Category Archives: TV

“A Man Goes on a Journey” is every possible plotline known to man



36 Dramatic Situations - Georges Polti
36 Dramatic Situations – Georges Polti

Did you know that every story ever written can be put into one of many overall plot categories?

It’s been said that Shakespeare’s works cover the definitive list of seven plots:

  • Tragedy
  • Comedy
  • Overcoming the monster
  • Voyage and Return
  • Quest
  • Rags to Riches
  • Rebirth

Others, like Georges Polti, have said that there were 36 different dramatic situations, such as:

  • Deliverance
  • Crime
  • Disaster
  • Adultery
  • Obstacles to Love
  • Crimes of Love
  • etc

Continue reading "“A Man Goes on a Journey” is every possible plotline known to man" »

Also posted in Book, Movies, Websites | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

If you can read this, you’re old



Over the Hill Party Songs
Over the Hill Party Songs

Web Watch wants you to feel old.

That’s why we get so much amusement out of this list of 40 THINGS TO MAKE YOU FEEL REALLY, REALLY OLD.

It’s like that line from the TOO MUCH JOY song, TRAIN IN VAIN: “The Playboy centerfold is younger than me.. I don’t think I can ever feel the same again...”  Yeah, this list of things to make you feel old is kinda like that.  Let’s take a look at some of those 40 different items, shall we?

Continue reading "If you can read this, you’re old" »

Also posted in 10 Things, Funny, Movies, Music | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

You may not know Jesse Heiman, but you’ve seen him… everywhere



The Jerk Theory
The Jerk Theory

Do you know who Jesse Heiman is?

No?

You’re not alone.

Continue reading "You may not know Jesse Heiman, but you’ve seen him… everywhere" »

Also posted in Movies, Video | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

How to win at Jeopardy!



Suck it, Trebek t-shirt
“SUCK IT, TREBEK” t-shirt

We’ve been on a bit of a Jeopardy! roll recently here at Web Watch, but that’s not going to stop us from throwing another bit of fun at our readers — mainly because we want to see you get onto the show… and once there, win.

While you may have to practice your buzzer techniques in the privacy of your own home, there’s nothing stopping you from spending months memorizing 3×5 index cards that cover the typical subjects — British royalty, geography, and state capitols.  That’s what Jeopardy! superstar Ken Jennings did, and look at how well it worked for him.

Continue reading "How to win at Jeopardy!" »

Also posted in How To | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Why are animated FILMS never nominated for Best Director or acting awards?



Toy Story 3
Toy Story 3

It’s a completely legitimate question, especially as Pixar continues its stellar run of high-quality animated entertainment.

There’s a reason why TOY STORY 3 is nominated for Best Picture this year.  There’s a reason why UP was nominated for Best Picture last year.  There’s a reason why WALL-E‘s lack of a Best Picture nomination forced the Academy to increase the number of eligible Best Picture nominees from five to 10, thus ensuring that there would be 5 more chances for an animated film to lose any chance of ever winning a Best Picture award of its own outside of the animation categories.

Continue reading "Why are animated FILMS never nominated for Best Director or acting awards?" »

Also posted in Disney, Movies | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Krofft 40th anniversary H.R. Pufnstuf DVD & a live-action movie! (w/ Justin Bieber as Jimmy?)



Pufnstuf & Other Stuff: The Weird and Wonderful World of Sid & Marty Krofft
Pufnstuf & Other Stuff: The Weird and Wonderful World of Sid & Marty Krofft

Web Watch is a huge Sid & Marty Krofft fan.

From Sigmund and the Sea Monsters to H.R. Pufnstuf, to even their later efforts like D.C. Follies, Sid & Marty Krofft were always ahead of the curve in coming up with things that will appeal to kids (yet still have a little subversiveness to help draw in the parents).

We highly recommend the PUFNSTUF & OTHER STUFF book for a history of what the Kroffts have done, although more intellectual minds may want to take a gander at Sid and Marty Krofft: A Critical Study of Saturday Morning Childrens Television.

Continue reading "The Krofft 40th anniversary H.R. Pufnstuf DVD & a live-action movie! (w/ Justin Bieber as Jimmy?)" »

Also posted in Book, Movies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

This year’s Jeopardy! online test starts February 8th, 2011



Prisoner of Trebekistan - a Decade of Jeopardy!
Prisoner of Trebekistan – A Decade of Jeopardy!

Many years ago, Web Watch had an opportunity to take the JEOPARDY! contestant test.

It wasn’t easy – 50 rapid-fire questions that were asked so quickly so as to not give you the opportunity to go back and correct answers that you thought you’d be able to answer later lest you lose track of the current questions being asked.

Needless to say, we’re sometimes not the best test takers under pressure.  We missed the cut to move to the next round by 2 wrong answers.

It happens. Maybe next time.

Continue reading "This year’s Jeopardy! online test starts February 8th, 2011" »

Also posted in Games, How To | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Of all TV networks, network TV still has more loyal viewers than cable



TV by Design: Modern Art and the Rise of Network Television
TV by Design: Modern Art and the Rise of Network Television

Critics have been hailing the fall of network TV for years.  With cable getting a lot of the press regarding their high-quality programming (Mad Men, Conan, Sopranos, OZ, Dexter, Big Brother After Dark, etc), one can certainly understand why they would be saying such things.

But perhaps it’s a pipe dream. 

Network television certainly isn’t going to go away, or go away any time soon.  Especially when you look at the TOP TELEVISION CHANNELS THAT PEOPLE CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT.

Continue reading "Of all TV networks, network TV still has more loyal viewers than cable" »

Also posted in 10 Things | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

WHEN IT DROPS tells you when new releases are coming out each week




The Amazon Kindle
The Amazon Kindle

The AMAZON KINDLE is great:  whenever a new book release comes out, you can pretty much instantly download that book to your Kindle and begin reading immediately.

The hard part is knowing what books — or movies, or DVD’s, or video games — are being released each week so that you can be prepared ahead of time.  Sometimes things get released and you just haven’t been paying attention.

Continue reading "WHEN IT DROPS tells you when new releases are coming out each week" »

Also posted in Games, How To, Movies, Music, shopping, Video Games, Websites | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Proof that Sesame Street’s Grover uses Old Spice




Stuffed Grover with Monster at the End of this Book book
Stuffed Grover with “Monster at the End of this Book” book

Some things do not need any further explanation, beyond the fact that Sesame Street is awesome.

After watching this, however, it does appear that Grover is looking a little matted and mangy. He might want to have that checked out.

Continue reading "Proof that Sesame Street’s Grover uses Old Spice" »

Also posted in Funny, Video | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Disney theme park-related TV listings – Still waiting on Finding Kraftland




Modern Marvels - Walt Disney World
Modern Marvels – Walt Disney World

You shouldn’t have to guess that Web Watch has “Disney” coded as a search term on one of our TiVos, in order to record the latest television program about any of the Disney-theme parks.

With it, TiVo automatically records anything and everything that it thinks we might be interested in.  We’ve seen any number of Food Network-related programming, and practically every airing of  The History Channel’s MODERN MARVELS that seems to air about once every two weeks. 

And that episode where Full House visits Walt Disney World?  Yup – seen that more times than we care to, thanks to TiVo.

Continue reading "Disney theme park-related TV listings – Still waiting on Finding Kraftland" »

Also posted in Disney, Websites | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Play the COUGARTOWN Movie Title Mashup Game




Cougartown
Cougar Town

On the season 2 opener of ABC’s Cougar Town, the cast sat around drinking wine (as they are apt to do on this show) while they played their new MOVIE TITLE MASHUP DRINKING GAME.

Let’s let Ian Gomez explain it to us:

Continue reading "Play the COUGARTOWN Movie Title Mashup Game" »

Also posted in 10 Things, Funny, Games, Movies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Survey lists the Top Ten TV Show Bosses that are most like actual bosses




World's Best Boss
World’s Best Boss

Do you like your boss?

Not everybody does.

Sometimes, it all depends on whether you have respect for your boss and their abilities, or whether the boss treats you as you would like to be treated.

Sometimes, the bosses you see on TV are the only ideal that you have available to compare bosses with, and that’s when you find out that your boss just doesn’t measure up.

Continue reading "Survey lists the Top Ten TV Show Bosses that are most like actual bosses" »

Also posted in News | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

It’s easy to laugh at the Food Network, if you know where to look




The Next Food Network Star
The Next Food Network Star

Web Watch is a fan of Food Network.

We like to cook.  We like to eat.  We like to learn about new places to eat, new cooking techniques, and maybe have some fun along the way.  

We’ve eaten at a number of Food Network-related restaurants: Guy Fieri’s JOHNNY GARLIC’s, Keegan Gerhard’s D BAR DESSERTS, Robert Irving’s EAT, and at any number of Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse, and Wolfgang Puck locations across the country.  Sometimes the food at the celebrity restaurants is merely adequate; other times it’s been phenomenal and has lived up to the hype.  But the journeys to eat at each location are always worth the trips.

Web Watch is not alone in our enjoyment of Food Network.  Over the years, Food Network has developed so much cooking- and food-related programming that they were able to program a second cable offering, Cooking Channel.  Obviously, there’s a demand for Food TV.

But with the growth that Food Network has had, there had to be some speedbumps along the way to trip them up. 

Continue reading "It’s easy to laugh at the Food Network, if you know where to look" »

Also posted in food, Funny, Websites | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Video Fun: Travelogue Parodies of PURE MICHIGAN tourism campaign



Backroads and Byways of Michigan

Video and filmmaker John Kerfoot knows funny when he sees it.

And when John first saw the PURE MICHIGAN ads that were put together to promote travel throughout the lovely state of Michigan (as voiced by Tim Allen), it was just a matter of time before John was able to put his own spoof videos together.

NOT SO PURE MICHIGAN is a collection of those parody spots, highlighting… or low-lighting, if you will… some of the not-so-pleasant sides of visiting Michigan’s tourist destinations.

Continue reading "Video Fun: Travelogue Parodies of PURE MICHIGAN tourism campaign" »

Also posted in Travel, Video, Websites | Tagged , , | Leave a comment