George Clooney

A lot of you know I am not a Clooney fan. He may be handsome, debonair, etc. etc. but he just doesn't float my boat. During the years of obsessive ER watching by many of my friends I stayed out of the loop -- don't like Clooney, can't stand Anthony Edwards, therefore I choose to avoid ER like the plague or whatever disease of the week the show was featuring.

(As an aside, may I add here that I was HORRIFIED to find out that ER is actually still airing new episodes?)

I caught a part of an interview George did on Good Morning America last week, and it intrigued me enough to watch the entire interview on PrimeTime, 20/20 or whatever newsmagazine it was on.

(Another aside, I remember when newsmagazines were on once a week and they carried REAL news. Do you remember that? Ahhhh.... the good old days.) But I digress.

So here's the long and the short of it. I LIKED George -- I really, really LIKED him. I am not ashamed to admit it -- I am a thinking person and I give myself permission to change my mind about anything whenever I want. But I have to say I didn't WANT to like him. See, the thing is, he's SMART. And, being somewhat arrogant about my own mental capacity (on good days, that is), it takes a lot for me to admit that some Hollywood chump has a brain and that he is capable of using it for good and not evil. George convinced me, though -- he is smart, he has actual values and morals, and what's more, he lives them -- stands up for them -- puts his money where his mouth is, as it were.

I won't go into his politics here -- you probably know he's a liberal and unapologetic about it -- but you have to agree that people who stand up for what they believe in are few and far between these days. I admire that.

And here is a plug for his new movie, which is what -- dare I say it? -- has made me see him in a whole new light. Now that I like his brain, I actually find him attractive now, too. Funny, that.

George's dad was a news anchor. In a tribute to his dad and to one of the greatest newsmen EVER, George has made a movie about one of my personal heroes, Edward R. Murrow. Ed was a journalism pioneer who worked at CBS in the golden days of news reporting. His live radio broadcasts from London during the Blitz kept American listeners spellbound. His view of the television industry and of how the television can be used were eerily on target. He predicted so many of the issues we face every day in terms of TV being aimed at the lowest common denominator and the loss of real television news divisions that were considered necessary to a network and that were not expected to generate any profits whatsoever. Those days are gone.

So go see "Good Night, and Good Luck," this weekend. It's in black and white, it is receiving critical acclaim all around, and I can't wait to see it myself. It is the story of Murrow and Wisconsin Senator Joe McCarthy. McCarthy was at the center of a nationwide panic about Communists infiltrating the US. He ruined lives and careers, and Murrow, at the risk of destroying his career and possibly his network, stood up to him. It is a story of courage and determination, and of another man who stood up for what he believed in.

(And watch McCarthy carefully -- Clooney used actual footage of the Senator throughout the film. The rhetoric this guy spouted was unbelievable. Clooney joked in the interview that they were going to place an ad for Joe McCarthy to get an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of himself.)

Go see it, and let me know what you think. It's been a rotten week here (details later, when I know more....) but I will try to post links to a few books I've enjoyed about the television industry. Until then, have a good weekend, and hug your kids extra hard tonight, okay? And if you pray, a prayer or two for a friend I'll just call "K" would be appreciated.

Thanks.