Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2008 June 30

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June 30

Will they ever revive shows like "That's My Mama" and "Starsky and Hutch"?

No Soap, Radio and Supertrain couldn't hurt either. My point is, why can't there be a push to revive shows that may not have had the best ratings the first time around? A lot of so called low rated shows have become cult classics, like the Honeymooners later on. And 20 years later, with as much as this show's been talked about, "who wouldn't wanna ride-..... the Supertrain!"(tm?)THE WORLD'S MOST CURIOUS MAN (talk) 02:02, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Depends what you mean by "revive" - if you mean show the original episodes again, I'm sure they're being shown somewhere, it's just a case of tracking them down (assuming the original episodes still exist).

If you mean making new episodes, then there are two problems. First, at the moment people in the industry seem more intent on making bigg-budget movies based on quirky cult series - and they are usually complete dongs (The Avengers movie, anyone?) Hollywood doesn't seen to understand how to keep a quirky, low-budget series and turn it into a quirky, low-budget movie. They add the glitz and throw millions at it, and it removes any charm the original may have had.

A similar problem happens if there is an attempt made to produce new episodes of an old show - the feeling will likely be lost, and lots of people will have identified with specific actors in roles, even though those actors are now too old to play them, or long dead (can you imagine, say, Sgt. Bilko without Phil Silvers, or The Man From UNCLE without McCullum and Vaughn?).

The only real option that works is to play the revival for laughs through accentuating the unintentional humour of the original or in some other way "deconstructing" the original. That worked with the film version of Starsky and Hutch, for instance, but even then there are dangers that the humour won't work (Vic Reeves and bob Mortimer's remake of Randall and Hopkirk, for instance, was patchy to say the least). Either that or create a completely new series using the same basic premise (compare Murphy Brown to The Mary Tyler Moore Show, for instance). Grutness...wha? 05:48, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Supertrain is still talked about today, 30 years later, as being one of the worst flops in television history. That will never be talked about again, nor will it ever again see the light of day. Mike H. Fierce! 21:37, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Looks like I missed Supertrain, living in Germany at the time, but I did get to catch Star Maidens. As noted, series revivals usually just don't make it. And yes, they did Sgt. Bilko without Phil Silvers. Two current successful revivals that come to mind are Battlestar Galactica—a total reimagining or deconstruction— and Doctor Who. American programs based on British programs seem to have fared better, with shows like All in the Family, Sanford and Son, The Office and American Idol. --—— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk - 16:03, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

Number 2 Hits

I need to know how I would find songs that peaked at number two on Billboard charts. For example, Modern Rock Tracks claims that blink-182 has the most number two hits with five, but other than their discography, I can't verify this. There is a list of number-one modern rock hits (United States), but nothing about number twos. Someonewhobelieves (talk) 03:28, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

It's just not the same being number two, is it? You might have to do this the old-fashioned way . . . go over the charts yourself for the period you're interested in and tabulate the data by hand. If you're computer-savvy, perhaps you could write a program to do it for you, or figure out how to make it easier with a spreadsheet or database? Or you could get in touch with Modern Rock Tracks and ask them how they did it . . . if you can't just take their word for it, that is. - AJ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.104.139.75 (talk) 02:39, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

Joel Whitburn is your man. His Pop Singles Annuals (Record Research, Inc.) list songs that peaked at number one, number two, etc. for every year from 1955-2004. You can order the individual Billboard Music Yearbooks online on his website. (Or maybe you can e-mail him and ask him to contribute here :) ---Sluzzelin talk 08:15, 4 July 2008 (UTC)

Classic Rock song with a long synth intro

Hello.

I was at a greasy spoon today and the jukebox fired-up and randomly played a track. It was something I've heard often, but after that short synth track was over, the jukebox shut-off and left me hanging. Now I can't sleep.

The music in question sounds like a long, droning synthesizer piece, reminiscent of an air-raid siren (but not that exact sound), and it slowly peaks over maybe 30 seconds, changing octaves, etc. Then it falls off, and there's some odd 'special effect' sounds that remind me of 80's laser beam audio samples. It then ends, and the MAIN piece that's apparently played on classic rock stations often chimes-in. I'm pretty sure the beginning of the next track (which runs seamlessly with that intro track) begins with the drummer's high-hat open/close several times. Not 100% sure on that last point, though.

Both pieces -- that synthesizer intro and the main classic rock tune -- are often played on rock stations. I know this because I have heard the pair over the years, but I've never bothered to commit the name of the piece and the artist to memory.

I would say that the intro piece in question is vaguely similar to the intro to 'Children of the Sun', and also a bit like the shorter intro to Steppenwolf's 'Magic Carpet Ride'.

The piece is more developed, though, and lasts longer. It definitely has an 80's flair to it.

Thanks

76.107.196.14 (talk) 04:09, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

This is a complete guess, but I'm going to say Funeral For a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding by Elton John. --LarryMac | Talk 13:47, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

That sounds like it might be Foreplay/Long Time by the band Boston.... cheers, 10draftsdeep (talk) 14:09, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Never Been Any Reason by Head East?--Endless Dan 19:34, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Sounds to me more like Two Tribes by Frankie Goes To Hollywood. Grutness...wha? 04:03, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

Fantasy (Aldo Nova song) kind of fits the description. --Elliskev 16:24, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

I think that the Boston song would have the most airplay on a classic rock station, although the other submissions are very credible as well. Can you provide more information on what the actual song sounds like, after the intro? That would certainly help to identify the title and artist. I can actually think of more songs that fit the description based on the intro. I have spent my life listening to far too much music! cheers, 10draftsdeep (talk) 22:54, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure that's not Foreplay/Long Time. There's nothing like that in the beginning of that song. Adam Bishop (talk) 05:59, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

Yes, you may be right. Its been a long time since I heard those tracks and perhaps there is too much going on in the intro to quite fit the description. I was going with airplay over exact match. But without a little more information on the song (singer's gender, vocal style, etc) we could probably make ten or twenty more suggestions. cheers, 10draftsdeep (talk) 16:23, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

Ok, I can't let this one go....How about "Fly Like an Eagle" by the Steve Miller Band.cheers, 10draftsdeep (talk) 19:52, 7 July 2008 (UTC)

I think I was looking for the same song. I finally found the one I was looking for.

Steve Miller Band "Big ol'Jet Airliner" (long version)

Site

This site shows every GameCube game in order of Australian sales. Is there a similar site for Nintendo 64 games? 208.76.245.162 (talk) 07:31, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

100 m sprint

For the 100 m sprint, do officials wait until the wind dies down before they start a race or do they just start the race anyway, no matter the weather conditions?

Also, how is it possible for the average speed to be greater over 200m rather than 100m (as mentioned in 100m article)? I would have thought that athletes would be able to run more quickly over a shorter distance. —Preceding unsigned comment added by ExitLeft (talk • contribs) 12:23, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Per the 200 metres article, "this is primarily because the athlete comes into the final straight at full speed already, therefore enabling them to run the second half of the 200 m faster than an athlete can usually run a regular 100 m." — Lomn 15:02, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

As for the wind question, per the 100 metres article, yesterday's US Olympic trials were conducted despite a wind-speed higher than the "wind legal" threshold. As such, Tyson Gay's time of 9.68s is not considered the new world record. "No matter the weather conditions" isn't strictly a useful criteria, though -- such a race would not be conducted in, say, hurricane conditions. — Lomn 15:07, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

But it's fun imagining how fast Dorothy Gale could have gone, even with her little dog. Clarityfiend (talk) 16:28, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Thanks. ExitLeft (talk) 02:43, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

tv to movies

which weekly tv show was the first to be made into a movie? 130.76.64.93 (talk) 20:19, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

AFAIK this is It's A Great Day from 1956; imdb says 1955 but The Guinness Book of TV Facts and Feats says 1956. This was based on the 1954 BBC series The Grove Family. Another early example is Life In Emergency Ward 10 from 1959.--TrogWoolley (talk) 20:39, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Also, The Quatermass Experiment (1953) was made into a film in 1955. 80.254.147.52 (talk) 16:23, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

The Goldbergs began as a series in 1949, a movie version came out in 1950. Corvus cornix_talk 23:21, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Eurovision 1986 - Åse Kleveland's diamond dress

I was talking with someone who was able to visit the costume department at NRK. He was allowed to handle and lift the diamond-encrusted dress Åse Kleveland wore at the beginning of the Eurovision Song Contest 1986. I'd imagine that would not only be a very expensive garment, but also very heavy to wear. Does anyone know who made the dress, how many diamonds are in it, how much it would cost, or how much it weighed? I think that would be good info to add to the ESC year article. You can see the dress here starting at 4:30 Mike H. Fierce! 21:39, 30 June 2008 (UTC)