At the very end, he shakes the president’s hand. Most surreal three seconds of television ever.

Did anyone else, as a teenager, spend a Saturday watching five or six of these dinners in a row on C-SPAN? Al Franken? Garrison Keillor? Etc? I did, and I know Kyle did. We can’t be the only ones.

It’s the penultimate season of Buffy! 

I can’t believe I finished Season Six already. Actually, that’s not entirely true; I believe it. I really threw myself into this one. I decided that it was taking too much time and energy to feel guilty about how much Buffy I was watching. It turns out if I give up the hand-wringing and wistfully staring into space wondering if there was anything going on outside, I can actually watch the episodes faster. This is more efficient in the long run — or so I’ve convinced myself.

And now, here is a Spike action figure:

Please note the mug of blood, the driving goggles, and the kitten. Thank you.

So, I don’t know if I’m suffering from some sort of Buffy-induced delirium, but I rather liked Season Six. It was satisfyingly dark, for a season about a girl who just got ripped out of heaven and forced back into the cold cruel world. The nerds were consistently funny. Buffy got a cute self-loathing-inspired haircut (but who hasn’t?):

And it had the musical episode, Once More With Feeling, a work of genius. As I’ve noted with regard to the increasingly high-profile High School Musical, I think there should be more musical television. I’m kind of surprised no one’s jumped on that idea, especially after the Buffy one was such a hit.

I don’t know what the big deal is about hating this and the seventh season, and I really don’t want to search around and try to find out. The more hate and invective I read on the internet written by “fans,” the more my soul dies a slow death. It’s good. Why do we have to punch holes in it and complain, as if we’d been personally insulted by a show’s decline? Can’t I just be entertained? 

Sure, it’s not the same show it was when it started. For one thing, it looks a hell of a lot better, and we know these characters really, really well. Where’s the bad there? Perhaps she’s saved the world one too many times. And yeah, I’m not pleased by the fact that Giles is out of the picture. But why all the hate? [Seriously, though, that's a rhetorical question. I like the fact that I still like the show. Don't send me a list of reasons why I'm wrong and everything was terrible. Please.] 

Will I still be this peppy after Season Seven? Here’s hoping…

This show is going to be awesome in the “we’re all going to hell” sense.

Not that I’d watch it even if I were home that time of day, but the squawking hens over at The View have a fresh ass to warm the seat left vacant by Meredith Veira.  And that ass belongs to…

Rosie O-fucking-Donnell?

See for yourself.

Yeah, I have no idea what the thought process was in replacing the soccer-mom cum newswoman Veira with a brash, caustic, rabble-rousing lesbian.  I mean, they already have the resident “funny lady” in Joy Behar.

While I’m initially just taken aback by the strangeness of the selection, this could make for some decent TV.  I can’t wait to see Rosie smack the crap out of that idiot Star Jones.

When I became a gay, I was issued an Abercrombie faux gym shirt, a copy of The Immaculate Collection and assorted hair products. Accompanied with an affectionate pat on the ass, the International Gay Recruitment Agency (IGRA) sent me out into the world to set forth and conquer our nation’s capitol.

Unfortunately, the shirt has gone to goodwill, the CD is still in its shrinkwrap and the only thing that goes in my hair is the cheapest shampoo they have at Giant. While I’ve decided to eschew a lot of gay culture, one of the aspects I’ve embraced is an undying love for Kathy Griffin.

I’m completely obsessed. Just completely obsessed.

And now she’s preparing for her third comedy special for Bravo, entitled “Kathy Griffin: Strong Black Woman.” The show will air May 9.

What’s there to look foward to this time? Says the press release:

Find out why Kathy was stroking Celine Dion’s hair in a backstage
greenroom, the ongoing battle against Steven Spielberg and Dakota Fanning,
and the real reason why Paula Abdul is always running late for red carpet
events. Grab your best gay and tune in to everyone’s favorite D-lister to
hear for yourself what everyone will be gossiping about the
next day.Â

Get excited, people.

Mick Jagger, sitcom star.

In all honestly, this show sounds kind of amazing. A comedy 24! I hope it gets picked up. (Mick Jagger? How can it not?)

So, I don’t really know what that post title means, and I’m not going to pretend. I do know it’s Marshall McLuhan, so I could totally buzz in correctly in Jeopardy (which is all that really matters), but all it really means to me is Annie Hall:

Woody: You know nothing about Marshall McLuhan.

Man in movie theatre line: I happen to teach a class at Columbia called “TV Media and Culture,” so I think that my insights into Mr. McLuhan have a great deal of validity.

Woody: Well, that’s funny, because I happen to have Mr. McLuhan right here.

Marshall McLuhan: I heard what you were saying. You know nothing about my work… how you ever got to teach a course in anything is totally amazing.

I’m going to do a continuation link to the rest of this post (a rarity around here) because I am self-aware enough to know when I’m being slightly pompous. Now, aren’t you curious about what I’m being pompous about? Come on, you know you want to. There are several funny pictures at the end, too.

As I’ve previously mentioned (in passing) on the Faux, I hate Jay Leno.  He’s schticky, he’s unimaginative, he’s least common denominator funny.

And, as Avenue Q writer Jeff Whitty points out, he’s also a bit of a homophobe.  Whitty recently posted an open letter to Leno on his Web site.  It’s not funny, by any means, but it’s an important letter and I’d love to see if Leno responds.

NPH! NPH!

Update: Also, there’s this interview. This combined with the NYT profile makes me love NPH so, so, so, so much. Like in the very grounded, has good taste in stuff, doesn’t take himself seriously, we-could-hang-out-and- watch-movies-together! type of way.

Last night I watched The Sopranos with my mom and sister-in-law (my brother is in Lincoln, Nebraska — yeah, I don’t know) and one of my unofficial duties was to let them know when they could look at the screen after something really violent happened.  Here’s the first installment of what will be a weekly round-up of crazy violence on The Sopranos.

1.  Artie gets into a fistfight with Benny (played by Max Casella, formerly of Doogie Howser, M.D.), who ends up with a big bloody face.

2.  Benny sticks Artie’s hand in a boiling pot of red sauce, which Tony later says caused the skin on his hand to slide off “like a glove.”

3.  Rusty Millio (played by Frankie Valli, of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons) gets whacked by two Italians, along with his bodyguard.  Both are shot in the head.

4.  Lauren Bacall (as herself) gets punched in the face.

5.  Artie shoots a rabbit who he spied eating his arrugala.  Said rabbit is subsequently served with garlic.