'Abbott Elementary' leads Golden Globes TV nominees with five nominations

Happy Norther! I'm celebrating the fake holiday by examining the Politics, government, and diversity in the 2023 Golden Globe Television nominees as the Sunday entertainment feature. Fortunately, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) made it easy for me by nominating "Abbott Elementary" for five awards, more than any other television show. Diversity and government galore!


As I wrote above "Abbott Elementary" has five nominations, Best Television Series - Comedy, Best Performance in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy (Actress) for Quinta Brunson, Best Supporting Performance in a Television Series – Musical-Comedy or Drama (Supporting Actor) for Tyler James Williams, and two nominations for Best Supporting Performance in a Television Series – Musical-Comedy or Drama (Supporting Actor) for Janelle James and Sheryl Lee Ralph. Based on the number of nominations alone, I'd pick "Abbott Elementary." The experts at Gold Derby support my intuition, as seven of the nine have "Abbott Elementary" in first. One picked "The Bear," which six other experts picked second, and one picked "Wednesday," a distinctly minority view as no one else ranks it higher than third and four rank fifth! Those same experts think the other nominated mystery "Only Murders in the Building" is better. I'm rooting for "Abbott Elementary," but I expect "Wednesday" will be a big hit at the next Saturn Awards, whenever they're held.


I begin by repeating what I wrote in 'Ted Lasso,' 'Barry,' 'Hacks,' and 'Only Murders in the Building' lead comedy series nominees at the 2022 Emmy Awards about Lead Actress In A Comedy Series for Best Performance in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy, Actress.

As I wrote last year "Kaley Cuoco's Cassie Bowden is recruited as an undercover agent at the end of the first season," adding a lot more government content to the show. That turned out surprisingly well, although I think the finale stuck the landing and then tripped. That's not Cuoco's fault as an actress, but it's indirectly her fault as a producer...twelve of the thirteen Gold Derby editors along with the majority of uses think Jean Smart will repeat for "Hacks" with only [one] editor predicting Quinta Brunson for "Abbott Elementary."

Jean Smart did win the Emmy, again, but this is a different field, with Selina Gomez and Jenna Ortega joining Brunson, Cuoco, and Smart, making this a very diverse field, and a different set of voters. As I nearly always point out in my awards show coverage, electorates matter. While the experts at Gold Derby generally don't think much of "Wednesday" as a show, they seem to love Jenna Ortega, who plays the title character, as seven of the nine have picked her to win. Only one each ranked Jean Smart and Quinta Brunson first. While Ortega has been acting for years, "Wednesday" was definitely her breakthrough role. I expect to vote for Ortega at the Saturn Awards, whether for Best Actress on Television or Best Younger Performer on Television, whichever the acting nomination committee slots her in.


As the award name states, Best Supporting Performance in a Television Series – Musical-Comedy or Drama, Supporting Actor lumps together supporting actors from both comedy and drama series. Usually, this favors performers in dramas. It also means that I'm recycling from both my comedy and drama nominee posts about the 2022 Emmy Awards. Only Tyler James Williams and Henry Winkler are appearing from the Emmy field for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and John Turtoro from "Severance" from the drama field for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and I wrote very little about them, so on to their chances. Six of the Gold Derby experts have Turturo as their top choice, while one each have John Lithgow, Jonathon Pryce, and Henry Winkler. I'd say Turturo, except that Joyce Eng picked Lithgow, which gives me pause. She has a knack for being right.


The experts at Gold Derby see Best Supporting Performance in a Television Series – Musical-Comedy or Drama, Supporting Actress, as a very close contest. Five of them think Emmy winner Sheryl Lee Ralph will win, while four of them picked Elizabeth Debicki, who plays Princess Diana in the latest season of "The Crown" as the likely winner. Eng thinks it will be Ralph, so I'm using her pick as the tiebreaker. Good thing the two actresses will be competing in different categories at next year's Emmy Awards!

I'm rounding out comedy with Best Performance in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy (Actor).


Again, I begin by recycling.

"Atlanta" has a lot of social and political commentary in its comedy...This is a rich field with Donald Glover, Bill Hader, and Jason Sudeikis having won this category for these same roles before and Steve Martin and Martin Short winning Emmy Awards for comedy writing. Nine of the Gold Derby editors think that Hader will win, including Eng, three have picked Sudeikis to repeat, and one thinks Steve Martin will win his first Emmy for acting. The readers think it will be a close win for Hader. I can see that.

Sudeikis won the Emmy, but he's not in this field because Season 3 of "Ted Lasso" hasn't streamed yet. Instead, Jeremy Allen White of "The Bear" joins Glover, Hader, Martin, and Short, making this a less diverse field than the comedy actresses. According to the experts at Gold Derby, White is the favorite with eight of them picking him over one lone expert ranking Hader first. Even that one vote of confidence is not enough to put Hader in second, as seven experts ranked Martin ahead of him and five think Short has a better chance of winning. Wow! It could be worse; eight of the nine have Glover in last.

Follow over the jump for the rest of the TV nominees.

CNN takes 'A look at the aftermath of the Jan 6 insurrection two years later'

I'm not done with the second anniversary of 2021's attempted self-coup.* Watch A look at the aftermath of the Jan 6 insurrection two years later from CNN.

CNN’s Randi Kaye gives a look at the events after the January 6th attack, and the most critical moments from the investigation in the two years since.

This retrospective deals as much with the progress and findings of the January 6th Committee hearings as the insurrection itself. I will be writing about those in the spring, as the four posts I linked to are currently among the most read during the twelfth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News. In the meantime, I hope we learn from them and do something about the circumstances that led to the insurrection, although given Kevin "Pickled Tongue" McCarthy finally winning the Speakership after fifteen ballots, I doubt it will be because of federal legislation during the next two years. Sigh.

*I know I wrote "I'm going to take a break from this drama for an entertainment update on Saturday" at the end of Meyers and Colbert take closer looks at McCarthy's continuing 'Groundhog Day' of losing votes for Speaker, but I decided it would take more time than I wanted to spend today. Instead, I'm postponing that for Norther on Sunday. Stay tuned.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson among those awarded Presidential Citizens Medals on the second anniversary of January 6th

Just like Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan announces retirement, will not run in 2024 yesterday, I have a bonus Michigan news post this evening. Today, the subject is Jocelyn Benson. Watch WDIV/Click On Detroit reporting Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson receives Presidential Citizens Award.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson was in Washington D.C. on Friday to receive the Presidential Citizens Award from President Joe Biden.

ABC News showed the entire ceremony in Presidential Citizens Medal awarded to 12 individuals in White House ceremony.

The medals were awarded to police officers who defended the U.S. Capitol, and others who protected democracy, as Washington marks the second anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack.

I'm proud to see Benson being the first awardee called up.

MSNBC interviewed Benson this morning in Michigan Secretary of State to receive Presidential Citizens Medal.

President Biden on Friday will mark the second anniversary of the attack on the Capitol by awarding the Presidential Citizens Medal to a dozen election workers, officials and law enforcement officers. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson will be among the recipients, and she joins Morning Joe to discuss.

Thank you, Madam Secretary, for your efforts to protect democracy. Looking forward to you serving the people of Michigan for years to come.

Meyers and Colbert take closer looks at McCarthy's continuing 'Groundhog Day' of losing votes for Speaker

After leading off with Stephen Colbert for two nights of Kevin "Pickled Tongue" McCarthy losing vote after vote for Speaker of the House, I'm switching things up tonight by beginning with Seth Meyers' Boebert and Hannity Clash, Republicans Turn On Trump Amid GOP Speaker Chaos: A Closer Look.

Seth takes a closer look at the humiliating Republican meltdown in the House leaving one of two chambers of Congress in total paralysis as Republicans and Fox News hosts bicker with each other, stab each other in the backs and call each other names.

After not mentioning Lauren Boebert for months, I've featured her three days in a row. She's not going to do what Sean Hannity suggested and back down; she seems to enjoy the attention and she even took control of the interview from him. She'll keep doing that as long as she can.

Stephen updated Seth's total in Why Does Kevin McCarthy Keep Going? | GOP Spins House Chaos As A Good Thing. As of the recording of the monologue, McCarthy lost ten votes. He ended up losing an eleventh ballot before the house adjourned.

Stephen offers a theory about why Kevin McCarthy continues to subject himself to losing floor votes in his fight to become Speaker, and the Republican party wants you to think all this chaos is actually refreshing.

That AI portrait is literally uncanny. Wow! At least it doesn't make McCarthy look like a woodchuck.

I've been missing something the past two nights, a cold open on the subject of the monologue. I finally found last night's, which showed Here’s How Far Kevin McCarthy Will Go To Get Speaker Votes.

Kevin McCarthy has to put it all on the table after finishing second in every single vote.

A Komodo dragon! Don't do it!

I'm going to take a break from this drama for an entertainment update on Saturday followed by Norther on Sunday. Stay tuned.

Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan announces retirement, will not run in 2024

While Kevin "Pickled Tongue" McCarthy is experiencing another "Groundhog Day," other important news stories are happening, including here in Michigan. WOOD-TV reported Sen. Stabenow: It’s the right time to ‘pass the torch’.


Yes, the speculation about who will succeed Stabenow will be intense over the next two years, but I think it's premature for me to indulge in it today. Still, I look forward to and expect it will be fun. I hope my readers will enjoy it as much as I will.

WOOD-TV uploaded the full interview as 'Pass the torch': Sen. Stabenow will not seek reelection in 2024.

After announcing Thursday morning that she will not seek reelection, U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow said serving Michigan has been “the honor of my life.”

I can't help but note that Senator Stabenow touted her accomplishments in the three largest sectors of Michigan's economy, manufacturing, especially of automobiles, tourism, albeit indirectly through protecting the Great Lakes, and agriculture — especially agriculture. Here's to two more years of her serving Michigan and the country and thanks to her for all she's done and will still do.

That's it for today's bonus post. Stay tuned.

Colbert and Kimmel laugh at Kevin McCarthy's 'Groundhog Day'

I observed "I haven't used the Pickled Tongue label for McCarthy since July 2022, but it looks like it's going to get a workout now that he's contending for Speaker of the House, however long that takes" in Stephen Colbert dunks on Kevin McCarthy losing the vote for Speaker three times as his first monologue of 2023. Well, I get to use it again, as McCarthy lost three more votes. As Stephen noted in his monologue, it's Kevin McCarthy’s Groundhog Day.

Kevin McCarthy continued his quest to become Speaker of the House despite losing vote after vote, and residents of Oregon can now legally trip on mushrooms in a clinical setting.

McCarthy really does look like a groundhog, although I think a real groundhog is cuter.

Jimmy Kimmel examined the day's news in Republicans STILL Can’t Elect a Speaker, Trump Stands by McCarthy & Louisiana Cracks Down on Porn.

A “bomb cyclone” is on the loose and there are flood warnings across California, Southwest Airlines got hit with another outage yesterday that grounded about 140 flights, Republicans in the House of Representatives have once again failed to reach a consensus on who will be their speaker as Kevin McCarthy has now lost six times, Donald Trump posted on Truth Social in support of McCarthy, Republicans removed metal detectors from the House entrances as their first act in the majority which was great cause of celebration for Lauren Boebert, MyPillow Mike Lindell has an interesting plan, Louisiana has a new state law that requires a government-issued ID in order to watch online porn, and we tracked down a movie theater employee from Texas who went viral over the holidays for his impressive skills behind the snack counter and is now known as “The Popcorn Guy!”

There's something in the air, as Kimmel made a joke about groundhogs (although he called them woodchucks), too! Speaking of things in the air, how about “The Popcorn Guy?” Watching him was fun and I hope he really does show up at the Oscars.

Before I reveal what happened when the House reconvened at 8:00 P.M. tonight, I'm sharing a video I missed yesterday, Late Night with Seth Meyers in McCarthy Humiliated by Failed Speaker Vote as House GOP Explodes into Chaos: A Closer Look.

Seth takes a closer look at Republicans exploding into absolute chaos on what was supposed to be their first day in charge of the House of Representatives when far-right MAGA members blocked GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy from winning enough votes to become Speaker on the first two ballots.

Since yesterday ended up being Groundhog Day, Seth's jokes still work.

By the way, neither of Stephen's predictions, McCarthy becoming Speaker or facing three more losing votes, came true. Instead, MSNBC reported Republicans scramble to adjourn amid second day of speaker chaos.

The House voted to adjourn until noon Thursday, still without a speaker as Kevin McCarthy says talks are progressing.

Ha, ha, the Republicans were barely able to vote to adjourn after returning to the chamber. GOP in disarray!

McCarthy's Groundhog Day resumes tomorrow (technically today) at noon. Stay tuned.

Stephen Colbert dunks on Kevin McCarthy losing the vote for Speaker three times as his first monologue of 2023

I concluded My Saturn Awards votes versus the winners for National Science Fiction Day 2023 by telling my readers "Stay tuned as I return to my regular programming..." NASA looks ahead to 2023 wasn't quite it. On the other hand, Stephen Colbert's first monologue of 2023, Kevin McCarthy’s Major Weakness | George Santos’s Lies Should Disqualify Him From Office definitely is.

The House of Representatives adjourned for the day without electing Rep. Kevin McCarthy as Speaker, while new Congressman George Santos has told so many lies that he shouldn’t be sworn into office.

I haven't used the Pickled Tongue label for McCarthy since July 2022, but it looks like it's going to get a workout now that he's contending for Speaker of the House, however long that takes. If he wins, I'll be using it more. If he fails, well, so long and good riddance, although the successor could likely be worse. As I usually write about population, "Be careful what you wish for, you might get it."


As for why the far right of the GOP is opposed to McCarthy, it's because he's just to the left of the Congressional Party's center, as shown in this image from VoteView.


The labeled red triangle shows Kevin McCarthy's location in ideological space according to Voteview, which lists his ideological score as 0.454, more liberal than 59% of Republicans in the 117th House. In contrast, his Republican rival for Speaker, Jim Jordan, has an ideological score of 0.717, which Voteview describes as more conservative than 92% of Republicans in the 117th House and more conservative than 96% of U.S. Representatives. The orange triangle below locates his position in ideological space.


I doubt he'll be elected Speaker, either, but if he is, he would be much worse than McCarthy. For starters, listening to him and reading his words makes me feel stupid, so I have him muted on Twitter. At least he's genuine in his awfulness. George Santos, as Stephen points out, is a complete phony who is unfit for office. Worse yet, he's a fugitive from justice in Brazil. Maybe he and Lauren Boebert should compare rap sheets.

NASA looks ahead to 2023

I'm reviving a blogging idea from 2021, when I wrote NASA says 'Let's Go to the Moon' in 2021, NASA looking ahead to the new year. Watch NASA in 2023: A Look Ahead.

In 2022, we made history. In 2023, we are preparing for our future by exploring the secrets of the universe. All for the benefit of humanity.

As I wrote in 2022 has been another great year in space, "Here's to 2023 being another great year in space!" If everything NASA plans happens, to say nothing of all the rest of the world's space agencies and companies like SpaceX, it will be.

My Saturn Awards votes versus the winners for National Science Fiction Day 2023

Happy National Science Fiction Day! As I promised yesterday, I am revisiting my Saturn Award votes by comparing them to the winners.


FILM AWARDS
Best Action / Adventure Film: My vote — Top Gun: Maverick; winner — Top Gun: Maverick.
Best Actor in a Film: My vote — Timothee Chalamet (Dune); winner — Tom Cruise (Top Gun: Maverick).
Best Actress in a Film: My vote — Emma Stone (Cruella); winner — Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once).
Best Animated Film: My vote — Encanto; winner — Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.
Best Fantasy Film: My vote — Cruella; winner — Everything Everywhere All at Once.
Best Film Costume Design: My vote — Cruella (Jenny Beavan); winner — The Batman.
Best Film Direction: My vote — Steve Spielberg (West Side Story; winner — Matt Reeves (The Batman)
Best Film Editing: My vote — Top Gun: Maverick (Eddie Hamilton); winner — Top Gun: Maverick (Eddie Hamilton).
Best Film Make Up: My vote — The Batman (Mike Marino, Naomi Donne); winner — Dune.
Best Film Music: My vote — Cruella (Nicholas Britell); winner — Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Best Film Production Design: My vote — Dune (Patrice Vermette); winner — Nightmare Alley.
Best Film Visual / Special Effects: My vote — Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (Janek Sirrs, Erik Winquist, Alexis Wajbrot, Olivier...); winner — Godzilla vs. Kong.
Best Film Writing: My vote — Nope (Jordan Peele); winner — Nightmare Alley.
Best Horror Film: My vote — A Quiet Place Part II; winner — The Black Phone.
Best Independent Film: My vote — Mass; winner — Dual.
Best International Film: My vote — RRR - Rise Roar Revolt; winner — RRR - Rise Roar Revolt.
Best Science Fiction Film: My vote — Dune; winner — Nope.
Best Superhero Film: My vote — The Batman; winner — Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Best Supporting Actor in a Film: My vote — Paul Dano (The Batman); winner — Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once).
Best Supporting Actress in a Film: My vote — Jodie Comer (Free Guy); winner — Awkwafina (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings).
Best Thriller Film: My vote — Nightmare Alley; winner — Nightmare Alley.
Best Younger Actor in a Film: My vote — Millicent Simmonds (A Quiet Place Part II); winner — Finn Wolfhard (Ghostbusters: Afterlife).

Follow over the jump for my votes and the winners in television and home entertainment.

Marching bands from around the world in the 2023 Rose Parade for New Year's Day

Happy New Year! For 2023, I'm presenting this year's version of My favorite bands in the 2022 Rose Parade for New Year's Day, courtesy of Luis at Music213. Today's theme is "marching bands from around the world," so I'm embedding videos of the international units at Bandfest starting with Buhos Marching Band - 2023 Pasadena Bandfest.

From Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico The Buhos Marching Band performing their musical selections at the 42nd Annual Pasadena Tournament of Roses Bandfest on Friday, December 30, 2022.

The announcer mentioned that he enjoyed the Mexican bands at the Rose Parade because they are so colorful. They are that. Notice that the plumes are the colors of the Mexican flag and the band uses them to form a Mexican flag on the field for the finale. I'll return to that theme at the end of the entry. In the meantime, follow over the jump for the rest of the international units.