​​Dear Listener,

I spent some time watching the Emmy awards on TV last Sunday night. I don’t always watch award shows, and I’m rarely rooting for any particular contenders because I’m unfamiliar with too many of the actors and artists. This time, though, I was rooting a little bit. I had seen, and loved, The Queen’s Gambit and Ted Lasso, both up for a host of Emmys. The first was a limited series that follows the progress of a precocious female chess champion. I loved the arc of the plot; I loved the acting; I loved the way it was shot.

Ted Lasso, based on a comedy sketch that actor Jason Sudeikis developed for NBC Sports, portrays an intentionally endearing American football coach who somehow winds up as coach of a hapless big league UK football team (read, soccer). Hijinks ensue. The tone is uplifting, if sometimes corny. I find it hilarious and surprising, and it makes me cheer. I haven’t had occasion to do much of that lately. Life feels like too much vodka and not enough tonic. Ted Lasso is a tonic for these times. Now, you may not agree and may not have seen the show and won’t because you don’t have AppleTV+, and that’s both fine and actually entwined with the point I’m about to make.

Both series have been mini television sensations. Ted Lasso, especially, has developed a quasi-cultish following. I suppose I am a member of that quasi-cult. I have tweeted exuberantly about the program, and the showrunner kindly sent me a box of Ted Lasso swag.