I was asked by Klout if I wanted to be a part of a group of people to receive the series pilot of the new Fox show Lone Star. I received a party pack with beer glasses, wine glasses, popcorn, poster, bottle opener and a corkscrew (Photo 1, Photo 2). The idea was to throw a party, watch the show, tweet, facebook and maybe write a blog post… if I wanted to. No, I was not asked to write a review in exchange for this. I explain more about that in my previous post, and here is the official disclaimer.

So on to the review.

Lone Star is one series, thanks to the great advertising by Fox, that I was excited to see this season, so I was thrilled to be able to preview the show.

Lone Star’s leading man James Wolk plays the dual identity con man Robert/Bob Allen who was brought up at an early age to con people and companies by his father John Allen played by David Keith. Through the episode we learn that the son has surpassed the father in his abilities to con people, but the son has now grown attached to two women, the first being his wife Cat played by Adrianne Palicki and his girlfriend Lindsay played by Eloise Mumford, both of whom are marks for what is supposed to be one of the father and sons biggest con jobs. But now the son wants out of the family business… or does he? All we know for sure is that he wants both women, and both lives to stay in tact.

The show was decent for a pilot episode, but after seeing all of the trailers I was expected to be blown away. I feel like they tried to put too many story lines into one episode, and I think it would have been a little better had they made this a 2 hour premiere, or let the show evolve and introduce more cast as time went on. The episode was like a 5 courses of appetizers, and never getting the main dish.

It did leave me wanting more however, so I am sure I will tune in to see where the show goes from here.

Some are calling this the Dallas meets our generation, others comparing it a little to Big Love (what?). This show wants you to like the bad guy as he is seemingly wanting to turn his life around and be normal. Maybe they should compare this more to Dexter (swap serial killer for con man).

I am not going to give away any details of the show here on this post as I do not want to give away any spoilers… so you will have to watch the show and decide for yourself.

Lone Star also stars

• Mark Deklin as Trammell Thatcher (Cat’s Brother)
• Bryce Johnson as Drew Thatcher (Cat’s Brother)
• Jon Voight as Clint Thatcher (Cat’s Father, Oil Tycoon)

Jon Voight is cool in this role, but his texan accent seems a bit fake and he is the only one on the show with one so far. But since he is the oldest, the father, and the one who dug his own oil well many years ago, he must have a texas accent right? Accent aside, I do like the credibility he brings to the show of otherwise lesser known actors.

It will be interesting to see where this show goes… and if will earn a permanent spot on my already too full DVR!

Lone Start Final verdict is a solid B / 2.5 out of 4 stars… BUT I want this show to hook me and bump the grade to an A or 4 Star

I am interested to know what you think of the show, so quit reading and get to leaving a comment below will ya?

Until next time,

Doc

PS: You can keep up with Lone Star on Twitter and Facebook

• http://www.facebook.com/LoneStaronFOX
• http://twitter.com/lonestaronfox

Last week the website Klout.com sent me an email to ask me if I wanted to participate in an exclusive early screening of the new Fox television show Lone Star.

I signed up for the program, and I am supposed to receive my party pack any day.

According to the email I received from Klout:

FOX wants you to be one of the first people to watch the premiere episode. You’ll get a DVD of the pilot and a party pack which includes beer and wine glasses, popcorn, and lots of awesome goodies to help you host your own Lone Star preview party.

First of all, I am not obligated to have the party, or watch the show either, nor am I obligated to post anything about the episode online. But here I go talking about it already… and the fact is, I am stoked to see this show! I think Lone Star looks like one of the best new shows of the year.

What is cool however is the fact that Fox is partnering with Klout to help promote the show via Social Media.

Could this be the end of traditional stuffy critic reviews of new shows? Could movies be next? If so, sign me up for that!

Personally I think this is a brilliant idea, and I can not wait to get my package in the mail, watch the show, and do a write up. I hope the package arrives soon however as Lone Star premiers on Fox September 20th!

Kudos to Fox television and to Klout.com!

Watch for the follow up post after I watch Lone Star, eat my popcorn, and enjoy a ice cold beer in my new beer glass!

Did anyone else reading this get this offer from Klout? Know of anyone else who did?

Below is a preview of the show.

Until next time,

Doc

PS: Oddly enough my Klout score has changed somewhat as I have gone from an influencer to a socializer… and I can not decide if that is a good or a bad thing. Hehehe

(Disclaimer http://cmp.ly/2/va)

For the last couple of months I have been working on a new project called Local Joints TV. And while we are going to be launching the site and our first episodes in May 2010, I wanted to try and get a little buzz going.

I have two tickets in my hands for the Daughtry concert this Thursday night, April 22 2010 at 7:30 PM at the E Center in West Valley City, Utah, and I want to give them away to a random person who follows one or all of my social media channels for Local Joints TV.

Sound like a good idea?

Here are the rules:

1. Head on over to our Coming Soon site for Local Joints TV (www.localjoints.tv)
2. From there follow at least our Twitter and Facebook Fan Page
3. On Twitter, tweet the following message (minus the quotation marks) “Hey. @iGoByDoc and @LocalJointsTV, I would love to go to Daughtry tonight! Pick me! http://bit.ly/bJiXfv #LJTV“
4. On Facebook, you can give us a little bit more info on why you would like to go… a story of how your daughter just has to see Daughtry, or whatever you like, you know, pull at the old heart strings.

Obviously time is of the essence here, and we only have a couple of days until the show. So, I will pick a winner randomly Thursday evening around 2PM. If we can meet up, I would love to give you the tickets in person… if not, I will make sure they are in Will Call for you to pick up at least 2 hours before the concert on Friday!

So let’s get it started shall we?

Head on over to Local Joints TV and get started now.

Good luck, and stay tuned for our first episode coming soon… I think you are going to enjoy what we are doing.

Until next time… Doc

PS: Here is a photo of the tickets… looks like great seats!

Click for larger image

Today during the press conference Tiger Woods held to tell the world how “sorry” he was I tweeted a comment, and to my surprise it was picked up by CNN and added to their website. (Link to page)

My comment was “Tiger Woods needs a teleprompter. At least he did not write notes on his hand!” and CNN picked up on it, and tweaked it a bit saying “Tiger Woods needs a teleprompter. At least he did not write notes on his hand!” wrote Twitter user @igobydoc, an apparent reference to a recent speech by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

So NOW I can now officially scratch “Be quoted on CNN website” off my list of things to accomplish! Now I just need to add to it the following: Be quoted again, and this time have @ricksanchezcnn say something on air! Or better yet, have Wolf Blitzer say “Please Stand By, new twitter comment by @iGoByDoc”

Anyway, I thought it was pretty neat, and I figured I would share it on my blog.

Special thanks to twitter user @offgrid as he was nice enough to bring it to my attention… thanks man!

Until next time…

Doc

Photo from @ladygaga twitpic account

I thought of this question last night just before the awards started live in California. I was hanging out on Twitter and I saw all the chatter start to happen about the Grammy Awards.

So I started to kind of tune out the chatter about the show knowing I would end up hearing the results via Twitter from many of the people I follow before the awards actually started here in Utah (where the awards started an hour later).

So, I have the @cnnbrk account on Twitter set to send me an SMS for “Breaking News”… because, well, that is what that account should be used for… right?  Well, just after the live show starts, I get a @cnnbrk SMS message saying “Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” wins the Grammy for song of the year”.  And of course CNN kept on broadcasting results all night… because as you know, the results are “Breaking News”.

Well, not that I really care in the end who wins what what award and for what song as I have no stake in the game, nor can I really blame @cnnbrk for announcing the winners, but it kind of made me think of how social media can ruin results for live events for people who watch them on a delayed feed. And to take it a step further, how does social media affect the advertisers who spend a lot of money for commercials during the show especially if people accidentally hear the results and decide not to tune in as a because they heard the winner already.

Recently, the Golden Globes (at least I think it was that show) decided to broadcast live in all time zones… and I thought that to be a smart idea. People had the option, if they so chose, to see it live OR record the program on their DVR and take the chance they may hear something before they got around to watching it. In the end, it was the viewers choice right?

Can you imagine if the NBA, PGA, or hell even the Super Bowl decided to air games based on the same principles the Grammys do… or many other shows for that matter? What if you heard the score to the end of your favorite teams game one or 2 hours before your delayed version ended even ended?

We live in a time, with social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, where you have access to up to the second updates. With people at the event or watching the live feed you can not, unless you live in a cave, escape the information.

In the end, social media did not “ruin” the Grammy Awards for me last night as I mainly tuned in for the performances anyway (Props to Gaga and the Michael Jackson tribute). Also, I did record it on my DVR and ended up fast forwarding through as many commercials as I could, so maybe my concern for the advertisers is mute… or at least as as it relates to me.

What is your opinion? Should television networks change their thinking when it comes to broadcasting live events like the Grammy Awards? Or am I just off my rocker?

Would love to have your comments below!

Until next time…

Doc

(PS: @cnnbrk you annoy me. please only use that account for “Breaking News”. If you must, use an entertainment account on twitter for these types of updates. You are losing trust as far as I am concerned with that account… break it up a bit. @CNNSports @CNNEnt or in this case @CNNSpoilers. I have invited you into my mobile phone for SMS updates… do not abuse it! Besides, every time I get an SMS from you, all I can think about is Wolf Blitzer saying “Please Stand By”… too bad I can not associate a ring tone of him saying that to the tweet SMS messages I get from you. Hehehe)

(PS2: Networks… get with the times as they are a changing! How about The Grammys LIVE actually LIVE everywhere next year?)

Okay, now I am really done… Doc

“Boldly go” to your Cinema and see Star Trek NOW!

Anyone who knows me, and now for those who do not, I am a HUGE fan of Star Trek, and the Star Trek Universe. 

When I heard they were making a new Star Trek movie I was both excited and concerned, especially when I heard it was to be a re-boot of The Original Series (TOS) characters. But after seeing the movie 2 times now, I must say that any worries I may have had have been erased. This is one incredible and fresh re-boot of the Star Trek franchise!

Chris Pine did a superb job as Jim Kirk, and Zachary Quinto did a truly amazing job as Spock, but one of my favorite characters by far was “Bones” played brilliantly by Karl Urban. Karl summoned the spirit of DeForest Kelly (TOS Bones) probably better than anyone else in the film. However I am glad that not every actor did not try to pull of an exact replica of the original character.

I loved the way the Enterprise looked both inside and out, and the special effects were stunning. This is a movie you want to see in a large theatre with superior sound as the sound effects were great. The new warp sound is something that you will feel in your seats… so hold on tight cadets!

My son asked me after the movie what my favorite part of the movie was… and it is really hard to say. But quite possibly my favorite moment was the opening sequence when we first see the U.S.S Kelvin, and Kirks father George Kirk (played heroically by Chris Hemsworth) take his 12 minute command of the ship, given to him by Captain Robau (played by Faran Tahir), while attempting to save as many crew members, including his pregnant wife Winona Kirk (played by Jennifer Morrison from TV’s House) from the Romulan we come to know as Nero (played by Eric Bana). The battle sequence with Jim Kirk being born, crew escaping, and collision course set by George Kirk all backed with an incredible musical score was just fantastic, dramatic and moving.

I had many other favorite moments, too many to list here, and I do not want to give anything else away. But I will say I really enjoyed Simon Pegg as Scotty, Bruce Greenwood was awesome as Captain Christoper Pike, Zoe Saldana brought a very sexy presence to the role of Uhura, and John Cho (of Harold and Kumar fame) brought a nice kick ass presence to Hikaru Sulu!

But what kind of Star Trek fan would I be if I did not mention the return of the Original Spock, Leonard Nimoy? How awesome was it to see Leonard reprise his role in this film. I was worried it may turn out a bit hokey, but was I ever wrong. Having Nimoy in this film made it just that much better.

What I found amazing, and really did not think would happen, was the instant chemistry between the new faces of the characters we have grown to love over the years. Granted, it is a prequel, and the development of the cast and characters they play will only get better in time, I was thrilled to have the feeling of slipping into a familiar place, and see the interaction between the cast. Star Trek, while very exciting and gritty, still made room for some of our favorite comedic moments. J.J. Abrams did a great job sprinkling in these humorous tidbits all while keeping the flow of the movie moving in the right direction.

The Enterprise itself is as much of a Character in the movie as anyone else… and J.J. Abrams did a great job with the new look of the Flagship of the fleet! Some fans are complaining a bit about a few parts of the ship, with the biggest issue  being the engine room. For me, I love the new engine room, and I loved the entire design of the ship. A couple of other aspects I enjoyed in regards to the Enterprise were seeing the docking bay for all the shuttle craft, as well as seeing the new turret guns that are affixed to the saucer section of the Enterprise. Very cool if you ask me!

If I had any complaints, or at least pondering moments of concern they would be the following:

- How the hell do they get the Enterprise off of Earth and to space dock? (silly I know) but I want to know dammit!

- The 2+ hour movie seemed rushed and went by amazingly fast! I would have loved to see another 30 minutes or so giving a bit more screen time for some additional back story. Here’s to hoping for some additional scenes on the DVD.

- I am was a little bummed at how the alternate universe timeline has taken shape. Allow me to elaborate…

As a fan of Star Trek, and looking back at the “History of the Future” as we have all become to know it – it has all now been changed. The first time I walked out of the movie, (while still thoroughly enjoying it with a huge smile on my face mind you), I felt a little miffed that J.J. Abrams did this. But after seeing it again I said to myself… “Who Cares? This movie ROCKED!”

While most alternate timeline episodes of the TV Shows eventually came back to the appropriate timeline, this time it is not going to happen folks, and I am OK with that and you should be too! The Star Trek franchise needed this reboot, and now all future movies can have a fresh take on story lines… and who knows, maybe a new television series as well?

Personally, I can not wait for the next Star Trek movie… and I hope it comes out soon! From what I hear there are going to be at least 2 of them!

So, until the next movie arrives, I will be seeing this in the theatre a few more times… especially excited to see Star Trek in IMAX. 

I am giving Star Trek 4 out of 4 stars!

What is your take on the new Star Trek movie? Did you like it? Did you find the hidden Tribble? 

Leave your comments below, I would love to hear back from you!

I LOVE Twitter – Love it! I love the whole Internet “social” scene, and let me tell you one more reason why.

Last night I came home from my sons football dinner, I was full of pizza as if it was Thanksgiving, tired and was about to go to bed early when all of a sudden I get a Tweet via @calilewis to my iPhone to join her for a live online convert on Ustream.

I was intrigued, and decided why not go check it out to see what Cali is talking about. I arrived to the stream looking at a guy by the name of Geoff Smith playing his guitar in his home and singing. At first I was wondering what the heck, what’s the fuss all about? That question only lasted about two minutes as I just sat back and enjoyed the music Geoff was performing.

Geoff is one talented individual, he went from playing the guitar to the piano, singing any song people in the chat room asked for, and in my opinion he sang most of the songs as good if not better than the originals.

The vibe I had initially was feeling as if I was in a dueling piano bar, you know 2 guys rocking the pianos playing anything you can think of by request, but there was only one guy, a piano and a guitar! I guess where the vibe came in from was in watching and participating in the chat room. People were giving cyber tips in his cyber jar as they requested music, and cyber clapping and singing along in the room all while I was tapping my feet and singing along to most of the songs he was performing. 

I found myself watching Geoff for at least an hour… and as he was performing I was sending tweets out trying to get as many people there as possible to see this amazing artist perform live! @calilewis was doing her best to get 1000 people to watch the stream live and I was tweeting to help in the effort and I know brought a couple of people to the stream. At most however, I think there was around 300 people watching, but 300 people to perform in front of is a concert in my eyes… and this was online!

Geoff did a great job playing to the camera making you feel as if you were right there in the room with him. He even did some fun sound effects with his voice during a few performances that seriously made me laugh out loud.

Anyway, I just wanted to give a shout out to @calilewis who is one of my favorite pod-casters over at www.geekbrief.tv and say thanks for sending the tweet inviting to the stream, and a huge thanks and mad props to Geoff Smith himself for putting on a great show! I can not wait to watch him perform again! In fact, I read in the room he is doing a Christmas concert online… that should be awesome!

Below is an embedded video of his show from last night. Click play, and enjoy!

You can also follow Geoff Smith on his website www.thegeoffsmith.com and on Twitter @geoffsmith

If you get an alert from Geoff or Cali via Twitter he is going live, drop what you are doing and go watch. Trust me, Geoff Smith is so fun to watch live!

Until next post…

- Doc

OK, just so everyone knows right now, I am a big fan of Star Trek. Do I dress up and attend all the conventions? No, I do not, but I love the shows, movies, and the mythology.

One of my favorite things “Trek” was in Las Vegas for the last 10 years residing at the Las Vegas Hilton – The Star Trek Experience.

I attended this attraction many times over the years, and was sad that it was closing on Sept 1, 2008. So my son and I took a last minute road trip to Las Vegas on August 31 to ride the rides and see the decommissioning ceremony the following day.

This trip was especially fun as it was the first time I took my boy to Las Vegas. Since he had always bugged me to take him to see Star Trek The Experience I figured it is now or never. We had a great trip staying at the Hilton and meeting some of the fans who were so much fun to talk with. My boy thought all of what he saw was very cool, and he became more of a fan by the end of our 2 days there. We rode the rides as many times as we could over the day and a half we were there and we were sad when it finally closed to the public and we were not let back on the ride again. But seeing his face when he was “beamed” on to the Enterprise for the first time was absolutely priceless, and we have many great memories of our trip.

Anyway, I always meant to post my review and last memories of that trip on the blog, but I just have not had time. So rather than post about the closure of that stellar attraction, I am happy to write about the news that Star Trek The Experience is coming back to Las Vegas, and portions of the attraction could be open as early as May 2009 to coincide with the release of the new Star Trek movie.

Rumors started about a month ago with the Mayor of Las Vegas, Oscar Goodman, letting the news slip that the attraction is moving to Neonopolis in downtown Las Vegas on Freemont Street. (I was first alerted of this news by my Las Vegas twitter buddy @VegasBill who runs the FineHomesLV.com website)

Since then I have been running Google alerts for Star Trek The Experience (yes I know I sound like a dork), and today in my mailbox, to the delight of my eyes, I see the reopening seems to be confirmed.

In Business Las Vegas reports that Star Trek finds a new home and states that there will be five components to the new attraction that could be completed by next year.

1. Food and Beverage – will be similar but will include significant upgrades. (I hope it remains Quarks Bar!)
2. A museum
3. Shops
4. A 4-D movie theater with high tech seats
5. The Simulators (the ride – most likely updated)

While it is still unclear what will be the same and what will be new, I am fairly sure that if developers are going to spend the money to re-open the attraction, they will do a great job. To do anything less would be a mistake. There are rumors of updated rides with new film footage (much needed) and additional items for the museum as well as a possible re-theme. Time will tell… but I am excited! 

The other two alerts I saw today were from TrekMovie.com and Trek Today. Both sites reports stem from the In Business Las Vages article.

Personally I hope that the cast and crew of the previous attraction at the Hilton are going to be offered new jobs when the casting calls start. These folks who worked there were amazing. They truly made the “experience” an experience for me. From the staff working at Quarks Bar and restaurant who loved working there because they were fans themselves, to the cast that dressed up and played their characters flawlessly day in and day out (check out the Myspace page for Vernon Wilmer aka “Seven of Sixteen” a Borg Drone) . If these great folks have not moved on to new jobs, I sure do hope they return. If they do not however, I am sure the new attraction will have no problem finding new people, fans, to fill the shoes. It sure would be a fun place to work! If only I lived in Las Vegas…

Until next post…

- Doc