The Prisoner

Long before Abu Ghraib, long before Guantanamo, children of the '60's knew governments were corrupt and secret prisons held people without due process, without rights, without the possibility of escape or parole.

And one brilliant actor, writer, director and producer captured all the fear and paranoia of the 60's in a brilliant, iconic television series called The Prisoner. That actor, writer, director and producer was the multi-talented Patrick McGoohan, pictured to the right above in a screen shot from the television series.

McGoohan passed away today at the age of 80.

As I lament the likely demise of The Middleman with only 12 episodes ever produced, it is heartening to note that with only 17 episodes, The Prisoner has become more beloved, more important and more popular than it ever was during its short one year season.

The two shows couldn't possibly be more different. While the Middleman is a dizzying comedy rich with pop culture references and tributes, McGoohan's The Prisoner was a dark and sinister spy suspense filled drama. In fairness, The Prisoner did have its sci-fi undertones.


McGoohan was one of the most highly regarded actors in Hollywood and Great Britain. He won two Emmy's for his television work over 30 years, and won high critical acclaim for his portrayal of the King in Mel Gibson's Braveheart.

But it is his vision and work in The Prisoner that will always remain the cornerstone of his career. If you do not already own this great series there is a great compilation produced with love and care by A & E Network, available at bargain prices from the associates at Amazon.

I watched the series when it first aired in the 60's. And I bought it on Laser Disk, believe it or not, paying $40.00 for each episode back in the 80's, proving that I am, indeed, crazy.

---

P.S. I apologize to my "regular readers" for two successive forays into televison. I do hope to write shortly about the magnificient and historic event of Barack Obama's inauguration. I also feel the need to write once again about the tragedy of Bush Derangement Syndrome and to note, hopefully, that Obama is being treated much more fairly (so far) than Bush has ever been.

The Middleman

If you are actually blogging, or even worrying about, the "Cone of Silence" or McCain's superior performance in Saturday night's Saddleback Forum, you need to just relax and tune into tonight's episode of The Middleman, one of the most brilliant television series ever created.

Created by Javier Grillo-Marxuach from his own graphic novels (or comics if you prefer) by the same name, The Middleman is absolutely overflowing in trivia, cultural references and inside jokes. If somehow you glossed over this series thinking it's some sort of modern day Batman (the Adam West version), you need to sit back down and watch it again. It's closer to modern day Get Smart, with Natalie Morales a legitimate heir to Don Adams brilliant comic timing.
But the writing is well beyond Get Smart's simple humor and mild satire. Each of The Middleman's thematic shows is a veritable treasure trove of layered humor, nuance and tribute to past cultural icons. You literally need to watch each episode several times to catch and find the references. And even then you'll need to log into one of the many Middleman forums and read comments from other viewers.

The comedic acting, led by Morales and the equally talented Matt Keeslar, is wonderful. Mary Pat Gleason, as the annoying and all too human android Ida, is a joy to watch.

Watch every detail. No detail is too small and absolutely nothing is unimportant. In a recent episode that overflowed with Ghostbuster references, a street sign had the name "Ray Palmer Jr. Ave."

So, take a break from your stress over who will be nominated as Barack Obama's Vice President and immerse yourself in an hour of real fun and frivolity. Discover one of television's hidden treasures, The Middleman.

Is McCain/Clinton the Real Dream Ticket?

McCain/Clinton. The Wizard ponders the future on a remarkably boring Tuesday Primary night...... Gosh, they do make an attractive couple, don't they?

Of course it's not going to happen. Hillary Clinton would never accept it, would she? And John McCain is going to be forced to pick a VP that is acceptable to the right wing of the Republican Party, isn't he?

But, I must tell you that I genuinely believe Barack Obama will win the Presidency. John McCain has almost no chance. Obama is a rock star. The American people really do want change. The "Republican Brand" is tarnished. It would take an seismic event for McCain to pull this one out.

On the other hand, Barack Obama will do almost anything to avoid picking Hillary Clinton as his running mate. There is a genuine hate for Clinton among Obama staffers (and I've heard Michelle Obama doesn't like her either).

I saw a poll tonight on (the world famous and much beloved among progressive and liberal bloggers) FOX News (the cited source on television was "USA Poll," whoever that might be) that showed the strongest possible ticket is Barack Obama teamed with John Edwards. An Obama/Edwards beats McCain by a whopping 17 points among Pennsylvania voters!!

But that poll never even tested an Obama/Clinton ticket. I'm guessing no one thought that was even a possibility. Obama just isn't going to pick Clinton.

But I think a McCain/Clinton ticket might pose a real challenge to Obama. It's the earthquake that would rock the entire world!!

Although the so-called progressive bloggers are attempting to deny it, McCain is really a pretty much a liberal. Anybody remember McCain/Feingold? How about the Kennedy/McCain Immigration Bill. He's a hell of a lot more liberal than the some Democrats who have won the recent special Congressional elections recently. Talk about Democrats in name only. But I digress.

If Clinton is passed over for the Democrat VP (as is likely), she's staring down the throat of 8 years of a President Obama, with John Edwards carefully groomed as the heir apparent to the Presidency.

So why not take a chance with the rather progressive McCain? Perhaps a "guarantee" of 50% of the cabinet being Democrats would win her over. Or a guaranteed role for Bill Clinton. Or even a "promise" of an early resignation, guaranteeing that Hillary Clinton would become President.

If the addition of Hillary Clinton could tip the scale in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, and other swing states, the McCain/Clinton ticket would win the day. And McCain will likely serve only one term. Hillary would be groomed to replace him.

Now it's not going to happen, is it? Surely Clinton will remain loyal to the Democrat Party. Surely McCain will move to the right in his VP choice.

But it is interesting to think about. Do you think anyone in the McCain camp is considering this? How about anyone in the Clinton camp?

Mother Nature Strikes Back!

Mother Nature has a new invention. And, as brilliant and creative as man might think he is, he doesn't hold a candle to the infinite abilities of the Goddess of Creation herself.

I know this will sound like science fiction. It's not. However, the Grayson Wray track you can listen to on the Amazon Widget to the right will sound exactly like Science Fiction. And, if you purchase the mp3 from Amazon the Wizard will actually make a little cash. He is going to need it to do battle with Mother Nature soon. Why?

The Rasberry Crazy Ants are headed this way and they are attacking computers, video games and even vehicles in their paths.

You heard right. Ants that damage computers! And Cars! And the damned things are tiny. About the size of fleas. They've been dubbed Rasberry Crazy Ants after the exterminator who first did battle with the invaders (Tom Rasberry) and their swarming "crazy" behavior.

Worse yet, they are virtually impossible to kill. They ignore the ant bait used by most exterminators and they ignore fire ant killer, too. Nests have multiple queens. You simply can't kill them all.

If there is any good news, they also kill fire ants.

They are omnivores and attack plants, insects and eggs. But they are attracted to electronic devices. Tom Rasberry told Techworld "I think they go into everything and they don't follow any kind of structured line. If you open a computer, you would find a cluster of ants on the motherboard and all over. You'd get 3,000 or 4,000 ants inside and they create arcs. They'll wipe out any computer."

The little ants are currently found in five counties around Houston, Texas. They have established a beach head in the Johnson Space Center. While NASA officials say they have the problem under control, they admit they cannot eliminate the colonies.

It is likely they will spread nationwide over the next few years.

Additional news articles: KOCO TV5 News, Associated Press Report

We Interrupt This Blog

In the words of Kristin over at E! Online,

This just might be the most depressing news yet coming out of the New York upfronts.

I've just received word from Gabrielle Stanton and Harry Werksman, bosses of Moonlight, that the series has been canceled.

They sent me this message to pass along to you fans:

It's true. We found out about an hour ago that Moonlight has been officially cancelled.

We are truly saddened by the news and are sorry that we won't get the chance to live with our wonderful characters and follow them on their adventures for a second season.

We really want to thank all our loyal fans for their undying love and support of the show. We never would have made it this far without them.

This series has one of the most dedicated, passionate audiences I've ever seen in the many years in this job. And to all of you I extend a heartfelt hug.

The move is stunning and reflects incredible stupidity on the part of the executives at CBS. One minute the network claims that women dictate the success of network television and then they cancel the most romantic series in the entire history of television.

If you somehow missed Moonlight, you missed a great televison drama. Alex O'Laughlin and Sophia Myles have real chemistry. The storyline is compelling and the production is first rate in spite of the rumored turmoil behind the scenes.

The ratings were quite good in the writer's ravaged split season. And the show won the People's Choice Award for Best New Drama. This simply isn't a show you cancel.

Within hours of the post above at E! Online the boards there had gathered nearly 400 outraged comments. There will be an effort to save this series. I hope it succeeds.

It's Only Science Fiction

Ahhh.... A delightful Sunday Morning..... Surfing the Net.... Having a cafe mocha (my second)... and listening to Wizard Radio [Now Playing: Grayson Wray's "It's Only Science Fiction" from the album Alternate Heavens]

Science Fact



One of my favorite movies of all time is "A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court" starring Bing Crosby. The movie is, of course, based on Mark Twain's book of the same name.

A pivotal moment in the story occurs when the time traveling Hank Morgan (the Bing Crosby character) uses an almanac to correctly predict an eclipse to impress King Arthur and save his life.

What I didn't know is that Mark Twain based this episode on similar real life event that actually saved the life of Christopher Columbus and his crew. Joe Rao writing for Space.com tells the entire story in a fascinating "must read" story. Click the link above and enjoy this great read.

And enjoy a real full eclipse of the moon on February 20th (details are included in the story).

Seed Pod Campaign to Save a Science Fiction Series



No, those aren't seed pods from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, they're Sunflower Seeds being mailed by the thousands to the USA Television Network in an effort to save the cult science fiction series "The 4400."

It seems that sunflower seeds are a favorite of Dr. Kevin Burkhoff , a character on the series. So fans are working to bury the USA television offices in a mountain of Sunflower seeds. Here is a link to the Save The 4400 campaign.

Meanwhile Giants Sunflower Seed Company knows a good thing when they see one. They are promoting the campaign heavily on their web site.

Yes, I'll admit that I ordered a case sent to USA Network today. I'm a fan of the show, too.