Watching The View

I thought about making this a gradual thing and sort of petering off my involvement with this site, but then I decided it was better to just pull off the band-aid and be done.

As of today, I am leaving Watching the View.

Now before your minds start churning with ideas of corporate take-down or external pressure, you should know that this decision was all mine. I have just reached the point where I don’t like having to watch The View or write about it or even think about it.

When I started this site in January 2007, it was for one specific reason: Rosie O’Donnell had made the show the very essence of must-see-TV. And not because of the “feuds” or the arguments, but because she is one of the most engaging personalities in the world of television and she does not hesitate to give her (real, honest, not spoon-fed or prefabricated) views.

After her departure, I stayed with this site after some hesitation, mostly because I enjoyed the community that had been created here. Because of you. That and because I really thought that The View would get better than it was in the initial wake of her absence. Two years later I am still waiting.

The show unfortunately has been extremely predictable and a caricature, with each host fitting in her pigeon-hole saying things we expect them to say, whether they truly believe it or not. When I think of the show I no longer think about anything positive, but dwell on Whoopi Goldberg’s disinterest in the guests, whining about taxes and running out on the stage to steal food in EVERY FOOD SEGMENT, the fact that Joy Behar does not even write the stale one-liners she is so fond of and cannot stop telling Monica jokes, the fact that Barbara Walters might no longer be remembered for being a TV icon, but rather for being that aging journalist who has stayed on way too long and doesn’t realize that she is embarrassing herself, Sherri Shepherd spending the majority of the time she speaks talking about how she needs a man when really she needs to be focusing on loving herself and determining what is truly important to her and not letting her religion or others tell her what to believe, and Elisabeth Hasselbeck . . . well she never did have any bright spot for me to begin with. The joy in View-ville is long gone and I do not think it is coming back.

Although the amount of money I make on this site is a barely minimum wage level given the amount of time I have to put into it, I have stuck with it anyway because of a desire to maintain the community and because others seemed to enjoy it more than I did.

Most of you have no idea what goes on behind-the-scenes, but running this blog is no easy feat. I have tried not to care about keeping the peace, not bother weeding out the negativity, ignoring all the hate e-mail and bickering, but I just cannot become detached enough from the blog because I know that what others write can affect many of you negatively and I do not want that.

I know that many of you will be saddened to have lost this place to vent, communicate, and share ideas. You are welcome to continue to post here, although I do not know if they will be hiring a new writer. You can also post comments at my other View blog which will remain up for now, although I won’t be posting there either. (I will be re-posting this entry there as well in case the powers that be here take this down for some reason).

While I am certain those at ABC who are aware of this little blog are happy to see me go because it means more people have to actually watch the show to know what happens on it, I hope that you all think about whether you need The View in your lives anymore. There are many other ways you can spend your time that will be healthier, more enlightening, or at the very least more entertaining.

Thank you all for your support over the years. My e-mail address is: winnieblogs @ gmail.com

Sometimes it can be difficult to break away from something that as been a part of your life for so long, even if that thing is no longer good for you. If you want to stop watching The View, reading about the The View and talking about The View, try one of these things for an alternative way to spend your time. I know that I will be trying out a few of them myself.

1. Write a letter to a friend or family member that you haven’t spoken to for awhile.

2. Go to the library or read a book you have at home that you haven’t gotten around to reading.

3. Look into something online you always wanted to learn about, but didn’t have the time for.

4. Think of something you could invent. I have often heard of the best inventions are improvements on existing products, so that might be a good place to start.

5. Go through your closet and pull out clothes to donate to charity. Then actually follow through and donate. There are organizations that will even come by and pick up the items.

6. Go for a walk. Even just around the block.

7. Call or IM a friend and discuss your own hot topics.

8. Find another show on television and give it a try. Who knows, it might be something you like more than The View.

9. Bake, Craft, or Cook something new.

10. I know this site has a lot of passionate, intelligent, and insightful readers. Focus that and use it to change the world, change something in your town, or maybe just something in your life. It is clear that ABC and the folks at The View aren’t going to change their ways, despite how reasoned your analysis and suggestions to them happen to be. Find a cause you believe in, put all your energy into it and just imagine how much you can accomplish.

11. Relish in the calmness that you feel now that you are no longer being annoyed by [insert here the host(s) name who annoys you]. It does indeed feel like a weight has been lifted.

Monday, May 20: Day of “Hot Topics”; former Minnesota Governor and one-time professional wrestler Jesse Ventura

Tuesday, May 19: Day of “Hot Topics”; Elizabeth Edwards (author, Resilience)

Wednesday, May 20: Day of “Hot Topics”; Glenn Beck (host, The Glenn Beck Program)

Thursday, May 21: Day of “Hot Topics”; Larry King (host, Larry King Live); stars of SOAPnet’s new original reality series Southern Belles

Friday, May 22: Day of “Hot Topics”; Caroline Manzo, Dina Manzo and Jacqueline Laurita (The Real Housewives of New Jersey); Sharlene Azam (author, Oral Sex is the New Goodnight Kiss)

Today on the May 15th, 2009 episode of The View, the guests are Tom Hanks, Ron Howard and Ayelet Zurer (”Angels & Demons”).

The View, Tom Hanks, Ron Howard and Ayelet Zurer, Angels & Demons, Sherri Shepherd, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Whoopi Goldberg, Barbara Walters, Joy Behar

Today on the May 14th, 2009 episode of The View, the guests are Brooke Shields; Neal McDonough (ABC’s “Desperate Housewives”). My recap will be up later tonight.

The View, Brooke Shields, Neal McDonough, Desperate Housewives, Sherri Shepherd, Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Barbara Walters

Today on the May 13, 2009 episode of The View, the four main hosts were present. There was no comment on where Elisabeth Hasselbeck was yesterday. The first topic was about the Buffalo commuter plane that crashed earlier this year. There are reports that one pilot failed certification, the other was possibly too sleepy, and they were chatting about all kinds of things, per the cockpit tape. Joy Behar said that is why she asks the pilot if they are drunk and have slept and they say yes. Sherri Shepherd joked what are going to say besides that? Apparently the two pilots were talking in a flirtatious way. Sherri said that you would think their moral compass would have stopped them from flying when they were not capable. Elisabeth Hasselbeck said that some of the onus needs to fall on the company and letting them fly when they are tired, etc. She said that they are going to need to make sure they don’t overextend the hours as they are cutting the budget. Whoopi said that for people like her who don’t like to fly, this is not the story you want to hear. Elisabeth said that the specific training that they would have needed would have told them how to put the nose of the plane to prevent the crash.
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Today on the May 12, 2009 version of The View, it was just four hosts, with Elisabeth Hasselbeck absent because she “has the day off.” The teaser they showed prior to the episode makes it sound like it will be a dull day. Barbara Walters was criticized on TMZ because she wore the same dress to the Time 100 Dinner that she wore to the White House Correspondent’s Dinner. Whoopi Goldberg said that she did the same thing. Barbara wore the same dress again last night to a charity event. Joy said “who cares so what,” noting she has wore the same bra for 40 years. Whoopi said that people bitch if you wear the different things every night, so you can’t win.
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Today on the May 11, 2009 episode of The View, the four main hosts were present. The first topic was how Whoopi Goldberg, Barbara Walters, and Sherri Shepherd went to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington DC. Whoopi said “Barack was funny” and retold one of the jokes about his daughters flying Air Force One in NYC. Elisabeth said that they are still looking for a scapegoat for that. Then they retold some other jokes. Elisabeth said his speech was funny on paper (so I guess she didn’t watch it?) Whoopi said that Wanda Sykes may have gone a step too far in telling a Rush Limbaugh joke, which they then played the clip of. Wanda joked that he was the 20th hijacker, but missed his flight because he was on oxycotin, said that because he wants the country to fail she hopes his kidneys fail and added that he needs to be water boarded. Elisabeth said that when the president laughs at a joke like that it is heading into the new McCarthyism because you cannot dissent from the government. Whoopi said that was taking it a bit too far and it was a joke. Elisabeth said that no one uses the word terrorism except to refer to conservatives. Joy wants to know what was so wrong with the joke. Elisabeth said that her job as a comedian is too make people laugh, but when the president laughs it is an endorsement. Whoopi said that he was not guffawing, but smiling. Elisabeth said that she “heard that he enjoyed the joke.” Joy joked that we should have him impeached for laughing. Elisabeth said that she is not speaking in a partisan way and had George Bush laughed at a conservative joke in the past, there would have been anger over that.
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Here are some photos of Sherri Shepherd at the Pajama Program Awards where she presented honoree Susan Lucci with an award on May 8, 2009.

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Here is the schedule for The View for next week, May 11th-15th, 2009, subject to change. I look forward to Lost’s Michael Emerson on Wednesday.
UPDATE: Jorge Garcia, who plays Hurley on Lost, wrote on his blog that he will be joining his co-star Michael Emerson on The View on Wednesday.

Monday May 11th: Day of “Hot Topics”; Steve Harvey; performance from En Vogue. (I still do not understand how it is a “day of hot topics” when they have guests).

Tuesday May 12th: Melina Kanakaredes (”C.S.I. New York”); Maya Rudolph (”Away We Go”).

Wednesday May 13th: Michael Emerson (ABC’s “Lost”); Cheryl Saban (author, “What’s Your Self-Worth?”).

Thursday May 14th: Brooke Shields; Neal McDonough (ABC’s “Desperate Housewives”).

Friday May 15th: Tom Hanks, Ron Howard and Ayelet Zurer (”Angels & Demons”).

Today on May 8th, 2009 episode of The View, the four main hosts were present. The first topic was about how Tom the Warm-Up guy has been a Trekkie since age 12. He used to dress up as Spock for Star Trek conventions. He showed off some of his Star Trek knowledge, which is quite detailed. He said that the only people that make him star struck are Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner, the Pope, and Whoopi Goldberg (which he has had to get over since she has been on the show).

The next topic was about how kids can get birds and the bees through text messages, which I fast-forwarded through because it was boring me.
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Here is the video of Elisabeth Hasselbeck’s appearance on Larry King Live last night, May 6th, 2009, to promote her book The G-Free Diet. In the interview she talks about Elizabeth Edwards, Miss California (the attacks on her are a “witch hunt”), Michelle Obama, what she thinks about the impersonation of her on Saturday Night Live, and, of course, her book about Celiac disease and eating gluten free.

Don’t forget that there is still time to enter to win a copy of Elisabeth Hasselbeck’s book! Click here for the details.

The View, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Larry King Live, G-Free, Gluten Free, Celiac disease, Elizabeth Edwards

Today on the May 7, 2009 episode of The View, all five hosts were present. The first topic was how a cow broke out of a slaughter house and roamed the streets of Queens. They have named her Molly and she will find a home. Barbara Walters was upset by it all and is “more and more becoming a vegetarian.” She said that she was going to take veggie burgers to Washington DC for trip for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner that she and Whoopi are going to. Joy Behar pointed out that Sherri Shepherd is going too. Whoopi said that she is going to have a hamburger. Sherri said that Barbara showed her the article about the cow and then she ordered bacon and eggs for breakfast. Whoopi said that she is going to keep wearing leather, too. Sherri asked about the other cows that did not escape. Elisabeth said that they didn’t run fast enough and earn their freedom. Joy said that the cow is the Arlen Spector of the breed after running away from the party, people like him better now. Barbara said if she had a big back yard, she would let Molly live there. Whoopi said that she would have a BBQ with Molly–not as a guest.
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Here are some more photos of the hosts of The View at the Time 100 dinner. These were posted after I turned in for the night last night. They include the photo of Elisabeth Hasselbeck greeting Michelle Obama that they showed on The View today. The first batch of photos that I posted last night can be found here.

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Here is a video of Joy Behar on Larry King Live last night, Tuesday May 5th, 2009.

The View, Joy Behar, Larry King Live