#Michael B Washington

[postguiltypleasures]

My Peak TV Journey *American Auto*

Last season I said I would not mind if it wasn’t renewed the second season was much more enjoyable and now I am bummed that there will not be a third. Like Grand Crew, it had a season finale that works as a series finale. But I also want to see more of these 

First I’m going to discuss why I think the second season was better than the first. Then I’m going to discuss the regular cast and how I appreciate them.

Some of what it was this was after a crisis management while the first season was all about getting into the crisis. The absurdity was still dark, but didn’t feel like it was all doom and gloom. It’s is also that as with all good sitcoms, it played around with how various characters in the ensemble played off each other and got some interesting results. 

The cast was led by Ana Gasteyer as Katherine Hastings who I have enjoyed since her SNL days. This is really the first time I have seen her as a lead. I am not sure that’s a great fit for her, but as her character also is a bad fit for the company, Payne Automotive, there was room to work with that. She didn’t like cars, (which I relate to) but pushed full speed ahead with ideas that did not have. Her signature project is the Pika, a very inexpensive car that no one who likes cars can see the appeal of. 

Harriet Dyer played her most frequent ally and uncomfortable appeaser. I had never heard of her before. Over the first season I sometimes thought of her as the lead like the series was about her handling Katherine and how that complicated her romance. That perception was probably a sign of how the show needed rebalancing? But also means that i would like to see Dyer as a lead. 

Michael B Washington played Cyrus Knight, the chief engineer and the coworker most profoundly frustrated by Katherine’s ignorance of cars. He’s my favorite character. His schemes and disdain for most of his coworkers should have belied his likability but didn’t.  

Jon Barinholtz played Wesley Payne, one of the heirs to the company’s founder. I was familiar with him from Superstore where he played Adam. I didn’t realize that he and Ike Barinholtz were brothers until Ike appeared here as his brother/antagonist.  I never realized they looked a lot until I saw them side by side. Wesley was entitled, thinking he shone  to a point he can’t tell he’s a punchline. But his entitlements does come with a real enthusiasm for his family’s legacy. Better developed raport’s in the second season especially the sweet goofy one with Dori. 

Sadie’s love interest, Jack, was played by Tye White. Jack the character with the most implausible CV, and he knows it. Has an appealing modestly in response to being frequently objectified and very lucky.

I never heard of X Mayo before seeing her here as Dori. She is delightful, playing well off of her costars. I especially liked seeing Dori and Cyrus compete over creating fake Twitter followers for Katherine. and her a Wesley brainstorm cost cutting ideas. I was always disappointed when she wasn’t on every episode.

Humphrey Ker as Elliot also was not in every episode, but I didn’t miss him as much. I think it was a strong performance, if more familiar than the characters who excited me more. I think I also associated him too strongly with the dark and not fun aspects of season one. There was a scene where he was on the phone with a family member in England trying to save them from a possibly defective car without saying that it was possibly defective that I think of as an example of the first season being too dark to be funny. I really enjoyed the episode where he did not realize that the “woman” he was talking to was an AI.

[belle-ayitian]

2023 Vanity Fair Oscar Party | Red Carpet

[xo-tough-love-xo]

CREED (2015) dir. Ryan Coogler A JOURNAL FOR JORDAN (2021) dir. Denzel Washington

[mieczyslawn]

⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ★ . . . when i was your (wo)man

[the-headless-horsedude]

for the hell of it, i also made caboose and wash (link to the pattern i used)

[omegaremix]

Omega Radio for June 2, 2021, #265.

Johnny Hammond: “Why Can’t We Smile” (ver.)

Funk Fusion Band: “Can You Feel It”

Michael Soward: “Standing On The Top”

Quarteto Em Cy: “Tudo Que Voce Podia Ser”

Ana Mazzotti: “Feel Like Making Love”

Abahambi: “Abahambi”

Asiko Rock Group: “Lagos City”

Creative Funk: “Funk Power”

Lafayette Afro Rock Band: “Hihache”

Gary Byrd: “Soul Travelin’ Pt. 1 (The G.B.E.)“

Jack Wilkins: “Naima”

Taj Mahal: “The Cuckoo”

B.B. King: “Chains N’ Things”

Renee Costy: “Like A Magic Dream”

Jimmy Smith: “My Place In Space”

Donald Byrd & 125th St. NYC: “I Feel Like Loving You Today”

Hysear Don Walker: “Inner Face Rebirth”

Lightmen Plus One, The: “Wench”

Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express: “Future Pilot”

Bernard Ebbinghouse: “Mister Carefree”

Bobby Hutcherson: “Montara”

Steve Khan: “Candles”

Breath Of Life: “Keep In Touch”

Piero Piccioni & Shawn Robinson: “Right Or Wrong”

Arena: “Scrichell Cat”

Grover Washington Jr.: “Moonstreams”

Sonny Fortune: “Come In Out Of The Rain”

Kenji Omura & Kazumi Watanabe & Lee Ritenour: “I Feel Breeze”

Jeff Lorber Fusion Group: “Glisten”

Eddie Henderson: “Beyond Forever”

Stanley Turrentine: “Hope That We Can Be Together Soon”

Barry White: “Playing Your Game, Baby”

Champaign: “I’m On Fire”

Mass Production: “Slow Bump”

Whole Darn Family: “Seven Minutes Of Funk”

Instant Funk: “Never Let It Go Away”

Bonus Omega; crate-digging and sampling. First summer bonus broadcast.

[melodichaeuxx-lacritquexx]

Being mature is realizing everyone on Scandal is fucked up, but Fitz? Was truly an evil man.

[concerto-roblox]

yet another year of andrew garfield not getting nominated for people's sexiest man alive 😔

[24hoursofsarcasm]

Ai always good for a laugh🤣😂

[ruleof3bobby]

THE CREATOR (2023) Grade: B-

The visuals were great & some cool looking shots. The script wasn't like a Nolan film for sure. Little on the nose and long. Still like John David Washington, he turned a good performance.

[escapaldi]

so the fiancé and I went to go see the creator, which is really good. it's nice to see a solid sci-fi that's not tied into a larger franchise. visually interesting, good story, creative production design/worldbuilding... it does have it all

the thing also CAME FOR ME. WITH A KNIFE at the end of the movie. not to bring my blorbo and oc into everything, but it reminded me of my blorbo and my oc. spoilers for why (movie and fic (fly little seagull, the world awaits)) is under the cut for those interested. it just. ugh. it was really good. poor gemma chan tho lol

also john david washington is fine as hell gimme more of that please and thank you

yeah, okay, so it's a dude who accidentally finds himself being a dad to this little girl with a weird power over the course of the movie anD ENDS UP JETTISONING HER IN AN ESCAPE POD. AFTER AN EMOTIONAL GOODBYE. WHERE HE KNOWS IN HIS HEART HE'S NEVER SEEING HER AGAIN. AND THERE'S SHOUTING AND CRYING AND SILENT WORDS SPOKEN IN A WINDOW. BECAUSE SHE NEEDS TO BE AWAY FROM THE SOON-DOOMED SHIP. AND SHE IS TOO PRECIOUS TO HIM AFTER ALL THAT'S HAPPENED.

i should be over this but nope apparently i'm not well about them

[afrotumble]

A Journal for Jordan is a 2021 American romantic drama film directed and co-produced by Denzel Washington from a screenplay written by Virgil Williams, based on the memoir A Journal for Jordan: A Story of Love and Honor by Dana Canedy. The film stars Michael B. Jordan (who also co-produced the film) and Chanté Adams in the lead roles, along with Jalon Christian, Robert Wisdom, and Tamara Tunie in supporting roles.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Bragg’s office accuses House Republicans of ‘unlawful political interference’

By Amy B Wang and John Wagner

The office of New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Friday urged House Republicans to withdraw a demand for information on its case against former president Donald Trump, again rebuffing what it characterized as “unlawful political interference” in an ongoing criminal case.

In a letter to the three committee chairmen who are pressing for documents and testimony about Trump’s case, Leslie B. Dubeck, the general counsel for Bragg’s office, chastised them for choosing to “collaborate” with the former president, who is now under indictment. A Manhattan grand jury voted to indict Trump on Thursday after hearing evidence about alleged hush-money payments from Trump to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign.

As of Friday morning, the indictment — with specific charges against Trump — remains sealed. On his Truth Social platform, Trump has kept up a steady stream of attacks on Bragg in all-caps posts and condemned the indictment.

“As you are no doubt aware, former President Trump has directed harsh invective against District Attorney Bragg and threatened on social media that his arrest or indictment in New York may unleash ‘death & destruction,’” Dubeck wrote.

Dubeck said the GOP chairs — Jim Jordan (Ohio) on the Judiciary Committee; Bryan Steil (Wis.) on the Administration Committee; and James Comer (Ky.) on the Oversight Committee — could have used their positions to denounce those attacks and urge respect for the fairness of the justice system.

“Instead, you and many of your colleagues have chosen to collaborate with Mr. Trump’s efforts to vilify and denigrate the integrity of elected state prosecutors and trial judges and made unfounded allegations that the Office’s investigation … is politically motivated,” Dubeck wrote. “We urge you to refrain from these inflammatory accusations, withdraw your demand for information, and let the criminal justice process proceed without unlawful political interference.”

Representatives for Jordan, Steil and Comer did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.

In their March 25 letter to Bragg’s office, the chairmen said they were seeking documents because Congress may consider legislation to shield former presidents from state criminal investigations for “personal acts.” Dubeck accused them of inventing “a brless pretext to interfere with our Office’s work,” noting the chairmen had not cited that rationale in their original request for materials.

Jordan and other GOP lawmakers had first sent a letter to Bragg on March 20 demanding documents and testimony related to the investigation. The request came after Trump claimed he would be arrested in the coming days and called on his supporters to protest.

In a reply to Jordan’s first letter, Bragg’s office said their request “treads into territory very clearly reserved to the states” — and noted that it had only come after Trump had “created a false expectation that he would be arrested … and his lawyers reportedly urged you to intervene.”

On Friday, Dubeck repeated that the committees lack jurisdiction to oversee a state criminal prosecution. She also slammed the notion that the Manhattan district attorney’s office had failed to dispute that its investigation was politically motivated because it had not provided GOP lawmakers with the materials they demanded.

“That conclusion is misleading and meritless,” Dubeck wrote Friday. “We did not engage in a point-by-point rebuttal of your letter because our Office is legally constrained in how it publicly discusses pending criminal proceedings, as prosecutorial offices are across the country and as you well know.”

If House Republicans did not withdraw their request, Dubeck said again, the district attorney’s office would be willing to meet to discuss how to accommodate their request without violating their obligations as prosecutors.

“We trust you will make a good-faith effort to reach a negotiated resolution before taking the unprecedented and unconstitutional step of serving a subpoena on a district attorney for information related to an ongoing state criminal prosecution,” she concluded.

Jordan’s demands of Bragg’s office have drawn sharp criticism from Democrats, who pointed out that the right-wing lawmaker had ignored a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Jan. 6 committee later voted to refer Jordan and other GOP lawmakers who had also defied its subpoenas to the House Ethics Committee.

Republicans have rallied to Trump’s defense since the former president predicted nearly two weeks ago that he would be arrested. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and many other high-profile GOP figures — including those who could be Trump’s chief rivals in the 2024 presidential primary — accused Bragg, a Democrat, of pursuing a political agenda.

Daniels, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, was paid $130,000 by Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer. Trump reimbursed Cohen after becoming president, in installments that were designated legal fees. Bragg is believed to be considering charges related to the payments that would include falsifying business records, possibly in commission of another campaign-related crime.

[twinbladestuff]

[suchananewsblog]

Stream It Or Skip It: ‘American Auto’ Season 2 On NBC, Where The Team At Payne Motors Deal With A Recall, A Brush Fire, And An Angry Seth Meyers

Season 1 of American Auto wasn’t an enormous, Abbott Elementary-style hit for NBC, however its first season confirmed that it was a stable if unspectacular office comedy with a well-oiled solid. Usually exhibits like this enhance of their second seasons, and the second season of American Auto exhibits the gang at Payne Motors smack in the course of the disaster launched on the finish of Season…