FBN finally comes to Cablevision! November 19, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, TV.add a comment
At long last, after two long years, the Fox Business Network is finally coming coming to Cablevision.
Talking Biz News writes (h/t Inside Cable News):
Fox Business Network is expected to announce Thursday morning that it has secured an agreement with Cablevision Systems Corp.
The deal will expand the business network’s distribution by nearly 3 million subscribers in the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area.
Fox Business will be available to Cablevision subscribers on channel 106 thought the provider’s Optimum-branded communications system.
The last major expansion for the business news channel occurred in December 2008, when it struck a deal with Charter Communications to expand its presence in the Midwest and Northeast regions to nearly 200,000 homes.
It’s also in HD on channel 772, which I just put on as I write this post. I thought this day would never come, but here we are. It looks great so far.
11/26 UPDATE: FBN release (h/t The Imus Times):
Cablevision (CVC) and News Corp.’s (NWSA) FOX Business unveiled an agreement Thursday that will make the business news channel available to more than three million additional households in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
The deal takes effect Thursday and lands FBN on Cablevision’s channel 106 and in HD on channel 772. Cablevision operates the largest U.S. cable cluster and is in more than 4.7 million households and 600,000 businesses in the New York metropolitan area.
FBN is now available in more than 50 million homes.
“We’re pleased to welcome Cablevision as our newest FOX Business affiliate and look forward to providing the essential and up-to-the-minute breaking business news to the greater New York area,” Tim Carry, FBN’s senior vice president of affiliate relations, said in a statement.
The new agreement will expand FBN’s reach into New York’s surrounding area, including Long Island, Westchester, Fairfield and Bergen counties.
“We are pleased to make FOX Business Network available to our iO TV digital cable customers in both standard definition and HD,” John Trierweiler, Cablevision’s senior vice president of product management, said in a statement.
The announcement comes just over a month after FBN, which launched in October 2007, began simulcasting radio personality Don Imus on the channel.
HotForWords at Borders in NYC! August 20, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Internet, Media, Personal, Travel, TV.2 comments
Yesterday afternoon, I took the LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) out to Manhattan for Marina Orlova’s book signing at Borders in The Shops at Columbus Circle. She was promoting her new book Hot for Words: Answers to All Your Burning Questions About Words and Their Meanings, which was released on Tuesday.
Leading up to the signing, she posted this video and appeared on the CBS Early Show and PIX 11 Morning News (WPIX-TV, a CW affiliate).
Once on W. 34th St. from Penn Station, I walked to 6th Ave. and turned left. I wanted to pass some major media buildings that were on that street. Among them were HBO, News Corporation (FOX, New York Post, etc.), and SNY (SportsNet York).
Across from SNY is Radio City Music Hall:
I then turned left at W. 49th St. and turned right on Broadway.
Before reaching Columbus Circle, I passed the CBS Store…
…and Ed Sullivan Theater, home to The Late Show with David Letterman:
Last night’s taping was in progress as I walked by.
At Columbus Circle:
Almost at Borders:
Inside Borders, shortly after 7PM, Marina made her grand entrance:
She was accompanied by her dog Gorby (as in Mikhail Gorbachev), a male miniature Maltese:
Gorby has been featured in many of her videos.
Before addressing the crowd, Carlos Sanchez of SneakGeekz presented Marina with a pair of sneakers:
After thanking everyone for coming, the floor was opened up to questions.
Gorby:
Next, the signing.
When it was my turn to have my book signed, I introduced myself as MCLIJazz from her website, where I’m a semi-regular commenter. She knew exactly who I was and that I was initially up in the air about going, but decided to go and made it.
We took two pictures together:
In this one, I laughed nervously as Gorby put his paw on my shoulder and sniffed my right ear (or he licked it):
After that, it was a whirlwind. Minutes later, a little after 8PM, I went down to the [extremely hot] subway station, which was mere steps from The Shops.
The last picture I took:
I boarded the [air conditioned] C train to [equally extremely hot] Penn Station. A few minutes after that, I was able to catch the [air conditioned] LIRR Babylon train and headed back to Wantagh. I was in Wantagh 50 minutes later.
I had a great time and it was a pleasure to meet Marina (and Gorby) in person.
Before heading back to Los Angeles, Marina wrote a talked about the signing on her website:
Hi guys!! The turnout at the book signing was AMAZING!!! I got some great footage, so I will be posting that as soon as I get back to LA and edit it! It was so great to meet you all! Thank you so much for coming out!
And I might even show up in that footage.
8/31 UPDATE: While at Borders, Marina was interviewed by Predicto TV:
9/28 UPDATE: Footage from this appearance was finally shown on Marina’s website today. It was part of a video promoting her appearance at Book Soup in Los Angeles on Thursday. I was only featured for two seconds saying “It’s-it’s great to be here.” That’s good enough for me.
U.S. Open 2009 recap June 25, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Golf, Personal, Sports, Travel, TV, Weather.add a comment
Last week, Bethpage Black Golf Course hosted the 109th U.S. Open [Golf] Championship. The Black Course is one of five golf courses at Bethpage State Park. The other ones are Yellow, Red, Blue, and Green. Depending on where you are on the Black Course, you are in Old Bethpage, Melville, or Farmingdale, New York. The course also hosted the 102nd U.S. Open in 2002 won by Tiger Woods.
Heavy rains delayed the tournament on Thursday and Saturday. That pushed each round up a day. The first round was mostly played on Friday, the second round was played on Friday and Saturday, the third round was played on Saturday and Sunday, and the final round on Sunday and Monday. Needless to say, the suspension-of-play airhorns (or whatever they’re called) got quite a workout. Those rains, coupled with thousands (at least) of feet walking on the grounds created widespread mud puddles.
I was there three days during the week of the Open: Sunday, June 14, for the free pre-championship opening weekend; Tuesday, June 16, for the second Practice Round; and Sunday, June 21, for much of the third round and the start of the final round. (In 2002, I was there on June 9 and 15.)
In the days and weeks ahead, I will gradually add pictures taken on the 14th and 16th to this post.
Here are pics from June 14:
This was a special exit on the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expwy. (NY 135) northbound for U.S. Open shuttle buses coming from Jones Beach.
Heading for parking lot C:
Entering Lot C:
Getting on the spectator shuttle to the Black Course:
This is normally the parking lot for the golf courses, but during the Open, it was a pick-up/drop-off lot:
Entering the course…
Testing the jumbotron:
Fans watching players on the practice range:
The merchandise pavilion:
As people exited the pavilion, they were greeted by posters for future U.S. Open Championships:
The site for the 2016 Open was later revealed to be Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania:
One of many concession stands:
The back of the practice range grandstands:
Walking up to the grandstands:
A tee shot in mid-flight:
Another one:
Both pictures were cropped versions of larger ones.
The main gate for shuttles to and from Jones Beach:
Let’s look inside the American Express Championship Experience tent…
The history of the U.S. Open:
An Open timeline:
Back outside, this is the gate for shuttles to and from LIRR Farmingdale Station:
Me:
Pictures from my practice round trip on June 16 still to come.
After 72 holes had been completed, Lucas Glover had won. It was his first major championship, and only his second win on the PGA Tour.
8/18/12 UPDATE: In a major case of procrastination, I never got around to posting pictures from my practice round trip. With The Barclays coming to Bethpage Black next week, it’s time for me to finally post those pics. Since there are so many, I’m posting them in gallery form. Unfortunately, I don’t know how to limit what pictures to include in the gallery. So, scroll down until you see MC61609003 – a picture of buses.
8/2/16 UPDATE: I figured out how to limit the pictures. Forget what I said in the previous update. All pictures in the gallery below are now from the practice round.
Latest TPiR double showcase winner March 11, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Game Shows, Media, TV.add a comment
For third time in a month, and the fourth time in three months, a contestant on “The Price is Right” wins both showcases in the Showcase round. Today, the lucky contestant was Lorna Baker.
Lorna was the fourth of the first four contestants to come on down at the top of the show, and the fourth contestant to make it on stage, winning a Traeger Lil’ Pig grill in One Bid. Once on stage, she played Freeze Frame and won Wesley Allen bed with a Laura Ashley mattress.
In the Showcase Showdown, she spun 1.00 on the Big Wheel, winning $1,000, but nothing more in her bonus spin.
In the Showcase round, Lorna passed the first showcase to the runner-up, Catherine. The first showcase consisted of a Kitty Hawk Kites kiteboarding kit, a Segway scooter, and a Toyota Prius hybrid car. The second showcase contained Broyhill’s Affinity living room collection, Noritake dinnerware, a private chef from Big City Chefs, and a trip to Brussels, Belgium! (Sorry, I morphed into announcer Rich Fields for a second.)
Lorna’s bid for that second showcase was $17,250. The actual retail price…$17,333! With a difference of $83, $4 less than Zachary Newton’s difference two weeks ago, Lorna Baker won both showcases. In all, she won $56,150 in cash and prizes. What a day.
Video of today’s show can be found here. Skip to 16:55 to see One Bid and Freeze Frame, 28:34 for the Showcase Showdown, and 31:23 for the Showcase round.
Winter pre-order update #1 February 25, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Football, Jazz, Personal, Sports, TV.add a comment
The first round of pre-orders came out yesterday (Tuesday) and promptly arrived at my front porch. The items were:
Jeff Kashiwa, “Back In The Day”
Pieces Of A Dream, “Soul Intent”
“Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder” (DVD)
“Super Bowl XLIII Champions: Pittsburgh Steelers” (DVD)
After bringing everything in, opening the packaging, and unwrapping, I ripped (loaded CD tracks from) “Back In The Day” and “Soul Intent” to my computer. I didn’t get to watch the “Futurama” DVD or listen to the CDs, but I did watch the Super Bowl XLIII DVD. It was in widescreen format, which was zoomed by my HD upconversion DVD player. That’s why I love the player.
I’ll get around to CD listening in the next day or so.
Another Double Showcase Winner on TPiR! February 19, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Game Shows, Media, TV.add a comment
Today on “The Price is Right,” Lindsey Marie Kowal won both showcases in the Showcase round! Lindsey Marie – a Cleveland, Ohio, transplant living in Las Vegas – came within $116 of the actual retail price of her showcase, which featured Jo Malone products, a bedroom set (with mattress), and a jet ski. (If a contestant is within $250 or less on their bid, they win both showcases.) She was the first Double Showcase winner since Terry Kneiss, another Vegas resident, won in December. Host Drew Carey exhibited much more enthusiasm than last time, which means there won’t be an uproar from fans on the internet. (I’d be surprised if there is.)
The second showcase was James Bond-themed with a watch, an assortment of “007” movies on blu-ray disc, a home theater system with blu-ray disc player and a 46″ plasma TV, and a trip to Monte Carlo.
In addition to the showcases, Lindsey Marie won snowboarding equipment in One Bid, the game played in contestants’ row.
Video of the full show can be found here. The Showcase round begins at 31:37.
2/24 UPDATE: Today, only three airdates later, “The Price is Right” had another Double Showcase winner! Zachary Newton, the top winner in the Showcase round, came within a mere $87 of the actual retail price of his showcase. The showcase featured a bedroom set (with mattress), snowboarding and skiing equipment, and a snowmobile.
Zachary passed the first showcase, which featured nine iPod Nanos, a monthly home spa party for a year, and a trip to Sweden.
His One Bid prize was a refrigerator/freezer.
Video of the full show can be found here. The Showcase round begins at 32:22.
Winter pre-orders February 9, 2009
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Football, Jazz, Personal, Sports, TV.add a comment
It’s time for another round of pre-orders on Amazon.com. The pre-ordered items range from jazz CDs to animation DVDs to a Super Bowl Champions DVD. Here’s the list:
Jeff Kashiwa, “Back In The Day” (2/24)
Pieces Of A Dream, “Soul Intent” (2/24)
“Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder” (DVD) (2/24)
“Super Bowl XLIII Champions: Pittsburgh Steelers” (DVD) (2/24)
Rippingtons, “Modern Art” (3/10)
Down to the Bone, “Future Boogie” (4/21)
Check back in the coming weeks for pre-order updates, which will come when the items arrive or if I pre-order anything else.
2/10 UPDATE: Chuck Loeb, “Between 2 Worlds” (3/24)
Defending Drew Carey December 17, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Game Shows, Media, Radio, TV.add a comment
5/16/19 UPDATE: I wrote a long overdue follow up after watching Perfect Bid: The Contestant Who Knew Too Much.
Yesterday on “The Price is Right” on CBS, a contestant named Terry Kneiss (“niece”) from Las Vegas made a perfect bid in the Showcase round and won both showcases. This was only the second time in the history of the show that a contestant bid perfectly. The other time was in the first season, 1972-1973.
For not being enthusiastic enough in announcing this milestone, host Drew Carey has been roundly criticized, especially on the internet. Other criticisms include: he bungled the situation, he can no longer be defended, he shouldn’t have been the host in the first place, bring back Bob Barker, etc.
I was going to link here to video of yesterday’s Showcase round, so you could just for yourself. But it wouldn’t load properly. Instead, click here for the full episode on CBS.com. Then, scroll ahead to 31:25 for the full round or 37:06 for the stoic reaction that’s infuriated so many people.
I am here to defend Drew. I believe he was simply in stunned disbelief and shock. Not everyone handles that situation by yelling and screaming. Drew has had the yelling, screaming reaction before, but he is far from perfect. If you want Drew to be wildly enthusiastic every time, you’re going to be disappointed. Clearly, many were disappointed by this. If you want to stop watching “The Price is Right” because Drew isn’t enthusiastic enough for your taste, it’s your choice. But there are plenty of people like me that support Drew and will continue to watch. I have been a Drew Carey fan since “The Drew Carey Show,” I became a bigger fan when he started the U.S. version of “Whose Line is it Anyway?,” and I’ve supported him on all projects since.
If you’re a fellow Drew Carey fan/supporter, you’re welcome to leave a comment. I look forward to hearing from you.
And congratulations to Terry. You wrote a second chapter for the history books.
12/18 UPDATE: TMZ – I can’t believe I’m linking to them – has audio of an interview with 93.1 The Party in Las Vegas.
And Paul Walsh of The Minneapolis Star-Tribune has a report on Terry’s win and the “internet buzz” that followed it (and, of course, Drew Carey’s stoic reaction).
Cablevision adds CNBC HD, but not FBN. December 5, 2008
Posted by Mike C. in Media, Personal, Sports, TV.2 comments
On Tuesday, Cablevision added four more HD channels to their lineup. The key add among them was CNBC HD. This flies in the face of customers like me that have been lobbying for the Fox Business Network to be added. I’ve been as vocal as I can be since a week before FBN debuted in SD (standard definition) and HD (high definition) on October 15, 2007.
Originally, I was going to say more, but I decided to hold back.
The other channels added were also under the NBC Universal umbrella: Bravo HD, SCI FI HD, and USA HD. This means that next year, I’ll be able to watch early rounds of the tennis U.S. Open in HD.
From the press release linked above:
Bravo HD (iO TV channel 745) offers Bravo’s critically acclaimed arts and entertainment programming devoted to the food, fashion, design, beauty and pop culture genres including critically acclaimed series “Top Chef 5,” “Top Design 2,” Shear Genius 2,” “Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style 2” and “The Real Housewives of New York City 2.” CNBC HD+ (channel 771) has become the essential service for the investor, providing all the elements of CNBC with greater levels of information equipping the viewer with more tools necessary to make investment decisions. SCI FI HD (channel 748 ) continues to fuel the imagination of viewers with original series and events, blockbuster movies, and classic science fiction and fantasy programming including “Sanctuary,” “Stargate Atlantis,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “Ghost Hunters” and “Eureka.” USA HD (channel 738 ) is the #1-rated television network in all of basic cable for the past three years. USA offers hit original series and feature movies, sports and entertainment events, off-net television shows and blockbuster theatrical films. Hit original series include: Emmy-winning “Monk;” Friday night comedy “Psych; #1-rated cable show of summer, “Burn Notice;” the #1-rated new show of the summer “In Plain Sight;” and the Emmy-winning series “The Starter Wife.”
2/13/09 UPDATE: After getting a comment to this post, I noticed that the “8” and “)” became a sunglasses emoticon: 8)
I’ve added a space between the two characters to fix that problem.
11/19/09 UPDATE: FBN has finally come to Cablevision!
MikeChimeri.com 
Bold & Fresh Tour at Westbury! January 22, 2010
Posted by Mike C. in Commentary, Media, News, Personal, Radio, TV.3 comments
Tomorrow night, Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck’s Bold & Fresh Tour kicks off at the Capital One Theatre at Westbury. The show sold out only days after tickets went on sale. The same can be said for all other venues on the tour:
Actually, as I type, the early Pasadena show still has tickets available, but I doubt that will be true much longer.
The Norfolk show will be simulcast live in movie theaters across the United States. For more information, check the Bold Fresh Tour website.
On the website, the tour is billed this way:
I will be at the Westbury show tomorrow night. It’ll be the first time I’ve seen either O’Reilly or Beck in person. It should be great.
I’ll update this post after the show.
1/23, 10:55 PM UPDATE: The show was excellent.
The start of it was delayed about 15 minutes because some radical protesters wouldn’t allow cars into the parking lot. Traffic was held up during that time, resulting in a long stationary line of cars, including me and my dad, from the parking lot entrance to the Northern State Pkwy. exit ramps in both directions. After the delay, the parking lot was full and attendants made us park in a neighboring lot.
Just as we got to our seats inside, the show began. We were four rows from the stage and four seats from the aisle where Glenn and Bill walked to and from the stage.
Glenn came out first, dressed casually with a mic attached to his ear. He spoke for 20 minutes. After that, it was Bill’s turn. I knew he was 6’4″, but I had no idea how tall that looked up close until tonight. Bill was in a suit and tie and held a wireless mic.
Then, there was a 20-minute intermission, during which, I tried in vain to get to the concession stand because the lobby was packed.
Following the intermission, both Bill and Glenn sat in chairs and interviewed each other while the stage revolved.
There seemed to be more Glenn fans than Bill fans, but that’s okay.
I’m happy to report there weren’t any hecklers during the show.
1/25 UPDATE: Dave Marcus had his own recap yesterday in Newsday. Bill replied to the recap tonight on “The O’Reilly Factor” in the Talking Points Memo:
FOXNews.com Video
FOXNews.com Transcript
BillOReilly.com Summary
The tour website links here for info on the movie theater simulcast. It’s live this Saturday at 8PM Eastern with an encore replay next Tuesday at the same time. Three Long Island theaters will carry the simulcast live: Port Washington Cinemas, Farmingdale Multiplex, and Island 16: Cinema de Lux in Holtsville. Farmingdale Multiplex and Island 16 will also carry the encore along with Westbury Stadium 12.
1/26 UPDATE: The following viewer e-mails were read on “The Factor” tonight:
Bob DeFliese, Garden City, NY: “Bill, my wife and I attended the Bold Fresh tour show at Westbury and your talking points was spot on. Newsday distorted what happened. Neither you nor Beck made any political play for the Republican Party. You were fair, entertaining, and informative.”
Bridget O’Shea Burns, West Springfield, MA: “Bill, my husband and I drove down to see the Bold Fresh show. You and Beck have great on-stage chemistry and I was quite surprised how funny you guys were.”
Bill’s response: “Well, I appreciate the good review, Bridget. Glad it was worth the trip. By the way, the Bold Fresh show [in Norfolk, VA] is playing at nearly 500 movie theaters this coming Saturday night. Check the theaters out on the website BoldFreshTour.com. BoldFreshTour.com.”
Marissa Singer, Farmingville, NY: “O’Reilly, I know Beck teased you about wearing a suit during the show, but I thought you looked dashing.”
Bill’s response: (grinning): “Well, Beck is just jealous, Marissa. We all know that. Thanks for coming to see us.”
Thank you, Bill and Glenn, for such a great show. Thanks also to those that have checked out this post after I linked to it in the comment thread for this post at Olbermann Watch.
1/27 UPDATE: Thanks further to those that were referred from Johnny Dollar’s Place.
1/29 UPDATE: Tonight’s Talking Points Memo and At Your Beck & Call segment flashed back to last Saturday’s show at Westbury.
The Bold Fresh site has news regarding the Norfolk show tomorrow:
As a result, the movie simulcast site said this:
2/3 UPDATE: Excerpts from the simulcast Tampa show were shown Monday night on “The Factor”:
I’m hoping the simulcast is released on DVD or Blu-ray.
8/2 UPDATE: Bill and Glenn returned to Westbury on Saturday night. I was not there, but plenty of people were. It was another sold out event. Mediaite’s Steve Krakauer and Glynnis MacNicol were among the crowd and have their take on the show here and here.
The following e-mails were read tonight on “The O’Reilly Factor”:
Marilyn Fulton, Kings Park, NY: “O’Reilly, attended the Bold Fresh tour at the Westbury Theatre. Loved it. You and Beck are a great team.”
Bill’s response: “Well, I appreciate that, Marilyn.”
Gail Fischler, Bellmore, NY: “Saw the show at Westbury. You were hysterical, O’Reilly.”
Bill’s response: “In a humorous vein, right, Gail? I wasn’t literally hysterical, was I? I don’t think I was, but…never know what that word means.”
I’ll answer that: it was indeed a humorous vein. Bill was joking, of course.
1/22/11 UPDATE: The simulcast of last year’s Bold Fresh Tour event in Tampa is now available on DVD!