All caught up on Tivo

'Cept for the last two episodes of the HBO miniseries "John Adams," I caught up and watched everything on Tivo this weekend.

Yup, two episodes of "Back to You" -- not sure why I'm still watching, but I feel obligated to finish the season out and finish what I started -- plus two episodes of "ER" and my usual weekend contingency: "Ebert and Roeper at the Movies," ESPN's "The Sports Reporters," "CBS Sunday Morning" and "60 Minutes." I'm feeling very accomplished now.

I even was able to catch "Cloverfield" on DVD, which I somehow missed in the theater. I thought it was a fine thriller, with a big-ass monster heading up and down Manhattan. The hand-held camera, which has never bothered me in such stellar shows as "Homicide," didn't do me any favors, though, and I honestly felt a little nauseous at the end of the movie. If I'd seen it in the theater, I would've had a hard time keeping my Raisinets down.

I caught "Lost" on Friday night -- a day after its broadcast airing -- and I absolutely love the show but I don't invest as much time and thought into it as others, who suss out every possible theory as to why Ben does this, why Jack does that and everything in between. I just enjoy it for its pure entertainment value, and showrunners Damon and Carlton always outdo themselves on that front.

It was a good weekend to stay inside, as the temperatues in L.A. hit near record highs. It got toasty playing golf Saturday morning in Burbank, though our 7:30 starting time made it quite bareable. If we had teed off a couple of hours later, we would've fried.

I'm looking forward to seeing a couple of movies this week that I've heard great things about. My Variety colleague Eddie Cockrell, a great film critic out of Australia, saw a small film called "Shotgun Stories" a year ago while we were at the Berlin Film Festival and gave it a rave. It's now just opened in the States and I'm going to try and catch it on Wednesday.

Tomorrow night is "Iron Man," the Marvel Comic-turned-feature film, which has gotten great -pre-release buzz. It needs to be a big box office winner, too, as I choose it in my summer box office pool. Go Robert Downey Jr.!

R.I.P. Danny

The E Street Band has given us in the Bruce community so much joy over the past 30 years, it's like we feel we know the folks on stage better than we actually do.

Really, we only connect with them through their music and the occasional print or TV interview, but when E Street organist extraordinaire Dan Federici passed away yesterday, it felt as if we lost a dear friend, and in many ways we did.

Federici, pictured here a few years ago in Florida with my good friend and fellow scribe Pete Kerasotis, was never center stage in concert, always to Max's right, playing away with such ease and professionalism that we barely gave it much thought. But that was Danny's gift. He made it look so easy that he never received the proper credit he deserved.

While other members of the band — with the exception of Garry Tallent — have much more showy roles, Danny blended in and helped create the legendary E Street sound we've loved and appreciated since that first listen we all heard way back when.

The E Street family has become so ingrained in us, that when I texted a friend upon hearing the news -- saying only DANNY DIED -- there was no one else who my friend could've imagined had passed away. For us who've made the trek around the country more than once, more than twice even, there's only one Danny, as there's only one Roy, Steve, Nils, etc.

Our heartfelt prayers go to Danny's family, friends and those who've played with him on E Street for the past 40 years. Here's hoping he's strapping on the accordion for one hell of an encore somewhere in the great beyond.

There's magic in the night

Twenty-four years after seeing my first Bruce Springsteen concerts, it felt like old times catching him twice this week at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

Bruce got his "Magic" message across all right, as he did in October at the L.A. Sports Arena, but there was definitely a looser vibe at these shows. Having fun was a top priority this time around, and Bruce and the venerable E Street Band delivered in spades.

The setlists were top-notch, with opening songs that had everyone guessing. Monday night we were treated to "Light of Day" while on Tuesday "Thunder Road" was the first out of the gate, a classic that felt so wonderfully fresh after not being played in L.A. for years.

For some reason, while watching Bruce play "The Promised Land," I kept thinking what it must feel like to actually be Bruce Springsteen, and be "on" all the time, never having the luxury of having an off night. Other thoughts that came into my head were what would it be like to be one of Bruce's children and having a dad so famous that he's recognized around the world.

But I transgress. It was a great couple of nights, seeing friends in the Springsteen fan community that come into my life every time Bruce is in town. Folks I've known for decades — many by face only, with their names often escaping me — always greet me with a warm smile, hug and/or handshake. Our lives are far different from one another but we've always shared this common bond.

My friend and I arrived at the arena Tuesday around 3:30 in order to get our wristband and get randomly selected to watch the concert in the pit i.e. the very front of the floor adjacent to the stage. As it turned out, we didn't make it into the pit but were close enough to have an unobstructed view of Bruce and the E Streeters from about 30 feet from the stage.

Many folks good naturedly give me a hard time about my Springsteen obsession, but I embrace it wholeheartedly. Bruce and the band have given me such wonderful memories over the years, it's been an absolute joy, and honor, to be along for the ride.

With all of us getting older -- both me and the folks up on the stage night after night -- I'm just hoping it doesn't end soon.

What was I thinking????

OK, I'm officially jealous.

A bunch of my good friends are headed to Sacramento tomorrow morning for the Springsteen show Friday night in the state capitol. Arnold and the Boss rockin' out together. Should be quite a sight.

I'm seeing him twice next week in Anaheim but Bruce is doin' Cali and I'm not there. Twenty years ago this would've been considered blasphemy -- blasphemy I tell you!! -- but with jobs, kids, bills, blah, blah I can't pull this one off. Shame on me!!

The set lists listed on Backstreets have been really terrific, with all kinds of wild cards in there -- "Trapped," "Rosalita," "Lost in the Flood" and a slew of other gems. I just hope he saves a few goodies for Anaheim.

Have fun my amigos. Go forth and conquer!