Hollywood--In
one of the most heart-warming developments in the history of the Emmy Awards, the
Palin Family last night won for Best Documentary with “We Love Sarah” detailing
the lives of the Alaskan clan whose experiences have captured the rapt attention of
so many.
The award
was accepted by Sarah Palin and her entire family. In an acceptance speech, the unsuccessful
vice-presidential candidate in the 2008 election gave gracious thanks to the
members of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences suggesting the Emmy
would not have been possible were it not for “my reference to knowledge of
foreign affairs being based on being
able to see Russia.” The statement was
made during what is now known as the Katie Couric Interview, a decisive factor
in the election.
As TV devotees
know, Palin’s campaign comment inspired the fertile mind of famed TV director Jocko
Reel. Reel’s first job in television was
as production assistant on the hugely successful “An American Family” on PBS in
1973. The 12-part series became a TV
sensation when a camera crew gained 24-7 access to the highly dysfunctional
Loud family of Santa Barbara, California. As Reel tells it: “Wham--Lightening struck a
second time with the Palin family. Only
in show business. Only in America.”
Many
industry insiders believe “We Love Sarah” owes its origins not only to the Loud
family but, also, to the title character in “I Love Lucy,” a mega
hit under various titles that provided the capstone of Lucille Ball’s remarkable
career. “That ‘Half-Baked Alaska’ episode
was probably the funniest I ever directed,” said Reel. The show he referenced had Sarah along with fishing
/hunting pal Kamchatka (“Kammy”) working in a baked Alaska emporium featuring a
dessert assembly line of monumental challenges. Regular viewers may recall the idea for the Half-Baked Alaska Emporium
came from Sarah’s husband, genial First Dude Todd. The installment immediately followed one involving
manufactured igloo ice blocks for lazy Eskimos. Fans of “We Love Sarah” and, indeed, all of America, witnessed the
dramatic backlash created midway through the season by what Eskimos regarded as
a politically incorrect depiction of Alaskan originals. Alaska sets-in-use numbers, according to
Nielsen, plummeted 48% to 17,498 following the controversial show and ratings continued
to languish the rest of the season.
Sarah Palin,
interviewed following her television triumph, had some provocative thoughts
about her victory. “Nearly everyone
thought I was just a born-again, moose hunting, Troopergating, fly fishing,
never-been-there, dog-sledding, back-packing, book-banning, hockey mom. Now, look at me. Motion pictures are calling, Revlon is after
me to endorse Pit Bull Lipstick and McDonald’s wants me for commercials about
Sarah Moosebergers. Who needs the White
House?”
Palen’s innate modesty likely prevented her
from commenting on a highly lucrative tie-in with Masses of Passes Glasses
whose product has put to rest the old Dorothy Parker line about men who “never
make passes at girls who wear glasses.”
Palin’s
comments were offered between dancing enthusiastically to “Doin’ the Wasilla,” the terpsichorean
craze that started in Alaska before sweeping into heretofore quiet enclaves of the
Pacific Northwest including Bellingham, WA, a community often referred to as
The City of Subdued Excitement. Purists
of the dance obsession, which pays homage to Palin’s book-banning attempts
while mayor of the small Anchorage suburb, insist dance floor gyrations be
performed while holding a book over one’s head. Book selection is an individual matter with only the Bible considered in
poor taste.
Still
governor in spite of an exhausting show business schedule, Palin was questioned
about her looming film career. Indicating she has been approached to star in an original story whose
working title is “Juno in Juneau.” Palin described the plot as a “teen-age
pregnancy amid all the poignant laughter surrounding the obstetric developments
that such an event creates.”
Asked about her
favorite “We Love Sarah” episode, Palin proffered a preference for “Sarah Goes
North,” a spin-off of sorts arising out of “Sarah Walks to Russia” in which she
creates political tensions by criticizing Russian cooking and suggesting moose
stew is much better--particularly among Alaska’s nabobs of haute cuisine. The unforgettable “Sarah Goes North” may be
recalled by viewers as this past year’s Christmas show inspired by a comment
parallel to the memorable one about how geographic proximity makes her some
sort of expert on Russia. Lynchpin of “Sarah
Goes North” is a Palin statement suggesting that “the North Pole is so near it
gives me an intimate closeness to Santa Claus.” As viewers know, the show set in Santa’s Palace includes a Hugh
Hefner-like fireman’s pole enabling Santa transport from his round bed to an Icicle
Bar; it set an all-time Nielsen record among rabbit-eared, cable-connected,
Dish-dispatched, Comcast-conductive, Direct-delivered U.S. homes.
Then there
are Palin’s book deals that include a How To epic about the vicissitudes of
sexual engagement in cold climates. Titled: ”Guv Love or How to be a Hero in Zero,” the soon-to-be-published
book is full of creative ways to deal with such problems as what to do when
there aren’t enough blankets to go around. A great many of Palin’s solutions were gained through personal
experiences, according to word around Anchorage. Brisk sales are predicted for such countries
as Finland, Greenland and Iceland in addition to Alaska. A Russian language version is anticipated
although distribution will be limited to Eastern Siberia and such communities
as Bymyakan and Dweieyecmibunsov near Murmansk. Both have registered temperatures approaching -90 degrees.
Palin’s
people are working out details that would make possible the inclusion of a CD of
Best Cold Weather Songs including Alice Ghostley’s New Faces of 1952 paean to “Fairbanks,
Alaska” and whose lyrics bring heartfelt understanding to those who live
there. It’s difficult to forget the last
lines of the song: You’ll wake and you’ll discover, a polar bear’s your
lover….in Fairbanks, Alaska
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