HAPPY 45TH BIRTHDAY MTV _ MTV aired its first video on August 1, 1981. Here are some of MTV’s accomplishments…
… Gave everyone A.D.D. — The MTV style of quick cuts and whipsaw cameras is now the de facto visual language of American culture, from summer blockbusters to commercials for cars and beer.
… Invented reality TV — In 1992, eight years before Survivor, a do-gooder documentarian (Jonathan Murray) and a soap-opera veteran (Mary-Ellis Bunim) launched a docu-soap called The Real World.
… Legitimized talking heads — MTV almost single-handedly squashed the idea that people on TV should have some idea of what they’re talking about. Fast-forward to today and almost anyone with good hair and a crisp outfit can land on cable TV and be made to seem intelligent.
… Defeated communism — Satellites started beaming MTV Europe into East Berlin on November 7, 1989; two days later, the Berlin Wall was history. Coincidence? Okay, maybe. But not long ago, MTV was as compelling a symbol of Western society as Levi’s or Coca-Cola.
… Killed the music video — Try to find videos on MTV now, and you’ll run into a wall of reality show.
IS A HOT DOG A SANDWICH? _ Is a hot dog a sandwich? Just over half of Americans (53%) think so, according to a new survey. Also found in the survey results: When it comes to constructing a hot dog, 75 percent put their condiments on the bun first before adding the hot dog. However, last month I (you) shared the results of a survey that said 57 percent of people polled thought hot dogs are sandwiches. Also from that survey: 56 percent of respondents said grilling is the best method to prepare a hot dog.
SOME THINGS AMERICANS WISH THE U.S. WOULD ADOPT FROM OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD _ What the internet thinks:
• Bullet trains.
• Public toilet stalls with walls and a door that go all the way down to the floor.
• Taxes included in the advertised price.
• Mandatory month-long vacations.
• Traffic lights that warn you when red is going to change to green.
