut things to some recent movies in the theaters as well as movies on Stu's Netflix cue. The weekend brought huge entertainment news about the latest BUI (Britney Under the Influence) and Dr. Phil (Stu & The Dude disagree on the Dr. Phil factor), and why not talk about Lindsay Lohan's New Year's Eve while they're at it. Chicago had a warm spell, and The Dude watched "American Gladiator." And Stu still likes tormenting The Dude about the song "Hey There Delilah." Stu can be a mean, mean, man.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:48 PM | Comments (0)

December 17, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast! They Both See Movies, The Dude has a Cold, and Stu's Getting Old.

Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right overcome some health issues to get together for another podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" They both saw "I Am Legend" and "Alvin and the Chipmunks," so there's discussions about the good and bad of those movies, while Stu's Netflix queue gave Stu a good movie while The Dude recommends a movie Stu should add to the queue. They also discuss Dan Fogelberg's death where The Dude gets it correct, TV shows are wrapping up, and what better thing this Christmas season than Mr. Chocolate Rain, Tay Zonday, orating "Twas the Night Before Christmas," at least The Dude on the Right thinks so.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:22 PM | Comments (0)

December 13, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Hannah Montana, Baseball & Steroids, The Golden Globe Nominations, and Here Comes Santa!

The Dude on the Right is hoping during this podcast that a lot of baseball dudes get together and sue some of the major networks and radio shows for spouting that they did steroids even before the Mitchell Report came out, which then didn't list them. He was also hoping Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus would be adding some new shows near his niece so he could try to get her tickets as the perfect Christmas present.

The Dude was also disappointed that the Golden Globe nominations didn't include "Knocked Up" nor "Superbad" this year, and also wonders if Dewey Cox can out-funny McLovin? He also wants to lose weight next year, but what year doesn't The Dude on the Right not want to lose weight?

Posted by Rightdude at 6:52 PM | Comments (0)

December 10, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: "The Golden Compass" Analysis, Weather Woes, and More Movie Talk.

Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right reunite for another "Weekend Wrap-Up" podcast, and a lot of it deals with movies. They both saw "The Golden Compass," discuss some things about "I Am Legend," and Stu wonders how he let Mama Gotz hijack his Netflix queue. They also talk some football, mostly about the New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins since the Chicago Bears have been sucking lately, they also talk some TV as the fall season winds up, and Stu thinks Bon Jovi and Ozzy Osbourne aren't relevant anymore. Send your complaints to stu@entertainmentavenue.com

Posted by Rightdude at 6:03 PM | Comments (0)

December 3, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A Weekend with Friends, Sports, and TV.

Stu Gotz and The Dude on The Right both survived an annual weekend of seeing old friends so they were able to do another "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast. Stu gets a little "blue" in his talking, but The Dude is just blue about the latest loss by the Chicago Bears. They do talk about their meeting old friends, The Dude talks some about new drinking and eating establishments, and even with a weekend of The Dude on the Right humoring himself in his head, suddenly Jennifer Love Hewitt comes into the picture, and even though that picture isn't that flattering, Stu and The Dude don't care, they both like her boobies.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:25 PM | Comments (0)

November 20, 2007

Would I Look Good in "Ugg Australia Classic Crochet Tall Boots"?

By: The Dude on the Right
First off let me start this by saying part of me doesn't like Oprah Winfrey, probably mostly out of jealousy, but there is nothing but admiration for the empire she has built, an empire I can (that's correct, I wrote "can") fathom in my mind, wonder if it is an empire that can ever be built again, and will give credit where credit is due because as much as there are things I don't like about her, the good things she tries to do are huge and deserve commendation.

But, as a dude, today's episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show is one of the most bizarre, yet entertaining, pieces of television of the year.  Yup, today was the usually annual "Oprah's Favorite Things" episode (some of those Oprah fans who got gypped last year when she tried the "Pay It Forward" experiment are probably still a little, deep-down, pissed), and if you ever want to see a group of women, and a couple of dudes, go completely out of their minds, this is the show to watch.  Oprah secretly took her team to Macon, Georgia, to celebrate the folks who, at 4PM if they are watching TV, 45% of them are watching Oprah.  This statistic, in itself, should raise a ton of red flags about Macon, and maybe this is why I could never be in the league of Oprah because rather than embracing them I would be saying "What is wrong with you people?  What do you do for a life?", yet there some of them were, in an auditorium in Macon, going nuts, when Oprah announced they were in attendance for her "Oprah's Favorite Things" show.

Oprah, of course, made the people in the audience happy, giving away things like a cool camcorder (it retails at $799, and we know that because part of "Oprah's Favorite Things" show is Oprah detailing exactly who makes it, how you can get it, and how much it will cost you), boots, cleaning products, DVD's, a boatload of other stuff, and as Oprah put it, the most expensive gift in the history of her "Favorite Things," which turned out to be a refrigerator retailing at $3,799, which, I can probably guess, most husbands of those in attendance are saying "Our fridge keeps my beer cold just fine.  Do you realize what kind of plasma TV we could have gotten for that amount of money?"

As I did my quick tally it looks like those in Macon who ended up at the show were given nearly $7,500 worth of stuff, which, from the reactions of most of them, was stuff that was going to change their world in ways they couldn't even imagine yet.  Those gifts also will change their lives in another way they didn't image yet, with the tax bill that accompanies getting prizes, or at least so says my accountant, Fruitcake, from the firm Dewey, Cheatum, & Howe, LLC.  But you know what, I'm still jealous I wasn't there because yes, I would have probably been jumping up and down like a little schoolgirl like the rest of them, but then wondering what that signed copy of "O's Guide to Life" and "The Pillars of Earth" would get on eBay, and if I could really pull off wearing those "Ugg Australia Classic Crochet Tall Boots" because, well, I got them from Oprah.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:08 PM | Comments (0)

November 19, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Tig old Bitties, Mots of Lovies, and Gama Motz!

Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right have a guest for their weekend wrap-up podcast, and it's none other than Mama Gotz. They talk a lot about Tig old Bitties on "30 Rock," some about the writer's strike, and a lot about movies they all saw, including "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium," "No Country for Old Men," and "Beowulf." The Dude on the Right fills in Stu Gotz with his concert viewing of Shaw/Blades, and his non-concert viewing of Garth Brooks on the TV screen. Thanksgiving plans are also discussed, and they all hope you have a Happy Turkey-Day!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:21 PM | Comments (0)

November 15, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: I'm an Idiot, No More Ho, 84 Minutes for Lindsay, and Welcome Back Paige Davis!

The Dude on the Right proclaims himself an idiot for this podcast, probably much to his sister's delight. He proclaims his idiotness due to his losing his ticket for Garth Brooks on the movie theater screen. He is also worried for the world because people in Australia are saying Santa shouldn't say "Ho, Ho, Ho" anymore, instead should say "Ha, Ha, Ha." The Dude also gives props to Lindsay Lohan for her 84 minutes in jail, and has something to TiVo in 2008 thanks to Paige Davis coming back as host of "Trading Spaces" next year.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:46 PM | Comments (0)

November 8, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: The CMA Awards, Unplug Everything, and More Environment Crap.

The Dude on the Right is tired of being preached to about being "Green," so for this podcast he gives his own advice that is a hell of a lot easier than that given on "The Biggest Loser" (although most electricians would say it's bad advice). He also has a theory that "American Idol" is having a larger influence on the country music scene, and is worried about having no TV to watch soon. Go ahead and listen.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:52 PM | Comments (0)

November 1, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: ABC's Screwing With The Bachelor and Dancing, Zero Tricks or Treats, and I'm Tired of Kobe Bryant Rumors.

The Dude on the Right is flying solo, as he always does, for his Thursday podcast, and is flustered with how ABC is changing their TV schedule next Monday, only leaving 45 minutes for "The Bachelor," and he does think Brad is doing a good job picking the best women. He's also happy Sabrina, The Cheetah Girl, is off "Dancing With the Stars," and worries about the writer's strike that might impact his TV viewing in 2008. He is also sick of the Kobe Bryant trade rumors, dreaming up some of his better trade rumors, at least for him.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:24 PM | Comments (0)

October 31, 2007

In The End, I Just Wanted a "Wheel of Fortune" Blinky Pen.

By: The Dude on the Right
So I briefly talked about my heading to auditions for "Wheel of Fortune," so I thought I might fill you in a little bit more about the experience because it was really nothing like I originally envisioned though I guess this blog is more of a story so it's a little longer, sorry...

It all started a few months ago when the "Wheel of Fortune" folks announced they were going to be filming some shows in early 2008 at Navy Pier in Chicago, and that eventually they would be holding auditions. I like "Wheel," think I do fairly well at guessing the puzzles before a lot of the contestants, and yell at the TV when I think vowels are bought stupidly. As such I figured "What the hell? When they come to town for auditions why not give it shot?" At the time I figured you just got in a line, they had you fill out some kind of "who are you?" form, maybe do a quick interview, and then would call you later if you qualified.

Then it was announced that the Wheelmobile would be in Chicagoland (actually Rosemont, IL), the weekend of October 20th, and as many times as I saw the Wheelmobile promo during "Wheel" I never paid attention because what actually happens at a Wheelmobile event is nothing like I initially imagined. Nope, it's part game show, part audition, part comedic entertainment, but sadly for me, not part "getting on stage." I did re-check the "Wheel of Fortune" website before I went to the "auditions," and learned a little bit more about what happens. So here you go...

For the Saturday stop it was announced that there would be three "shows," at 1PM, 2:30PM, and 4PM, and that you really just needed to arrive about an hour before each "show."  So, of course, I'm at the Rosemont Theatre at about 11AM, which was easily an hour too early. But I get there, they give you a little slip to fill out with pertinent stuff like your name, address, phone, and a line for hobbies and cool things about you. I dipped back into my love of bowling (which seemed to be very popular among the people who ended up on stage), and movies, but then realized my life is fairly boring because I couldn't think of anything else. I probably should have called some of my friends at the time, like some other people were doing, to remind me about what is cool about me, but then I realized most of my friends would probably just say "Dude, you don't do anything fun, other than seeing a lot of movies by yourself, and you used to see a lot of concerts. Hey, what happened with that anyway? Maybe you need to quick watching so much TV?"  After I put my slip in the collection box it occurred to me I should have written down "I can wiggle my ears."

So I fill out my form, buy a $3 bottle of water, drop my slip in the collection box, (remember about my ears), fill out another form to win prizes, and find a nice aisle seat, with an hour and forty-five minutes yet to kill before the 1PM "show." At this point I am ecstatic, well maybe not ecstatic, but I'm happy I bought an iPhone so I surfed the web and played some games in anticipation of the start of the show.

The time comes, actually it's a little before 1PM, and the first level of the theater is packed solid. Out come Marty and Heidi (okay, I have to admit, I'm not totally sure those were there names, but it's the best I could find via Google at the time, and I'm too lazy to actually make a phone call or two to confirm, so for now I'm going with Marty and Heidi, without any last names) with Heidi playing the role of a fake Vanna White, and Marty (who seems to be a big fan of the movie "Old School") actually having a harder job than Pat Sajak because he has to act as MC, interviewer, game show host, and all around funny dude. The process is then pretty simple: All of the audition slips have been put in this big gold drum, Heidi spins the golden drum and pulls out five names, Marty calls the names the best he can and the five people come up on stage. Marty then interviews them, one by one. Then he spins a wheel to see which parting gift they will win (things like caps, t-shirts, duffel bags), and then adds an extra couple of trinkets, like a Wheel of Fortune deck of cards or Wheel of Fortune blinky pen. And finally Marty directs the five folks through a speed round, you know, the round at the end of "Wheel" when Pat gives the wheel a final spin, the contestant picks a letter and tries to solve, the next contestant picks a letter and tries to solve, etc., etc., and the same thing happens on stage except there's no giving a wheel a final spin. The five folks pick a letter, try to solve, eventually one of them does solve the puzzle, and then five more people get their shot at being on stage.

The weird part about being there is that for about 45 minutes it's kind of like part game show, where you are in the audience, but since you are there to hopefully get on the show (at least most of the people are), there's also that anticipation part that maybe this time your name will be pulled from the golden drum, there's also that part where you are sitting in the audience knowing you would be better during the interview than that person up on stage right now, there's also that part that you can't believe the person picked that letter, and there's also that part when you know the answer to the puzzle and can't believe no one else on stage has solved it yet.

Then the last 15 minutes come.

Now the realization and disappointment begins to hit because your name hasn't been called yet, you didn't get your chance to show you would be the greatest "Wheel of Fortune" contestant player ever, you wish they would go a little quicker on stage so that maybe the golden drum will spin one last time and your name will finally be called, and you start to get a little pissed as you look back on the people who did get called to the stage and wonder what in the hell they were actually doing there. During my little show there were two people that stood out as "You took my spot!"-ers, and probably have no chance in hell of getting on the show. One person was this little old lady who maybe enjoys watching the show, but it sure hasn't helped her command of the English language. Her interview was exactly what you would imagine of a grandma, right off of the boat, not really understanding the phrase "What do you do for fun?", and even after she starts to figure out what you are asking, you can't understand her even if you wanted to. Part of the other thing about getting your chance at the audition is that sure, maybe you are nervous, but if you let that inhibit your having fun, I'm guessing the folks who pick the folks for the next round of auditions skip right over you. This case in point came from a lady who wouldn't sing. At the beginning of the show Marty mentions that if you want to sing, well, sing. If you want to dance, dance. If you want to tell a joke, go ahead, just keep it clean, so as he's doing his quick interview of the lady he asks what she does for fun. She mentions she likes to hang out with her family and sing karaoke. Marty sees the opening for her to maybe seal her spot to the next round and asks her to sing, to which she shyly declines. He even prods her a little more, but she still says no. A few contestants later a dude says he likes to shoot pool, or something like that, and sing. Marty gives this dude his opening, asking if he'll sing, and he belts out a quick verse. I'm guessing he had a really good shot to go on, while "no-singing lady who took my spot," not so much.

And so Marty announces the last five names are coming out of the golden drum, my name isn't called, and it's time to make a choice: Stick around for the next show (although from the line that snaked around the Rosemont Theatre at the time I'm guessing it was already "Sold Out"), stick around even later for the 4PM, or just head back to the Dude-Pad and get some things done. Sure, my dedication for getting on the show maybe wasn't as high as those who tried every show during the weekend, but after going through the last 15 minutes portion of that first show, the disappointment that I didn't get my chance to shine, and the being pissed off because I know I would have been better on stage than the old lady, I felt ready to retire my interview speech: "My name's The Dude on the Right. By day I'm an consultant for the construction industry and by night I publish an internet magazine. I love movies, music, and TV. I have 3 fish.  Steve's about 6 years old, Ashley's about 5, and Bam is about 3."  Marty would say something, because he wasn't wasn't paying that much attention like, "You don't know the age of your children?", to which I would retort, "I said 'I have 3 fish.'", and the people would have laughed.  Then, of course, not to split the crowd like the Cub's fan did, I would have yelled "Go Bears!"  In my head it worked perfectly, but sadly, Heidi never picked my name out of the golden drum.

Not getting picked aside, though, it was actually a pretty enjoyable time. I'll give a ton of credit to Marty for his ability to keep things fun and deal with people who are either nervous beyond belief or goofy beyond belief or have no point having their name in the golden drum beyond belief, and I would say that even if you don't want to be on the show, and if the Wheelmobile comes to your town, head to the auditions for an fun experience.  Around me I heard a lot of husbands and boyfriends saying they were there for their wives/girlfriends, and hoped they wouldn't get picked to go up on stage, to which I say, "Don't fill out the damn audition slip and take my spot!", but I'm guessing, in the bottom of their stomachs, there was this little part of them hoping their name would be pulled from that golden drum.

Even though I blew my chance at attending another "show" on Saturday, what pissed me off more was that I wasted more chances by staying at home to watch the Chicago Bears implode on Sunday when I could have been at another audition or two during the crappy football game, and if, by chance, Heidi pulled my audition slip, and Marty mispronounced my last name (because, for whatever reason, people can't pronounce "Right"), I could have been able to tell about how much I love my fish and might have remembered that part about being able to wiggle my ears.  Even, if in the end, after getting up on stage, I still didn't make it to the next audition round, I would have really liked to get that "Wheel of Fortune" blinky pen.

Like the Chicago Cubs, I guess, maybe I'll have to wait until next year, unless, somehow, someway, my audition slip is pulled at random for another chance at the "Wheel of Fortune" Chicago finals.  I guess, right now, I better hope I wrote my phone number or e-mail address in a legibly fashion when I was transcribing it on my audition slip using my "Souvenir," "Wheel of Fortune" computer CD as a clipboard, otherwise they might be trying to contact who knows who.  Such might be the life of a wannabe "Wheel of Fortune" contestant.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:18 PM | Comments (3)

October 29, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! The Bears Blow Up, Stu saw Movies, The Dude and a Wheel, and a Bachelor Meltdown.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", The Dude on the Right is sort of in the dumps because he wasted a Sunday afternoon watching the Chicago Bears, didn't get picked to go on stage during the "Wheel of Fortune" auditions, and feels bad for dead men's ashes. Stu Gotz saw some old movies, namely "Smokin' Aces" and "Employee of the Month," and had a hard time getting breakfast. He is also proud of his Mexican heritage. At least The Dude has one thing still making him happy, and that is Hillary's meltdown on "The Bachelor" from last week.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:58 PM | Comments (0)

October 25, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Apple Releases a Leopard, Here Comes Halloween, and Teases from "The Bachelor."

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this Thursday podcast, and advises anyones who listens to replace the word "Wallow" with the word "Rejoice." He admits he was confused, but he was happy to rejoice in the dismissal of Hillary on "The Bachelor," even if it is mean. He also talks about his review, or rather just discusses, the release of Apple's Mac OS X Leopard, wondering if its release might impact his iPhone. The Dude also talks about Drew Carey hosting "The Price is Right," hopes Paris Hilton's latest setback doesn't send her on the road to partying, and he's paranoid about Halloween. Okay, maybe not paranoid, but he hates being stuck with so much candy.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:12 PM | Comments (0)

October 17, 2007

Ellen DeGeneres and Her Dog? World War III? Who Cares, Drew Carey is Hosting "The Price is Right."

By: The Dude on the Right
After the events of yesterday I was going to blog about Ellen DeGeneres and her dog fiasco, but since the audio is really the key I figured I'll wait for my hopeful podcast tomorrow to fill you all in on my feelings about Ellen.  The dumb part is that I didn't tape today's episode of "Ellen" to see if she had anything new to say so I suppose I'll have to do some investigating tonight.

Other than Ellen the other news of today was that President Bush said we might have World War III if Iran developed a nuclear, or is that nucular, weapon.

But that's not important either.

What is important is that this week new episodes of "The Price is Right" returned to the airwaves, with Drew Carey now hosting instead of Bob Barker, and at this point in time I'll just say, "I guess we'd better revisit this in a month or two."

I asked for my mom's first impressions but she didn't see it yet.  I also asked her if dad watched it and what he thought of it, but she pretty much acknowledged dad doesn't like Drew Carey, and once dad has something set in his mind, Drew could come off as the greatest game show host ever and my dad would still not like him.  Mom still has yet to report back if dad even watched the new episodes.

But I TiVo'd the second episode with Drew, and all I can say is that you can tell Mr. Carey is trying to feel his way into being the host of the show, and for me, it's not working right now.  But I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise.  Hell, he is taking over for Bob Barker.

The first problem I had was that Drew Carey tries a little too hard to relate to the contestants and sometimes seems to talk too much.  He hasn't come up with that smoothness Bob Barker always seems to have with the contestants, no matter how loopy the players seem to be, but that might come in time.  The second problem I had was the camera work seemed a little choppy, and this kind of surprised me especially with the history of the show.  The third problem is Drew doesn't seem that comfortable explaining the games which should be second nature no matter what stage you are at hosting.  And the fourth problem I had was Drew's wireless microphone, with that big box on the bottom, looked stupid compared to Bob's sleek one.

Since I'm usually doing stuff during the morning and don't watch "The Price is Right" until I visit the old homestead because dad is a fan, as an un-regular watcher Drew Carey has a lot of work to do to get his familiarity with the show down, and I guess that's why I started this blog with a mention that maybe we should revisit Drew Carey's hosting of "The Price is Right" in a month or two.  There is some potential for Drew, but in my weird observation he just needs to quick trying too hard, don't try to relate to the contestants, and just kick back, relax, and let the show be "The Price is Right."  The contestants usually know the show, and you don't need to care that much about them.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:11 PM | Comments (0)

October 2, 2007

Dear MLB, TBS, and Whomever Else, I didn't want to watch the Chicago Cubs anyway!

By: The Dude on the Right
Dear Major League Baseball, The Chicago Cubs, TBS, and whomever else set the TV schedule for the upcoming baseball Divisional Series,

Thank you!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
And let me write it again - Thank you!

I would like to thank you for scheduling the first two Cubs games for the Divisional Series at a time when there is pretty much no way in hell I'm going to watch, and even more importantly at this stage of my Fall TV season, I won't miss any of my old favorite, nor new favorite TV shows. Yup, you scheduled the first two games on Wednesday and Thursday nights, to start at 9PM CDT. Sure, first pitch is supposed to be at 9:07ish PM, or so someone said on the radio this morning (and out of sheer curiosity I might try to sneak and see when that first pitch actually gets thrown tomorrow night, probably during a commercial break of a new episode of "South Park"), but even in the best of chances it would be a major miracle for the games to finish by 11PM, and even a minor miracle for them to finish by Midnight. As much as I love the Cubs I don't have the late nights available for these two games unless I wanted to be a zombie at my morning meetings on Thursday and Friday, and besides, if the Cubs do win both games, the game that really matters will be at 5PM on Saturday evening, where hopefully the Cubs will clinch their series at The Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field!

Also, with those games not starting until after 9PM, I'll have no conflict with my normal slate of Wednesday nor Thursday night TV viewing and TiVoing. I'll have no worries of missing "Bionic Woman," "Survivor," "My Name is Earl" & "Smallville" (both on TiVo delay), "30 Rock," and anything else coming along those two nights.

And sure, as a transplanted North Coast resident (Lorain, OH - Represent!), I am also cheering on the Cleveland Indians, but my mom pretty much figures the New York Yankees already have that series wrapped up, so I figure why bother watching. Even so, their games are actually early enough they have the potential to be over by my TV time anyway.

So, again, baseball and TV folks, Thank you! I didn't want to watch the Chicago Cubs anyway!

Sincerely,
The Dude on the Right

And that's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:02 PM | Comments (0)

October 1, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "The Big Bang Theory" and More TV, The Cubs and More Sports, and eBay Dummies.

For this podcast of Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!, The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz get into the fall TV season, both liking the new show "The Big Bang Theory" yet wondering if most of America will get it. Stu tells of his weeping at the passing of Flower on "Meerkat Manor," and The Dude lets Stu know if he should go to the theater and see "The Kingdom." They both have more TV talk, chat a bit about the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs, and The Dude tells Stu about a "not so happy" birthday for a Mom.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:38 PM | Comments (0)

September 29, 2007

The Chicago Cubs New Magic Number is 22? And I'm Still a Geek.

By: The Dude on the Right
So last night, with some help from the Milwaukee Brewers, the Chicago Cubs finally clinched the National League Central Division and now it's time for the playoffs.  Yay!  The thing is that now, what is their new "Magic Number?"  The news stated it was 11, but isn't that wrong in Magic Number lore.  It's supposed to be the combination of wins of your team with the losses of the team you are up against to advance to the next stage of the season, at least that's my understanding, so even though the Cubs need to win 11 games to win The World Series, isn't the Magic Number to win it all actually 22?  In any case I do know that with the Cubs in the playoffs, well, my TV viewing is being thrown into even more turmoil than it was last week, especially since two new shows, after watching them and reflecting on an event last week, reminded me of something.

Even after being 2 scores old, I'm still an insecure geek.  And fine, go ahead and insert the word "nerd" for "geek" if you prefer.

The two shows I'm talking about are "The Big Bang Theory" and "Chuck."  In "The Big Bang Theory" this smoking hot dudette moves into the apartment next to a couple of uber-geeks, actually surpassing me in the geek-dom of being a geek, but there he was, the one dude, doing all he could to impress the hot dudette.  And in "Chuck," Chuck is a nice guy, implanted with the spy secrets of the government, and a smokin' hot government agent enters his life to at first find out what he knows, faking to be interested in him, and Chuck gets his hopes up.  The basic part of the story is the same: Geeky guy is interested in the hot girl but doesn't know how to be cool enough to work it.

So how did this remind me of my geek-dom?  It was last week and Stu Gotz's buddy was turning 40 (what a great age).  To celebrate, Stu set up a small, lunch, get-together including Stu, Mama Gotz, Stu's buddy and the buddy's wife, and me, at the Rock Bottom Brewery in Orland Park, south of Chicago.  We all end up at the bar and the bartendress is very cute, with a great body, great butt, nice boobs, and a perfect smile.  You would look at her and say "Dude, she is so out of your league."  As lunch went on a question came up, namely who was the girl who turned into a blueberry in "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory," and none of us could remember.  As the conversation between the couples went on (mostly about kids and their houses), I took out my iPhone, Googled "blueberry girl in Willy Wonka" and announced "Her name was "Violet Beauregarde."  Somehow "iPhone" came up in the conversation and the cute bartendress pretty much denounced anyone who would buy an iPhone, that she wasn't a gadget girl, and that her cell phone was older than the hills but she knew how to send text messages.  As a geek, pretty much everything she said also indicated "I've got no shot in hell with her."  But then Stu's buddy said something to me, something like "Dude, dare her to let you text her."  I shook off his suggestion, then he said something like "Dude, then let me dare her to let you text her."  And I shook him off again.  He seemed flabbergasted, kinda like "Why the hell not?", and after we left, and after seeing "The Big Band Theory" and "Chuck," I realized I should have taken him up on his offer to try and get her phone number.  Even after all of these years I was still an insecure geek, and what's the worst that would have happened, other than she lets me text her, her Ultimate Fighting boyfriend sees a weird text on her phone, he hunts me down, and he beats the living daylights out of me? At least I would have had her phone number.

So, I don't have the cute bartendress' phone number, I still have my iPhone that isn't bricked and somehow has my personal ringtones even though I upgraded to Firmware 1.1.1, and I think I have come to realize that I will always be a geek.

Or maybe just a nerd.

Is there a difference? (No comments from you, Sis.)

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:05 PM | Comments (1)

September 27, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: The Cubs' Magic Number is Still Three, A TV Season is in Full Swing.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is screwed up in the head because his Chicago Cubs can't seem to clinch their division, and with the Fall TV premier week, well, The Dude has a lot of shows on TiVo to catch up with, new shows he loves ("The Big Bang Theory"), old shows he still loves ("How I Met Your Mother"), and is a little perturbed at "Dancing With the Stars" and "The Biggest Loser" for taking too much of his TV time, even though he likes them. TiVo scheduling is almost more important for him right now rather than watching shows when they actually air, like "Reaper."

Posted by Rightdude at 8:13 PM | Comments (0)

September 24, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! A Family Outing, Watching Movies, Chicago Sports, and Breaking in Shoes.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", Stu Gotz is back from traveling with the family in his tenement on wheels, we catch up on the Chicago Bears loss and the Chicago Cubs wins, and he saw some DVD's, namely "Shooter" and "Invincible," while I saw "Good Luck Chuck." I bought new shoes which Stu tells me his method for breaking in, and we are both excited about the return of "Heroes" but were disappointed in the Christian dudette on "Survivor." If we only had more time we could have talked about O.J. Simpson and Stu's coffee palate.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:42 PM | Comments (0)

August 31, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Senator Craig Teaches Us, Labor Day Weekend Weakens Us, and "The Biggest Loser" Strengthens Us.

The Dude on the Right didn't get a chance to do his Thursday podcast because he was slacking off watching the Chicago Cubs beat the Milwaukee Brewers. Instead he decided to do a podcast today, on a Friday, and so, for this podcast,The Dude on the Right would like to thank Senator Craig from Idaho for teaching us about some things when we drop the kids off at the pool, is looking to eat like crap for a couple of days, and looks to get back in shape with the return of "The Biggest Loser."

Until then it's Labor Day Weekend, a time to eat bad food, enjoy the end of summer, and celebrate pregnant women!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:34 PM | Comments (0)

August 23, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Is God Mad at the Midwest, Should I Try Out for "Wheel of Fortune," and A Dude Named Chicken?

For this podcast The Dude on the Right has his wonderings about why God is mad at the Midwest. He must be mad because why else would there be all of this flooding, rain, and wrath of God stuff? The Dude also dabs a little into Michael Vick, but wonders more if he should try and audition for "Wheel of Fortune" and if he can control his TV viewing in the fall, especially since "Survivor: China" looks to have some good-looking dudettes. The Dude loves his TV.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:36 PM | Comments (0)

August 13, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Being Late Etiquette, "Rush Hour 3," A White Trash Picnic, and More.

For this podcast of Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!, The Dude on the Right had a pretty boring weekend, seeing "Rush Hour 3" and cleaning his fish tank. Stu Gotz, though, got to go on what he calls a "White Trash Picnic" in his new, used RV. The Dude also questions Stu on proper etiquette when you are running late, Stu has his idea of how the late-ee should make it up to the wait-ee, and Stu is afraid he won't be able to control himself in a "Second Life," so he limits his porn to the normal internet, like most of us.

Oh, and they also talk about some TV stuff.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:45 PM | Comments (0)

August 6, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "The Bourne Ultimatum," Debating - Gladiator Style in Chicago, Chocolate Rain, and Poo.

For this podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", The Dude on the Right saw a couple of movies, and Stu Gotz just tried to stay cool. Stu wanted to know if The Dude was going to cover the Democratic Debate at Soldier Field, and even though The Dude is skipping it the both of them have some grand ideas, including Gladiator fighting and wet t-shirt contests, that might make the debate more exciting. The Dude, also, has sounds of "Everything Comes Down to Poo" and "Chocolate Rain" running through his head, but sometimes poo and chocolate rain are one in the same.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:44 PM | Comments (0)

July 30, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "The Simpsons Movie," It's Not Stu's Fault, and Boinking Animals.

For this podcast of their weekend wrap-up, Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right are reunited once again and Stu seems to be hoping, as he listens to "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," that J. K. Rowling is trying to set things up so that the final movie as an R-Rated flick. The Dude thinks not, but they both agree that "The Simpsons Movie" was entertaining. Stu also tries to defend his not being The Dude's fault for The Dude's chubbiness, and also urges The Dude to catch this week's "Entourage" for some boinking animals. The Dude is excited about catching "Entourage," but not as excited as a carny might have been in seeing Mama Gotz. Happy listening!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:27 PM | Comments (0)

July 3, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: So Much to Say that it's in Two Parts.

For this episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" Podcast, Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right just can't stop talking. The Dude on the Right has his normal entertainment stuff on which to comment so the two of them consolidate entertainment to "Part 1 of the Podcast." Part 1 gives insight into getting an iPhone, the latest movies like "Live Free or Die Hard" and "Ratatouille," and a lady and her Jaguar. Part 2 of the podcast lets Stu run wild with his weekend like how he gave Mama Gotz a challenge about an RV so now Stu might be heading to Arizona, his advice on where not to put photos of your old girlfriend, and Baptism invite etiquette.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:54 PM | Comments (0)

June 21, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Three Vetoes From President Bush, I Should be The Next Host of "The Price is Right," and Maybe Meredith is Nicer than Barbara.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right goes on a slight political rant focusing on President Bush's recent veto of a second stem cell research bill, and his quote “Destroying human life in the hopes of saving human life is not ethical.”

On lighter notes The Dude also thinks he would be the perfect replacement for Bob Barker on "The Price is Right," and reminds all of you that Paris Hilton will be getting out of jail soon, and you probably would have done the same time with the purported payday she will get from her first interview, which, sort of surprisingly, won't be with Barbara Walters.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:28 PM | Comments (0)

June 12, 2007

The "Tony Soprano Was Whacked Here, Or Maybe Not" Booth, and Bon Jovi Better Not Tour in 2010.

By: The Dude on the Right
Well at least I had one thing right about my prediction for "The Sopranos" ending - it would take place in an ice cream shop in New Jersey.  What surprised me was that most people giving predictions, from fans to critics, seemed to forget the story of how there was this ice cream shop in New Jersey that the show's people wanted to shoot the final scene at but the town wouldn't give them a permit.  Then the town thought better of it and gave them a permit.  Low and behold the final scene was at a place called "Holsten's," which whether you liked the ending of the show or not, if you are/were a fan of the "The Sopranos," and if you are anywhere near Bloomfield, NJ, you will probably try to make a trip there.  With all of their publicity, though, you would think they might update their web site.  Going to holstons.com you see the most simplistic of designed web sites, and more importantly, if you click on the "Luncheon Menu" link, there is something missing from the menu, namely onion rings.  There is another website with a photo of a current menu, and it does show onion rings are available, but if the Holston's folks want some help redesigning their website, I'm offering my services, if only because it would give me a real excuse to visit New Jersey again, other than just vacationing on Long Beach Island.

But now that "The Sopranos" are done, or is it "is done," I always get that confused, and so far I haven't gotten sucked into any summer TV yet, I'm looking to revive doing concert reviews during this summer season, setting a consistent schedule for CD and DVD reviews, finishing the re-design of entertainmentavenue.com, and in the middle of all of these things, digitize my entire photo collection, starting with my concert photos, mostly so I can update the lousy looking concert shots on the web site because, in reality, they aren't that lousy (some of those were digitized with an old, hand-held scanner, bought back in like 1996).  The nice thing about the digitizing is I can do it in the middle of typing and posting things - simply slide another negative into my old HP Photosmart scanner, and since it's pretty slow, well, I don't lose that much stream of consciousness in my writing.  The bad thing is that since it is kinda slow, I might be at this digitizing things for years.

I guess I never realized how many pictures I took back in those old days of using film, and concerts alone I'm looking at, by rough count, some 720 rolls of film to digitize.  If I can get two rolls done a day I guess I might be done with the concert photos sometime next year.  Then there are all of the negatives from college and high school, and if I'm on track for this, we're looking at, well, maybe 2010 by the time my entire film collection is safely stored away on CD-R's (that by then will probably be useless), and I might be able to put together a nice high school retrospective for my high school classmates at our 25th year reunion, that is, of course, if Bon Jovi doesn't have a concert on the same day as our reunion in 2010 like they did back in 1995, and 2005.

It looks to be a fun summer for this dude, as long as I can keep my TV turned off in the evening hours.  If not, expect a lot more blogs about crappy, summer TV shows that I have gotten sucked into watching.  Maybe I'll even try to squeeze in a trip to New Jersey for some ice cream, and sit in the "Tony Soprano Got Whacked Here, Or Maybe He Didn't" booth.  I just wonder if the onion rings at Holston's are that good.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:45 PM | Comments (0)

June 11, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast! Soprano Analysis, Stu Gets Exercise, The Dude's Cable Woes, and Big & Rich do AC/DC.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!," well, Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right give their discussion about the finale of "The Sopranos." Stu got in some exercising thanks to a Nintendo Wii (which he can't believe he camped out for, sort of), and The Dude saw "Ocean's Thirteen." There's also some other TV talk, The Dude finally got TV back, and did you know Big & Rich cover the AC/DC classic "You Shook Me All Night Long?" Now you do.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:21 PM | Comments (0)

June 10, 2007

How Did I Live Without TV for So Long?

By: The Dude on the Right
If you've been reading my blog the last couple of days you know that I was without my cable TV and good internet access for, it turned out, two entire days.  The operative word there is "was" because about an hour ago the cable technician rang my doorbell, I told him I have nothing, he went outside, and low and behold everything was working again.  He came back in, I asked him what was the problem, and he said that in the box outside my cable line was marked "Disconnected," and was, well, disconnected.  He asked if there was a billing problem, to which I told him there wasn't, and the best guess we both could come up with was because there have been a rash of old people moving and new people moving in at my townhouse area, maybe the technician who came to disconnect someone who had moved out, well, he disconnected me instead.  That means some lucky bastard neighbor is getting cable TV for free, while I had to endure two days of nothing, probably could have won the BINGO game on Friday night, and was getting panic attacks worried I was going to miss the final episode of "The Sopranos" (I'm thinking Tony finds himself making a deal with the feds at an ice cream shop in Jersey at the end of the show, but that's only because there was all the hubba-baloo about a town not issuing a permit for filming at an ice cream shop in New Jersey, which was going to be the final scene, and then they issued the permit, unless, of course, that was just a diversion for the real ending where Carmella runs off to Italy with Furio).

In any case, I am back in the land of technology, so now I really have no excuses as to not posting new stuff, although I was sort of getting used to not having watching TV as a diversion.  Maybe after "The Sopranos" I should just cancel my cable TV altogether?  What the hell am I saying?  I'm sure, after tonight, I'll be back in the land of TV glory, just not brilliant TV glory yet because I haven't broken down into the HDTV world.

In any case, it's back to my normally scheduled programs, although, so far this summer, there aren't any.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 4:13 PM | Comments (0)

June 9, 2007

I Think I'm in the Middle of a Seinfeld Episode.

By: The Dude on the Right
For the last couple of days, and it is approaching a couple of days, I don't have TV. Some of my goals this summer included limiting my TV watching, but for over 24 hours I haven't had a choice. For whatever reason my cable, and only my townhouse's cable, went out yesterday (okay, my internet is affected too, but I have figured out a backup way to post stuff, so I can still sort of post things - my "Ocean's 13" review will be posted tomorrow come hell or high water). It's been over 24 hours now with no TV, and the only thing I can really say, right now, the only reason I miss TV is because I am paying for it (the cable folks say I will get a credit for my downtime), and missing watching some baseball games and playing BINGO on Friday, and wondering about the future.

I do know a way to get my local TV, and pretty simply it would only include a trip to my local Radio Shack, to buy an antenna (and it wouldn't even have to be a roof-top one), and then I would have my local stations, but, and I can't believe I am saying this, I am almost liking life without TV, except for one last bit of closure, or more specifically, HBO, tomorrow, because at the end of my Spring TV viewing there is only one show left I care about, one show I need to see, and that show is the last episode of "The Sopranos," and right now, I have no HBO.

If my cable company doesn't fix my TV tomorrow, on a Sunday, I will miss the one show, for the last bunch of years, that I really, really, really, really, don't want to miss, and that is the finale of "The Sopranos."  I will also miss seeing the NBA Basketball Finals where my Cavs are playing some other team, and as much as I am sort of liking not having TV right now, tomorrow is the day I need it back.

I would like to say that I have confidence in getting my TV viewing fixed by the time "The Sopranos" comes on tomorrow night, but in talking with the folks at my cable supplier (except for the dude I talked with tonight), I have many reservations about technology giving me a chance to have things fixed in a timely manner, or at least tomorrow.  The shitty part is that supposedly I had an appointment to get things fixed today, and that conversation is another, total, clusterfuck.  I think I am finding myself in the middle of a "Seinfeld" episode.

I guess, in the end, we just have to see what life gives us tomorrow. Hopefully, for me, it's at least "The Sopranos."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 10:02 PM | Comments (0)

June 7, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: The MTV Movie Awards, The NBA Finals, and Maybe Paris Hilton Broke her Teeth.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right liked the first hour of the MTV Movie Awards, even though he calls them the Video Music Awards during the podcast - flying solo he has no one to correct him. He liked Sarah Silverman and found her adorable, at least for that first hour.

He also is looking forward to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, but has his thoughts on the extended sport schedules nowadays.

And finally what would a podcast today be without talk of Paris HIlton. She got out of jail, and The Dude has his theory on why she was set sort of free, although he also thinks maybe Sarah Silverman might actually be a psychic and the most brilliant person in the world if Paris got out because she broke her teeth.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:04 PM | Comments (0)

May 29, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Waitresses, Pirates, Walking, Baseball, Cornholing and Summer TV.

Stu Gotz & The Dude on the Right get together after Memorial Day for this podcast where the highlights are Stu seeing a baseball game and The Dude going for a six mile walk. Sure, there were other things they talked about, like "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, " The Dude seeing "Waitress," and getting double-time by working on a holiday. The Dude needs Stu's advice about the possibility of his townhouse burning down, Stu wonders about "Ocean's 13," and The Dude seems to have missed out on the cornholing craze.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:27 PM | Comments (0)

May 22, 2007

"American Idol" Gives us Blake and Jordin. And Who Cares, Conspiracy Theories be Damned.

By: The Dude on the Right
Okay, I'm having computer issues making posting things not as easy as they used to be, at least for now, but it's the "American Idol" finals so I knew I couldn't let any of you down in getting this posted, no matter the difficulties.

We've got Blake.  We've got Jordin.  And we don't have Sanjaya nor Melinda, which I think is a travesty.  An "American Idol" conspiracy, maybe tomorrow we'll have the votes certified by some accountants, but it's too late for that now because who cares at this point, because at this point it's dude against dudette; Perky against Beat-Box.  And here's what I think...

Blake 1: Sings "You Give Love a Bad Name."  The Robot was funny in the movie "Euro Trip," but Blake's stuff is just getting old.  He does work it as a performer, but now it turns into selling records, and I won't buy it.  Hopefully they'll straighten him out in the recording studio and forget about the beat-box crap because he does sing well.  Simon has it right that he is a good performer.

Jordin 1: Sings "Fighter." She looks like she lost a couple of more pounds, which works, and this time starts actually trying to be a performer instead of just a singer.  The side-shot was bad as she was hunched over, and although not as charismatic as Christina Aguilera she's coming close.

Blake 2: Sings "She Will be Loved." Good song choice and he sings it well.  Win or lose this shows his potential to be a singer without the beat-box shtick.

Jordin 2: Sings "A Broken Wing." Yup, they're trying to primp her out of the little black girl to the mature singer (she is only 17 after all) role with the hair changes and the outfits.  We know she sings great, but she still hasn't busted out as a performer yet.

Blake 3: Sings "This is My Now."  A songwriting contest winner.  You can probably figure Blake (or Jordin) would rather sing a solid song from an established songwriter, but Blake does his best to work the song, and be the performer he is.

Jordin 3: Sings "This is My Now." Trying to look older, trying to look not so perky, and it doesn't work for her, at least in my head for her recording career.  We liked her because she was young, perky, with curly hair and not trying to look older than being 17.  She's not the sexy/dirty Christina, she's not the sexy/dirty Britney, she's the bouncy and perky Whitney, and they took that away from her tonight.

I'm still thinking Jordin will beat Blake, at least I hope so, but they tried to add about 4 or 5 years to Jordin when she didn't really need it.  Let her be the perky teenager she is, give us that music she can do, but don't try to fool us because she's still just a teenager, and not in the vein of the dirty girl of Britney or Christina.

On a personal note, I'm really happy "American Idol" is over tomorrow.  The better singers/performers/hot girls are long gone, and we are, and I"m sorry to put it this way, we are left with Jordin and Blake.  Of who is left, well, they both win because the record company already knows what to do with them, conspiracy theories be damned.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:21 PM | Comments (0)

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: "Shrek" Talk, Stu Missed "The Simpsons," and Computer Woes.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" Stu is back in town so there actually is a podcast. Both Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right saw "Shrek the Third," and both have their reservations about the movie. The Dude messed up some computer settings which is messing up his ability to get new stuff posted, while Stu laments that Mama Gotz most likely wears the pants in the family . They talk about upcoming movies, they talk about TV shows, and The Dude spoils his favorite line from "The Sopranos" to Stu, simply, "Get a mop."

Posted by Rightdude at 6:57 PM | Comments (0)

May 17, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Dreamz Blew His Post-"Survivor" World, and An "American Idol" Conspiracy Theory.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is happy that Britney Spears found a higher power that likes her getting naked. Alright, almost naked, but he also analyzes how Dreamz from "Survivor" screwed up his post-"Survivor" life. More importantly, though, The Dude has his own "American Idol" conspiracy theory, noticing the resemblance of Whitney Houston in her "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" days and the marketing of Jordin Sparks, if only Jordin would lose a few more pounds.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:20 PM | Comments (0)

May 15, 2007

The Final Two for American Idol should be Sanjaya and Melinda.

By: The Dude on the Right
So Howard Stern's crack news staff, or at least Steve Langford, is hell bent on finding out the truth if the folks in charge of "American Idol" pretty much send home who they want to, thus meaning all of those votes you cast don't really mean much.  I'm still sticking with my conspiracy theory of Sanjaya getting booted off the week before their big charity show, and I still find it odd that they don't actually tell us who got how many votes.

Conspiracies aside, I'm really happy this season is almost over because I really don't care if any of them win.  I suppose, for shear comic value, we should get on the Blake bandwagon, but according to the Howard 100 News, and Mr. Langford's sources Blake is already set to be sent home this week.  We'll see how the voting pans out, but in any case here's what I thought about tonight's singing.

First the songs the judges picked for the final three...

Jordin (from Simon): Sings "Wishing on a Star."  Horrible outfit - it looks like she's wearing a bra and a slip.  Singing was okay, but it should be by this point.  Ehh.

Blake (from Paula): Sings "Roxanne."  Nice vest.  I actually thought he did a good job with the song, and so glad he didn't screw it up with his beat-boxing crap he has been doing in previous shows.  The problem is he's not Sting.

Melinda (from Randy): Sings "I Believe in You and Me." She's really close to being the entire package except for, and I hate to say this, but only some superficial things.  She still needs to stop showing her upper gums, needs a little dental work to close the front gap in her teeth, and she's done a good job with her weight so far, just needs to drop a couple more pounds.  Her singing kicks ass, now it's only superficiality for me.

Now the songs the producers picked for them...

Jordin: Sings "She Works Hard for the Money." I think I just figured out Jordin's problem - she can't work the audience.  She sings fine enough, but when she tries to "perform" it looks like she is trying too hard and just doesn't connect.

Blake: Sings "This Love." He was doing really well until he went back to the beat-box thing.  Maybe the little girls like it and think it's funny, and I know it tries to help him from just doing a cover version, but I hate it.  Get rid of the beat-boxing crap and he was great, and a better performer than Jordin.

Melinda: Sings "Nutbush City Limits."  She rocked out, did great, and she should win, although she needed to lose the mike stand and just roam the stage with the microphone.

And now the songs the top three picked for themselves...

Jordin: Sings "I (Who Have Nothing)."  She creaked a bit on a couple of notes.  It's a powerful song, and she didn't sell it by staying in the middle of the stage and not working the crowd.

Blake: Sings "When I Get You Alone."  It's too bad the fact that as a performer he is probably the best of the three, and stop it with the beat box.  I didn't like the beginning of the song, I grew into it as the song went on, but since I hate his beat box shtick I lost it at the end.

Melinda: Sings "I'm a Woman." She shows exactly why she should win, even if she isn't the pop-idol mold.

Much like I believed Yau-Man should have been the winner on "Survivor," but thanks to Dreamz who totally didn't think of the big picture of life after "Survivor" and screwed Yau over, for "American Idol" everyone thinks Melinda has this season in her hip pocket.  Since I'm not surprised Sanjaya was booted the week before the charity show I wouldn't be surprised if Jordin or Blake actually win.  I love conspiracies.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:24 PM | Comments (0)

May 10, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Paris and Jail, The Hoff in Trouble, and May is a Sad Month.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right ponders the trouble of many celebrities in these last couple of weeks, namely Paris Hilton, David Hasselhoff, and Alec Baldwin. He is also in mourning since it is May and most of his TV shows will be wrapping up in the next couple of weeks, namely "American Idol," "Survivor," and "The Sopranos," although he can't believe he forgot to talk about Julianne Hough and not being able to find her naked.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:06 PM | Comments (0)

May 8, 2007

Barry Gibb & The Bee Gees on Idol or Julianne Hough on Dancing.

By: The Dude on the Right
Oh my God.  Tonight it's the music of Barry Gibb and The Bee Gees.

I guess the American Idol people want to try to throw another monkey-wrench into the show by picking music only the parents will know and most every kid will have no idea of the songs.  Me, I'll admit I've always liked the Bee Gees, but damn, maybe American Idol needs to quit doing these "music of..." shows and just let the singers pick songs from week to week.  Maybe we don't need the "star" coaching and just need to see some real music coaches, or maybe some weeks where Simon, Paula, and Randy actually "coach" the contestants, especially towards the end of the competition.

Anyway, here's what I thought about tonight's singing.

Melinda (1): Sings "Love You Inside and Out."  Nothing to say about her anymore.  She knows how to bring it every week, and although Simon didn't seem to like it that much, umm, , and pardon my French, but it's the fuckin' Bee Gee's night - What the hell is she supposed to do?  In the words of my buddy Stu Gotz, 'nuff said.

Blake (1): Sings "You Should be Dancin'."  Barry thinks Blake's "beat-boxing" is an ability.  Blake just epitomized why sometimes it was great the Chicago radio dude Steve Dahl held "Disco Demolition" many years ago.  What the hell was that mess?

LeKisha (1): Sings "Stayin' Alive."  Just bad.

Jordin (1): Sings "To Love Somebody." Barry loved her, and I think, depending on her next song, this might have just bounced her back into the competition.  Did nice version of the song and performed it well.

Melinda (2): Sings "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart."  She'd rather be wet than be a loser?  She sings well and performs well, but there isn't much you can do with this song.  She tried to "soul it up," and that added a different dimension to the song, but we already know that about her.

Blake (2): Sings "This is Where I Came In." Good, Blake, sing a song that both the kids and the parents don't know, and screw it up by "beat-boxing" it, and he did.  It sounded like a Boy George throw-back, and not a good one at that.

LeKisha (2): Sings "Run to Me." Barry does give her good advice, to kick it up earlier, and she listens.  She still sings with a slight lisp at times, missed a note or two, and is looking better except for the gap in her teeth which she can't do anything about until after the show ends, but this song was a better choice although not great.

Jordin (2): Sings "I Am A Woman in Love." Barry loved her again, but she needed to "hip" it up just a tad because why do we want to really hear a Barbara Streisand cover on American Idol in 2007?  Even so, her songs this week might keep her alive for another week.

As much as I like The Bee Gees and Barry Gibb, I still question having this be a theme for the week.  All they are doing now is torturing the contestants into trying to find songs they don't know, and don't know how to sing, although I did get a laugh when even Barry Gibb made fun of his singing.

I've got to wrap up this blog about the American Idol singing because, and I hate to say this, I don't really care about the contestants anymore.  I've got to switch TV channels to see who gets booted off  of "Dancing With the Stars."  All I know is it better not be Apolo Anton Ohno dancing with the new love of my life, Julianne Hough.  She's hot.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:28 PM | Comments (0)

May 7, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: Second Life, Spider-Man 3, Yay for a Midas, and Marketing to Kids.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" The Dude on the Right is starting to question the coolness of Stu Gotz with Stu's listening to public radio and watching the BBC. But other things are more important like The Dude trying to get a Second Life, The Dude not getting screwed over when the brakes on the dude-mobile started squeaking, and seeing "Spider-Man 3." Stu, in the meantime, had to fight the Spidey marketing because he isn't so sure his little guy could handle seeing the movie, and Stu also brings up if Kirsten Dunst is hot or not. They also have their normal conversation about TV, this time mostly about "The Sopranos" and "Survivor: Fiji."

Posted by Rightdude at 7:07 PM | Comments (0)

May 1, 2007

Who Knew Bon Jovi Songs Were So Complicated to Sing?

By: The Dude on the Right
Bon Jovi is in the house, Dog!

I've always been a Bon Jovi fan, and as many a time I've attempted to sing his songs, well, my voice can't seem to do the stuff his voice does, and after watching tonight's "American Idol," neither can most of our contestants.  I will give Jon Bon Jovi his credit, trying his best to coach our would-be singers and some of them really took his advice, while some of them, whether they would take his advice or not, still couldn't pull off singing Bon Jovi songs.

Anyway, all of the Idol singers were safe last week because American Idol became lame by not voting anyone off because it was their big "philanthropy" week, so Wednesday boots off two people.  For what it's worth the American Idol folks should just go ahead and kick off five people and leave us with Melinda for the rest of the season.  She seems to be the only one who really seem to know how to work it.

Here's my take on this week's singing...

Phil: Sings "Blaze of Glory." Sang the song okay, but just looks to be "acting" the song too much, with the gritty, pissed-off face and all.  Overly emotional and still has a horrible look with the bald look.

Jordin: Sings "Livin' on a Prayer." Looks like she wanted to pay tribute to Gina with the red streaks in her hair.  Song wise it was okay, but she's not working the stage like a rocker needs to.  Her mom might have had her listening to Bon Jovi, but she sure didn't translate the performance aspect into her act.  She picked the wrong song.

LeKisha: Sings "This Ain't a Love Song." A good song choice for her, but she just seemed to be off the beat for the beginning.  Her outfit was bad, and she didn't sing with nearly the passion Jon Bon Jovi did for the Bon Jovi version until the very end of the song.  It must have sounded a hell of a lot better live because the judges loved it, but for me it, well, it wasn't that good.

Blake: Sings "You Give Love a Bad Name." I know he's trying to be original and all, but what, are we back in the era of bad break dancing?  He couldn't sing the song, his antics blew, and maybe I'm just too old, or too big a Bon Jovi fan, but I did not like this at all.  Randy thought it was hot, but what, for the '80's?

Chris: Sings "Wanted Dead or Alive." Of everyone, Chris seemed, so far, to get the "Bon Jovi" theme.  His singing wasn't the greatest, my only complaint is he didn't work the crowd as much as he probably should have.

Melinda: Sings "Have a Nice Day." Jon told her exactly what to do with the song, and Melinda did it perfectly.  She pretty much wrapped up this competition with being able to take Bon Jovi's rocking into a soul attitude.  She was fantastic.

For me you might as well kick out everyone but Melinda.  It looks like she's lost some weight, she still sings great, and she seems to get the attitude of every genre.  As far as the "American Idol," the show, I am this close to calling it quits for them, especially with their self-righteous "We're now a charity" thing last week, and now trotting out a pre-recorded speech from President Bush and Laura Bush about how great it was they raised so much money to help starving people.

Enough already.  "American Idol," you are a god damn singing competition, making a shitload of money.  Quit with the politics and do-gooding, and just give us a singer we can like.

I'll step off my soap-box now, and say Melinda should be the winner.  And I'll also say that Ryan Seacrest you are no Don Johnson - Shave the "7-day" facial hair.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:21 PM | Comments (0)

April 30, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Lame Movies, A Lame Weekend, and a Blower at a Ballgame.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", The Dude on the Right had a pretty boring weekend while Stu Gotz, and Mama Gotz, witnessed a blower at a ballgame. Stu and The Dude also talk about the lame box office this past weekend with "Spider-Man 3" coming up next week, and they both liked "Idiocracy" that Stu watched thanks to Netflix.

They also talk "Sopranos," "Heroes," and The Dude gives his take on what went wrong with this season's "American Idol."

Posted by Rightdude at 7:42 PM | Comments (0)

April 26, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: "American Idol" Conspiracy Theories, Writing Can Get You Jailed, and Bobby "Boris" Pickett is Dead.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is still trying to further develop his "American Idol" conspiracy theories, especially with the "mysterious" booting of Sanjaya one week before the "Idol Gives Back" broadcast. He's also worried about how creative writing now might get you arrested, and is saddened by the passing of Bobby "Boris" Pickett. Long live Bobby "Boris" Pickett.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:28 PM | Comments (0)

April 24, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Alanis' Humps, Movies to See or Not to See, and T.V. Sweeps are Coming.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", Stu Gotz and The Dude on the Right are finally able to get together after a couple of weeks to actually do a wrap-up. There's some quick talks about Alanis Morissette and her humps, they trade movie notes on what to, and what not to see, and both are looking forward to the return of "Heroes." The Dude is now hooked on "Entourage" and is looking forward to the episode with Artie Lange from Howard Stern's show, and the nice weather also had The Dude reflect back to college and finishing off a Vicodin prescription.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:07 PM | Comments (0)

April 19, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Why Watch "American Idol" or "Dancing With the Stars" Any More?

For this podcast The Dude on the Right laments about his having no desire to watch "American Idol" anymore since Sanjaya has been booted. It also seems the producers of the show have left themselves an "out" to "eliminate" any contestant because of "power dialing." Sadly Howard Stern and the dialidol site may have given the producers their "reason" to toss out some of Sanjaya's votes. He's also sick of "Dancing With the Stars," or at least the "Heather Mills is an amputee story. He's now only watching for Julianne Hough and Edyta Sliwinska.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:58 PM | Comments (0)

April 17, 2007

I'm In Love With Martina McBride, But I'm Voting for Sanjaya!

By: The Dude on the Right
It's country night this week, with Martina McBride being the coach/mentor.  I will assume many of the contestants had no idea who she was, but I've always found her fabulously hot, especially with her gorgeous blue eyes and with the longer hair she was sporting for this week's show.  Martina really seemed to be trying to help the contestants, which probably goes along with her country roots, and for a change, most of them seemed to listen to what she had to say.  As it goes, here's my wrap-up:

Phil: Sings "Where The Blacktop Ends."  All I could think is that if he wore a cowboy hat, or what is even more popular now for country dudes, a baseball cap, I would maybe stop thinking about his bald head.  He performed well enough that this might keep him around for another week.  Country might be his niche.

Jordin: Sings "Broken Wing."  Did a nice version of the song, but crackled here and there.  I hate being superficial with her, but she could still afford to lose a pound or two because her voice kicks butt.  She listened to Martina's advice to just sing the song, and did a good job.

Sanjaya: Sings "Let's Give Them Something to Talk About."  Nice bandana and hair!  He's back to being the Sanjaya we know and love, one that can't sing and is just trying to be quirky.  If he's not in the bottom three we know the Sanjaya movement is in full force!  Vote for Sanjaya!

LeKisha: Sings "Jesus, Take the Wheel."  Yup, it's the Carrie Underwood song.  Finally an outfit that works great for her, and she really seemed to get the Carrie Underwood/country vibe.  Of all of the times I have seen her, this was the most I have ever liked her, except for one thing she can't fix yet, and that's the gap between her front teeth.  Maybe this one sounded better on TV than in the studio because I actually liked her this week.

Chris: Sings "Mayberry."  Throw a baseball cap on this dude and Kenny Chesney might have something to worry about.  Why have the dudes suddenly become country singers?

Melinda: Sings "Trouble is a Woman."  She knows how to "bring it," but her top was iffy on the outfit side.  She brought the sass, she sang fine, and just did a great job.  Paula is dancing, so maybe that's a good sign for Melinda.  Simon even liked it, and gave some other great advice about stopping being so humble.

Blake: Sings "When the Stars Go Blue."  Other than the sweater, and his seeming to miss the falsetto moments, and missing other notes, we found out he couldn't "sing" the song okay, but "performed" it nicely.  From the judges comments I guess it sounded a hell of a lot better live because I thought he sounded lousy.

And in wrapping up this week's synopsis I don't think Simon, Paula, nor Randy understand this era of country, nor did they ever really like most any country movement.  The country week for this group makes the voting a total toss-up.  Phil sang well but needed a hat; Jordin has a lot of potential - just don't go bulimic; Sanjaya, is, well, Sanjaya; I thought LeKisha was great but needs better teeth; Chris just needed a baseball cap; Melinda, well, she did the best; and Blake was a performer, not a singer tonight.

Since Gina is gone I only have one person to vote for now, and you probably know who that is.  Since I can't vote for Martina McBride, I'm voting for Sanjaya!!!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:20 PM | Comments (1)

April 16, 2007

Stu is Stranded, so Here's a Blog About "Head Case" and "The Bronx Bunny Show."

By: The Dude on the Right
Normally on Mondays it’s our latest podcast of “Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up!”, but Stu Gotz is stranded on the east coast and now knows the furry of what a nor’easter is. So I figured that rather than do a solo podcast recapping my weekend, nor do any guessing or blaming or analyzing about today’s huge news story, namely the shootings at Virginia Tech (why do they hold press conferences when they don’t have any answers yet), I thought I would do a blog about a couple of new shows coming to the Starz cable network.

A little while ago the mailman left this giant piece of cardboard (he obviously couldn’t figure out how to deliver this thing as it was folded haphazardly to maybe fit in his mailbag.) This piece of cardboard held the screener for “The Bronx Bunny Show.” Not having gotten any screeners from the Starz people before I was intrigued, and really hoped the show would be entertaining so I could give a glowing review and maybe be sent more screeners from them. I watched the screener. All I know is thank goodness there seemed to be a mailing screw-up because about a week later I was resent the screener for “The Bronx Bunny Show,” (the both of them made nice “Elton John” style spectacles), but on the better side, this later mailing also included “Head Case,” which actually made me laugh.

Both shows premiere on Starz on Wednesday, April 18th, as part of “The Starz Comedy Hour.” “Head Case” seems to lead the hour at 11PM (EDT), followed by “Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-up” (which I didn’t get a screener for), followed by “The Bronx Bunny Show” around 11:45. So I suppose I first just blast the Bunny show, before I get to the potential of “Head Case.”

“The Bronx Bunny Show” has two puppet characters, Bronx Bunny (a brown bunny), and Teddy T. (a panda). They “move” from the Bronx to LA to stage an “interview” show where they ask questions to celebrities that “Leno, Letterman, and certainly not Oprah” would ask. So yes, the language is adult, and the questions are meant to be provocative, and Teddy T. is supposed to be the “rude” one. For the screener I watched the guests were Howie Mandel (the “Deal or No Deal” dude) and Stacy Kiebler (from wrestling and “Dancing With the Stars.”) Now I don’t know if this is “scripted” or not, but Stacy didn’t seem to get it, and pretty much was asked questions about getting naked, which, well, a popular satellite radio personality has already perfected. Howie Mandel at least seemed to get the concept of the show, and played along, complete with being “disgusted” at Teddy T. taking a dump during the interview, especially with Mr. Mandel being germ-a-phobic, and having a great joke about him playing “Deal or No Deal” with his wife. But again, the puppet’s interviewing wasn’t anything new for me, and I kept fixating that whomever was doing the puppeting of Bronx Bunny seemed to be doing a crappy job with the “mouth-moving” part of the puppeting. I hate to say it, but “The Bronx Bunny Show” just wasn’t funny for me, that the questions are actually asked by someone else who does it better, and thank goodness the screener was only about 20 minutes long.

Then, with the new mailing, I popped in the screener for “Head Case” and saw a show that seems to have potential.

The concept of “Head Case” is pretty simple: Dr. Elizabeth Goode (Alexandra Wentworth) is a therapist to the stars, but she is sometimes as scatterbrained as the celebrities she is trying to help. She has an office assistant who likes to blab about who is coming in, and she shares her office space with Dr. Myron Finkelstein (Steve Landesberg), who’s practice is failing so he keeps trying to cherry-pick her clients.

With that we are introduced to “fake” therapy sessions with real celebrities. My screeners included Jason Priestley, Rich Eisen, and Shelby Lynn among others. The best part was that the celebrities worked with it, especially Jason Priestley who let “Dr. Goode” therapy him into dressing in women’s clothes and wearing make-up, while Dr. Finkelstein was more Andy Dick’s kind of therapist since he could prescribe drugs.

Of the two shows I think “Head Case” might just end up on my TiVo to see where it goes because it was quirky and made me laugh. I guess the 10-week run of the series is already set, but my hope for “Head Case” is that they just don’t try to ram a new celebrity or two down our throat every week, and that we start to develop what happens in their subsequent sessions (i.e. Does Jason Priestley show up next time dressed in drag now that he is comfortable in it?)

And so this blog hasn’t really been a blog, but more a review of two TV shows on cable, for adults. Sadly I really didn’t like “The Bronx Bunny Show,” but “Head Case” has a lot of potential in the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” tone, and keeps it tight enough at only 15 minutes long so you might not get bored saying “Alright, I get it already. She’s a kooky therapist.” Then you watch it the next week, when, if it would get to the 16 minute mark, you would be saying again “Alright, I get it already. She’s a kooky therapist.”

Sorry about the review-length blog, but I don't really have a spot for reviews of TV shows (maybe I need to set up a new area on the site since TV is part of my life, but I'm sorry, I digress), but Podcast-wise I’ll be back on Thursday with some “American Idol” recaps, among other things, and next week Stu and I should be back together to get a "weekend/last couple of weeks" wrap-up done.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:47 PM | Comments (0)

April 13, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: The Don Imus School of What Not to Do, "The Sopranos," and Sanjaya is Still Safe!

The Dude on the Right returns for this podcast thinking Don Imus might actually be remembered in the annals of radio teaching of what not to do when you put your foot in your mouth, rather than for his radio career. He also wasn't that pleased with the return of "The Sopranos," and although sad to see Haley on "American Idol" go, The Dude is happy Sanjaya is still around, mostly, according to him, because of his campaigning, and not that of Howard Stern nor the Vote for the Worst folks. The Dude on the Right is also sometimes delusional.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:35 PM | Comments (0)

April 11, 2007

Why Is It Sanjaya Seemed to Get It?

By: The Dude on the Right
At least Jennifer Lopez seems to be giving some of the singers some real advice this week, although it appears none of the contestants, except maybe Sanjaya, actually took it. Maybe the other “coaches” in previous weeks gave just as much advice, but with one more contestant gone it gave J Lo more screen time. Here’s my rundown of the contestants…

Melinda: Sings “Sway.” Since we all know she can sing, unless she forgets words or falls on her face, it’s about looks. The giant smile with the upper gum is still a bad look, the hair makes her look old, not 20 years old – 50 years old. Keep it hip girl.

LeKisha: Sings “Conga.” Most camera shots were far away, or highlighting the band, because, and since we know she can sing, she looked stuffed into that dress. Like Melinda she sounded fine, but superficiality will be her downfall right now.

Chris: Sings “Smooth,” the Rob Thomas/Santana version. He’s still singing too low for the song most people recognize, and I’ve met Rob Thomas, even though it was a bunch of years ago – and Chris is no Rob Thomas. Maybe Paula really needs to see Rob Thomas to sing it to her because she seemed to like Chris.

Haley: Sings “Turn the Beat Around.” Nice shorts but needs less up top. She sings okay but needed to practice some Shakira “moves” to maybe get her to the next round, especially for this song. Simon knows the score, and if she would only embrace it she could actually win. She’s practicing the wrong things, like singing.

Phil: Sings “Maria.” He’s got a hat back on, but all of us already are stuck with his bald head in our heads. He’s trying to be a Latin singer, but he doesn’t have the machismo to pull it off, and his voice is cracking in a lot of places. Please let him go ahead of Haley.

Jordin: Sings “The Rhythm Is Gonna Get You.” Why is it that none of these folks seem to understand Latin music? It’s singing combined with body movement and emotion. Jordin still looks a little chubbier than I remember, even though her singing is good. She’s just not working it with her body.

Blake: Sings “I Need to Know.” Nice hat. He epitomizes the white guy dance. The song exudes sex, and he, well, doesn’t. Maybe it was better live, but on TV he sucked for me.

Sanjaya: Sings a Spanish song that I don’t know that the title is. Oh my God, I hate to say this, but of all of the singers he understood the “Latin” theme and nailed it.

Performance-wise, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Sanjaya actually got the theme of the night, while most of the others sucked. Sure, they can sing, but we are starting to see most of them don’t know how to perform. In a shocker I can see LeKisha getting the boot, but is should probably be Haley or Phil who get the boot. I’m hoping Phil gets booted, and that Haley wears a little less next week!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:35 AM | Comments (0)

April 5, 2007

Gina's Going Home on American Idol Might Have Been My Fault

By: The Dude on the Right
Normally I would do a podcast on Thursday, complete with my analysis of who got voted off "American Idol," but I'm frantically working on the animation for our next episode of "Stu & The Dude Reviewin' the Movies for You!" so I didn't have time to put together the audio clips I wanted to for the podcast.  I know, my dedication is lacking at times, but I did want to give some quick thoughts about Gina getting the boot on "Idol."

For starters, I'm blaming myself for Gina getting the boot.  If you have been reading any of my blogs or listening to my podcasts you know that I am firmly vested in the "Vote for Sanjaya" movement, and on Tuesday I got so psyched in my voting for Sanjaya Malakar and thinking Gina was probably safe that I didn't vote for Gina.  So Gina, I apologize, and if, among those 30 million votes they said were supposedly cast last Tuesday night, and you got voted off because of about five votes, it is my fault.  The underlying problem with "American Idol" and their voting is they never actually tell us the vote tally, nor never reassure us that the accounting firm of, at least, "Dewey, Cheatum, and Howe" has certified the votes.

Now even though I was sad to see Gina Glocksen go home, at least she made it to the top ten so she can be on the tour, and I doubt she would have made it to the finals, but what do I know.  But the bummer part of her getting voted off is that she didn't make to Bon Jovi week, because as the resident rocker chick, I'm guessing that would have been the week for her truly shine.  Nope, she got sidelined by a week of "standards," where I would have advised her two things.  One would have been to lose the tongue piercing for the week.  As a dude, as she was singing, I didn't hear her singing because all I kept seeing was her tongue piercing and thinking, well, umm, thinking, umm, things.  My guess is the "conservative" voting block thought it was gross, unlike me where I was thinking, umm, things.  My other advice for her would have been to stick with her rocker chick attitude.  Sure, start "Smile" off as a standard, but then in the middle kick things into a gear where you could actually perform the song rather than be stuck behind the microphone.

Me, I'm not hired as an advisor for any of these folks on American Idol, but here are a couple of other things I would advise for our remaining contestants:

Haley: Re-watch season one of Idol and follow the Kelly Clarkson path.  You have an edge on her in that you totally have the looks, legs, and assets right now, without losing any weight.  Pay a little bit more attention to your singing and performing, but keep the outfits kind of skimpy.

Jordin: Watch your outfits so that they don't make you look fat.  You already have the voice.

LeKisha: You have the voice but you perform like a linebacker.  Perform like Aretha.

Melinda: It looks like you have been losing weight, and if so, keep it up.  If not, keep picking the outfits like you did this week.  Also, watch your smile and keep it tight.  Never let your upper lip go above your teeth showing your gums.

All of the Dudes: Phil, always wear something to cover your bald head.  Chris & Blake, you two aren't dudettes, so I'd rather see you both gone.  Sanjaya, keep being the Sanjaya you have found, and pray people like me don't lose interest in the "Vote for Sanjaya" movement.

It's back to animating for me, and seeing if I can maintain my loyalty to the Sanjaya movement, when I probably, as a dude, should be shifting it to the "Haley's Comet" fan club.

Vote for Sanjaya, and Haley.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:57 PM | Comments (0)

April 3, 2007

Sanjaya is Still the Best, but Melinda has Turned up the Heat.

By: The Dude on the Right
Though not nearly as cute as Gwen last week, Tony Bennett was the helper coach for this week's "American Idol."  Maybe it's because the show is trimmed down to an hour, but the clips didn't show Tony helping the kids that much, just giving his opinion (always nice) about the contestants.  But as I'm a half-hour in for this  re-cap, and trying to hit the redial as much as possible between sentences, my votes for Sanjaya seem to be blocked by busy circuits.  And other than Gina's performance, I couldn't be more happy.

In any case, here are my reviews of tonight's "American Idol" performances.

Blake: Sings "Mack the Knife." I actually think he did a fantastic job this week, up until the ending, and I usually don’t like him. He kept it mostly how the song should be sung.

Phil: Sings "Night and Day." That bald head just does not work (he should have worn a nice top hat or derby). His singing was okay, but I don’t think this was a good week for him. I found him boring. Paula said he reminded her of a young Frank Sinatra, and Simon said it best simply blurting out "What?"

Melinda: Sings "I’ve Got Rhythm." Keeping with my superficial-ness, it almost looks like she is trying to lose some weight, or at least is just picking better clothes. Of all of her performances this one puts her totally, especially if she is losing some weight, back on the right track. She just needs to quit smiling so big - popping out the upper gum.

Chris: Sings "Don’t Get Around Much Anymore." He didn’t seem to understand the crooner thing, and I thought he was bad, even with the nice lid. Maybe it was better live than on TV because the judges liked it, but I thought he sucked.

Jordin: Sings "On a Clear Day." Horrible outfit, and she almost seems to be putting on weight, or horrible outfits. Her singing was okay but for the most part I found her boring, which bums me out because I really liked her at the beginning of the competition. Probably better live for the audience.

Gina: Sings "Smile." I thought she sounded great, but really lacked on the performance side of it, although I’m hot sure how you "perform" that song. If she wanted to blast this out of the water she would have kept it calm for the first half of the song, then turned it into a rocker for the second half. Too bad.

Sanjaya: Sings "I’m in Heaven." He still can’t sing on stage, but he has figured out that all he needs to do is "work the crowd." The hair was more conservative this week. All he needs to do is worry about his hair and outfits.

Haley: Sings "Ain’t Misbehavin’." She has learned to flaunt her assets, sings okay (crooner songs are definitely not her forte), but I don’t care because according to my TV she is saving all of her love for me.

LeKisha: Sings "Stormy Weather." I’m sorry, but as nice as she sings all I can think is that if I gave her a bad review she would beat the crap out of me. Great voice, but somehow she needs to find the right people to make her flip into being glamorous in an Aretha Franklin kind of way.

This will be an interesting week to see who gets voted off because of many outside sources, and the fact that the youngins probably have no clue who Tony Bennett is.  I'm still voting for Sanjaya, Haley, and Gina, because at least for Haley and Gina, they have the looks to become an American Idol, although Melinda seems to be closing in fast.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:30 PM | Comments (0)

March 30, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Sanjaya is Safe Again, and Maybe Paula Abdul was Watching "Bruce Almighty." It's Good.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is mostly focused on all things "American Idol." Sanjaya is safe again, and The Dude is starting to think he might be more influential than Howard Stern. He's still happy Gina is safe, is thinking of starting a Haley fan-club, and wonders if Paula Abdul might have been watching "Bruce Almighty" before the show.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:12 PM | Comments (0)

March 27, 2007

Dammit, I'm Still Voting for Sanjaya (and Haley and Gina)! And Dammit 2, Gwen Stefani is Still Hot.

By: The Dude on the Right
Gwen Stefani looked utterly adorable in her little clips, but I have to say she didn’t come off that great as a vocal coach. Vocals aside, what she really needed to do was coach some of these folks on stage performance, because, sadly, some of them seemed to really be lacking this week.

In any case, this episode was the "music of No Doubt or music that inspired No Doubt" week. What we have learned is that Donna Summer and The Police seemed to have the most influence on the band, and that Sanjaya loves to change his hair so we should vote for him.

Here’s what I thought of this week’s performances…

Lekisha: Sang Donna Summer’s "Last Dance." Ugly-ass dress, still sings great and performs well. I hate being superficial, but she needs to fix those teeth.

Chris (big hair): Sang The Police’s "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic." Sounds bad, and is trying to up the performance aspect, but man, it just doesn’t seem to be working, and he’s still off on the tempo side.

Gina: Sang The Pretenders’ "I’ll Stand By You." Sticking with the punkish outfit works for her, sounded fantastic, but the only problem I had was she didn’t work any of the stage.

Sanjaya: Sang No Doubt’s "Bathwater." I looked up at the screen as he started and yelled "Oh my God!" Why? Because his hair was set up in sort-of Mohawk mode. He wasn’t good, and I’ll bet the 10 to 12 year olds will still love him. He had moments of being able to sing, but for the most part he was bad, and I’m still voting for him. Simon said it best with "I don’t think it matters anymore what we say." Simon recognizes the magnitude of the Sanjaya movement.

Haley: Sang Cyndi Lauper’s "True Colors." She has the entire pop-idol package, from the looks to the good-enough voice. It will be interesting if she can just stick around because they can mold her into the next Kelly Clarkson, but this performance was just okay.

Phil: Sang The Police’s "Every Breath You Take." Bad skull-cap, but I think they are using it to cover his bald head that I think looks worse. I thought the performance was blah compared to what the judges said.

Melinda: Sang Donna Summer’s "Heaven Knows." Still a great voice, knows how to perform, but back in my superficial mood, could afford to lose a few pounds (don’t get all anorexic on me now, please), but those couple of pounds puts her into "Whitney Houston in her prime" mode.

Blake: Sang The Cure’s "Love Song." Took a great song and "bored" it up. The passion of Robert Smith seemed to be totally lost. I really didn’t like him.

Jordin: Sang No Doubt’s "Hey Baby." I was in the Jordin camp, after Sanjaya of course, but she didn’t pull this one off at all. Maybe it was better live for the audience, but for me on my TV it missed the sexiness of Gwen.

Chris (less hair): Sang No Doubt’s "Don’t Speak." Looked stiff as a board at the beginning, still looked stiff as a board in the middle, and even getting away from the mike stand, still looked stiff. Sounded okay, but the performance blew.

I now have only three reasons to watch "American Idol." One is Haley, who might not be the strongest singer but has the entire "Idol" package. Two is Gina because she has a good voice and is from my neck of the woods. And of course three is Sanjaya, because if he won he would be the best Non-American Idol idol ever.

I’ve been voting for Sanjaya early, and often. I only wish I had some dead relatives who could also vote. At least Howard Stern has his listeners, I can’t even convince Mama Gotz to vote for Sanjaya, but hopefully Stu Gotz was able to sneak in a couple of votes.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:23 PM | Comments (1)

March 21, 2007

Sanjaya is Safe, for Another Week.

By: The Dude on the Right
Damn, the controversy just keeps growing.  I won't say who got voted off tonight, only to say that Sanjaya Malakar is safe for another week.  Eric the Midget must be pissed because I believe that means Sanjaya will be part of the "American Idol" Tour, and even though "The Stern Effect" is purported to be over for satellite radio, it is now repurported by various news outlets that the Howard Stern effect might now be part of the reason for Sanjaya sticking around?

Now it comes down to things like these: 

- Are the folks at "American Idol" worried about the ratings since they seem to have the weakest group of singers ever, and this Sanjaya controversy keeps folks tuning in?

- Does Howard Stern fans vote, in such numbers, to make a difference who stays and who goes?

- I'll be honest, there aren't too many hotties on "American Idol" this season.  Are we now just voting for Haley, who sang something, I think, but it didn't matter because she looked hot in her tight shorts and it didn't look like she was wearing a bra.  Or are we voting for Sanjaya, just to keep getting crowd shots of his sister, "Team Sanjaya," who also, I guess, worked at Hooters, and if Sanjaya wins, will Simon quit the show?

Suddenly "American Idol" is getting more free publicity than it might have hoped for, and it's only because of Sanjaya, who is still around for another week.

And next week Sanjaya might still suck, but I'll still vote for him.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:14 PM | Comments (0)

March 20, 2007

Did You Vote for Sanjaya on "American Idol?"

By: The Dude on the Right
We're still voting for Sanjaya, right?  It doesn't matter that I think he butchered "You Really Got Me," even though Paula and Randy seemed to think the Sanjaya-man was coming into his own.

Anyway, it was a night of the '60s invasion, and most of the singers had no clue what they were singing, but I have to say that their "coaches" probably did the best I have seen at making the singers understand their songs.

I've already gotten through four times voting for Sanjaya (I hope I have the right number), so I hope that isn't a bad sign, but in any case, here's my thoughts on the singing tonight.

Haley: Sang "Tell Him."  She broke out of her shell, great outfit showing her assets, but smiles too much. Simon: "You naughty little thing." And I agree, who cares about her singing.

Chris: (with almost no hair): Sang "Don’t Let the Sun Get you Cryin’" Thought he sounded good, but seems to lose it in on the "personality" side.

Stephanie: Sang "You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me." Good song, just off a bit. Something is missing in terms of performance.

Blake:  Sang "Time of the Season," complete with Paula dancing. I think Randy is screwed in the head, and so was Paula, because they both liked him.  I thought he was okay, in a "Dancing Robot" kind of way, but how do you turn that into a concert act?

LeKisha: Sang "Diamonds are Forever." It was a horrible dress, but she still has a great voice. She doesn’t have the stage presence as the singer, and I can’t believe our Fox affiliate is having problems with their feed right now.

Phil: (The Bald Dude): Sang "Tobacco Road."  Still the best so far out of the dudes, but man, he can’t pull off the bald look. Maybe he just tried too hard for Simon.

Jordin: Sang "I Who Have Nothing."  Unless Melinda blows everyone out of the water, Jordin is turning into the person to beat. She has the voice, and the looks, and the attitude, to put herself into Kelly Clarkson mode.

Sanjaya: Sang "You Really Got Me." What the hell was with the crying girl in the audience? Simon has a look on his face like "Oh my ‘f’-ing God. What the hell was that?" Paula and Randy seemed to like him because he ran around the stage, but he sounded like crap on my TV.  VOTE FOR SANJAYA!

Gina: Sang "Paint it Black."  Lose about 15 pounds and she could turn into the Pat Benatar of 2007. She’s not a pop-idol and needs to follow the Chris Daughtry road, getting out of the "American Idol" mold. Simon misses her potential this week, I think, but in the end she's not for this show.

Chris (with bushy hair): Sang "She’s Not There."  A good voice but is just missing the stage presence to put him into the next league. He’s trying, but it’s not natural.

Melinda: Sang "As Long as He Needs Me."  She has the killer voice, and great stage presence, but, isn’t an "American Idol" personality.  Doesn't matter, she will be a force to be reckoned with in the R&B movement.

I've gotten through a couple of more time in my voting for Sanjaya while I was typing this blog, so we'll see what happens in keeping him along.  In any case "American Idol" has gotten boring this year, at least for the singing.  Right now, thanks for Sanjaya.  We'll see if he is safe in the results show tomorrow.

In any case, always keep voting for your "American Idol." It's kind of like living in Chicago where you vote early, and you vote often.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:38 PM | Comments (0)

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!: Vote for Sanjaya, Movie Talk, Chris Rock, Building Shelves, and More!

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up" The Dude on the Right reminds Stu Gotz about voting for Sanjaya on "American Idol." Stu saw "Premonition" and fills in The Dude while The Dude saw "I Think I Love My Wife" and fills in Stu. There's also NCAA basketball talk, and Stu got in trouble for making shelves.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:26 AM | Comments (0)

March 15, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Sanjaya is Still Alive on "American Idol," Paula Abdul Quotes, and the SIU Salukis in the Final Four.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right tries to explain how the Southern Illinois Salukis will get to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. He is also on the "Keep Sanjaya Alive" movement for "American Idol" and has his favorite Paula Abdul moments. He also ponders getting another degree, but wonders if it might be legitimate.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:25 PM | Comments (0)

March 14, 2007

Who Gets Booted from "American Idol?" Hopefully not Sanjaya.

By: The Dude on the Right
So the final twelve got their truly first taste of "Holy shit, I might win American Idol?!?", and it's not looking good for any of the dudes, but it looks like Simon has figured out who would be the money-maker if only she would sing better.  Here's my take on last night's singing, on Diana Ross night...

Brandon: Not a good start for the dudes. He seemed rushed, or the band seemed to playing the song too fast for him. Then he blew it when he couldn’t recover after his pelvic thrusting.

Melinda: She was great, but she needs to drop a few pounds to get into a different league.

Chris (with hair): Ruined a beautiful song by trying to do a new arrangement.

Gina: I think she did a decent version and is in a weird league on the show being the "rocker-chick."

Sanjaya: He was fantastic in his Sanjaya way and so deserves to stay, just so we can see Simon pull his hair out.

Haley: Boring but nice legs. I think Simon is secretly rooting for her to pull it together because of most of the contestants she has the look to pull off the pop-idol career.

Phil: So far he was the best of the dudes, but still nothing special, and doesn't have a pop-idol look.

Lekisha: Great voice, in that Motown style of way.

Blake: Why do these dudes think they need to "update" these songs, and then suck at it?

Stephanie: She just seemed okay, nothing special.

Chris (with less hair): He was just bad.

Jordin: She sounded and looked great.  She's the closest to having the entire idol package.

Looks like the competition is between Melinda, Lekisha, and Jordin, with Gina tossed in as a wild card if only because she is the exact opposite of that trio.  None of the dudes are close to the girls at this point, but I'm still throwing my hat in Sanjaya's corner, just for the shear humor of it.

Who gets booted?  We'll find out tonight, but from one web site it's looking good for Sanjaya sticking around for awhile.  Hooray! 

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:06 PM | Comments (0)

March 13, 2007

I Might Just be Voting for Sanjaya on "American Idol."

By: The Dude on the Right
After watching "American Idol" last week I have a prediction that next season there might be some changing in how the top twelve finalists are picked, namely that from the "top 24" to the "top twelve" the judges will have a vote for who gets booted, kind of like how the voting is handled for "Dancing With the Stars," where the judge's scores are averaged with the phone-in vote.  From the looks on Randy, Paula, and Simon's faces, they did not seemed pleased with everyone who made it to the top twelve.

And since I'm not that pleased with everyone who made it to the top twelve either, and after listening to Howard Stern this morning, I am really close to jumping on the "Vote for the Worst" bandwagon and pledge my allegiance to Sanjaya.  As I write this I am even closer to trying to keep Sanjaya around, especially after witnessing Brandon's opening number for tonight's show, where he forgot the words to the song after his "Elvis Pelvic-Thrust Maneuver."  I suppose I'll see how Gina does, since she's from my neck of the woods, but for now, as Howard put it, I would love to see Simon pulling out his hair as Sanjaya gets closer to being our next "American Idol."

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:38 PM | Comments (0)

March 12, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: Bet on Heather's Leg, Happy Birthday Stu, A Trip to Ohio, and "300."

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up" The Dude on the Right went home to Ohio, and his city wasn't gone. Instead he tells Stu Gotz of things like bad radio, restaurant reviews, math, and "Dancing Queen." The Dude also saw "300" and lets Stu know if he can expect nudity, sex, and violence in the film. Stu, on the other hand, celebrated a birthday but is in a bad mood because he didn't get the present he was expecting.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:11 PM | Comments (0)

March 6, 2007

Tyra Banks says "So What!", I Say "Just Come, and Celebrate."

By: The Dude on the Right
I've got two topics I want to blog about this evening.  One was brought about by listening to Howard Stern the last couple of days when he was commenting about Tyra Banks' new "So What!" campaign where you can, as I'm typing this (nice typo Tyra people), "Upload You 'So What!' Video".  The other is a quick comment about the Olympics.  Sure, maybe as a blogger I should separate them into two different blogs, but read about what you want.

So let's get to the Tyra Banks' "So What!" campaign.  It seems Tyra is trying to empower women (and maybe dudes) to be happy and be one with some self-esteem issues by simply saying "So what!"  On its surface it seems like a nice campaign, but what bothers me is that, for the most part, it pretty much only deals with weight issues.  She had women on her show, wearing one-piece bathing suits, with their weight plastered on them, I guess as a testament to their being proud of their bodies (if they were that proud, shouldn't they have been in two-piece suits?  I'm sorry, I digress.).  Her website spotlights three women from the show, one who "So what"-ed that her thighs rubbed together when she walked, another who "So what"-ed she couldn't lose the last 15 pounds, and another who "So what"-ed that her thighs jiggled when she walked.

My problem is that weight should never be a "So what!" issue, and as someone who continues to struggle with his weight, I've joked, thanks to Homer Simpson, "I've been an obese man trapped inside a fat man's body" many a time, but never, as self-esteemish as it is, did I ever dream of shouting "So what!" about my weight.  From the way I see it "So what!" things should be left for things like "Sometimes I like to pee in the shower," or maybe "Every now and then I don't shave my legs for a week," or maybe "Yes, I'm almost 40 and I like 'Smallville,'" or maybe "I like to smell my own farts," or maybe "Some days I like to wear sweats and not do my hair," or maybe "I still watch 'Survivor,'" or maybe "I'm a women and have no problem going to 'Hooters.'"   And I could go on and on.

But do you recognize something about all of the above "So whats!"?  None of them are really health issues.  Having a "So what" attitude about your weight is a health issue, and a life issue, and if I were Tyra my campaign might be "It's My Struggle, not Yours" and not "So What!"  Here's what "So what!" about your weight might lead to:  Diabetes, heart issues, cholesterol issues, high blood pressure, higher insurance costs, depression, and just dying before you want to.

I know there are two things I need to do to get myself back to being a healthy person, but for reasons not for here, not right now, I am not progressing at those two things like I would want to.  But even as I don't do those two things have I ever had the attitude Tyra Banks seems to want me to have about my weight, namely "So what!", because at that point I might as well come back to another quote I used to joke about, "I'm one with my fat self," and then maybe wonder when being my fat self would make me have to take at least a half-dozen pills just to stay alive.

For me I'm thinking I might have to focus a little more on the two things I need to do to keep me alive a little longer in this world rather than listen to the advice of "So what!"  Sadly, for other people, they will say "So what!" for a while, and then wonder why, when they are older, they have to pop a lot of pills and say "Why me?"

Enough Tyra Banks.

Oh yea, there's that Olympic thing.  This blog has gone on a little longer than planned so I'll just say this.  The United States Olympic Evaluation Commission is visiting Chicago this week to see if Chicago would be a better place to host the 2016 Olympics as opposed to Los Angeles.  Chicago is a better place.  Los Angeles already has stuff built.  We get to build new stuff.  Isn't that what the Olympics are about - New Champions, and new stuff!

"If Chicago builds it, they will come.  The World will.  Come.  And Celebrate."

And if the Chicago Olympic folks want to pay me for that slogan, I'm up for negotiations, that's the Chicago way

"So What!" is a crappy campaign, from Tyra Banks, but for the USOC, hey, just come, and celebrate.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:12 PM | Comments (1)

March 5, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "dirt," Movie Talk, and A Sweet 16 Party vs Vegas.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", The Dude on the Right gets to tell Stu Gotz about his "exciting" weekend, seeing "Black Snake Moan" and "Wild Hogs," while Stu tells The Dude about what happened while he was in Las Vegas, and that if The Dude had spent his travel money going to Vegas instead of his niece's birthday party, well, The Dude could have also been a part of it. The Dude on the Right now has to keep reciting "Family comes first" instead of "I could have seen boobs."

Posted by Rightdude at 7:39 PM | Comments (0)

March 2, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Anna Nicole Smith is Still Dead, American Idol is Not, and Fatherly Wisdom.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right introduces his latest news correspondent, Walter Dudeonright, to give the Anna Nicole Smith update. He also talks about the "American Idol" results where he was sad Leslie Hunt got voted off, wonders about Antonella Barba, and wonders if Ryan Seacrest wondered if Kellie Pickler spent some of her money on new boobs. The Dude also comments on some great "Dad Wisdom" thanks to one of his favorite commercials.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:56 PM | Comments (0)

February 26, 2007

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: Academy Award Talk, "Reno 911!: Miami," and a Children's Museum.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!", The Dude on the Right gives his Oscar/Academy Award show wrap-up, since he was stupid enough to watch the entire show, while Stu Gotz was smart, and didn't. The Dude also saw "Reno 911!: Miami," while Stu went to an aquarium and a Children's Museum.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:57 PM | Comments (0)

February 25, 2007

The Academy Awards are Boring Me Right Now.

By: The Dude on the Right
Well I survived our ice storm, and now I'm just trying to survive The Academy Awards.  I have to admit that I have been in the midst of finishing up animating our next episode of "Stu & The Dude Reviewin' the Movies for You," our review of "Ghost Rider," and at this stage all I have left to do is let the computer do its work and render all of my work into something I can post for all of you to see, which hopefully will get finished tomorrow night.  But in that midst, The Academy Awards have been on, and I have to say other than the slightly entertaining musical number about comedians not winning anything, it's been a bore-fest.  The un-surprise has been that Eddie Murphy didn't win for best supporting actor, which most people will blame his latest work in "Norbit" as the cause, or worse, that the Academy is racist.

The odd part for me is that this is probably the first year that I haven't seen any of the films nominated for Best Picture.  I know, I suppose I'm a lousy reviewer for admitting this, especially when, yesterday, my local gigaplex was having "Academy Award" picture day, where for a mere $30 you could sit from 11AM until it finished and watch all five of the films back-to-back.  Rather than catch up on my films for Oscar day, I opted to see "Reno 911!: Miami," which I can honestly say, even though I gave it 4 stars out of 5, has absolutely no chance of being nominated for anything for next year's award show.

Well, I suppose I'll wrap-up this blog now, let my computer do its rendering magic, and see if I can stay awake for the rest of The Academy Awards, and see if Jennifer Hudson loses the best supporting actress award, since it has already been bizarre that "Happy Feet" beat "Cars."

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:19 PM | Comments (0)

February 22, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Kissing Jennifer Aniston, Dancing With One Leg, and Go Gina and Leslie!

For this podcast The Dude on the Right kissed Jennifer Aniston*. He also talks about Britney Spears a little, and Anna Nicole Smith not at all. The Dude also knows why you will be watching the next season of "Dancing With the Stars," and "American Idol" is in full force. He's cheering on Gina and Leslie.

*In his dream.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:44 PM | Comments (0)

February 12, 2007

What's New?: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up: The Bag-Lady, "Norbit," Scuba Diving, and TV Talk.

For this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up" Stu Gotz revels in stories of pirates and diving. The Dude on the Right, on the other hand, met up with The Bag-Lady, skipped tennis for "Norbit," and watched too much T.V.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:02 PM | Comments (0)

February 8, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: R.I.P. Anna Nicole Smith, and on "Survivor," Go Alex, Dre, and James!

For this podcast The Dude on the Right talks about the death of Anna Nicole Smith and words said by Rosie O'Donnell. And as much as he likes Jessica at the start of this season's "Survivor," he now has to cheer on three dudes, Alex, Dre, and James.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:27 PM | Comments (0)

February 5, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Go Bears? Prince was Great, has a Big Guitar, and The Dude Roots for Jessica from Survivor.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is sad the Chicago Bears lost in the Super Bowl, but looks forward to being confused for both baseball and basketball. He also wonders why there hasn't been an uproar about Prince's guitar during his halftime show, and looks forward to the new season of Survivor with his new girlfriend, Jessica.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:14 PM | Comments (0)

February 1, 2007

What's New? A Podcast of: Abdulism's of the Week Are Coming Soon, Go Bears, and Baby, It's Cold Outside.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is eagerly anticipating the "American Idol" contestants actually getting to Hollywood, and really wishes the Super Bowl with the Chicago Bears and Indianapolis Colts was over already so the over-coverage of the event, at least in Chicago, would end. He also wishes the Super Bowl would be played in Chicago over the weekend, rather than in Miami, because the weather forecast for Chicago on the day of the Super Bowl puts the phrase "Frozen Tundra" in a whole new league.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:50 PM | Comments (0)

January 20, 2007

What Tie Should I Wear, and I Pray My Niece Doesn't Wear Cher's Dress.

By: The Dude on the Right
The last couple of days have brewed a cornucopia of blog ideas, ranging from smoke alarm batteries, to a dream where I was eating human stew, to another dream that included a fight resulting in two dudes falling from the top of the Hancock building in Chicago, to yet another dream of my neglecting someone else’s baby. But nothing is occupying my mind right now more than what tie I should wear to the Sweet Sixteen party of my favorite niece (and her friend), and now, after watching “My Super Sweet 16” on MTV, how the hell can my niece and her friend’s party ever top that of Cher (and no, not that Cher), especially since I don’t think my niece is going to get a new Jaguar as a present.

On to my first dilemma – what tie to wear? In the photo included with this blog I’ve narrowed it down to seven ties. From left to right, I start with the colorful and swirly tie, which might have worked back in the early nineties, but damn, for whatever reason, boring stripes seem to be back in style (I did like the swirly and colorful era because when you spilled something on your tie, it blended right in). Up next is my red, “power” tie. The problem here is I’m going to a Sweet 16 party and not a job interview. Now there’s my Daffy Duck beach party tie, which would be perfect if I knew if the party had a theme, like a beach party (and don’t get me started, yet, on the Mardi Gras theme Cher had for her party on MTV), and it was probably the favorite tie I would wear when I was in my Radio Shack manager phase. I could reflect back to my high school days when the rebel dudes would wear their ties with a big, ol’, fat knot (the 4th one from the left), but if I did wear that tie, along with the humiliation of a 39 year old dude being seen like that, my mom would disown me.

Up next is another of my favorite ties, but sadly it’s after Christmas so a “Grinch Stealing Christmas” theme tie probably won’t work, and then comes my tie which only works if you wear it on one of two days, January 8th (The King’s birthday), or August 16th (The King’s deathday). Any other day and you just seem like an Elvis kook. Sadly, the seventh tie is the one I sent to the dry cleaners today, because unless the theme of my niece’s party is “Be a Slob With Your Food!”, “Get a Job!”, “Fun at the Beach!”, “Remember the Early Eighties in High School”, “Christmas a Month Later!”, or “Elvis. ‘nuff Said!”, I’ve got to stick with the boring, dark blue tie, that matches my suit.

But my choice of tie is nothing compared to my worrying about how my niece and her friend’s party will compare to Cher’s.

Thanks to my buddy Stu Gotz, who mentioned the show “My Super Sweet 16” on MTV, I decided to watch it. It was Cher’s party, and she has been known to throw the coolest parties, and supposedly her Bat Mitzvah was legendary. Her theme was Mardi Gras (thankfully none of the girls seemed to know what you had to do to get beads because that would be just wrong), and she was ready to just die because the float she was supposed to ride to her party looked like crap a couple of days before said party. Then, of course, was the car shopping, where she pretty much wanted a Jaguar, and not the $30,000+ version, nope, she wanted the $90,000+ version, and would die if she didn’t get it. So the party starts, she arrives via a magic trick (which, of course, she was totally worried it wouldn’t work because she would be so embarrassed), she does some dancing where her pants kept falling down (didn’t she at least rehearse in those pants prior to the party?), and is worried about what her friends will think about her dress that is pretty revealing.

I know my niece didn’t have a Bat Mitzvah, so she doesn’t have that party to compare it to, and aside from the fact I’m not sure if my niece will be arriving on a float, if the party has a theme, if she’ll be doing a spotlight dance where her pants fall down, and I’m assuming my sister and brother-in-law won’t be getting her a $90,000 car as her gift, I’m not sure how my favorite niece’s Sweet 16 party can stack up to Cher’s. But as her Uncle, I just pray to Little Baby Jesus that my niece doesn’t wear a dress that was skimpier than the outfit of a stripper named Destiny I remember seeing years ago in Las Vegas. Cher wore that dress.

And I still have to try to figure out what tie to wear, and why the hell I had a dream where I was eating human stew.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:02 PM | Comments (2)

December 16, 2006

Screwed Up Animation, Too Much "Star Wars," and the NFL Network Should Get a Clue. Merry Christmas!

By: The Dude on the Right
As I'm at home this Saturday night, becoming pissed at myself for my, hmm, improper animation techniques (which actually means I screwed up a good chunk of our animated review for "Apocalypto" that I wanted to get posted this weekend), I also have the Dallas Cowboys vs. Atlanta Falcons game on my NFL Network Channel in between my watching, again, thanks to the Cinemax folks, my various "Star Wars" fixes.

For the animation, as I got through most of the subtitling that would be necessary, I realized most of none of it was going to work because I forgot about the camera angles I would use (I should have fully outlined the animation schedule on paper, instead of doing it in my head).  In trying to rush the animated review, I pretty much set it back a week due to heading home for Christmas and my lack of computing power in Ohio.  My fault, but it was a stupid mistake, which wouldn't have happened if I had just done some proper planning.

I'm also wishing, hoping, praying, that Cinemax is almost done with their various showing of the "Star Wars" films.  For "Episode I" I'm a sucker for the hope that Anakin is the one to save the galaxy, "Episode II" gives me Senator Amidala to be happy she is of age, and she looks great as monsters rip off her clothes.  "Episode III" has great fight scenes and sadly, the end of Mace Windu.  "Episode IV" is always great but sort of creepy.  Great because it was the first "Star Wars" movie, that I saw at the Avon Lake Theater in Ohio before they remodeled from one screen to four, and creepy, because now we now Princess Leia is Luke's sister.  "Episode V" was the dark episode, but I was now at the age when "A New Hope" started to make sense.  And then came "Episode VI," "The Return of the Jedi," where everything worked, except the Ewoks still suck, even watching it today.

But enough about "Star Wars," what is really pissing me off tonight is the NFL Network and their bizarre insistence of showing games on their cable channel.  All I can ask is "Umm, Dudes at the NFL Network, have you, or your producers, even watched the games that CBS, FOX, and NBC, have perfected.?"  Your announcers don't work together, your camera shifts blow, and no dude wants to see a "long shot" of the cheerleaders - Give us the close-up, with the cutest of them juggling their jugs and pom-poms for the camera.  And don't get me started on your trying to expand the season to a Thursday night and Saturday night.  I totally forgot the Cleveland Browns/Pittsburgh Steelers' game was on a couple of Thursdays ago.  Sorry, NFL Network dudes, you're just not on my weekday radar.  And the only reason I tuned in to this Saturday's game with Dallas and Atlanta was because I heard someone else talk about how bad the production (including the announcer talk) was.  And they were right.  Dear NFL, leave the football to when we want it:  Sunday - All day, and Monday night.  And never, ever, take away our Thanksgiving Day games.  These extra Thursday night and Saturday games are crap, especially with your presentation, so just cut it out and get back to what we want to see, and not your convoluted way to make more money.  The only reason reason I was able to watch your game tonight, which sucked, was because A: I was home on a Saturday night.  And B: I pay for everything on my cable channel.

Well, I've got to get back to my animating that I screwed up, but that's okay.  It's that weird time of year when sometimes when things go wrong, you get a little bummed, but then remember that it's the Christmas Season, so sometimes work can be put on a burner a little further back.  Our animated review of "Apocalypto" will be posted, eventually, just not as soon as I planned.  Merry Christmas.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 10:17 PM | Comments (0)

November 16, 2006

What's New? A Podcast of: Congrats Emmitt, Poor Karina, Zubrowka and the FDA, and A Challenge.

For this podcast The Dude on the Right is happy that Emmitt Smith won "Dancing with the Stars," wonders about Karina's pissy attitude, wishes the FDA wouldn't ban some substances, and wonders if his niece or sister will participate in a podcast for Thanksgiving. All in good time.

Posted by Rightdude at 9:03 PM | Comments (0)

November 14, 2006

Emmitt Smith, You Can't Touch Him, and I Re-Found Zebrahead.

By: The Dude on the Right
Much like I can figure most people watching the "Dancing with the Stars" finale, you've already got your favorite, and that favorite can fall on their ass, drop their partner, or even stare at the camera and say something like "This show is the dumbest-ass show I have ever been on."  Fine, the last one will definitely not happen, but we've all got our favorites, and I'll be voting for Emmitt Smith, or at least try to vote.

I am happy this season of "Dancing with the Star" is almost over because I do need to free some time to catch up on my TV viewing, and actually getting some real stuff done, but after last week, I am suddenly rejuvenated and my multitasking abilities seem to back, better than ever. (You see, as I type this, Emmitt just got a "perfect score").  And with my TiVo, tomorrow's result's show should be a breeze since I don't need to see all of the filler stuff, just who wins.  And nothing against Mario, GO EMMITT!!!!!!!!!!!

TV aside, as I work to get back into the concert and music thing, sometimes I have to thank my Sirius Satellite Radio because today I re-found a band I really liked, one I sort of fell out of touch with except when some of their songs popped up on my iPod during my exercising, and that band is Zebrahead.  I found them during their "Playmate of the Year" days, but on the road today, I heard their latest single, "Anthem," and I'm right back being a Zebrahead fan.  Music re-finds yourself sometimes, in different places, because the only reason I heard them today was due to a traffic accident (not mine, but I was stuck in the resulting traffic).  I have to thank those who got in the accident, I just hope nobody, well, was seriously hurt.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:20 PM | Comments (1)

November 12, 2006

My Male PMS is Over (I Hope.) Now I Have TV to Watch.

By: The Dude on the Right
Thank God "Lost" is going on hiatus because I have too much TV to watch, and too much I need to catch up.  Hell, I'm trying to catch up on last week's "Heroes" as I type this, want to watch the "60 Minutes" special about Ed Bradley which is recording now, the Chicago Bears' game is starting in about an hour, and now that the NBC folks say they aren't going to cancel "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" I suppose I should try to catch up with last week's episode, and I'm not even going into my still needing to catch last week's "Survivor," "Battlestar Gallactica" or the meerkat show.

But next week things slow down even more because it's the finale of "Dancing with the Stars," pitting Mario Lopez vs. Emmitt Smith, and I'm an Emmitt fan so I might actually vote this week.

I think part of my backlog was having a crappy week, which I think caused me to lose some of my concentration skills, and just as important, my ability to multitask.  This weekend, though, I think I am starting to get back in the groove. I got over my writer's block and wrote my concert review of seeing "Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers," saw "Stranger than Fiction" and got that review written.  I was also able to do some cleaning of the dude-pad while still watching Brett Favre and the Packers beat the Minnesota Vikings.

Maybe it was male PMS, maybe it was the Chicago Bears' losing to the Miami Dolphins that got to me, but last week was a challenge.  We all have those weeks.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:07 PM | Comments (0)

October 11, 2006

City Hall Follies Turned into "Dancing with the Stars."

By: The Dude on the Right
I was going to do a blog about my dealings at City Hall today for a client, but instead, I got wrapped up into replaying "Dancing with the Stars" and as the number of contestants is diminishing, I'm starting to care a little more about who stays and who goes.  My synopsis from last night:

• Joey Lawrence:  I am now a huge fan of Joey's.  That's right, I want Joey to stick around for a while.  Why?  Because his dance partner, Edyta Sliwinska is hot and wears some of the greatest outfits.  And she's Polish.  I'm not sure how well Joey dances, although they get high scores, but she moves very nicely and shows a lot of skin.
• Willa Ford:  I know she is quickly becoming a fan of the judges, but I'm not that taken in with her, although she does have nice gams.
• Sara Evans:  I've been a stalker of Sara's since the beginning of her country singing days, and the only problem I have had with her for some of these dances is her hair.  I've always been a fan of the straight hair, but thought she lost some of her beauty with the curly hair.  I think she dances fine, has a killer smile, but had the worst outfit last night.
• Mario Lopez:  I'm sure you ladies find him dreamy, and the judges seem to think he dances well, but I don't find his partner nearly as hot as Edyta, so he's got to go!
• Jerry Springer:  Sure, he's the goofball of the competition, and his partner, Kym Johnson is cute as hell, but I'm tired of him and his constant touting that he's really a swell guy, not the guy running "The Jerry Springer Show."  He was kind of funny last night with his line about getting the prison wardens to let his "audience" call in and vote for him, but it's time for him to go.
• Monique:  She does nothing for me but is a great dancer.  She's cuter than Mario Lopez, so I'm hoping she stays and he goes.
• Emmitt Smith:  He's smooth on his feet and seems to be having a butt-load of fun, so I say keep him around a couple of more weeks.

We'll see how the voting goes tonight, but if I'm getting rid of anyone right now it's Mario Lopez that has to go.  I'd say Jerry Springer, but I think he's got the hotter dancing partner.

I've got to finish this up so I can catch the premiere of "30 Rock," find out who gets booted from "Dancing with the Stars," and then decide whether I watch "The Biggest Loser" or "Lost" tonight while things catch up on my TiVo.  Too much TV, so little time.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:53 PM | Comments (0)

September 28, 2006

What's New? A Podcast of: "Ugly Betty," Why is Jerry Springer Still Dancing, and Concerts in October.

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right already has too many shows to watch on Thursday so can't understand why ABC put "Ugly Betty" against all of his other favorite shows. He also has his idea of why Jerry Springer is still dancing, and ponders setting up some October concerts.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:43 PM | Comments (0)

September 22, 2006

This One's not about Sears, but about Jennifer Lopez and Tornados.

By: The Dude on the Right
As the day started out I only had one idea for a blog today, and that was to say that I might shop at Sears again.  This was in follow-up to a blog I wrote a few weeks ago, even though I never fully explained my Mom's issue with Sears.  But the other day my Mom e-mailed me that it seems the letter she wrote to the CEO person at Sears expressing her disappointment with her purchase had a result.  And I was going to share that with you, until, today, I realized I still want to be a Jennifer Lopez stalker.

And not the Jennifer Lopez you might think, the one who gets made fun of for having a big booty.

I'm talking about a different Jennifer Lopez, and it came about like this...

I was doing some computer consulting south of Chicago today, and in the forecast was the chance for some severe weather in the Chi-Town area.  In about the middle of the afternoon I checked the local radar on my cell phone and coming near the dude-pad was a rain-cell with some yellow and orange.  At this point I knew the storms were starting to fire up, but didn't really think nothing of it.  At least until I was heading back home.

Suddenly my cell phone started playing the "Looney Tunes" theme so I knew it was someone I knew, and then I saw it was a text message.  I recognized the call-sign, and it was "The Weather Channel" letting me know that there was a tornado warning in the city I live in.  Yup, that's right, a tornado warning.  "Fuck," I thought to myself.  And then my cell phone started ringing again, and even though the phone number was strange I answered it, and it was a pre-recorded message from Jim Cantore from "The Weather Channel, also telling me there was a tornado warning where I lived.

It was a couple of years ago that I subscribed to "The Weather Channel's" "Notify!" service, and even though I had heard Jim Cantore call me before (because I had set my alert levels to broad), this time it was doing exactly what I subscribed it to do, because the only thing I really worry about, where I live, are tornados, because I can pay enough attention to the weather to know if thunderstorms are coming, if snowstorms are coming, but tornadoes don't give you a lot of warning and my messages from "The Weather Channel" beat my local radio news channels by about 5 minutes, which I wouldn't have even tuned into (I'm a Sirius satellite radio fan) unless I had gotten that initial text message.

So I'm still driving home, and find out that the tornado warnings are north of the dude-pad, and I say warnings because I also got a couple of other messages on my phone on my way home that the tornado warnings were expanding around me.  But I get home, and this is really where my Jennifer Lopez stalking rekindled.

At times I am a Weather Channel junkie.  I can watch it for hours, although I'm not as addicted to the colorful graphics as my sister, she still goes through withdrawals when she doesn't get enough.  Part of my watching, though, is for the weather dudettes, and a while back Jennifer Lopez was my girl.  She was cute, has a great smile, even got pregnant, but I was her fan.  Then I slowly got off of my Weather Channel addiction, except only for the major weather, and in the case of a hurricane, Stephanie Abrams was the new girl for me.  Blowing out there in the wind, hoping shit wasn't going to hit her in the head, she also had a great smile, a bubbly personality, and I was her weather fan.

Until today.

When I get home, wondering if a tornado is going to come blowing away the dude-pad, I quickly tuned to The Weather Channel and there was Jennifer Lopez, looking as smoking-hot as ever on my TV, with a different hairdo than I remembered, and she got me through the danger of wondering if the life around me would be destroyed by a tornado (actually, I was able to read the radar and knew I was pretty much safe, but it was still fantastic to see her).

I don't know if the weather caused any tragedies right now in the Chicagoland area, and I know a lot of it was bad, but a big part of me was glad the pre-recorded Jim Cantore called me, warning of deadly weather nearby, but now that I'm back being a stalker of Jennifer Lopez, I wonder if the "Weather Channel" "Notify!" service could tailor who calls you when the weather blows.  I know I would prefer hearing Jennifer Lopez blowing me bad news, rather than Jim Cantore.

But on a serious note, if you are in an area where immediate bad weather can come and destroy your life, like a tornado, and you don't always make yourself aware, subscribe to a service like "Notify!", buy one of those weather radios at Radio Shack (it helped me when I was a manager of a "Shack" once), or anything.  As much as I would prefer Jennifer Lopez calling me rather than Jim Cantore, and even though the tornado warnings were north of my dude-pad, I felt better getting the warnings, minutes before I was notified in other ways, and if things were bad, those minutes might have saved my life, or at least given me ample time to get my camera.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:34 PM | Comments (0)

September 13, 2006

Watching TV with TiVo, and Not Going to Ohio.

By: The Dude on the Right
With my new TiVo, and now that I have, hopefully, most of the TV recording options I should need, I have to now readjust how I actually watch TV to make it more efficient, as well as get shit done.  I realized these things yesterday during the premier of "Dancing With the Stars" and the almost finale of "Rockstar: Supernova," especially when my main computer's UPS decided to take a crap and I tried to figure our how to get my PC up and running again (you never have enough three-prong extension cords when you need them), yet still watching TV shows, when I could have put off the latter, especially since I HAVE MY NEW TIVO.  I'm such an idiot sometimes.  The important thing I forgot is the ease, if you are watching a recorded show, to skip the commercials (sorry advertisers).  As such I was finding myself still switching between shows during the commercials, then getting wrapped up into one show, then another, and missing stuff.  I make my life so complicated sometimes, and I'm working on getting my new TV viewing schedules straight, but now I've complicated my head even a little more, thanks, to of all things, a movie called "Artie Lange's Beer League," starring, well, Artie Lange,  a movie I was looking forward to seeing, hopefully in the theater.

How can a movie create a dilemma and make my life complicated?  It's because I'm mental I tell you.  Here's the deal.  "Beer League" is a smaller budget movie, opening this coming weekend in only three cities - New York, Philadelphia, and Cleveland.  Sure, you might say "What the hell kind of limited release is that?  I get New York City, but Philadelphia and Cleveland?"  The movie studio, and I guess Artie and his people, figured that these are markets that strongly support Artie Lange and could give the movie a strong opening, especially in terms of dollars per screening.  So, "Beer League" doesn't open at a Chicago movie house, at least right now, which would take me, tops, and hour-ish to get to.  In any case, if I want to see the movie this weekend I either have to hop on a plane to Philly and hope our character artist, Archie Tect, could pick me up at the airport and get me to the movie on time, or drive some 360 miles to see the movie scheduled to play at a movie theater some 15 minutes from my parents' house.  Here-in lies my dilemma (and Mom, if you are reading this, I apologize to you right now).

For a couple of minutes I thought of making this Saturday a day trip to Ohio, to, of all things, see "Beer League."  Fine, I'm crazy like that.  As it shows right now, there is a 2:30 afternoon showing that would work into the planning.  I would leave early on Saturday morning, getting into the area around 1PM, giving me a cushion if the Ohio drivers still haven't learned how to drive on a three-lane highway.  I could catch the movie, it would end around 4PM.  Two choices:  Stopping in to see the parents before the movie if traffic is light, maybe catching some lunch before the movie;  Stopping in to see the parents after the movie and then heading back to my dude-pad after maybe catching an early dinner.  Sounds simple enough, and I know my parents would like to see me, and maybe not so much my Dad, but Mom would think I was nuts, for driving 6 hours to see a movie, spend more time with Artie Lange on a screen than with her at home, and then heading back to my dude-pad back in Illinois the same day.  Mothers don't always understand wacky behavior, and she really doesn't like me driving at night.

Thankfully for me, and maybe sadly for my Mom, I think, at least right now, that rationality has set in, thanks to seeing one of those MasterCard commercials.  It sort of turned into this for a one-day trip to Ohio to see "Artie Lange's Beer League.":

    Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois Tollway/Turnpike fees:   $17.80
    Fuel for 720 miles on the road:                              $95.00
    Food:                                                                    $15.00
    Movie ticket:                                                         $  7.00
                                                                                 -------
    Cost to see Beer League:                                     $134.80

    Price to hear my Mom say I spent $135
    to see Artie Lange instead of her:        Not worth: $135.00

Sorry Artie, I guess I have to hope your film does well enough in New York, Philly, and the home of the Michael Stanley Band, so that it opens a little wider, or I'll at least get the DVD, because I can't justify $135.00 to see your movie, especially when it will incur the guilt of Mom.  Being of Catholic upbringing, I think you understand.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:04 PM | Comments (0)

September 9, 2006

If You Liked "Office Space" You'll Probably Like "Idiocracy," and Thanks to my Kids, my TV Viewing Dilemma's for this Fall Should be Solved.

By: The Dude on the Right
First, because you may not read this, nor my review in time (it should be posted tomorrow), if you are a fan of "Office Space" and the over-the-top satirization of life that Mike Judge seems to be able to portray, see, or at this point probably wait to rent/buy "Idiocracy."  Simply put it's a movie set 500 years from now, when, in simplest terms, white-trash and a sports drink have taken over.  Anyway...

If you listened to my podcast yesterday, and you know me, you know that right now I am obsessed with the dilemma of getting a new TiVo in preparation for my fall television viewing.  Too many shows I like, too little time, and too many times they are up against one-another.  Last year was tricky, and I was able to pull off most of TV viewing, except for missing way too many episodes of "Smallville."  My best solution, at times, was to watch one show on my TV, have my TiVo recording another show, and then, in the age of antiquities, have a VCR recording the third show.  This was okay in the days of old, but not with today's technology.  The show I was watching live wasn't being recorded, so I couldn't rewind or pause if I wanted to, and if there was some great audio for a podcast, or a dress that malfunctioned, I wouldn't be able to watch or listen to it over and over again.  At least I had one program recording on the TiVo for easy watching, and although an antique method of recording, the VCR was still working, although not as smooth on the skimming through commercials.  I am being faced with another television season of pain and frustration, especially if I was going to be gone for an evening and I had three shows to record, since I only had two recording devices.

And then came my kids needing some new supplies for the upcoming school year.

My kids, Steve, Ashley, New1, New2, and New3 (the newbies still need some names, but I'm thinking right now one will be named Bam, the other either Spidey or Paul, and New3, well, it's either 'drew or Don.  I'm sorry, I digress), well, they needed some new supplies, namely some food, some testing kits, and some filtering.  Yup, my fish needed some stuff, and I headed to my local PetSmart to get it.  Sadly, but maybe it was fate, the PetSmart didn't have the essential thing I was looking for, so I headed to my local PETCO, and PETCO had it all.  But a couple of stores down from PETCO was a CompUSA, and I saw on their windows was a notice that they were closing, and everything in the store was 20% to 40% off.  My kid's supplies safely stowed in the dude-mobile, I figured what the hell, let's hit the computer store to see if there was anything I couldn't live without.  First I headed for the iPod accessory area and decided I really didn't need anything for my iPod.  Next stop was if there was any chance they had last year's Power Mac G5 at some obscenely low price (no luck).  I scanned through the software but nothing struck my fancy, and CompUSA never had the greatest variety of Hi-Def TV's, so nothing there caught my eye.  But then I said to myself "Self, CompUSA normally sells TiVo's.  I wonder if they have any of those new, dual-tuner TiVo's here?"

Low and behold, at an endcap, there was a stack of them, on sale, and I started to do the computations in my head.  After the rebate offer that was still in force, the net cost for the TiVo would be a little over fifty bucks.  Then I also knew that since I was a TiVo subscriber, and I was adding a new TiVo and not replacing one, I would get a discount on the monthly service fee (I do miss the "Lifetime" upfront fee because mine has already paid for itself on my first TiVo), but in any case, my television viewing/recording dilemma for this fall season is over.  I now have three TiVo recording sources, and in a worst case can add the antique VCR to the mix and watch a fifth show live without recording it.  My fear now:  Six shows to watch at one time.  You can never have too many recording options, although, wait a minute, I think my latest computer purchase had a TV tuner card installed?  Scratch that, my fear now:  Seven shows to watch at one time.  Too much TV, too little time.

Since this blog is already too long, I'll leave my bitching about the American Family Association and CBS' problems with airing their "9/11" documentary for a blog or podcast on Sunday if I can put one together tomorrow.  Right now I've got to get my new TiVo set up!

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:37 PM | Comments (0)

July 12, 2006

The FCC Might Hurt Your Sports TV, Congress Might Hurt Your Online Betting, but at Least Comedy Central is Back on Board.

By: The Dude on the Right
I know blogs are usually supposed to be short, so I apologize now, because I think this one will be a long one.  Here we go...

For those of you oblivious to how the government continues to take control of our lives by dictating itself as the deciding body on what you can see, hear, and how you might want to have fun, in the past two days there have been a few stories that probably didn't make your headlines, maybe didn't even make your newspaper, and if they did, were buried so far that you didn't even realize it was happening.  Pretty soon, it might be too late.  These stories have to do with a group we should be afraid of, namely the FCC (and Congress too), another group that just seems to bring menial matters up when it will help them at election-time, them being Congress, but at least one group of folks are going to re-air something on TV that got pulled in controversy, namely Comedy Central.

First the FCC (and Congress).

A little while back Congress passed, and The President signed into law, that the FCC now has the ability to fine broadcasters something like $325,000 if they, meaning a handful of appointed folks at the FCC, decide a complaint about something aired on local TV or on the radio is indecent.  That's the simplest of ways to put the fine increase.  But today I found a headline on the internet that troubled me, especially after reading the subsequent story:  "FCC combing air tapes for dirty words."  Pretty much, as the story goes, the FCC has requested from a bunch of broadcasters tapes from mostly sports' broadcasts where someone, whether it be a fan, superstar, or anyone, seemed to have uttered a "dirty" word.  The question I have is "Why?"  One of the quotes from the story stated that "I don't know how they are going to rule, but they asked us for tapes with a specific emphasis on crowd noise," said another TV executive, who also requested anonymity. "If some bozo in the crowd calls the ref an asshole, the commission is asking for a copy of the tape."  If the FCC decides that said bozo in the crowd yelling "you're a lazy shit-head" is indecent, and since a TV station aired it (as well as maybe the covering radio station), that the TV and radio station should be fined, well, $325,000 (or more), if you thought your TV was getting more tame all of the time, think again.  You might be able to still watch live events on TV, but don't count on any audio.  Most people don't seem to notice and just seem to want to let our government be the babysitter for their kids, but for Christ's sake, you seem to have no idea where this path is leading.  Five people have the decision to decide if the word "shit" is indecent, and they decided it is.  No one seems to want to notice, and there doesn't seem to be many Congress folks with enough balls to say something like "I'm not for indecency, but I this is bullshit."

Next up, Congress and Gambling.

For this story the House of Representatives has passed legislation pretty much eliminating online gambling in the United States, unless, of course, you want to still play the lottery or bet on the horses.  The story isn't done, yet, because it still has to pass the Senate, but this is a bad sign.  For those of you putting money down in poker games online, trying your hand at blackjack, or maybe you just think that Ebert & Roper will give a movie "Two Thumbs Up!", well, your Congress is working to say "Screw you, you can't blow your money on someone we can't tax, but if you want to throw it all away on the lottery or better yet, the horses, go right ahead!"  How are they doing it?  Well, they are trying to make it illegal for United States banking folks to transfer money to offshore gambling sites.  I'm sure there are ways around this, but really, it's a hassle you don't need, but you also don't seem to be fighting for your right to gamble.  The Senate hasn't taken up this debate yet, but if they do, this is where, you gambling folks, better get off your collective asses and write your Senators.  The problem with the United States on this, and I think this is what really pisses them off, is that they didn't figure out a way at the beginning to make this legal in the U.S., and how to make the bucks off of this.  What to do now?  Make it really illegal until they can figure out how to make a buck.  In any case, by now, most of the online gamblers have figured that the big name internet gambling sites out there in the world aren't out there to steal their money, because that doesn't let them be there for the long haul.  The big names work to be legitimate because, well, the gamblers keep coming back.  Sometimes someone will win big, but gambling has always been in favor of the house, so that is why there are there.  If anyone is really pissed off at Congress it has got to be the casinos in Vegas because they could easily set up online gaming sites for all of the United States, make them totally legit, and even give the government their cut.  But the United States missed that boat, and a lot of these off-shore companies are making billions of bucks without having to give a cut back to US, I mean the U.S.  But Congress doesn't want you to gamble, unless someone in the United States is making money, and thus, the United States is making money, so online gamblers beware, it might get a hell of a lot more difficult for you to put you bet on the next "American Idol" or think you can actually win a Texas Hold-em Poker Match with a bunch of people you can't even see.

And Finally, Comedy Central.

There was a controversy a little while back when Comedy Central pulled an episode of "South Park" called "Trapped in a Closet," around the time when "Mission Impossible: III" came out."  Many news reports stated that it was pulled at the request of Tom Cruise, who gets made fun of in the episode, him and Scientology, but the Comedy Central folks gave their own reasons for pulling the episode.  But, as weird things go, the "Trapped in a Closet" was nominated for an Emmy award.  How can you not put an episode back on the air when it has been nominated for an Emmy Award?  Well, Comedy Central has decided to re-air the episode, so set your episode for July 19th, check your local listings for times, but this is one, really, funny episode.  At least someone in the TV entertainment side seemed to have gotten their balls back.

I guess for this blog my words of warnings are these:  Pay attention to the restrictions our Government continues to place on us.  Five people are deciding what is indecent, a bunch of people looking to get re-elected think an easy way to get votes is to eliminate gambling on the internet, (and don't get me started on gay marriage, abortion, how this manipulates your elections) and if you think this doesn't effect you, or things you like in your life, you are wrong.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:12 PM | Comments (1)

May 25, 2006

What's New? The Dude on the Right's "American Idol" Finale Wrap-Up.

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right gives his thoughts on the "American Idol" finale and his take on the difference between Taylor Hicks and Katharine McPhee. He also wonders if college kids were playing the "Soul Patrol" game.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:09 PM | Comments (0)

May 23, 2006

The Almost Last "American Idol": Katharine McPhee vs. Taylor Hicks

By: The Dude on the Right
Normally I would do a podcast tomorrow evening before "American Idol" giving you my thoughts on the Tuesday night performances and my Paula Abdul clips of the night, but since the two hour finale starts at 7PM here in the Chicagoland area, I know I won't be able to get it posted in time and oh so want to endure about an hour and 45 minutes of uselessness to see who wins.  So I figured I would blog my recap of tonight's performance, and give my podcast rehash on Thursday night.  So, without further ado, my thoughts on Katharine McPhee's and Taylor Hick's performance, who should win, and don't be surprised if they win.

ROUND 1
Katharine:  Black Horse and the Cherry Tree
Katharine did pretty well with this the first time around, and this time was just okay.  She looked great in the tight jeans and shirt showing her belly, but she kept singing to the two percussion dudes on stage rather than the audience.

Taylor:  Living for the City
He's being the Taylor he has become to be, working through the crowd, wearing a funky suit jacket, and still looking like he's going to take a dump on stage as he stretches for a note or two, but I think that's why we love him.

Winner of Round 1:  Taylor

ROUND 2
Katharine:  Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Again solid song for her, but she does not work the stage, nor the audience, well.  There she was, just sort of sitting on the stage, and doing, at first, a fantastic version, totally into the feeling of the song.  I felt so good for her, she needed the perfect version, and I really wanted her to get up somewhere near the middle of the song, work the front of the stage, and finish it on the platform behind the judges belting it out for the audience, but then two things happened that lost it for me:  First, she just stayed there, kinda crumpled on the floor of the stage, and second, she lost the feeling of the song and started "mugging" for the camera every time it came near her.  What I mean by mugging is she shifted from serious mode to the "grinning ear to ear" thing that has been bugging me about her all season.  Sad song, depressing song, it doesn't seem to matter for her, once that boom camera comes near her face, she shifts from serious and sad looking to "I'm going to smile now because the camera is coming in for a close-up."

Taylor:  Levon
I will admit I am a little biased because this is one of my favorite Elton John songs of all time, and Taylor does his own great way of knocking it out of the ballpark.  The thing with Taylor is when he's not being goofy Taylor, he does show that he has a fun voice, but this isn't really the song that showcased this, that one was a few weeks ago.  He still works the stage better than Katharine and exudes a confidence she just doesn't seem to have.

Winner of Round 2:  Katharine (but barely because of the mugging.)

ROUND 3
Katharine:  My Destiny
Singing what will be her first single, I am going to sound so incredibly mean right now, and I do apologize to all of the Katharine fans, and to Katharine herself, but here goes...

First off, and my mom has been saying it all along, but whoever has been picking her dresses is doing a horrible job.  Like most men, I would have lied to her because I knew I wouldn't get any at the end of the night by being truthful, but that dress made her look fat.  Oh, and this is going to sound worse than mean, but she looked like she was shoved in a sausage casing.  Something just fitted her totally wrong with that dress.  Randy said she looked amazing, but on TV, or at least my TV, that dress was horrible.

Next, this was a typical song for a "pop" idol, starting the singer off in a lower key and building them up to a higher register where they can take the song out of the ballpark, but she just seemed too nervous to pull that off and hit a blooper, pop-fly for an easy catch by the shortstop.  The other problem for her, and maybe she knew this, is that maybe Katharine knew people are tired of these kinds of songs from the finalists, and she also knew Taylor had the stronger song.

Lastly, from the show, and maybe I'm wrong, but it looked like Simon really wanted to just lay into her on every aspect about the performance, but knew this was the finale and if he came out blasting the song, her performance, and her look, that every aspect of marketing her would be blown off the map.  I'm sorry for being so harsh on her, but I'll try to explain more at the end of this way-to-long blog.

Taylor:  Do I Make You Proud
Sadly for the "American Idol" folks, this song has come out about a month too late.  Why?  Because high school graduation ceremonies around the country in every small town would somehow try to fit this song into the proceedings.  But Taylor doesn't have to worry about the graduates because I think he still has the wedding song market for the next six months if the bride-to-be is a Taylor fan.

Taylor didn't have to worry about an outfit, because, well, Taylor doesn't need to to look unbelievable, he just needs to look like Taylor, so his normal suit was fine.  What Taylor had going for him, that Katharine really didn't, is a perfect song for him.  It wasn't the greatest song, but so much better than Katharine's that it didn't matter, and Taylor sang it with the confidence that even if the lyrics were something like "Do I make you proud, because I was caught sleeping with a hooker that I picked up on the corner," he still would have pulled it off for his "Idol" fans who wouldn't have cared.

He knocked the song out of the ballpark for his "American Idol" fans.  And even Simon knew it.

Winner of Round 3:  Taylor

Based on Tonight, Who Should Win This Fight:  Taylor Hicks

Don't Be Surprised if This One Wins:  Katharine McPhee

The Dude on the Right's Final Analysis
Here's a little how I see this, so let's go...

With our two finalists, the marketing/public relations folks are really trying to scramble, and maybe just me, but I think Simon knows this.  Taylor is a great guy, with a great voice, and I am a fan, but where, on any radio dial, can you market him?  Somehow lots of the public loves him, and the single they have him recording has potential, but after the show is over, are you going to be clamoring out there to get any single/CD he puts out, let alone be the reason you go see him in concert?  Maybe I'm wrong, and I read this somewhere else, but he is the kind of dude who could, with his act, pull off a larger bar/club atmosphere where he sang a mixture of covers and originals, but his sound fits absolutely nowhere on the radio landscape, and that's a marketing nightmare.  His voice doesn't lend itself to adult contemporary, let alone a teen audience, and there are few rock stations that would play anything he puts out, probably mostly out of spite.

Katharine, though, almost has entire package, just not the presence of Taylor.  She's got looks, she does need a better wardrobe (and shorter hair to show off her boobs for me), but if she were to lose a little of the Celine Dion-ish posing, she could fill a huge void, sliding into a bizarre nitch between the world of Kelly Clarkson and Celine Dion.  Here's how I would have loved to see her performances go:  During "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" work the audience with an attitude.  No big grinning, just go out there, slap hands, work the stage, and keep an attitude like "I'm a bad-ass, hear me roar!"  Then, during "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," fine, start it crouched down on the stage, but get up, sing to the crowd, all of the crowd, but don't get caught in the glamorous moment - You're trying to find your way home, to a happy place, there's no place for smiling ear to ear during this song.  Lastly, you've got a lousy last song and you probably know it.  So what, go out there and just kick whatever ass you can find.

I feel bad about bashing on Katharine, because I think she has huge star potential, but somewhere, somehow, I think her biggest problem is that she was never taught to get into the feeling of a song.  All she knows is to sing the song, she doesn't know how to, and this is going to sound pretty cheesy, but be one with the song.  That, I think, is her largest stumbling block to getting herself to the next level.

I suppose I should wrap up this way-to-long blog by just admitting that you never really know what the fans out there in TV land are going to do in regards to voting for the "American Idol," yet I still love the show.  It will be interesting to see how the voting goes, but for me, I think Taylor will win, but Katharine has more potential for stardom.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 10:05 PM | Comments (1)

May 20, 2006

What's New? Exciting Sports, Women's Pro Beach Volleyball, Karaoke on Your TV, and TV Finales.

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right was surprised at the excitement of sports' viewing on his Saturday afternoon, wonders when he'll start singing karaoke, and is looking forward to the last week of TV sweeps.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:04 PM | Comments (0)

May 17, 2006

What's New? The Dude on the Right's "American Idol" Wrap-Up: Elliot Should be Going Home.

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right still can't stand Katharine McPhee smiling during her performances, but loved her version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." The Dude's Mom didn't think that much of her, and doesn't like her clothes, and doesn't like her hair. The Dude on the Right has a problem with her hair, too, but only because it covers her boobs.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:06 PM | Comments (0)

May 14, 2006

Podcast Contributors From Around the World, or At Least One, Hopefully, and Will it be "Oprah" or "President."

By: The Dude on the Right
Well, it appears that President Bush really doesn't give a damn about his approval ratings, which have been plummeting lately, because he has scheduled a brief speech for tomorrow evening, Monday, May 15th.  The speech is about things we have already heard or read about, at least if you pay attention to the news, so why he has decided to delay my Monday evening TV watching, I really don't know.  In any case, so far, according to my TIVO box, Fox and NBC have given in and will give the President his do, thereby delaying my switching between "Deal or No Deal" (which is very close to jumping the shark), and "24," but the interesting thing will be for ABC.  Their choice:  "Oprah.  President. Oprah.  President.  Oprah.  President."   My guess is that the ABC folks will call Oprah and ask for her permission to delay her special, because, well, Oprah is always right, and millions of Oprah disciples have already made their party plans.  My other guess is President Bush's next approval ratings will drop a couple of points, especially if Oprah gives the okay to delay her party.  Really, you're a member of the Church of Oprah, have all of your congregation at your humble home, geared up to watch Oprah Winfrey's Legend's Ball, which actually took place a year ago,  complete with recipes direct from Rachael Ray, and there is President Bush talking about Mexicans jumping across our border.  What a downer.  I suppose only tomorrow night will tell.

Presidential politics aside, I saw one great movie this weekend, "Keeping Up With the Steins," and one not-so-fabulous movie, "Just My Luck."  But more important than those things, I think I've also figured out a way to invite listeners to be a part of our podcasts, namely via Instant Messaging.  No, typing IM's back and forth during a podcast would prove pretty boring, but most, if not all IM programs now have talk capability.  I've only messed around with it a little, namely between a couple of computers at home and two different AOL accounts, but it seems to be working.  What I'm asking for now is if anyone out there in internet-land wants to be a guinea pig in my "The Dude on the Right Podcast Contributors From Around the World" experiment.  Okay, that's a pretty long title, but quite simply I'm looking for someone out there in internet-land, at this point with AOL and talk capability, although I think is will also work with Skype, Yahoo, Messenger, and Google Talk, although I haven't tested those yet, wanting to see if you want to be a part of our podcast.  If that's you, I ask you e-mail me at podcast@entertainmentavenue.com.  I'd rather keep the podcast about something simple, like "American Idol" or movies, so also leave a topic you might want to talk about.  There does seem to be some latency issues (delays back and forth, just like those satellite feeds you see on the news), but it might be fun to try.  I'm still looking at a way to accept phone calls, but right now, this looks a hell of a lot easier with a hell of a lot less wires.

May sweeps is wrapping up and summer is upon us.  "Survivor" finishes tonight and if things are right with the world, Terry will win.  "American Idol" fans  booted of Chris so it will interesting to see if there is a ratings backlash, or a Chris voting backlash (I think Elliot might be back in the running to win).  Jack Bauer has almost saved the world again, and with summer should come a new "Big Brother," although "Dancing With the Stars" has moved from a summer guilty pleasure to the normal TV season.  Sadly Beth Ostrosky, Howard Stern's girlfriend, says she has opted out of the next "Dancing..." series.  Oh well, I guess we'll see what the summer TV season will bring, and I'm sure I'll get hooked on something.

Alright, let's wrap up this blog.  If you are interested in being a part of one of our podcasts and have everything hooked up for AOL IM talk capability, e-mail me.  I think the President will win out over Oprah, but we'll see.  Right now I've got to go and fold some laundry and get ready for the "Survivor" finale.  Terry deserves to win, although Cirie would be a funny person to win, especially with her complaining about looking under leaves in the first episode. Alright, enough babbling.  I'm done.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:03 PM | Comments (0)

May 11, 2006

What's New? The Dude on the Right's "American Idol" Analysis for May 9th.

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right has one suggestion for Katharine McPhee - quick smiling and losing the attitude of the song every time the boom camera comes in for a close-up. You change from "singing" the song, to "just singing" the song. He see's Taylor and Katharine as the final two, but for this week's episode, rather than a Paula Abdul saying, someone else had the "Saying of the Week."

Posted by Rightdude at 8:11 PM | Comments (0)

May 3, 2006

What's New? The Dude on the Right's "American Idol" Re-Cap, and You Thought You Had Weight to Lose?

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right gives his re-cap of the "American Idol" performances from Tuesday. He still thinks Katharine smiles too much and should remember to keep her facial expressions with the theme of the song. He also talks about a story about a man who needs to lose a hell of a lot more weight than you do.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:18 PM | Comments (0)

April 26, 2006

What's New? The Dude on the Right's "American Idol" Wrap-Up: The Dude Liked Katharine's Dress; The Dude's Mom, not so Much.

For this podcast, The Dude on the Right takes the blame for the lack of a "Stu & The Dude Weekend Wrap-Up" this week, but lets it loose with his comments on the "American Idol" performances this week, and his fascination with "Deal or No Deal." The Dude only has one problem with Katharine McPhee, and that is that he thinks she smiles too much.

Posted by Rightdude at 8:42 PM | Comments (0)

March 9, 2006

Feeling Under the Weather, at Least "American Idol" is Finally Down to Twelve.

By: The Dude on the Right
I've been a little under the weather lately, but it sounds like a lot of other folks out there are feeling the same.  Maybe we're just waiting for spring to finally get here, and it's the end of winter blues, or it's some weird cold that is just going around, but in any case, that's limited my postings, at least since my Academy Award Recap Podcast, so mostly I've just been doing some behind-the-scenes work like standardizing the animation for "Stu & The Dude Reviewin' the Movies for You!", playing with better ways to get TV audio clips incorporated into podcasts, and just trying to get my vim and vigor back.  Thankfully, for my viewing pleasure, there was a fantastic episode of "24" last Monday, and of course I'm sucked into "American Idol" which is great background while trying to do other stuff.  I guess it's kind of appropriate then, that as I type this blog entry, on the TV above my computer is "American Idol" as they widdle it down to the final twelve.  Don't worry, though, my TiVo is recording "Survivor: Exile Island," and thankfully, "Smallville" is a re-run this week so that doesn't play into my TV viewing.

As far as "American Idol" goes, I've been developing my favorites and my least favorites, but for now there are still just too many people to remember them all.  There's the dude labeled as "Chicken Little" or "Egghead" on the message boards, there are the other dudes I call "The Bald, Rocker Dude," "The Smiley Dude," "The Old, Gray-Haired Dude," "The 'Girls Think He's Dreamy' Dude," "The Country Dude Who's Not Bo Bice," and then there are a few others not really impressing me yet.  On the dudette side, a lot of them are grouped together for me at this point, and I was an initial fan of the 16 and 17-yeal old, cute, black dudettes with the kick-ass voice, but lately they've been lacking.  Also, I'm not buying that Kellie is as "dumb-blondish" as she is portraying herself, the "Basketball Dudette" is good but lacks some stage presence, and in not being anything close to politically correct, the larger black dudette is as good as Aretha Franklin, but half the size.  The one I'm liking most, though, is Katharine, especially since I can remember her name and she seems a little more real than Kellie, and she's got a great smile.

As I'm finishing up this blog, I have no idea how Chicken Little, I mean Kevin, is still in this (he just got told he's in the final twelve) other than he's getting the Anti-Idol vote, or he just is appealing to, well, I don't know who he appealing to (someone, please, if you know, give me a hint, please, because my comments on my notepad, as he started singing "Vincent" were 'He got three words out and I instantly thought he should be gone after tonight', and yet, he's still there).

Anyway, "American Idol" is wrapping up tonight and it's adios Kinnik (not really a surprise), The Basketball Dudette (Ayla - but I thought Lisa and Paris weren't as up to par as her this time, and she seemed to be the most bummed of all to get booted off the island, I mean Idol), Will (his boyish charm couldn't overcome his lack of stage presence), and The Smiley Dude (Gedeon - he should have gotten to the final twelve over Kevin or Elliot).

Thankfully Idol is back to it's normal two nights a week starting next week, being Tuesdays and Wednesdays, because I was really getting concerned if "Smallville" started having new episodes.  I'm still able to easily juggle two of my favorite shows at the same time, three is a little tougher, and four puts me into panic mode (you have no idea how much "The Olympics" put me in a tailspin.  I know, I should just spend the damn money on, like, four or five more TiVo boxes.  Do you think if I mention TiVo a few more times they might just send me a few boxes with lifetime subscriptions for the hell of it if I just keep mentioning TiVo because TiVo is the greatest thing to hit television since, well, television).  Well, even with all of my professing how great TiVo is, I doubt any free things are coming my way, so, in any case, I'll just have to keep juggling, TiVo'ing, VCR'ing, live watching, or just waiting for the non-reality shows to pop back up in reruns.  Damn, I hate TV.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

 

Posted by Rightdude at 7:02 PM | Comments (0)

February 26, 2006

At Least "Dancing with the Stars" and the Olympics are Over. Damn You "American Idol."

By: The Dude on the Right
I know I always promise that new stuff is coming soon, so I won't promise anymore, just say I'm working on it.  In the meantime I wanted to get something new posted, so for tonight I hope you'll just be okay with this blog entry.  I'm trying to get it done before the finale of "Dancing With the Stars" and the Olympics Closing Ceremonies, which, thankfully, are the end to much of my diversion lately.

From my last blog, you know that I developed a thing for Cassie Johnson of the USA Women's Curling Team.  Sadly they got eliminated from any medal contention, and I didn't even get a chance to catch another match due to some traveling.  For my stalking, I'll just have to remember to set the one, TiVo'd match on "Do Not Ever Delete Until I Tell you So you TiVo Machine."  Sadly, I won't be able to offer her a job, because I didn't win the Powerball jackpot, although there is still a chance right now on the Mega Million's side.  Maybe I'll still be able to offer Cassie a job.  All I know is that I'm happy the Olympics are done, because, well, the United States folks, other than a few, didn't come off too well.  I could go into it, but why?  It's over, done, and even with the winners we will mostly remember a few stories, like the snowboarder dudette who lost the gold medal, the skier dude who should now forever remain nameless, and the speed skater dudes who had such potential to be world class, but, well, lost that when they opened their mouths, and they even won gold medals.  Oh well, it's over, and so almost is another show...

That show, "Dancing With the Stars," where Lisa Rinna got screwed.  Nothing against you, Jerry Rice, but she was so much better.  I probably won't watch the entire show, especially since it's two hours long and up against the Olympic closing ceremony.  Right now I just want to see if Drew or Stacy win.  My vote is for Drew, even though Stacy is smokin' hot, because Stacy had a lot of previous dance experience, and Drew was only in 98 Degrees.

As far as new stuff coming to the website, tomorrow should bring a new podcast of "Stu and The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up," and I'm putting the finishing touches on our next episode of "Stu & The Dude Reviewin' the Movies for You!", that being a review of "Curious George."  If all goes well, that should be posted tomorrow night as well, at worst, hopefully, on Tuesday.  I've also got a ton of movie previews I'm typing up, still need to write a review of "Date Movie" even though Stu and I discussed it at length during one of our podcasts.  I'm also looking to get back to some concert reviewin' in mid-March, so hopefully that will work out as well.

Well, "Dancing With the Stars" is coming on soon, so I'll wrap this up.  Thankfully my TV viewing gets almost back to normal next week, but dammit, "American Idol" people, I'm finding it really hard to keep with people for three nights.  I've got too many other shows to watch.  Damn.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:24 PM | Comments (0)

February 16, 2006

Women's Curling, It's Fantastic!

By: The Dude on the Right
As I was on the phone with my accountant, Dewey, of the firm Dewey, Cheatem, & Howe, I started telling Dewey how I was getting sucked into the Olympic coverage of Curling.  Yea, that's right, the Olympic sport where they slide this big boulder rock things down the ice, kinda like shuffleboard without the stick, and use brooms to help direct/speed-up/slow-down the rock, hoping to either bounce the opposing teams rocks out of the way, or get your rock in either a blocking position or in a position to score.  Stu Gotz was in the office at the time and immediately started to bust my balls, professing how he was totally into the Women's Speed Skating, with the women in those skin-tight outfits, while there I was, watching dudes slide a stone.  Dewey, of course, heard this, and started busting my balls as well, but then, after hanging up the phone on Dewey in mid-insult, I reminded Stu that he loved the movie "Curious George."  With that, he backed down a tad.

Anyway, as for my fascination with curling, it really began with the Winter Olympic coverage four years ago.  Me, I'm the kind of guy who can just sit in front of the TV on a Sunday afternoon and watch a full round of golf, so why not be fascinated with curling? This year, though, I was reading the paper yesterday and saw they had coverage of the men's curling on CNBC.  I changed the channel and quickly became totally fascinated by the audio of the event that will hopefully make it into a podcast next week.  Yup, I was sucked in.  But then came the woman's event today, with the Team USA dudettes playing the dudettes of Denmark.  As the audio still intrigued me, suddenly I was in love, as I am a sucker for a dudette with blondish hair, blue eyes, and a killer smile, staring down a big ol' rock and yelling/telling her teammates where it really needs to end up .  My next person to stalk, I mean, to admire from afar, is team skip, Cassie Johnson.  I'll just say I was mesmerized, and totally  disappointed when that last rock hit some debris thing on the ice that misdirected it ever so slightly so that the Denmark dudettes won the round.

Sadly, the Team USA curling dudettes might be eliminated pretty soon, they aren't doing too well it seems, and that makes me sad.  I believe my last chance to catch them might be this coming Monday, but there's always a chance they can go on a curling tear and I'll be there every step of the way.   As far as Stu, go ahead and stalk, I mean, admire from afar, those dudette speed skaters.  Me, I've always had a thing for the girl next door look, and Cassie has that.  And her sister is cute, too, but she's engaged.  Cassie has a degree in graphic design and I'd love to offer her a job to help us with Stu & The Dude Reviewin' the Movies for You!  It's just too bad I couldn't offer her any money, and I'd probably be slapped with a sexual harrasment lawsuit.  Oh well, I guess I'll just stalk, I mean, admire her from afar, and hope the team does go on a curling tear.  Good luck ladies!  And Cassie, if by some miracle I win the $365 million Powerball this weekend, there might be a job offer coming your way.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:19 PM | Comments (0)

February 12, 2006

Confused About the Olympics, and Some Advice for NBC.

By: The Dude on the Right
I’m getting really confused with the coverage of the XX Winter Olympics. First, I talked a little bit about this in our last podcast, but there doesn’t seem to be a consensus on exactly where the Olympics are being held. First, if you go to www.olympic.org, they call it the "Torino 2006" games. Fine, they’re a world body, and probably go with the language of the host nation, that being Italian because, well, the Olympics are being held in Italy. The thing is that Torino is an Italian pronunciation, and even on the web site, in their English translation, they call them the "Turin Winter Games." That at my local paper, and every other television station say they are in Turin.  But NBC, who is broadcasting the Winter Olympics, are sticking with "Torino," prompting one posting on a bulletin board I occasionally read wondering why, if NBC is content on calling Turin, well, Turino, for this kind of news, why aren’t they calling Rome, well, Roma, or Florence, umm, Fiorenza. I know that the famous shroud is in Turin, and wonder if NBC, if there is ever new news about the Shroud of Turin, well, if they will know call it the Shroud of Turino? I’m so confused.

And that’s not only thing confusing me about the Winter Olympics. The other has to do with the wacky news coverage, especially on the NBC stations. I haven’t been able to pay attention to the ABC or CBS coverage, at least when it comes to my local news, to see if how/when/who they are spoiling the suspense of who/when/how won a medal, but on both my local NBC newscast and the national NBC newscast here in Chicago, this day being Sunday, they both had coverage of the Winter Olympics. The easy story was Michelle Kwan’s dropping out, but then, wanting to at least give some real news about what was going on, told their viewers that if they didn’t want to "see" anything about the results as of the time of the newscast, to turn away from the screen (don’t forget, the actual events happened over 12 hours ago, so the nightly broadcast is a tape of what already happened), and that the audio wouldn’t give away anything, but I couldn’t help but watch and figure out that Apolo Anton Ohno must have screwed up because he wasn’t on the medal board NBC flashed on the screen. Then, of course, I just went to the NBC website and found out for myself.

With their coverage, I think this is where NBC is really dropping the ball. Instead of trying to "hide" the results with bad "we have spoilers, turn away if you don’t want to know," they should just go all out and say things like "On tonight’s coverage, you get to see how Apolo Anton Ohno didn’t get a medal, how the U.S. skiers, including the controversial Bode Miller, didn’t get a medal, but thank God for Shaun White and Danny Kass, a couple of snowboarders who knew how to get the job done, getting the Gold and Silver respectively. We’ve got a slim chance at getting a medal in the Luge, but you might just want to see if the "Babe Ruth of Luge," Georg Hackl of Germany, can pull it off. After all, they’re going down that course at speeds over 70 miles per hour at times." In all honesty, those are the only reasons I’m watching the NBC coverage of the Winter Olympics tonight, but my problem is that the conclusion to last week’s "Grey’s Anatomy" conflicts with the Olympic coverage. I knew I should have ordered that Comcast DVR. Guess I’ll be stuck with year's old technology and VCR "Grey’s Anatomy" and TIVO the Olympics, or maybe just the opposite. Damn, I hate T.V.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:28 PM | Comments (0)

January 6, 2006

Howard Stern, Censored Again Because of "Let Freedom Ring," The Dude's Mom is Worried About "Dancing With the Stars," and a Weekend Dilemma.

By: The Dude on the Right
I'm still a little perplexed as to when to write a blog, and when to do a podcast, mostly, because, in the grand scheme of things, the podcast is just so much simpler.  All I have to do is flip a switch, start a couple of programs, talk about what I'm thinking, and "Bam!!!", I'm done, other than getting things posted.  But sometimes I just seem to be in the mood to type, and this seems to be one of those times, especially adding links to things that I am writing about.  Anyway, let's go.

First off, and I guess I missed the bulk of the story when I was back in Ohio around Christmas, but I didn't realize Howard Stern created such a hubbabaloo with his latest billboard campaign until a few days ago.  It seems that Howard and the folks at Sirius Satellite Radio launched a billboard campaign with the tagline "Let freedom ring.  And let it be rung by a stripper." When I first heard the tagline I found it kind of funny, and thought to myself "Self, wasn't that in a Martina McBride song?  I remember that line from somewhere?"  And then it occurred to me, it was from the song "My Country 'Tis of Thee."  That doesn't seem to be where the controversy came from, though.  It seems Dr. Martin Luther King incorporated the phrase into his "I Have a Dream" speech, even referencing the song.  At least two billboards were put up along Chicago expressways, meant, pretty much, to try and catch the glimpse of those driving into downtown Chicago, probably on their way to work, stuck in traffic, and maybe create a smile in the heart of every dude and a little bit of disgust in the heart of every dudette.  Except, according to a Reverend in Chicago, the phrase "Let freedom ring" was made "popular" by Dr. King, and it is disrespectful to the African-American community to trivialize it, and since the billboard locations were in African-American communities, that made it even worse.

The protest wasn't started by the Reverend you might thing it would have been started by, namely Reverend Jesse Jackson, but by a Catholic Priest, Rev. Pfleger, who lost all respect by our own Stu Gotz when he threatened to leave the Church if he was transferred from his parish.  In any case, it seems the Reverend Pfleger got his wish, and both Viacom and Clear Channel bowed to his pressure and removed the ads after protest threats.  I hope Sirius got their money back.  But that isn't even my real problem with this.  My problem is that both the Reverend and, yes, Reverend Jesse Jackson did chime it later, made this thing about race and the location of the original billboard, when the billboard's location is meant for one thing, and one thing only - to catch the glimpse of those driving into Chicago on the Dan Ryan Expressway.  They use the fact that the billboard structure is located in an African American community as their sounding board, that somehow this ad is meant to trivialize Dr. Martin Luther King, and that's bad.  Had this ad been on a local billboard, at ground level in an African American community, I might, sort of, agree with their argument, but I have to wonder, if the first billboard got put up off of the Ronald Reagan Tollway here in Illinois, if they would have even noticed, or cared.

On a lighter note, my mother wonders about "Dancing With the Stars," and how did Jerry Rice and his partner get the score they got the other night.  Mom says, and I quote "what’s with Jerry Rice getting 3  7’s when actually all he did was move around while she did all the shaking and I mean SHAKING!!!!!!!!!"  I had to agree with my Mom, although I did admit to her that I was watching his partner a hell of a lot more than the greatest wide receiver ever in the NFL.  I really hope there isn't a fix.

Well, I've got to wrap up this blog and plan my weekend.  It's looking like I'll catch the movies "Match Point," where I'm bound to fall back in love with Scarlett Johansson, and either "Grandma's Boy" or "The Ringer" for me being of the easily amused and looking for something to be easily amused by.  And, oh yea, I have one more dilemma to work out this week, namely do I buy another Sirius receiver for my home or just listen to Howard in my car come Monday, January 9th, when freedom rings, and I, personally hope it will be rung by a stripper.  From the replay of the test show on Howard 100 today, there looks to be many a technical difficulty come Monday, enough which might actually make Howard's head explode.  I'm sure this would be much more entertaining on video, but even on the radio, I'm thinking Howard can still make that pretty funny.  But Johnny B. is back in Chicago, and I started here listening to him when I first arrived here back in 1985, even awakened one morning hearing our own Stu Gotz talking with Johnny about things and a bunny rabbit, and I have been listening to him since Howard has been off the air, and have found the Brandmeier-meister just as amusing in a different way.  I'm so torn.  I guess the weekend, and my compulsive disorder, will tell how this all works out.  I think I need a couple of TIVO's for my radio personalities now, but when would I listen to them when I'm still watching my replays of "Dancing With the Stars?"  I'm so screwed.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:18 PM | Comments (0)

September 21, 2005

Our Blog: How Can a Major Cable TV Company Screw Up So Bad?

By: The Dude on the Right
I was going to do this Blog about hurricane Rita and how I figured God must have messed up with Katrina, but instead, my blog has quickly shifted to my being totally pissed at the cable TV company called Comcast.  Why?  Simply because at the time of this writing, it's 7:42PM, CDT, at least according to my computer, and their sports channel, who took the rights from the Fox Sports channel, is still out on my cable system.  Normally I wouldn't care, except tonight is the rubber match for this three game series between the Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Indians.  That's right, the channel simply says "No signal."  These people don't even have a back-up to say something like "We are experiencing technical difficulties."  Nope, just a blank, fucking, screen, and I hate to get blue with this blog, but I find this unbelievable from one of the largest cable companies in the United States, at least without the ability to put something real on my screen.  This wouldn't even be an issue, except this is a game that can DECIDE THE WINNER OF THE DIVISION.  I've seen dozens of other sport's broadcasts where they have technical difficulties, but at worst, they have, on screen, something saying they are having problems with the broadcast, and at least better, have the broadcasters on telephones, at least giving the play-by-play, even without the video.  Yea, I know, I could find a radio and get the game, but I pay way too much money for my cable TV, so I am way pissed off.  I just did a quick check of the Major League Baseball site, I see my Indians scored a run, and I can't watch it because, well, now I'm stuck watching Martha Stewart in her Apprentice version.  Fine, I hate to admit that I sort of wanted to see that show, but right now, baseball takes a lot more precedence over what Martha will say when she cans someone.  Yes, I did call the cable company, and they said they are having problems, but the dude on the phone, who seemed nice enough, said he had no idea when the problem would be fixed.  The problem isn't when it will be fixed, it's just that why should I have to call?  Why can't you put something on my TV screen that says there are problems going on, rather than just "No signal."

Oh, by the way, for this episode, Martha said "Jeffrey, you just don't fit in."  Then told him "Goodbye," and wrote him a note.  But now it's time for "Lost," and hopefully the game will be back on, otherwise, I'll just have to keep watching my internet screen to seen the Gameday Live update.

If I can get to another blog tomorrow, I'll explain how God must have messed up, but for now I'm just pissed.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:08 PM | Comments (0)

September 20, 2005

There's Just Too Much TV, and The Cleveland Indians Aren't Helping.

By: The Dude on the Right
Only a few days into the fall television season, and I am quickly realizing that I am screwed because now baseball is getting in the way. Pretty much having lived in the Chicago area longer than I lived in the Cleveland area, I aligned myself with the Cubs. But at the beginning of this baseball season, the Chicago White Sox were going crazy, and it was just baseball that was fun to watch. My Cleveland Indians weren't doing all that great, and lord knows the Cubs were all over the map that you couldn't get around them, and I'm not saying my allegiance shifted from the Cubs to the White Sox, but I would find it cool to get a playoff team that seemed destined to go all the way, so I started rooting for the Sox. But then a couple of funny things happened. First, the White Sox started not playing so well. Second, the Indians started playing phenomenal baseball, and on sports talk-radio all over Chicago, everyone was worried about the Indians. And now look, the Tribe took the first game of this huge series against the Sox, and if you look at their remaining schedules, the Indians look poised to make one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history while the White Sox fans will no longer be able to make fun of the Cubs and their '69 demise, because, well, their demise may rank right back up there in the baseball disaster record books.

But that's not why I'm screwed. Nope, tonight the ballgame is on, but in conflict with many another show. I've got "The Biggest Loser," the season finale of "Big Brother 6," the premiere of "My Name is Earl" and "The Office," not to mention the conflict with the damn "Dancing With the Stars" dance-off, and the conclusion of "Rock Star: INXS." Sure, I've got a TIVO, and an old VCR, but I don't think that is going to cut it. I was trying to get around it, but dammit, I might have to look into getting another TIVO, or the digital recorder from my cable company, or just throw all of my TV's out the window and read a book instead. The latter will never happen, but for now, all I know is that for my television viewing this Tuesday evening, I'm screwed.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:27 PM | Comments (0)

September 16, 2005

"Survivor" Was Great, but Why Are We Doing a Podcast?

By: The Dude on the Right.
Again I give myself dilemmas.  It's bad enough I'm already getting sucked into the fall television season, with my already being pretty much hooked on "The Biggest Loser" and "Survivor," but I know the new seasons of everything else I like are coming up quickly.  Then I started questioning just why in the hell am I really starting a podcast.  I mean, what's really the point.  I have the website, I have this blog, and now it seems I'm just being redundant with the podcast thing.  But I've got something to say, and it's a place to say it, so for now I'm going to just go with the flow, and maybe figure a way all of the things can meld together in a really coherent way.

The weather is finally a little better here in the Chicago area, although it's supposed to warm up again next week, but we'll see how that goes.  I've got movie dilemmas, choosing between "Lord of War" or "Just Like Heaven," there's the Bears game on Sunday afternoon eating into my movie-watching time, I'm covering My Chemical Romance Sunday night, and I still haven't seen the damn penguin movie although everyone says it is incredible.  That, and I'm heading back to the old country, alright, just Ohio, next weekend, so we'll see how all of that plays into things as the upcoming week comes along.

I did do another podcast so use the highlighted link to get there because I'm still trying to figure the best way/placing of our podcast link on our pages.  Tomorrow, though, I'm thinking all of these dilemmas will be history, because I'll have $250 million dollars to work with to solve them because I have the winning Mega Millions ticket in my pocket!

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 7:33 PM | Comments (0)