We read a bunch, but still have television faves

Writer’s Roost


 

 

We try not to be TV addicts at our house. Reading occupies a significant portion of our time with newspapers heading the daily list, followed closely by books with the shrinking news magazine list a distant third.

Being able to access some of that reading material via computer is an addicting asset, both from a time and cost standpoint. You can subscribe to newspapers and magazines online and you can buy Kindle and iBooks online as well. Plus, as community newspaper folks most of our lives, we tend to smudge our fingers with printers ink from as many of those as we can get our hands on. (We could be fingerprinted at almost any time of the day.)

Life Mate Julie and I have very similar tastes in both reading and in television viewing with some natural differences considering she’s a gal and I’m a guy. VIVE’ LA DIFFERENCE! But, I digress. We’re here to talk about television shows and the probable inordinate amount of time we all devote to the small screen. Besides, the “difference” topic could get “embarrasking” as one of my heroes, Popeye, would say. So, let’s get serial.

We divide our viewing into two categories — (1) news and information; and (2) entertainment.

Obviously, entertainment provides more viewing hours than news, but we try to be selective there because we believe it is essential to stay informed.

Mysteries, detective shows and historical fiction seem to top our entertainment list considering the numbers of those shows on both prime time TV, re-runs and re-cycling via the non-network channels. Most people plow that same straight row. The TV folks make their very good living from viewership and the polls don’t lie, do they?

Two shows top my poll and, by the way, none of those TV polling people have ever asked us what we like (which is fine Network prezs, so don’t call). And, uh, please check with us before changing the lineup.

I’d rate Law & Order: SVU (Special Victims Unit) and Blue Bloods as tied for first for me and Julie lives for Downton Abbey.

SVU features Mariska Hargitay, Richard Belzer, Dann Florek and former rapper Ice-T. All are detectives in the unit, which focuses mainly on sex crimes (many of which, of course, lead to murders and other major crimes).

Hargitay has perhaps the most interesting background in that she is the daughter of the late glamour queen Jayne Mansfield and body-builder and Hungarian-born former Mr. Universe Mickey Hargitay. Almond-eyed beauty Hargitay plays detective Olivia Benson and does so in a manner that elicits very favorable comments from viewers, including some former sex-crime victims who choose to speak up because of the show.

Blue Bloods stars one of my TV favorites, Tom Selleck, as the leader of a family of policemen (with due respect to his retired former cop father, played by Len Cariou). Bridget Moynihan provides beauty and sex appeal. Moynihan was once married to pro football quarterback Tom Brady who stupidly dumped her (Ich!) to marry some South American sex goddess. She is Selleck’s assistant district attorney daughter in the show. Donnie Wahlberg, who stole my hair-do and hairline, is another Selleck’s son following in Dad’s footsteps. Baby-faced Will Estes, who provides sex appeal for women viewers, plays Selleck’s youngest son, a young street cop. I’ll watch Selleck in anything. And, Moynihan, I’ll just watch…and watch…. and…

All of this is made with one other caveat.

Mystery and detective shows are fun to watch, unless there’s a good, relevant football or basketball game on the tube (baseball on TV puts me to sleep).

But, I’ll drop all of that to read a good historical treatise or a mystery novel anytime.

Now, if someone would just write a history-based mystery for TV show or movie pitting a football star versus a basketball star, I’d really be entranced.

WILLIS WEBB is a retired community newspaper publisher of more than 55 years experience. He can be reached by email at wwebb1937@att.net.


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