The Short and the Not So Short of It

TCA Press Tour Notes:

Random Notes
In the course of the tour you see, hear and think things that don't really fit into any particular story or slot. Here are some of those things.

It’s the pictures that got small:
Invariably when meeting or seeing 'famous people" it’s still a surprise at how height challenged many of them are. Here’s a short list of the actors I’ve interviewed or seen so far who are officially "Not Short": Jesse Plemons who plays lovable geek Landry on "Friday Night Lights" easily looks like he could’ve played college football; Matthew Modine of "Weeds," a well-known beanpole but still remarkably tall; Adam Baldwin of the new geek spy dramedy "Chuck." Of course, to certain segments of the population he will always be either the taciturn bodyguard from the 1980 teen classic "My Bodyguard" or the gruff but sexy Jayne from "Firefly"/"Serenity" (six degrees alert, also Modine’s co-star in "Full Metal Jacket"); John Madden, not shocking at all I know but dude is a mountain!; Adrianne Palicki, who plays Tyra on "FNL" and who worked up a sweat on the treadmill in front of mine yesterday in the hotel gym; Seth Meyers of "Saturday Night Live," not short and very funny

I Spy
Random Celebrity Sighting Unrelated to TCA: Tony Kanal, bassist from No Doubt, out at dinner last night. He’s still rocking the blond hair. (For the record he’s Not Short, but Not Tall either)

Choice Quotes
Adam Arkin, who is starring in the new cop drama “Life,” was asked if he was surprised to hear that Mandy Patinkin was quitting a successful television show. "He’s done it before," Arkin replied drily. He knows whereof he speaks. He co-starred with Patinkin on the successful television show "Chicago Hope"…until Patinkin quit.

"I think this is the year 'Scrubs' really becomes a big hit. We had always kind of geared our plan towards peaking in the seventh year." "Scrubs" creator, Bill Lawrence, during the Thursday comedies panel.

In a discussion during the "Sunday Night Football" panel about whether the NFL is doing enough to curb the off-field infractions of players, Cris Collinsworth commended the league's to-date efforts and promised that the show wouldn’t sugar coat the non-football headlines that may be generated during the season. And then newest "SNF" team player Keith Olbermann said “But we’re also opening a bail bonds company too.”

SARAH RODMAN