The next five feature gay Indians, gay Sailors, gay Policemen, gay Construction Workers, and finally just leather-wearing gays.

It takes a village....

And with the production schedule, a director can only make so much difference, so why bother? (I mean, I believe it would improve the final product, but I'm not sure it would improve it enough to justify the additional expense.) I think it's also true that the auteur theory hasn't permeated TV culture the way it has movie culture.

Interesting topic. One of the things I long noted with The X-Files was how different directors (like Kim Manners) had different personalities with the camera. The plots and dialogue were writer-specific, but one director tended to do vertiginous overhead shots; another liked to put the camera down on the floor staring up at the actors; somebody else was very into the rainbow arcs that happen when you point the camera directly at a light source. It's not auteur theory, but, I guess the little touches are all you can swing on an 8-day shooting schedule.

Thanks for all the Birthday wishes. And good wishes to all in return.

The Pentagon is planning a $300 million dollar pro-US PR campaign.

[link]

This is so pathetic, what's next celebrity endorsements?

I'm not actually planning on working the amount of overtime they've specified, by the way. I think I'm coming down with something, I have another doctor's appointment, my car needs an oil change, and I need to finish a story.

::cough::hypertension::cough::workstress::cough::

This is so pathetic, what's next celebrity endorsements?

Product placement in movies?

The Pentagon is planning a $300 million dollar pro-US PR campaign.

CJR Daily pointed out that that's something like 2.5 times the annual budget for a whole newspaper's newsgathering. For, like, all the news, even the bad stuff and the boring stuff. Each piece of linotype must be cast in platinum.

(I know they don't actually use linotype any more.)

Maybe they need that kind of money to sponsor a Superbowl commercial.

Product placement in movies?

They've done that for years. Basically, if the script is high profile enough and makes them look right they'll hook you up but good with all sorts of fun planes and stuff.

Hence the not working too much and going to the doctor, Teppy.

Maybe they could do a commercial where people off the street choose a country in a blindfolded test between the USA (represented by a card with a cool looking eagle flying over a rippling US flag and a boldedly printed U.S.A.), Country X (represented by a card with a big X over a red maple leaf), and Country Y (represented by a card with a big Y between a big vertical blue stripe and a big vertical red stripe).