Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2008 December 29

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December 29

Comic Strip Project - Peanuts - derivation of character Lucy van Pelt

My Great Aunt was Louise Cassidy, art instructor colleague and friend of Charles Schulz and Jim Sasseville at Art Instruction School in Minneapolis, MN in the 1940’s. Louise was the basis for the character of Aunty Climax in Jim Sasseville' short lived strip. Over the years I have understood that my Great Aunt also went by the nickname of Lucy, and I am wondering if she may have also been the source of the character Lucy in Peanuts, as various other Peanuts character also came out of Art Instruction School from that time such as Linus and Charlie Brown. Please reply to my talk page, user marksk56 Thank you. Mark K. Marksk56 (talk) 02:12, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

The David Michaelis biography Schulz and Peanuts (2007) describes Louise Cassidy with no mention of Lucy. Later in the book, he compares traits of Schulz' wife Joyce with Lucy. Pepso2 (talk) 11:17, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

MNF Schedule

Does the NFL publish how they schedule Monday night football? Some teams, such as the Broncos and 49ers, get an abnormally high number of MNF games. Other teams, such as the Cardinals and Bengals, have an abnormally small number of MNF games. Is doesn't seem to be based on the number of wins in the previous season. For example, the Broncos consistently have 2 (or 3) games, but do not consistently win their division. They placed 3rd in 2006 and got 3 MNF games in 2007. I've searched and I've found a lot about how they decide which teams will play each other, but not how they schedule when those games will be played. -- kainaw™ 04:28, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

If it's anything like the UK and their scheduling of soccer it's down to both the broadcasters as well as local-police/external events. The TV channel will seek to place the most popular (viewers wise) games in prime slots to maximise the number of people watching. In the UK this means football teams such as Manchester Utd, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea (the 'big four') regularly have games on non-standard days/non-standard times. Another factor in organisation these schedules will be city-events. Again in the UK Liverpool and Everton (another club in the same city) are never scheduled to play home-games on the same day because it would be a nightmare for policing/commuters. Similarly they take into account 'events' occuring - so it may be that if there is an annual parade they will make sure the team are not playing that day so as not to cause issues with the parade/event. I suspect the same decisions/structure apply in NFL. Probably the biggest factor (once the fixture schedule is produced) is when the broadcasters cherry-pick the games and move them to other slots so that they aren't competing for viewers with other games/channels as much. 194.221.133.226 (talk) 14:59, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

It's a combination of wins, novelty, and expected fanbase. I expect there's some sort of negotiation between ESPN (the MNF network) and the others, but I don't know what sort of details are there. There are, however, limits as to how many prime-time appearances are allowed. The Broncos, while inconsistent, are one of the highest-valued franchises in the league. That probably translates into a large fanbase and better television ratings (I think the same sort of thing would hold for Dallas and Washington, the top two teams on that list). As for novelty, the Browns this year landed five primetime games on the strength of last year's surprising 10-6 record. Similarly, the Bengals went from one primetime game in 2005 to 3 in 2006 (and 4 in 2007) based on a division title. There's also some interesting hand-wringing over perceived discrepancies in the quality of the Sunday night versus Monday night schedules.

Unfortunately, all this rambling does nothing to definitively answer your question. I can only assume that the precise terms are somewhere in the contracts that the various entities want private to protect their positions. — Lomn 17:36, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

Thanks. I assumed it was just made up in private meetings, but I hoped that there was some transparency to the decisions. -- kainaw™ 23:08, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

There clearly is a difference between MNF and Sunday Night Football. The Sunday night games are clearly higher-caliber, not even taking into account NBC's ability to change its late-season schedule (the "Flex Games"). I would guess that both schedules result from negotiation between the networks and the NFL, with NBC having more bargaining power than ESPN. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 01:33, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Actually, given that Monday Night Football is a Disney property (having originated at ABC, a Disney-owned network, and in the newest contract moved to ESPN, another Disney-owned network), I would guess that Disney has even better bargaining power than even NBC does, so I don't think that was the issue. Recently, all Disney-owned sports programming has been rebranded under the "ESPN" header, so that sports running on ABC (which used to be called "ABC Sports") is now branded "ESPN on ABC". I think, IIRC, the loss of Sunday Night games from ESPN was what prompted Disney to negotiate the move of MNF from broadcast to cable, and NOT the other way around; it was the only football broadcast property they owned, and it seemed desirable to maintain some NFL programming on ESPN. I suspect, and this is entirely my own thinking, that the rebranding of ABC Sports to "ESPN on ABC" is part of a future plan to return MNF to ABC. --Jayron32.talk.contribs 01:57, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

So, if I understand this correctly, if my favorite team doesn't get any MNF games next year, I should go to Disneyland and punch Mickey in the face. -- kainaw™ 02:07, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

You could use that as a rationale, if you wanted to. But there are probably other reasons to punch Mickey, as well.  :) It used to be that they tried to put every team on at least one evening game, but I don't know if they try that any more. They do want the games that will draw the biggest audiences. Giants/Cowboys, Steelers/Patriots, Colts games, Packer games, those are the ones they salivate for. Little Red Riding Hoodtalk 02:20, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Monday Night Football was on ABC long before Disney took ownership of the network. (The first game was in 1970.) The NFL schedules the game based on public interest, competitive balance and potential "meaningfulness" of the match-up. Geography also comes into play — cold-weather sites rarely host Monday night games in December. The NFL also has internal rules mandating that each team appear on MNF (and I believe also SNF) at least once every so many years, although I am uncertain as to the time frame. — Michael J 23:53, 31 December 2008 (UTC)

Music Videos

Has there ever been a music video of a song from a personal album of Jesse McCartney, Billy Ray Cyrus, Ashley Tisdale, or Corbin Bleu on Disney Channel that doesn't show a scene from a movie or TV show of Disney Channel? What are the only singers and bands which have such music videos on Disney Channel? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.244.14.189 (talk) 07:09, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

Billy Ray Cyrus was a (fairly) popular country music singer before his daughter brought him back in to the spotlight. Look for "Achey Breaky Heart" if you want some nostalgia (of if you are too young to remember it, look at his mullet!) Livewireo (talk) 20:49, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

I am talking about a music video on Disney Channel, during a break. Are you sure Achey Breaky Heart and I Want My Mullet have been shown as them? What about the other singers? Can you please just tell me? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.244.14.189 (talk) 01:15, 31 December 2008 (UTC)

Considering that The Disney Channel does not solicit outside advertising to show during their program breaks like other networks, but rather uses the time to promote their own TV programs and affiliated properties (such as Disney movies and records), this should not be surprising. Many of the TV show cast members also appear in Disney movies and produce music recordings, regardless of their acting or musical talent or lack therof. --Thomprod (talk) 19:24, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Jesse McCartney

Has Jesse McCartney ever starred in a movie or TV show of Disney Channel? (I mean not guest starring or voice acting.) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.244.14.189 (talk) 07:29, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

He was a star of All My Children, which is an ABC show. ABC is owned by Disney. Little Red Riding Hoodtalk 02:22, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Ben Chaplin's surname

Ben Chaplin's parents do not seem to have the Chaplin surname. How or why did Ben Chaplin get the name? Jay (talk) 11:29, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

I would imagine he changed his name either due to Equity rules or that, like some actors, he preferred to separate his professional and private life (or maybe he just didn't like his name). Nanonic (talk) 12:06, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

It's apparently his mother's maiden name[1]. --Maltelauridsbrigge (talk) 15:37, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

Perhaps changed because of UK actor Ben Greenwood who appeared in a movie with Twiggy 20 years ago. Pepso2 (talk) 15:43, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

Quite possible. As from the news item, he claims he didn't adopt it to take advantage of the famous surname. I've updated his article page to mention the mother's maiden name fact. Thanks, Maltelauridsbrigge. Jay (talk) 09:41, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

London Blitz

During the Blitz, an unexploded bomb was in Julie Andrews' backyard, and film critic David Thomson was also near bombed areas. The house of blues singer Marion Harris was destroyed, and she reportedly had a neurological disorder. Most famously, vocalist Al Bowlly was killed. What other entertainers or notables were killed or injured during the Blitz? Pepso2 (talk) 16:11, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

A son of Walter H. Thompson was killed during the blitz. Showgirl Lydia Hill, the fiancee of Sultan Ibrahim of Johor. The fiancee of Patrick Moore (he never married after her death). Peter, the son of Sir Bernard Spilsbury. Madeleine Carroll's sister. The father of Screaming Lord Sutch. Johnny Silvo's parents. Harry Tate. This says that Thomas Merton fathered a son and the son and his mother both died in the blitz. The father of Mrs. Mabel Anderson, the childhood nurse of both Prince Charles and Prince Andrew. That was just the first 20 Google pages I looked through. Only one person we have an article on, the others are relatives. Little Red Riding Hoodtalk 02:54, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Quite a list. Thanks. Pepso2 (talk) 10:11, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Mamegoma

Does anyone know if the differently-colored mamegoma toy seals have particular names? (e.g. would the blue seal be "Fred" the pink seal be "George," etc.) The article about them is no help. Thanks. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.63.100.162 (talk) 19:07, 29 December 2008 (UTC)