Welcome to Wildcard Wednesday! Today we’re celebrating the fourth anniversary of That’s Entertainment! Since June 17, 2013, I’ve published 873 original posts, and this is the end of our 209th week, the first 132 of which featured five new entries every seven days. Since January 2016, we cut down to three entries per week, and reduced the total again this January down to two (with Musical Theatre Mondays recurring once a month). As we’ve done in our last three anniversary celebrations, I’m featuring my favorite posts from this past year. This is a sort of highlight reel from “Season Four,” if you will — THE BEST OF JACKSON!
Musical Theatre Monday – December 19, 2016
“Before The Curtain Rings Down V: STREET SCENE (1947)”
The penultimate entry in our weekly Musical Theatre Monday series, this post on 1947’s Street Scene not only provided a chance to highlight one of my favorite scores, but it also allowed me to share a figurative truckload of rarities, which I’m always glad to do! Find it again here.
Musical Theatre Monday – April 17, 2017
“A Live TV Musical: HIT THE DECK (1950)”
Once Musical Theatre Mondays moved to once a month, I was emboldened to focus on the gems that I’m uniquely able to share. (This’ll continue throughout the next year — lots of good stuff coming!) It was a pleasure sharing this rare audio of a live 1950 TV musical. Listen here.
Situation Comedy Tuesday – September 13, 2016
“The Ten Best THE GOLDEN GIRLS Episodes of Season One”
As with Cheers, coverage of The Golden Girls proved be very popular, eliciting fantastic discussion and a lot of positive attention for me and my work here. Also, I consider my commentary on the show to be some of the best I’ve ever done (so far). Check out the start of the series here.
Situation Comedy Tuesday – December 20, 2016
“The Ten Best MARRIED… WITH CHILDREN Episodes of Season Four”
Married… With Children was, simply, a fun show to discuss — in part because it’s usually fun to watch, and also because it was a fascinating experience being able to examine its qualities under a more critical eye. In this year, the series fulfilled its original premise; more here.
Situation Comedy Tuesday – June 13, 2017
“The Ten Best SEINFELD Episodes of Season Nine”
Perhaps it’s just fresh in my mind — or perhaps because it was cathartic to work through and finalize my thoughts on one of the most popular sitcoms of the 20th century — but yesterday’s last post in our series of coverage on Seinfeld left me feeling quite proud. See it again here.
Wildcard Wednesday – August 03, 2016
“Exonerating Ms. Ball: A Look at LIFE WITH LUCY”
There’ve been a lot of exciting Wildcard Wednesday posts this past year — including some in the series we’ve done (like Jack Benny and Dynasty), but one of my favorite standalone pieces was a tribute to the anniversary of Lucille Ball’s birth: a look at her final series. Revisit it here.
Wildcard Wednesday – February 22, 2017
“The Best of Benny: 1939-40 (JELL-O Season Six)”
Coverage of this classic old-time radio comedy began last August and is continuing on a bi-monthly basis throughout the rest of this year. It’s a lot of work discussing the series, but I’ve loved having an excuse to listen to some of the best comedy writing ever. Hear some here.
Wildcard Wednesday – April 19, 2017
“Jackson’s Pre-Code Essentials #46: MURDER AT THE VANITIES (1934)”
Despite Film Fridays ceasing in December 2015, the launch of our Pre-Code Essentials series has given me the opportunity to examine some of the genre’s best — including Murder At The Vanities, which spawned surprising, even to me, commentary on the era. See it again here.
Come back next Wednesday for another Wildcard post! And tune in on Monday for our monthly musical theatre post!