Faux Balloon Boy Mess Seems . . . Um, Odd, Doesn't It?

Once the world learned yesterday that the 6-year-old Colorado boy, Falcon Heene, was NOT inside that homemade helium balloon which flew 50 miles away from his home and crashed into a field, that the kid was safe hiding in his attic, everyone breathed a sigh of relief . . . after all the cable networks went wall-to-wall with live coverage of the runaway balloon after which the U.S. military sent a Black Hawk helicopter and other aircraft, and for which the FAA grounded take-offs in the area. The child's older brother had told authorities that he thought his younger brother was on board the balloon.

Then we started learning other things about the family, which apparently spends spare time chasing storms and inventing things. Videos of them on the reality show Wife Swap surfaced, as did a "rap video" the three young Heene boys did.

Then it got even weirder.

They went on CNN last night and, when the boy was asked why he hid from his family, Falcon said, "We did this for a show." (The CNN clip is shown in the Today Show segment below.)

This morning, the Heene family did the circuit of morning talk shows. During NBC's Today Show, Falcon threw up. Did the family cut the interview short? Nope. The interview continued, thoug Meredith Vieira offered to take a break and return once the family had gathered itself together, much too late for my tastes. The Heene family also did another interview on ABC's Good Morning America even though their son was physically ill. Diane Sawyer had to suggest to the Heenes that perhaps one of them should go after the 6-year-old who ran away from the camera while puking. After his mother helped him in the bathroom -- vomiting clearly heard over the microphones -- the mom and Falcon RETURNED to sit in front of the camera. Here's the link to the Good Morning America interview.

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The Heene family also released a video of the moment when the balloon took off yesterday.

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Am I simply a jaded cynic to suggest that something just does not seem right here?

UPDATE: My Mommy Tracked column on this whole saga is now up on Mommy Tracked.

'thirtysomething' DVD Release Garnering Lots O'Attention

Everybody's got thirtysomething fever. I tell ya . . .

The thirtysomething gang of seven reunited on the set of Good Morning America to talk about the impact of their insightful, moving drama on pop culture as the first season of the show has now been released on DVD this week.

NPR's Talk of the Nation featured five members of the cast in a lengthy interview. It's a really great chat which I recommend.



A writer likened the Melissa Steadman character to a pre-cursor to Carrie Bradshaw. Hmm. . .

The Los Angeles Times mused on the Baby Boomer juggernaut.

The Washington Post, in reviewing the DVD set, said the show "still works remarkably well as a piece of relatable, well-acted and adult television, a program that -- contrary to popular opinion -- was more than just a whinefest."

The New York Times had a long Q&A with thirtysomething crew members, saying the show "perfectly captured the intimate details of the baby boomer lifestyle in ways no network series had previously, and sparked intense debate about its merits."

Entertainment Weekly gave the DVD set an A.

The Associated Press interviewed several of the stars (see below):

'thirtysomething' DVD Out Tuesday, Plus Cast Reunion on GMA

Finally!

For those of you who've been waiting so long.

It will arrive in stores on Tuesday.

The first of four seasons of thirtysomething on DVD.

Huzzah! Time to get your Michael and Hope Steadman fix and count how many times Melissa wears a lone earring and her numbers coat.

My celebration and dissection of the season one episodes plus the DVD extras is the subject of my Pop Culture column this week. The interviews and audio commentaries on the DVDs are good, as are the random bits of trivia I gleaned from them, for example, did you know that ABC execs initially hated the name, thirtysomething and wanted to instead go with the name Grown-Ups?

Also, don't miss the thirtysomething gang reunion on Good Morning America on Tuesday.

Image credit: Shout Factory via Amazon.com.

'Mad Men' Week Takes Over Talk Shows

Mad Men week continues here on Suburban Mom as Jon Hamm and Mad Men takes over TV talk shows. But in order to catch the promotional interviews, you've either got to plan on staying up late (in one case getting up early) or setting your DVRs . . .

Mad Men's leading man, Hamm (who plays Don Draper), is slated to appear on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien today, August 11.

Hamm is also scheduled to appear on Good Morning America and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on Wednesday, August 12.

On Thursday, August 13, Hamm is listed as a guest for Live with Regis and Kelly, on the same day as Kate Gosselin, which is an unusual pairing.

On Friday, August 14, January Jones (who plays Betty Draper) is expected to also visit Jimmy Fallon.

Image credit: Frank Ockenfels/AMC.

Suburban Mom's Political Fix: Did He Or Didn't He Ogle That Gal's Behind?

Everyone's been talking about it.

The photo.

Of Barack Obama, Nicholas Sarkozy and that shapely gal.

DID Barack Obama ogle that woman in the way it appears in the photo that's been the lead image on the Drudge Report all day?

Look at ABC's Good Morning America's video and judge for yourself:



Image credit: The Drudge Report.

Suburban Mom's Political Fix: Catchin' Up, Caroline, Blago, Corp. Jet$$

I'm just getting back into the swing of things after having spent the week with my family and parents in the grips of the magical world of Disney, where, in addition to enjoying the worst Florida cold snap in many years, I was told by a Disney World "cast member" in a Goofy hat that I could not watch the inauguration at Epcot because Disney is about "fantasy, not reality." Therefore, I trudged to an ESPN bar with my dad to watch President Barack Obama's inauguration speech and hear the inaugural poem. So other than skipping some Epcot rides with my kids in order to catch the tail-end of the inauguration, I've been out of the news loop for the past week (radical, I know, to be unplugged!), so I've got some catching up to do:

Another Senator Kennedy? Not So Fast!

So Caroline Kennedy pulled out (was pushed out?) of contention to be appointed to the U.S. Senate. New York Gov. David Paterson named another female -- younger -- to fill Hillary Clinton's seat. And then we were treated to conflicting reports about why Kennedy did an about-face and whether she truly had "personal issues" which prevented her from seeking the post. The New York Times portrayed sniping and excuse-making on both sides, describing Paterson as of the belief that Kennedy wasn't ready for the job.

Now 42-year-old Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand, a two-term centrist Democrat from upstate New York, has been tapped for the post. She has a 5-year-old and a six-month-old baby and, according to the Times, worked up until the day she gave birth, causing House members to give her a standing ovation . . . which is prompting several to compare her to fortysomething mother of an infant Sarah Palin, some positively and some negatively.

Senator Oprah?

Good God. Rod Blagojevich is spending today basking in the bright lights of the New York City media circuit, rather than in Illinois where his impeachment trial is commencing. He's doing the rounds on the TV networks pleading his case and categorically denying attempting to sell Obama's U.S. Senate seat, while complaining that he can't bring his witnesses to defend him.

In an interview on ABC's Good Morning America, he said he considered asking Oprah Winfrey if she wanted to fill Obama's seat, saying, "She was obviously someone with a much broader bully pulpit than other senators."

On The View -- where Barbara Walters bizarrely conducted the interview from Los Angeles while Blago was in New York, and Walters appeared on stage inside a little TV located next to the seated Blago instead of opting for a split-screen -- he said the case against him has been sensationalized by the media and that the conversations captured by federal wiretaps were taken out of context. "I'm an innocent man who hasn't done anything wrong," he said. ". . . I'm going to fight to the finish."

Blago resisted Joy Behar's attempts to goad him into doing a Richard Nixon impersonation and doing "I'm not a crook." Surprisingly, Blago declined the offer.

Corporate Jet$$

Someone -- hello?! -- needs to put an end to the wild orgy funded by taxpayer money intended to help rejuvenate the American economy not provide luxury items for a few people who ran their companies into the ground. CitiGroup got $45 billion in federal bailout money -- your money and my money -- and just wasted $50 million of it on a 12-seater luxury jet, reports the New York Post:

"Even though the bank's stock is as cheap as a gallon of gas and it's burning through a $45 billion taxpayer-funded rescue, the airhead execs pushed through the purchase of a new Dassault Falcon 7X, according to a source familiar with the deal.

The French-made luxury jet seats up to 12 in a plush interior with leather seats, sofas and a customizable entertainment center, according to Dassault's sales literature."

Where are the D.C. fiscal watchdogs? We should get that money back. Pull a Palin, and put the jet up on eBay. Stuff like this should not be allowed to stand.

Image credit: Rep. Gillibrand's web site.