Ranking James Bond Movies-Part 2: The Actual Films

So in Part 1 of Ranking James Bond Movies, I rated the 6 men who have played 007 on the Big screen.  In ascending order, they were Roger Moore, George Lazenby, Pierce Brosnon, Timothy Dalton, Daniel Craig, and Sean Connery.

So now we come to ranking the Bond Movies themselves.  Here’s how I rank them with a brief comment on each:

(24) NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN (1983): I prefer to call the movie “Thunderball Redux”.  Kevin McClory decided to remake the 1965 classic, but the only good thing about this movie was the return of Sean Connery as James Bond.  The ending kind of sucked, which is why I rate this movie way down.

(23) MOONRAKER (1979): Too many gadgets, too many corny jokes, and basically “The Spy Who Loved Me” meets “Star Wars”.  Bernard Lee’s swansong as “M” was rushed and not even Shirley Bassey could save it.

(22) DIE ANOTHER DAY (2002): The 1st post-9/11 Bond movie did not work in the new world reality.  Madonna’s acting… ugh.  Did we really need Halle Berry as a Bond Girl?  It just didn’t work… which was sad because I did like Brosnon’s 007.

(21) FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE (1963): My big problem with this movie was that Bond felt like he was being controlled throughout the movie by SPECTRE’s big muscle.  Only at the end did the James Bond I knew & loved emerged.

(20) QUANTUM OF SOLACE (2008): I admit this is the only Bond movie I have not seen start to finish.  What I have seen leaves me feeling meh.  It’s OK.

(19) THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH (1999): Not exactly another ringing endorsement of Pierce’s 007 version, but my big beef was Denise Richards as a scientific Bond girl named Christmas Jones.  Yeah… Shame that this movie was the farewell of the original “Q”.

(18) THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN (1974): Christopher Lee can play any movie villain role he wants.  Parts of the movie suspended reality (the flying car, the loop over a broken bridge, a LA local sheriff in Thailand). Still fine.

(17) OCTOPUSSY (1983): I really don’t have any hatred for Maud Adams as a Bond Girl.  It’s just that there were better Bond Movies over the years.  Again, a good movie (and certainly better than the other 1983 Bond movie—well except for who played 007 in both movies).

(16) A VIEW TO A KILL (1985): As farewells go, this movie was a nice send-off for Roger Moore.  Duran Duran #1 and a decent plot about Christopher Walken trying to destroy Silicon Valley seemed a fitting end to the Moore Legacy.

(15) DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER (1971): Sean Connery’s 2nd farewell to the eon franchise was not as good as the first.  And does a gay couple working as henchmen really works in today’s changing times?  Still, a good way to send the original 007 off into the sunset—for 12 years.

(14) TOMORROW NEVER DIES (1997): Surprisingly a good movie even with a couple of famous Bond girls.  Michelle Yeoh kicked ass.  And the car chase & motorcycle chase were excellent.

(13) THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS (1987): Timothy Dalton’s introduction to the 007 world was actually good in retrospective.  Working with the mujahedeen in Afghanistan was good in that time.  Problem was, they became Al-Qaeda in real-life.  Plus, the cooperation between Russia, the U.S., & Britain in the movie was a prelude to thawing of relations between rival nations.

(12) ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE (1969): If Sean Connery had done this movie as 007, it would have been maybe the best Bond Movie of all time.  The action was incredible, and the ending showed even the good guys can’t have it all.  Too bad George Lazenby had the role and blew his shot off-screen at becoming a legendary 007.

(11) LIVE AND LET DIE (1973): Roger Moore’s intro into the 007 world was a welcome change from the more action-minded Connery.  Jane Seymour was a wonderful Bond Girl.  Yaphet Kotto was a brilliant bad guy in the movie.  And Paul McCartney singing the Title Song… Nice.  It worked in 1973.

(10) THUNDERBALL (1965):  This was a great movie with Connery again showing why he was the best Bond of all. If Kevin McClory’s ego had let him enjoy being a part of the eon Production instead of trying to cash in on the Fleming phenomenon, he would have seen how special the franchise was.

(9) THE SPY WHO LOVED ME (1977): The introduction of henchman favorite Jaws, and the start of a 10-year détente rivalry between MI-6 and KGB was special.  Barbara Bach was a great Bond girl, because in many ways she was 007’s equal.

(8) YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1967): On screen, this was a great movie introducing Japan to the Bond World, and having the Japanese fight for the good guys.  Meeting the #1 man behind SPECTRE for the first time was a treat.  Behind the scenes, it was contentious, with Connery leaving the franchise one movie before his contract was complete.

(7) CASINO ROYALE (2006): What a way to re-introduce the Bond franchise with Daniel Craig becoming the newly-promoted and raw 007.  Becoming less about the gadgets and more about being a bad-ass secret agent was a terrific way to re-boot the franchise.

(6) DR. NO (1962):  The original Bond movie was a classic, and would have been ranked higher had there not been a few better 007 gems.  The first time the words “Bond… James Bond” were heard on the screen still gives chills.

(5) LICENSE TO KILL (1989): Underrated and would have been a true classic had it been released in 2002.  James Bond out for revenge against a drug lord who had caused so much pain to his American friend.  The plot was ahead of its time… and it unfairly doomed Dalton’s tenure as 007.

(4) FOR YOUR EYES ONLY (1981): Easily, Roger Moore’s best movie as 007. Even though Moore is a pacifist in real-life, the fact that he was willing to get down and dirty without much of Q’s gadget wizardry showed he belonged as James Bond.

(3) GOLDENEYE (1995): A perfect timed movie with a new generation of James Bond in a post-Soviet world.  The line between friend and foe blurred to perfection.  Judi Dench’s first role as Q just felt right.  The tank chase through Saint Petersburg.  Brosnon could have retired right there as the best Bond.

(2) SKYFALL (2012): This is the perfect post-9/11 Bond movie.  And given the recent Snowden leaks, it works even better.  Judi Dench’s address before Parliament was poignant as her final role as Q.  And James Bond comes out of this movie a superspy molded by trial and fire.  How ironic that Moneypenny shot him at the beginning.

(1) GOLDFINGER (1964): The Bond Movie which every other 007 movie is judged against. Oddjob. Pussy Galore. Operation Grand Slam. Shirley Bassey. Everything about this movie works even today.

So there you have it.  I’m sure I’ve ignited some controversy, but that’s how I see ranking the 007 movies.

Ranking James Bond Movies-Part 1: The Men Who Have Played Bond

Anyone who knows me knows I am a fan of the James Bond 007 Movies.  I never had a desire to read any of the Ian Fleming books, but I have seen just about every movie (except for parts of “Quantum of Solace”—which I hope to rectify before my next post).  So, I should be an expert in who is the Best James Bond of all.  To be fair, I did not count the 60s Bond spoof “Casino Royale” in my rankings, but “Never Say Never Again” will count.  So that means there are 6 James Bonds to Rank—Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig.  So who ranks where?  Let’s start from the bottom up:

(6) ROGER MOORE:  Now, I’ll admit saying Roger Moore is the Worst Bond is like saying Outback Steakhouse is the worst steakhouse chain.  It’s still great; just not better than the rest.  And Moore fits into that persona as worst Bond.  Sure, he was the right Bond for the 1970s and early 1980s.  But in today’s world, how could you take a British spy seriously that gets hit on by a 12-year old figure skater?  Or being heavily reliant on Q’s gadgets?  Or uttering a double entente every 5 minutes?  Or having done Moonraker?  Moore’s 007 would not function in this post-9/11 world, especially after the Tom Clancy movies and Jason Bourne movies that have come out since Moore hung up his jacket & tie.

(5) GEORGE LAZENBY:  Lazenby only starred in one 007 movie, and he made a lot of mistakes after that movie was finished which killed his chance to star in other major movies.  But Lazenby’s James Bond was more realistic than Moore’s.  You could see the film directors try to make up for the lack of star power with action consistent with Fleming’s novels.  Lazenby did an admirable job in the role.  It just hasn’t been fully appreciated until now how good he was, even though he had no previous acting experience.

(4) PIERCE BROSNON:  Had Brosnon succeeded Roger Moore, he might have been the greatest of all the Bonds. But Remington Steele prevented Brosnon from stepping into the dream role until after the Cold War had ended.  Plus, he stayed one movie too long in the 007 role.  “Die Another Day” just didn’t work post 9/11.  It’s a real shame, because I liked his Bond, especially in “Goldeneye”.  His Bond had style, sophistication, and an edge to it.  It would have fit better in the “The Living Daylights”.

(3) TIMOTHY DALTON:  Brosnon’s loss turned out to be Timothy’s gain.  Dalton’s two turns as 007 were more true to the Ian Fleming roots.  But he suffered from being the only Bond who was not cast at the right time as James Bond.  He would have been a perfect 1960s Bond or a post-9/11 Bond.  But in the over-the-top 1980s?  Not so much.  Still, he deserves high praise for being a great James Bond.

(2)  DANIEL CRAIG:  The current producers of the James Bond series wanted to go back to 007’s grittier beginning, and Craig hits it out of the park with his portrayal of the more raw super-spy.  While “Casino Royale” was a wonderful intro to the new 007, “Skyfall” was Craig at his absolute best.  Anybody who can drive around in a vintage 1964 Anston-Martin and look cool in it gets bonus points.

(1) SEAN CONNERY:  The definitive and best James Bond was the original 007.  Sean Connery made James Bond a household name and set the bar for every 007 who followed.  He had style, sophistication, and had a way with the ladies.  I could forgive him for Thunderball redux, a.k.a. “Never Say Never Again”, because of movies like “Dr. No” and “Goldfinger”.  Connery’s 007 is timeless.  Even in today’s world, elements of Connery’s Bond would be just as effective as it was in the 1960s.

So that’s how I would rate the 007s.  Up next, I will attempt to rate the individual James Bond movies.  This will definitely be a debatable subject…

The End of the Political Correctness Era…

We are now seeing the End of the Politically Correct Era in the United States.  I cannot say when the beginning of the end occurred.  But it is clear that 2014 is turning into the swansong of the PC Era.  It’s a shame, because, had it been done properly, the PC Era could have been the force of good it was supposed to be before humans hijacked the movement and turned it into a way of settling scores, or getting power.

Two recent sports headlines has shown how the PC Movement has been challenged in the eyes of the nation.  The stories of efforts to change the name of the Washington Redskins and to remove Donald Sterling as owner of the LA Clippers would have, in the past, been no-brainers in the eyes of the PC movement.  Heck, I believe that the Washington NFL Team needs to change its name and that Donald Sterling should have been removed as an NBA Owner long before he was recorded making derogatory statements.  But surprisingly, a lot of people on social media threads disagreed.  In many people’s eyes Sterling & Washington owner Dan Snyder are the latest heroes in standing up to the PC crowd.  And it’s not because Snyder and Sterling are good people.  They are not.  Sterling has run the LA Clippers into the ground for most of his 30 years as an owner, while Snyder picks the pettiest of fights and acts like an a-hole most of the time.  No, it's because people are getting tired of being run over by Political Correctness.

So, as we go through the post-mortem as to what has killed the PC movement, some interesting points emerge.  And it’s something that all people need to understand as we transition into more of a post-PC world.

(1) THE RACE CARD WAS PLAYED TOO MANY TIMES:  Politicians and activists like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton played the race card way too many times in order to get what they wanted or to belittle their adversaries.  It now appears that the race card doesn’t have the same bite as it used to.  The Duke Lacrosse Rape Case was a perfect example of using the race card where it shouldn’t have been.  Al and Jesse were so eager to convict the Duke Lacrosse Team on a lie that they stirred up the local African-American community and the Duke Faculty against the players.  And when the truth was exposed, the agitators slipped quietly away.  Even when cornered by Anderson Cooper, Jesse denied being involved in stirring up the situation.  And how did playing the race card help better society?  Well, it gave Jesse and Al some clout, power, and money, and some politicians benefitted.  But did we get better as a society?  No, we didn’t.  We just got more bitter towards one another.

(2) FEMALES AND NON-WHITE MALES AT THE TOP OF THEIR RESPECTIVE CAREERS IS SEEN AS A SCORE SETTLER IN MANY EYES:  Yes, we elected and re-elected Barack Obama as President of the United States.  We have non-Caucasians males and females as CEOs of companies, running sports franchises, and running governments across this land.  Happy, PC era?  Many people now are tired of being a part of breaking glass ceilings, and now a backlash is starting to emerge.  It will never go back to the Don Draper world of yesterday, but the shiny new idea of women and non-white males running our lives has lost a lot of its luster.

(3) FAILURE TO APPLY PC DOCTRINE ACROSS THE BOARD HAS PRODUCED A BACKLASH:  In the Ideal PC World, everyone would be treated fairly.  But some people are using the PC to mock and ridicule whites, conservatives, males, and Christians in some of the nastiest and meanest ways possible.  In other words:  hypocrisy or double-standards.  So you can mock me, but I can’t mock you?  How fair is that?  It isn’t and it shouldn’t be. 

(4) BELITTLING PEOPLE WHO ARE TRYING TO LIVE A GOOD LIFE IS NOT PRODUCTIVE:  When you try to make enemies of law abiders by ridiculing their lifestyles, trying to take away their guns (even if it is the right idea), mock their religious views, or just being mean to people who don’t think like you, how in the world can you get those people to listen to your passions?  Making enemies of people who could help you in the long run is never a good idea.  Once you burn a bridge, it’s hard to re-build it.  And some people don’t have the ability to ever reconcile for burning those bridges in the first place.

Look, I know I am not a perfect person.  I know there are faults in my life.  I still try to live a good Christian life, and try to teach my kids to be better than I am.  I tend to listen more than I speak these days (except when it comes to sports, of course, and then you have to deal with my Twitter rants).  I don’t mind being wrong.  I am human after all—just like you are.

But today, I want to leave you with a thought: in this modern world, you’re going to deal with people from all walks of life and you’re going to meet people who differ from what you think and believe.  You have to treat everyone fairly and put aside your prejudices.  And when you see mocking and ridiculing of a person who is trying to do the right thing, speak up for that person even if you don’t agree with their philosophy (I’m talking to you progressives and moderates out there more than the conservatives, by the way).  You might be surprised how much support you will get when you need it the most.

If people treated each other better and tried less to mock those that they differ with, we might actually have a better world.  The pessimist in me doesn’t see that happening in my lifetime, if ever.  The optimist in me?  I want to be proven wrong.  But it’s clear that using Political Correctness to try and make this world a better place is dead—because all it did was make a few people more powerful at the expense of society as a whole.  Mistrust and fear of losing what little perks in life has replaced the relationships we have and left those bridges in ruins.  We need to build and maintain relationships with people again.  Come on, everyone.  It’s time for re-building.

NFL Draft 2014 Recap

So there were a lot of story lines heading into this year’s NFL Draft…  Would the Houston Texans take Johnny Football or Mr. Clowney?  How many QBs would go in the 1st Round?  Would any of the record-setting SEC QBs be drafted?  And last, but not least:  would an Openly Gay Player be drafted & how big of a story would it be?

First off, the two NFL Teams that I care about most:  The Atlanta Falcons & the Baltimore Ravens.  Both teams did very well with their 1st Round Picks and Overall.  The Falcons picked a potential 10-year anchor lineman in Jake Matthews, while the Ravens may have found Ray Lewis’ replacement in C.J. Mosley.  Both team graded high, although I thought Atlanta should have gotten a TE, but that’s OK.

Next, Johnny Football… I am still in shock that Jerry Jones showed restraint and did not pick Johnny Manziel with the 16th pick.  Getting an OL showed that the Cowboys Owner may have finally learned to build a team from the lines out.  But did it come too late to salvage what few productive years are left in Tony Romo’s career?

The biggest losers in this years’ draft were those teams who had traded away 1st Round Picks.  Indy & Washington learned painful lessons that giving away Future 1st Round Picks can be hazardous to your team’s future needs.

Washington traded so much away in 2012 to St. Louis in order to get RG3.  St. Louis used this year’s Washington pick to draft a great O-lineman, then got the best D-Lineman available with their 1st Round Pick.  They were one of the Draft’s big winners before their 7th Round Pick that made history…

As the Draft proceeded, the fact that many of the top SEC QBs went in later rounds was a little disconcerting, but the picks of Aaron Murray & AJ McCarron in the 5th Rounds were seen as the best picks for KC and Cincinnati, respectively.  As for Zach Mettenberg to Tennessee?  Not so much.  Maybe Cam Cameron isn’t a QB Guru like he claims to be (just ask Joe Flacco).

Many eyes, however, were on SEC Defensive Player of the Year, Michael Sam, who was the 1st Openly Gay Player to enter the NFL Draft.  Sam thought he could be a Mid-Round Pick, but the Combine seemed to lower his draft stock to a possible 6th Round Pick.  The 6th Round came and went, and even though the Jets had their 6th Round pick announced at the podium, it was not Michael Sam’s name they called.

The 7th Round Began, and it was where I picked up watching the Draft to see if history would be made.  As the 7th Round worked its way through, the chances of Sam being drafted began to fade.  The NFL Network & ESPN almost seemed resigned to the fact that Sam would not be drafted so they began to hype previously successful undrafted free agents.

Then came the St. Louis Rams, who had picks at 249 & 250, and they had to use both picks.  As soon as word came they were going to announce the 249th pick at the podium, the anticipation built quickly.  I suspected that Sam would be the 249th pick and had a tweet ready to go to mark the historic moment.  It came just before 7 PM ET, and, as I suspected, it became THE moment of the draft.  It is still being talked about as we speak.  The Rams saved a potential PR nightmare for the NFL, and in the process, picked up a DE on value.  Whether Sam succeeds in the NFL is up in the air, but the moment has significance.

Look, I don’t care what people’s views on male gay athletes are.  You can still mark the historical significance without sharing your personal views on the subject.  It is important in the grand scheme.  More male gay athlete will now be free to be open about their sexuality and not be as afraid that their beliefs will cost them.  If they can play, they will have the opportunity to prove it on the field, thanks to Jason Collins and Michael Sam.

And please don’t compare Tim Tebow to Michael Sam in how Christians are mocked, while gay athletes are accepted.  Tebow should have never been drafted in the 1st round.  He was a 3rd Rounder at best, and his pick by Denver was a reach.  Sam’s pick was value in the 7th Round.  Whether Sam makes it or not is now up to him.  I think he will be at least be around for a few years as St. Louis will give him every chance to succeed.  If it doesn’t work out, it will be no one’s fault but Sam’s.  He’s been given the chance.  Now, he must prove it…

BTW, if you are keeping score at home, the final count for the 2014 NFL Draft was:  Openly Gay Football Players drafted: 1; Texas Longhorns drafted: 0.  Remind me again why ESPN thought it was a good idea to give the University of Texas their own Cable Network?

What if Letterman had been chosen instead of Leno to replace Johnny?

When the announcement came down that David Letterman was going to take over “The Tonight Show” for Johnny Carson, everyone except for Team Jay Leno was happy to see Johnny’s choice actually win.  Despite pressure exerted from Jay that he was in talks to host his own late night show, the execs finally did something right in the eyes of Johnny for a change.  Dave’s willingness to come to Burbank to do the show was the final piece that clinched the choice.  Dave immediately took over in June of 1992.

NBC wanted Jay to do Late Night, but Jay accepted an offer to host his own show on Fox, titled “The Late Show with Jay Leno” which originated from LA, starting in Sept. of 1992.  And so the long-awaited Late Night War to succeed Johnny began.

It wasn’t much of a contest.  Letterman crushed Leno every years for 3 years, thanks to NBC’s stronger Prime-Time lineup lead in.  After 3 years, Leno was let go from Fox, and Letterman was victorious.  Leno would appear on “The Tonight Show” 6 months after being let go to throw in the towel and apparently make peace publicly with Letterman. 

Letterman’s Tonight Show, and Late Night with Conan O’Brien (which debuted in October of 1992) would control Late Night Talk Shows for the next 5 years, with only an occasional challenger showing up and trying to battle  the duo unsuccessfully.  But, like in the days of Johnny, cracks began to show between NBC and its top late night star immediately after Dave signed his second 5-year deal in 1997.  Dave thought that he had been short-changed in the deal, which continued to allow all intellectual property rights to his version of “The Tonight Show” to be controlled by NBC.  NBC had learned hard lessons during Johnny’s negotiations and was not going to allow Dave to get similar treatment.

A second problem was that Dave hated the LA lifestyle.  Yes, stars were easily in abundance to talk to, but Dave was a NYC guy.  He wanted to return The Tonight Show to its Manhattan roots badly.  And so, in January 1998, Letterman staged a sick-out of his show for 3 weeks in the hopes of getting NBC to at least cave on moving the show back to New York.  It got ugly between the two.  Ultimately, Dave won the fight as NBC promised to return The Tonight Show with David Letterman to New York beginning in 2002, but both he & NBC lost the War.  The sick out occurred around the time that the President Clinton sex scandal was emerging.  The loss of Dave allowed ABC’s Nightline to reclaim the top spot among late-night audiences and by a healthy margin.

Dave’s return in February of 1998 didn’t help.  Dave refused to joke about Clinton’s woes, aiming his sharpest barbs at Republicans.  The slant backfired as NBC lost a total of 60% of its Tonight Show audience from the start of the sick-out.  Throughout 1998 and 1999, Letterman continued his anti-Republican rants about the sex scandal while refusing to go after the Philanderer in Chief.  Ultimately, late in 1999, Letterman finally began to bash Clinton, as he realized he finally had to start bashing the President over his Library plans.  The audience who had left never really came back, and Letterman lost more of his audience than he had gained trying to win back conservative viewers.

The Election of 2000 proved even tougher.  George W. Bush refused to appear on The Tonight Show, and Letterman unloaded a vicious mean-spirited rant on his show in Sept. of 2000.  A lot of journalists thought the rant was over-the-line and it developed sympathy among thousand of voters’ eyes.  Letterman would apologize, but it was too late.  Bush would go on to win the Presidential election by 4% and 78 electoral votes over Al Gore.  Letterman, in an attempt to bury the hatchet, had the victorious Pres.-elect Bush on his show two weeks after the election, and showed genuine contrition.  It also allowed The Tonight Show to beat Nightline in the ratings for the first time in nearly 3 years.

Letterman finally had some momentum at the end of 2000.  The show was going to be going back to New York, and he had won back a good chunk of his audience thanks to the Bush interview.  Things were looking up for Dave.

Then Dave died suddenly of a massive heart attack on January 15, 2001.  The strain of the previous 3 years finally got the better of the comic.  He might have been able to save his life had he gotten early detection, but without his New York friends encouraging him to look into his health issues, Dave never found the time to go see a doctor.  That mistake proved fatal.

Immediately, NBC turned to Dave’s old rival, Jay Leno, to fill in while they figured out their next move.  Leno and Letterman had a gentlemen’s agreement after Leno’s failed stint at Fox that if something happened to Dave, Jay would step in.  For three months, Jay did a magnificent job filling in—so much so that NBC actively began negotiations to make Jay the next Tonight Show host.  Even Johnny gave a vote of confidence to Jay in a rare public statement.

Jay, though, had other ideas.

Leno conducted secret negotiations with ABC to host his own Late Night show following an abbreviated Nightline.  The announcement became official in May of 2001 and stunned the Entertainment industry.  Finally, Jay would get revenge on NBC for shafting him on the decision nearly a decade earlier.  “Jay Leno Live’s” first show was scheduled for Sept. 11, 2001, so as not to interfere with Monday Night Football.

Two weeks after the scheduled start of the show, Jay Leno Live finally debuted at 12:35 am.  It was a disaster from the get-go.  The 9/11 terrorist attacks crushed any momentum Jay had going into the premier.  Stuck behind an hour Nightline, Leno only survived for one year before he was let go by ABC.  Leno decided to leave late night for good and headed off to Las Vegas to do stand-up.

NBC wasn’t in much better shape.  Betrayed by Leno, the network rushed Conan into the 11:35 slot immediately.  It was a failure.  Conan was not ready for the promotion, even though he thought he was ready.  Worse, Conan was upset that NBC execs thought Jay Leno was initially a better choice.  When Conan’s contract expired in October of 2002, he bolted for CBS to try and jump start their late night talk shows.  It went worse than the NBC experience, and CBS canned the experiment 6 weeks in.  Conan went back to writing for “The Simpsons”, his time at late night over.

In desperation, NBC turned to Bill Maher to host The Tonight Show.  For a time, it actually worked.  Bill was a little raw, but he provided some stability, even though he was liberal in his view.  Then came 2009, and Bill made a horribly insensitive comment about former VP candidate, Sarah Palin, and NBC immediately fired him.  The Tonight Show would then go on hiatus for the rest of 2009.

When The Tonight Show returned in 2010, Jimmy Fallon was its new host.  After taking several months to get his bearings, Fallon actually started to show he was the guy.  He has been doing the show ever since—from New York, of course.

CBS finally found a winning late night formula with Jimmy Kimmel in 2010.  The Late Show with Jimmy Kimmel would battle Jimmy Fallon from day one, and the healthy competition finally gave hope that late night talk shows were emerging from a decade of disaster.

Both CBS & NBC still trailed ABC’s Nightline, however.  In the end, ABC stuck to their news format, and it continues to win in Late Night to this day, though the gap between Nightline, Fallon, and Kimmel is closing.  Perhaps by the end of this year (2014), Fallon and Kimmel might top Nightline.

It’s a shame the Late Night Wars went the way they did, but that’s what happened.  Besides, no one ever thought Leno would be a better choice to host The Tonight Show.  After all, it wasn’t like NBC was going to let Letterman go to CBS, as it was rumored, and start a rival Late Night Show.

No, that would have been crazy…

A personal musical Mount Rushmore…

Recently, the idea of putting together a Mount Rushmore of Various Sports Figures was re-introduced by comments made by the greatest NBA player of today, LeBron James.  King James forwarded his own view as to who should be on his Mount Rushmore of Greatest NBA Players of All Time.  While there is much debate about his own views regarding which four players should be among the greatest, it has opened debates by everybody coming up with their own personal Mount Rushmore on various topics.  Actors, Presidents, even Breakfast foods.

Well, I figured it was time for me to get in on the act, with a slightly different twist.  Each of us has a Mount Rushmore when it comes to Music.  Four Musicians/Groups that we love and that have shaped our musical tastes in ways that we may or may not completely understand.  But when we hear these musical acts, we stop, listen, and enjoy.

Some of us wear our musical influences out in the open.  I know several of my friends loves various musical artists.  The Beatles, Jimmy Buffett, RUSH, … the list goes on and on.  So, who would be on your Mount Rushmore?

This is where I open up on a hidden part of my life.  My Mount Rushmore of Musical Influence has a diverse nature to it, allowing me to love music from jazz to metal rock & roll to 80s rock.  But it all has one common denominator:  all of these acts had a dominant run of top hits in the 1970s. 

Kind of weird for a child of the 1980s to not be influenced by the MTV era, huh?  But then some people forget I had two much older sisters who grew up in the late 1960s & 1970s.  So, I guess you could say my sisters had a tiny bit of influence on how my musical tastes evolved.  And while some people would guess that John Denver, Neil Diamond, Barry Manilow, Bruce Springsteen, or Elton John would be on my list, they would be wrong.  Got any thoughts?  Well, here’s my Mount Rushmore of Musical Influence…

(1) STEELY DAN. Walter Becker & Donald Fagen were a unique duo when it came to their musical background.  Heck, at one time, they were part of a group that had comedian Chevy Chase as a drummer.  But the duo clearly had their most successful run as the heart & soul of the group Steely Dan, an act that evolved from a early 70s rock to a more Jazzy, R&B rock.  Their run at all stages of the evolution from 1972 to 1980 was incredible with lyrics that were almost as smart as Lennon/McCartney, and Musical Tones that may have been smarter.  Note, I didn’t say Steely Dan was better than The Beatles, I just said smarter.  You need a certain musical sophistication to truly enjoy Steely Dan’s tunes.  And as for musical influence, they had a backup singer at one time named Michael McDonald, who left Steely Dan to become the lead singer for The Doobie Brothers.  Not bad for group named for a female adult toy from “Naked Lunch”.  This is where my Jazz influence comes from as well as early 70s guitar rock.  I have about a Dozen favorites, but my Top 5 Steely Dan Tunes have to be FM, Josie, Kid Charlemagne, Deacon Blues, and Bodhisattva.  FM is maybe my favorite tune of all, and I made sure it was the final song I listened to before I got married in October, 2006.

(2) EARTH, WIND, & FIRE.  Even though EWF has been around in various incarnations since 1969, EWF’s greatest successes came during the mid to late 1970s.  The Maurice White founded group’s diverse musical background mixed jazz, smooth soul, gospel, pop, rock & roll, psychedelia, blues, folk, African music, and, later on, disco—quite an interesting combination.  And it just seemed to call to me.  There are about 10 to 12 personal favorites of mine from this group, but my Top 5 are That’s The Way of The World, Shining Star, After the Love is Gone, Boogie Wonderland, and Let’s Groove.

So, Steely Dan & Earth, Wind, & Fire explain my tastes in jazz & R&B, but where does my rock & roll vibe come from?  A group of four 1960s rock and rollers from England … whose last names are Page, Plant, Jones, & Bonham…

(3) LED ZEPPELIN.  There are two kinds of people in this world… those who like Led Zeppelin’s music, and those poor souls who have never heard a Led Zeppelin tune.  My baptism into the legendary rock group came with the Untitled Fourth Album—one of the few albums I can listen to cover-to-cover and thoroughly enjoy each and every tune.  In fact, I don’t think there is a single tune from “The Biggest Band in The World” that I don’t like.  Makes it very tough to pick just 5, but… My Fave 5 in this group is Kashmir, Stairway to Heaven, Whole Lotta Love, The Ocean, and Heartbreaker/Living Loving Maid (OK, that last one is two songs, but they are usually played together, so it counts as one in my book).

The fourth member of this quartet was the hardest to pick.  Initially, I put Stevie Wonder as my fourth.  A musical performer for six decades, he had an incredible run of #1 music that began in the 1970s.  But with EWF acting as my R&B, I needed a pop rock musician that started and had his greatest success in the 1970s but that carried into the 1980s and beyond.  I needed a Piano Man…

(4) BILLY JOEL.  OK, some of you wouldn’t be surprised, but the Long Island musician definitely had an influence.  Plus, he was married at one time to a Supermodel in Christie Brinkley.  Yes, I know he has some personal demons, but it does not diminish his great talent behind the ivory keys or his ability to collaborate with other musicians.  With him, I have about 10 or 11 favorites to choose from, but my Fave 5 are Piano Man, Movin’ Out, My Life, Pressure, and We Didn’t Start the Fire.

So there’s my Mount Rushmore of Personal Musical Influence.  Nothing against groups like The Beatles, Jimmy Buffett, Chicago, and others that I love listening to, but these four have influenced my musical tastes.  To repeat my earlier question in closing: Who’s on your Mountain?

The road that changed Snellville forever…

20 years ago, a new Road opened up in Gwinnett County.  It’s goal was to provide residents in the southern & eastern parts of Gwinnett County with quicker access to the northwestern part of the county with access to I-85 & Gwinnett Place Mall via Pleasant Hill Road—the then “Mall in Gwinnett”.  It would also be a limited access highway, meaning there were only a handful of roads that you could use to access the new road between Snellville & Lilburn.  Construction began in earnest on this Cross-County Highway in the early 1990s, even though the southernmost part of the road existed as early as 1987.  As it approached Phase I completion in August of 1994 (from Scenic Highway to Lawrenceville Highway), the Road would get a new name—the Ronald Reagan Parkway.  When it opened, Snellville would be permanently altered.

When my family first moved out to Snellville in 1979, it was pretty clear that U.S. 78 was the main road in town.  Every major store was compressed into an area between Hewitt Rd. on the West side of Town & 124 on the East Side.  Yes, Churches and Schools were further East, but really what existed in the town for shopping & eating was compressed into about one mile along W. Main St.  When the Snellville Days Parade would take place on the first Saturday of May, that section of U.S. 78 would shut down for the Parade.  The population was relatively small in those days, and most people knew each other.

As the years progressed, the town got bigger, and new stores were added on the East Side and West Side, but most of the stores still were close to U.S. 78.  Sure, there was a Bi-Lo & Revco on the North Side of town, but most places still stayed close to 78.  124 was mostly farmland to the north & wooded down towards Centerville.  Even as the town added a new Hospital, it was clear everything flowed from West to East—a product of the fact that people would use 78 from Atlanta to get to Athens for UGA football games every Saturday in the fall.  Wal-Mart, Richway (later Target), and Kroger’s were just a few of the new stores that came on the scene in the 1980s—all along Main St.

There were issues with the main traffic in Snellville traveling West to East.  When Gwinnett Place Mall opened in 1984, getting to Gwinnett’s Mall from Snellville was a task and a half.  For most people, the most direct route to the Mall involved taking Oak Road to River Drive west, then North on Lester Rd, which became Pleasant Hill Road just past U.S. 29.  On a good day, that drive was at least half an hour to 45 minutes.

The other problem was that accessing I-85 from Snellville was not easy.  Again, back roads were the way to get North to the Interstate, with the most direct route taking you far NE of Atlanta—not good if you were trying to go to Buckhead or other Northern Atlanta suburbs.

These were the main issues that the Reagan set to address.  But something else happened.  As the Reagan began to take shape, development began to take shape on the north side of town.  The Reagan would end at the intersection of 124 & Pinehurst Road, a neighborhood road that connected the north side of Snellville with Rt. 84 and Grayson.  So, developers wanted to put new shops & stores near the end of the Reagan.  Anchoring the new Shopping center would be a Target… which would move from the West Side of Town to the North Side… along with Publix Grocery Stores, and a few additional stores new to Snellville.  When the Presidential Marketplace Shopping Center Opened Later in 1994, a chain reaction of development began to follow North.  New Shopping Centers would be built.  Stores like Belk’s, Best Buy, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Old Navy came to town.  Restaurants like Texas Roadhouse, O’Charley’s, and Steak n Shake appeared on the North Side.  Kroger’s left downtown Snellville to move North along 124.  The Hospital also moved north of town.  Wal-Mart would move North in 1999.  Wendy’s moved from their West Side Location to the North.  McDonald’s opened 2 places on the North Side.  Chick-Fil-A added a Northside location.  And so on, and so on, and so on.

Today’s Main Street in Snellville on both sides is littered with either empty facades or buildings that have change businesses multiple times.  Hardee’s is gone, Pizza Hut has moved to Oak Road, and the old Fountain Square Shopping Center is largely a ghost town.  Almost all of the Growth in town is in areas that 30 years ago was either farmland or full of trees.  The Reagan has brought Atlanta closer to Snellville.  But it has been at a steep cost.  Traffic has increased exponentially, particularly on Scenic Hwy from Lawrenceville southward.  When I visited Snellville during Thanksgiving last year, traffic at 6:30 in the evening was a pain in the butt to navigate through 124 just a mile from my parent’s home.  The small town suburb feel Snellville once had is gone replaced by hustle & bustle.  There are new homes popping up everywhere.  Crime has increased and gangs now openly roam Snellville Middle & South Gwinnett High Schools.  The families that were once there in the 1980s have largely left with only stragglers like my parents staying behind.  One day, Pinehurst Road will be widened, much to the opposition of those who live off its road.  It’s no longer a question of if anymore.  My parents and others can only hold it off for so long.

Snellville will never again be what it once was.  It has evolved.  Whether you think for the better or worse is your personal opinion.  But a lot of that evolution has to do with the introduction of the Ronald Reagan Parkway.  And that may be the road’s everlasting legacy.