New Year's Eve not so rockin' without Dick Clark

January 1, 2005

New Year’s Eve is that special night when we resolve to do better, to be better, and to finally get an appointment with Dick Clark’s plastic surgeon.

Sadly, this year the ball dropped in Times Square without Clark. Instead, we got Regis. Yes, that Regis.

I never thought I’d miss Dick Clark. But New Year’s Eve without him is like Christmas without Santa Claus. Philbin tried his best, but Clark’s shoes are big ones to fill. And Regis hawking his new CD does not a happy new year make.

Clark’s absence left the Rockin’ Eve well, not so rockin’, until Billy Idol hit the stage for a kicking performance of White Wedding, that transported me back to 1982 and reminded me of my leg-warmer fetish and fascination with Bo and Luke Duke.

Ashlee Simpson sang, too. I enjoy Simpson’s music. But perhaps she should always use the background tracks when singing live and dancing hard.

We did get to see some flashbacks of Clark from the past 32 years’ celebrations, possible proof that he may indeed have an aging portrait in his attic.

In honor of the new year, I’ll spare you my TV resolutions. They never last past the second week of January anyway. Instead, here are the best reasons in television to look forward to 2005:

• Jimmy Smits could be the next president on The West Wing. And if he isn’t, Hawkeye Pierce may be. You gotta love those odds.
• John Stamos’ new sitcom Jake in Progress debuts. Yeah, I’ve still got it bad for Uncle Jesse.
• Finding out who The Carver is on Nip/Tuck. Frankly, I’m baffled.
• Getting some answers to the Lost mysteries. Are these folks really in purgatory? What is the deal with that scary monster? Are the whispers in the woods human voices?
• The return of Summerland. I got hooked on this family show last summer and can’t wait to see what happens with Ava and the gang.
• Maybe this is the year I’ll finally understand DVI-HDTV Interface, rear-projection, LCD, plasma enhanced, wide screen, flat screen, HDMI interface, blah, blah, blah technology enough to buy a new TV and upgrade my 1993 25-inch tube job. Who am I kidding?
• The new show Eyes. One of my favorite Melrose Place vixens returns to primetime in this new show. Welcome back Sydney. And Wings’ Tim Daly is also on board. It looks good.
• Hopefully, Dick Clark will return to rock New Year’s Eve.
  
  Originally published 1/5/05 in The Exponent Telegram newspaper.

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