CityLightsLover and her Mister are busy this evening with Holiday plans, from what I understood her to say on 12/19. The Countdown Show was so very excellent that I'm compelled to offer a summary of what occured and encourage commentary, just to keep the ball rolling so to speak.
Tonight's show reviewed the favorite people of 2008 in basically five segments, which are described for those who might have missed the show below the fold.
Number 5: Barack Obama. From the announcement of his running to the final election, Keith highlighted some of the greater moments of his speeches. Covered were the Iowa Victory, taking on the formidable Senator Clinton and ultimately winning the Democratic nomination. The Convention, 8/28/2008, and "enough". The debates: the good, the bad, and the ugly. The campaign run against Obama by McCain: who is Obama? Who could forget the lady in red, who asked McCain if Obama was an Arab? Joe the Plumber. Early voting. And ultimate victory, which our Keith got to declare for Obama election night.
Number 4: Sarah Palin. She can be characterized as the gift that keeps on giving, and certainly the gift that enabled Keith to contribute some $3700 to the Alaskan Special Olympics. As he put it "people who like this sort of thing will find that this is the sort of thing they like" to describe her. Who, after all, could forget her interviews with Charlie and Katie, as well as Palin v. Biden, which will go down in history as the most personality driven vice-presidential debate, evah. Next, on the campaign trail, it was Bill Ayres, punctuated by Rev. Muthee stories, clothing concerns, and going rogue. Yes, she truly was a wonder, and I feel we have not seen the last of her in the lower 48.
A brief MSNBC news summary punctuated the program, we learned more about the plane crash, and the fact that foreign car makers, like Toyota, were going to report some first quarter losses.
Number 3: The cast of SNL. As Keith said, not since "Slingblade" has there been such excellence in comedy gold (see the list of takeoffs here). This political season was pure comedy gold, with Tina Fey and Amy Poeler acting like doppelgangers! Some of the very best skits were reviewed, ending of course, with Ben Affleck's immortal rendition of "How dare you sir?" and consequent clipped delivery of what I believe was Churchill ...up with which we shall not put. It was truly funny to see it all again.
Number 2: KO acts as an eyewitness to history on the David Lettermann show, as David is p'wnd by John McCain. This event no doubt caused the impression going forward of McCain and his capability at a critical juncture in the campaign, as Dave did not let up. I caught all of those shows and I'm here to say, the road to the White House does indeed lead right through Lettermann's studio. Keith did a great fill-in job that night, complete with what I thought were great Jack Benny gestures. On the night when McCain appeared to apologize, Keith was in the wings, and actually had his head measured.
Number 1: And so, of all the characters in 2008, including special mention to Nate Silver of 538, and Obama's unsung heroes, and even Joe the Plumber, whom did Countdown choose as the number one favorite?
The favorite person he chose is YOU! You, who raised 750 million dollars. You, for whom the event on 11/4/08 was not merely watching history, but making history. The great event at Grant Park. And thanks from Keith and his crew for making this the best year ever for Countdown in terms of most watched. He offered not only his thanks, but assurance that if we all come back, 2009 will be even better, and I believe him!
I had just finished watching the great Gary Cooper classic "Meet John Doe" on TCM right before Countdown, and was struck by the similarity in events, the people basically grass roots, rise up and help one another. Kind of like what just happened in 2008, and what's continuing in the progressive movement. It's a story with a fairly convoluted plot, about common people who organize to help one another around the character of John Doe, played by Coop. The full synopis is here. The film, directed by Capra, is excellent.
At the end, Coop's about to jump off a tall building in desperation when the antagonist DB Norton steps from the shadows with his evil cronies (they all looked very elitist Republican btw), telling him that if he jumps the mayor has been instructed to remove his ID and thus his suicide will be for nothing. But John tells him he's already mailed a copy of the letter elsewhere. John's glad they're here. He tells Norton that the movement that they killed will be born all over again. Ann, the heroine, shows up as he's about to jump, begging him not to do it. She insists they can start it over again together. Coop's followers, who have rethought their rebellion and come after him, up to the rooftop, agree. John and Ann walk away. Connell gets in the last word with a thwarted Norton, who turns to him and says: "There you are, Norton - - the people, try and lick that."
It very much tied into Countdown's show this evening, and since I'm partial to comparing Keith and Coop, the shoe really fit this time.
So thanks, Countdown, the people won one this time, and I'm glad they are your favorites too!