SMART LIST: Pop culture talking points (Week of Nov. 18)
You should talk about: Chappelles Show: The Complete Season. Yeah, this show has been packaged and repackaged in all sorts of formats each of the individual seasons, best of, uncensored, etc., but we think Dave Chappelle is one of the best young comedians of our time. And even though he stomped off the air heroically, or foolishly, depending on your point of view, we think hes worth talking about. (Tuesday (Erin Patrice O’Brien / Associated Press)
Hmm will you or wont you talk about: Celine Dion does daytime. The last time we wrote about a music star showing up on a daytime soap it was Timbaland on One Life to Live. This time its Celine Dion on ABCs All My Children, which makes a whole lot more sense. And if you still want more Dion on the small screen, you can watch her on The View a few days later. (Wednesday, Friday) (Paul Chiasson / Associated Press)
And we may talk about: Anna Quindlen talks canines. Were going through a dog thing right now, having recently adopted a furry 8-month-old. So were partial to the idea of Quindlens book, Good Dog. Stay, about her black lab Beau. We can guarantee a tear-jerker ending, but we know a happy pup who can remedy the blues. (Tuesday) (J.T. MacMillen / For the Times)
We will do more than talk about: The two-disc Shake and Shimmy Edition of Hairspray. The John Waters classic is one of our favorite films ever. Debbie Harry may not have known how to act, but Rikki Lake knew how to shake it. The musical version of Hairspray does not match the original in awesomeness, but it does match it in heart. We rarely buy DVDs, but this disc made the list. (Tuesday) (Bryan Bedder / Getty Images)
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Youll be surprised youre not laughing when you talk about: Steve Martins memoir. Ah, Steve Martin and his many incarnations absurdist comedian, less-absurdist comedian, movie star, screenwriter, director, New Yorker contributor. Hes a modern-day Woody Allen. (I kid!) Hes got several books under his belt, but this one is about him. Even more interestingly, it deals with his troubled relationship with his dad. Its called Born Standing Up: A Comics Life. (Tuesday) (Kevork Djansezian / Associated Press)
