Creed Bratton's song and a wrap-up of "The Office" finale

If there was one network sitcom that defined the past decade or so, for me it was "The Office". I don't know that I ever missed an episode of the uncomfortable at times workplace comedy on NBC. As far as cultural relevance of the series, it ushered in an acceptability of laughtrack-free and single camera sitcoms. It was a series whose comedy made you think. No longer were you pushed by recorded laughter to laugh at moments whom producers deemed laugh-worthy. Its brand of comedy was subtle at times and over-the-top zany at others. It felt like "The Office" could have actually been filmed in a mundane American workplace because much of the dialog and antics taking place during the show simply felt real.

The characters, too, from "The Office" felt genuine. They had layers just like real people do. Dwight Schrute was a bizarre man who was genuinely good at his job and, as the finale last night showed, he was the best manager that Dunder-Mifflin could have ever hoped for.

Pam Beesley was the receptionist-come-sales rep with a heart of gold. Her goals in life were simple and it seemed that she lived them out on the screen. She found the love of her life in co-worker Jim Halpert after one of the longest but most heartfelt courtships ever played out on television.

Andy Bernard, who joined the series in the third season, was the inept and awkward office worker who was simply searching for approval. He was never good enough for his father and he was a flat-out terrible manager of Dunder-Mifflin's Scranton, PA branch once that title was bestowed upon him. It seems that only after he burned his bridges to live out his dream and even fail at that did he truly find himself and find that approval, in former warehouse worker Darryl of all people, and find his way in life.

But "The Office" was about an expansive cast of supporting characters as well. Kevin, Oscar, Phyllis, Angela, Erin, Ryan, Stanley, Kelly and, of course, Creed, who managed to accent of even steal every scene.

It was only fitting, then, that Creed Bratton played a pivotal part in the emotional song-filled sendoff at the Dunder-Mifflin offices. Playing on his real singer/songwriter past as a member of 1960s group 'The Grass Roots', he played a song during what could possibly be the best moments of the entire finale episode of NBC's "The Office".



While "The Office" has officially ridden off into the sunset and ended its run as NBC's highest-rated sitcom of the moment, "The Office" is one of the few sitcoms which will stand the test of time, in my opinion at least, because it was groundbreaking. It re-invented comedies on television and it had a hell of a run even if it did have plenty of hills and valleys in its nine seasons. One thing is for sure, it will be missed.

This is why family and friends are important

I bill myself as a bit of a hermit at times. Just like everyone else, I enjoy some solitude. Whether that means toiling away in silence in my ever-expanding garden or simply going for a run, I like to get away. But int he end I always return to life. I have great friends, a great family and tons of work acquaintances with whom I interact with, converse and joke with every day.

It really dawned on me last night as I spoke with my mom on the phone about a cousin of her's who had died in a car accident late last week. The sheriff of the Iowa county he lived in had contacted my mom from a Christmas card (obviously tucked away in the envelope it was sent in) his department found after his death. My mom's cousin had one lone friend who he had coffee with every day. He was a bachelor whose parents had passed many years ago. His only sister died when she was a mere twenty years old. He had no living aunts or uncles, only a scattering of cousins who obviously lived far away and only kept in touch infrequently. That's where my mom comes in to play.

Outside of a neighbor of my mom's cousin who was leasing his farm, the sheriff's department had literally no paper trail of who to contact following his death. If my mom, ever the greeting card purchaser, hadn't sent Christmas cards to each and every one of her close, distant and very distant relations which my parents have tracked down in the past two-plus decades, this cousin of her's may not have even had one single relative attend his funeral -- not to mention the planning of it.

Her cousin, apparently a great planner at least, had more than enough money saved away which will pay for his funeral and burial or cremation. According to my mom, it's an admittedly odd role to be playing for someone whom she has only met once or twice but even with the objections of her brother, she is doing what she knows is right for a man she barely knew who had nobody else.

As I age, I hope to be at least half as selfless as my mom is. Both of my parents are kind givers who are always to help at the drop of a hat. This latest effort of helping leaves them driving half-way through Iowa, likely twice, from their southern Minnesota farm during what is already a late planting season to help what many would consider to be a stranger just to give this man a dignified send-off. That makes them heroes in my book.

If there is a lesson to be learned here it's to keep your family and friends close because you never know what kind of unimaginable events could come your way and that network will always be have someone in it who is willing to help.

CBS FALL 2013-2014 SCHEDULE

The last of the big four networks, CBS, has announced their fall 2013-2014 schedule. Surprisingly, there a decent number of changes to their strong-performing schedule. Gone from Mondays is 'Hawaii 5-0' which finds a new home on Friday. Missing, too, from Monday and being held as a replacement series is 'Mike and Molly'. Thursdays best performing drama, 'Person of Interest' on CBS finds a new home in the troubled 10 PM ET Tuesday slot. Wednesday remains unchanged while Thursday sees an expanded two-hour comedy block with two new sitcoms -- 'The Millers' starring Will Arnett and 'The Crazy Ones' -- which will likely crush any momentum NBC has with their mostly new Thursday line-up. Friday's one change was mentioned earlier with the relocation of 'Hawaii 5-0' while Saturday and Sunday remain unchanged. This is the type of schedule that will make CBS the number one network again for 2013-2014.

CBS FALL 2013-2014 SCHEDULE
(New programs in UPPER CASE; NT=New Time)

MONDAY
8-8:30 PM – How I Met Your Mother
8:30-9 PM – WE ARE MEN
9-9:30 PM – 2 Broke Girls
9:30-10 PM – MOM
10-11 PM – HOSTAGES / INTELLIGENCE (Midseason)

TUESDAY
8-9 PM – NCIS
9-10 PM – NCIS: Los Angeles
10-11 PM – Person Of Interest (NT)

WEDNESDAY
8-9 PM – Survivor
9-10 PM – Criminal Minds
10-11 – CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

THURSDAY
8-8:30 PM – The Big Bang Theory
8:30-9 PM – THE MILLERS
9-9:30 PM – THE CRAZY ONES
9:30-10 PM – Two And A Half Men (NT)
10-11 PM – Elementary

FRIDAY
8-9 PM – Undercover Boss
9-10 PM – Hawaii Five-0 (NT)
10-11 PM – Blue Bloods

SATURDAY
8-8:30 PM – COMEDYTIME SATURDAY
8:30-9 PM – COMEDYTIME SATURDAY
9-10 PM – Crimetime Saturday
10-11 PM – 48 Hours
 
SUNDAY
7-8 PM – 60 Minutes
8-9 PM – The Amazing Race
9-10 PM – The Good Wife
10-11 PM – The Mentalist

ABC FALL 2013-2014 SCHEDULE

ABC is truly taking some chances for the 2013-2014 television season. America's third-ranked network is finally dialing back 'Dancing With The Stars' to one night thus freeing up Tuesday night which the network will aim to rebuild with an entirely new slate of shows including two dramas and two comedies.

Two big showcases for ABC are the Rebel Wilson-starring 'Super Fun Night' getting the post-'Modern Family' slot on Wednesdays and the 'Once Upon a Time' spinoff 'Once Upon A Time in Wonderland' landing in the rather troubled 8 PM (ET) Thursday night slot leading in to 'Grey's Anatomy'.

ABC is also talking about two half-seasons for some of their dramas (12 episodes in the fall, 12 in the early spring) with limited-run series bridging the gap. Absent from the line-up (and likely held back as a replacement) is sitcom 'Suburgatory'. ABC is also holding on to a whole host of rookie dramas and comedies for midseason debuts or replacements as new series surely end in cancellation.

ABC FALL 2013-2014 SCHEDULE
(New programs in UPPER CASE; all times ET/PT)

MONDAY
8 PM – Dancing With The Stars
10 PM – Castle

TUESDAY
8 PM – MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.
9 PM – THE GOLDBERGS
9:30 PM – TROPHY WIFE
10 PM – LUCKY 7

WEDNESDAY
8 PM – The Middle
8:30 PM – BACK IN THE GAME
9 PM – Modern Family
9:30 PM – SUPER FUN NIGHT
10 PM – Nashville

THURSDAY
8 PM – ONCE UPON A TIME IN WONDERLAND
9 PM – Grey’s Anatomy
10 PM – Scandal

FRIDAY
8 PM – Last Man Standing
8:30 PM – The Neighbors
9 PM – Shark Tank
10 PM – 20/20

SATURDAY
8 PM – Saturday Night College Football
SUNDAY
7 PM – America’s Funniest Home Videos
8 PM – Once Upon A Time
9 PM – Revenge
10 PM – BETRAYAL

FOX 2013-2014 fall new series TV previews

Almost Human — Drama

Produced by Bonanza Productions in association with Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television. From writer/executive producer JH Wyman, executive producers JJ Abrams and Bryan Burk, co-executive producer/director Brad Anderson and co-executive producers Kathy Lingg and Reid Shane:
Brooklyn Nine-Nine — Comedy Produced by Universal Television and 3 Arts Entertainment. From writers/executive producers Dan Goor and Michael Schur and executive producer David Miner: Dads — Comedy Produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Fuzzy Door Productions. From writers/executive producers Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild and executive producer Seth MacFarlane:  Enlisted — Comedy Produced by 20th Century Fox Television. From writer/executive producer Kevin Biegel and executive producer Mike Royce:   Rake — Drama Produced by Fedora Entertainment and Essential Media & Entertainment in association with Sony Pictures Television. From writer/executive producer Peter Duncan, executive producers Peter Tolan, Michael Wimer, Richard Roxburgh and Ian Collie, director/executive producer Sam Raimi and co-executive producers Gret Kinnear and Leslie Tolan:   Sleepy Hollow — Drama Produced by K/O Paper Products in association with 20th Century Fox Television. From writers/executive producers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, director/executive producer Len Wiseman, writer/supervising producer Phillip Iscove and executive producer Heather Kadin:  Us & Them — Comedy Produced by Sony Pictures Television, BBC Worldwide Productions and Baby Cow Productions. From writer/executive producer David J. Rosen and executive producers Jane Tranter, Julie Gardner, James Corden, Ruth Jones, Steve Coogan and Henry Normal: