I’m going to be using Cal Newport’s So Good They Can’t Ignore You next semester in my MANAGEMENT class. Students today are confused about their job prospects in this dismal economy. My message, reinforced by Cal Newport, is to master a skill set in order to survive in these trying times. Technology continues to erode middle-class, traditional jobs. Once upon a time, a high school drop-out could go work for General Motors and make $100,000 a year. Those times are over. In order to find a “good” job, my students are going to have to convince skeptical employers they have mastered the skills today’s job market needs. Somehow American education has lost its way. Reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic: the 3 R’s; few of my students have mastered these basic skills let alone computer skills. I’m amazed each semester at the number of students I have who can’t type! What are they doing in K-12? So Good They Can’t Ignore You presents a blueprint to young people on how to function in a skills-driven employment market. If you have a son or daughter or friend struggling to find work, give them this book. GRADE: B+
SO GOOD THEY CAN’T IGNORE YOU: WHY SKILLS TRUMP PASSION IN THE QUEST FOR WORK YOU LOVE By Cal Newport
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It’s make-or-break time for the Buffalo Bills in their quest for a Playoff berth after 12 straight years of failure. Ironically, today’s game with the Indianapolis Colts is the fulcrum for the entire season. A win puts the Bills back in Playoff contention, a lose sends them into a death spiral. Andrew Luck, the rookie QB phenom, looks to test the Bills’ porous defense. Can the Bills score enough points to win? Stay tuned. What’s happening with your favorite NFL teams today?
Before you go out and spend your hard-earned money on Return of the Thin Man, I thought I’d fill you in on what you’re going to be buying. The best part of Return of the Thin Man is Richard Layman’s detailed history of Dashiell Hammett in Hollywood with emphasis on the Thin Man series. Hammett sold MGM all the rights (in perpetuity!) to The Thin Man series (including the characters of Nick and Nora Charles…and Asta! In return, MGM paid Hammett $40,000. Not a Good Deal. After you read the lengthy Introduction, you’ll encounter a couple of film treatments (to call them scripts would be an exaggeration). And, after that, there’s an 8-page treatment for something called “Sequel to the Thin Man” which was never produced. So Return of the Thin Man is a hodgepodge that only a completist could love. GRADE: C
Just when you think every Elvis recording had made it out of the Vault, this wonderful 2-CD and DVD set shows up. The music captures Elvis’ performance recorded live at Madison Square Garden, New York City, June 10, 1972. Just take a look at the music played in these legendary concerts. The music has been remastered and never sounded so good! If you have an Elvis fan on your Holiday list, this is a must-have set. What is your favorite Elvis song? My answer would change day by day, but my choice today can be enjoyed below.
Diane and I watched three episodes of Emily Owens, M.D. and I’m bailing out. Diane is on the bubble whether she wants to continue watching. As you can see by the graphic, “Emily Owens” is actually Meryl Streep’s daughter with the unlikely name of Mamie Gummer. Gummer is cute, expressive, and earnest. You immediately like her. The problems with this medical show revolves around too many cliches: cute Resident who rejects Emily (she still loves him), another cute Resident (with a dying mother), a Mean Girl rival, a lesbian friend, and…you get the idea. Nothing very original here. After three episodes, I figured I’d seen most of the predictable permutations of the plot and I’m moving on. But I predict Mamie Grummer will become a star like her mother.
David Denby is a film critic for The New Yorker who thinks deeply about movies. Do the Movies Have a Future? collects several of Denby’s essays on films that he loves and admires. Sadly, those films could not be made today. Denby notes that today’s Hollywood studios want mega-hits like The Avengers rather than the noir films of the Fifties. My favorite essays in this book involve Denby’s favorite directors. After I finished Denby’s essay on Otto Preminger, I wanted to drop everything and watch Anatomy of a Murder (Denby calls it the best courtroom drama in American film). Other outstanding essays include Denby’s searing exploration of Joan Crawford, his analysis of David Fincher’s films, and the mystique of Pauline Kael. If you love movies, you’re going to love Do the Movies Have a Future?. GRADE: A
I’m a big fan of Ken Burns so I’m looking forward to this documentary about the Dust Bowl. Here is another man-made disaster that brought thousands of farmers to their knees. Diane and I really liked Ken Burns’ Prohibition series last year. Watching Ken Burns’ work is a painless way to learn history. Check for the local times in your area. And check out the trailer below.
Stephen Speilberg’s Lincoln focuses on the last few months of Lincoln’s life. Specifically, it tells the story of the passing of the 13th Amendment. If you think our country is divided now, it was more divisive in 1865. And, as the story of 13th Amendment unwinds, there’s the Civil War impinging on every scene in the movie. Daniel Day-Lewis IS Lincoln in this movie. But, for my money, the performance of Tommy Lee Jones as Radical Republican Congressional leader Thaddeus Stevens is luminous. Tommy Lee Jones steals every scene he’s in. My only quibble about Lincoln centers around all of subplots: Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln’s relationship, Lincoln’s relationship with his sons, Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward (played superbly by David Strathairn), and the comic relief of James Spader as Democratic Party operative William N. Bilboe threaten to overwhelm the already long 150 minutes. I’m guessing Lincoln will be a big winner at Oscar time. GRADE: A-