Dude! Joe's Jottings, Mostly Junk

NEW YORK, Oct. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- SIRIUS XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) announced today that it will launch Monty Python Radio, a 24/7 channel devoted to, and hosted by, the iconic British comedy troupe.

The limited-run channel will premiere on Friday, October 16, the day after the stars receive a Special Award from The British Academy of Film and Television Arts event at the Ziegfeld Theater in New York City, and will run for ten full days featuring classic Python sketches, skits and, songs; fans calling in with requests; fans and celebrities telling favorite sketches and Python memories; and various members of the original Python troupe reminiscing and talking of new projects.

The 24/7 channel will showcase comedic bits from Monty Python's Flying Circus television show, including the legendary segments "Spam," "Nudge Nudge," "Killer Joke," "Argument Clinic," "Cheese Shop" and unexpected skits like "The Spanish Inquisition," and tracks from the troupe's various albums, including Monty Python and The Holy Grail, Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album, Matching Tie and Handkerchief, Monty Python's Life of Brian, Monty Python's The Meaning Of Life and Monty Python Sings.

Monty Python fans can request their favorite skits during the "Monty Python Request Shows" airing regularly throughout the ten days. During this segment, fans will take the stage as they share their memories and tell their stories about watching Python.

"This is the first time that the Pythons have had their very own radio channel and we are proud to honor their 40th anniversary, and complete their invasion of North America, by creating with them Monty Python Radio," said Scott Greenstein, President and Chief Content Officer, SIRIUS XM Radio.

Monty Python Radio will air through Sunday, October 25 on SIRIUS channel 105 and XM channel 151.

Monty Python's Flying Circus, the group responsible for the launching the Ministry of Silly Walks and the Parrot Sketch on an unsuspecting world, was on Monday celebrating 40 years since the comedy sketch show was first broadcast.

The show, which was written and acted by John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Graham Chapman, first aired on October 5, 1969 and ran for a total of 45 episodes.

It was the Pythons' surreal and satirical humour which shot them to global fame in the 1970s, as they broke new ground in what was acceptable in terms of both style and content.

A new study of Wikipedia showed that 87 percent of the site's editors were male. What do you think?

Dale North,
Armored Car Driver
"This just proves how much manpower it takes to keep the Dr. Who page current."

But this does not excuse the ending. It suffers, not just under my standards but under Ron Moore’s. He promised a show that was was true to real science, character driven and not overwhelmed by SF clichés like time travel, technobabble, aliens and godlike powers. He promised a show connected to our world. Instead he delivered a show whose ending pivoted on bad (and even dangerous) science, with all events due to something that’s either a god or godlike alien, all precisely following prophecies made ages ago, reducing the characters to puppets. And in the end, it had no connection to our world.

This would be no more than “yet another SF TV show that made mistakes” if the show hadn’t started so well, and gotten many, including myself to declare it was on track to be the best SF show on the air, possibly of all time. Aside from disappointing fans, the show abandoned its chance to be more than a TV show. It could have been, like a few special great works of SF from the past, something that affected the world’s perceptions and dialog about key technological issues like A.I., robotics and the technology of war.

Marshall, Will and Holly were on a routine expedition when they got sucked into the prehistoric "Land of the Lost." But where are the stars of the 1970s children's TV series now?

Some continued working in entertainment; others got far away from the business. But Spencer Milligan (Marshall), Wesley Eure (Will), Kathleen Coleman (Holly) and Philip Paley, who played the mischievous primate Cha-Ka, have stayed in touch some 35 years later, which seems unusual for a series that lasted only three seasons.

Let me start out by saying that I deeply value and respect rational thinking. I think that rational thought is a valuable foundation for decision-making and I value the sensibility that it embodies. However, I am not entirely enamored by claims of "rational thought" and here are a few reasons why.