Kaley Cuoco Bought a Shake Weight
One of the coolest things that happened during the production of GeekBrief.TV is when we were invited to the set of The Big Bang Theory to interview Bill Prady and watch a table read. We were 10 feet away from the cast and it was amazing to get to see the actors do their thing sitting around a table.
Fast forward a couple years and The Big Bang Theory is a hit with geeks and non-geeks. Dudes everywhere have crushes on the beautiful and hilarious Kaley Cuoco who bought a shake weight showed Ellen Degeneres how she uses it.
Read MoreBring the Energy to Web Video
When someone asks for tips about hosting a good Web show, I tell them to bring more vocal energy than feels natural. Aim for Disney Channel energy and you might get close to the level of energy that works.
The old idea that the camera adds 10 pounds doesn’t apply to HD, but the camera sure seems to subtract energy. Of course it depends on the type of show you’re trying to do. One of my favorite Web TV shows is Kevin Rose’s Foundation. It’s very laid back and it works extremely well. It isn’t created to appeal to a Youtube audience, although that’s a great place to watch it.
If you’re just getting started, Youtubers are an important target market and people who do well bring a nuclear level of energy to their work. I’m just getting started in front of the camera and I don’t want to induce coma.
Yesterday, I shot a show and then promptly deleted it. Even though I thought I was bringing the energy. I wasn’t. Karina Stenquist is one of my favorite presenters (and one of my favorite sources for information about the Occupy movement). She told me to, “Drink 8 cups of coffee and pretend that everyone who will watch you is slightly deaf and will have to rely on your intonation to figure out what you’re saying.”
A great example of someone bringing the energy and doing well on YouTube right now is meekakitty. I’m not going to bring THIS much energy, but I’m shooting again to land somewhere between meekakitty energy and a tranquilizer.
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The View from the Top of the Golden Gate Bridge
I’m a huge fan of Huell Howser. He makes a travel show about California that’s on PBS. I first heard of him on the Adam Corolla podcast where they make fun of him. I went to YouTube and watched all the videos I can find. On his show, Huell discovers the world with fresh eyes. Someone can show him a pair of blue jeans. He’ll get excited about the blue jeans and he’ll ask a question like,
“You mean to tell me, you can put these on over your legs and they’ll cover your legs up? What is this right here?”
“These are pockets for holding stuff like keys and money.” The interviewee would answer.
“OH MY GOODNESS! I could put money in one of these pockets and it wouldn’t fall out? THAT IS REMARKABLE! I bet you could put your hands in there too and keep them warm if it got a little cold outside. What are some other things people would put in pockets like these?”
And the interviews go on and on like that with Huell getting excited about things most of us stopped being fascinated by after the age of four.
This video has Huell going to the top of the Golden Gate Bridge and giving us a look at San Francisco and the Bay that most of us will never see. This Huell Howser video isn’t funny. Huell doesn’t have to manufacture interest in what he’s seeing because it’s just awe-inspiring.
Read MoreNetflix Apology (SNL Parody)
This sketch didn’t make SNL, but it was funnier than the ones that did. Bwaahaahaahaa!
Read MoreLouie Season 2 : Ep. 12
For the past couple of months, I’ve been studying comedy. Growing up comedy was just about my favorite thing. I loved sit-coms, SNL, stand-up and late night talk. I kind of dropped it as an interest, until I started listening to Marc Maron’s WTF Podcast. Where we were with tech and podcasting in 2005, the comedy world is now and it’s awesome to see that passion flowing again in a fresh way.
Unfortunately, I can’t remember the podcast I was listing to the other day when they were talking about Louie C.K.’s TV show called Louie. I was driving. It could have been WTF or one of the other podcasts I’ve added too my Stitcher list. The guys talking were talking about the show, Louie, in a very reverential way that made me want to check it out.
Today, I saw it was on Hulu and I watched Ep. 12 from Season 2 called The Duckling. In this episode, Louie picks up his daughters from school the afternoon before he is going to travel to Afganistan to do some USO performances. The teacher tells him it’s his turn to take home the ducklings the class has been raising. Louie tries to get out of it, but the teacher won’t accept Afganistan is an excuse. It’s only for one night. One of his girls begs him to let them keep just one duckling. He says, “NO!” and the girls go to sleep.
When he gets to Afganistan, he discovers that his daughter packed one of the ducklings in his suitcase to keep him safe. He takes care of the duckling as he travels around entertaining troops and then at the end, the duckling ends up taking care of him.
I’ve only seen one episode, and I don’t know if it’s a typical example, but this one episode is one of the most beautifully real and human things I’ve ever seen packaged as a TV show. It has some comedy, but more than anything, it has heart. The episode is embedded below and if you have 30 minutes to have your heart warmed, I think you’ll be glad you did.
Read MoreLooking forward to X Factor
The way they present X Factor is brilliant. My first exposure to it was when Susan Boyle broke through. The way they cut away to the judges and audience creates a kind of magic that works even when it isn’t justified. This clip shows a girl singing an Elton John song. She isn’t good, but the way the show is edited makes her feel good.
It’s going to be a good show and I’m looking forward to watching.
Embedding is not allowed. You’ll have to click to watch on Youtube.
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