SNL: Tina Fey Sarah Palin impression kicks off latest episode

I think it would have fun to be with Tina Fey last week when she learned Sarah Palin was endorsing Donald Trump for president.

I imagine Tina said, 'Oh no she didn't!' Stopped what she was doing and headed directly for the SNL studio to prepare her latest Palin impression ... on an otherwise OK episode.

And last night, we were treated to this latest gem.

Tina Fey Takes on Sarah Palin One More Time

Tina Fey recently took on Sarah Palin one more time for "Inside the Actors Studio."

... And she's still got it.

Palin Gag? Comedy's All in the Mis-Timing

So David Letterman apologized last night for his Palin joke.

If you ask me, the joke has been blown out of proportion ...

Late night television. Monologue bashing political personalities. David Letterman. Sarah Palin.

Enough said.

Here's another good read: An open letter to David Letterman, re: Sarah Palin

Update, 06.17.2009:
Some more good stuff ...
a Here's another: Letterman Gets the Last 10 Laughs
a Letterman comes out joking about Sarah Palin and the 'Fire Dave' rally
a David Letterman: 11 Classic Moments

Sunday reading

Some of the reads that caught my attention during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a Dawson, Smith getting a raw deal
a Deal Or No Deal
a Whatever Yankees Want ... Great editorial from The New York Times.
a Willie, Bloomquist and the Dunn

The "Miracle in the Hudson" ... You can't deny this was the most fascinating story of the week, perhaps even the year. The pilot even has a Facebook page with hundreds of thousands of fans and counting ...
a After Splash, Nerves, Heroics and Comedy
a As Jet Was Ditched, Nearby Ferries Went Into Rescue Mode
a Pilot who ditched jet safely in Hudson River flew fighter planes for Air Force

Politics ...
a In the Beginning ... A good take on the inaugural oath.
a Donor fatigue setting in for some Obama supporters ... Amen.
a The Long, Lame Goodbye
a Exit Bush, Shoes Flying
a Why We Have to Look Back
a 10 Take Aways From the Bush Years
a Palin is getting in her own way

Media & the Internet ...
a At First, Funny Videos. Now, a Reference Tool
a Can CNN, the Go-to Site, Get You to Stay?
a CBS Pumps Up TV.com to Create a Destination

TV ...
a O'Brien, Fallon see late-night challenges ahead

Technology ...
a Can Apple Fill the Void?

And finally, my favorite photo of the week.

Sunday reading

We got more snow this weekend ...

At least a foot, I'd say, which is a few inches more than the meteorologist I talked to Friday night said we were going to get ... At the pace it was falling yesterday, it took me almost three hours to clean our driveway and sidewalks, and then shovel the driveway again when the plow came by and stuffed it closed. The piles of snow in some places are literally up to my eyeballs ...

Phoebe appears to be feeling much better. It's no wonder; she also appears to have handed off her cough and cold to Kates and I ...

Which is perfect considering it's supposed to get really cold this week ...

Some of the reads that caught my eyes recently ...

Sports ...
a Old guard squeezed in new market ... A new era is definitely taking hold ...
a A Really Big Deal ... You can't blame a guy for wanting to play for the Yankees. But the money involved here is just sick.
a Apples for a Nickel, and Plenty of Empty Seats
a Pursuit of glory is turning gory

Politics ...
a 'Virtual JFK: Vietnam if Kennedy Had Lived' -- archival bits and pieces forge a fantasy history
a The perils and joys of self-esteem ... From Garrison Keillor
a Palin Pummels the Press
a Sweet on Caroline
a Caroline Kennedy Is No Sarah Palin
a Let Roland Burris have the Senate seat and move on, already!

Media & the Internet ...
a Can America’s paper of record survive the death of newsprint? Can journalism? ... Ugh.
a For newspapers, time's the enemy
a Sunnier Times in New Mainstream Media ... Say what you want about Jay Mariotti, but his debut column for AOL brings up some great points ... Phil Rosenthal has more here.
a For BlackBerry, Obama’s Devotion Is Priceless
a Former Tribune photog gets White House post
a On the Net: 'Tis the season for year-end lists

TV ...
a Paving the way to 'Sesame Street' ... Who doesn't love "Sesame Street."

Music ...
a Katy Perry fills music’s quirky girl void

The Onion ...
a Terror Experts Warn Next 9/11 Could Fall On Different Date

Life & other stuff ...
a Ford's Theatre to Curtail Display of Lincoln Coat
a The Next Next Things ... Some pretty cool stuff to look forward to.
a Milky Way not such a lightweight; new study suggests it's 50 percent more massive than thought

Today's the day

Just another Tuesday, right? …

Out of bed at 6:12 a.m, though really I was awake about 30 minutes earlier because Kates didn’t shut off her alarm when she got out of bed. Put on my sweats. Give Phoebe her bottle while I watch last night’s Letterman on the DVR (He had some great lines in his monologue last night -- A lot of people are saying the weather is going to play a huge part in the election; for John McCain to win hell has to freeze over. And yesterday McCain campaigned in two states -- panic and desperation.)

The morning continues with trying to get Phoebe to eat her cereal, which is always a laborious and messy process in the morning. I have to find time to eat my own breakfast while Phoebe plays. Change her diaper. Dress her. Dance with her (This morning we did have a good time dancing to “Sloop John B.”) And if things go smoothly and I catch a little luck, we’re out of the house by 8:15 and driving to the daycare.

Ah, but today is not just another Tuesday.

Today is Election Day. I got to vote this morning. And it feels so good to say that.

I arrived at our polling place at 8:36 a.m., and I was back in the car barely 10 minutes later. I was voter No. 168 at our place… No lines. No fuss.

Sure, I could’ve voted early, as the campaigns and municipalities were plugging so heavily this year, out of fear for long lines and chaos on this day … But there’s something important to me about actually voting on Election Day. I suppose I’m a little superstitious, too, and couldn’t erase my lingering thoughts of something happening to my ballot if I cast it early.

I knew I was right as I began walking toward the polling place this morning. I couldn’t keep the smile from leaking out of my mouth, knowing the history we’re making today. The smile came out again as I received my ballot, again as I began marking it, and again as I left the poll.

On top of that, our polling place is a historic, picturesque beach house in town. It couldn’t have been prettier this morning -- a sunny fall morning on which the forecast is predicting record high temperatures. The leaves were bright orange and yellow. Lake Michigan was shimmering gold.

I arrived home in time to see “Today” showing Barack Obama voting in Chicago … What a moment, watching his smiling daughters at his side and the senator taking his time completing his ballot, and then the applause and cheers as he submitted his ballot … In the next moment, the network switched to Joe Biden casting his ballot in Delaware. I got a good chuckle when Matt Lauer pointed out nothing in a campaign goes unplanned and how well Biden timed his walk to the poll, just after the network had broadcast Obama casting his vote.

For now, I’ll go about the rest of my day, catching up on some house chores while keeping a close eye on the television coverage …

And then later this afternoon, I’ll go into the office and I’ll be in the thick of it all night long. Oh, what a night …

If Barack Obama doesn’t win this election, I think our office may implode …

* * *

I took a walk down memory lane over the weekend as I read an amusing story reviewing the long campaign odyssey.

It has been quite a ride, after all … Quite honestly, I’ve never ever doubted Barack Obama would be at this point, even while the media initially had Hillary written down as the Democratic nominee and even as we supported her in our state's primary ...

I’ll remember the day Kates and I -- on my deathbed -- watched live as Barack Obama announced his candidacy …

I’ll remember our excitement over the possibility of the Chicago Olympics in 2016 and the remark my colleague Joe made …

I’ll remember the day we got to see Hillary Clinton make a campaign stop in town …

I’ll remember the electricity of watching the Democratic National Convention in Denver … With Michelle Obama leaving no doubts she was a proud American. Hillary touting Obama, saying “No way, no McCain.” Getting to know Joe Biden and hearing his pledge to get back to having the conversations middle-class Americans are having at their tables about affording jobs, mortgages, healthcare and college tuitions. And Barack Obama accepting the nomination in front of 84,000 people crammed into Mile High Stadium, with fireworks exploding high in the sky …

I’ll remember watching the Republicans turn at their convention, mostly out of curiosity. George Bush speaking -- awkwardly -- from the White House, having excused himself from the convention to monitor Hurricane Gustav. Joe Lieberman crossing the aisle. And being somewhat intrigued by Sarah Palin’s defining speech, getting no clue of the circus that would follow her …

I’ll remember eagerly watching the debates …

I’ll remember eagerly watching Saturday Night Live, and the pop culture phenomenon their political sketches created …

I’ll remember the constant dispatch of political e-mails and text messages and Facebook notifications from the Obama campaign, and how Obama and young voters got the vote out with the Internet and technology like never before.

I’ll remember the significance of this election. John McCain could be the oldest President. Barack Obama could be the first black President. Sarah Palin could be the first female Vice President. Neither Obama or McCain were born in the 48 continental states. The next President will be the first senator elected since John Kennedy. The early voting and the predictions for record voter turnout.

And I’ll remember the palpable electricity and hope for change resting on this day.

Good reads ...
a TV news: Cautiously gung-ho
a Failure Is an Option ...
a Madam President: Will She Ever Get There?
a Obama's Nation
a The ’08 Campaign: Sea Change for Politics as We Know It

Palin pranked

In case you missed this from over the weekend ...

Sunday reading

Some of the reading material that caught my attention during the last week ...

Sports...
a Once the Star, Now the Stand-In
a Five Cuts: The Phillies followed the modern era success formula ... I especially like/agree with Reason No. 2.
a Santo's act made for TV move ... Whaaaaaaa? Though it may not happen now after the Brewers announced this week Bob Brenly wasn't their man.
a After a Steep Fall, Leyritz Tries to Rebuild Life
a Pierce now belongs with the greatest

Entertainment ...
a Banks swings into stardom with 'W.,' 'Zack and Miri' ... I really like watching Elizabeth Banks
a King of the Slackers: It's a Full-Time Job ... A good read about Banks' "Zack and Miri"co-star, Seth Rogan. Man I wish I had extra time -- and money -- to see a movie in the theater ...
a Late-night laughs capture the online vote
a For Tracy Morgan, Every Day Is a Show
a David Archuleta's liner notes break the word count bank

Media & the Internet ...
a Christian Science Monitor: A paper without paper is still a paper ... It was the click made in newsrooms around the world this week when we learned CSM is going paperless.
a Meet Russert’s Replacement? Not Yet

Politics ...
a The next new chant: 'No we can't' ... A ha-larious, satirical scene that could play out in January. This one had me laughing out loud.
a Obama uses his TV time well
a Obama Is Up, and Fans Fear That Jinxes It
a Windy City whirlwind?
a Who’s the Question Mark? ... "Ever since Steve Schmidt became Mr. McCain’s campaign manager, the candidate has become a question mark."
a Paul Simon planted seeds of Obama surge
a Al Franken may face his toughest crowd in race for U.S. Senate
a What I Will Miss About President Bush ... Six writers reflect on what they have most admired about him.
a Northern Star Rising ... Sarah Palin's not going away.
a Palin's prank call from fake French president

Life & other stuff ...
a Mattel is now worth more than GM. Got an old Beach Bomb VW model in the attic? You're rich!

The vet who did not vet

Sunday reading

A collection of good reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a Cubs against Rays: The Series to die for ... A fantasy of what could have been. Great stuff that had me laughing out loud.
a Building the Rays
a Moyer a pitcher for the ages
a An Energetic Presence on Hand for Every Phillies Pennant
a Demolition Takes Shea Stadium Piece by Piece
a If Brenly leaves Cubs' booth, intrigue will follow ... I'll really miss Bob if he leaves the Cubs' booth, but if the Brewers hire him I'll stand up and clap. After the reports that came out of New York, I'll take anyone over Willie Randolph to manage the Brewers.
a After his grating escape to Los Angeles, Ramirez will strike it rich again

TV ...
a Pamela Fryman is the set mom on 'How I Met Your Mother'
a How 'SNL' Got Sarah Palin
a After playin' Palin, Tina Fey returns in '30 Rock'
a Fall season fails to capture viewers so far ... Kates and I didn't have any interest in watching any of the new shows this season -- except for "Worst Week," which was getting high praise coming in. But after watching Sam fumble beyond belief each week, it got unbearable after a couple weeks.
a 'Heroes': Five Ways to Fix a Series In Crisis ... I don't think "Heroes" is as bad this season as some of the critics have been saying. But I could get on board with several of these suggestions ...

Music ...
a Radiohead's 'In Rainbows' experiment pays off with 3 million sales ... It's a great album.
a Music site to sell songs for a dime

Politics ...
a Barack Obama for President ... From The New York Times.
a Many reasons still for Obama to worry, and McCain to hope ... It's not over until it's over.
a It's Time to Retire the Shuttle
a Perfect role for Palin: Good sport ... A reaction that pretty well sums it up about Palin's appearance on last weekend's SNL.
a $150,000 Wardrobe for Palin May Alter Tailor-Made Image
a Look Is the Same; the Labels Have Changed
a Campaign curtains closing, and I don't want to leave
a The aura of Mr. Smooth
a Obama, McCain cried when...
a Confessions of a Phone Solicitor ... This is a great read on multiple levels. It's amusing -- and quite funny to me -- the lengths the McCain campaign and its supporters are going to try tarnishing Obama. ... And few things test my patience more than telemarketers.
a I needed to know: can Obama pick a fantasy team? So I asked him ... This is a fun read from my friend Tom.
a The vast left-wing fantasy ... An editorial setting the record straight on ACORN.

Media & the Internet ...
a Safety in Numbers? Poll-Driven Press Goes Out on a Limb
a How the board came to endorse Obama
a Popularity or Income? Two Sites Fight It Out
a Campbell Brown's CNN Role: A Matter Of Opinion
a YouTube tosses 10-minute limit to show full TV episodes
a Facebook in a Crowd ... An excellent perspective about the fake-ness lurking on Facebook.

Life & other stuff ...
a As Yard Sales Boom, Sentiment First Thing to Go
a The incredible, flexible, movable house

Wee ball

OK. I got comfortable on the couch and fell asleep for most of tonight’s Game 3 -- which, after a lengthy rain delay, didn’t start until almost 9:30 …

But I awoke for the best part -- if you discount Ryan Howard’s breakthough home run and 45-year-old Jamie Moyer’s pitching performance …

The thrilling ninth-inning ... Eric Bruntlett gets on in the bottom of the ninth when he’s hit by a pitch … Then Shane Victorino comes up prepared to bunt, but Rays pitcher Grant Balfour throws wildly at his ankles, the ball gets by the catcher Dioner Navarro and Bruntlett takes off for second base. The ball bounces off the backstop to Navarro and it looks like he could have a play on Bruntlett, but Navarro throws wildly, the ball skips past second base and Bruntlett trots safely to third base …

Now the Rays walk Victorino and another batter to load the bases … Oh, and they call in their right fielder Ben Zobrist to play defense as a fifth infielder. Can’t say I’ve seen that before.

Still with no outs Carlos Ruiz, comes to the plate … and hits a squibber down the third base line. Evan Longoria charged it and tried to bare hand it, but his underhand throw goes way over Navarro’s head. Bruntlett scores easily.


Phillies win Game 3 in the bottom of the ninth as the clock is about to strike 2 a.m. in the east …

Now I can’t fall back asleep.

I’m watching MadTV … They just showed this ha-larious skit with John McCain trying to learn how to use a computer … I wonder if it would be as funny if it wasn’t 1 in the morning ...



This Palin spoof was pretty good too ...

Thursday's Saturday Night Live on Friday

... Kates and I are cleaning off our DVR, and we just watched last night's Thursday night edition of SNL ...

Need I say more?

The opening sketch was wonderfully entertaining. I've so missed Will Ferrell as George Bush ... And seeing Tina Fey, Darrell Hammond and Ferrell playing together -- priceless.



And Fred Armisen's bit with the interactive map was ha-larious!

As seen on the Web

Some Web finds I've been meaning to share for a few weeks ...

First in the political spectrum ...

I came across this Sarah Palin flow chart after the vice presidential debate.

Then there's "Palin As President." I got wind of this one a couple weeks ago from a college buddy and it's becoming an instant classic. Very Short List pubbed the site earlier this week and also included a video of Palin "singing" a response to a question from Katie Couric ... Ha-larious!

And the Boston Globe wrote about this one that allows users to "help Sarah make sense."

* * *

Also compliments of Very Short List ...

Here's an amusing blog focused on "Cake Wrecks."

... And here's a fascinating photography site from a guy who took pictures of people driving their cars. So cool!

And this Web site allows you to read a book on your work computer. ... Pretty clever.

* * *

Finally, my friend Jocelyn posted this one over the weekend ... Too cute.

Political reads

Less than two weeks to Election Day, and oh, this is gettin' good ...

Here's some reads that couldn't wait for Sunday ...

a Sarah Palin's term for it: 'Tasergate'
a Sarah Palin is horror-fied in 'Tales from the Crypt'
a Palin charged state for children's travel, later amended expense reports

Sunday reading

Some of the good reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Sports ...
a Ramírez done as Dodger? ... Man, I hope not.
a Free agents-to-be raising their price tags with big postseasons
a Sports also paying a price amid struggling economy
a How much do you love football? So much you'd cut off a pinkie to play it? That's what Trevor Wikre did. ... Astonishing. My friend Tom sent me this one.
a Tony Womo Out Three To Four Weeks With Bwoken Widdle Fingey ... From The Onion.

Politics ...
a Powell endorses Obama, chides McCain campaign tone ... The news of the day.
a Sarah Palin stirs up controversy in the wink of an eye
a Leonard Pitts Jr.: It's sad, but Sarah Six-Pack is the real thing ... I remember "Dave." Great movie.
a Pentagon divided over John McCain
a Johnston speaks about Bristol Palin, Obama, baby ... Not that it's any of our business. But if he's doing interviews about it, I'm going to read it.
a Working for the Working- Class Vote ... This is an interesting one from The Times about what Obama calls his "biggest boneheaded move."
a Behind McCain, Outsider in Capital Wanting Back In ... an interesting perspective of Cindy McCain.
a He Just Can’t Quit W
a Bush Calls For Panic ... From The Onion.
a Poll: 85% Of Americans Would Like To See Candidates Compete In Funny Obstacle Course ... Also from The Onion.

Joe the Plumber ...
a Three Guys and a Table ... I didn't watch this week's debate. I couldn't take any more of it, but reading and seeing the media storm over Joe The Plumber has been quite amusing.
a Joe the Plumber: Not a Licensed Plumber
a Joe the plumber's story has some cracks
a Debate darling 'Joe the Plumber' not a licensed plumber, owes back taxes
a If `Joe the Plumber' is like my plumber, he can go pound sand

Media & the Internet ...
a Rolling Stone ends large format after 4 decades
a Parker Says Sarah Palin Isn't Ready ... More from her column a couple weeks ago
a Mainstream media look for love in fresh faces Palin and Obama ... More from Kathleen Parker.

TV ...
a For NBC Pages, ‘Please Follow Me’ Is a Fervent Wish

Life & other stuff ...
a Suit against God tossed over lack of address ... From my friend Raechel.

And finally ... my eyes caught this AP photo this week from the Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany. So dazzling, I had to share it ...

Saturday Night Live ... sort of

Keeping with our routine of watching Saturday Night Live on Sunday afternoons ...

And our yearning to see what Tina Fey and the SNL crew will come up with this week ...

This week, the real Sarah Palin got her air time, and it was equally entertaining. She was a good sport about it.

In the opening sketch ... The use of Tina Fey's "30 Rock" co-star Alec Baldwin made the sketch ...("What?! The real one!? Bye-ee.")



And Weekend Update ...



Outside of Palin's appearances, the funniest sketch was Amy Poehler's bit as a pregnant woman being picked up by some men in a bar ... I'd post it, but I couldn't find a clip to post. Gosh, we're going to miss Amy.

Sunday reading

Some of the reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a Don Zimmer the ultimate common denominator
a Upstart Rays aim to keep surprises coming in playoffs
a Francona sets standard for managers
a Cardinal O'Malley is no Fenway regular. But he keeps tabs on Boston's secular faith
a Architect of Phillies, Gillick Will Listen to Anyone’s Plans
a When Philadelphia Was a Winner
a Series of changes in last 40 years
a Manny In La La Land
a Financial crisis will slow Cubs sale
a A look back on a Chicago baseball season gone bad

Football ...
a The Brett Favre Backup Club

Media & the internet ...
a Tina Brown jumps off page and onto the Web
a Couric Rebounds With Web and Palin ... I'm not yet a fan of her newscast, but her YouTube stuff has been catching my eyes.
a Katie Couric In The News For All The Right Reasons: Her Work
a Turn and Face the Change -- With Newspaper Industry in Crisis, 'Everything's on the Table'
a Social networking sites help companies boost productivity
a Seeking Broader Reach for Social Web Sites
a Check out my Twitter ... I'm telling you, forget newsprint -- it's all in social networking, blogs and newsfeeds, people.
a Newspapers’ Web Revenue Is Stalling ... Ugh.

TV ...
a Brea Grant gets off and running as latest 'Heroes' villain

Politics ...
a The destructive policies of President Bush
a In Wisconsin, a tilt toward Obama
a Historians ponder Lincoln's legacy, lessons we can learn
a He Told Us to Go Shopping. Now the Bill Is Due.
a Postponing the election: It's a joke, or is it?
a A frustrated Esquire endorses Obama
a Obama vs. McCain: Scripted and improv
a Worst of times
a When the gloves and lipstick are on

Life & other stuff ...
a What makes Boston in a league of its own

Palin wants to spoof her spoofer

Well, now this is interesting ...

Sunday Afternoon (not so) Live

... With the baseball and other things filling our Saturday nights lately, Kates and I are making a habit of watching our recordings of Saturday Night Live on Sunday afternoon. We almost don't have a choice -- if we watch it any later, we're bound to hear all about it at the water coolers Monday morning ...

Thanks to Tina Fey, whose Sarah Palin impressions are becoming the stuff of legend ...

Last night she made her third -- third! -- appearance on SNL as Sarah, this time in a debate spoof with Jason Sudeikas, who played a pretty decent Joe Biden himself ... And Queen Latifah was called in to play Gwen Ifill! Genius!

Check it out ...



As usual the Tina-Fey-as-Sarah-Palin sketch drew the opening slot ... But for the first time this season, it was worth staying tuned to watch the rest of the show. With Anne Hathaway hosting, it showed what's possible when the SNL crew has some decent talent to work with ...

I especially liked the Mary Poppins bit. Ha-larious ...

Sunday reading

... Some of the reading that caught my attention during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a After Yankees' 'insult,' Torre in a golden state with Dodgers
a Hey, Chicago, whaddaya say, let's fix 'Go Cubs Go' today ... I'm not totally agreeing, but he raises some good points.
a Fan embraces spud as chance to break curse
a Did the Cubs ever have a live mascot?

Politics ...
a The 3 A.M. Call
a Speak correctly, or build a big bunker ... Kathleen Parker's follow-up to her column last week.
a Who's to blame for the bailout's defeat?
a Palin picture packs 'em in
a If Obama wins presidency, then what?
a Lobbyist Hired by Freddie Mac to Work on McCain Is Now Senator's Aide
a Pitbull Palin Mauls McCain ... "2008 election is now an Obama-Palin race about 'the future,' and the only person who doesn’t seem to know it is Mr. Past, poor old John McCain."
a Bring on Tina Fey
a Report: 60 Million People You'd Never Talk To Voting For Other Guy ... From The Onion. I like the way the story is written without ever mentioning "the other guy."

Media ...
a With Brokaw as Elder Statesman, NBC Plans Future of ‘Meet the Press’
a Death of a Lively Newspaper

Entertainment ...
a Pitch-perfect take on a '60s oddity
a Jackson Browne is still running, but hardly on empty
a 'I'm pretty sane about my insanity': Carrie Fisher shares painful and funny stories about her stardom
a The movie before the movie ... Love the opening sequence in "Juno." The opening credits of "Catch Me If You Can" is a good sequence too.
a A Cappella Dreaming: 10 Voices, One Shot ... In case you missed it, this is the one that started it.

Travel ...
a D.C.'s Union Station celebrates 100 years of train travel