How my favorite shows stack up.

I now know that my favorite show is not going anywhere. NUMB3RS, a CBS drama at 10:00 on Fridays had a rating of 7.1/13 shares. This was the highest rated show on the networks for Friday night. To be honest, this sort of suprised me. I watch TV late at night on Friday but I didn't realize so many other people were doing the same thing. I am thankful that I will still have the dynamo mathematician Charlie Epps to adore for a few more years to come. The other show that I watch during the week is Grey's Anatomy which last week had a rating of 14.3/22. This gave it an overall rating of third. So, needless to say, Grey's Anatomy will not be going anywhere for awhile. I also like to watch HGTV, but I was unable to find their ratings. I think that must mean that they're low, but it isn't surprising for such a niche channel. On their site they claim to average about 1. I don't know what my favorite show, house hunters, gets. But, since they show it very often I think that it must be getting pretty good ratings. Hopefully the nielsen ratings will allow my favorite shows to stay on the air for long into the future!

Ever get the feeling you're being played?

Do all criminal minds think alike? Not according to this film. In the 2004 drama Criminal, with humor interspersed, director Gregory Jacobs makes the audience sit on the edge of their seat and pay attention. Through twists and turns the plot thickens and as the movies tagline promises, you get played.

In the beginning we meet Rodrigo, played by Diego Luna, a small time con artist stealing a few bucks from waitresses in a casino. He attracts the attention of the bigger crook Richard Gaddis, played by John C. Reilly, who happens to be looking for a new partner. Rodrigo happens to look like a nice guy and Gaddis decides to try him out for a day, no strings attached. Rodrigo appears to be happy to oblige since he is stealing money to help pay for his father’s surgery.

Suddenly we meet Gaddis’ sister and brother who only muddle our view of him further. What appears to be a con artist with a good heart is now a brother attempting to dupe his own family. Through it all Rodrigo holds on, apparently to keep hold of his chance a getting a big score on the coattails of the larger crook. Then a man who collects rare money comes into town and the pair has a chance at passing a counterfeit bill and getting their big score.

While it may seem like you know the humble Rodrigo the family man, you know nothing at all. Take the plunge and get played, it’s a ride that will never be forgotten.

No Crash and Burn Here

Crash, brought to life by director Paul Haggis, is an enlightening view of stereotypes and prejudice in today’s world. For those who think that discrimination is gone it will rattle their cage. For those who know see discrimination around them it will show a more in depth view of the inner workings of relationships.

A set of people who appear to have no common ground interact in modern day L.A. It is through “crashing” into each other that they see inside of themselves to the person within. The main focus of the film is exposing characters back-story. To see the why behind their actions that it may be better understood why they make certain choices. After viewing the film I began to question, what was that man’s back-story who was working at the counter who I snapped at? The movie strives to remove racial barriers and does a good job of it. It also helps to show the barriers that still hold people of color back in the world. The interaction of the characters, which are a rainbow of races, shows the true nature of interracial relationships. This includes policeman to citizens, politicians to policeman, upper-class to maids, and many other variations. While these day to day interactions may not seem significant they help to define the world which is L.A.

The film also utilizes dramatic circumstances to enhance the meaning of the film. At times it is so gripping that I felt myself clutching the seat, hoping for the scene to resolve and pass. And, the title does not disappoint, there are literal crashes throughout the film that help add to the dramatic impact.

The only drawback to the film is that snap stereotypes are used over and over. While it may be necessary because of how many characters are presented, it still diminishes the film at times. It seems like you are being hit in the head with stereotypical character after character. While they unfolded to a deeper person eventually at times, it put a damper on trying to minimize racial stereotypes.

Overall the movie was a true gem. It opened my eyes to the fact that while we may all be players on a stage, there is a backstage where people choose their mask. I highly recommend it to every moviegoer.

The Farnsworth Story

The story of Philo T. Farnsworth is a sad chronicle of how big business pushes out the little man in American history. He was a fairly uneducated man who taught himself electronics using magazines in his family’s attic. When he was only in high school Philo began to draw sketches of electron tubes. This fascination continued and he eventually decided to try his hand at making an electronic television. He convinced a few investors to back him and set up a small lab in California. This became like a family, with even his investors working by his side to create the first electronic television. Eventually, after much work, he accomplished his goal and was able to transmit an image.

At the same time, RCA was working towards the same goal. Their researcher, Vladimir Zworykin, visited Farnsworth’s lab in 1930 and essentially stole much of his work sending back to RCA a 400 word telegraph. Realizing that they would need to buy Farnsworth out because he had documentation for his discovery, they offered him a lump sum for his design. Farnsworth saw the need for his invention and joined the company Philco in an attempt to protect himself within a large company.

RCA would not stop and began to pull Farnsworth through a long legal battle. Eventually Farnsworth left Philco for personal reasons. He then had his own company which broadcast television regularly. Unfortunately, he was drug through the courts over and over again, eventually giving up and selling out to RCA. This caused him to have severe psychological damage and was an alcoholic for a large part of his life. The television was revealed at the World’s Fair in 1939 as though it was brand new, with no mention of Farnsworth.

This story, though sad, is just another example of a little person being pushed out by big business. Farnsworth was a genius and had amazing ideas. What he didn’t have was enough money to be able to withstand a long legal battle with one of the biggest corporations in the nation. RCA did not want to pay Farnsworth for using the parts he had patents on and instead tried to force him into submission. They used their power, which was money, to force a small businessman into selling out his idea.

While it is comforting to think that this doesn’t happen anymore, that there are enough laws to protect small businesses, it would be a naïve view of the world at best. Wal-mart is tearing through communities and sentencing the small business to death. My parents own a small business and they cannot raise their prices because there is a Wal-mart down the street. So, they are forced to make significantly less than what they should be making because they have to compete with a corporation with an endless supply of money. In America that is what it comes down to in business, those with money on top and those without on the bottom.

Source:

Philo T. Farnsworth. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philo_Farnsworth