Joseph Epstein Dismisses Four ‘Eminent Jews'
Mr. Epstein accuses feminist leader Betty Friedan of 'intractable leftism' when in fact she was a lifetime bourgeoisie whose insistence on sex with men, marriage and motherhood turned off younger feminist women in the late 1960s and after. He ignores 'West Side Story' and 'Chichester Psalms' but recalls at length his discomfort years ago with Leonard Bernstein's physically expressive conducting style, without mentioning that I analyzed in depth what Bernstein was doing and that orchestras and audiences loved his manner on the podium. At his death, Bernstein was universally regarded as one of the great conductors of the 20th century.
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All the Easter Eggs Taylor Swift Dropped About Doing the Super Bowl Halftime Show
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THE RAINMAKER Series Premiere Recap: (S01E01) Another Rainy Day
It's been a minute since a good legal drama had my attention. With The Rainmaker , USA Network does again what it once did best: quickly and deeply engage the audience with a cast of clearly drawn characters they immediately root for, root against, or wish they could take out for coffee and a donut. Despite sharing a title with the 1997 Matt Damon film, the series sets out to build more intrigue, backstory, and relationships with its 10 episodes. The premiere, 'Another Rainy Day,' immediately establishes Rudy Baylor's (Milo Callaghan) character, motivation, and abilities. Through his interactions with girlfriend Sarah Plankmore (Madison Iseman), brief boss Leo F. Drummond (John Slattery), and new boss Jocelyn 'Bruiser' Stone (Lana Parrilla), we know exactly where his lines in the sand are drawn. There's a helluva storm brewing for The Rainmaker. Best to batten your hatches now. Photo by: USA Network The Rainmaker, 'Another Rainy Day' In the middle of the night, a fire breaks out in the living room of a house. A man sleeping upstairs hooked up to an oxygen tank labelled North City General Hospital and Medical Care, wakes up coughing from the smoke. He tries to get to his mother in the next bedroom, but a burning beam falls between them. He screams at her to wake up, then fights his way out of the house and falls to his knees, struggling to breathe. RELATED: TV Review: Resident Alien Season 4 At a free legal clinic run by Ashley Cooper Law School students, Rudy chats with a woman about her will while Sarah discusses a case with Dot Black (Karen Bryson) involving her son's death. Mrs. Black believes the hospital, North City General, where her son Donny supposedly died of the flu, is guilty of killing him. She filed a negligence lawsuit against the hospital. When Rudy sits down to review the lawsuit, Sarah points out that the hospital is represented by Tinley Britt. When Mrs. Black mentions that Tinley Britt offered to settle with her for $50,000, despite having a motion to dismiss pending, she catches Rudy's attention. Sarah explains that she and Rudy aren't real lawyers yet, and because they're going to be working at Tinley Britt, there would be a conflict of interest. Mrs. Black leaves, determined to make North City General and Tinley Britt pay for her son's death. She walks out carrying an old banker's box labeled 'Donny Ray' in black marker. Ready for the Rest of Their Lives That night, Sarah sings along with fellow Ashley Cooper students to the music at Yogi's, a busy pub. Rudy's behind the bar. His boss, Prince (Tommie Earl Jenkins), comes through to grab some cash. Sarah reminds Prince that Rudy's leaving this life behind with his new position at Tinley Britt. Prince reminds her that for this last night, Rudy's still a bartender. Then he buys them a round of shots. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Christopher Barr/USA Network In the morning, Rudy wakes up alone in his bed. A text from Sarah says she went home to change and will see him at work. Through his window, he sees a man working on a truck in the driveway. When he's dressed, he finds a token for Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, in the suit pocket. His mother, Mary (Ali White), is dusting in his late brother, John's, room. She tells him that John wanted to quit law school, but their father, also deceased now, wouldn't let him. Rudy's wearing John's suit for his first day of work. RELATED: Read our Resident Alien recaps When his mother says her boyfriend, Hank (Bruno Gunn), wants her to get rid of John's stuff so he can turn the room into a gym, Rudy reminds her that this is her house. He confronts Hank, and they fight. Rudy lands the first punch, but Hank splits his lip, leaving blood on his suit collar and shirt. When Rudy's mother comes out to break them up, Hank jumps in his truck and drives off. She tells Rudy that he has to move out. He tells her he's already looking for a place, but now he's late and has to go. She notices the blood and asks if he should change first. He points out it's the only suit he has and leaves. Tinley Britt Sarah texts Rudy, 'WHERE ARE YOU?' as she joins the other junior associates for Tinley Britt's orientation. In the conference room, she saves him a seat. Leo F. Drummond enters, intoning, 'I am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great sins, God would not have set a punishment like me upon you.' Attributing it to Genghis Khan, he says the warrior would've been a great litigator. As he begins quizzing the new associates about courtroom law, Rudy slips in the door and sits down next to Sarah. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Christopher Barr/USA Network Drummond zeroes in on Rudy and puts him on the spot. Rudy pushes back. Sarah whispers that he shouldn't argue with Drummond. Drummond keeps pushing. Sarah keeps indicating that he should back down. Rudy dives in. Drummond isn't impressed and calls on Sarah to refute Rudy's argument. She does, summarily. When Rudy effectively counters Drummond with Drummond's own words, Brad Noonan (Wade Briggs), a senior associate, sitting at the front, looks impressed. Drummond and Noonan leave the room. Fired Sarah meets Rudy at the elevators after he's been fired. Quoting her father, she tells him the flip side of everyone's best quality is their worst, and Rudy's is that he never backs away from a fight on both counts. She says she'll talk to Leo and get him his job back. Rudy refuses to let her get pulled down by his bad judgment. She heads up the glass-walled elevator, watching him walk down the street below her as she rises. (Heavy-handed metaphor, but it works.) RELATED: Read our SurrealEstate recaps Returning to the bar, Rudy starts calling other law firms to see if he can secure another position. No luck. When Rudy tells Prince what happened, Prince tells Rudy he might have a lead on a law firm that might hire him. Bruiser and Associates He takes him to an old Taco Hut restaurant. The marquee reads 'J. LYMAN STONE AND ASSOCIATES, NO FEE UNLESS $$$YOU WIN$$$' and there's a drive-thru sign below it. Prince tells him Bruiser's the best lawyer he knows. He leads Rudy inside and introduces him to Voreen (Megan McDonnell), the receptionist, who directs them into the office. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Jonathan Hession/USA Network In the office, Rudy mistakes Deck Shifflet (P.J. Byrne) for Bruiser. Jocelyn Stone, aka Bruiser, comes to her door and introduces Deck as their 'para-lawyer' because he went to law school but has failed the bar exam seven times. RELATED: Revival : Co-Creators Aaron B. Koontz and Luke Boyce on Crafting 'Weird' New Series Bruiser explains that associates get $2000 a month, and he keeps a third of the fees he generates. If he doesn't cover the $2000 with his share, he owes her the balance. Bruiser diagnoses his situation: He got screwed on the wrong side of hiring season, and now he's pissed. She advises that he'll make good use of that anger to help represent their clients, people they're meeting on the worst day of their lives. Once Rudy's resigned to signing up, he asks for a $20,000 advance to rent an apartment. Bruiser counters with $5,000 and tells him that he starts on Monday. Finders, Grinders, and Minder In the Tinley Britt corporate box, VIP guests mingle and watch tennis. Sarah's standing by the food when Wilfred Keeley (Hugh Quarshie), the CEO of Great Benefit Hospital Systems, walks over, looking for a hot dog. She shows him where they are, addressing him by name. He asks if they've met. She tells him that Great Benefit is one of Tinley Britt's most important clients and introduces herself. When she attempts to help him with a hot dog, she drops it and quotes the opening line from Susan Mallery's novel, Only Yours, 'Perfectly good morning, thwarted by a hot dog,' confusing Keeley. She explains that she remembers the first line of every book she's ever read. He tests her with Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and John Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany , which she aces. As she's showing off her party trick, Noonan approaches from behind her. Keeley asks Noonan if she's on his account. Noonan tries to tell him she's not even a lawyer yet, but Drummond is suddenly next to him, confirming that Sarah's on the Great Benefit account. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Christopher Barr/USA Network Noonan and Keeley move away to talk. Drummond steps closer to Sarah and tells her about finders, who bring in clients; grinders, who do the writing and research; and minders, who keep everyone out of trouble. He tells her he's wondering which she is. RELATED: Revival 's Romy Weltman on Becoming Em and Working With Melanie Scrofano Moving Out and Onwards Sarah helps Rudy move into his new apartment. She asks why they aren't moving in together. He replies that they've never discussed it. When she tries to discuss it, he states that he won't let her parents pay his rent via her trust fund. On Monday morning, Rudy arrives at Bruiser's office. She tells him he needs to find some clients ASAP and sends him out with Deck. They arrive at the hospital, and Deck pays a doctor for information about the patient in room 886, a man hit by a drunk driver. At Tinley Britt, Leo Drummond sits at a table about to eat a cheeseburger and fries. Sarah arrives, and he tells her that she should watch and learn while she's on the Great Benefit team. She makes a pitch to get Rudy his job back. In response, Drummond deliberately drops a French fry on the ground. Sarah picks it up and puts it in the trash. He does it again. And a third time. When she asks him why he's doing it, he explains he's defining their relationship. He dismisses her. A Natural Deck approaches a badly injured man lying in a medical bed, whispering his name to wake him up. Deck hits him with a high-pressure pitch to get him to sign them as his representation. The patient wants to wait for his wife. Rudy steps in as the conversation gets heated and offers to help in more reassuring, slightly humorous tones. The patient smiles at Rudy and nods his assent. With Deck's pen, the man signs the contract. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Jonathan Hession/USA Network Out in the hospital hallway, the man from the burning house sits in a wheelchair, his right hand heavily bandaged. A man approaches him and calls him Melvin Pritcher (Dan Fogler). He introduces himself as Rod Nunley (Jonathan Forbes) and offers to help him out. Deck spots them through a hospital door window and hurries to beat Nunley to the client. RELATED: Revival : Check Out 9 First-Look Photos From Melanie Scrofano-Led Series As they scuffle over Pritcher, an officer comes over to see what they want. Pritcher says he's talking to his lawyer and points to Nunley. Rudy watches from a distance and walks away. Deck finds him outside by the car. Rudy's disenchanted by this side of lawyering. Deck reminds him that, unless he has a whale of a client, ambulance-chasing is what makes money. Rudy realizes he might have that whale. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Jonathan Hession/USA Network Dot Black's Case Rudy and Deck drive out to Dot Black's house. Rudy sits down with her. She loved her son, and he's gone. She wants someone to answer for Donny Ray's death. Rudy finds common ground with her. They both want Tinley Britt to pay. He leaves the house with a signed contract. Back at the office, they start researching the case. Rudy finds two nurses who no longer work for the hospital — Jackie Lemancyzk (Gemma-Leah Devereux) and Melvin Pritcher. Deck connects Pritcher to their meeting in the hallway and discovers he's being arraigned the next day. The Rainmaker — Photo by: Jonathan Hession/USA Network At Dot Black's house, her dog, Daisy, runs off into the forest, barking. Dot challenges anyone who might be lurking in the woods to show themselves. Eventually, Daisy returns alone. Someone watches as Dot and Daisy return to the house. RELATED: Read our Revival recaps Sarah arrives at Rudy's with two bottles of wine. He starts cleaning up the papers on his table. She recognizes Dot Black's box, and Rudy tells her about taking the case. She reveals that she's on the Great Benefit team now. They fight. She leaves. In the Light of Day In the morning, Daisy is sniffing around the forest line. Dot picks up a spent vape cartridge. The scene shifts to a woman vaping as she watches Rudy standing outside the Charleston Police Department from her car. Deck comes out and reports that Pritcher made bail. Pritcher comes out with Nunley, but Nunley refuses to let Deck and Rudy talk to his client. Deck and Rudy bring the case to Bruiser. She's skeptical they can win it, but lets them run with it. However, she warns Rudy that he's crossing a line with this case. She tells him that if he wants to beat Drummond, he has to ask himself what he is willing to do to be a rainmaker. Pritcher Late at night, Pritcher approaches a row house unit's patio door and knocks. It's unlocked, so he lets himself in. A neighbor woman comes by and tells him that Jackie moved out. He tells her that he's the new tenant, but she knows he's lying. He jabs her with a needle, drags her inside, and closes the patio door. The Rainmaker airs new episodes on Fridays at 10/9c on USA Network. Episodes stream a week later on Peacock. TV Review: BUTTERFLY Season 1 Diana lives in Vancouver, BC, Canada, where she invests her time and energy in teaching, writing, parenting, and indulging her love of all Trek and a myriad of other fandoms. She is a lifelong fan of smart sci-fi and fantasy media, an upstanding citizen of the United Federation of Planets, and a supporter of AFC Richmond 'til she dies. Her guilty pleasures include female-led procedurals, old-school sitcoms, and Bluey. She teaches, knits, and dreams big. You can also find her writing at The Televixen, Women at Warp, TV Fanatic, and TV Goodness.