Speaking to the gathering of TV critics for the summer press tour, Paul Lee, president of the ABC Entertainment Group, claimed that “empowered women is (sic) definitely a theme of the network.”

Lee was answering a question from a critic about the ABC TV network having more dramas with women characters than any other network.

Undeniably, the fall schedule has several female-driven new dramas like “Revenge,” and “Charlie’s Angels.” Never mind the debatable sexist element to “Pan Am.”

Critics have been falling all over themselves about “Pan Am,” drawing analogies to NBC’s “The Playboy Club,” and most of all to AMC’s “Mad Men.”

The inevitable question is about the sudden interest in shows with the early 1960s storylines. We know that “Mad Men,” the gold standard for drama in this era, draws the kind of numbers that would sink a show on a network.

To his credit, Lee said he is willing to take “some risks in broadcast” and that he’s been in the business “long enough to know that you stumble as much as you succeed.”

There may not be many among us who remember that air travel once represented the height of luxury and Pan Am was the biggest name in the business.

“Pan Am” recaptures some of the glory and the excitement of the emerging Jet Age, when people showed up for a flight wearing business suits and dresses.

ABC describes the show as one where the “stewardesses are the most desirable women in the world.” Boy, that’s no longer true.

The last time I recall attractive flight attendants was when the ones working for now-defunct PSA wore brightly-colored hotpants.

Anyway, I digress. The stewardesses on “Pan Am” are not just good looking but also refined, educated and cultured, resulting in a combination of obligatory qualities for international travel.

A rebellious bohemian, Maggie (Christina Ricci) turns into a buttoned-up professional for work so she can see the world.

Kelli Garner’s adventurous Kate is joined by her beauty queen younger sister, Laura (Margot Robbie), a runaway bride, who recently fled a life of domestic boredom to take to the skies.

“Pan Am” involves its share of sexy entanglements, particularly for hot-shot pilot Dean (Mike Vogel). An espionage element is also tossed into the mix when one of the stewardesses carries out assignments for the government.

For reasons I am unable to fathom, “Charlie’s Angels” is being revived and updated to a modern setting in Miami, which seems like a good place to put three hot women.

You already know the set-up. This time around the angels include Rachael Taylor’s Abby, a Park Avenue princess who became a world-class thief.

Annie Ilonzeh’s Kate is a Miami cop who fell from grace, losing both her career and her fiancé. Rounding out the trio is Minka Kelly’s Eve, a street racer with a mysterious past.

It is possible that the pretty women of “Charlie’s Angels” are just as much “empowered women” as those working as Bunnies in “The Playboy Club.” But I could be wrong.

One of the more promising new dramas is “Revenge,” a conclusion reached after watching the pilot and immediately hankering to know more about the characters.

Emily Van Camp’s Emily Thorne arrives in the swanky, ultra-rich Hamptons and starts to make new friends, while blending into the town.

But something is a little odd about a young girl living in a wealthy town all on her own, and the truth is that Emily isn’t exactly new to the community.

In fact, this was once her old neighborhood, until something bad happened that ruined her family and their reputation.

Disguising her true identity, Emily is back and she’s returned to right some of the wrongs with vengeance. The title of “Revenge” says it all.

The last new drama is “Once Upon a Time,” dreamed up by the producers of “Lost” to create a bold new imaging of the world, where fairy tales and the modern-day are about to collide.

Jennifer Morrison is a bail bonds collector who ends up in an alternate world trying to help her estranged son. To be honest, the whole fantasy business was lost on me.

ABC also has several new comedies, the most hopeful of which, at least to me, was the one bringing Tim Allen back to television.

In “Last Man Standing,” Tim Allen is literally that, at least in a household full of women. As the marketing director for an outdoor sporting goods store, Allen does not cope well with the demands of his wife (Nancy Travis) and three daughters ranging in age from 14 to 22.

Tim Allen’s deadpan humor shines once again as he battles a household of agitated women while also fending off trouble at work.

“Suburgatory,” the cleverest title for a new comedy, also shows promise because Jane Levy’s 16-year old Tessa is a precocious city girl moved by her single father (Jeremy Sisto) to a house in the suburbs.

Tessa misses the chaos of New York and is horrified by the over-manicured lawns and the neighborhood moms with the big-hair and obvious boob-jobs.

The third and last new comedy series is “Man Up!,” in which three modern men try to get in touch with their inner tough guys and redefine what it means to be a “real man.”

Haven’t men suffered enough in other comedies where they bond with other men, trying to figure out where they fit in?

“Man Up!” may not provide the answers, because my guess is that it may be one of the first casualties in the war that is called the “ratings game.” Again, I could be wrong.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

You’ve probably already heard about “The Playboy Club,” a controversial entry in the fall programming sweepstakes that trades on a renowned sexy brand.

The NBC affiliate in Salt Lake City refuses to air the new series. And it probably won’t get much traction in the Amish country of western Pennsylvania.

Gloria Steinem and Gloria Allred are not expected viewers for “The Playboy Club,” though the feminist writer Steinem once went undercover as a bunny for an expose.

Out of prurient interest and a measure of curiosity, adult men may tune in to watch, but are likely to slip away once they realize the drama should be titled “Desperate Bunnies.”

Like the new drama “Pan Am” on ABC, “The Playboy Club” hopes to cash in on the popularity of “Mad Men,” if only because of the swinging early Sixties vibe. The NBC show even has a main character that looks vaguely like Don Draper.

This is the time of the year for the summer edition of the biannual TV critics press tour, where lowly scribes get the lowdown on the new fall season.

Unlike last January, this time around NBC trotted out its newest Chairman of Entertainment, Bob Greenblatt, who told the assembled critics that he’s “very excited and bullish” about the fall season.

What else can you expect him to say? A network executive is like a politician trying to reassure doubtful constituents that he can deliver on a wide range of goals difficult, if not impossible, to achieve.

But then, for the sake of having something decent to watch on a dateless Friday night, you hope that Mr. Greenblatt’s optimism is well-founded.

During the question and answer period, of course, critics asked about “The Playboy Club” and whether the network was trying to tap into the “Mad Men” craze, even though in reality the hit cable show doesn’t draw the kind of big audience a network needs.

Greenblatt described “The Playboy Club” as a “much more energized soap opera,” a genre that works well on network TV. Additionally, he claimed this show would not “feel like ‘Mad Men’ when you ultimately see it.”

Since Hugh Hefner is not going to send me a club membership any time soon, let’s focus on to the rest of the fall schedule, which includes two additional new dramas and three new comedies.

Moving on to the next drama, “Grimm” is inspired by the classic Grimm Fairy Tales, a Friday night entry for shut-ins and members of the lonely hearts club.

Portland homicide Detective Nick Burkhardt (David Giuntoli) discovers he is descended from an elite line of criminal profilers known as “Grimms,” charged with keeping balance between humanity and the mythological creatures of the world.

As he tries to hide the dangers of his newfound calling from his fiancée (Bitsie Tulloch) and his partner (Russell Hornsby), Detective Burkhardt becomes ever more entrenched in the ancient rivalries and alliances of the Grimm world.

“Prime Suspect” is a fitting title for a crime drama that takes a probing look inside a New York City homicide department.

The series stars Maria Bello as tough-as-nails NYPD homicide Detective Jane Timoney, an outsider who has just transferred to a new squad where her new colleagues already dislike her.

Though confident and focused, Jane is also rude, abrupt and occasionally reckless. She has her vices and rumors of a questionable past follow her everywhere.

At the end of the day, Jane is an instinctively brilliant cop who can’t be distracted from the only important thing: the prime suspect.

In the Thursday night comedy rotation, NBC adds “Whitney,” a look at modern love in a comedy series about Whitney (Whitney Cummings) and Alex (Chris D’Elia), a happily unmarried couple.

Together for three years, the duo is no rush to get hitched, but attending one too many weddings and listening to their opinionated friends causes the couple to grapple with relationship issues.

NBC also seems to be carving out a comedy block on Wednesday nights, adding to two new comedies to precede “Harry’s Law.”

“Up All Night,” which is up first, has an impressive creative team with links to “30 Rock,” “Parks and Recreation,” and “Saturday Night Live.”

Christina Applegate takes another turn at comedy in the role of Reagan Brinkley, a loving wife, successful career woman, life of the party and, most recently, mom.

Determined not to compromise her career or cool reputation to the clichés of motherhood, Reagan adjusts to life with a baby and returns to work with the support of her stay-at-home husband, Chris (Will Arnett).

Dealing with sleep deprivation may be the reason for the show’s title, but Reagan has bigger problems in handling the endless needs of her ambitious boss (Maya Rudolph).

The second mid-week comedy show is “Free Agents,” a romantic comedy that explores the trials and tribulations of finding love and companionship the second time around.

Hank Azaria’s Alex is newly divorced, missing his kids and trying to keep himself together. His co-worker Helen (Kathryn Hahn) thinks she has it together but drinks too much in order to cope with her fiancé's untimely death.

When these two overworked public relations executives share an ill-fated night of passion, they are forced to cope with the awkward aftermath.

Meanwhile, NBC Chairman Greenblatt must be hoping that his passion for his fall lineup is not ill-fated.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

Short Stax will perform on Sunday, Aug. 14, 2011, in Ukiah, Calif., as the opening band for The Robert Cray Band. Courtesy photo.

UKIAH, Calif. – This Sunday, Aug 14, local boys Short Stax (you might remember them as Taste Like Chicken) are going to be opening for The Robert Cray Band at Todd Grove Park in Ukiah.

Be sure to come and say hi to the group, which includes David Neft on keyboards an bass, Steve Dubois on drums and “Mojo” Larry Platz on guitar.

The show starts at 6 p.m. and is free to all ages.

Short Stax is three-fifths of Bill Noteman and the Rockets, kind of rockin' jazzy, kind of funky bluezy, but all fun.

Ted Kooser, US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. Photo by UNL Publications and Photography.

Here is a lovely poem by Robert Cording, a poet who lives in Connecticut, which shows us a fresh new way of looking at something commonplace. That’s the kind of valuable service a poet can provide.

Old Houses

Year after year after year

I have come to love slowly

how old houses hold themselves—

before November’s drizzled rain

or the refreshing light of June—

as if they have all come to agree

that, in time, the days are no longer

a matter of suffering or rejoicing.

I have come to love

how they take on the color of rain or sun

as they go on keeping their vigil

without need of a sign, awaiting nothing

more than the birds that sing from the eaves,

the seizing cold that sounds the rafters.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2010 by Robert Cording from his most recent book of poetry, Walking with Ruskin, CavanKerry Press, Ltd., 2010. Reprinted by permission of Robert Cording. Introduction copyright ©2011 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. They do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

The night kicks off at 6 p.m. with drinks and gourmet finger foods at the Saw Shop Bistro in Kelseyville.

Then the party moves on to the Taylor Observatory with more great dining, silent auction and a planetarium show.

The theater invites everyone in the community to join in the party and support all the first class performing arts and film events that are now offered at the Soper Reese year ‘round.

Tickets are $50 per person and can be purchased on line at www.soperreesetheatre.com, or at the theater box office at 275 S. Main, Lakeport, Thursday and Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

For more information call 707-263-0577.

Ted Kooser, US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. Photo by UNL Publications and Photography.

I’d guess that nearly everyone is aware that time seems to speed up as we age. Whenever I say that something happened ten years ago, my wife reminds me that it was twenty. Here’s a poem about time by the distinguished Maryland poet, Linda Pastan.

Counting Backwards

How did I get so old,

I wonder,

contemplating

my 67th birthday.

Dyslexia smiles:

I’m 76 in fact.

There are places

where at 60 they start

counting backwards;

in Japan

they start again

from one.

But the numbers

hardly matter.

It’s the physics

of acceleration I mind,

the way time speeds up

as if it hasn’t guessed

the destination—

where look!

I see my mother

and father bearing a cake,

waiting for me

at the starting line.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2010 by Linda Pastan, whose most recent book of poems is Traveling Light, W.W. Norton, 2011. Poem reprinted from Nimrod International Journal, Awards 32, Vol. 54, no. 1, 2010. Rights granted by Linda Pastan, in care of the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency. Introduction copyright ©2011 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. They do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.