King for a Night

Robert DeNiro, a mafia movie icon thanks to roles in Casino, Goodfellas, and The Godfather, Part II, played against type in the early 1980s dark comedy film King of Comedy.  He turns 180 degrees in his portrayal of Rupert Pupkin, a nebbishy, aspiring, and ineffective...

The Height Plight of Warren Coolidge

A lesson about being thankful for individuality is embodied in BMOC, an episode of The White Shadow.  The episode’s title is, of course, an acronym for the phrase Big Man on Campus.  It accurately describes Warren Coolidge, the star center for the Carver High...

Stern and Stars

The 1997 movie Private Parts, based on Howard Stern’s autobiography of the same name, has fairly rich television connections. Stern, a shock jock, portrayed himself in the story recounting his rise from a $96 a week disc jockey to the King of All Media.  His...

The Year the Indians Won the Pennant

Major League thrilled movie audiences in 1989 with its classic underdog theme.  Focusing on a fictional version of the Cleveland Indians, Major League starred Charlie Sheen as rookie pitching sensation Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn, Tom Berenger as veteran...

John Stamos

John Stamos launched his career in 1980s daytime television as Blackie Parrish on General Hospital.  In turn, Stamos became a heartthrob.  And he’s never looked back. In 1984, Stamos tackled prime time with Dreams, a short-lived CBS show about a rock and roll...