Happy Birthday, MTV, But Your Party Should Have Been Bigger

Today is the 30th birthday of a cable channel that has changed the world, but whose relevance ain't what it used to be.
Over the weekend, VH1 Classic has been rotating 12 hours of what it considers the best of MTV, Music Television, over the past 30 years.

12 hours? Not a month, at least?

What bugs me is that to limit itself to 12 hours, they leave out a MASSIVE amount of history. They will be airing the first hour of the network three times Monday. We get a fair amount of Mark Goodman, and cameos by Nina Blackwood, JJ Jackson, Alan Hunter and Martha Quinn. It's like talking about the Declaration of Independence and barely talking about the Founding Fathers. Sure, they give us clips of Club MTV (such as a very nice performance by Debbie Gibson), 120 Minutes, the final TRL (why not the first one, you knobs?), Jackass, Unplugged, House of Style, Remote Control, Cribs, Beavis and Butthead, and contest promos.

But come on! Why not turn VH1 Classic into MTV Classic, where we get bumps of the VJs, and throw in both Julie Browns (especially Just Say Julie) and Adam Curry? Why not have ENTIRE VMAs? Who wouldn't want to see the year Dana Carvey hosted, or the first one? How about the retrospectives the network had in 1999? Show whole episodes of Remote Control, especially with Denis Leary and Adam Sandler? Heck, show where the VJs are now. It's sad the original network doesn't think being 30 is important enough to throw itself a birthday party. I'm sure Katy Parry, Gaga, Rhianna, P. Diddy, and Pitbull would love to be on the decorating committee.
On the other hand, maybe MTV didn't want to admit hitting the big 3-0 because it's afraid the kids won't trust anyone over 30...like maybe CNN.

Martha Quinn had her own take on the big 3-0, and her brthday wish speaks volumes. Bless you, Martha! You were so great as a VJ, Canada had to invent its own version of you.




OK, so let's admit You Tube, Vevo really, has replaced MTV as the main source for music videos these days. Let's at least honor the channel that started it all.
Well, when August 2nd rolls around, and China doesn't foreclose on us because our government's financial expertise is worse then Bernie Madoff's, this will all be forgotten.

I will give VH1 Classic credit for showing MTV's first hour with the original ads. It just reminds us what we had back then, especially Superman II, a gum that's no longer available, and cologne that would be rejected in favor of Axe spray.

Dear Comcast: Please Upgrade When Nothing Is Happening

I got a notice a couple of days ago from Comcast saying it was going to do some rewiring as part of its efforts to bring me better service and not get near those socialists, Dish Network and DirecTV.
I thought nothing of it because I thought they'd probably get to my street on a Tuesday. Instead, they arrived last Saturday....and nearly ruined my Oscar weekend.
They spent about 20 minutes doing their job, then left. I thought my service would be restored, and I'd get to a long evening of catching up on my DVR stuff, including the Independent Spirit Awards. Instead, I had NO DVR service, or premium service or OnDemand service. Oh, and no news, USA network, or sports. All I had was the local digital channels, which would be enough if the ABC channel would be there for me Oscar night.
Yesterday, I wound up having no channels at all. I called AND texted Comcast to at least give me the Oscars so I can mock them MST3K style through Twitter (as were millions of others worldwide). To their credit, Comcast did come through. It seems I wasn't the only person who was panicking. Of course, it means I won't get a chance to see what a movie awards show is SUPPOSED to be until later this week (and yes I mean the Spirit Awards), but at least I'll still have it.

So, my anger will hopefully mean a refund, and maybe an offer to give me a free OnDemand movie or six months of HBO. I think if Comcast is going through all the trouble of trusting them with our entertainment needs, even relying on Shaquille O'Neal, they should make sure the "upgrades" actually work. After all, even though the Oscars are over, the preparations for NCAA basketball playoff action is getting into full swing. Take cable away from a guy during that, and you deserve all the grief you make