I Know Your Body Talk
Quite a double header setting up today in the Twin Cities. The opening act is at noon, the Twins take on the Yankees in game 3 of the American League Division Series. Kyle Lohse on the hill for the local nine, attempting to send Roger Clemens into retirement and the hall of fame with a big, fat "L" slapped on his final effort.
Then at 6:00 PM the main event. The opportunity for all of us to see perhaps the beginning of a hall of fame broadcasting career. Or maybe an opportunity to witness another big fat "L" slapped on a deserving recipient. That's right, tonight on MSNBC, the premiere episode of Jesse Ventura's America.
Perhaps I'm being too hard on him, but I don't remember Edward R. Murrow ever uttering the following when promoting his broadcasts:
Ventura left the studios [Friday] about an hour after taping concluded and refused to discuss the show or his performance. "You don't eat where you go to the can. You know what I'm talking about?"
No, I don't. Could you maybe dumb it down for me?
Actually, I do know what he's talking about. But only because I, and all other Minnesotans, were subjected to his press conferences and public appearance during the course of his 4 years in office as Governor. MSNBC is trying to promote his show as something new and innovative for TV. But for Minnesotans, it looks like it's going to be a painfully familiar rerun, as evidenced by the comments of those in attendance at one of Jesse's many rehearsal broadcasts:
...he's probably one of the most thin-skinned people I've ever met," [Vince] Flynn said. "It's amazing that he's that smart, he's that athletic and he's so easily offended."
One woman who was part of the audience for two recent test shows said that Ventura wasn't interested in give-and-take exchanges and that he spent a considerable amount of time reminding people that he was once governor and a Navy SEAL.
That describes the tone and substance of every political debate Ventura engaged in, particularly toward the end of his term. Tax cuts? Education spending? Mass transit? Budget deficits? Didn't matter, it always ended with Ventura getting offended and reminding people he was once a Navy SEAL.
But it does appear that the learning curve of television executives is steeper than the Minnesota electorate. Even before his first broadcast, the president of MSNBC, Erik Sorenson, has come to a conclusion that it took many here years to realize:
"After a long, arduous process, we kind of looked at each other and said, 'What are we doing?' .... It's slightly embarrassing."
Speaking of which, the guests on tonight's program are Gray Davis and Ariana Huffington. Over-under on Ventura mentioning he was in the movie 'Predator' with Arnold Schwarzenegger: 45 seconds.
According to the Star Tribune, other highlights of tonight's show (which was taped on Friday) include:
...there were a few technical glitches in satellite transmissions during a segment with California Gov. Gray Davis but that Ventura handled the problem and was able to ad lib well. [Ventura spokesman John] Wodele predicted that the interview with Davis and Ventura's questioning about the California recall election will make news this weekend.
Is that a little teaser that perhaps Jesse is going to reveal Arnold grabbed his ass during the 'Running Man' shoot? Tune in at 6:00 (Central) and find out.
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