A few years ago, if you drove down any of the major boulevards in Los Angeles, you were bound to run into at least one billboard featuring the three local Fox morning news anchors. Above their faces, were simple, three-word phrases in black, block text as bold as the personalities they represented: “In the news;” “In the know;” “In your face.” One guess as to which tagline Jillian Reynolds was given.

Reynolds’ larger than life personality precedes her, suggesting she blew the doors off the entertainment industry from the very first minute she deplaned from Canada. In actuality, though, Reynolds started out, like most females, just trying to get taken seriously at the desk – in professional suits and downplaying her looks. But Reynolds very quickly came to find that there was nothing right about trying to be anyone other than who she really was. Lucky for her, she found a home with a Fox affiliate (first WSVN in Miami and then KTTV at Fox) that liked her big smile and even bigger opinions.

Once “seen as just a weathergirl,” Reynolds’ refreshing honesty and fearlessness in poking fun at herself opened the door for her to do much more. Having been on Good Day LA since 1995, Reynolds soon got the itch to expand – and brand herself. Her bubbly and sometimes brash personality was put to good use on Extreme Dating and, today, is in even better use matching wits with Howie and the boys on the NFL. She never let anyone tell her she couldn’t do something.

Reynolds is a staunch proponent of animal rights and adoption. For someone who takes on so many of the superficial (style and celebrity) stories on Good Day LA, she has also found a great way to give back: by tying her own personal philanthropy into the broadcast each morning. It is because of Reynolds’ influence that Adopt-A-Pet has become the feature segment that it has, finding good, loving homes for thousands of deserving pets across the southland.

It has been said that “you can’t be a good actor if you’re afraid to make a fool of yourself,” but it is arguable that you can’t be a relatable public figure in general if you are so inhibited. Reynolds, always willing to air her personal successes—and struggles— is proof of that. She has come into viewers’ homes on Good Day LA for the past fifteen years: they eat their breakfast with her; they get their kids ready for school with her; and they grow with her.

Reynolds is often seen as loud, lavish, and flashy—someone who reflects a somewhat untouchable lifestyle. But her willingness to share bad date stories, anecdotes about her adopted Canadian parents and birthmother alike, and beaming pride about her own daughter keeps her completely grounded. She may be a woman on television, but she is just a woman first, and she never pretends to be anything more.

adopt-a-pet, animal rights, canada, extreme dating, fox news, good day LA, jillian reynolds, miami, NFL, weathergirl, wsvn Hide

I almost didn’t care about this Super Bowl.  All day, I tried to get excited for this game.  There were many fascinating storylines: James Harrison being the first undrafted player to be named Defensive Player of the Year, the great comeback story of Kurt Warner at the ripe young age of thirty-eight, and Larry Fitzgerald, who emerged this season as one of the top wide receivers in the NFL.  Try as I might, I couldn’t care less.  There was no Tom Brady in all his handsomeness nor the rest of my beloved Patriots, so I clung to the fact that Bruce Springsteen would be the halftime show and there was no way he could disappoint.

And he didn’t. In fact Bruce and the rest of the E Street Band were amazing. But the game didn’t disappoint either.  Much to my surprise it was exciting as hell.

On the first series of the game Pittsburgh charged down the field and after quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was stopped short at the 1-yard line, Pittsburgh was forced to kick a field goal.

The Cardinals first possession was a disaster and they were forced to punt to the Steelers who once again methodically marched down the field and scored another touchdown.  This was not the same Big Ben of the Super Bowl XL who had the lowest passer rating of a winning quarterback in Super Bowl history.  At this point, I was ready to turn off the game.  The Steelers just looked like they were teaching a class in how Super Bowls were won, and the Cardinals were the slow kid in the back looking at butterflies out the window.

But behind the veteran Warner, the Cardinals rallied and moved the ball down the field 89 yards for a touchdown. Then, with just two minutes left in the half, Roethlisberger had his first turnover of the postseason and the Cardinals suddenly had the ball at the Steelers 34-yard line. What happened next will go down as one of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history.  With 18 seconds left in the first half Harrison beautifully read a pass from Warner and intercepted it, running 100 yards down the field for another Steelers touchdown and the longest play in Super Bowl history.

Going into the half it looked grim for the Cardinals.  For their sake, I hoped Springsteen played “Countin’ on a Miracle” to restore their faith.  But apparently they didn’t need the Boss, because Arizona returned in the second half ready to play and after scoring 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, looked like they were going to mount the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history with a score of 23-20.

But the Steelers would not go down and Roethlisberger again charged down the field, throwing an amazing touchdown to Santonio Holmes in triple coverage with 35 seconds left. It was immaculate.  How he caught it and kept both feet in I still have no idea.

What I thought was going to be a boring game will end up going in the history books as one of the most exciting Super Bowls ever.  You had the underdog, the old man, two strong defenses, the longest run ever, and oh, yeah I didn’t even talk about Springsteen.  How again did I think this game would be boring?

football, NFL, super bowl Hide

As promised, cliff notes on the biggest college football game of the year. You walk into work and this will be the most talked about subject for almost any guy so consider this social capital.

Basics:

Who: Oklahoma and Florida

What: The BCS National College Football Championship

Where: In the Orange Bowl (Miami)

When: Thursday, January 8, 2009

Why: Because it’s the two best teams of the season fighting it out to be #1

***Final Score: FLORDIA BEAT OKLAHOMA 24-17 (all ya need to know!!)

So one of the biggest games of the year is over. Two great quarterbacks, both (one this year, one last year) won the overall best player of the year award (Heisman Trophy). More than stats, because I’ve found that most of my girlfriends aren’t all that interested in who had how many yards, the number of field goals, sacks, penalties, etc. So, instead (and yes, this is a girl’s version of male objectification, but what the hell, we’ve put up with it our whole lives) I’m going to talk about what a hotty, dreamboat the Florida quarterback is, Tim Tebow.

Not only has he now won two national championships (a huge deal), but he also has won, best player in college football AND he’s a great guy on top of it. The broadcaster was talking about how right before he was born, his parents sold all their possessions to become missionaries. He’s a strong Christian and has traveled all over the world, living in an orphanage and a leper village (I didn’t even know they existed).

He’s kind of the Brad Pitt of college football in that every guy wants to be him and every girl wants to be with him. The big question is, since he has the option to go into the NFL where he’ll make millions of dollars next year, will he go or will he return to college and play an extra year for FL? This is a HUGE debate for players that are as good as he is and probably something you’ll hear a lot of guys debating: stay and play ball in college another year or sell out for the big leagues and get your check? We’ll have to wait and see.

Anyhow, Tebow (pronounced “tee-boe”) led his Florida Gators to a victory tonight and there will be a lot of FL fans who will be up all night in celebration. The good thing for you girls who aren’t big football fans is that you have a bit of a big break until it starts up again. Just in time for the Golden Globes on Sunday, so if you have nothing better to do, get caught up on movies so you can root for your favorite actors, directors, producers and screenplays.

My football team won tonight, hopefully my favorite movie of the year, Slumdog Millionaire, will take home some awards too which would make for one heck of a week!

photo by mike rp and mark trammell

college footbal, Gators, Golden Globes, NFL, Orange Bowl (Miami), Sooners, The BCS National College Football Championship, tim tebow Hide