Tag Archives: Bill Bixby

Captain America; Caps and Gowns; and a Night on the Town

10 May

Man, this has been an eventful weekend for our household. Instead of writing some long introductory paragraph, I will get right to the point.

On Friday, my stepdaughter learned that she made the volleyball team. She has worked hard on her skills, and everyone is proud of her effort. Then, it all paid off.

After she received a ton of congratulations, she and I ate went out on the town. We ate burritos and saw Avengers: Age of Ultron. Her mom wanted to go, but my stepdaughter was afraid that she would ask too many questions during the movie.

When the movie was over, she mentioned something that I did not catch. Black Widow has flirted with almost every member of the team, and she is now in love with Bruce Banner. Of course, this is not the “Bill Bixby hitchhiking to piano music” Bruce Banner. It is a Bruce Banner who is not as cool as that.

On Saturday morning, my university held its 173rd commencement on the lawn in front of our main building. It was a beautiful day, but it got a little hot under the caps and gowns. Commencement always brings mixed emotions for me. I am happy for the graduates, but I am also sad to see them go. To soften the blow, the History Department held a nice reception for our graduates and their families.

Last night, we went on a surprise birthday excursion for one of our friends. It started at Saint Anejo, one of the cool and trendy restaurants in Nashville. If you make it into the city, then you should try it out. It is full of locals, which means that you will not see any tourists wearing cowboy hats.

After dinner, we went to a concert at Marathon Music Works, which is located in the old Marathon automobile factory. The building houses all kinds of businesses, but this music venue is the best of the bunch. We did not know anything about the band, but it turned into a blast.

First, we were in the private balcony, which is the only way to watch a concert. We had stools, couches and our own server. The seating was especially great because the rest of the place is all about standing up.image-29

Second, the band was awesome. Matt and Kim are a duo, but that does not describe them. Matt plays keyboard and sings while Kim beats the crap out of the drums. She also stands on the drums and works the crowd into a frenzy. Heck, she even walked onto the hands of the crowd and danced. It is performance that has to be seen to be appreciated.

This morning, we began our Mother’s Day festivities and will continue with them throughout the afternoon. However, I had to take a few minutes to write about this eventful weekend. Now, I am going to take a nap.

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Sampling a Few Television Theme Songs

27 Apr

The other day, my stepdaughter and I were listening to the radio when a new song came on the air. In the beginning, I thought I heard a few notes that sounded familiar. Then, the entire thing kicked in, and it was definitely familiar. “Uma Thurman” by Fall Out Boy samples the theme from The Munsters, one of the great television themes of all time.Munsters

The song provided a chance for me to explain to my stepdaughter all of the wonderful things about The Munsters. However, it also made me wonder what other television themes could be turned into cool songs. That is when I decided to make a list. Before this begins, we need to address a few things.

First, I have no idea how they combined The Munsters with Uma Thurman. That is a pop cultural mashup is there ever was one.

Second, the theme songs must be instrumental to make for better sampling by current or future artists.

Third, the songs must come from shows that I actually like. If I did not hear a theme song on a regular basis, then I see no reason for it to be used.

These days, I do not watch much episodic television. In fact, Game of Thrones is the only current show that I watch. Luckily, it has an awesome theme song that makes you think the next hour is going to be a huge event.

In the old days, there was a Texas version of Game of Thrones. Dallas was a prime time soap opera that followed the shenanigans of the Ewing clan. However, I thought the theme gone was the best part. When the camera flew over Texas Stadium, the home of the Cowboys, I had seen the highlight of the show.

Of course, soap operas have been the staple of daytime television for decades. If someone wanted to put together a slower song, then the piano dominated theme for The Young and the Restless would do nicely. During the summers, I always made sure to listen to that song before I started doing something else.

Another great piano theme belonged to The Incredible Hulk, starring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. However, this was not the opening theme. Rather, it was the closing theme. I can still see Bixby hitchhiking on a lonely road and trying the escape the anger within. Apparently, he did not like himself when he was angry.

Anyway, that is enough for the slow songs. It is time to get back to something fast paced and rocking. Nothing epitomizes that better than the theme from Magnum, P.I. When I get a red Ferrari, I am going to ride around with that song playing all the time. Hopefully, some creative band will sample it in a song, and I will be able to change things up.

Detective shows like Magnum, P.I. are always good fodder for cool theme songs. Barnaby Jones did some geriatric rocking as Buddy Ebsen ran as fast as he could after a criminal. When that tune is turned into a real song, I expect a clip of Barnaby running after someone or hanging out with Frank Cannon.

The Rockford Files also had great theme music, and the video is ready to roll. All you need is a trailer with an answering machine and an early model Pontiac Firebird. Honestly, the original theme sound a little tinny, but some real instruments would make it awesome.

Before I leave this list, I must include something from the Science Fiction genre. It will not be Star Trek or Star Trek: The Next Generation. Instead, we need to see a song built around the theme of Lost in Space. However, this is where we face a conundrum. Lost in Space had two theme songs. One was for the more serious version of the show’s early days, and the second came in with the campy era. I will go with the first one.

Obviously, there are a ton of other theme songs that would be great for sampling. If you guys have any ideas, then let me know.

 

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