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Conference ljsrv1::tv_chatter

Title:The TV Chatter Notes Conference
Notice:Welcome to TV Chatter :-)
Moderator:PASTA::PIERCE
Created:Wed Dec 16 1992
Last Modified:Thu Jun 05 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:498
Total number of notes:5416

277.0. "TV Nation" by DEMON::DEMON::COURT (Wit happens.) Thu Jul 21 1994 02:17

    Did anybody catch the premiere of NBC's TV Nation last night?
    
    It consisted mostly of 60 Minutes-like segments, including house
    hunting near Love Canal, why black men can't get a cab in New York
    City, and trying to locate a Russian missile aimed at Flint, 
    Michigan.
    
    The stories ranged from funny to ironic.
    
    Results of a TV Nation poll were displayed before each commercial
    break, and included such amazing facts as "45% of people interviewed
    think rain feels worse in real life than it seems to feel on television
    and in the movies."
    
    It's hosted by the same guy who did "Roger and Me."  I can't remember
    his name.
    
    Anyway, it's worth a look.  My VCR will be watching next week. 
    Tuesday.  8:00 EDT.  NBC.
    
    Mike
    
    
T.RTitleUserPersonal
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277.1VLNVAX::PGLADDINGNoters do it with a 8-)Fri Jul 22 1994 09:317
    I caught the last 1/2 of it.  At first, I thought the part about
    him going to Russia was put on - but when they got detained at
    the missile sight - that was unbelievable!  How in the world
    did they ever get permission for him to meet with all those
    Russian officials?
    
    Pam
277.2fyiSALEM::TAYLOR_JPickin' and a grinnin'Tue Jul 26 1994 07:322
    re base note , his name is Michael Moorer (?) I believe
    
277.3VLNVAX::PGLADDINGNoters do it with a 8-)Thu Aug 18 1994 05:1730
    This show continues to be a riot!  Last night, the host
    traveled to Bosnia to find out what this war is all about.
    
    He met with the ambassadors of Serbia and Bosnia, and 
    played them a song that he thinks will bring this war to
    an end.  The song was...
    
    
    		"I love you, you love me..."  - Barney's theme!!
    
    And the funniest part is that they had no idea a purple
    dinosaur was the singer, and they actually sang along!
    
    Then he decided that Communism never got a "farewell tour" like
    some of the big rock & roll bands that have retired did.  So
    he hired a Teamster, painted an 18-wheeler red with the Communist
    logo on it, filled it with Communist propaganda, then had the
    teamster travel from New York to Louisiana to get people's 
    reaction.  He even had the trucker park the truck in front of
    the White House, which promptly brought the attention of the
    Secret Service.  The further south the truck went, the more uneasy
    the trucker felt, and the more hassles he got.  Someone even set
    the engine on fire, so they had to replace the cab.
    
    This show gets more bizarre by the week - which makes it very
    original and funny, in a kind of sick way (that's why I like it!)
    
    Pam
    
    
277.4DEMON::DEMON::COURTWit happens.Thu Aug 18 1994 07:4616
    re: .3
    
    I think the humor of the show is ironic, rather than ha-ha funny.  Some
    times it borders on mean, since the irony is often lost on the
    interviewees.  (How did the guy who interviewed the religious sects who
    predicted the end of the world keep a straight face!?)
    
    The show does get better every week.  
    
    One nit - the host didn't travel to Europe to talk to the ambassadors
    from Bosnia and Croatia.  Their offices were in Washington, DC. 
    (Didn't you notice that none of the buildings were destroyed?)
    
    This Sunday night ... the best clips from the first five weeks.
    
    Mike
277.5VLNVAX::PGLADDINGNoters do it with a 8-)Thu Aug 18 1994 09:192
    I missed parts of it, so I guess I just assumed he was in those
    countries (I also wondered why they weren't under attack!)
277.6DSSDEV::RUSTFri Aug 26 1994 03:136
    I don't suppose anybody in the ZKO/Nashua area has last Tuesday's
    (8/23) episode on tape, do they? I fumbled the channel setting on my
    VCR, and now I find that the episode I didn't get was the one with the
    "How to be a Serial Killer" segment in it. ;-)
    
    -b
277.7SUBSYS::NEUMYERThe hours are short, the women are tallSat Aug 27 1994 05:206
    
    
    It wasn't really "How to be a Serial Killer", it was "How many weird
    things can a nieghbor do before people noticed". 
    
    ed
277.8MALLOC::PRINCIPIOThu Sep 01 1994 02:134
Did anyone catch the email address at the end of last night's show?  That was
the last show of the summer season and they gave an address to send mail to.

Tracy
277.9DSSDEV::RUSTThu Sep 01 1994 02:565
    They have an America Online account; I believe the address is
    "TVNatn@aol.com". (I think I'll write them and ask if they have a list
    of their survey results - I can never remember the best ones!)
    
    -b
277.10it's baaaaaack....TPSYS::GLADDINGTue Aug 01 1995 15:2230
    Hey - TV Nation is back on the air with new episodes!  The FOX
    network picked it up, and it's on Friday nights at 8:00 p.m. EST.
    
    Last Friday's show was "Payback Night".  The host interviewed people
    off the street at Times Square asking "What really bugs you?"
    
    One person couldn't stand those annoying car alarms that go off in
    the middle of the night (the ones that make 5-6 different noises).
    The host said "what are the chances the president of a car alarm
    company has to listen to those alarms... well, just wait and see..."
    
    They found the home of the president of a car alarm company, parked
    8-10 cars in front of his house, then turned on all the alarms!  
    The guy comes out in his p.j.'s looking puzzled, soon the cops arrive
    threatening legal action if the cars aren't moved in 10 minutes.
    
    They got back at the president of Muzak by pulling a truck with HUGE
    speakers in front of his house and serenading him with his own stuff.
    The president of a dumpster company was visited by a truck that banged
    a dumpster up and down until the cops came again...
    
    A president of telemarketing got a phone call in the middle of the
    night by a TV Nation telemarketer asking his opinion of tv shows.
    The guy kept asking to speak to his manager, then hung up on him in
    anger.  
    
    Glad to see this show back on the air.  I guess FOX only picked it
    up for 8 episodes, but hopefully it will do well and stay on.
    
    Pam
277.11BUSY::SLABOUNTYHoly rusted metal, Batman!Tue Aug 01 1995 15:4012
    
    	I am ROLLING!!
    
    	Is this what I've been missing all this time by not watching
    	this show?
    
    	[Of course, I can't say too much about car alarms.  My VW had
    	one that was a little too sensitive, and would seemingly go off
    	if a large insect flew too close to it.  I figure it went off
    	at least 2 or 3 times a week.  But at least we live out in the
    	woods, so I'd ony piss off 2 or 3 families.  8^)]
    
277.12STRWRS::KOCH_PIt never hurts to ask...Wed Aug 02 1995 10:4819
    
    Yes, you've been missing alot. Some of his stories make me cringe, but
    I too roll over them. I especially like it when it was on NBC and he
    tried to find the nuclear missle site which was aimed at his home town
    of Flint, MI. He drove around the countryside asking local Russians
    where the nuclear missle sites were. He found one. He pulled up to the
    site where there was a "STOP" sign, just like on your street corner. He
    looked at the camera wryly and said something like "I guess they know
    who would actually come out here". If you missed that, what is the
    Russian word for "STOP"? He knocked on the gate and this Soviet soldier
    came out and told him to go away, but that doesn't stop Michael.
    He then proceeded to try and drive around the back of the missle site
    which wasn't such a bright idea, but after 2 hours of explaining, he
    and Soviet Army garrison were almost drinking buddies...
    
    I've got to find out where to write him. I'd like him to take Walter
    Koenig to Murmansk and start looking for "nuclear wessels"...
    
    I like to think of it as Hard Copy on thorazine...
277.13Too much!TNPUBS::NAZZAROHow can people live in Florida?Thu Aug 03 1995 19:567
    The best payback last week was his going to the houses of "actual
    Jehovah Witnesses" and asking them for a few minutes of their time,
    so they can read his pamphlet about a TV show that saved his life.
    The reactions ran the gamut from confused to pissed to laughing
    about it.
    
    NAZZ
277.14BUSY::SLABOUNTYHoly rusted metal, Batman!Thu Aug 03 1995 20:205
    
    	If anybody in the Marlboro area taped this, can I borrow it?
    
    	Thanks!!
    
277.15Latest news on TV NationWRKSYS::LHAGENLaissez les bons temps roulez!Fri Dec 01 1995 12:0010
I subscribe to the on-line TV NATION newsletter.  Fox is in the process of
trying to decide whether or not to pick up this show.  Michael Moore put in
a plea to all fans to write to the network, TV Guide, Entertainment Weekly,
and so forth.

As a result, Fox received thousands (over 55,000) of letters and the phone 
calls have flooded their switchboards.  The decision is supposed to be made 
today (12/1) so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

- Lori