A Good Role Model

Every once in a while, a Disney / well ABC Family girl really impresses me with
their maturity, intelligence, level headedness, and wisdom beyond their years. 
In this case, I give a big nod of approval to Rachel Fox, whom you know as Holly
on the ABC Family show Melissa and Joey. You may also know her as the diva who
replaced Sam on iCarly Saves Television. Neither role is a particularly
admirable character, but this is a more of a testament to her acting skill than
a reflection of who she really is.

Rachel Fox is not only a good actress, but a successful investor. She maintains
an investing web site called Fox on Stocks:

http://foxonstocks.com/investingbasics/

Don't let the exceptionally pretty face fool you, this girl has a real talent
for investing, and you would be wise to read her introduction to investing and
give a try for yourself. Rachel came along way too late in my life to have
guided my investments, she wasn't even born yet and her parents were probably
not born yet when I started investing, but the principles she talks about are
the same valid techniques that I, and my father before me have used. And ---
they have led me to the point where I am now establishing my own company! I
wish I could give credit to Rachel for that, but if you follow her investing
advice - one day you may be starting your own company.

If you want to get rich quick, investing is not for you. But if you want to
start investing as a young person, you can retire a multi-millionaire if you
follow careful, conservative, proven investment strategies. Listen to Rachel. 
She is one wise young person!

Do People Really Watch Family Television?!

Look at the Phenomenal Ratings for the series finale of Wizards of Waverly Place!

Only "CSI New York" and "Blue Bloods" out rated the Wizards finale. Wizards beat "A Gifted Man" and The Cotton Bowl football game! And - it lifted Jessie to 7.3 million viewers!, Making Wizards #3 and Jessie #5 in Friday ratings!!!

Final broadcast primetime ratings for Friday, January 6, 2012:

Time	Net	Show	18-49 Rating/Sh	Viewers (Millions)
8:00	CBS	A Gifted Man	1.5/5	8.38
	FOX	AT&T Cotton Bowl Pregame	1.5/5	5.62
	ABC	Extreme Makeover Home Edition	1.4/4	5.44
	NBC	Chuck	0.9/3	3.26
	CW	Nikita	0.6/2	1.56
9:00	FOX	Cotton Bowl: Ks State vs. Arkansas (9-12:08a)	2.5/8	8.36
	CBS	CSI: NY	1.8/5	10.56
	ABC	Extreme Makeover Home Edition	1.6/5	6.06
	CW	Supernatural	0.8/2	1.82
	NBC	Grimm (R)	0.6/2	2.33
10:00	CBS	Blue Bloods	1.8/5	11.34
	NBC	Dateline	1.4/4	5.00
	ABC	20/20	1.3/4	5.06

Selected Friday cable ratings (all Live+Same Day ratings):

Program	Net	Time	Viewers (000)	18-49 Rating
Gold Rush	DISC	9:00 PM	4688	1.9
Wizards of Waverly Place	DSNY	8:00 PM	9755	1.9
JESSIE	DSNY	9:00 PM	7317	1.2
American Dad	ADSM	10:30 PM	2039	0.8
WWE FRI NIGHT Smackdown	SYFY	8:00 PM	2589	0.8
Flying Wild Alaska	DISC	10:01 PM	2198	0.8
NBA REGULAR SEASON L	ESPN	8:06 PM	1794	0.8
KUNG FU PANDA	NICK	7:30 PM	2862	0.7
Pardon The Interruption	ESPN	5:30 PM	1333	0.7
HOUSE OF PAYNE	TBSC	9:30 PM	1606	0.7
VERY FUNNY NEWS	TBSC	10:00 PM	1480	0.6
HOUSE OF PAYNE	TBSC	9:00 PM	1416	0.6
DINERS, DRIVE INS & DIVES	FOOD	10:00 PM	1759	0.6
NBA REGULAR SEASON L	ESPN	10:38 PM	1290	0.6
Wipeout	TRU	8:00 PM	1410	0.6
REAL HOUSEWIVES ATLANTA	BRVO	9:00 PM	1172	0.6
Fish Hooks	DSNY	9:30 PM	4375	0.6
Fashion Police Weekly	ENT	10:30 PM	935	0.5
FOUR WEDDINGS	TLC	10:00 PM	1406	0.5
AROUND THE HORN	ESPN	5:00 PM	940	0.5
AUSTIN & ALLY	DSNY	10:00 PM	3303	0.5
MERLIN	SYFY	10:00 PM	1602	0.4
INVENTION USA	HIST	10:00 PM	1061	0.4
Say Yes to the Dress: ATL	TLC	9:30 PM	1474	0.4
STAR WARS:CLONE WARS	TOON	8:00 PM	1388	0.4
CRAVE	FOOD	11:30 PM	1032	0.3

A Vanishing Institution

A lot has been said about the vanishing family, the decline of the American dream, the loss of the middle class. Since this is a blog narrowly focused on family entertainment, I will mention the decline and possible loss of something else. Probably trivial when compared to major world issues, but a loss never the less.

Go back in time 50 years. I was a boy of 7, with a schoolboy crush. Haley Mills. As time went on, she was displaced by Susan Hampshire. What did they have in common? Both were Disney girls. Probably unintentionally at first, but in later years probably a conscious decision by Disney - present film audiences with an ideal girl. Innocent of corruption from the bad influences of the world, beautiful - usually blonde to begin with, with high moral standards. Role models that young girls could aspire to, beautiful and virtuous for young men to dream about.

Sadly, even from the beginning - this goal proved elusive. Haley Mills smoking for her first post Disney role. It is said that the downfall of Haley Mills - mild by today's standards - contributed to Walt Disney's death. She literally broke his heart. Ironic since he was a tobacco addict himself, and probably died of habitual use. How upset he would have been in later years, when she married a man over twice her age.

Fast forward to the present day. Disney has not fared well in its pursuit of uncontroversial female stars. The times have changed, and the nature of the offenses has also changed. From the downfall of Lindsey Lohan, the mistakes made by Miley Cyrus, medical problems of Demi Lovato - Disney has taken it on the chin. This is not from lack of effort. Disney has attempted to hedge their bets - by hiring a lot of Christians. But Christians are not perfect - just forgiven. So Disney is beginning to hire girls who are younger.

There are many Disney girls who present role models for this age, Alyson Stoner, Chelsea Kane, Nicole Anderson, Selena Gomez, Jennifer Stone, Tiffany Thornton, Allisyn Ashley Arm, Bridget Mendler, Bella Thorne, Zendaya Coleman, Debby Ryan, Peyton List, Sierra McCormick, China Anne McClain, Steffanie Scott, Allie DeBerry, Laura Marano, Raini Rodriguez, and probably half a dozen others I forgot about. I have the highest admiration for every one of them at this stage in their career. AS far as I can tell, they are doing their very best professionally for Disney. But - as Disney has found out - some of them will be human. Certainly - Disney has to have a behavior standard - as a Disney boy Mitchel Musso just found out. And I can't blame them for severing contact with stars that grossly exceed acceptable standards. Several names come to mind besides Mitchel - people whose actions reflect very badly on the Disney name, which is synonymous with "family".

The concept of "Disney girl" was flawed from the start. It is a standard that nobody can live up to, an illusion that can only be maintained for a time. The realities of adult roles, marriages and having children will set in. Some Disney girls will age with dignity and class - like Jodie Foster and Hillary Duff. Others - not so much. Is the pressure of being this role model too much for some of the Disney girls? Does it make them go bad? Does Disney overwork them? There is some evidence that Demi Lovato was overworked, contributing to her breakdown. Even a classy young lady like Selena Gomez was overworked to exhaustion. That is Disney's fault, and who know how many of their Disney girls were wrecked by a hectic schedule.

Disney has competition at Nickelodeon. I have to say that Nickelodeon - free from the pressure of having to be "family" - has fared better over the years. From Nickelodeon's perspective - there has been a high profile problem with Jami Lynn Spears becoming pregnant - but she had the class and good graces to fade away quietly and devote herself to motherhood. And what a good mother she is from all accounts. The term "Nick Chicks" has been widely used - and certainly the ones that I have have known live up to an ideal that seems to be as high or higher than Disney. Ironically - not having the pressure of being a "Disney princess in waiting" seems to lead to better personal balance. Perhaps Disney can learn from this. Perhaps not. But I can tell you my days of expecting perfection are long gone - as far in the past as my boyhood crush on Haley Mills. With that in mind - there is a new type of Disney girl that can be looked up to - the working actress who practices her profession with talent and skill. And who keeps their private life just that - private. Disney has wisely populated their "ABC Family" with the girls of "Switched at Birth", "Pretty Little Liars", "Melissa and Joey", and other excellent shows that have not been as successful. Those stars - not put under the pressure of enforced perfection - have fared much better.

So - who is the most stereotypical Disney girl of this age? I'd nominate Stephanie Scott. Blonde, beautiful, talented - smile that probably inspires a million teenage boys. Probably the most like Haley Mills - with Bridget Mendler the most like Susan Hampshire. Dream about them - young men of this age. Disney, I think, is in good hands. But don't put too much weight on their tender young shoulders. They don't deserve the burden of perfection.

Episode 1 (well blog 1) - A New Hope

40 years ago or so - the trees died. Well - on CBS at least. In one day, The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres, Petticoat Junction, Mayberry - all were cancelled. The golden era of 1960's television was coming to a close. The new crop of replacement shows were different - sitcoms and dramas with an attitude - well at least a political and social agenda. One that increasingly was at odds with my upbringing. Other elements crept in slowly - ones that I was not brought up to accept. Increasing levels of sexual innuendo. Characters with lax or non-existent morals. The basic plot of some shows was "hey baby wanna go BREED?" I lost interest in most television, exiled to science and educational shows that at least were fit to watch.

Fast forward to the 90's. I was forlornly hoping a cable channel called "The Disney Channel" might have some of the animated classics I grew up with. So I tuned in. Instead of that, I found "Anne of Green Gables", and I was greatly impressed. I discovered they had not only made a new movie based on the classic books, but they had also cooperated with the CBC to make an entire television series based on the books. They also had an Australian import called "Ocean Girl", and another import called "Spellbinder". These were seriously good television shows, and I was hooked, finding other fans on the new fangled Internet - fans who were as old as I was in some cases!

I soon discovered Nickelodeon - a network that was doing the same thing. "Clarissa Explains It All", "The Secret World of Alex Mack", and "You Can't Do That On Television" - soon to be replaced by the even better "All That". I was hooked on this network as well!

Fast forward a few more years. Now a father, I was very happy with the state of things on Disney Channel and Nickelodeon - having shows I could watch with my daughter and enjoy. Good, clean family entertainment of the sort I thought I would never see again in my lifetime. But there it was - relegated to supposedly children's networks. A happy era of "Lizzie McGuire", "Even Stevens", "Drake and Josh", and many others. A new Nickelodeon show premiered - "Unfabulous". Having discovered Yahoo groups, I made a fan club for it - expressing my delight at the good clean family entertainment value. And - to my surprise - I heard from the mother of cast member Malese Jow! She appreciated what I was saying about the show, and her daughter. A friendship was born!

And it wouldn't be the last. Another new show was premiering called "Zoey 101". By this time, I was becoming aware of the producers who made these shows. One of the best is a kindly gentleman named Dan Schneider - who had made statements that he wants his shows to be enjoyable by parents with their children. Of course this show had some anticipation due to the younger sister of Britney Spears, but I was captivated by a positive portrayal of science by Erin Sanders, who played Quinn. One of my concerns is how girls often abandon math and science in high school - here was a character role model that actually enjoyed science. I found Erin's fan group, and soon became friends with the family.

But wait - there was more going on in "Zoey 101"! To my surprise - I was seeing literary devices such as imagery, foreshadowing, metaphors, symbolism - in a Kid's show???? These are high end literary devices, not present on television for the most part. The writers were intentionally putting together literary quality scripts - and I guess the ratings prove once and for all that great stories written well produce viewers! Not only that, but there were references to things like Star Trek and Star Wars that no kid would get - but adults certainly would! The show not only was intentionally written to have literary elements, it was intentionally written to appeal to adults as well as kids!

Quinn was such a powerful character that I actually booked Erin for an appearance at Texas Instruments as part of their "take your sons and daughters to work" day. Her appearance created enormous interest, to say the least! Zoey 101 was a hit, and kids came out in droves to see her. More importantly, they saw the real Erin - not as science geek Quinn, but an intelligent young lady with a healthy interest in Texas Instruments technology. Very cool experience for them!

To my astonishment and delight - The Sanders arranged for my daughter to be an extra on the Zoey 101 television show! It was an absolutely fascinating experience, seeing the production of the show from the inside. By that time, I had two friends in the cast - Victoria Justice and her mother had contacted me. So it was not only a great experience for my daughter, it was the opportunity to meet and enrich friendships with the cast parents, who I can truthfully say are wonderful people we consider quality friends.

I had the opportunity to thank Dan Schneider personally for the great family television he is producing. Of course it is a profession, and he is under the constraints to produce a product that rates well with kids - the grown-ups are secondary, but welcome viewers. My overall impression of Dan? An extremely hard working, dedicated, professional person who puts everything he has to give into his work. I remember being concerned for his health - his schedule was so grueling he had to catch naps on the set to get enough sleep. He loves each production that much. And believes in his cast, crew, and writers. He develops friendships with his young cast members, which only helps to seed even more ideas for scripts and eventually new shows. I have seen generations of shows - "All That" spins off "The Amanda Show" which spins off "Drake and Josh" which spins off "iCarly". Not direct sequels, but drawing on the talents of cast members from previous shows. These aren't the only spins - the heirarchy grows to this day! That tall, skinny 13 year old Victoria Justice now has blossomed into a beautiful and talent young woman with her own show "Victorious" - and it is chock full of the most talented kids I have seen anywhere, a miniature "Glee" without objectionable story lines. And singers who sing as well as anybody on "Glee"!

I know I am gushing over with admiration for Mr. Schneider and leaving out other Nickelodeon and Disney producers who are producing amazingly good television. But my praise for Dan in particular is well placed, because he seems to be the best of the best. Besides, anybody who collects old radios like I do can't be all bad! You can catch him right here on Blogspot at "Danwarp". And his wife - "Hungry Girl" Lisa Lillien has some really yummy recipes and endorses some good products (as I eat Fiber one yogurt with her cartoon personna printed on it). I've often thought - what a great couple, she promotes things good for the body, he produces things good for the soul.

Television is in good hands. Young Hollywood is bursting onto the scene - you better be ready to enjoy a new era of quality entertainment!