Best Christmas Movies 10-8

10. National Lampoons Christmas Vacation- Although it is not in the same ballpark as its cousin, Vegas Vacation, Clark W. Griswold always does the trick. Clark talking to his cousin Eddie- “Can I refill your eggnog for you? Get you something to eat? Drive you out to the middle of nowhere and leave you for dead?” Eddie’s response- “Naw, I'm doing just fine, Clark.”


9. The Santa Clause- Santa Clause was a pioneer in the story of Santa. Tim Allen finds Santa dead in his front lawn after falling off the roof. Allen then has to become Santa due to the ‘Santa Clause.’ Although the kid sometimes comes close to ruining this movie, there are a lot of funny things about a guy turning fat before your very eyes. Add Judge Reinhold into the mix and it is a quality family film.

8. Scrooged- Here we have a modernization of the Christmas Carol story. Bill Murray is a rich jerk in a television programming executive position. When he gets the job to make a live broadcast of A Christmas Carol, his life begins to reflect the story. He is visited by the ghosts and all of the normal plot lines from the original story are involved. The bonus is that Murray is hilarious and much better than any Scrooge before or after him. This Christmas I’m giving all of my loved ones either a vhs home video recorder or a bath towel.

Best Christmas Movies 15-11

One of the best parts about the month of December leading up to Christmas is watching Christmas movies. I plan on watching most of these movies before December 25th. I'll admit that some of the top 5 will probably be watch on numerous occasions. My Top 15 Christmas movies are all movies that deal with the holiday season directly, so films like The Family Man, Love Actually and Trapped in Paradise were not considered.

15. Santa Who?- Santa Who? Is a made for TV movie starring Leslie Nielson as Santa Claus. He goes out for a sleigh ride and falls out of the sky, hitting his head, and getting amnesia. It is definitely worth a watch if only to listen to Leslie’s fantastic jolly laugh.


14. The Muppet Christmas Carol- The Henson version of A Christmas Carol is the same old story of Ebenezer Scrooge. The great Michael Caine plays Scrooge, while all of the muppets fill in with the other regular roles. Kermit is the obvious Bob Crachit and Gonzo narrates the movie as Charles Dickens himself.


13. Christmas Do-Over- This is another made for tv classic with Jay Mohr in the lead. It is the Christmas version of Groundhog Day, as Jay relives Christmas over and over again. There are a lot of the same effects as in the Bill Murray film, but obviously much worse. As in a lot of movies, the fact that this is poorly written and acted makes it a very fun watch for me.

12. It’s a Wonderful Life- This 1946 film will be in most people’s top five Christmas movies lists, but it doesn’t make the grade for me. Don’t get me wrong...it is a quality film, but if not for Jimmy Stewart’s fantastic voice, it might not make my top fifteen.


11. Mickey’s Christmas Carol- The Disney version of A Christmas Carol is a notch ahead of the Muppets probably because I watched it more as a kid (and for my Disney love). The story of Ebenezer Scrooge gets long and boring for me sometimes, so the 24 minute run-time is perfect in this short film. Mickey as Bob Crachit is another obvious choice, while Jiminy Cricket as the Ghost of Christmas Past is just fantastic casting.

Fantasy Survivor Week 10

1st (506)
Freecell Makes Me Wanna
Matty: 19
Sugar: 19
Total = 38









2nd (336)
Renaissance O & F Surgery
Corrine: 19
Susie: 7
Total = 26









3rd (315)
Rangers Stars Cowboys Mavericks
Ken: 35
Randy: -20
Total = 15









4th (301)
The Renegades
Bob: 19
Crystal: 19
Total = 38

Fantasy Survivor Week 9

1st (468)
Freecell Makes Me Wanna
Matty: 29
Charlie: -15
Sugar: 29
Total = 43








2nd (310)
Renaissance O & F Surgery
Corrine: 29
Susie: 40
Total = 69









3rd (300)
Rangers Stars Cowboys Mavericks
Ken: 24
Randy: 29
Total = 53









4th (263)
The Renegades
Bob: 24
Crystal: 8
Total = 32

Cooley at Disney

What do NFL players do during their bye weeks? Chris Cooley and Jason Campbell go to Disney World and hang out. It was Cooley's first trip to the parks and his favorite attraction was Soarin'. Good choice Chris.

Cooley's blog entry found here.

One Tree Hill

This post is long overdue, but I have finally caught all the way up with One Tree Hill. Over the past three months I have watched five full seasons, and the first nine episodes of season six.

Like any show with young-ish actors the first half of the first season is a bit of a small struggle, but well worth it. One Tree Hill has grabbed my heart and my stomach more than any show on television. The characters are great, the stories are also, and the use of music is fantastic. The antagonist, Dan Scott is so evil and yet so lovable, which only brings tremendously mixed emotions to many episodes. As a former basketball player, the running basketball theme of the show is a great added bonus. If you're currently a fan of Gossip Girl, and don't watch it solely for the comic relief of the outfits worn by Chuck and Blaire, you should do yourself a favor and watch One Tree Hill. When I sit and think about it, it is crazy that I now have a tough time deciding which is best teen drama of all time.

But of course, here are my rankings...
(gaps are used to show how much more I like each show)

1. Beverly Hills, 90210
2. One Tree Hill
.
3. The O.C.
.
4. Friday Night Lights
.
.
.
.
.
5. 90210 (with upside)
.
6. Greek
.
7. Gossip Girl

Potential to jump in once i watch...
1. Veronica Mars
2. Party of Five

TV Tops 11/8

Top Eps
1. The Office
2. One Tree Hill
3. 30 Rock
4. Entourage
5. Crusoe
6. Worst Week
7. Grey's Anatomy
8. Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles
9. Survivor
10. 90210

Top Performances
1. Jim Halpert- Office
2. Dwight Schrute- Office
3. James Lucas Scott- One Tree Hill (right)
4. Friday- Crusoe
5. Sam Briggs- Worst Week
6. Ari Gold- Entourage
7. Liz Lemon- 30 Rock
8. Nathan Scott- One Tree Hill
9. Robinson Crusoe- Crusoe
10. Megan Smith- Privileged

Fantasy Survivor Week 8

Another big move in this week's episode. After the tribes were rearranged for the second time, there were three Kotas and two Fangs on each squad. Kota lost the immunity challenge so they had to go to tribal council and send someone home. Marcus, Bob and Susie were the only members of Kota left. Crystal and Kenny were the Fang members joining Kota for the first time. With Marcus wanting to get rid of Kenny, he told Susie that was what they were going to do. Susie, being an outsider of Kota while she was there, made the good (or bad) move of going with Fang's Crystal and Kenny and voted out Marcus. No bonus points because she never had a deal, but a big move never the less.



1st (425)
Freecell Makes Me Wanna
Marcus: -12
Matty: 23
Charlie: 23
Sugar: 23
Total = 57







2nd (247)
Rangers Stars Cowboys Mavericks
Ken: 5
Randy: 23
Total = 28









3rd (241)
Renaissance O & F Surgery
Corrine: 23
Susie: 13
Total = 36









4th (231)
The Renegades
Bob: 13
Crystal: 13
Total = 26