Five questions: “The Long Lead Story”
Five questions that popped into my head while re-viewing the fifth Studio 60 episode, “The Long Lead Story”:
1. Didn’t Jack hire Jordan? I think I’ve wondered about this before, but surely she didn’t interview as a subservient lackey and then turn out to be a firebrand. Her brashness would probably have been what got her the job. Shoudn’t Jack expect and tolerate it a little more, instead of looking peeved? Wilson White seems to be at least amused by her, so maybe he hired her.
2. Did Sting get paid for this, or did he pay for the product placement? I can’t think of any other musical guests throughout the season that got such … play in the episode. There was a nice pitch for his lute CD, references to him being a rock god, two performances, a cute bit of bantering with Cal, and the way the mention of his name turned a tough reporter into a giddy schoolgirl. And while we didn’t actually see much of that second performance, his rendition of “Fields of Gold” was a major element in that Matt-Harriet scene, weighting it with romance and melancholy. Compared to all that, guest host Lauren Graham was kind of chopped liver.
3. How long was the lead on that story? Martha went back to the world of politics for two weeks … and never came back again, that I can remember. I don’t recall any mention of her story coming out, either, so maybe the lead time was more than 22 episodes’ worth. She could have had some fun with Danny and Jordan had she made it back.
4. What’s so hateful about Harriet? This character was the focus for a lot of white-hot critical hate when the show was on, but I thought she was particularly charming in this episode. I liked the back-story about her family life, and how she came to both Christ and comedy. I thought she parried pretty well with Martha, certainly better than anybody else. For whatever reason, I’m enjoying the character and Paulson’s performance a lot more this time around.
5. How did Suzanne know about the boot? Matt talked to a different staffer before going to the Roxy, and I didn’t think anybody knew he was going to have a boot signed besides Tom. Since he didn’t actually bring the boot back to the studio, and never gave it to Harriet, how did it become common knowledge? Either Tom was even worse at keeping secrets than we saw here, or Suzanne’s got a connection among the Bombshell Babies.
Studio 60, NBC, The Long Lead Story, commentary
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