Go ahead, indulge. One more time -- just sit back and let it go.
Yeah -- Let it go, let it go, let it go. Can't hold it back anymore.
Frozen airs at 7 p.m. today on ABC. Gather the kiddies. Indulge. Resistance is futile.
Did you see Frozen fever coming in 2013, when the animated 3-D movie debuted? Reading the advance synopsis, I dismissed it as just another Disney princess holiday movie (like the current Moana) designed to infatuate little girls and sell stuff at Christmas.
Wowzers, did it ever.
Produced for the pittance of $150 million, the film at last count has raked in $1.276 billion worldwide at the box office. That's billion. With a B.
That makes it the highest-grossing animated film of all time and doesn't even begin to include all the Frozen merchandising out there.
Examples from DisneyStore.com: Frozen PJ Pals -- $12; 8-inch Olaf bean bag -- $6; Anna Couture de Force Figure -- $69.95; Frozen Castle of Arendelle Play Set -- $74.96; Olaf travel mug -- $22.95; Frozen underwear set (for girls) -- $12.95.
You get the idea. The list goes on. And on.
If you've never seen the movie, here's your chance to see what all the fuss is about. You'll find it deals with nuanced and complex themes. If you have seen the movie, well, here's one more opportunity to get lost in the magic.
Frozen, inspired by The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen, tells the tale of Anna (Kristen Bell) and her Snow Queen sister Elsa (Idina Menzel).
When the kingdom becomes locked down in perpetual winter, Anna teams up with mountaineer Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and his reindeer sidekick Sven to find Elsa and break her icy spell.
The journey brings encounters with trolls, the goofy snowman Olaf (Josh Gad) and lots of magic, adventure and song.
• There's more. There is one viewer at our house who never, ever wants to watch any special featuring the cast of a show talking about the show. She says it ruins the hot dog for her to see how it's made.
Example: We both love The Walking Dead, but she refuses to watch The Talking Dead that follows. That's the talk show where they dissect the episode just aired and feature guests who ponder what it all means and cast members chatting about behind-the-scenes stuff.
It fascinates me, but I have to record it and watch when she's not around.
Maybe you feel that way about Frozen. If not, tonight's airing is followed at 9 by The Making of Frozen: A Return to Arendelle. The cast gives the inside scoop about how the film was made.
The hour will include a sneak peek of a new holiday special starring the Frozen gang that is set to air around this time next year.
• What? Huh? Apparently I'm not the only TV writer who gets frequent questions about the background music on TV shows. Many readers say it has become so loud you can't hear the dialogue.
I've asked network publicists about this and have gotten every answer from "it's their imagination" and "it's intended for dramatic effect" to "maybe they need to adjust their TV sets."
Rich Heldenfels, my counterpart at the Akron Beacon Journal in Ohio, recently wrote about the problem and reported one possible solution that I had overlooked. He found it on the CBS website.
CBS suggests that those who claim to have overly loud background music may have a stereo TV set with the "front surround" feature activated. This, CBS notes, moves the rear surround (usually music and sound effects) to the main speakers, overriding dialogue.
CBS says: "This can be corrected via your remote control, accessing MENU, and then the audio or sound profile. Set 'Front Surround' to 'OFF.' We have found that some cable remotes have crossover signals (for instance their DVR button) which activate the 'Front Surround' on the adjacent television set."
Thanks for the tip, Rich. We'll try that.
Now if we can just get NCIS to quit shooting its star against a blindingly bright window or background so as to try to disguise that Mark Harmon is 65 years old. The guy looks great. Let him be.
• Full Frontal back. TBS has renewed Full Frontal With Samantha Bee for a second season. The network feels that with Donald Trump in the Oval Office, Bee will have no lack of fodder for her outraged political commentary.
The show airs at 9:30 p.m. on Monday, but will switch to 9:30 p.m. Wednesday beginning Jan. 11.
Bee's response to the TBS memo: "I am only sorry that this renewal leaves me unavailable for a Cabinet position in the new administration. I will, however, be available to host the White House Correspondents Dinner, seeing as I already bought the dress."
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Style on 12/11/2016