Things here at GameTime, TBD© have hit a bit of a lull. It should come as no surprise to you that it corresponds to the sports world hitting a lull. Here we are, the middle of June, and all I have is baseball. Sure, I love the Dodgers; I hope they win the World Series. The thing is, I do not love 162 games worth of the Dodgers. That is the problem with baseball, it just drags on for far too long, gets overshadowed by the return of college football, the NFL, and the NHL, and has World Series games get snowed out.
Some of you might try to point out the NBA Finals are still going on. Really? As the ratings show, everyone already believes San Antonio has won the title. Like the great majority of Americans, I do not care about the NBA anymore. I was actually fairly upset with Kobe Bryant when he demanded a trade, not because he wanted out of Los Angeles, but because it is all the local Los Angeles sports talk radio stations would cover. Ugh.
Then, of course, I had to deal with Anaheim Ducks winning the Stanley Cup last week. Seriously, what did I do to deserve this? The Ducks spotted the Los Angeles Kings 30 years and a name change, yet they have already been to the Stanley Cup Finals (2) more times then the Kings (1), have won more Stanley Cup Final games (7) then the Kings (1), and have won more Stanley Cups (1) then the Kings (0) (my own family had the nerve to talk to me about how happy they were for the Ducks...seriously Dad, it's not funny...bad form...I'm sending my therapy bills home to you). Thankfully, the NHL draft is right around the corner (June 22-23) and the free agency period starts on July 1st. I can not wait to see who the Kings are able to pick up this offseason (coincidentally, I'll be in Vegas the weekend of the NHL draft...if you need to find me, I'll be in a sports book placing prop bets on who is taken number 1 overall and who the Kings take first...yes, I have a problem).
All hope, however, is not lost because, according to NBC, America's Got Talent! Now, I know in the past I have ripped on reality television and other similar shows, but I have a special bond with this one. It premiered last summer and I found that it was a good way to take my mind of the California Bar Exam. So, once a week I would take the night off, pop some popcorn, and watch America's Got Talent. And here is the thing with this show, it turns out that America is actually pretty darn talented (don't get me wrong, calling some of the "talents" weird is putting it nicely...but I was generally impressed with the things people could do). Plus, David Hasselhoff is one of the judges. So mix some weird talents with (Don't Hassle) The Hoff and you have got yourself and pretty entertaining show.
Which is why I was more than willing to tune into the show's premiere last Tuesday night. The show is run very similar to American Idol in that the first few shows are preliminary rounds in various cities around the United States. Last Tuesday, they were in Dallas. The show has changed a little this year; Sharon Osbourne replaced Brandy as one of the judges, and Jerry Springer has replaced the always-lovable Regis Philbin as host. I am not sold on Springer as a host, but Osbourne makes a great judge (is odd that I feel like if Ozzy Osbourne was to appear as a contestant on this show he wouldn't advance to the next round?). I was generally impressed (I figured "surprised" might alienate all of my Dallas readers) with the talent people in Dallas displayed and am looking forward to tonight's instalment.
But here is the thing, it turns out that Britain's Got Talent as well. Simon Cowell (everybody's favorite American Idol judge) created the show and runs it in both countries. He also serves as judge in the British version, which airs nightly on ITV1. The American version, on the other hand, only airs weekly. Is it possible that Great Britain (BAP's birthplace...don't worry, I'm an American citizen by birth...I was a pleasant surprise to my parents while Dad was working there for a few years) has so much more talent then America that they have to run more episodes?
So here we are, another epic showdown between America and Great Britain. I took a few moments to peruse the Internet this morning (read: searched You Tube), and, as it turns out, Great Britain is pretty darn talented. I watched several clips this morning that thoroughly impressed me, and here are two of my favorites:
1) First up, we have 6-year-old Conny (that's right, SIX). She may be missing all of her front teeth, but she's got some pretty impressive pipes:
B) Second, there is Paul (missing your front teeth is the new black in Britain this year). By day, Paul is a computer technician; by night, a unknowing opera star (sorry guys, I was a singer in high school and college, so I'm biased):
Pretty impressive if you ask me. I mean, sure Amanda Holden (middle judge) cries on cue...errr....I mean...is moved to tears frequently, but at least she is easy on the eyes. I am also impressed that Piers Morgan (the judge who is not Simon Cowell or an attractive female) can be in both America and Britain at the same time to judge both shows. Better yet, the winner of Britain's Got Talent gets to perform for Her Majesty, the Queen of England. That is quite a prize (especially when you throw in 100,000 British pounds just for the hell of it). In the end, I must admit, I was impressed with many more of the acts I saw on Britain's Got Talent then on last week's America's Got Talent.
But according to Mr. Ballard—my 11th grade AP U.S. History teacher and a pretty trustworthy guy—America won the Revolutionary War…so take that Great Britain!
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