Watching Television

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 23, 2011

Since Deb and I switched to watching our entire television output via DVR (and less frequently via DVD), we tend to run days or even weeks behind the general viewing public. As a result, I am a little slower to form opinions, especially about the newer shows but we’re pretty caught up for the moment.

My first thought about the new season, which is now over two months old, is that it is particularly lackluster. There are several we’ve tried and like enough to stick with for now but have not fallen in love with as we have with older shows.

Right now, the best adult prime time drama remains The Good Wife while I continue to think Shonda Rhimes’ Grey’s Anatomy is the best structured show (notable for how it’s freshening things in its pivotal seventh season).

We were about to drop The Playboy Club before NBC beat us to it. Whatever lessons the producers thought they learned from Mad Men were clearly missed. Pan Am is suffering from the same creative shortcomings as the NBC dud and it’s no surprise ABC is yanking it for the spring. In both cases, they used tried and true tropes (crime and espionage respectively) to bolster a dearth of interesting characters. Pan Am has a fine sheen to its look and retains some of the legendary airline’s glamor, but none of the characters are really growing into strong figures. For a show about sexy women, Playboy thoroughly missed the mark with poor characterization and wretched writing. WAIT! There is more to read… read on »

Feeling Calmer

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 20, 2011

I am now, and always have been, goal oriented. I work best with a To Do list and as spare time arrives, I use it to work ahead.  Being in grad school since January has left me feeling pressured, on a treadmill with no end in sight.

Until now. I have my end of the semester projects coming due and as I have endeavored to complete each one, I check them off the list. Suddenly, over the last 24 hours, the list has markedly shrunk.

This week I deliver my English Methods portfolio and my Unit Project to Social Studies Methods. My final two waste-of-time papers for my Internship portfolio are also completed. I have had two different people edit my Psychology White Paper, which is due next week. I’m also prepared for the group presentation in Psych. And the Reflection for Psych is now completed.

All that’s left is a Media Literacy project for English, which I started pulling material for over a month ago and can now focus on that.

While classes don’t end until December 12, I am feeling some of the pressure from school lift so I can now focus more of my attention on the Unauthorized History of Star Trek (you have all Liked it over on Facebook, right?).

Oh, and then there’s the holidays. By this point on the calendar, I prefer having the majority of the shopping done so we can avoid the malls after Thanksgiving but we didn’t buy anything for others until yesterday so in my mind we’re behind. Strangely, I’m not feeling too much pressure about it. It’ll get done as will the decorating, the cards, and the other prep.

There’s a certain feeling coming over me, one of completion that is making me feel remarkably calm.

Ciao, Cablevision

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 15, 2011

I came home from summer camp one year back in the mid-1970s, and my parents said we now had something called HBO. First, I noticed the clear improved picture on the familiar channels but I was astonished to see uncut full-length movies on a single channel. Being a teen, I was particularly fond of the R-rated offerings I was otherwise unable to see. They explained that we now had what was called cable television and as chance had it, the company was based nearby.

In 1975, we had a fledgling in-house radio station WJER that saw us playing whatever we felt like and pump it into the cafeteria. Our leader, Brian Isaacson, was also dabbling with video production and we all collaborated on a thirty minute production which, he assured us, would be played by this new company, Cablevision. That was my introduction to the joys of public access cable television. We completed our venture and I was part of the group carrying the precious ¾” video tape to the Cablevision offices at the edge of our housing development.

I have only vague memories of what was on the tape or why we wound up speaking with the Dolans, the family that ran the operation.  I do recall coming away with a negative impression of the Dolans, an opinion that has never wavered through the years.

After my family left for California, but I stayed behind to have my own life, I also became a Cablevision subscriber – not out of any loyalty, but because they were the only game in town. The same circumstances followed me and Deb as we relocated to Connecticut in 1992. So, Cablevision has been part of my life for pretty close to forty years.

We finally cut the cord this week. ATT’s Uverse finally had a mix of offerings and prices that made sense for us to make the switch. They must have been busy with similar cases because even though we made the decision months ago, Saturday was the first available appointment that worked for us. As promised, the technician arrived on schedule and stayed for the estimated four hours as we diligently switched our cable, phone, and internet connections to ATT. WAIT! There is more to read… read on »

The Stan Lee Universe is Out

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 11, 2011

Election Results

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 9, 2011

After months of planning, coordinating, cajoling and campaigning, everything culminated in yesterday’s municipal election. As of now, it appears I lost by three votes; close enough to trigger one of four recounts, but I doubt the results will change.

I was at the polls by 6 a.m. ready for the gauntlet. By the time the doors closed, I had been there over nine of the fourteen hours, said hi to friends, neighbors, and people I recall chatting with as I walked the district.

The gauntlet between parking lot and poll seemed thicker this year as Board of Ed candidates or their designees were on hand along with the usual RTM candidates. The Democrats had a somewhat larger showing than the Republicans and we all mingled collegially as the hours wore on. We were visited by State Senator John McKinney, State Reps Tony Hwang and Brenda Kupchick, and even retiring RTM majority leader Jamie Millington stopped by. Of the three running for First Selectman, only Michael Tetreau, turned up.

District 8 has proven to be a volatile swing district. In 2007 there were five Democrats on the RTM, in 2009 there were five Republicans in a clean sweep, and this year it appears a split with three Rs and two Ds. I need to see the certified tallies to try and divine meaning from the votes.

D8 apparently has also developed quite a rep for its fabulous 5^th Grade bake sale so people from around town came just to buy baked goods. I certainly indulged a bit to support the cause.

Thankfully, the sun was out and the air warm, making it a beautiful day for an election. Turnout was light but steady throughout most of the day, getting busier after working hours ended. In the final minutes, there was a rush even as one woman, kids in tow, ran in saying, “I was already in my pajamas when I realized what day it was.”

On Friday, a letter in the Connecticut Post took me to task for my vote in 2008 over the disposition of the Turner Army Center, which was being offered to the town. Similarly, at 5:30 on Monday evening, a note went out to the Gould Manor Neighborhood Association distorting my role in the Turner site and the Little League’s plan to renovate the ball fields at the local park. It was too late for me to properly respond to either but it’s clear that there’s a segment of the district that dislikes what I have done and has decided to work against me. Did their efforts cost me the election? Maybe. One friend told me Monday night, “They weren’t going to vote for you anyway” and she may be right. WAIT! There is more to read… read on »

“A Matter of Faith” Now Available for the Kindle

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 4, 2011

After technical difficulties slowly derailed the best laid plans of Crazy 8 Press, my old story, “A Matter of Faith” is now available for the Kindle. The Nook edition will follow next week (once the IRS confirms I am really myself).

As discussed over at Crazy 8 Press recently, it’s one of two original short stories I’ve written and published through the years and I am pleased as punch to be able to have them available once more.

By all means, invest the 99 cents and see for yourself. As a bonus, there will be a sample chapter of Mike Friedman’s Fight the Gods, which will be available later this month. If you buy it, thank you. I certainly want your feedback.

Seal Team 6 Comes to Print

Posted by Bob Greenberger on November 2, 2011

Over the summer, Dynamite Entertainment asked me to rush edit a novel and sure enough, in under a week, I read, line edited, and completed my work on Seal Team 6, a prose novel by my pal Chuck Dixon. It was initially made available as an eBook, a first for Dynamite; and today, can be ordered as a print book in the new Diamond Previews catalog. If you like men’s adventure and military action, then this book is for you.

Here’s the solicitation copy:

SEAL TEAM SIX: A NOVEL
160 page prose novel (6”x9”) • $9.99 • Teen +
Written by CHUCK DIXON
New York Times bestselling author, Chuck Dixon’s first ever novel from Dynamite
Entertainment! In the tradition of G.I. Joe, Punisher, Tom Clancy, Brad Thor, Clive Cussler, Vince Flynn, W.E. Griffin, and Dale Brown: SEAL Team Six: The Novel!

They are highly trained. Their missions are classified. They are our best and last hope. Yet they do not exist. Follow SEAL Team Six as they train, hunt and fight an enemy who reaches out from the most remote corners of the world to murder and maim. These highly-trained, military men are the unknown heroes who endure unimaginable hardship and murderous combat to protect our homeland.

I’ve Been Going Door to Door

Posted by Bob Greenberger on October 31, 2011

Every neighborhood in Fairfield has its own personality and in a dense district like the one I live in, there are many segments making it always fun to go campaigning. First of all, there’s the pleasure of seeing different parts of the district as well as revisiting some favorite streets and neighbors.

The response, as you might imagine, does vary as well. Up until recently, the best way to describe the reaction of voters has been “aware of the election but not engaged with it”. That seems to have changed in the last week, which is good considering we have about a week left. I’m impressed by the number of voters who told me they were hanging on to the just-received League of Women’s Voting Guide which arrived on Friday. Several, though, were disappointed to learn the Representative Town Meeting candidates were not profiled. After all, that is as local as it gets and with ten to pick from, some voters want information.

Going to door to door means lots of bored, harried, rushed, or disinterested voters. I have encountered some who only seem vaguely aware of the issues in our part of town, such as the Little League renovations at Gould Manor Park. Several were bothered by the waste of money until they were told all the work was being paid for by the Little League and no tax dollars were being expended. Then they were fine with it – since, after all, we get two remediated fields as a result.

On Friday, I hit the streets ahead of the impending storm, and was thrilled by the reactions I received. These were friendly people, several interested in my thoughts or why I wanted to run. I knocked on the doors of Republicans, Democrats and Independents, getting reasonably positive responses across the board. I hit some of the smaller side streets and one man said, “Anyone coming to my door gets my vote.” Three others made a point of saying they appreciate having candidates knocking on doors.

I remain convinced going door to door is the best way to campaign locally.

Sunday I went out again and it felt more like a lit drop walk than actual campaigning. So many people were not home and those I did speak with had little to say about the town. Most seemed satisfied and couldn’t come up with an issue of concern other than the universal complaint about taxes. We discussed them as a necessary evil and the hope that the new regime, whoever it will be, valued engineered town government so future increases were minimal. No one was foolish enough to think we could cut taxes meaning our area is a reasonable one.

There are eight days to go and only a few more opportunities to hit the streets. I look forward to the final push, followed by standing at the polls to greet one and all.

The Roast DVD is Ready for Sale

Posted by Bob Greenberger on October 27, 2011

David Mack does not sleep. It’s about the only way he can manage his writing career and his maniacal life as a producer. Back from the manufacturer, David now has copies of the Charity Roast for sale. The charity roast is here with all your favorites mocking me — even my delightful daughter. But wait, there’s more. In typical David style, this comes complete with DVD extras and the money goes to the American Red Cross so it even has socially redeeming values.

No, I have not seen the final edits yet, but I trust Dave. The roasts he produced for Keith DeCandidio and Michael Jan Friedman were swell affairs so this should be right down there with them.

Here are the details:

• Director: Kara Bain
• Producer: David Mack
• Format: DVD, Color and B&W, Dolby Stereo, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: All
• Aspect Ratio: 16:9
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated — contains profanity and adult language
• Studio: Infinity Dog Productions, Inc.
• DVD Release Date: October 28, 2011
• Run Time: 88 minutes

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Producers’ Commentary
• Director’s Cut
• The Best of the Shore Leave Roast of Keith R.A. DeCandido
• The Best of the Shore Leave Roast of Michael Jan Friedman

U.S. ORDERS
$10.00 (plus $4 shipping and handling)

INTERNATIONAL ORDERS
E-mail davidmack@sff.net for prices

After we recoup our production costs, fifty percent of the sale price of each DVD will be donated to The American Red Cross.

Boldly Going

Posted by Bob Greenberger on October 22, 2011

I wrote a while back, lamenting over not writing much for or about Star Trek these days and it appeared that my involvement in the franchise was going to become a fading memory.

Perhaps I wrote too quickly.

Back in August, I was contacted by an editor at Voyageur Press on the recommendation of fellow Trek writer, and Voyageur employee, Scott Pearson. Grace LaBatt kindly asked if I was perhaps interested in tackling an Unauthorized History of Star Trek, tracing not only the TV series but the movies, the spinoffs, the merchandise and most importantly, the fan following that kept the dream alive.

We went back and forth for a while, as I drafted some notes on how to approach such a project so Grace would have something to present to management. Meantime, I asked selected peers about what my writing an unofficial history might do to my moribund relationship with CBS Consumer Products and Pocket Books. I was assured that since no opportunities had been offered in some time, and this was not intended as a hatchet job, then it should be no problem.

The day before the show’s anniversary, I was given a formal offer to write the book. The biggest change over those first few weeks was that the eight months I was promised for the book was now down to four, more or less. The manuscript is due in January which means I have to be working on this while completing my Master’s Degree, internship, and campaign for office.

Deb and I had a long hard talk about it and she was supportive but only if a few things slid off the table so I stepped down from running the townwide campaign for the Democratic Town Committee and the Literature Committee. Done.

Grace sent me contracts, which I signed, and now the book is on their schedule for October 2012, in time for the holiday season and well before Star Trek 2 opens the following summer. I’m very excited about the book because it means I get to interview colleagues, friends, and people whose work I have admired. I get to sift through the twice-told tales of how things happened and try to find the truth. And I get to shine a deserving spotlight on the fans, the conventions, and the fanzines that kept interest in the show active while Paramount dithered.

This will be heavily illustrated and one of the biggest tricks will be to find the stuff that hasn’t made it into Star Trek 365 or Star Trek Vault. We’re up to the challenge but if you have something cool, let me know.

Over the next few months I’ll be talking about the project here, but also over at the official Facebook page for the book. Please go over and give it a “Like” click so you can stay in touch with the progress.

I’m daunted by the deadline but thrilled with the project overall.