Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Blackhawks 4, Calgary 2: First round over

Congratulations to the Chicago Blackhawks for winning their first playoff series since 1996. (Also against Calgary, I think.) Check out Dustin Byfuglien hit Adam Burish for a very pretty goal in this highlight reel (the Hawks' second goal). He gets creamed right after his pass, but I suspect he thinks it was worth it!

Worthy cont'd.: The Real Deal

Thanks to my friend Steve for going into the SI vault and digging this out! Some of my facts were a bit off, but I believe I did an acceptable job of retelling the story after seeing it nearly 3-1/2 years ago.

Cover: 05-19-86; article is 11-21-05
vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1113861/index.htm - 53k - C

It's less than five minutes before airtime, and James Worthy is still in his cubicle at the KCBS and KCAL studios in Los Angeles. He's fixing his tie, dabbing on makeup and teasing the interns for not doing any work. "Watch the game," he tells one, pointing at the TV screen behind him before swiping candy from the kid's desk. "Gotcha," Worthy says, laughing as he walks to the set.

It's been 11 years since he retired from the Los Angeles Lakers, but the 6'9" small forward known as Big Game James is still connected to the team, serving as a studio analyst for its telecasts. "I always wanted to get into broadcasting," says Worthy, who spent his entire 12-year Hall of Fame career with the Lakers. "I've worked with legends like Chick Hearn and Dick Enberg and interviewed guys like Tiger Woods, so I can't complain." He is also the senior vice president of RP & Associates, an integrated marketing-services and product-manufacturing company in Hermosa Beach.

A native of Gastonia, N.C., Worthy helped North Carolina win the 1982 NCAA championship with a Final Four MVP performance as a junior. Then he left for the NBA, becoming the No. 1 pick in the draft. He played behind Jamaal Wilkes for two seasons before his swooping one-handed dunks became as synonymous with the Lakers' Showtime era as Magic Johnson's no-look passes and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's skyhooks.

Worthy is probably best known for his Game 7 triple double--36 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists--against the Detroit Pistons in the 1988 NBA Finals, which ended with L.A. winning its fifth championship in eight years and Worthy being voted Finals MVP. But his fondest memory is of beating the Celtics in Boston Garden for his first NBA title, in '85. "That's the one I cherish because it was my first and we did it in the Garden after losing to them for so many years," says Worthy. "I remember listening to [ Boston coach] K.C. Jones talking about Magic and Kareem after the game, then saying, 'But the guy that really did it for them was James Worthy.' I'll never forget that."

These days Worthy, who is divorced and lives in Bel Air with his daughters Sable, 15, and Sierra, 13, doesn't talk about his career unless someone brings it up. In fact, when he took his daughters to a Britney Spears concert at Staples Center three years ago, Sierra looked up at the rafters and said, "Look, Dad, someone has the same name as ours." Worthy looked to where Sierra was pointing, laughed when he saw his retired number 42 jersey and said, "That's me, Sierra."

Leave Lindsay alone!

I've been meaning to write this for weeks. And now it's quite overdue.

Leave Lindsay Lohan alone.

Lindsay's girlfriend, Samantha Ronson, broke up with her. Lindsay may have found out through the media rather than directly from Samantha. Samantha and her mom went so far as to inquire from the Beverly Hills Police Department about acquiring an order of protection. (So much for discretion from BHPD, which released this tidbit of gossip to the press.)

Women have broken up with me. I've broken up with them. Sometimes it's embarrassing, and that's without the breakup being the lead story on Entertainment Tonight and on the cover of Us Weekly. Unfortunately, Lindsay's recent behavior has often been immature, and it's fun to laugh about a 21-year-old party girl. But Lindsay's love life should be her own business. I can't imagine what it would be like to have a situation in which there is a fleet of SUV's with paparazzi inside following me 24/7. That is what Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt put up with. Britney Spears, too. Lindsay? I don't know. But I suspect if she wants a quiet evening out with her friends or family, she must escape the Thirty-Mile Zone of Los Angeles and the surrounding communities. That is just not fair.

Tznius: A lesson in humility from James Worthy

Yesterday I wrote about Ari and J.B., two orthodox Jewish men I know who could use a lesson in humility. Or two. They should pay attention to James Worthy.

I am about to repeat something I read in Sports Illustrated in a "Where are they now?" feature. I tried to find it at si.com so I could simply post it in its original form and give credit where it's due, to the author and publisher. But I couldn't find it. If anyone knows which issue it is, please let me know.

James Worthy played basketball with Michael Jordan at North Carolina and won a national championship there. He went on to light up the Great Western Forum in Englewood, Calif., and win five world championships for the Los Angeles Lakers with Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. As one of the Lakers' all-time greats, Worthy's retired jersey hangs from the rafters of Staples Center, the Lakers' new arena in downtown Los Angeles.

Worthy has two pre-teen or teenage daughters. He never told them about his days with the Lakers. It's not important to him; or it's not important in terms of his relationship with his daughters. Does being one of the greatest basketball players have an impact on what kind of father Worthy is? Not to Worthy. I read this article several years ago, and I wish I'd saved it, despite the massive amounts of stuff I've accumulated over the years. I still remember the end of the article. Worthy took his daughters to Staples Center to attend a Britney Spears concert. They were sitting in their seats when one of the girls looked up and noticed a Lakers jersey hanging above them with "WORTHY" silk-screened on the back. "Look, Daddy," she said, "Someone has the same name as us." She honestly didn't make the connection. Worthy corrected her. "No, honey, that was me."

I'm very suspicious of urban legend-type stories that fly across the internet. This sounds like one of them. But I suspect it's true, and if it is, James Worthy just taught a lesson from which all of us could learn and be inspired.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Tznius: It's not just for ladies

The term tznius is typically used to describe modesty in dress code: long skirts and long sleeves for ladies, and covered hair for married women. But the concept of modesty can be applied elsewhere as well. It can be used to describe an unassuming, low-key person compared to a smug, arrogant one.

I previously wrote about someone I'll call Ari. This guy has a strain of what is often known as B.T. (ba'al teshuva) Disease; he can't stop reminding people how frum (orthodox/observant) he is. B.T. Disease strikes men who finish a year of yeshiva, going from being very secular to very shtarck (observant and religious) in a short period of time. Suddenly, these men believe everyone should be as shtarck as they are. Sometimes they need to be reminded: it's okay not to be shtarck; everyone has a different level of observance; one's own friends and family members may not yet be at the level of one's own observance. Ari is not only very observant, he is also quite brilliant, and he never misses an opportunity to remind people of same. It's like the old joke of the Harvard graduate who reminds people he is a Harvard graduate in the first two minutes of every conversation. I try not to let it bother me, but I feel like saying, "Ari, would you please shut up?" This can't bode well for his friendship and dating opportunities if he's going to be that annoying.

Referring to the B.T. movement, a friend once commented that men often become observant without becoming religious. Brilliant. He meant that some men go through the motions of halacha (Jewish law) without fully understanding the underlying concept. One of those concepts is humility. For those who are newly observant, that's often a difficult concept to grasp. I tried to help Ari in hopes of preventing him from sounding like an ass. True to his character, he refused to listen.

I've had lunch a few times with someone we'll call J.B. at the homes of a couple of very gracious and patient hosts. J.B. marches into the home, late, removes his black hat, sits down, and starts quizzing the assembled--hosts and guests--on arcane halacha. J.B., would you please shut up? He does this all through the meal. I sat next to him while he pulled this stunt on some yeshiva bochurim (students) a couple of weeks ago--sons of our hosts--and I was embarrassed for him. These young men could run halachic circles around J.B., and they sat politely while he quizzed them on halacha. "Who does this guy think he is?", I imagined them asking each other. They only need to hear that from three men: their father, their rebbe (religious teacher/mentor), and their father-in-law. They don't need to hear it from a ba'al teshuva meal guest. Furthermore, in doing his shtick, J.B. dominates conversation and completely sidelines some of us (ahem) at the table, which is inconsiderate. Finally I asked him to stop, and I managed to change the subject. Like Ari, J.B. is doing himself no favors. I want to ask him: instead of quizzing the table and acting the Grand Poobah of Halacha, try saying, "Here's something interesting I learned from my chavrusa (teacher) this week." And make one point. And then keep quiet. That's the way to express a thought, in a friendly, unassuming way, without coming off like a pompous ass.

I know a few men who are phenomenally intelligent: they excel in their fields of engineering, computer science and law. They are successful in their careers, have large families, and are well schooled in halacha. Guess what? They don't flaunt it. That would not be tznius. That would not be appropriate. That would be arrogant. And they know better.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Calgary 1, Blackhawks 5; Hawks lead series 3-2

I can't imagine the Blackhawks winning Game 6 in Calgary tomorrow night (04-27-09) among the Flames' fans C of Red, but there's hope.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

24 2am-3am

That Jack Bauer. Always trying to do it himself. He could have asked for backup. But no.

The Starkwood operative who impersonated Hodges' lawyer: why go to the trouble of murdering Hodges' attorney and impersonating her? She couldn't simply go and say she's representing Jonas Hodges? I didn't understand the subterfuge.

Five hours left.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Illinois Holocaust Museum opens

I posted this by request at another blog.

I didn't realize we were going to be outside for nearly three hours, but I should have figured out the museum had no place to put 12,000 people. So yes, I was freezing; I did not dress properly for the event. No overhead heat lamps? The Miri Ben-Ari performance was amazing, and I'm glad I was on time for that. The intermediate speeches took too long. I realize the planners had to let the governor speak, and he only took four minutes, so good for him. The Soul Brothers appearances were nice, and it was good that the non-Jews on stage weren't limited to politicians. Still, the cynic in me thinks they were scheduled because older Jews like black kids--they make them think they're not really racist.

Wiesel was great. I'm sure he always is. Very moving and didn't soften his blows when mentioning more recent genocide attempts.

President Clinton was very strong. One thing hasn't changed: his speeches are still too long! I appreciated his explanation of what he tried to accomplish in the Balkans in terms of ending the genocide there; I wish he'd mentioned that this was one case in which U.S. military forces fought to save Muslim lives, and we don't get credit for that. Wiesel's and Clinton's calls for each of us to stand up to hatred resounded well.

It would have been great for President and Mrs. Clinton to appear together. Does that ever happen? Her video tribute was brief and very nice.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Orange County police chase finally ends

I just don't understand why L.A. tv news finds these chases so compelling.

Frost/Nixon hits DVD Tuesday 04-21

Definitely worth a rental; flashback to 1970's.

Adventureland

Adventureland
Miramax
this is that production

Great 1987 flashback film.

More on traffic court

1. The clerk was wearing a "chai" necklace. He wasn't very nice.
2. At some traffic courts, according to information I read online, defendants are entitled to see the complaining officer's notes before trial. My request to do so was refused. As it turned out, the cop didn't show, so I was lucky that way.
3. The sheriff's deputy/bailiff came over to me and said, "Chag kosher v'somayach." He then added that my tie was outside my collar. I quickly adjusted.
4. The first defendant in front of the judge gave her some lip. After she won her case. I couldn't believe it. The judge threatened to change her mind. "The last thing you want to do is come in here with an attitude," she said. As far as I'm concerned, when I'm in court, it's "Yes, your honor," "No, ma'am," and "Thank you, your Honor." That's it.

Game 2: Calgary 2, Chicago 3

Jonathan Toews scores twice in the second period--first minute, last minute--to put his Chicago Blackhawks up 2-0 as the series shifts to Calgary for Games 3 and 4. The Blackhawks overcame the Flames' 2-0 first-period lead to score three consecutive goals in the second period. Let's hope the Blackhawks can end this series in Alberta and rest up for the more difficult second round.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Calgary 2, Chicago 3 (OT)

Martin Havlat scores two consecutive goals and ends the game at 00:12 of OT to put the Blackhawks up 1-0 in the series! Congratulations to Martin Havlat!

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Don't speed in the suburbs

For several months now, I've wanted to post about "hypermiling" on McCormick Boulevard in Lincolnwood and Skokie. That means coasting toward a red light in hopes that it will turn green before one need come to a stop. On McCormick, the lights are one-half mile apart. The light a half-mile ahead typically turns red just as traffic begins to move toward it from the previous intersection. Even though the speed limit is 40, the "light progression" speed is about 26. If one goes that speed, then one can proceed through the green light without waiting and wasting gasoline.

On Friday the 13th, I wasn't paying attention, and Officer Lincolnwood Speed Trap at McCormick and Albion clocked me doing 53 in a 40. I drive that stretch every day, and I still can't figure out how he was lying in wait. He was nice about me not having my insurance card; I explained that I had rented a vehicle earlier in the week and had not replaced my documents to the glove compartment like I should have. (That was true.) "Perfectly understandable," he said. He still gave me a $75 ticket. I thought I had a decent case. I was at the back of a convoy of vehicles. Did his radar gun say "Silver Honda Civic"? Of course not. It cannot identify which vehicle it is clocking. It only indicates a certain vehicle's rate of speed. Which vehicle? It's not certain. So I was going to ask the complaining officer about that at my trial. Since I was the last vehicle, I thought it was conceivable the lead vehicle was going 53, and I was going 38. I mailed my request for a trial the same day he gave me the ticket.

My court date was April 13, the day after Easter, and I prayed to G-d that the police officer would be on vacation. That's exactly what happened; he did not show up in court, and the judge dismissed my case as a result. One note: I obviously have not been to traffic court at the Skokie Courthouse in quite some time, thank G-d. (I took a traffic class instead of court in 2005 for 52 in a 30 in Arlington Heights.) In Skokie, if found guilty, the defendant must pay the ticket penalty ($75, or whatever the judge determines) plus $135 in court costs. So exercising one's constitutional right to a fair trial and the right to face one's accuser in a court of law can cost the losing defendant $135 on top of the ticket fee. So please, don't speed in the suburbs. It's just not worth it. Many times I've been tempted (and twice given in) to turning right on red from westbound Touhy to northbound McCormick. It's a stupid "No turn on red" with a clear view of northbound traffic. But it's not worth $210. Speeding on short trips only saves a few minutes; it's long-distance trips, like driving I-65 through Indiana, that speeding saves significant time. It's not a good reason to pay an optional tax and help Cook County keep its courthouses running. And another good reason: traffic court helps Cook County Board President Toddler Stroger's budget, too.

Monday, April 13, 2009

Reed Johnson robs Prince Fielder

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2009_04_12_chnmlb_milmlb_1&mode=wrap

I was hoping to embed this clip, but mlb.com is so, so far behind the times. It's almost as though the website makes it intentionally difficult for fans to find and watch highlights. Granted, nhl.com is no fun, either. But at least I know where to go, and each clip shows every goal with the announcer. With mlb.com, there's a highlights voiceover.

That is one spectacular catch. It's replayed three times in the clip. I still can't believe it. It's like that Mets catch in the 2006 NLCS Game 7 against the Cardinals at Shea Stadium.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Terminator: The Return of the Time Machine

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Fox
Friday 9pm ET/PT
Bartleby Company
Halcyon Productions
Warner Brothers Television

Lots of great stuff in this episode including a couple of heart-to-heart talks between John and Cameron.

Cameron to John on Former Agent Ellison, after Ellison came to their hotel room with a message from Catherine Weaver:

"He upset you?"

"Me? I think he upset you."

"You know that's impossible."

"Is it?"

"You said it yourself, John. I'm just a machine."

After waking up John by sitting on his bed, watching him (Cameron doesn't sleep), Cameron removed her top and showed John how to check to make sure her system was working properly. This made me a little queasy as the action implied (but did not show on-screen) that John cut into Cameron's abdomen and reached inside her metal interior. Ick. Yes, she's a machine. But she doesn't look like one.

The image of Cameron with her human resistance fighters in the future, next to a trusty German shepherd (watchdog of the resistance) was touching. I'm just a little worried the show is going overboard, and of course John of 2009 seeing future John (or "future me," as he refers to himself) compromises the time-space continuum.

24 heats up: midnight-1am

24
Imagine Entertainment
Teakwood Lane Productions
Twentieth Century Fox Television

The reporter said it just the way I thought of it: Olivia Taylor (the lovely Sprague Gayden) "took one for the team" by giving up her body to keep a national security secret. She stayed one step ahead of him. Unfortunately for our friends in the White House, it appears Jonas Hodges (Jon Voight in a stellar evil role) is one step ahead of his pursuers. As I feared, he is threatening the launching of missiles headed for East Coast cities loaded with biological weapons of mass destruction. He wants to blackmail the White House, I believe, with plans to take over the Executive Branch of the U.S. government.

This is the second consecutive episode that ended with a standoff between government and Starkwood. How will this end?

I was wondering about Voight getting away with murder. Of course, while threatening the U.S. government with a terrorist attack, murdering one CEO is really a side issue.

1968 helicopter ride above Las Vegas Strip

Watch out for the sign!

Las Vegas Helicopter footage c.1968

Dustin Byfuglien shocks Wings with late penalty shot

The Hawks and Wings were tied at 2 in the final minute today (April 11, shabbos chol ha'moed, the third day of Passover, and Holy Saturday) when Dustin Byfuglien (BUFF-lin) skated in on a breakaway. A Wings player chased and hooked him, and the referee called a penalty shot with 00:27.6 on the clock. Under a shower of boos, Byfuglien converted to give the Hawks a very late lead. Andrew Ladd scored an ENG in the final seconds to finish the scoring. The Hawks have the #4 seed in the Western conference and will open at home against Vancouver or Calgary Tuesday or Wednesday night, the seventh or eighth night of Passover.

This is the Blackhawks' first win over Detroit this season.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Mollusks: Who needs 'em?

Adam Burish has an idea about an old Motor City hockey tradition.

Edvard Munch at the Art Institute of Chicago

Thanks to generous friends, I was able to see Becoming Edvard Munch, the temporary exhibit at the Art Institute of Chicago yesterday, April 5, without paying. The admission price I avoided was $12 ($7 kids) and $10 for the special exhibit. The museum's admission price is rising to $18 ($12 kids) next month. That means that except for Thursday and Friday nights (no admission charge), a family of four will pay $60 to enter the museum. That doesn't include parking ($20), audio guide ($5), coat check ($1) or souvenirs. Membership is $80 for individuals, which includes children.

I think $60 for a family to attend a publicly-funded museum is outrageous. Instead of making admission such a hardship for families, the Art Institute could cut costs. For example, it could close on Mondays, like most museums outside Chicago. It could also have family specials at more convenient times--maybe the first Sunday of the month is free until noon. It really bothers me that working families support this museum through the taxes they pay to the city, the state and the federal government. So families are paying to support a museum they cannot afford to visit. I wouldn't have a problem with the Art Institute charging whatever it wanted so long as the public funding were pulled. If the Art Institute received no public funding and it remained open six days a week, would admission really increase all that much?

The Art Institute's permanent collection is fantastic. I enjoy it. But I'm not going to spend $18 to see it. The admission fee shouldn't keep away less-fortunate Chicagoans, either, especially since they pay to support the museum anyway.

Art should enjoy support from the people who enjoy art--not from everyone. Some time ago, I would receive annual email pleas from friends and relatives to write my congressmen to ask them to make sure the National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities (art pork) remained in the federal budget. This was U.S. Rep. Sidney R. Yates' obm (D.-Ill.) baby. Throughout his half-century of service in the House to his ultra-liberal North Side/suburban constituency, he raised their taxes numerous times, spent billions of their money with his esteemed position on the House Appropriations Committee (nicknamed the College of Cardinals for its power), never instituted national health care, and never steered federal money into his district. But boy, did he make sure that line item for the arts stayed in the budget!

$1.5 billion and no roof?

I don't understand how the New York Yankees spent $1.5 billion to build new Yankee Stadium and couldn't manage to include a retractable roof with all that money. Comiskey Park (opened 1991, no roof) cost Illinois taxpayers $175 million. Milwaukee's Miller Park (opened 2001, retractable roof that barely works) cost southeastern Wisconsin taxpayers $400 million. In Bronx, all that money and no roof? Inexplicable.

The average price of a Yankees game ticket rose 75% in one off-season from $41.40 to $72.97, tops in baseball. The most expensive ticket in baseball had for a long time been in Boston, due to its smallest stadium in baseball, extremely popular team (200-game sellout streak) and its desire to compete head-to-head with its wealthy New York rival. The average Red Sox ticket is $48.80. After my numerous request to the Cubs to raise ticket prices so their payroll could be competitive, the Cubs' average ticket price is third, at $47.75. And other than seeing the team itself, I think Cubs fans pay for a substandard experience. As I've noted numerous times, the restrooms are disgusting, the concourses are cramped, the seats are uncomfortable and have terrible views, there is no video/replay board, the scoreboard is a joke, concessions are few and far between, and there's no gift shoppe. And there are too many day games. And the upper deck is unsafe. And it takes forever to leave--because of the narrow concourses that were never designed to hold 38,000 fans. Wrigley Field is a national treasure, and maybe it should just hold minor-league exhibitions while the Cubs build a 21st-Century replica with retractable roof in Hoffman Estates.

The Mets replaced their 70's-era dump, Shea Stadium, with a new ballpark. (Yankee Stadium looked like it was from the 1970's as the team completely renovated it in the middle of that decade.) I suspect the revenue streams from those new ballparks in Bronx and Queens will end up making Fenway Park, Wrigley Field and Dodger Stadium obsolete.

TV Update

Terminator

The BAG bites the dust: a Terminator shoots Derrick Reese (Brian Austin Green). I was stunned. First Jessie (Stephanie Jacobsen) is written out of the show, and now her boyfriend Reese, John's uncle, is shot when our group of friends, realizing Savannah is in danger, head to the corporate campus to rescue her. Funny how they arrive just as an attack is under way. I am as incredulous as Catherine Weaver: why were Savannah and Weaver targeted?

Does Weaver remind anyone of Miss Parker in The Pretender?

When are Ellison and Sarah going to figure out Weaver is a machine? I hope before it's too late and she targets them first. Did Weaver notice that our friends have a cyborg working with them? JohnHenry did.

I liked Cameron killing that guy who was going to remove her chip in the March 27 episode. Who are these people working for? I wonder if Weaver and the Connors will end up working together. They need to retrieve Sarah from incarceration first.

Kings:
interesting show that I'm struggling getting into. An English-speaking kingdom is fighting a war with Gath, a nation with whom it maintains diplomatic relations. (Odd.) Gath's tanks are marked "GOLIATH"--so much for Biblical subtlety. The kingdom's capital, Shiloh, looks a lot like Manhattan with some updated 21st-Century buildings. I'm only halfway through the pilot, so I'll post again when I finish.

24:
Would it be possible for a large, powerful military contractor like Starkwood to threaten the executive branch and attempt to take over America? That seemed to be its desire as the clock struck midnight and Starkwood's soldiers threatened to engage FBI agents on Starkwood property in Virginia. The series continues tonight.

Lost: The Dharma members end up setting the seed for their own destruction by allowing The Others to save Ben's life and then taking him back. Big mistake, it turns out.

BTW What's up with Sun and Frank? Are they still in the 21st Century? What are they up to? Sun will not be able to find Jin if he's stuck in 1977.

Hurley worried about tough questions like, "Who was president in 1977?" The Worthless One, Jimmy Carter, DUH.

The Unusuals
(new abc series that follows Lost on Wednesdays): not sure if the series is going to be as good as the trailer. Interesting that NBC is replacing "ER" (which I never cared for) with another cop show, Southland.

Dancing with the Stars:
Shawn Johnson or Melissa Rycroft? Does this series really need to be 3 hrs./wk.? Yeesh.

The Office:
I'm still catching up. Michael tried repeating everything his new boss said, right back to him, like a little kid. Pam's reaction: “I can tell Michael’s mood by which comedy routine he chooses to do: the more infantile, the more upset he is. He just skipped the Ace Ventura talking butt thing, and he never skips it. This is bad.”

NCAA Men's Final Four: If North Carolina beats Michigan State tonight, that will be three wins for UNC in Ford Field this season, compared to none for the Detroit Lions. And Detroit played five additional games.

Sunday, April 5, 2009

Blackhawks 1, Blue Jackets 0 (OT)

Oh, my, as the announcer said, Kris Versteeg breaks away and ends the game at 3:10 of OT!

Friday, April 3, 2009

The Office

The Office
NBC
Thursdays - I don't know what time
Reveille Productions

Michael Scott is an arrogant, narcissistic ass whom Steve Carrell plays to precision. And I just love episodes in which he is humiliated, insulted and figuratively gets his ass kicked. So it was in The Golden Ticket and The New Boss, both of which I believe aired last month, in March. For The Golden Ticket, I was laugh-out-loud dying at his embarrassment, anger and humiliation. In The New Boss, not only is the new boss all-business and take-no-prisoners, he gets into a power struggle with Michael. Of course Michael is all-fun-and-games (Party Planning Committee) and is grossly inappropriate in terms of dealing with black people, especially bosses, so it's even funnier.