Pop culture Q&A

November 13, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

By Rich Heldenfels

Q. Is Sherri Shepherd from “The View” the one who played the policewoman on “Everybody Loves Raymond?”

A. Yes. She appeared in nine episodes of the sitcom.

Q. I can’t remember the name of a weekly romantic comedy this past spring or summer TV season that featured vignettes all related to one another through some interesting consequence and/or character. I think it had “Love” in the title, but not sure. It was well-written, fast paced, and entertaining. The main character was a young, blonde chef in a southern California restaurant. She starts off pregnant with her sister’s baby. I want to watch for it again but can’t recall the name of it or any of the actors, many of whom are well-known in movies and other television series. Can you help? And will it return in the spring?

A. You are remembering “Love Bites,” an NBC series that aired for eight episodes in June and July, and that will not be back. You can find the eight episodes on Hulu.com.

Q. I noticed a lot of similarities in a recent “Criminal Minds” to the “Fatal Vision” story with Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald. Can a story like this be at the back of the writers’ minds when they create a “new” story?

A. Yes. Writers for print and screen often draw on real-life stories for inspiration, sometimes dramatizing an actual case but often taking the facts and building a new story with them. “Law & Order,” for example, was quite open about its “ripped from the headlines” system of using high-profile events as the basis for its fictional cases.

Q. I am trying to find a recording called “The Bonaparte’s Retreat.” I do not know the artist’s name. I don’t think it is Glen Campbell. It is a country-and-western song, and the instruments are just beautiful.

A. Campbell did, in fact, record the tune (which did not have “the” in the title), as did Willie Nelson and others. But if you are looking for the original version, you need to check the recordings by Pee Wee King, who wrote the song. A prolific songwriter and musician, King’s credits also include “Tennessee Waltz,” “Slow Poke” and “You Belong to Me.” And the man born Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski started out playing polkas. He later appeared in Western movies, including with Gene Autry, and in the ’50s hosted his own TV show. He died in 2000. There are several collections of his work on CD.

Q. I read your item the other day about Deanna Durbin. I have always liked her and I have some of her videos and CDs. There was one movie that I saw her in years and years ago, which she sang “Always.” I can’t remember the movie’s name, but it seems to me that she played a dramatic role.

A. Durbin performed that Irving Berlin standard in the 1944 movie “Christmas Holiday,” a crime-drama based on a Somerset Maugham novel. It also starred Gene Kelly.

Q. I would like to buy the movie “The Quiet Man” with John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. How do I find it?

A. I can see why you would want to own this classic. It is among my favorite movies and won two Oscars, for best color cinematography (Winston C. Hoch and Archie Stout) and best director (John Ford). That was Ford’s fourth and final award in that category. The movie has been released on DVD more than once. Your local video retailer should either have it in stock or be able to order it for you. If for some reason that’s not possible, it is for sale from online retailers including Amazon.com and Moviesunlimited.com.

Do you have a question or comment about movies, TV and other popular culture? Write to rheldenfelsthebeaconjournal.com or the Akron Beacon Journal, 44 E. Exchange St., Akron, OH 44309. Please mark the note for Mailbag and do not phone in questions. Letters may be edited. Individual replies cannot be guaranteed.

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