TomReed

Tony Goldmark is the aforementioned Some Jerk. He loves theme parks, but it is a love with eyes wide open. Through some sophisticated filming with his friends, he's able to show theme park attractions and shows in detail, without getting thrown out. (Hint: he intentionally NEVER says anything upsetting or contemptuous in the parks. Anything like that gets added in post. Watch the episodes closely to see how this works.) More than anything else, he observes how corporate decisions affect what you see and experience in theme parks. This is most apparent in his two-part review of the Captain EO attraction, showing how Michael Jackson was suddenly in favor, then out, then back in favor when he died.

My personal favorite is his review of the revised Star Tours attraction. Every mixed feeling or questionable decision of Lucasfilm and Disney gets its due...with his soliloquy about a certain floppy-eared resident of the planet Naboo his greatest performance of all.

He's wise enough not to take himself too seriously. But, no matter how pointedly he critiques attractions, he cares deeply for the theme park experience. He knows Disney and Universal history, enough so that he can illustrate his reviews with appropriate (and deliberately inappropriate) film clips and music. If you've ever attended a park, and especially if you've ever worked at one, you'll love these reviews.

A word about content; Mr. Goldmark does get scatological at times. These reviews are not for little children. Teenage and above will find them okay, at least teenagers not raised in the more backwards parts of our nation.

I worked at an ABC affiliate when this After School Special (or A.S.S. as we used to call them) aired. I thought it was an outstanding way to explain pregnancy and childbirth to children. Years later, I wanted to look this up on DVD or VHS, or even YouTube. I got an unpleasant surprise.

When the video proved to be unavailable, I searched the name "Dr. Lendon Smith." I came upon a web site called Quackwatch that gave the history of Dr. Smith in the years after "My Mom" and its sequel "Where Do Teenagers Come From?" I advise you to read the information there, but in summary, Smith had his medical license limited for improperly prescribing drugs.

Later, instead of facing charges of trying to defraud insurance companies, Smith surrendered his medical license and "retired." By that time he was involved in the Food Terror movement: he wrote a series of books blaming flour, white sugar and other "non-natural" foods for medical problems with children. Before his death in 2001, he was part of the cult of non-doctor "doctors" who pushed food additives and vitamins instead of legitimate medical care.

What troubles me is that this video - which, again, I couldn't find for sale anywhere - is reportedly still used in schools to teach reproduction and birth. Perhaps it's accepted because it almost completely ducks the sex act; it's as close to "sex without sex" as fearful conservatives can get. But given Dr. Smith's history, a person might want to think twice about using this for teaching kids.