TV

25 things you don't know about our new TV writer

By Dale Roe
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Sunday, May 24, 2009

As the broadcast networks unveil changes to their fall schedules, you might notice that we've made some changes, too. For starters, you're reading a television column and it's not Tuesday. This column will appear on Sundays, but count on television coverage throughout the week. Then there's that mug shot ... clearly I am not recently retired Diane Holloway. Though Diane can never be replaced — and my tastes are unlikely to completely mirror hers — I can tell you that I am her biggest fan. We are good friends, and we share an uncommon passion for television.

Building on her great work, we're aggressively beefing up our coverage with more frequent blog postings of opinion and breaking news, and we invite you to post your thoughts as well as to participate in live online chats during big television events. If you Twitter, follow me @djroe. I'll frequently post my thoughts while I'm watching (but try to avoid revealing spoilers), and I'll often retweet your thoughts, too. Our goal is to create an energetic community — to engage you in a lively conversation and spirited debate about all things TV.

Not too long ago, a fad of posting lists called "25 things you don't know about me" spread across the Internet, largely via the social networking site Facebook. Though I have a Facebook account (Friend me! I post about TV there, too.), I resisted participating, figuring anybody who knew me could probably guess what I would write and anybody who didn't wouldn't care.

But now that I have a legitimate reason to introduce myself, I figure turnabout is fair play: If television can move onto the Internet, then I can adapt an Internet phenomenon to print. So here are 25 television-related things you don't know about me:

1. I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, a great local television town. Garfield Goose, Ray Rayner and Bozo the clown shaped my childhood, which probably explains a lot.

2. I used to sneak out of bed in my youth ... not to go drinking or to get into trouble, but to creep quietly, just far enough down the stairs so that I could see the original Not Ready for Primetime Players on "Saturday Night Live."

3. I like "Weeds," but I usually feel guilty after watching it.

4. I think "Green Acres" was way ahead of its time, and I'm not sure the world is ready to properly appreciate it, even now.

5. I consider an appearance on the Dell Diamond's scoreboard screen "being on TV."

6. I have been on TV.

7. I like to pretend that my repetitive stress injury issues are the result of mousing at work, but I suspect they are actually related to handling my television's remote control. (Fact: Sense memory often causes my hand to retain the "holding the remote" position even when I'm not holding it.)

8. I think some of the best acting on television — and the worst — takes place on soap operas.

9. Because I have a DVR, I used to fast-forward through commercials. Now I usually let the commercials run and use that time to check my e-mail or Twitter.

10. I have considered planning a vacation to Minneapolis just so I can see the Mary Tyler Moore statue.

11. The funniest thing I have ever seen on TV was a crawl that (accidentally?) ran across the bottom of News 8's screen during a storm, reading something along the lines of "RUN FOR THE HILLS!!! IT'S COMING!!! RUN AWAY!!!"

12. I have an 11-year old daughter, so I spend as much time removing recorded "iCarly," "Drake & Josh" and "SpongeBob SquarePants" episodes from my DVR as I do viewing programs I've recorded for myself.

13. I loved watching Harvey Korman and Tim Conway make each other break character and crack up on "The Carol Burnett Show," but I hated it when Jimmy Fallon and Horatio Sanz did the same thing on "Saturday Night Live."

14. If the television in my family room is on, it's tuned to either the Weather Channel, Discovery, History Channel, Disney Channel or Nickelodeon.

15. I am old enough to have watched the first video on MTV but young enough to watch music videos on my iPhone.

16. I think the last episode of "Newhart" is the best last episode ever. The finale of "M*A*S*H" just might be the worst.

17. I believe the 24-hour news cycle is the worst thing that ever happened to television.

18. In my early 20s, when I worked second shift, I got hooked on game shows and "General Hospital." I'm mostly over that.

19. I still watch "The Simpsons," but it's no longer a big deal if I miss it. I'm tired, though, of hearing that it's not as good as it used to be. It's in its 20th season ... how could it be? I hope in 20 years y'all are complaining that my column isn't as good as it used to be.

20. There are three TVs in my house. That number goes up exponentially if you include computers and iPods.

21. I know where the phrase "jumped the shark" comes from. But I think that phrase has jumped the shark.

22. I'm really disturbed by the trend to start shooting every sitcom in the faux-documentary style of "The Office." It wasn't even new (nor did it particularly make sense) when NBC bought the concept from Ricky Gervais.

23. I have always preferred Mary Ann to Ginger.

24. Not only do I not have HDTV, I don't even own a flat screen.

25. I believe that though television has the ability to inspire, inform and educate, just entertaining me is a really noble thing.