Word: wisecracking
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...does Wilson's wisecrack fit? He had in mind inch-deep, twittering, murder-in-the-vicarage whodunits. We do care about Red Square, though not really because of the puzzle -- better than routine but less than grand-master quality -- that the author sets up and then solves. We know what to expect. The shabby, battered hero, Arkady, unravels blackest villainy, as he must, from Moscow to Munich, on to Berlin and back to Moscow; unbelievably escapes, as he must, a variety of murderous attacks; leaves a trail of defunct hard guys; and, as we knew he would be when...
Finally in 1985, he was invited to be a regular on SNL. It was the turning point of his career. His Fernando character set a new indoor speed record for trajectory from late-night sketch to universally understood wisecrack. Today people still beg him to flash the insincere smile of the fading, macho heartthrob of the '50s and intone, "You know, dahlings, it is better to look good than to feel good." By Monday morning, from junior high cafeterias to white-shoe law firms, "Excuuuse me" had been replaced by "You look maaahvelous." He also struck gold with Willie...
Ukraine's demands are likely to meet stiff resistance. The Soviet armed services, and specifically the Strategic Rocket Forces, are almost the only institution left in the country still operating under genuine central control. Eighteenth century Prussia, according to an old wisecrack, was not a country with an army but an army with a country. The Soviet Union today could almost be defined as an army without a country. Gorbachev and his generals will hardly be eager to see their control diluted. Before the referendum, in fact, the Soviet Defense Ministry pointedly told troops in Ukraine, including those controlling nuclear...
...Away, meanwhile, paints a moodier watercolor of life in a Southern town in the late '50s, just as the civil rights movement was gathering steam. In a medium that is usually more comfortable with the here and now, the timely issue and the hip wisecrack, three of the most ambitious shows of the new season are harking back to the past...
...fend off a suitor and keep the washer and dryer from being repossessed -- is a bit too hectic and overwrought. But the family is believable, and Olivia Burnette is totally winning as Dorothy Jane. With a voice that cracks charmingly at the high end, she can take a routine wisecrack ("They're just an unsuspecting, innocent family. Please don't turn into the Welcome Wagon from hell") and make it a cry of adolescent anguish. A TV kid whose jokes are rooted in real feelings and family tribulation. What a concept...