From the Couch Hole: And You’re the Only One Who Knows

Previously on FTCH, on Sunset Boulevard in ‘Salem’s Lot there was an incredible theft. Something so right came in the form of the Selena Gomez Oreo drop. This week I’m fully ensconced in Fall Rush for my work. There’s hope on the horizon for football season to start since baseball season isn’t turning out as hoped for my Rangers. This week there will be blood, happy days, and so it goes. Sinners never flinch when served orange creme pop creamer. Remember, at FTCH only the good die young.

Pop Culture Ephemera

• Stephen King – Never Flinch (2025) (Published by Scribner): “He stepped over the line, and guess what? The other side of the line is no different. The idea is both terrible and comforting.” The latest entry into the ongoing extension of the Mr. Mercedes trilogy now officially has more Holly Gibney works than the Bill Hodges stories. She’s my favorite character in current literature. This title and the previous Holly (2023) might not be horror by a traditional definition, but they are definitely dark thrillers. Never Flinch combines a serial-killer story and a stalker story. The two exist parallel, until they come together. You know that it’s going to happen, so it’s fun to project as you read how it’s going to happen. Two negative takeaways are that Holly’s character has lost some of the OCD characteristics that I loved in her earlier and there’s a Norman Bates-inspired character that feels oddly dated and out of step with current portrayals of such characters. The twists and turns were pure King, and this new entry into his crime novels collection was a good summer read.

Buy Stephen King – Never Flinch

• Happy Days – “Fonzie the Superstar” (1976) (S.3 E.19) (ABC): “Wow! What an ending! Tony Perkins is his own mother!” – Ralph. This might be the most Happy Days-iest episode of Happy Days. Potsie has to go out of town, leaving the band in the lurch for a lead singer for a dance at Arnold’s. Fonzie is away helping out Pinky Tuscadero, and when he returns, he is convinced to fill in as the singer. You’ve got an appearance by Laverne and Shirley for the second week in a row, on the night that their show would debut right after this episode. It’s the last episode of the short lived but hilarious band member, Sticks. Arnold is given some great lines just a few episodes before he would leave the show. His constant desire to sell more food is hilarious. The weirdly generic timing of the series is present. The Cunninghams are headed to see Psycho (1960) and when it is ruined by Ralph, they want to see Mister Roberts (1955). Arnold references Bob Dylan. To make it even more confusing, Fonzie is dressed as Las Vegas-era Elvis when he performs. This series had so much power and attention in this part of their run that I can’t even compare it to anything in the past decade.

Buy Billy Joel – Storm Front CD

• Billy Joel – “And So It Goes” (1989) (from Storm Front): “And still I feel I said too much / My silence is my self defense.” Written in 1983 and finally released on an album in 1989, this song title was chosen as the title for his HBO documentary. Songs about love and loss are not a new topic for Billy Joel. This particular song about his short and failed relationship with Elle Macpherson is bittersweet in all the right places. The simple piano accompaniment gives it the feel of a hymn. It was the perfect final song on his excellent Storm Front album.

• There Will Be Blood (2007) (Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson): “I have a competition in me. I want no one else to succeed. I hate most people.” – Daniel. I revisited this for the first time since pre-Oscars 2008 because it was ranked #3 in the New York Times Best Films of the Century. Like most stories told in this early 20th Century setting, it’s about the end of the West. Director Anderson shows that the cruelty of the East invading California is also symbolic of the end of capitalism. There are no sympathetic characters and everyone is essentially cruel to each other. That doesn’t mean you can ever take your eyes off the screen. The last scene in Daniel’s home has some elements of Citizen Kane (1941). Both men are surrounded by ruin of their own creation. They have descended into madness, mostly brought upon by isolation from family and society. The difference is that Daniel doesn’t have the love of his mother or any of his family to make us feel bittersweet about his fate. Daniel’s madness is that of late-stage capitalism where making money is the only goal and there are no rules. I think I like this film better now than I did on just a single viewing. Is it a Top Ten film of the past 25 years? Yes. Without reserve, I say yes.

• Sinners (2025) (Directed by Ryan Coogler): “You keep dancing with the devil… one day he’s gonna follow you home.” – Jedidiah. Every decade or two, the vampire film is injected with new energy. The arrival of From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) was a revelation. Director Robert Rodriguez directed a crime film that happened to be a vampire film in the end. There are lots of similarities here in that blending of genres.
  
  Michael B. Jordan plays twins, Smoke and Stack, veterans returning to Mississippi from World War I and a stint in Chicago. The first half of the film unfolds at a leisurely pace. That’s probably the key to a viewer loving or hating the film, is how they enjoy the character development as the twins and their cousin (Miles Caton) prepare to open a juke joint on the outskirts of town. The story links the story of the American Black experience from the past to the present, not just the Jim Crow era. Unfortunately, it doesn’t expand the vampire movie genre. That doesn’t mean that it isn’t fun and beautiful. The composition of the scenes, especially around the sunrise, are the reason I wish I had watched this in IMAX. I don’t know if this is the film of the year. I wanted there to be more pushing of the envelope in the vampire area. It will be in the discussion because Ryan Coogler has a vision that few other current directors are putting out there.

Buy Sinners

Best of the Rest

• The covers of Joel’s “And So It Goes” never seem to vary too far from the source material. I was surprised how many take away the piano and make it an acapella song. I can’t remember any of those covers that strike me. I have always loved Jennifer Warnes’ voice. Her 2001 cover keeps that same emotional resonance. Her voice and the addition of the strings bring a little more theatrical quality, in such a way that I’d expect this to be featured in a film or stage production.

• Entertainment Weekly (3/28/97): “Best Commercials of All-Time” #9: Cracker Jack “Train” (1965): “When it comes to Cracker Jack, some kids never grow up.” Jack Gilford would do Cracker Jack ads for over a decade. He’s known to most people my age for his role in Cocoon (1985). These series of ads were funny at times, but rarely memorable. I’m not sure that these ads would make my Top 100 as I explore some of their ads through the ’60s and ’70s.

• I get nervous to just blindly put on a new The Farmer’s Dog commercial for fear of breaking down in tears in a public setting. These three new ones are safe to view amongst friends and family. They capture the fun of being a dog owner, without the sadness of time passing that permeates their ads at times. I’m a particular fan of “The Jump” although it’s hard to beat that Three Degrees song on “Great Hair.”

Sunday Morning Tuneage Flashback

• Sunday Morning Tuneage from 9/27/2009, I ran my second 5K ever and bettered my time from the previous year by over 10 minutes. I don’t remember this one as much because I wasn’t in extreme pain afterwards like the year before. Christian won his age group that same year. I worked a UNT football game later than day and had a September sunburn to remember it by. My list was incomplete at best, so I think it’s good to look at again with 16 years under my belt. Although I didn’t change it as much as I would have imagined.
  
  My #93 Top TV Show of All-Time was Taxi (ABC/NBC) (1978-1983): I love the pedigree of shows. I’ve often considered Taxi to be a very important link between the decades. This was the James L. Brooks ensemble comedy that started the season right after Mary Tyler Moore (CBS) (another ensemble comedy) ended. Taxi is the last leg of the ABC rating juggernaut of Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley and Three’s Company. As those shows lose their ratings cache, Taxi moves to Thursday nights to anchor another night of comedies with Mork & Mindy, Bosom Buddies and Barney Miller. They maintain their Thursday night spot as they move to NBC for their last season where they are teamed with Cheers. Then Cheers will eventually partner with Seinfeld to create the unbelievable run of ratings domination on Thursday nights well into 2010’s. This is a great show, and I’d probably put it even higher in my rankings. I just need to revisit it more often.
  
• BEST THE OFFICE EPISODES OF ALL-TIME (Up to that point) (2009)
  • 10. “The Alliance” (S.1 E.4)
  • 9. “The Injury” (S.2 E.12)
  • 8. “Gay Witch Hunt” (S.3 E.1)
  • 7. “The Carpet” (S.2 E.14)
  • 6. “Office Olympics” (S.2 E.3)
  • 5. “A Benihana Christmas” (S.3 E.10 & 11)
  • 4. “The Dundies” (S.2 E.1)
  • 3. “Performance Review” (S.2 E.8)
  • 2. “Dwight’s Speech” (S.2 E.17)
  • 1. “Christmas Party” (S.2 E.10)
    
• BEST THE OFFICE EPISODES OF ALL-TIME (2025)
  • 10. “Safety Training” (S.3 E.20): “I worked in a warehouse: Men’s Wearhouse. I was a greeter.” —Michael Scott. Michael jumping off the roof onto a bouncy house to prove that his job is dangerous is prime Michael.
  • 9. “Christmas Party” (S.2 E.10): This show excelled at holiday-themed episodes, especially early seasons. Michael gets an oven mitt after giving away an iPod. There’s the fun early romantic move of the note in a teapot.
  • 8. “Company Picnic” (S.5 E.28): It’s a season finale where we find out that Pam is pregnant. It’s a fun Holly and Michael awkward moment as they perform “SlumDunder Mifflinaire.”
  • 7. “A Benihana Christmas” (S.3 E.10 & 11): “Then suddenly she’s not your ho no mo’!” – Michael Scott. Another holiday classic. Carol breaks up with Michael and we have competing Christmas parties. On top of that, Dwight lip reading from across the room is the best.
  • 6. “The Injury” (S.2 E.12): Overdramatic Michael is my favorite Michael. Burning his foot on the George Foreman Grill is one of the episodes that I remember really sold me on this series long term.
  • 5. “Office Olympics” (S.2 E.3): “No, I’m like Butch Cassidy, and Michael is like Mozart.” – Dwight Schrute. Having worked in an office for decades, I can attest to the fact that procrastination is an art form. Michael is off signing papers for a condo, and the employees hold their own form of Olympics. It’s one of those episodes that this show excels at where the chaos culminates in a nice feel good ending.
  • 4. “The Convict” (S.3 E.9): “The worst thing about prison was the dementors.” —Prison Mike. Written by creators of the U.K. series, Stephen Merchant and Ricky Gervais, this is an episode that feels like a good hybrid of the U.K. and U.S. series.
  • 3. “Threat Level Midnight” (S.7 E.17): Just when I didn’t think the series could break any new comic boundaries, this movie that Michael has been writing since early on in the series is shown to his friends. The movie-within-a-television show is a great way for the writers to parody the Bond genre with their cast. It’s a laugh riot.
  • 2. “Casino Night” (S.2 E.22):  “I just need you to know. Once.” —Jim Halpert. It was the one episode that they had to get right. The season finale would have Jim confess his love to Pam. If they messed it up, viewers might not come back to start the Third Season. It worked. It’s a fun episode with the gambling bringing out personalities of the employees. The confession and the kiss left us breathless for the next season.
  • 1. “Dinner Party” (S.4 E.13): Michael and Jan’s toxic relationship comes to a head during an impromptu dinner party with Jim and Pam and Andy and Angela. There’s a funny sub-story of Dwight coming up with a date to crash the party. This is one of a few that I still stop and watch when I see it airing on repeats.

1975 in Review

• August – Batman #266 (DC Comics): “I have a job for you tonight, my pretty, pretty pet!” – Catwoman. Cover by Dick Giordano. Written by Denny O’Neil. Art by Dick Giordano. Selina Kyle escapes prison when a train she is being transported on crashes. She returns to her thieving ways and Bruce dresses in disguise to capture her again in what is a nice tight story.
• August 16 – Ted Bundy is arrested in Salt Lake City and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Transferred to a jail in Colorado, he would escape and go on to commit three more murders.
• August 18 – People Weekly: Elton John was preparing for his Rock of the Westies Tour to support his album of the same name. He would play mostly sports arenas including a two-night affair at sold out Dodger Stadium, their first concerts since the Beatles, back in the ’60s.

What the Hell Did I Put in My Mouth?

“So I would choose to be with you
That’s if the choice were mine to make
But you can make decisions too
And you can have this heart to break” – Billy Joel