Tuesday evening at about 6:03, I mentioned to an online friend that Keith’s opening monologue for the election coverage was brilliant, quintessential Olbermann. Slate’s Troy Patterson agrees:

And then, as is the habit of commentators on that most pop-savvy and merrily allusive of news networks, he plunged deeper into reference, speaking of “M.C. Escher-like perceptions,” Groundhog Day, and celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, further attempting “a Cape Canaveral kind of analogy” and some Jiffy Lube sort of imagery, and nodding to the Oregon Treaty of 1846 in a way that risked a neck sprain.

Which nicely segues into “The Art of Media-Savvy Satire,” the title of an upcoming live appearance by Our Mr. Olbermann at New York’s Paley Center:

The Paley Center is saluting the work of legendary satirists Bob & Ray, with Bob Elliott himself and his son Chris, acclaimed writer/performer of Late Night with David Letterman and the creator/star of Get a Life, discussing and screening clips from their careers. Along for the tribute is Keith Olbermann, who cites Bob & Ray as a major influence on Countdown, his nightly blending of news and satire. It will be quite a meeting of the media-savvy wits.

For those of you in the New York area, it takes place on Monday, March 31, 2008 from 6 to 7:30 pm. Tickets are $25 and go on sale to the general public at noon on March 14. [via variety.com]

This is your “official” Truth and Consequences discussion post!

I’m afraid logic won out yesterday, for I decided going anywhere near a suburban mall on Boxing Day would be hazardous to my health. Today’s the day though!

ERTer Gilbert has weighed in here, The rest of you? Please chime in here.

[Bumped 12/29 - Becky]

In the USA Today, Michael Hiestand catches KO waxing nostalgic:

But, in the 1990s, along with his then-ESPN partner Dan Patrick, Olbermann was in the genre’s revolutionary vanguard. Recalling those heady times, Olbermann recalls one ESPN show with Craig Kilborn when both were “bored” and decided to say something nonsensical — “salsa!” — during basketball highlights to see if some other sportscasters would start using it — “and within three days, somebody on-air in Cleveland was saying it.”

Yes, Keith. You really should have a ticket to purgatory.

I was inclined to let this flap about last Friday’s WPItW go without comment, but it will not go gently into that good night. There’s been some back-and-forth between Our Mr. Olbermann and the “perpetually anonymous spokesman for Fixed News,” documented by ICN here, here, here, and here. “Paranoia?” Really?

Completely by accident I stumbled across Salon’s Keith Olbermann index, with stories about and written by KO. Included among those I hadn’t read before are two from his first MSNBC gig.

Last, but not least, Keith as video game character. No, not the paper throwing game, but something called, “DC Smackdown.”

Whether it is Hillary Clinton’s “Intern Trample,” Bill O’Reilly’s “No Spin Zone” or Jessie Jackson’s “Million Man Dance Party,” there’s equal opportunity bashing in DC Smackdown.

The computer game has 17 characters in all, including the top-tier candidates, Hillary “The Man” Clinton, Rudy “The Mayor” Guiliani, Barack “Your World” Obama, Mitt “Flip Flop” Romney, John “Pretty Boy” Edwards and Gramps McCain.

DC Smackdown also has the popular pundits, Glenn “Chicken Little” Beck, Rosie “The Mouth” O’Donnell and Keith “Left Wing” Olbermann. Plus there are the “hidden” characters that unlock during play including Ron Paul, Mike Huckabee and Oprah.

I guess this was created before Huckabee’s ascendancy, huh? I eschew anything more complex than Tetris, so if one of you plays the game please report back!