andybugay.com

When I truly care enough to have a website, this exists. andybugay at hotmail dot com

[andybugay]

My least favorite complaint about NBC's Olympic coverage

Okay, I know. NBC's Olympics coverage isn't perfect. Their website sucks when you try to find the live streaming coverage. They hack the opening and closing ceremonies to bits and block live access to them that doesn't require wading into legal grey areas. The only coverage on free TV is sappy, edited pablum akin to a reality show. Right, I get it. And I'd agree.

But the one complaint I just can't stand is this: "The Olympics should be made available completely free."

No, it doesn't have to be made completely free to anyone. Sure, apparently the BBC and CBC air more things live on free TV than NBC does. They're also big, beefy public broadcasters that receive mandatory (for the BBC, if you want to own a TV) tax dollars from the citizenry, something NBC doesn't get. I'm not arguing for or against moving the games to a public broadcaster, but just know the facts. NBC is entirely a capitalistic venture.

And so is live sports. As DVR-proof programming, it's increasingly valuable. And some companies that run cable networks have realized they can make so much more money from cable companies if they put live sports on cable. That's why the BCS moved to ESPN (and its successor will be there too). That's why the Final Four will be on TBS this year.

Am I defending any of that? Not really. But people don't seem to complain about that as much as they do about the part of NBC's Olympics coverage worth watching being on cable or streaming with cable authorization. I guess I would understand why the Olympics are put on a pedestal compared to those other sports, as many see them as an altruistic means of promoting world peace, something college football doesn't do. But still, it's heavily bankrolled by massive corporations like McDonald's and Coca-Cola. While the IOC itself is nonprofit, don't think they don't mind other profiting off their image.

I love the Olympics, and a lot of NBC's cable and streaming coverage is great, even if not perfect. But the Olympics is still a live sporting event with a lot of money put in it. And while you're entitled to think what you want about NBC's coverage, demanding that they just give all of it to you for free is unreasonable.

Cheaper? Maybe. But not entirely free. Come on.

[andybugay]

vigniette 2: where's karen?

2

[andybugay]

script 1 (test)

script 1 by andybugay

[andybugay]

Another Thing About a Yahoo! Thing Oh God Why

So this happened right at the stroke of midnight on the east coast, where a company decided to jerk people around with a 30-day jaunt through playing around with their well-known logo and then decided to, well, come up with this thing.

The Internet's reaction: Really?

First glance, this thing is nothing. Yahoo's old logo had character and had the spunk and surfer-dude mentality of the go-go dawn-of-the-web '90s. Was it a fantastic logo? Not really. Did it represent its company well? In the '90s, probably, as Yahoo was not much more than a nifty web directory and search engine at the time. Nowadays, as Marissa Mayer is trying to reshape Yahoo as a multi-platform "media" company with a name people still equate with the nifty web directory and search engine that's now more of a relic than a current thing? Not so much.

What the heck is Yahoo now? It's a company with the logo of a cosmetics company on acid.

But more importantly, what is this logo and what does it represent? It probably represents missed opportunities to improve. Look at the company's much-ballyhooed attempts to redesign its sites. Most notably for me, the new Yahoo Sports is awful. One of the nicest things about Yahoo Sports is its great blogs, which used to have prominent placement on the front page. Now they're hidden under a tab marked "Blogs" just above an endless-scrolling vomit of random news. The BuzzFeed model doesn't work for everything, you know. There's no longer a place to feature the best content-- it all just spews from the stream. And the layouts for the blogs are pretty bad, too. White text on dark? Come on.

How about Flickr? Hey, remember when I said they didn't make any changes to Flickr? THEY MADE CHANGES TO FLICKR. And they're terrible. Old Flickr's search results were well-organized and paginated. New Flickr, with its endless scrolling, slows down even the fastest of computers, even to the point of a script timeout. Great job, Flickr!

So of course I'd expect this logo from Yahoo. It doesn't fit a company desperately trying to adapt to a changing Internet and missing the point entirely.

It should be noted that according to a survey, this was the best of the "30 days of change" logos:

Looks familiar, doesn't it? That's because it's the old Yahoo logo without serifs. Instead of making massive changes and just assuming the public's going to accept them, why not change things more subtly and over time? Would it be a fix for Yahoo's identity crisis? Not entirely, but it's better than going to the extreme and alienating everybody.

[filmgirl]

Designed by Apple in California

[andybugay]

Hate me all you want. This commercial gives me the chills. And iOS 7 is awesome. I might write something about it later. Jony Ive’s new design hits all the right notes.

[andybugay]

A Few Things I'm Working On

I've decided to use my Google+ profile as a place to curate good video-based things I see online, under the hashtag #HeyWatchThis. They'll follow a pattern that changes slightly. I might post some of them here sometimes as well.

Also, my debut at the world's repository of lists and gifs, FeedBuzz, is now up. Let's nostalgia, web friends!

[andybugay]

Everybody Calm Down

Yes, everybody. Calm down.

I figured we'd get some sort of hyperbolic reaction to Yahoo!, the Uncool Tech Company From the Nineties or Something, buying Tumblr, the Hip Young Breeder of Ideas and Feelings and the Pulse of [[OUR!!!]] Generation. Yep. Enn-a-da-world. Is CompuServe gonna buy Pinterest now??? Netscape gonna buy Spotify?!?!? AOL gonna buy the Huffington P--

Oh, right. That one happened. And the Huffington Post has been largely allowed to exist independently. In fact, AOL shuttered its entire news department in favor of letting HuffPost be its news department, for better or worse.

Yes, it's apples and oranges. But it is an example of an older, declining-in-relevance Web outfit snapping up a younger, hipper outfit. You know what's a closer comparison?

Flickr, which got snapped up about a year after its creation, saw very little of its independence threatened. You can still post dirty things to Flickr. You will probably still be able to post dirty things to Tumblr.

In the nineties and early 2000s, it was about establishing portals and consolidating content. That's why Yahoo! was eager to smash GeoCities hard under its brand and why Microsoft rushed to slap the MSN logo on Hotmail (later slapping the Windows Live branding on it, and then finally killing the brand off this year in favor of Outlook).

However, in recent years, tech brands are treated with more independence and autonomy. Microsoft bought Skype but hasn't changed it to Microsoft Skype or Windows Skype. Google bought YouTube, and it's still called YouTube. Yahoo! bought Flickr, and it's still called Flickr. Facebook bought Instagram, and Instagram is still terrible.

So calm down. Chances are in a few years you'll be required to link your Tumblr account to your Yahoo! account or be forced to start a new Yahoo! account. So dang what? I think Yahoo! knows the power of the Tumblr brand and what it entails, just like what it saw in the Flickr brand. Very little will change, and you'll be able to still post whatever the heck you want.

Are we calm now? Hope so.

[andybugay]

Let's Talk About NBA Expansion

First off, we need to admit, as a fanbase, it's going to happen. Yes, the better route for the NBA is contraction. There are too many teams unable to compete with the more successful teams. Promotion and relegation would be an awesome thing to try as well. But neither of things are going to happen. I'm guessing you're sitting down, so please don't be too shocked when I tell you it's about money. There's so much money going around, nobody wants to see teams just up and go away. And nobody wants to move their team into a second tier of a multiple-tier NBA. That's just how it is.

Now why am I talking about NBA expansion? Nobody's talking about it. The NBA has backed off at hinting at it. The NHL is, though. A league that normally is behind the NBA in attention, ratings and revenue is looking to expand to 32 teams. They made that apparent earlier this year when they approved realigning its 30 teams into conferences of 16 and 14, instead of 15 a side. The writing is on the wall there, and the NBA is very likely to follow suit. And as the NFL can tell you, 32 is a perfect number when it comes to alignment.

So where? The NHL has a much greater surface area to work with. They are likely to add teams in Canada, where demand is highest-- probably Quebec City first, then maybe a team in Toronto, its suburbs or Hamilton. But the NBA is more of a U.S.-only affair. Only 50% of its decision to expand into Canada in the 1990s worked, and there doesn't seem to be any demand from Canada for another NBA team at this point.

The NBA will expand to Seattle. There is a more-than-willing ownership group led by Chris Hansen and Microsoft honcho Steve Ballmer wanting to bring the SuperSonics back. But where else?

A couple of NHL markets could also support NBA teams. St. Louis had an NBA team ages ago (the now-Atlanta Hawks) as well as an ABA team (the Spirits of St. Louis). Pittsburgh is in the same boat as St. Louis. Both have arenas that have housed college basketball (Scottrade and Consol, respectively). So why not NBA basketball?

A possible dark horse is Louisville. Kentucky has no representative among the four major North American sports. But Kentucky loves basketball. Would they be willing to support the professional game? Louisville's KFC Yum! Center can hold 22,000 fans, many more than some current NBA arenas.

My top choice though, besides Seattle, would be Kansas City. Their arena, the Sprint Center, was built with the purpose of snagging an NBA or NHL franchise. Since Kansas City would be further down the NHL's list behind Canadian cities, the NBA would be a much better fit for them. And maybe it's for the better to not let St. Louis hog all the pro teams in Missouri. St. Louis can have the state's NHL team while Kansas City has the state's NBA team. And both cities already have an MLB team and an NFL team.

Like I said, expansion is not ideal. But it's inevitable. Let's just hope the NBA decides to put its product into markets where fans will definitely support it, like when it relocated into Oklahoma City. Let's just hope the NBA can find owners that will want to invest in a team and make it successful rather than want to coast off initial fan support but later do little to keep those fans.

[obamawhitehouse]

We see some great things here at the White House every day, and sharing that stuff with you is one of the best parts of our jobs. That’s why we’re launching a Tumblr. We’ll post things like the best quotes from President Obama, or video of young scientists visiting the White House for the science...

[andybugay]

That's right, kids, the White House has made the official declaration that "gif" is pronounced with a hard g, which puts them in #TeamHardG with Strong Bad and... uh, who else? #TeamSoftG is a bunch of people at Gawker, I think. Oh, and whoever owns the websites at the top of the Google results when you search "pronounce gif." This ain't over, kids. Not by a long shot.

[andybugay]

NFL Preview!!

Uh, kids, you want this? Okay! Let's do an preview of The Footballs League. It is the most imporpotant thing in the world, so people from around the world and also the Moon watch da niffle. So hurrrrrr.

*takes brain medicine*

I picked the game the NFL has already deemed as the "best game" from each week. Because I'm not good at judging quality.

WEEK 1: RAVENS AT BRONCOS

There was a bit of kerfluffle in Baltimore over this game not being in Baltimore, because the NFL always wants to have the Super Bowl champion from last year open the year at home. You see, the Orioles already had a game scheduled against the White Sox in their park, which shares a parking lot with the Ravens' stadium. So instead, the Ray Lewisless Ravens will open their season on the road against lovable Southern goob Peyton Manning and his newest weapon, Wes "ley Crusher" Welker (more on him later). This game will be a tapestry of excellence, and it probably will have lots of Joe Flacco passes. Watchability score: 8

WEEK 2: BRONCOS AT GIANTS

You know that Peyton Manning? He has a brother. His name is Eli (like that movie. Wait, that was the book of Eli. The movie was My Name is Earl. No wait, that was the TV show. Or was it My Name is Jonas? Wait no, that's the band with the brothers. No wait, that's Band of Brothers. Wait no, that was a song by Weezer. No wait, that's Weezy Jefferson. no wait, that's Jefferson Starship. No wait, that's Starship Galactica. No wait, that's BATTLESHIP Galactica. No wait, that's Battleship. The movie. Based on the board game. That's what I was reaching for!). They're brothers and they play quarterback and sometimes they play each other. Watchability score: 12, 14 if stoned

WEEK 3: CHIEFS AT EAGLES

Andy Reid was the head coach of the Eagles. But then, something happened that ROCKED HIS WORLD: *record scratch* HE GOT FIRED. *cue "I Feel Good"* Now he's the head coach of the Chiefs, and he has to face his old team! Luckily for him, his new team is composed entirely of third graders! Can Andy Reid coach up his team to take on the evil Michael Vick? Wait, is Michael Vick even going to be playing this year? Is he still in prison? Who really cares? Watchability grade: C- (because the Chiefs really are third graders)

WEEK 4: STEELERS AT VIKINGS

This is the annual contest held in London, and with it Roger Goodell will tell the London faithful that he wants to expand the league to London because he thinks it's hilarious that one team has to travel thousands of miles more than the other 31 or so teams in the US. But hey, Roger Goodell has invented going faster than the speed of light because he's God or something. Watchability rating: three and a half footballs (out of 6)

WEEK 5: SAINTS AT BEARS

Both of these dudes used to go to Purdue: Saints quarterback Drew Brees and Bears quarterback Kyle Ort-- *crumples up sheet of paper* The Saints' offensive coordinator is now the Bears' offensive coordinator because he was kicked off the team because of the bounty scandal. Wait, that's not right. *crumples up sheet of paper* I'm typing this on a computer. Why am I also writing something on paper? *crumples up sheet of paper* Uh, this game isn't really that interesting. Two sketchy quarterbacks and some stout defenses. We hope. Watchability verdict on count 1 (aggravated murder): three thumbs up (out of 11)

WEEK 6: REDSKINS AT COWBOYS

Although Griffin says he's close, he also admitted that he really has no idea when he'll return: "I just know that I'm close, and I'm taking every day seriously... it could be tomorrow, and I could feel like I could play the next game. Nobody knows but God." The 2012 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year continues to participate in quarterbacking drills and said he's made improvement, but his knee is not yet what it was before tearing his ACL and LCL in his right knee in the first round of last season's playoffs. Adidas rating: 3 stripes

WEEK 7: BRONCOS AT COLTS

Peyton Manning brings his Mastercard commercials and two million free pizzas to the house he used to own but is now occupied by Andrew Luck, noted architect. Both guys will quarterback the heck out of their respective teams, and you'll probably hear about 3,000 stories about JUST HOW THE INDY CROWD WILL REACT to their prodigal son returning, in exact words said by every person in the crowd and decibel level. Rick Reilly just had a nosebleed. Awesome rating: 20% more

WEEK 8: PACKERS AT VIKINGS

America will be watching as one of the league's most beloved players makes his debut with a new team. Brian Urlacher is a multiple-time Pro Bowler, and his Vikings debut will be one of the most anticipated events on the NFL calendar. Will he out-sack his old nemesis, Clay Matthews? He knows the fans-- whom he cares about very much-- will want to know. Jenny McCarthy's interest level: .3

WEEK 9: TITANS AT RAMS

"So let me get one thing straight here. We have a pro football team now, but they're in Nashville?"

"Em... yeah. Oh my god! Okay, they used to be in Houston. First, they were the Oilers, but now they're the Titans."

"Houston Oilers are the Tennessee Titans."

"Yeah, and that's not all. They went to the Super Bowl last year."

"Well, I missed that."

"I nearly died! It was so exciting. They almost won by one yard. One lousy yard right at the end."

"Wow. Went to the Super Bowl."

"Oh, and also, 13 years from now, they'll play another game against the Rams. That's who won the Super Bowl. Only this time, uh, the Titans' coach is the Rams' coach."

"In a Super Bowl?"

"Uh, no. Regular season game."

"Wait, why is this important? And why do you know what happens 13 years from now?"

"Because that is the date of your death, Chuck." Director's cut runtime: 172 min.

WEEK 10: PANTHERS AT 49ERS

The Panthers' quarterback is Cam Newton, who is known for running a lot. The 49ers' quarterback is Colin Kaepernick, who is known for running a lot. So in this game, I predict a lot of running. Perhaps we'll see Cam Newton and Colin Kaepernick run in opposite directions until they both run around the world and then finally collide AND OH GOD THE WORLD ENDS but it can't because there needs to be more NFL football next week! And we can't have the world ending, now can't we?! Pitchfork rating: 6.8

WEEK 11: PACKERS AT GIANTS

This game really has no storyline other than both of these teams are pretty good. Aaron Rodgers is good at this football thing and so is Eli Manning. Both teams have dedicated fanbases. And this game will take place in MetLife Stadium, the stadium that hosts this year's Super Bowl. It's a fabulous stadium that holds over 80,000 people. That's more people than some cities! Watchability credit score: find out by clicking here!

WEEK 12: BRONCOS AT PATRIOTS

The aforementioned Wes Welker was Tom Brady's favorite target last year. But not so fast, Tom Brady! The Patriots didn't want Welker anymore, so they threw him in the dumpster. And who was dumpster diving in Foxborough, Mass. on that cold winter night? None other than Broncos president John Elway, looking for a wide receiver for his pal Peyton Manning. It was a Christmas miracle, and nobody said anything about John Elway reeking of garbage. Non-sequitur words: Number, or maybe some funny word replacing a number

WEEK 13: STEELERS AT RAVENS

It's Turkey Day (get it?!) and the NFL decided to make good with the Ravens for not giving them Week 1 at home by giving them the big Thanksgiving night game. These two teams have really powerful defenses, so we're predicting about 25 bodies will be pounded into a singularity that will turn into a black hole that will consume the slowest players. So speed up, slow players! Watchability rating: who cares, you're zonked out on turkey and wine and will watch anything at this point

WEEK 14: SEAHAWKS AT 49ERS

It's the Battle of the Crazy Persons as certifiable crazy person Pete Carroll leads Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks into San Francisco to take on certifiable crazy person Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers! Watch these guys yell, pout and otherwise make bizarre, GIFable faces into your heart this winter! Watchability index: high. Wear sunscreen.

WEEK 15: PACKERS AT COWBOYS

Faaaaarrrrrrtttttttt. Watchability rating: Tony Romo

WEEK 16: FALCONS AT 49ERS

A rematch of last year's NFC title game. We all know how that one ended, with the Niners going to the Super Bowl where the power went out and nobody won, or maybe it ended in a tie. But anyway. Matt Ryan wants revenge on Colin Kaepernick, who hasn't stopped running since the Carolina game. Also, I just realized I could have used Full House as a 49ers picture, and we're all out of Niners games. Oh well. Watchability rating: 20X6

WEEK 17: PACKERS AT BEARS

You know what? Forget Bears vs. Packers. This is Marc Trestman vs. his evil past. Will the Bears make the playoffs? And if not, will Chicago sports radio collapse under the pressure of the FIRE MARC TRESTMAN calls the next day? Of course it will. Sleep tight, Chicago. This is the season you've been dealt. Watchability rating: the song of the demons of the end times

[nbcnightlynews]

“Michelle and I are saddened to hear about the passing of Roger Ebert. For a generation of Americans - and especially Chicagoans - Roger was the movies. When he didn’t like a film, he was honest; when he did, he was effusive - capturing the unique power of the movies to take us somewhere...

[andybugay]

(Statement from President Obama above.)

I don't reblog things enough. And I'm currently sifting through all of the Twitter goodness of Roger Ebert's life. He was a brilliant person and a singular authority on film for my entire life. His later years have taught many to persevere. And now he succumbs to the same fate that took his partner back in 1999. No one can replicate what he was able to do for film criticism and what he was able to do for Chicago. The balcony is closed.

[andybugay]

"Last Exit to Springfield" is not the greatest episode of The Simpsons in the world, but this is just a tribute... nonetheless.

This episode aired 20 years ago today (March 11, 1993), and many folks who are very much into cataloging the existence of the Saturday Night Live of animated TV (I guess I'm still part of that mix, aren't I?) have long considered this episode to be one of the best, if not the best, episodes in the show's almost-quarter-century run.

Given the shortcomings of the show's recent seasons (too dull, too formulaic, too meta, too reliant on celebrity guest stars or "we're still relevant!" publicity stunts), "Last Exit to Springfield" is often lionized and deified in the Simpsons fandom as The Perfect Episode. Thing is, though, it's no island.

It aired in the show's sweet spot, season 4. While seasons before and after it also produced great memories, virtually every episode in season 4 was a home run, and some of the moments in those episodes are some of the most oft-reminisced among Simpsons fans. "A Streetcar Named Marge" and its wacky re-imagining of "A Streetcar Named Desire." Burns and Smithers holding Tom Jones hostage in "Marge Gets a Job." Bart, using a VCR, pinpointing the moment Ralph's heart breaks in half in "I Love Lisa." Lionel Hutz' paean to "bourbon, brownest of the brown liquors" in "Marge in Chains." A flashback episode done perfectly in "Lisa's First Word." A clip show-- ye gods, a clip show-- done well in "So It's Come to This." This is the season book-ended by "Kamp Krusty" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled," two episodes that gave some depth to a character we probably didn't expect depth from before. And on top of all that, season 4 gave the world "Whacking Day," "Marge vs. the Monorail" and "Mr. Plow"-- episodes so ingrained in the cultural zeitgeist of the Simpsons generation I don't even need to explain them further. You know them and love them. Probably.

So it somewhat bewilders me that "Last Exit to Springfield" gets cherry-picked as The Perfect Episode, but I get it. It's everything people want in a Simpsons episode. It has a down-to-earth plot that most people relate to, involving labor issues and unions, as well as a family's need to keep their finances in check (Lisa needing braces). It has cultural references that are timeless rather than timely, invoking Yellow Submarine, Chuck Jones' TV adaptation of How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Tim Burton's Batman ("The mirror. THE MIRROR!"), Citizen Kane, "Classical Gas" and Moby-Dick. It has Homer in the role he's best in: as an unwitting, bumbling (but not too bumbling) hero. It has Mr. Burns as a perfect villain, who puts his power to good (evil) use by cutting Springfield's power when the union wouldn't cooperate. It has some of the greatest memorable laugh-out-loud moments, such as Homer acting out on his threat to punch Lenny in the face, or Grampa and his story that goes nowhere about onions on his belt, which was the style at the time. It has Dr. Joyce Brothers, making a cameo appearance out of left field (she brought her own mic). It has monkeys that can't spell. It makes fun of the British.

To me, it's not The Perfect Episode, but rather A Perfect Episode to Rule Them All. I consider many of the episodes from seasons 2 through 8 pretty darn perfect, even as the show began to evolve and warp with different showrunners. Perfect mixes of clever stories and well-done jokes. I could go into the show's decline into madness, but nobody wants to read that right now. Instead, I simply tip my hat to "Last Exit to Springfield," still great after two decades.

[andybugay]

New tumblr about a headline-writing crutch that is hilariously prevalent when people post articles about a certain TV show. (I'm not mad at anyone; it's just funny.) Enjoy.

[andybugay]

Dispatches from Bigdogtown, Part 1

The Bigdogtown City Council recently passed a controversial law and the police aren't too happy not enforcing the old law.

The local gas station is now accepting payments via cell phone. It's an innovative first in Bigdogtown, but the locals don't seem to get it.

Mayor Clint Mastiff of Bigdogtown has unveiled a new hotline service to keep citizens updated on the latest news involving the Mayor's Office. "It's important to keep citizens updated on things," Mastiff remarked.

A protest was held today on the steps of Bigdogtown Town Hall today. Protestors were demanding the City Council impose an official language for Bigdogtown, as they felt other languages would be too diverse and confusing for others to understand.

One protest sign: "If you can't speak English with the Big Dogs, get off the country!"

A counterprotest is scheduled for 3 p.m. later today.

Arfold Beagleston, 42, of Bigdogtown, came home from work as he normally does. He opened his mail, noting how much junk mail there was. "You'd think with email nowadays, we wouldn't need to get all of this paper junk nonsense," he said.

He'd sit down in front of the computer and go to Dog YouTube and watch a bunch of old beer commercials. He could tell you about all the great Barkweiser commercials they used to air during the Swoofer Bowl, and how Curs Light used to employ popular actor If Morgan Freeman Were a Dog to do bark-overs for their ads. "It was a glorious time for beer commercials," noted Beagleston.

Beagleston would settle on his couch after an hour or so, and he'd  watch whatever was on Dog ESPN and remember that today was SUPPOSED to be his anniversary with his wife. His wife, he thought. Right, I had one of those. Yeah, those were pretty good days, huh? No? Of course not. He never had a wife. A wife that actually cared about him. Nah. Never. He never had a wife that took thousands of dollars from him. Oh, no! Absolutely not! Never in a million years!

Maybe he could go out with his friends. Wait, did he still have his friends? Oh, right. They all left Bigdogtown for greener pastures and more attractive fire hydrants. They all had wives (WIVES!) and kids. They were all taking vacations overseas. They were sending their kids to fancy private obedience schools in the nice parts of town. I'm still here in Bigdogtown, he thought. I gotta hold the fort DOWN here! This is my place! My porch! Everyone else, he thought, simply can't run with me. They can't.

He opened another beer.

"I'm better off," he said. No. No he isn't, he thought.

Maybe one day, he'll finally find his beer commercial paradise.

Maybe.

[andybugay]

Unsolicited Proposal for the Entire Class for a Hypothetical Cartoon Voice Actor Hall of Fame

- Western only. If someone else wants to do anime/eastern work, be my guest. I'm just not skilled in knowing who's who in that realm.

- Not video games. I only included Frank Welker's voicing of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in the Epic Mickey games as an example because Oswald is a significant character in Disney history, and Disney chose Welker to be the official voice actor for the character as he returned to that company's ownership. So far, however, he's only appeared in video games in this capacity. Again, if someone else wants to do one for video games, be my guest.

- I originally wanted to exclude those who were more famous OUTSIDE voice acting, but then I realized that I'd be excluding some very important people who work very hard. Mark Hamill's an example. Same with Phil Hartman, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer and Seth MacFarlane. Same with Walt Disney.

- I included Boris Karloff because he did one voice, but it's a significant, iconic voice. Same with Walt Disney.

- The roles you see next to each entry are not necessarily the best roles for each actor, but rather the ones most people would recognize.

Knowing it would get unwieldy, I split the Hall of Fame into three wings:

- Versatility Wing: The men and women of a thousand voices, pretty much.

- Iconic Role Wing: Known for one specific role, even if the actor has done other roles (Dan Castellaneta is the prime example of someone I had to fight putting in two wings).

- Creator's Wing: Creators of their own role(s).

And now, the list, alphabetical order by first name.

ARTHUR Q. BRYAN (Iconic Role)

Elmer Fudd

BILLY WEST (Versatility)

Stimpy, Ren (after John Kricfalusi), Philip J. Fry, Dr. John Zoidberg, Professor Hubert Farnsworth, the red M&M (after Jon Lovitz), Bugs Bunny (in Space Jam)

BORIS KARLOFF (Iconic Role)

The Grinch

CHARLIE ADLER (Versatility)

Buster Bunny, Cow, Chicken, Ickis, both Bigheads

CHRISTINE CAVANAUGH (Versatility)

Chuckie Finster, Dexter, Oblina, Marty Sherman, Gosalyn Mallard

CLARENCE "DUCKY" NASH (Iconic Role)

Donald Duck

CREE SUMMER (Versatility)

Elmyra, the green M&M, Susie Carmichael, Penny (Inspector Gadget)

DAN CASTELLANETA (Iconic Role)

Homer Simpson, Abraham "Grampa" Simpson, "Diamond" Joe Quimby, Hans Moleman, Krusty the Clown, Groundskeeper Willie, Genie (Aladdin, after Robin Williams)

DAWS BUTLER (Versatility)

Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Elroy Jetson, Snagglepuss, Cap'n Crunch (original Jay Ward-produced commercials)

DON MESSICK (Versatility)

Scooby-Doo, Astro (The Jetsons), Papa Smurf, Boo Boo Bear, Dr. Benton Quest, Hamton J. Pig

FRANK WELKER (Versatility)

Fred Jones (in every animated incarnation of Scooby-Doo except for A Pup Named), Nibbler, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (in the Epic Mickey games), Kermit the Frog (Muppet Babies), Megatron, a massive number of roles doing animal sounds

GREY DELISLE (Versatility)

Daphne Blake (more recent Scooby-Doo incarnations), Vicky (The Fairly Oddparents), Frankie Foster, Mandy (The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy)

HANK AZARIA (Versatility)

Moe Szyslak, Apu, Comic Book Guy

HARRY SHEARER (Versatility)

Principal Seymour Skinner, Waylon Smithers, C. Montgomery Burns, Rev. Timothy Lovejoy, Ned Flanders, Kent Brockman

JACK MERCER (Iconic Role)

Popeye (after William Costello)

JEFF GLEN BENNETT (Versatility)

Johnny Bravo, Dad (Dexter's Laboratory)

JIM CUMMINGS (Versatility)

Winnie the Pooh (after Sterling Holloway), Tigger (after Paul Winchell), Scar (singing voice), Cat (the other half of Dog)

JOHN DiMAGGIO (Versatility)

Bender, Jake the Dog

JUNE FORAY (Versatility)

Rocket J. Squirrel, Natasha Fatale, Granny (Looney Tunes), Jokey Smurf, Cindy Lou Who

KATH SOUCIE (Versatility)

Phil, Lil and Betty Deville, Lola Bunny (in Space Jam), Cubert Farnsworth

KEVIN CONROY (Iconic Role)

Batman

LAUREN TOM (Versatility)

Amy and Inez Wong, Minh and Connie Souphanousinphone

MAE QUESTEL (Iconic Role)

Betty Boop, Olive Oyl

MARK HAMILL (Iconic Role)

The Joker, Skips (Regular Show)

MATT CHAPMAN (Versatility)

Every character in Homestar Runner not named Marzipan or in a "Powered by the Cheat" cartoon

MATT STONE (Creator's)

Every male voice on South Park not done by Trey Parker

MAURICE LaMARCHE (Versatility)

The Brain, Morbo

MEL BLANC (Versatility)

Original (or defining) voice for nearly every major Looney Tunes character, Barney Rubble, Cosmo Spacely, Heathcliff

MIKE JUDGE (Creator's)

Beavis, Butt-head, Hank Hill, Boomhauer

NANCY CARTWRIGHT (Iconic Role)

Bart Simpson, Ralph Wiggum, Nelson Muntz, Mindy (Animaniacs)

PAUL FREES (Versatility)

Boris Badenov, Ludwig von Drake

PAUL WINCHELL (Versatility)

Tigger, Dick Dastardly, Gargamel

PETER CULLEN (Iconic Role)

Optimus Prime, Eeyore

PHIL HARTMAN (Versatility)

Lionel Hutz, Troy McClure

PHIL LaMARR (Versatility)

Hermes Conrad, Wilt (Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends), Ollie Williams

PINTO COLVIG (Iconic Role)

Goofy

ROB PAULSEN (Versatility)

Yakko Warner, Pinky

SETH MacFARLANE (Creator's)

Peter Griffin, Brian Griffin, Stan Smith, Roger Smith, Stewie Griffin, Glenn Quagmire

STERLING HOLLOWAY (Iconic Role)

Winnie the Pooh

TARA STRONG (Versatility)

Bubbles (The Powerpuff Girls), Timmy Turner, Twilight Sparkle

THURL RAVENSCROFT (Iconic Role)

Tony the Tiger

TOM KENNY (Versatility)

SpongeBob SquarePants, Heffer Wolfe, The Ice King, Dog (the other half of Cat)

TRESS MacNEILLE (Versatility)

Agnes Skinner, Mom (Futurama), Dot Warner, Babs Bunny

TREY PARKER (Creator's)

Every male voice on South Park not done by Matt Stone

WALT DISNEY (Creator's)

Mickey Mouse

WILLIAM COSTELLO (Iconic Role)

Popeye

YEARDLEY SMITH (Iconic Role)

Lisa Simpson

[andybugay]

Scattershot Thoughts: Super Bowl Forty Seven

Something's on TV today. I've got words on it.

ON CBS' NEW GRAPHICS PACKAGE

They finally updated the graphics they've been using since before XLI. The only drawback is that they're using Klavika, and that's ESPN's font of choice. You'd think you wouldn't want to be like Bristol, but oh well it looks nice. And it looks closer to the graphics used by the CBS/Turner joint commission that airs the NCAA tournament.

ON CHARLES "PEANUT" TILLMAN BEING USED IN THE PREGAME SHOW

YAAAAAYYYYYYYY LOVE PEANUT HE PUNCHES SO HARD (But no, seriously, he would make a great broadcaster once he retires.)

ON THE 49ERS USING TUPAC'S "CALIFORNIA LOVE" AS ENTRANCE MUSIC

The Ravens should have come out to the theme from The Wire just to equal the badassery.

ON ALICIA KEYS' NATIONAL ANTHEM RENDITION

Really liked it, although I thought at the end for a second she was going to start adding new lines that aren't actually in the song and then break into "Livin' in America."

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 1

Budweiser Black Crown Lager: heh, Budweiser thinks they made a beer for elitists

M&M's: probably the best commercial so far because I like Meat Loaf (wait, do I really like Meat Loaf? No, not that much). But I do like Billy West.

Audi: nice use of Jack White, but meh

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 2

Hyundai: cute but meh

GoDaddy: once again, please stop existing as a company

Doritos: heh, animal attacks human yet again, but I didn't get the commercial very much, but whatever

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 3

Pepsi Next: heh heh unicorn head and a kid that looks like Michael Cera

Best Buy: might be winning the night on the shoulders of Amy Poehler alone. "Do you like it when I say 'dongle'?"

Budweiser Black Crown 2: okay, we get it, elitist Budweiser

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 4

Oz the Great and Powerful: Looks alright, very big-budgety

Coca-Cola: why spend the money on the ad slot if you're gonna run a commercial you've been running already

Oreo: screw you guys, I'm not using Instagram; otherwise, clever concept, heh, everybody's whispering. But why argue about the best part of the Oreo? Argue about something palpable, like the color of Sonic's wang.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 5 (END 1ST QUARTER)

Fast and Fast and Faster 4 Fast 6 Furious King's Rook 6 Furious: lol

Toyota RAV4: "I'm here to avenge my father's death!" "I'm right here!" Okay, that was a pretty good line, and the commercial itself was well thought out.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 6

Doritos 2: more cute than anything

Calvin Klein: kinda the same thing as that nearly-naked David Beckham ad from 1-2 years ago, right

cars.com: I like wolves and that was pretty clever. Better than the "talking hair" ad campaign.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 7

Bud Light: I'll give them credit for being venue-aware and putting a spin on their "superstition" campaign

GoDaddy: I like how we think they're going to make a commercial that isn't completely evil, and then it ends with a man calling a woman "sky waitress." Please die.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 8

Star Trek Into Darkness: looks alright

Got Milk?: Well I like the Rock and it's a fun premise, so not bad

Hyundai: Oh man, I can relate! But it really doesn't make for an exciting commercial.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 9

Volkswagen: Yep, just as I predicted, the commercial previewing the ad (the one with all the angry people from the viral videos) was far better than the actual ad. White guys talking in a Rastafarian accent! Sure!

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 10

Coca-Cola 2: Some sort of Road Warrior-esque bikers, a cowboy and a bus full of showgirls. Meh, I'll take it, but I don't want to go to some damn website right now (the showgirls won, revealed after the game)

Subway: You've been doing crappy Jared commercials for fifteen years?! Wow, I'm old.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 11 (2-MINUTE WARNING)

Taco Bell: fun.'s "We Are Young" in Spanish and old people acting young. The later comes imported from ex-corporate parent Pepsi, 1994. Hell, The Simpsons parodied it.

Skechers: Meh

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 12

Lincoln: Who the hell cares about anything else-- there's a guy dressed as Lincoln in Lincoln ads. That alone makes all other commercials irrelevant.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 13

(I wasn't going to comment on any NFL or CBS commercials, and this break only had the NFL Evolution ad, which has conspicuously had a very large number of plays lately)

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 14 (END 2ND QUARTER)

Untitled Stephen King Project: Stephen King is writing The SImpsons Movie?

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 15

(pre-halftime show break; CBS commercials only)

ON THE HALFTIME SHOW

Good to see Destiny's Child reunite (in advance of the new album), and Beyonce's a top-notch performer. I can't be snarky about that, although the audio sucked-- but that's par for the course for a Super Bowl halftime show.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 16

Something something Oprah: Wait, this is a Jeep commercial? Do I win a Jeep? Do I admit that I'm doping here? Did she just say "knowing is half the battle"? I love how a commercial with Oprah narrating is so self-important that it begins with a quote on the screen FROM OPRAH

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 17

Nothing to see here, just some silly CBS ads, local ads and that one commercial the NFL originally aired to apologize for the 2011 lockout

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 18 (NECESSITATED BY POWER OUTAGE)

Iron Man 3: well boy howdy, I want to see that

Century 21: Cute, although I miss the attractive C21 agent from last year's ads

BlackBerry: not that exciting, much like BlackBerry itself

E*Trade: I don't like the talking baby, but that was probably the cleverest one, all things considered

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 19 (IBID)

Subway: Again, it's not FebruANY anymore if you've raised some of the regular subs to $6

Bud Light 2: Continuing on the "mojo" theme. I'm beginning to like that.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 20 (IBID)

Another CBS ad. The lights are still out.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 21

We're beginning to see commercial repeats at this point.  Same Bud Light and Subway commercials from before.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 22

Axe: I get it. NASA gets you laid hahaha.. wait, does it?

MiO Fit: "We had man bands and we turned them into boy bands! We gotta change that back!" Saving grace for that commercial from Tracy Morgan.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 23

Kia: Sassy cyborg car models? Crazy enough to work.

Gildan: Cute. (I'm referring to the cat in this commercial. Reminds me of the memetic "I Can Has Cheezburger?" cat. It's a cute cat.)

Wonderful Pistachios: it's just recycling Gangnam Style to sell pistachios, so it really isn't an original idea

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 24

Lincoln 2: Screw Jimmy Fallon, WHERE WAS LINCOLN

Speed Stick: Trying too hard to make their way into Axe territory.

Beck's Sapphire: That beer kinda looks good, so I don't need a black fish floating in midair to sing "No Diggity" to it, but I guess it's a cute concept, maybe

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 25

Budweiser: Screw you Budweiser, I don't think that commercial was filmed in Chicago. That was the fake Chicago they used in Tommy Boy. So... Toronto?

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 26 (END 3RD QUARTER)

Again, CBS, NFL and local spots, but that NFL "Leon Sandcastle" ad is kinda funny because Deion Sanders is a lovable egomaniac

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 27

Ram: Well damn, an extra-long commercial with Paul Harvey in it. Paul... Harvey. Chicago radio legend I grew up with. That's... VERY different. But I think it worked. Very AMERICUHH, and blatantly theistic if you're sensitive to that, but I let it pass because it's Paul Harvey.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 28

Kia 2: Would have been funnier with Blake Griffin, but hey, BABY PANDAS SQUEEE

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 29

Tide: Pretty good. Would have been funnier if Joe Montana was actually in the commercial

SodaStream: Didn't Coke and Pepsi fight to not have this commercial air? Doesn't matter, I've seen it before.

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 30

Mercedes-Benz: Wait, a Benz under $30K? I think this ad WORKED. And all they needed to do was cast Willem Dafoe as Satan! (Also, I appreciated that the whole ad wasn't Half-Naked Kate Upton as the preview commercials led people to believe.)

ON COMMERCIAL BREAK 31 (2-MINUTE WARNING)

Samsung: Bob Odenkirk is in this. Some may disagree, but LeBron didn't ruin this commercial. Bob Odenkirk is in this.

ON THE GAME

Meh, I wanted the 49ers to win. Nice for New Orleans to throw in all that power outage drama, though. And the 49ers for trying to come back. I think Colin Kaepernick will continue to do well in the NFL.

ON RAY EMERY

He had 49 saves on Saturday night! Screw this Super Bowl popsicle stand. Back to hockey.

[andybugay]

Dissecting the New Presidential Portrait

First a heads up: this isn't going to be political in any way. Just a post about the quirks of presidential history. Probably only something I find interesting.

So this is President Obama's new portrait for his second term. It's a pretty big deal, since it replaces its predecessor in nearly every government building.

When I saw this for the first time, I didn't really believe it. Since when has such a nice photograph been the official presidential photo? Look at this photo. First off, it's cut off at the waist, not the chest. He's got the power "I'VE GOT THIS" pose going. And he's not posing for this photo against a stark background or nondescript bookcase. He's actually in the Oval Office, standing in front of (leaning on?) the Resolute desk. Oh, and he's smiling, but other presidents have smiled in their photo before.

But yeah, it's a significant contrast to what we've come to accept as the "usual" presidential photo portrait, and it's very different from the one he took in 2009. Get in the DeLorean, we're going on a ride.

Like the new one, it was taken by Pete Souza, who has been the official White House photographer since President Obama took office. It's the first official presidential photo to be taken with a digital camera. But content-wise, it was just like pretty much any presidential photo before it.

Right?

Okay, back in the DeLorean. Here are the portraits from the first and second term of George W. Bush.

Pretty much the same type of photo: above the bust, American flag in background, who-cares background. And yeah, Bush's second term began the tradition of wearing a flag pin, which is apparently required in the Constitution now or something according to some weirdo on YouTube because AMERICA.

Back in the DeLorean. Come on. No, you can't stay in 2000. We have to go. We can come back to prevent 9/11 later.

Before Bush II, there was Clinton. Despite serving two terms, I'm assuming he had only one presidential portrait, despite serving two terms. It's from 1992-3, and I couldn't find one from 1996-7.

Pretty much the same as Dubya's first portrait. Cut off at the chest, American flag, bookcase.

Back in the DeLorean. Again, if you want to stop the Macarena from being invented, we have to come back. Here we see George H.W. Bush's portrait from his sole term in office.

A little different. Cut off a little bit above the waist. But still essentially the same photo. Note he isn't doing anything with his arms, whereas you can see 2013 Obama's hands.

So now we get back in the DeLorean and set our sights back to the Gipper. First, here's his first-term portrait, in 1981:

Well, that'snew.Okay, let's see. His second-term photo. That'll be 1985. Hi, Marty. Let's see that one. I'm guessing it's the same, right?

WELL WILL YA LOOK AT THAT

Oval Office, Resolute desk... hell, you can even see the Oval Office's carpet here. It's not President Obama's power pose, but I wouldn't be surprised if Obama or Pete Souza took at least part of the inspiration for the current presidential portrait from this one.

Okay, I'm kicking you out of the DeLorean now. What? I didn't promise you anything. Shut up.