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A friend whose family recently got a huge flat screen HDTV tells me his father-in-law would like to watch a good Western on it.

My first thought..."What's a 'good' Western?"

Maybe more than most genres, the Western invites argument about what is "good" simply because there are so many awful, garbage Westerns.

I shot my friend this list of what I think are the only 10 Westerns you need. I'd be willing to believe there are as many as a dozen, but off the top of my head I think you're safe with these...

So, it's come to this.

From the ad copy:

"Here's This Season's "Must-Have" iPod Accessory That All The Celebrities in Hollywood Are Clamoring For.

Just fold out the blow wand and exhale into it for at least 5 seconds. 2 seconds later, this amazing tool let's you know if you're within the legal limit to drive. It even houses a timer that can be set from 1 minute up to 8 hours in order to remind you when it's time for the next test."

I'm from the "If you're wondering if you can pass a breathalizer test, don't drive" school myself -- but if potential drunk drivers will listen to their iPods and realize it's a bad idea to get behind the wheel, I guess it's progress.

From the L.A. Times obit:

A religious woman in her later life, Page was mystified by her influence on modern popular culture. "I have no idea why I'm the only model who has had so much fame so long after quitting work," she said in an interview with The Times in 2006.

"I want to be remembered," she said, "as I was when I was young and in my golden times. . . . I want to be remembered as the woman who changed people's perspectives concerning nudity in its natural form."

So in the trailer for the new Wolverine movie the X-Men's most badass (and most overly exposed) mutant meets Gambit, gets punched by a morbidly obese boxer (The Blob?) and fights Liev Shreiber as Sabretooth?

If you're anything like me then TV Christmas specials are one of the highlights of your holiday season. Not just seasonal favorites like How The Grinch Stole Christmas but the holiday episodes of your favorite shows.

WFMU's website has posted a list of classic TV Christmas specials and where you can see them online for free.

The list is terrific and has everything from I Love Lucy's 1956 Christmas special to The Jeffersons Christmas specials from 1976-1978. In between: Andy Griffith, The Brady Bunch, The Beverly Hillbillies, Bob Newhart, Mary Tyler Moore, The Twilight Zone, Taxi, Sesame Street and even The Price is Right.

One of my personal favorites: the 1978 Taxi Christmas special.

Variety reports that MTV will launch 16 new reality TV shows -- this time a little more cuddly than what we might be used to.

"Our new shows will feature themes of affirmation and accomplishment," says Brian Graden, prez of entertainment at MTV Networks music channels and president of Logo. "Our shows are going to focus less on loud and silly hooks and more on young people proving themselves. These are themes that are consistent with the Obama generation."

I'll be interested to see what comes of this new direction. MTV pioneered reality television with The Real World a generation ago. But the earnest exploration of people trying to understand each other's world view has mostly been replaced by binge-drinking, boob-flashing partiers. I can only watch so many fist fights and fake interventions. That's so 1999, Real World: Hawaii-style.

Graden may be on to something with this new affirmation approach. I prefer shows like MADE, which helps a teenager transform into whatever they want to be. They've turned sissies into BMXers, geeks into beauty queens, fatties into models. It's a nice and seemingly -- for reality TV anyway -- genuine take on the makeover show.

Now let's see if shows like that can really draw an audience.

Can't wait one more second for this abysmal 2008 to end?

Well, I am afraid you don't have any choice.

From our friends at the NYT:

On New Year’s Eve, the international authorities charged with keeping precise time will add a single second to our lives. It will be the 24th “leap second” since 1972, and the first since 2005.

If that doesn’t sound like a big deal, consider that in one second a cheetah can dash 34 yards, a telephone signal can travel 100,000 miles, a hummingbird can beat its wings 70 times, and eight million of your blood cells can die.

I plan to spend my New Year's thinking up things that humans can do in one second. Any ideas?