My Photo

HomerJay's Favorite TV Shows

  • Cold Case
    Airing against "The Simpsons" for several years, when it moved back to 9 p.m., I started DVR-ing this show (while watching "Desperate Housewives" live) based on curiosity about its Philadelphia setting. Now, I'm hooked and have caught up with older episodes thanks to weekend reruns and TNT. The premise of solving old cases--minus the made-up gadgetry of "CSI"--is interesting, the cast is solid, and yes, the references to real Philadelpia locales is cool for those of us in the city.
  • Lost
    Quite possibly the most original mystery ever to grace the small screen. Just what the heck is going on on that island? A ship in the middle of the jungle...mysterious hatches, one filled with horrible records but also a shower that I hope they put Kate in a little more often so we can have more "towel" scenes...a crazy French woman..."The Others," whoever, or whatever, they are...a black-smoke monster of some kind...and a polar bear?!?!? Here's hoping ABC doesn't turn this gem into another X-Files, overstaying its welcome and sinking into stupidity. For now the continuing mysteries make the show more interesting, but if they drag this past about five seasons, they'll have gone too far.
  • The Office
    It may be a comedy shot as a phony documentary, but for my money, it's the best reality show on television, hands down. Just about all of us can relate to having one, if not more, of those personalities somewhere in our work history. Valuing my life, I won't identify any of my former or present co-workers as being ANYTHING like the gang in Scranton, of course.
  • Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
    This never-missed-an-episode fan of the prime-time series will admit to mixed feelings when it was announced Meredith "The View" Vierra was tapped as host of the syndicated version, but I was a quick convert. Meredith makes the show perfect for its daytime slot. I still miss seeing a Regis version on the air from time to time on ABC, but for a half-hour a day, Vierra is a genuine, enthusiastic, humorous host who seems more like a friendly companion rather than Regis' over-the-top showman. Sure, the first five questions are usually laughers, but what really makes Millionaire so interesting is finding out just how quickly you can go from being smug about knowing the answers to being totally stumped. Having been in the hot seat for the Disney World "Play It" attraction, I can only imagine just how hard it is when real money is at stake--the game is already harder than it looks when you're sitting down there in the middle of the studio and you realize a bad guess blows you right out of the chair.
  • Jeopardy!
    Talk about a simple concept. A quiz show with no stunts or gimmicks, no crazily costumed contestants, a low-key host and an essentially unchanged format in its current 20+ year incarnation. And it shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. As dumb as I usually feel watching contestants spit out answers rapid fire, there's usually at least one category in each show where I know the answers. Best of all are those rare days when I know the Final Jeopardy answer while the contestants on the show don't. I can't help but quote Ralph Wiggum at that point: "I beat the smart kids!" Jeopardy is a true classic that shows you can be subtle and still entertaining.
  • The Simpsons
    Kind of goes without saying, doesn't it? So how does a strange-looking, crudely drawn series of filler cartoons on a little-watched sketch comedy show on what was then a joke of a network wind up turning into a cultural watershed that's lasted nearly two decades? Sharp, insightful humor balanced with just enough humanity to make the characters (generally) likable without being sappy...and a willingness to turn the jokes back on the show itself. The Simpsons is in a class by itself in the pop-culture universe. Long live Homer and company!

Homer Jay's Favorite Places On The Web

Homer Jay's Favorite Tunes

  • Faith Hill - Breathe

    Breathe
    Faith Hill: Breathe
    Beautiful lyrics, an amazing vocal presence and the best video ever made...it doesn't get any better than this. I easily consider this the best love song I've heard. (*****)

  • Man In Motion
    John Parr: St. Elmo's Fire: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
    When I first heard this song wayyyyy back in 1985 (hey, I see a theme here...look at the selection below), this became my instant favorite pop song. Musically, the strong intro grabbed my attention, but it was the inspirational lyrics that really made it powerful to me. To this day, when I need a "pick-me-up" song or want to get psyched to face a challenge, this is one of the songs I use to put me in a better frame of mind. (*****)
  • Bon Jovi - Who Says You Can't Go Home?

    Who Says You Can't Go Home?
    Bon Jovi: Have a Nice Day
    As noted on this blog, I was on site for a small portion of the video shoot (though I spent much more time working on another Habitat for Humanity house on the same block), and if that skews my opinion, so be it. That said, this is a fun, catchy little pop-rock song with a fair enough point when you listen to the lyrics: be proud of your roots. Where you came from is a part of who you are now, wherever you ended up. (****)

  • Bowling For Soup - 1985

    1985
    Bowling For Soup: A Hangover You Don't Deserve
    The first song I purchased from iTunes for my new iPod (after ripping all of the music I already owned). My wife told me about this one--as children of the '80s, the lyrics hit close to home in a comical way. Yeah, remember when MTV really did play music? And the Whitesnake's car reference is classic. (***)

Contact

  • Email Address:

Biography

Hmmmm, what’s there to say about me. I’m a big fan of The Simpsons and game shows, which probably scared you away already.

But just in case it hasn’t, I’m pretty much a boring, suburban Homer Simpson-esque kind of guy. Though I hope I’m a wee bit smarter. (I am so smart. I am so smart. S-M-R-T, I mean, S-M-A-R-T…d’oh!). I studied communications in college, and am currently working in the field. I’m the proud uncle to a niece and nephew. I’m trying to teach the niece some Simpsons phrases (the nephew is too young, but his time will come).

I’m a political “mutt,” who thinks the extremists in both major parties have been getting far too much attention and control over public debate, leading us to a place where “Crossfire” and “Hannity & Colmes” passes for civic discourse.

My favorite shows, other than game shows (NOT, I repeat NOT that phony, so-called “reality” sludge) and The Simpsons are Lost (freaky and suspenseful), Desperate Housewives (wickedly funny brain candy…OK, and eye candy too), NYPD Blue (sad to see it leaving; Sipowicz could be one of the best TV characters ever created), Monk (there’s something about his compulsiveness I can really relate to) and M*A*S*H (the second-best show of all time, after The Simpsons). I’m sure I left something off, but that’s a sample of my tastes.

Musically, I could live on Faith Hill and Shania Twain. My darling wife took me to a Shania concert on our wedding anniversary one year, a total treat for me, not her. Ironically, she bought the tickets days before the show, when additional seats were released to what had been a sold-out concert. That worked out pretty well in the end: Shania performed one of her songs from the row in front of us, about five seats over. I’m not sure I blinked or breathed for those few minutes.

A child of the ‘80s, I also have a particular fondness for the pop and rock-and-roll songs of that decade, and my iPod is loaded with them. Beyond that, my tastes are pretty wide: from the Beach Boys to Aerosmith; from Neil Diamond to Van Halen. And I’m a big fan of many musicals.

So that’s me in a nutshell. Convenient, since I’m pretty much a nut.

Interests

The Simpsons, Star Wars, game shows, current events, music.