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The Greatest Hits Of 'The Platinum Age Of Television'
This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. I can't think of anyone who knows more about TV history than our own TV critic David Bianculli. He's just written a new book called "The Platinum Age Of Television: From I Love Lucy to The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific." It's a genre-by-genre history discussing the shows that were turning points in dramas, sitcoms, Westerns, children's programs and so on with a list of the big five in each genre. David's brought some of his favorite clips to play for us.
David has been a TV critic for 40 years, including writing for the Philadelphia Inquirer and the New York Daily News. He created the website TV Worth Watching and teaches TV and film history at Rowan University in New Jersey.
David, I'm really excited about your new book coming out. Congratulations, and welcome back to the show...
DAVID BIANCULLI, BYLINE: Oh, thanks. Well, so am I, oddly enough. Yeah, yeah.
GROSS: So let's start with the title "The Platinum Age Of Television." What do you define as the platinum age?
BIANCULLI: Well, it's sort of like taking off of gold records that go to platinum records. It's even better, so platinum age is better than the golden age. Traditionally, the golden age of TV was live television, the best of the Paddy Chayefsky, Rod Serling, Reginald Rose live dramas. And so the platinum age is the stuff since then.
And the interesting thing for me was when does it begin? When do you say the best new age - because I had three different ages in mind. And I ended up with 1999 with...
GROSS: Because...
BIANCULLI: ...The West Wing, one of the last broadcast great shows and "The Sopranos," one of the first great cable shows were both that year.
GROSS: So within each category of television, you have your big five, the shows that were the kind of turning points for that genre in television. So let's start with children's TV, since most of us started watching TV when we were children. What makes your big five?
BIANCULLI: The big five were "The Mickey Mouse Club," "Captain Kangaroo," "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," "Sesame Street," and then you jump all the way to "Pee-wee's Playhouse." That doesn't mean - those aren't the only shows. And in each of these evolutionary chapters, I sort of build up to one of these five and then do the time between the five and sort of make the connections.
GROSS: Well, to illustrate something special about "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," you brought a clip with you.
BIANCULLI: This is my absolute favorite clip maybe from all of television. I mean, imagine how much I must love this clip. This is a real rarity. And it's from the summer of 1968, the year that his program started on public television. And only a couple of months into the run, Fred Rogers went to public TV and asked for a prime-time special, an instant special so he could talk to adults as well as kids. And they said OK.
And so it's this special, and one segment in it has Fred Rogers doing the puppet of Daniel Striped Tiger and talking to Lady Aberlin, Betty Aberlin and asking her to blow a balloon up and then let the air out of the balloon. And you wonder where this is going. It's just this innocuous little conversation. And then it goes somewhere completely unexpected.
GROSS: OK, let's hear it.
FRED ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) Well, what about your air?
BETTY ABERLIN: (As Lady Aberlin) My air inside me?
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) Mhmm. What if you blow all your air out? Then you won't have any left, just like the balloon.
ABERLIN: (As Lady Aberlin) But people aren't like balloons, Daniel. When we blow air out, we get some more back in. Watch, I'll blow air out (blowing up balloon).
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) Oh.
ABERLIN: (Blowing up balloon).
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) What does assassination mean?
ABERLIN: (As Lady Aberlin) Have you heard that word a lot today?
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) Yes, and I didn't know what it meant.
ABERLIN: (As Lady Aberlin) Well, it means somebody getting killed in a sort of surprise way.
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) That's what happened, you know? That man killed that other man.
ABERLIN: (As Lady Aberlin) I know, and a lot of people are talking about it right now.
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) Too many people are talking about it.
ABERLIN: (As Lady Aberlin) A lot of people are sad and scared about it, you know?
ROGERS: (As Daniel Striped Tiger) I'd rather talk about it some other day.
GROSS: So that was the day after Bobby Kennedy's assassination.
BIANCULLI: Yeah. It's unbelievable to me that - that Fred Rogers would be so sensitive that he would think that even preschoolers would be part of the family dynamic where everybody was upset. And, you know, maybe parents wouldn't bother to explain anything to kids that young. But Fred Rogers thought they needed it. But that's just so unexpected to me, and I can't imagine any children's television program today daring to do that.
GROSS: So, David, you brought another clip with you involving Fred Rogers. This is about the creation of public television.
BIANCULLI: Yeah. He was actually testifying before Congress before John Pastore, who was the guy who had led the anti-violence TV hearings. And the question was whether or not the federal government was going to fund PBS to the tune of $20 million. And Fred Rogers went up to testify, and his show had been running for a year. And John Pastore had never seen it. But the more that Fred Rogers described it - and the more that Fred Rogers just acted like Fred Rogers - you know, the way he talked on TV was not an act and wasn't just for children. And again, it's something - this was a live telecast of a hearing by Congress. And it's just fascinating to hear.
GROSS: Let's hear it.
(SOUNDBITE OF 1969 SENATE SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS HEARING)
ROGERS: I'm constantly concerned about what our children are seeing. And for 15 years I have tried in this country and Canada to present what I feel is a meaningful expression of care.
JOHN PASTORE: Do you narrate it?
ROGERS: I'm the host, yes. And I do all the puppets and I write all the music and I write all the scripts.
PASTORE: I'm supposed to be a pretty tough guy, and this is the first time I've had goose bumps for the last two days.
ROGERS: Well, I'm grateful, not only for your goose bumps but for your interest in our kind of communication. Could I tell you the words of one of the songs which I feel is very important?
PASTORE: Yes.
ROGERS: This has to do with that good feeling of control, which I feel that children need to know it's there. And it starts out, what do you do with the mad that you feel? And that first line came straight from a child. I work with children, doing puppets in very personal communication with small groups.
What do you do with the mad that you feel, when you feel so mad you could bite, when the whole wide world seems oh, so wrong and nothing you do seems very right? What do you do? Do you punch a bag? Do you pound some clay or some dough? Do you round up friends for a game of tag or see how fast you go? It's great to be able to stop when you've planned the thing that's wrong and be able to do something else instead and think this song. I can stop when I want to, can stop when I wish, can stop, stop, stop any time. And what a good feeling to feel like this and know that the feeling is really mine, know that there's something deep inside that helps us become what we can, for a girl can be someday a lady and a boy can be someday a man.
PASTORE: I think it's wonderful. I think it's wonderful. Looks like you just earned the $20 million.
GROSS: What a beautiful clip.
BIANCULLI: I love it. I love it.
GROSS: So let's just say that's Fred Rogers testifying at a congressional committee that was responsible for deciding whether to fund public television.
BIANCULLI: Yeah. And I love it because not only is Fred Rogers so honest and open and forthright, but so is Pastore. You know, I mean, to have a politician say, OK, I love this. I have goose bumps, and then you just earned the money - you know, I don't know if it's just a different era or if that was a different feeling, but it's why I love that.
GROSS: And public television was indeed funded and shortly after it was funded, "Sesame Street" premiered on it.
BIANCULLI: Yes. Yes. And so it's all, you know, partly due to that clip, to that poem, to that song.
GROSS: If you're just joining us, my guest is our TV critic David Bianculli, and he has a new book called "The Platinum Age Of Television From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead: How TV Became Terrific." Let's take a short break here and then we'll talk more about TV.
BIANCULLI: Thanks.
GROSS: This is FRESH AIR.
GROSS: If you're just joining us, my guest is our TV critic David Bianculli. He has a new book called "The Platinum Age Of Television From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead: How TV Became Terrific." So two of the genres are family sitcoms, workplace sitcoms and then a third that you have is the split-com which combines the two. So let's just start with the top five of your family sitcoms and your workplace sitcoms.
BIANCULLI: The five big family sitcoms were "I Love Lucy" which really did change everything, and then "All In The Family," "The Cosby Show," "Roseanne" and "Modern Family."
GROSS: And workplace sitcoms - and explain why you split up the two, why that's important.
BIANCULLI: OK. The earliest favorite evolutionary important one I think was "Fawlty Towers" then "Taxi" then "Cheers" then "The Larry Sanders Show" and then "The Office." And, you know, sitcoms in general are such a wide kind of spotlight that you have to narrow it down. And so the ones that take place primarily at work like "Cheers" are a different kind of show than the ones that you think of like "Leave It To Beaver" which are primarily just family-domestic sitcoms.
GROSS: And you coined the term split-com.
BIANCULLI: Yeah, and I don't expect it to catch on, you know, but, I mean...
GROSS: I think it's pretty good.
BIANCULLI: But split-com is like it's half one, half the other, and you think, well, what shows spend time halfway between work and home? And then when you start thinking about them, there are lots of those.
GROSS: So now I'm going to ask you to read your split-com five list.
BIANCULLI: OK. "The Andy Griffith Show," "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "The Bob Newhart Show," "Seinfeld," which is pushing it a little bit, and "Louie."
GROSS: OK. So let's go to "Andy Griffith."
BIANCULLI: OK.
GROSS: You brought a clip from "The Andy Griffith Show." And there's a story behind the clip.
BIANCULLI: Well, there's - the whole idea behind where "The Andy Griffith Show" came from - it was a backdoor pilot from "The Danny Thomas Show" for "Make Room For Daddy." And he just had Andy Griffith come in and play the sheriff of a...
GROSS: He being the producer of "The Danny Thomas Show?"
BIANCULLI: He being - well - yes. Sheldon Leonard was the producer, and Danny Thomas was the star. And their idea was to - they wanted to do a show starring Andy Griffith as a small town sheriff, so they had Danny Thomas' character in his program visit this small town and get stopped in what seemed to be just a traffic trap, you know, a speed trap. And it's a great way to lead. If you're - if you have a TV show and you make a backdoor pilot, you don't have to pay for it. The network is paying you back for that episode of the series.
GROSS: Clever. Right.
BIANCULLI: Where if you start it from scratch, you're putting your money at risk.
GROSS: Interesting. OK. So let's get to the clip that you brought.
BIANCULLI: OK. So the clip that I brought - you have to remember that Andy Griffith - his Andy Taylor was the sheriff of this town the authority figure at work. And then at home, he was a widowed father raising his young son Opie. And so in this clip, Opie had - he had a sling shot, and he killed a bird while just goofing around with the slingshot in the neighborhood. And his dad figured out that that's why Opie was acting so sad at the dinner table - comes up to his bedroom at night and asks for the slingshot and then sort of demands the truth out of him, and he does a bit of parenting that for 1960s TV - this is 1963, this particular episode - I find amazing.
GROSS: Well, let's hear the clip.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW")
ANDY GRIFFITH: (As Andy Taylor) You killed that bird, didn't you? Didn't you? You remember me telling you to be careful with this thing?
RON HOWARD: (As Opie Taylor) I'm sorry, pa.
GRIFFITH: (As Andy Taylor) That won't bring that bird back to life. Being sorry is not the magic word that makes everything right again.
HOWARD: (As Opie Taylor) You going to give me a whippin'?
GRIFFITH: (As Andy Taylor) No. I'm not going to give you a whippin'.
(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS CHIRPING)
GRIFFITH: (As Andy Taylor) Do you hear that? That's those young birds chirping for their mama that's never coming back. Now you just listen to that for a while.
GROSS: Then what happens?
BIANCULLI: Well, then what happens is that Opie, who's played by Ron Howard, decides to take responsibility. And so they take the birds out of the nest, put them in a cage. He feeds them until they're old enough to fly off on their own. So he learns about responsibility. That's an amazing clip to me, you know. And, first of all, it has them talking about, you're going to give me a whippin'? Like that - a totally normal thing to have corporal punishment in the early 1960s. And instead, here's this new type of parenting that Andy Taylor does. And I find it so amazing because it's like I want you to listen to these little babies whose mom is never coming back. You know, he might as well have said, like, your mom is never coming back. I mean, it's heart-rending and there's not a single joke in that whole scene.
GROSS: And did you see that as a child, the episode?
BIANCULLI: Yes.
GROSS: What did it mean to you when you were a child?
BIANCULLI: I loved that show. And this is a little personal, but OK. By the time this show aired in 1963, my mom had died, and I was being raised by my dad as a single parent. So I really related to this show and to that dynamic.
GROSS: Did you get as a child that this was, in part, about being raised without a mother?
BIANCULLI: I do now, when you ask the question. But I think I related to that dynamic and totally understood. And that was the sort of relationship that I had with my dad. I was very fortunate in that way. But that's why I find that so evolutionary, that here was a comedy that not only didn't feel like it had to do three jokes a page - it didn't have to do jokes at all.
GROSS: So let's look at the mini series. Why is the mini series important in terms of the evolution of television?
BIANCULLI: Well, it's sort of what happened to the Golden Age of television drama in terms of live drama and the idea of TV as telling stories that are like novels with beginnings, middles and ends. The mini series in...
GROSS: As opposed to, like, here's an episode.
BIANCULLI: Right. Yes.
GROSS: It wraps up. Here's another episode, it wraps up.
BIANCULLI: Here's another "Columbo," another "Mannix." This was a whole different thing. And it got really big in the '70s and '80s, and then died off. And now it's back. I mean, the whole idea of - they're now called anthology series, and they switch around every single week, so it's kind of like the Golden Age TV drama where anthology series where you had a different episode every week, completely different cast, writer, subject. And then now you have mini series, which go, you know, 10 episodes, 13 episodes and whether it's "American Horror Story" or "Fargo" or, you know, "The People Versus O.J. Simpson" - these are self-contained stories, and you get better cast that way. You get really good writers.
GROSS: Why do you get better casts that way?
BIANCULLI: Because the actors aren't going to commit to seven years, but they'll commit to 13 weeks. You know, it's just like making three or four movies all in a chunk and not much more than a regular movie schedule. And I think television has really become where a lot of the action is right now. And that's reflected in this genre in particular.
GROSS: So what makes your list of the big five in the mini series category?
BIANCULLI: Well, it starts with "Roots," although my history of the mini series goes way before that. And then my personal favorite television show ever made "The Singing Detective" is in there and then "Lonesome Dove," one of the last great Westerns and "The Civil War," a non-fiction but still an incredible mini series by Ken Burns and then "Downton Abbey" which just ended up and went back to one of the first kind of popular mini series "Upstairs Downstairs" and did the same formula all over again.
GROSS: My guest is our TV critic David Bianculli. He's written a new book called "The Platinum Age Of Television From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead: How TV Became Terrific." After we take a short break, he'll tell us about a surprising encounter with Louis C.K., and Maureen Corrigan will review a new collection of essays by the late writer Stanley Elkin. I'm Terry Gross, and this is FRESH AIR.
GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross back with our TV critic David Bianculli. He's written a new book called "The Platinum Age Of Television: From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific." His other books include "Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story Of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour." "The Platinum Age Of Television" is a genre by genre history of TV that also includes David's list of the five most important shows in each genre and his interviews with some of the people who created those shows.
One of my favorite parts of your book That also includes David's lists of the five most important shows in each genre and his interviews with some of the people who created those shows.
One of my favorite parts of your book is this interaction that you have with Louis C.K. because you profile a whole bunch of people who are responsible for some of the shows that you write about in the book. And you have an interview with Louis C.K. that takes a really surprising turn.
BIANCULLI: It was surprising to me, that's for sure.
GROSS: Yeah, so he tells you in the middle of the conversation that he wrote an email to you and you deny ever having received the email. So set this up for us because I want you to read part of the transcript of your interview with Louis C.K.
BIANCULLI: Sure. It was the first interview I'd ever had with Louis C.K., by the way. And we were going through his childhood with all of these profiles. I sort of find out what TV or radio they listened to as kids and what influenced them and then go through their careers. And we were working our way, and we got Louis C.K.'s HBO sitcom, which was called "Lucky Louie." And this was before the FX sitcom "Louie," the workplace sitcom that I love so much.
And when we brought up with that, you know, we started describing it. He started talking about it, and I said, you know, I didn't - I have to be honest - and I didn't really love that show. And he said you hated it. And he goes off on how much he remembers how negative my review was. I didn't remember it being that negative. And again, this is your review of "Lucky Louie," the show that preceded Louie. Yes, when I was a New York critic and had written apparently that - you know, this was back when HBO would renew everything as a show of faith about how it was programming stuff.
And I must have written that I thought that HBO should show its taste by canceling "Louie" just to let us know that they knew that it wasn't that good.
GROSS: So now I want you to read an excerpt of the transcript in which he's telling you about this letter he wrote to you in response to your review suggesting that HBO cancel his series "Lucky Louie."
BIANCULLI: Right. And I said I'd never gotten it. And he said (reading) I wrote it, I wrote you an email and I said I think you've overstepped your responsibility because TV criticism is a great thing when you discuss the content and the intent behind a show and what your opinion is of it. But what you're doing now is talking about people who - I have hundreds of people who work for me. And they're trying to get through the Christmas holidays without getting fired. And so I wrote you this angry letter.
And I say, oh, I never got it. Oh, damn, OK. And he says (reading) you couldn't because I looked at it. It was a very important moment. I read it on the screen in front of me and I thought no, no, no, don't send this. You don't write this. You don't send this. This isn't how to respond to this. This is the water you're in, and this is an exciting time in television. Television is becoming an art form. I remember thinking that. Television is coming into a new place - "The Sopranos." I remember I talked to Norman Lear on the phone when I was making the show - this is still Louis C.K. - (reading) and he talked to me about how when "All In The Family" came out, he was getting killed. But The New York Times wrote, like, a page-long review that kept the show floating. And I knew that this is what it's like. You're being shot at from all angles and you're trying to shoot back, but you're trying to just do your job. It's heavy. It's heavy, heavy fire. And so when I wrote that email and didn't send it, I thought this is part of it. You've just got to defend the show the best you can and it might not survive, and everybody is doing their job. Everybody's got a passionate voice because TV matters now, and you'll see how this turns out.
GROSS: This is just an amazing conversation to have with somebody who you admire so much but gave a bad review to early on.
BIANCULLI: It was chilling.
GROSS: What impact did that have on you?
BIANCULLI: Well, immediately I was like I hope you understand how much I love "Louie," and I hope you felt better when you read those reviews. He goes no, you're missing my point. You know, my point is think of how when you were younger, how much you would have given to have been in the arena talking about the TV you like, just like I would have loved to be in the arena making the TV. It's what we're both doing now, so that's what's important. And I haven't talked to him since, but I treasure having had that conversation. I really do.
GROSS: I think it's a great moment. And I love the fact that he wrote this really angry email and then read it and took a step back and said, no, you don't send this email and that he - that email, instead of sending it to you, it caused him to reflect and to reach a realization about what television has - was becoming and how important it had become in the national conversation and everything. So, yeah, I love that. And on an - on a flip side - well, let me just back up a second. Did it make you think more about the impact your bad reviews have on the lives of the people who make the shows?
BIANCULLI: It's funny because I try to stress being positive. And if I do - I'd rather not write about a show if I hate it that much. So it's always something that I'm drawn to a show before I want to waste my time writing about it or telling people about it. And with "Lucky Louie," he was, like, updating "The Honeymooners." And that was really interesting to me, but I didn't like the way he was doing it. And as it turns out, neither did he because he was writing with a full writing staff and everybody was adding in stuff. And so he decided that if he ever did another show, he was going to be the only writer. And that's how "Louie" came about.
GROSS: So the flip side of that coin is that you tried to save a show. And I'm thinking of "Cheers," which is also - is that in your split-com or workplace category?
BIANCULLI: "Cheers" would be workplace.
GROSS: Oh, OK. So it's a show that you think of as a great show, as a turning point show. But it didn't do well in the ratings when it started.
BIANCULLI: Oh, it did terribly.
GROSS: Yeah, it was kind of at the bottom of the list. And you tried to intervene and save it with this really weird - can I call it a prank? What do I call it?
BIANCULLI: Well, maybe performance art, maybe - maybe '60s radicalism, I don't know. But this was in the early '80s. I was a TV critic at The Akron Beacon Journal, and "Cheers" was the - was actually last one week, dead last in the ratings. It was one of the best shows on TV, and it was being rejected by everyone. And so just because the 1,700 people at the time that were Nielsen families and had these Nielsen ratings boxes attached to their TV sets...
GROSS: This is how ratings were done...
BIANCULLI: At the time. And so there's so many in every city, and that's it. They determine what lives and what dies. So I wrote a column basically inviting any Nielsen family within range of Cleveland, Akron, to come to my house on Thursday nights, and I would let them watch whatever they wanted to watch on my TV. And I would feed them and give them liquor, and all they had to do was to turn their TV sets to NBC before they left so that "Cheers" would get credit and it would stay on the air.
I got two calls the next day. One was from a representative of the AC Nielsen Company threatening to sue me because apparently you can't do that. But luckily under the form of satire, I'm protected as a critic so that's OK. Even if I was serious, I could say I was satirical. And the other - the other thing was that I got a call from Grant Tinker at MTM productions at the time and thanked me for doing that.
GROSS: Did your column, your review have an impact on the survival of "Cheers?"
BIANCULLI: No. Did I not mention that I was an Akron at the time?
GROSS: (Laughter) Oh, but it's a great story.
BIANCULLI: Yeah.
GROSS: One of the many great stories in your new book. And if you're just joining us, my guest is our TV critic David Bianculli. And he has a new book called "The Platinum Age Of Television: From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific." David, let's take a short break here...
GROSS: ...And we'll be right back. This is FRESH AIR.
GROSS: If you're just joining us my guest is our TV critic David Bianculli. And he has a new book called "The platinum Age Of Television From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific." What role did TV have in your life when you were growing up?
BIANCULLI: Jeez, everything. And I sort of had to confront that and discover it in the book. I'd never really been introspective in that way before. But I watched a lot of TV when I was a kid because I was alone a lot as a kid. It's also why I read a lot when I was young. And because my father, after my mom died, was working so many hours a week, I was...
GROSS: Doing what?
BIANCULLI: He was a pharmacist at the time and then a pharmaceutical chemist. But I got to watch a lot of TV and have control of it early. And so I was choosing what it was I wanted to watch, and that was kind of important. And then it ended up being - opening up a world to me that I responded to. I can remember watching things like - did you see Lee J. Cobb in "Death Of A Salesman" when it was on TV?
GROSS: I don't think so.
BIANCULLI: It was - it was a transformative moment to me. I'd never been to New York. I'd never been to a Broadway show. And that meant it was such a powerful performance and play. And I hadn't read "Death Of A Salesman" before, and TV gave me that. And TV made me laugh and TV entertained me, and I ended up going to college to want to be a TV critic at a time when film studies were still new and TV studies were non-existent. And I sort of cobbled together my own major.
GROSS: Did you read TV reviews when you were growing up?
BIANCULLI: Yes. There was a guy in the Miami Herald, Jack Anderson, that I read every morning and Cleveland Amory in TV Guide. And those were the people that let me know that the job - there was a job out there to write about TV.
GROSS: Now, in your interview with Matthew Weiner, who created "Mad Men," he mentions that he wasn't allowed to watch TV by his parents on weekday nights or Sunday nights because it was school the next day and he had to wake up early, plus there was homework. So here's somebody who creates, like, one of the best TV shows, "Mad Men," and he wasn't allowed to watch TV most of the time.
BIANCULLI: Yeah, his relationship - go ahead.
GROSS: And you, it was the opposite because, like, your mother - you know, your mother had died, your father was working. You were alone at home watching TV a lot. And for you, your father was probably happy that you had television for companionship and for something to occupy you while he was out.
BIANCULLI: Yeah. And our favorite...
GROSS: Did you have babysitters?
BIANCULLI: No, no, I was a latchkey kid before there was the term. And my dad and I would watch TV on Sunday nights when he came home, and we would play two out of three games of chess. And whoever won got to control the TV for the night. And - but no matter which one of us won, we both picked "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour." And I ended up...
GROSS: Which you wrote a book about.
BIANCULLI: I ended up writing a book about that. And it all ties together with me. I'm a fairly simple person, and you can sort of trace, you know, not only does everything that I care about eventually show up on TV so I get to write about it, which is why I love being a TV critic, but I think so much of me can be traced to TV. It's kind of - it's kind of simple that way.
GROSS: What were the family TV shows that you watched when you were growing up, and did you relate to them since you didn't have a mother? How - you were 11?
BIANCULLI: I was 10 when she died.
GROSS: Yeah, so, you know, you didn't have a mother. Was she sick before she died?
BIANCULLI: She was sick for a few years before, yeah.
GROSS: Yeah, so even when she was alive, it wasn't your typical family sitcom or family-drama-type family.
BIANCULLI: Well, you know, it's funny, one of the things that happens in the book - not to deflect the question, I'll get to the answer - but Ken Burns and I are the exact same age. He had a very similar upbringing. He had a sick mother, and he thinks that the reason why he started to care about history was because his mother was dying of cancer and he felt so helpless. He didn't want to watch sitcoms because they were all based on misunderstandings and the sort of anxieties, and he had enough anxiety in his life. And he saw what was going on in the news with civil rights, and he wanted to right those wrongs and, you know, I don't...
GROSS: He says he transferred the sheer terror of the cancer that was killing his family to the cancer that was killing his country. Instead of sitcoms, he started watching news.
BIANCULLI: Yeah. I don't know what my parallel to that is, but I watched news early. When my mom was alive, my parents were both Kennedy freaks. And so I got to - I was allowed to stay up to watch the debates, to watch the convention. I mean, I'm talking - I was 7 years old, you know, and it really stuck with me. And then, of course, so did the Kennedy assassination. And, you know, maybe when I say this out loud, it's sort of not that surprising that I consider television to be so important, so young and that it sticks with me because, you know, that's quite a crazy thing to have, you know, a first grader or a second grader pay attention to.
GROSS: So, you know, you mentioned the Kennedy assassination. Did you watch a lot of coverage of that and did you see Jack Ruby shoot Lee Harvey Oswald?
GROSS: In real time?
BIANCULLI: I'm hesitating. This is very personal. This was just a year before my mom died. She was very sick then, but very caught up with the Kennedys. And so my dad called me. We were let go from school, and I walked home and my mom was asleep and didn't know anything had happened. And I called my dad, and he said take the TV which was on rollers out of her bedroom, put it into my room and lock the door because he did not want her to know until he got home. And so for that next several hours, I watched it alone in my bedroom.
GROSS: And you had to keep it secret?
BIANCULLI: Yeah. And then once my dad got home, some time - I remember by the time Oswald was killed, it was out in the living room, and everybody was watching it. But there was a while there where it wasn't.
GROSS: That must have compounded how upsetting it was because you knew it was so upsetting...
BIANCULLI: I'm upset...
GROSS: ...Your mother couldn't find out about it.
BIANCULLI: Yeah. I'm upset talking about it now, and I didn't realize it would be. Yeah.
GROSS: So getting back to watching, like, shows about families when your family was different, when your mother was sick and then your mother died, did you relate to the families? Did you wish you had those families?
BIANCULLI: I remember the - I watched - I think that's why fantasy shows were so popular in the '60s. If anybody is old enough to remember while the real 1960s were incredibly grim with all this stuff happening on TV, it was talking horses and genies and flying nuns, and I watched a lot of those shows, too. I watched "Gilligan's Island" knowing that it wasn't a good show, but I was at the exact age where I loved watching, like, Ginger and Mary Ann. So that was a different part of it. But the family show dynamics - the shows that stick out to me oddly enough are "Andy Griffith" and "My Three Sons" which also had no mother figure. And - yeah, I hadn't thought of that before.
GROSS: David, it's really been great to talk with you. Thank you so much.
BIANCULLI: Thanks. I've loved this, and I appreciate it so much. Thanks, Terry.
GROSS: Oh, it's my pleasure. Congratulations on the book.
GROSS: David Bianculli is FRESH AIR's TV critic and author of the new book "The Platinum Age Of Television: From I Love Lucy To The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific." After we take a short break, Maureen Corrigan will review a new collection of essays by the late novelist and short story writer Stanley Elkin. This is FRESH AIR. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Houmas House, San Francisco Plantation, and Greenwood Plantation.
Flowers feature in some of the bridal and bridesmaid bouquets are: Dahlia's, Peony's, Garden Roses, Hydrangeas, Sunflowers, tulips and Gerbera Daisy's.
Different Style with each wedding.
Its been a fun season, with more to come, I love spring weddings!!!!!!!!!!!!!
and working with brides. Its so much fun to be a part of bring together their visions of the bridal bouquet .
Sahara roses, are great for a vintage look.


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Home / Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 / Idea Factory International / PC Review / Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 - PC Review
Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 - PC Review
February 09, 2015 Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 , Idea Factory International , PC Review
The Hyperdimension titles stormed our shores about 5 years ago, bringing Hyperdimension Neptunia to the PlayStation 3 back in 2010/2011 and we here at Chalgyr's Game Room have long been fans of the series. Eschewing the generally heavy themes that one finds in most JRPG games, the Hyperdimension games have always walked along the lines of comically absurd and intriguingly deep. Taking place in a virtual world called "Gamindustri" during the "Console War" where Console Patron Units (aka CPUs) are fighting for supremacy. The four primary CPUs are Neptune (The Purple Heart) the CPU of Planeptune who symbolizes a non-existent next-generation Sega console; there is Blanc (The White Heart) the CPU of Lowee, which as you can guess by the name, represents Nintendo's Wii home console.
There is my personal favorite, Vert (The Green Heart) the CPU of Leanbox and a digital representation of Microsoft's Xbox, and finally there is Noire, The Black Heart, the CPU of Lastation, which symbolizes the ever popular PlayStation console. With a concept such as the Console Wars and four characters based on the biggest consoles of the real-world Console Wars, there are plenty of comical jabs that take place throughout the series. While Hyperdimension Neptunia was originally released for the PlayStation 3 to disastrous reviews, Re;Birth1 was released as a completely updated and refreshed title for the PlayStation Vita back in August of 2014 to high praise. Six months later Idea Factory has released Re;Birth1 for the PC via Steam; does this tongue-in-cheek JRPG transition well to the home computer?
When Re;Birth1 was initially released for the PlayStation Vita it received an improvement to its graphics, improving texture quality, framerate, and a few other minor details. Given that this is a straight port to the PC, the graphics look quite nice with well made, if scantily clad models that are animated well. The cutscenes are speedy and attractive, if a little flashy at times, as they can become very busy, very quick. Running at 1920x1080 on my PC, Re;Birth1 rarely, if ever, dropped below 30 FPS so the optimization that went into the first remake is still working and as excellent as the re-release from August. While it may have been just a port, I think I would have liked to see a few things tweaked a little.
The different environments that you explore are nice looking but empty even though the different areas are fairly linear at times, they are certainly wide open but the main paths are fairly devoid of any character. Were this being played on the Vita I do not think I would have thought twice about it, but given the power and scalability of the PC platform, adding more doodads and terrain characteristics for the PC platform would have been preferred. When you are in battle the arenas are flat, nondescript, and have a very basic background that looks good but brings no variation to the board. That is not to say the environments are not nice looking, nor that the battle areas are poor, they just feel a bit empty at times and I think a little work spent adding some extra flair to the various areas could have been nice. One thing that really could not get enough of though was the animations and effects for your skills; they are simply wonderful to watch.
Bright colors and explosive effects added to well animated and gorgeously drawn models are about all that you will be watching in battle so the lack of character or variation to the various battle screens is minimal, it is just that running around the environments you visit seems a little bland at times. However, it is just the explorable parts of the maps that are rather dull, but the backgrounds? There are some amazingly beautiful vistas that are shown as the backgrounds of the various areas; more often than not I found myself standing an looking into the distance thinking "Man, I wish I could go there." Nonetheless, Re;Birth1 is an attractive game with some excellent art styles that will certainly appeal to fans of anime or manga.
As most of you may be aware by now, voice acting is something that I tend to be a little more critical about and with Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 I am somewhat unsure of how I feel about it. At times I find it enjoyable and interesting, providing the right emotions at the right times but at other times the high-pitched almost whiny voices seemed to grate on me. For those out there that have seen the much-lauded Puella Magi Madoka Magica anime with the English dub may understand the annoyances I have with the voices (Madoka's English Dub has some of the whiniest, most annoying voices I have ever seen in an anime) of Re;Birth1. Reflecting on its voice acting, the issues I may have is that the seiyuu/voice actors are simply trying too hard to be campy or comedic, while completely missing the mark.
For example, Compa a companion you meet in the first few minutes of the game seems to be trying far too hard to be air-headed, innocent, and silly all at once and it can become absolutely grating. Fortunately though, characters like Vert and Blanc make up for the lack of (what I believe is) experience for some of the other actors, as they are near-perfect in their execution of the script. The original Hyperdimension Neptunia title that was released for the PlayStation 3 some years ago was lambasted for its crummy soundtrack and while Re;Birth1's soundtrack has certainly improved over the original's, it is still quite busy and can be extremely distracting at times. I found myself turning down the music volume to a bare whisper just so I could focus more on the excellent ambient / sound effects and the so-so voice acting. The exceptions to the fairly annoying tracks are the music in the cutscenes, the main menu, and the overworld map; those tracks just seemed to 'fit' while others (like the battle music) just grated on my nerves. Fortunately turning the music down to about 20% volume put it far enough out of my mind to be not distracting while leaving it on to add some level of variation to break up the silence.
Re;Birth1 follows its roots when it comes to gameplay. With overworld travel being a simple map where you select your destination and all of the action takes place at predetermined points. It is a fairly popular style of overworld maps, as it can be found in other franchises such as the Atelier series or the quite enjoyable PlayStation 3 titles Fairy Fencer F and Ar Tonelico: Ode to an Unborn Star. When you visit cities/settlements you will have a list of various points (some unlocking as you delve deeper into the game) that you can visit that will show a small "event" symbol that will identify when something is going to happen to help push along the story.
Contrary to the norm for most JRPG games though, grinding is not a necessity in Re;Birth1. If you wish, you can simply move from plot point to plot point (and there are quite a few *plot* points in this title, so keep that in mind if you decide to fire up Steam while you are on lunch at work) without spending the time to grind your characters to the max and you would still be able to handily beat the game. However, in the spirit of classic JRPG games it is near impossible to not revisit areas just to grind; given that I am from an older generation of gamers, grinding is not only a necessity, but it is now ingrained into my sense of gaming so it is something that sort of must be done. Combat is actually quite fun after having been redone from the original Neptunia title to more match the far superior turn-based tactical combat found in Hyperdimension Neptunia V. While slightly different than classic Final Fantasy titled, I often felt a slight wave of nostalgia come over me that hearkened back to the days of Chrono Trigger.
Combat is initiated by running up to enemies and whacking them with your staff/weapon which then awards you with slight bonuses (assuming you hit them whilst they are unaware). One thing I did find a bit annoying is that the enemies respawn quick, and I mean very quick. I could walk into a small area and see three enemies, attack one, then the other and by the time the second relatively short fight is over, the enemies would all be respawned. The total time passed would be about 2 to 3 minutes. While this is great for grinding there comes a time when you simply want to get through a dungeon but with enemies literally respawning every few moments it can be very difficult to make your way through an area. Fortunately the pacing for Re;Birth1 is excellent and helps pull you through the story without it feeling like it has to tug you along, nor is it paced so fast that you feel like you are missing content.
Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 is a straight port from the PlayStation Vita to the PC (which was original a remake of the original Hyperdimension Neptunia which had an extremely rough start here in the States) and is a worthy entry into the ever-evolving PC JRPG genre. Attractive graphics, great 'plot' and well animated models mix well with a story that pulls you along at a comfortable pace, though oft-grating voice acting and a sub-par soundtrack still holds Re;Birth1 back from being categorized as an excellent "must have" title. With a little more attention paid to the various environments, to liven them up and give them a bit more character, and some tweaked voice actors as well as an overhaul of a handful of the tracks in the OST, Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 could be a whole new game. As it stands it is still a wonderful title with plenty of hilarious scenes that make a mockery of the longstanding, real life "Console Wars" while still providing a relatively interesting story. If anything Re;Birth1 is well worth the play through just to see the story play out, given its concept would likely touch a large number of gamers.
Review by Robert


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Info Source 2016: Sources of Federal Government and Employee Information
An updated version of Info Source is available: Information about Programs and Information Holdings.
Introduction to Info Source
Institutional Functions, Programs and Activities
Learning Services Program
Public Service Orientation
Integrated Learning Management System (I-LMS)
Course Registration and Information
Individual Data Base
Registration Information System
Learner Registration and Management System
Authority Delegation Training
Functional Communities Programming
Professional Development Programming
Access to Language Training Services
Language Review Committee
Language Training Orientation
Language Retention Services
Online Course Program
Online Collaborative Technology Program
Leadership Community Building
Organizational Learning Services
Innovative Management Practices
Acquisition Services
Human Resources Management Services
Management and Oversight Services
Materiel Services
Travel and Other Administrative Services
Classes of Personal Information
Appendix – Institution-Specific Personal Information Banks
Info Source: Sources of Federal Government and Employee Information provides information about the functions, programs, activities and related information holdings of government institutions subject to the Loi Access to Information Act and the Loi Privacy Act. It provides individuals and employees of the government (current and former) with relevant information to access personal information about themselves held by government institutions subject to the Privacy Act and to exercise their rights under the Privacy Act .
The Introduction and an index of institutions subject to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act are available centrally .
The Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act assign overall responsibility to the President of Treasury Board (as the designated Minister) for the government-wide administration of the legislation.
As indicated on its website and in its most recent Report on Plans and Priorities, the Canada School of Public Service (the School) was created on April 1, 2004, when the legislative provisions of Part IV of the Loi Public Service Modernization Act came into force and has been part of the Treasury Board portfolio since July 2004. Operating under the authority of the Loi Canada School of Public Service Act, the School was created from an amalgamation of the following three organizations: the Canadian Centre for Management Development, Training and Development Canada and Language Training Canada.
The Canada School of Public Service reports to Parliament through the Minister of the Treasury Board, who is the Minister responsible for the School.
As indicated in the Report on Plans and Priorities cited above, the Canada School of Public Service is the common learning service provider for the Public Service of Canada. The School has a legislative mandate to provide a range of learning activities to build individual and organizational capacity and management excellence within the public service. Its primary responsibility is to provide a range of learning opportunities and develop a learning culture within the public service.
The School, a departmental corporation, is mandated under the Loi Canada School of Public Service Act to:
encourage pride and excellence in the public service;
foster a common sense of purpose, values and traditions in the public service;
support deputy heads in meeting the learning needs of their organizations; and
pursue excellence in public management and administration.
The School supports deputy head accountabilities with respect to leadership and professional development across the public service by identifying organizational needs and designing and delivering high-quality, practical programs that address the key development requirements of public service employees.
In support of Blueprint 2020—a vision for the future of the federal public service presented by the Clerk of the Privy Council—the Government of Canada announced an enterprise-wide commitment to learning with the School playing a central role in the design and delivery of a common curriculum to support the operation of all federal institutions, regardless of mandate or location. Learning will focus on skills and knowledge unique to the public service and support public service employees at key stages of their careers. In support of this renewed mandate, the School will operate with a new Program Alignment Architecture aligned with its new strategic directions to deliver enterprise-wide learning within the federal public service.
2016–2017 marks the third year of the School's transition to its new business model to support relevant, responsive and accessible government-wide learning. This includes core funding provided by departments and federal organizations for the delivery of common learning to support Canadian public service employees in better serving Canadians.
The School's direction and planning is informed by a committee of deputy ministers appointed by the Clerk of the Privy Council and representing a broad cross-section of departments. Members provide advice to the School on the emerging needs and priorities for learning and training in the public service and also help to monitor the School's performance. The School has also established a Canada School of Public Service Advisory Sub-Committee to strengthen governance and an Enterprise Editorial Board to inform the curriculum and support the School's departmental and stakeholder engagement activities.
The Canada School of Public Service has a single strategic outcome: Federal public service employees have the common knowledge, skills and competencies to fulfil their responsibilities in serving Canadians. It achieves this outcome through its Learning Services Program with the support of internal services.
This program delivers learning services to the federal public service, providing standardized training to build common knowledge, skills and competencies that support public service employees in fulfilling their responsibilities in delivering programs and services to Canadians.
This program is responsible for enterprise-wide training and development in support of government priorities. It leads to a centralized, common approach to managing and delivering learning services that are open to all federal public service employees throughout their careers and are common to the operation of all federal institutions, regardless of mandate or location.
The Learning Services Program offers a curriculum consisting of foundational development training, which is designed to build a common culture across the federal public service, and specialized development training, which is open to all employees working in information technology, human resources or finance, as well as to those wishing to develop their knowledge in other areas of specialization, including management and leadership.
This program achieves its results through a common curriculum designed to be delivered both in person and online and supported by technology infrastructure so as to enable the delivery of training across the federal public service.
The following is a directory of the School's classes of records, including the personal information banks associated with each one.
Description: Information related to the Public Service Orientation courses and resources, which are delivered to all federal employees who are new to the public service, including deputy ministers, assistant deputy ministers and heads of federal agencies. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Orientation learning activities; curriculum design and development; course and learning activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; instructor/learning specialist management; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; and blended learning strategies.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Correspondence, Course Agenda, Curriculum Learning Components, Decision Records, Evaluations, Guidelines, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Reports, Research, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, and Training.
Record Number: CSPS 111
Integrated Learning Management System (I-LMS) – CSPS PPU 015
Course Registration and Information – CSPS PPU 050
Individual Data Base – CSPS PPU 010
Registration Information System – CSPS PPU 005
Learner Registration and Management System – CSPS PCE 732
Description: Information related to the Authority Delegation Training courses and learning activities that are delivered to managers at all levels in the federal public service. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the learning activities; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Authority Delegation Training learning activities; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted course and learning activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; instructor/learning specialist management; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; online assessment tools; learning roadmaps; and blended learning strategies.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Correspondence, Course Agenda, Curriculum Learning Material, Decision Records, Evaluations, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Quality Assurance, Reports, Research, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, and Summaries.
Related Record Number: CSPS 112
Description: Information related to the courses, learning activities, conferences and events that are delivered to federal public service employees in the functional communities of Communications; Finance; Human Resources; Information Management; Information Technology Management; Policy; Procurement, Materiel Management and Real Property; Federal Regulators; Security; and Service Delivery. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing functional communities programming; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted course and learning activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; instructor/learning specialist management; internal service agreements; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; learning roadmaps; and blended learning strategies.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Conferences, Correspondence, Course Delivery, Curriculum Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Events, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Quality Assurance, Reports, Research, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, and Training.
Description: Information related to the courses, learning activities, conferences and events that are delivered to federal public service employees in order to expand their skills and help them to acquire new knowledge in support of their professional development and in order to help managers to find approaches for supporting employee development and talent management. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing professional development programming; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted course and learning activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; instructor/learning specialist management; internal service agreements; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; learning roadmaps; and blended learning strategies.
Access to Language Training Services (Online learning only)
Please note that as of March 31, 2012, the School ceased direct delivery of language training services. To assist employees who are responsible for maintaining their linguistic competencies, the School has developed and provides access to self-directed language learning tools.)
Description: Information related to the Access to Language Training Services program (online learning only). Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; curriculum creation, design and development; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; research and best practices; blended learning strategies; language training orientation; and online assessment tools and products.
Document Types: Application Forms, Best Practices, Committees, Contracts, Correspondence, Course Delivery, Curriculum Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Events, Guidelines, Policies, Presentations, Reports, Requests, Research, Scheduling, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, Surveys, Training and Treasury Board Submissions.
Language Review Committee – CSPS PCE 758
Language Training Orientation – CSPS PPU 040
Language Training Services – CSPS PPU 045
Description: Information related to the Language Retention Services program, which assists and supports departments and agencies in carrying out their duties with respect to building and sustaining the official languages competencies of their employees by offering language retention through self-paced learning. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Language Retention Services program; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted English and French course and learning activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; instructor/learning specialist management; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; blended learning strategies; language training orientation; and online assessment tools and products. Records may also include interactions between the School's Language Training Centre and various language training organizations and centres, provincial governments, schools, colleges and universities; the development and management of the Train the Trainer learning activity, which trains regional language instructors; and the development and management of the Teachers on Site learning activity.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Committees, Contracts, Correspondence, Course Delivery, Curriculum Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Events, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Orientation, Plans, Policies, Presentations, Procedures, Quality Assurance, Reports, Requests, Research, Scheduling, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, Surveys, Training, and Treasury Board Submissions.
Description: Information related to the Online Course Program, which is carried out through I-LMS. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Online Course Program; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted course and learning activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; internal service agreements; specifications and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; learning roadmaps; learning assessment tools; and blended learning strategies.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Correspondence, Course Delivery, Curriculum Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Guidelines, Licenses, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Quality Assurance, Reports, Requests, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, Surveys, and Training.
Description: Information related to the Online Collaborative Technology Program, which is carried out through I-LMS. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Online Collaborative Technology Program; design and development; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; specifications and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; learning assessment tools; blended learning strategies; catalogue, hardware, network and software management; portal and website design; and system-wide performance, quality assurance and monitoring.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Correspondence, Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Guidelines, Licenses, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Quality Assurance, Reports, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, Surveys, Treasury Board Submissions and Working Group Meetings.
Description: Information related to courses and learning activities that are regularly offered through the School and customized agreements with the objective of strengthening leadership management competencies in the public sector at all levels, which will result in the development of qualified managers and executives within the federal public service. This includes leadership learning activities for managers, coaching activities and services and executive leadership learning activities and services. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the program; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Leadership Competencies program; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted course and learning activity delivery; contracted procedures for consultant selection, policies, guidelines and standards; calendar planning; instructor/learning specialist management; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; and blended learning strategies.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Correspondence, Course Delivery, Curriculum Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Reports, Research, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, and Training.
Description: Information related to the design and development of leadership development programs that will result in the development of qualified individuals for management positions and first-level executive positions within the federal public service. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the programs; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the learning activities; curriculum design and development; in-house and contracted course and learning delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; instructor/learning specialist management; research and best practices; partnerships and liaisons; learning activity evaluation; and blended learning strategies.
Document Types: Agreements, Application Forms, Best Practices, Contracts, Conferences, Correspondence, Course Delivery, Curriculum Design and Development, Decision Records, Evaluations, Events, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Performance Monitoring, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Reports, Research, Standards, Statements of Work, Statistics, Strategies, and Training.
Description: Information related to the Leadership Community Building program, through which the School supports federal organizations in identifying strategic priorities and managing change by building comprehensive learning plans and by creating and supporting networks across government, the country and the world. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the learning activities; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the Leadership Community Building program; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; best practices; partnerships and liaisons; and communities of practice.
Document Types: Best Practices, Correspondence, Design and Development, Decision Records, Guidelines, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Reports, Standards, and Strategies.
Description: Information related to activities to enhance the performance and effectiveness of the public service by documenting and transferring innovations and best practices in public management; the provision of support and assistance to departments and agencies to help them to become learning organizations; collaboration with departments and agencies at the organizational level to support continuous improvement; the monitoring of international trends in public management; developments in public management in other countries; and liaison with institutions in other countries. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the activities; creating, coordinating, managing, monitoring and developing the activities; curriculum design and development; activity delivery; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; plans and strategies; best practices; international projects; learning needs analysis; outreach; and partnerships and liaisons.
Document Types: Agreements, Best Practices, Conferences, Correspondence, Decision Records, Delegations, Events, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Projects, Reports, Standards, Strategies, and Training.
Description: Information related to the identification and promulgation of public management best practices in Canada and around the world through research, collaborative initiatives, studies, and projects with other institutions in Canada and abroad. Best practices are promoted through events, conferences, seminars, armchair discussions, workshops and the dissemination of research findings. Records may include information relating to the administration and management of the activities; production and delivery of conferences and events; procedures, policies, guidelines and standards; planning; strategies; partnerships; publications; conferences and events; and internal service agreements. Records also include documents relating to the Innovative Public Management Research Fund contribution activity (which concluded on March 31, 2012), as well as to university activities such as the Public Servant-in-Residence Program, and the Manion Lecture.
Document Types: Agreements, Best Practices, Conferences, Contributions, Correspondence, Decision Records, Events, Guidelines, Memoranda of Understanding, Plans, Policies, Procedures, Projects, Publications, Reports, Research, Standards, and Strategies.
Internal services constitute groups of related activities and resources that are administered to support the needs of programs and other corporate obligations of an organization. These groups are management and oversight services, communications services, legal services, human resources management services, financial management services, information management services, information technology services, real property services, materiel services, acquisition services, and travel and other administrative services. Internal services include only those activities and resources that apply across an organization and not to those provided specifically to a program.
Acquisition services involve activities undertaken to acquire a good or service to fulfil a properly completed request (including a complete and accurate definition of requirements and certification that funds are available) until entering into or amending a contract.
Procurement and Contracting Class of Record
Professional Services Contracts Personal Information Bank
Communications services involve activities undertaken to ensure that Government of Canada communications are effectively managed, well coordinated and responsive to the diverse information needs of the public. The communications management function ensures that the public—internal or external—receives government information, and that the views and concerns of the public are taken into account in the planning, management and evaluation of policies, programs, services and initiatives.
Communications Class of Record
Internal Communications Personal Information Bank
Public Communications Personal Information Bank
Financial management services involve activities undertaken to ensure the prudent use of public resources, including planning, budgeting, accounting, reporting, control and oversight, analysis, decision support and advice, and financial systems.
Financial Management Class of Record
Accounts Payable Personal Information Bank
Accounts Receivable Personal Information Bank
Acquisition Cards Personal Information Bank
Human resources management services involve activities undertaken for determining strategic direction, allocating resources among services and processes, as well as activities relating to analyzing exposure to risk and determining appropriate countermeasures. They ensure that the service operations and programs of the federal government comply with applicable laws, regulations, policies and plans.
Awards (Pride and Recognition) Class of Record
Recognition Program Personal Information Bank
Classification of Positions Class of Record
Staffing Personal Information Bank
Compensation and Benefits Class of Record
Attendance and Leave Personal Information Bank
Pay and Benefits Personal Information Bank
Employment Equity and Diversity Class of Record
Employment Equity and Diversity Personal Information Bank
Hospitality Class of Record
Hospitality Personal Information Bank
Human Resources Planning Class of Record
Human Resources Planning Personal Information Bank
Workplace Day Care Personal Information Bank
Labour Relations Class of Record
Canadian Human Rights Act – Complaints Personal Information Bank
Discipline Personal Information Bank
Grievances Personal Information Bank
Harassment Personal Information Bank
Disclosure of Wrongdoing in the Workplace Personal Information Bank
Values and Ethics Codes for the Public Sector and Organizational Code(s) of Conduct Personal Information Bank
Occupational Health and Safety Class of Record
Employee Assistance Personal Information Bank
Occupational Health and Safety Personal Information Bank
Vehicle, Ship, Boat and Aircraft Accidents Personal Information Bank
Official Languages Class of Record
Official Languages Personal Information Bank
Performance Management Reviews Class of Record
Employee Performance Management Program Personal Information Bank
Recruitment and Staffing Class of Record
Applications for Employment Personal Information Bank
Employee Personnel Record Personal Information Bank
EX Talent Management Personal Information Bank
Personnel Security Screening Personal Information Bank
Relocation Class of Record
Relocation Personal Information Bank
Training and Development Class of Record
Training and Development Personal Information Bank
Information management services involve activities undertaken to achieve efficient and effective information management to support program and service delivery; foster informed decision making; facilitate accountability, transparency and collaboration; and preserve and ensure access to information and records for the benefit of present and future generations.
Access to Information and Privacy Class of Record
Loi Access to Information Act and Privacy Act Requests Personal Information Bank
Information Management Class of Record
Library Services Personal Information Bank
Information technology services involve activities undertaken to achieve efficient and effective use of information technology to support government priorities and program delivery, to increase productivity, and to enhance services to the public.
Information Technology Class of Record
Electronic Network Monitoring Personal Information Bank
Legal services involve activities undertaken to enable government departments and agencies to pursue policy, program and service delivery priorities and objectives within a legally sound framework.
Legal Services Class of Record
Management and oversight services involve activities undertaken for determining strategic direction and allocating resources among services and processes, as well as those activities related to analyzing exposure to risk and determining appropriate countermeasures. They ensure that the service operations and programs of the federal government comply with applicable laws, regulations, policies or plans.
Cooperation and Liaison Class of Record
Loi Lobbying Act Requirements Personal Information Bank
Outreach Activities Personal Information Bank
Executive Services Class of Record
Executive Correspondence Personal Information Bank
Internal Audit and Evaluation Class of Record
Evaluation Personal Information Bank
Internal Audit Personal Information Bank
Planning and Reporting Class of Record
Materiel services involve activities undertaken to ensure that materiel can be managed by departments in a sustainable and financially responsible manner that supports the cost-effective and efficient delivery of government programs.
Materiel Management Class of Record
Real property services involve activities undertaken to ensure that real property is managed in a sustainable and financially responsible manner, throughout its life cycle, to support the cost-effective and efficient delivery of government programs.
Real Property Management Class of Record
Travel and other administrative services include Government of Canada travel services, as well as those other internal services that do not smoothly fit with any of the internal services categories.
Administrative Services Class of Record
Parking Personal Information Bank
Boards, Committees and Councils Class of Record
Governor in Council Appointments Personal Information Bank
Members of Boards, Committees and Councils Personal Information Bank
Business Continuity Planning Class of Record
Business Continuity Planning Personal Information Bank
Disclosure to Investigative Bodies Class of Record
Disclosure to Investigative Bodies Personal Information Bank
Proactive Disclosure Class of Record
Travel Personal Information Bank
Security Class of Record
Identification Cards and Access Badges Personal Information Bank
Security Incidents and Privacy Breaches Personal Information Bank
Security Video Surveillance and Temporary Visitor Access Control Logs and Building Passes Personal Information Bank
Travel Class of Record
Classes of Personal Information describe personal information that is not used for administrative purposes or is not retrievable by personal identifiers; for example, unsolicited opinions, complaints, or correspondence.
This information is stored as part of the general subject files, the records of which are not normally retrievable by name of individual or other personal identifier. Specifics must be provided concerning the subject matter, related program activity, as well as the date on which the information was received by the School and to whom it was addressed.
The personal information contained in these subject files is retained for the same period of time as the related subject information and is disposed of according to the appropriate subject records schedules.
Intellectual Asset Management and Copyright Management
The Government of Canada encourages the release of information through requests outside of the ATIP process. You may wish to consult the School's completed Access to Information summaries.
Questions can be submitted to the School's Client Contact Centre through the following channels:
E-mail: info@csps-efpc.gc.ca
Telephone (Toll-free): 1-866-703-9598
Teletype (TTY), using your relay service provider: 1-866-703-9598
Facsimile (Toll-free): 1-866-944-0454
By Mail: Canada School of Public Service, 373 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 6Z2
The Canada School of Public Service conducts Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) to ensure that privacy implications will be appropriately identified, assessed and resolved before a new or substantially modified program or activity involving personal information is implemented. Visit the School's website to review summaries of completed PIAs.
To make a formal request for access to information held by the School, mail your letter or Access to Information Request Form ( Access to Information Act ) or Personal Information Request Form ( Privacy Act ), along with any necessary enclosures (such as consent from other parties or the $5.00 application fee for a request under the Access to Information Act ) to the following address:
Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Coordinator
373 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6Z2
Please note that each request made to the Canada School of Public Service under the Access to Information Act must be accompanied by an application fee of $5.00 in the form of a cheque or money order made payable to the Receiver General for Canada.
For more information on formal access procedures under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, please see the Introduction to this publication.
In accordance with the Loi Access to Information Act and Loi Privacy Act, an area on the premises will be made available should the applicant wish to review materials on site. The address is:
Asticou Campus
241 de la Cité-des-Jeunes Boulevard, Room 1359
Gatineau, Quebec
Personal Information Banks are descriptions of personal information that are maintained by government institutions about individuals, in support of specific programs and activities. The Privacy Act requires that Personal Information Banks include all personal information that is organized and retrievable by a person's name or by an identifying number, symbol or other particular assigned only to that person. Personal Information Banks must also include personal information that has been or is being used, or is available for use for an administrative purpose.
Below are the Canada School of Public Service's institution-specific Personal Information Banks.
Description: This database is used to support a centralized portal for online learning courses and to provide individuals with online assessment tools. The database captures individual profile information; course and learning activity participation and results; and some automatically generated course testing and self-assessment results. The personal information collected includes the individual's name, work address, work telephone and fax numbers, e-mail address, department, job title, classification category and level, and preferred language. While accounts may be deactivated after a period of prolonged inactivity, account holders can request the reactivation of their accounts at any time by calling the Client Contact Centre.
Class of Individuals: Employees of governments and public sector institutions (federal, provincial, municipal and international).
Purpose: This information is collected to provide an automated tool for course registration, payment and learning activity utilization data. This tool is provided to enable I-LMS account holders to establish training needs and partake of professional development activities.
Consistent Uses: The personal information is used for I-LMS statistical and evaluative purposes. All disclosures require the individual's prior consent.
Retention and Disposal Standards: The information is retained by I-LMS as long as the I-LMS platform exists. Should the platform be discontinued, the information will not be disposed of until five years have passed.
RDA Number: 99/020
Related Record Number: CSPS 111, CSPS 112, CSPS 121, CSPS 122, CSPS 131, CSPS 132, CSPS 141, CSPS 142, CSPS 211, CSPS 221
TBS Registration: 006094
Bank Number: CSPS PPU 015
Description: This bank may contain basic personal data and related course administration information. Individuals seeking access to this information are required to specify the pertinent course number.
Classes of Individuals: Public servants who have taken or are enrolled in a course offered by the School. May also contain information on members of the private (business) sector or other levels of government who attend School-sponsored activities.
Purpose: This bank exists to establish and maintain records of all persons who have taken or are enrolled in a course offered by the School.
Consistent Uses: This bank is used to provide information required to administer training courses delivered by the School.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Records are retained for five years after completion of a training and development activity, then destroyed.
RDA Number: 99/020, 2001/025
Related Record Number: CSPS 111, CSPS 112, CSPS 121, CSPS 122, CSPS 211, CSPS 221, CSPS 321
Description: This information bank contains basic information on courses and other School training activities, on actual and potential clients, on internal and external resources employed by the School and on all persons with whom the School has contact.
Classes of Individuals: Individuals, principally members of the management category of the Canadian federal public service, who have contact with the School. May also contain information on members of the private (business) sector or other levels of government who attend School-sponsored activities.
Purpose: The purpose of this information bank is to establish and maintain files on actual and potential clients in order to facilitate the registration of these individuals for School activities and to have information available to determine a client profile to help in the development and delivery of products offered by the School.
Consistent Uses: This information bank serves to identify potential clients and resources for activities offered by the School.
Retention and Disposal Standards: The files are retained as long as the information is valid.
Related Record Number: CSPS 111, CSPS 112, CSPS 121, CSPS 122, CSPS 131, CSPS 132, CSPS 211, CSPS 221, CSPS 231, CSPS 311, CSPS 321
Description: This information bank may contain basic information on participants and administrative data on learning activities at the School.
Classes of Individuals: Individuals, including members of the management category of the federal public service, who have taken or are registered in a learning activity sponsored by the School. May also contain information on members of the private (business) sector or other levels of government who attend School-sponsored activities.
Purpose: This information bank exists to establish and maintain files on School learning and development activities and participants in these activities.
Consistent Uses: The information bank provides data necessary for the delivery of learning activities offered by the School.
Retention and Disposal Standards: The files are kept for a five-year period following the end of the learning activity and are then destroyed.
Description: This bank may contain requests for review, employee's written consent, Language Knowledge Exam (LKE) results prior to October 15, 1984, assessment officer's report, language training history, orientation process results, related letters or memos and the Review Committee decision.Class of Individuals: Public servants whose cases have been submitted to the Language Review Committee.
Purpose: This bank was created in accordance with section 20 of the former Public Service Employment Act to record information on employees whose cases have been submitted to the Language Review Committee.
Consistent Uses: The bank is used to examine complaints concerning results obtained in second language assessment and decisions of the Language Assessment Section prior to October 15, 1984; to review employee's withdrawal from language training and to reach a decision on each case.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Records relating to complaints concerning the withdrawal from language training or the orientation process results are retained for twenty five (25) years and then destroyed.
RDA Number: 2001/025
Bank Number: CSPS PCE 758
Description: This bank may contain basic personal data, aptitude and placement tests results, preliminary interview report, prognosis, recommended lessons and projected training duration.
Class of Individuals: Non-public servant and public servants who underwent the orientation process for non-imperative staffing purposes or for enrolment on basic language training.
Purpose: This bank exists to register test results and information collected during the orientation interview.
Consistent Uses: This information is used to evaluate the aptitude to succeed at language training, to make pedagogical recommendations to the teaching personnel and to supply Language Training Centre with administrative data.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Paper records are kept for twenty (20) years after completion of training and are then destroyed. Computerized records remain active during the training period, are then kept on tape for twenty (20) years and then deleted.
Related Record Number: CSPS 131, CSPS 132
Description: This bank may contain basic personal data, service and language training requests, aptitude and placement tests as well as language training results.
Class of Individuals: Persons who underwent language training.
Purpose: This bank to provide information for eligibility testing, orientation, enrolment and language training processes.
Consistent Uses: The bank is used for the eligibility, testing, orientation, enrolment and language training processes, and to ensure a progress follow-up on participants. The PSC Test Scoring and Reporting System provides a weekly update of Second Language Evaluation (SLE) results for the purposes of updating candidate information.
Description: This bank may contain basic personal data on course participants and related course administration information. Individuals seeking access to this information are required to specify the pertinent School course number.
Class of Individuals: Public servants and non-public servants who have registered in or are enrolled in a course offered by the School.
Purpose: This bank exists to establish and maintain records of all public servants and non-public servants who have taken or are enrolled in a course offered by the School.
Consistent Uses: This bank is used to provide information required to administer and deliver learning activities offered by the School. The information is also used for statistical, reporting and evaluative purposes.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Records are retained for five (5) years after completion of learning activity, and then deleted from this information bank.


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Davis Theater
Up Next: A Live Reading of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Ghostlight Ensemble presents the next installment of its ongoing live movie reading series with Don't Call Me Junior: A Live Reading of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
So dust off that brown leather fedora, get that whip cracking and join us at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, May 6 at Carbon Arc Bar & Board (4614 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60625), located in the Davis Theater in North Center, to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the movie's release.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is a 1989 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and is the third installment in the Indiana Jones franchise. It was release in the United States on May 24, 1989. In Last Crusade, the intrepid explorer Indiana Jones sets out to rescue his father, a medievalist who has vanished while searching for the Holy Grail. Following clues in the old man's notebook, Indy arrives in Venice, where he enlists the help of a beautiful academic, but they are not the only ones who are on the trail, and some sinister old enemies soon come out of the woodwork.
The live reading is directed by Chad Wise.
There is a suggested donation of $5 at the door, which will help Ghostlight fund its upcoming season.
Tagged: Indiana Jones, Last Crusade, movies, Live Reading, Carbon Arc, Chad Wise, Holy Grail, Davis Theater, Ghostilght, theatre, Chicago, North Center
Up Next: As If!: A Live Reading of Clueless
With the cast of Clueless in town for C2E2, what better time to brush off the 1995 rom-com script and give it a unique, Ghostlight Ensemble treatment?!
So dig out your plaid skirts and knee-high socks and join us at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, March 25 at Carbon Arc Bar & Board (4614 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60625), located in the Davis Theater in North Center.
Clueless is loosely based on the Jane Austen novel Emma and tells the story of a shallow, rich and socially successful girl at the top of her Beverly Hills high school's pecking order who sees herself as a matchmaker. She takes on a "tragically unhip" new girl at school as a pet project, initiating her into the ways of the popular kids. But things backfire on her when the new girl surpasses her in popularity. Hijinks and love debacles ensue.
After the live reading, Carbon Arc will be playing the movie Clueless, so stick around for a side-by-side comparison!
Tagged: Clueless, movie, Live Reading, Carbon Arc, Davis Theater, Jane Austen, Emma, Ghostlight, Ensemble, North Center


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UPF Nigeria, Dr. Raphael Ogar Oko, Warri, Nigeria: Thanks to the involvement of two Ambassadors for Peace, UPF-Nigeria has opened an Ambassadors for Peace Education Center in the city of Warri in Delta State.
The Peace Education Center was started by two Ambassadors for Peace, Kingsley Edemi and Roland Ogbudu, who offered to pay one year's rent for a three-bedroom flat for UPF-Nigeria to use for its programs. They made the donation because they believed this would bring the message of peace to the people of Delta State.
As part of the opening of the Peace Education Center on April 18, 2015, UPF presented an introductory seminar on the UPF principles for peace and the root causes of conflict. More than 25 Ambassadors for Peace from Delta State attended the seminar. Dr. George Ikpot, director of the UPF-Nigeria office of international affairs, spoke on the UPF basic principles for peace and the root causes of conflict, while Dr. Raphael Ogar Oko, secretary general of UPF-Nigeria, gave a report on UPF-Nigeria activities in 2014 and the focus for 2015. At the end of the seminar, participants asked several questions on the application of the peace principles in their daily family life as well as to the state and federal government of Nigeria.
Bishop Paul Ani Smart offered special prayers to dedicate the Peace Education Center and asked all Ambassadors for Peace to work together to ensure that the first UPF Peace Education Center in Delta State will become a model for other states to learn from. The ceremony also featured the cutting of a special cake made by the wives of Kingsley Edemi and Rowland Ogbudu to support their husbands' work for peace.


This Majestic New York Yankees jersey has been signed by rookie Joba Chamberlain. Chamberlain has been a solid contributor to the Yankees' bullpen in 2007, and has helped keep New York's playoff hopes alive. The jersey was signed during a private signing with Steiner Sports, and includes a Steiner Certificate of Authenticity.


So for those who question the legitimacy of the video game industry, the NY Times had an article today showing that video games and e-sports is becoming an economic powerhouse. In fact according to the article it has passed the music industry in terms of total revenue (and it's much newer and lacks some of the major financial backers). For those also unaware some of the bigger tech companies like facebook and amazon are starting to jump on the bandwagon. So maybe you should too? There's something for everyone from education to totally useless, from skills to just plain fun. Your choice, but have fun and explore the world that is so fun.


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