Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2009 March 2

= March 2 =

hymn sang in TV movie
While I was watching, "Good Old Boy: A Delta Boyhood," (a.k.a., "The River Pirates,") there was this scene in which Willie Morris, his family, his buddies, their families, Rivers Applewhite, and her family were singing a hymn. Can anyone identify it, please? I'd really appreciate it very much. Thank you.72.229.135.200 (talk) 03:10, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * IMDB doesn't get into that much detail about the movie. Do you remember any of the lyrics? DJ Clayworth (talk) 18:00, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

Music recordings available in 5+ channels
Are there any recordings of symphonies, chamber music, etc. (or for that matter popular music) that employ, say, Dolby 5.1, and if so, in what format are they distributed for playback? Thanks, Birchcliff (talk) 03:47, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * DVD-Audio and Super Audio CD do this on some releases. Tomdobb (talk) 13:36, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * The band Genesis has versions of at least some of their albums on DVD with 5.1 surround. A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 17:23, 3 March 2009 (UTC)

MTV VMAs
Since MTV no longer airs music videos anymore, will they still air the Video Music Awards? If so, how will they nominate videos they don't even show? -- Wh ip it !  Now whip it good! 05:15, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * But MTV does show music videos. I mean, yes, they also show all sorts of horrible crap in addition to them, and way too much of it, but it's not as if their programming across all of their channels excludes all music videos. -- Captain Disdain (talk) 08:33, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Indeed, MTV Hits is an exlusively music-video showing network. --Jayron32. talk . contribs  12:41, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * And the Oscars! How dare ABC televise awards about movies they haven't seen fit to air?  So yeah, bad premise. &mdash; Lomn 16:40, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * My cable company doesn't provide MTV Hits, in addition to the fact I don't live in one of the areas that air the channel. -- Wh ip it !  Now whip it good! 22:07, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Well, apparently they don't plan their programming around what channels specific individuals can receive. In any case, the point is kind of moot, since even basic MTV still airs music videos. I'm not saying that it's a good source for them, you understand, but you can still turn on MTV and catch a music video playing... even if you have to be patient to see it. (And have the constitution to stomach what they show you in the meantime, of course. Hrgh.) -- Captain Disdain (talk) 18:46, 3 March 2009 (UTC)

YouTube
There is a way to watch YouTube videos that aren't available in my country? David Pro (talk) 12:48, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * They normally aren't available for legal reasons, so I don't think it would be appropriate for us to give you advice on how to bypass those restrictions. (It certainly can be done, though - the internet wasn't designed with such things in mind.) --Tango (talk) 13:40, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Google returns plenty of hits for what you requested. BigDunc  Talk 19:24, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

What's that Late 80s Rap Song with the Electronic Voice?
What's the name of the song/artist of that rap song from the late 1980s where the rapper's voice is heavily altered to sound electronic. Sorry I can't give be more specific than that, but the song was very popular (at least here in the US) and still gets played on the radio today. The rapper's voice appeared to be male. A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 15:39, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * I wouldn't call it rap, but you may be thinking of Electric Avenue. Friday (talk) 15:56, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Electric Avenue (song) (disambiguation)


 * No, it's not the Eddy Grant song. It would be late 80s (maybe even early 90s, but before gangsta rap took over the genre).  The rapper's voice is electronically altered for the whole song to sound like a robot.  It's definitely rap (not singing).  I want to say the lyrics might have include "move your body from left to right" and maybe "[something] [something] in the house tonight". A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 16:18, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Wait, I found it. It's called "Don't Stop The Rock" by Freestyle. Once I started remembering the lyrics, I was able to Google it. A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 16:20, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

US TV cable drama/comedy featuring a manager/agent for athletes ?
I believe the name of the show is the agent's last name. This should be an easy one. The name is on the tip of my tongue but I just can't quite spit it out, and I'm hoping to use the Ref Desk as my personal expectorant. StuRat (talk) 15:51, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Arliss. Tomdobb (talk) 15:59, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Yep, that's it. Thanks. StuRat (talk) 05:18, 3 March 2009 (UTC)

Academy Awards cost
Having watched the glitz and glamor of the Oscars---

Who pays for the award ceremonies? The carpet, lights, dancers, singers, host fee, the cost of the statuettes, all of the giant lavish production---it looks exorbitanly costly!!

Does the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have enough money for all that? Do the nominees (all those rich hollywooders) kick in money for it?192.136.22.5 (talk) 19:13, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Advertisers pay ABC for time, ABC pays AMPAS for the rights and that's about the long and short of it. Tomdobb (talk) 19:38, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

Televised Live!
What do shows/professional games do during commercials?

Pro-Sports and award ceremonies are usually (correct me if I'm wrong) televised live, so when the show cuts to commercial, what the heck are the people in these award shows/sports games doing?!

Do they just keep going and thus end up several minutes ahead of the feed? Do they stop and wait?192.136.22.5 (talk) 19:19, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * The games typically stop, making use of a television timeout. - EronTalk 19:21, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Ideally the network would make the effort to run commercials at natural stoppages (penalty calls, timeouts, change of sides), but yeah, if not that.. television timeout. On an award ceremony, this is probably when a lot of set change/costume change/etc take place. The audience in either case though is probably just waiting. Tomdobb (talk) 19:37, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * In games like cricket and football, they certainly don't just stop. They keep going, and the viewers miss those couple of minutes (miss it live, that is).  If anything significant happens in the game during the ad break, we only get to see it as a very recent historical event.  --  JackofOz (talk) 20:50, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Does anything significant ever happen in cricket? - EronTalk 20:51, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * I was waiting for that. Cricket does not need me to be its champion.  It has millions of addicts all over the world. ("For those who understand, no explanation is necessary.  For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible".)  But seriously, they sometimes put on an ad break during a crucial part of the game, where the result could go either way, such as where the bowling side only has to get one more wicket to win and the batting side only has to get 6 more runs to win.  And often, when we come back after the ad break, it's all over and the celebrations are already in full swing - and we missed the whole thing because it was more important for us to know about a wonderful hair colouring product or a carpet retailer's MASSIVE sale or the next UNMISSABLE episode of god-knows-what ALL NEW soap opera.  Damn TV stations!  --  JackofOz (talk) 21:09, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * I think the problem is that they are required to hold a break during a certain period, and at the beginning of that period the game is really exciting so they don't hold it, and then it just gets more and more exciting and they are less and less willing to take the break and then eventually they have to do it right at the end of the period once the game has reached an extremely exciting point. If they just ripped the plaster off straight away, it would be better. I guess they are hoping the game will end before they have to show the ads. --Tango (talk) 22:56, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * We no longer have proper televising of cricket in this country, but surely where they do they could put the ads on between overs. DuncanHill (talk) 22:51, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * This is what Channel 4 used to do when they broadcast the Test matches. They cut to a short ad break between overs, and we never missed a ball.  --Richardrj talkemail 23:02, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * There isn't very long between overs, though, and adverts seem to be getting longer and longer (individual ones, not just the breaks), so maybe there isn't time for a full advert between overs any more? --Tango (talk) 23:09, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * The time between overs depends on whether pace bowlers or spinners are bowling, among other things. If it's the former, then there should definitely be enough time for a short advert or two.  If airtime was available between overs, ad companies would make shorter ads to fit the time.  C4 didn't use to show ads at every change of ends, either, just some of them. --Richardrj talkemail 23:15, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Televised soccer, even in ad-crazy North America, normally runs without a break during play, then has a big chunk of adverts, then the half-time discussion, then another big chunk of ads.
 * On a related note, I was once watching a wrestling match on Italian television and they literally had tiny ad breaks during the action. A guy would be thrown, then as he was getting up a one-second ad would be run! Of course this was professional wrestling, so the TV company probably had the script and could judge when an gap was coming. DJ Clayworth (talk) 22:47, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

In the U.S., except for soccer/football, the game action usually stops for a commercial. Some examples of how this is done: I suspect you are thoroughly confused now! — Michael J  23:42, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Baseball: Commercials are only shown during natural breaks in the action, so nothing is missed. There are breaks between every half-inning, so that is plenty of commercials. Also, whenever a new pitcher is brought in, there is time for a commercial — sometimes one tailored to that activity. (For example: "This call to the bullpen is brought to you by Verizon," suggesting facetiously that the manager is calling the bullpen on a Verizon phone.)
 * Football (American): Commercials are shown between every quarter when the teams change end zones; after every time a team scores; after every time a team gives up the ball to the other team; and every time a team calls a time-out. During all of these times, the clock is not running so no action is missed. At NFL games, there is a guy from the TV network in a bright orange vest who walks out onto the field when a commercial is on. The referee knows to not start the game again until the guy walks off the field. (The TV networks pay big money for the rights to the games, and this is part of the agreement with the league.)
 * Basketball: Between periods, of course. Plus whenever a team calls a time-out. In college basketball, teams are allowed fewer time-outs during televised games because the TV network gets to take some of its own. In the NBA, teams are required to take time-outs at certain intervals. If they don't do so in the natural course of the game, the referee does it for them. For both, there is a guy on the sideline with a signal of some kind to alert the referee.
 * Hockey: In the NHL, television timeouts are taken at the first stoppage of play after 6, 10, and 14 minutes of each period unless there is a power play, or the first stoppage is the result of a goal. In these cases, the timeout will occur at the first stoppage after the penalty expires or the next stoppage after the goal, respectively.


 * Until sometime around 1970, the NHL did not allow television timeouts. Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts still showed commercials during each period; they normally started at a stoppage in play but might continue into the following play.  But you still didn't miss anything that happened during the commercials: the trick was that the only commercials allowed during a period were outline animations, so the action was visible behind them.  Only the commentary was interrupted, since the commercial did have a soundtrack.  --Anonymous, 06:08 UTC, March 3, 2009.


 * In my experience (as a member of the Georgia Tech Marching Band (go Jackets!)), in College football, during televised games, there's a man from the network in a red polo shirt on the sidelines, who stands on the fields during breaks, and returns to the sideline after the break.  Evan ¤  Seeds  05:51, 3 March 2009 (UTC)

Billboard #1
I was listening to Falco's awesome song "Rock Me Amadeus", when a thought occurred to me. This song is almost entirely in german, but it reached #1 on the US Billboard chart.

Are there other songs that can say the same thing, either entirely in a foreign language, or at least, mostly?24.147.169.216 (talk) 23:27, 2 March 2009 (UTC)


 * "99 Luftballons" by Nena. — Michael J  23:52, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Unfortunately this only made #2 and was the English language version of the track. Nanonic (talk) 00:28, 3 March 2009 (UTC)
 * The article says the German version was #2 in the USA (in the UK the English version was #1). --Maltelauridsbrigge (talk) 11:54, 3 March 2009 (UTC)
 * La Bamba (song) cheers, 10draftsdeep (talk) 00:01, 3 March 2009 (UTC)


 * See also List of Hot 100 (U.S.) chart achievements and trivia. Nanonic (talk) 00:26, 3 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Falco also had a hit with Der Kommissar in the US. Our article says it only reached #72 but it still gets played on the radio even today. A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 04:06, 3 March 2009 (UTC)
 * That was also an English-language version, though. I don't know how high "Monsoon" made it on the charts, but apparently someone told Tokio Hotel too that if you want your song to be popular in the U.S. it has to be in English. —Angr 11:10, 3 March 2009 (UTC)
 * It was the After the Fire version of Der Kommissar that was a bigger hit in the U.S. If you hear it on the radio today, it is almost certainly that one and not the Falco one. --Jayron32. talk . contribs  02:51, 5 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Du hast was a popular song in the US. The lyrics were in German. 10draftsdeep (talk) 15:02, 4 March 2009 (UTC)

Elvis Presley's version of "Wooden Heart" (partially, but not wholly, in German) was a number-one in the UK. Deor (talk) 16:04, 4 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Oops, and I see that Joe Dowell's version of the same song did hit number one on the U.S. Billboard chart. Deor (talk) 01:41, 5 March 2009 (UTC)

Sukiyaki by Kyu Sakamoto is, I believe, the only Japanese language song to hit the top of the charts in America. Phileas (talk) 20:40, 5 March 2009 (UTC)