I have always enjoyed the mysteries of true crime. In particular, I have enjoyed the unsolved crimes. I used to enjoy “Unsolved Mysteries” on NBC. One of my favorite books was “The Dairy of Jack the Ripper.” I loved the HBO series The Jinx and the movie documentary The Imposter.
I am fascinated by the mystery of the cases. The mysterious deaths of Bob Crane, who played Col. Hogan on Hogan’s Heroes, and George Reeves, who played Superman, are intriguing.
The last few years have had a ton of these stories. I am watching the History Channel’s series D.B. Cooper: Case Closed? It was a two part, four hour total documentary focusing on the mystery of what happened to a man who stole $200,000 dollars in 1971, hijacked an airplane and jumped from the plane, never to be seen again. It was a story that I had a passing knowledge of, but had never really deep desire to find out more. This documentary was very compelling and grabbed my attention.
Of course, this year has been the year of O.J. Simpson. With the brilliant People vs. O.J Simpson from FX’s American Crime Story and the remarkable documentary on ESPN called OJ: Made in America, this case has been brought the spotlight back into the world’s attention and refocused onto “The Juice” and the case of the double murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.
One of my favorite books is “Mindhunter” written by former FBI profiler John Douglas. Douglas would profile tons of cases and give an insight into the mind of these killers and rapists. One of the most astounding things about Douglas was how much it took on him as an individual by putting himself into the mind of these sick and evil people. It is also pretty impressive how these profilers can look at a crime scene and know so much about the perpetrator.
Jack the Ripper and The Zodiac Killer are personal “favorites” of mine. I have always found serial killers to be fascinating, and these two are the top of the list, probably because they were never caught. I have my own theories of who they were, and I have read several books on both of them. They feel more like super villains than serial killers such as John Wayne Gacy or Ted Bundy.
I teach a lot of Edgar Allan Poe in my class. His mysterious cause of death is one of the more interesting aspect of this famous author. We do not know how he died. Alcohol poisoning? Rabies? Brain Tumor? Cooping? Murdered? There are so many possible solutions and we will never know. That mystery makes me, as a writer, want to figure it out.
When I was a child, I would watch the TV show In Search Of… which was narrated by Leonard Nemoy. This was a great show that really inspired by curious nature. These mysteries helped mold me into the person I am. I am always fascinated by these unsolved mysteries and I love the opportunity to try and figure out what had happened.
#10. 
#9. 
#8. 
#7. 
#6. 
#5. 
#4. 
#3. 
#2. 
#1 
To me there is no bigger snub than this one. Bates Motel has been quietly one of the best shows on television, bar none. The show itself should have been nominated in Best Drama, but I could almost live without that… but 
Especially with the shocking end to this season. I would also throw into the consideration for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series 
Jessica Jones was a special series on Netflix. It was more than a superhero show. In fact, you could remove the superpowers of Jessica Jones and you could still have a tremendous show about a damaged woman trying to move on with her life after being a victim. The superpowers were just a part of the story. And Krysten Ritter played Jessica Jones’ suffering and her alcoholic PTSD to the tee. Her relationship with Luke Cage was fun and uncensored. There were so many things that Emmy voters look for in this series that the only thing that makes sense is that this is a comic book series and they do not get nominations from the stuck in the mud Emmy voters.
Netflix show that has been ignored by Emmy voters. There was absolutely no excuse for Vincent D’Onofrio to be skipped over last year for his role as Wilson Fisk. So many layers… and David Tennent is arguably even better. Kilgrave was essentially a rapist, yet before the end of the season, you found yourself rooting for him, understanding the pain and the desires the Purple Man had. Tennent was tremendous and deserved an Emmy nod.
I dare you to watch Daredevil Season 2 Episode 4 with Frank Castle confessing his sins to Daredevil at the cemetery and not get the feels. 
My supporting actor in a drama category would look very different than the one that the Emmys rolled out because I would have had to have included Christian Slater from Mr. Robot. The basis behind the biggest mystery of the first season, “Who is Mr. Robot”, Slater was spot on for every moment. Though it is great that Slater’s scene partner Rami Malek receive a nomination and the series got one too, Slater was so vital to bring this series to life that ignoring him was criminal.
She did win the Golden Globe. That just goes to show how little the Academy thinks of the Golden Globes. Replacing divine diva Jessica Lange was a huge challenge, but Lady Gaga impressed people with her vampiric vamping and the drastic bloodlust (literally) from American Horror Story: Hotel.
The Netflix series is another one that has had up and down seasons, but this seasons penultimate episode featuring Poussey was one of the best hours of television this season. Why would the Emmys ignore this heart wrenching episode with the great performance by fan favorite 
#10. Gary Burghoff. Radar on MASH was a very solid panelist and even sat in on the third seat when Charles Nelson Reilly was gone.
#9. Nipsey Russell. Nipsey would always give a little rhyme when he was on. As an African America during the 1970s, many of the jokes were not always racially appropriate. However, he was always funny, and extremely quick witted.
#8. Joyce Bulifant. Joyce would usually sit in the bottom right seat (the final seat) and she would give some of the funniest, albeit, worst answers on the panel. She acted fairly ditzy, but she was sharper than what she seemed.
#7. Patti Deustch. Another woman who was in that bottom right seat (the “weirdo” seat as Gene Rayburn would say) and the jokes were directed toward some of the wild answers she would write. Some might argue that she was playing a character for the show, as some of her other appearances on other shows might indicate.
#6. Elaine Joyce. Another of the pretty women who seemed to be more than what they appeared. Elaine was very flirtatious with the males of Match Game.
#5. McLean Stevenson. Formerly Lt. Col. Henry Blake from MASH, McLean Stevenson made many appearances on Match Game. In fact, there were a couple of times when McLean took over for Gene Rayburn on a spur of the moment and ran the show (Gene took McLean’s seat.)
#4. Betty White. Betty was the other panelist to step into Gene’s shoes, showing off her hosting chops. She was also one of the funniest panelists around. She imitated Charles one episode which was a riot. Her one liners with Brett were also fantastic. Betty White has always brought class, and, even here, it was no exception.
#3. Brett Somers. One of the regulars, always seated in the middle of the top row, Brett was always a hoot. She had an amazing chemistry with Charles and Gene and her smart remarks were almost as enjoyable as her loud and joyous laughter. She was never afraid to be the butt of the jokes either.
#2. Richard Dawson. Probably the best player on the show, virtually all the contestants wanted to do the Super Match with Richard. It became so much of an issue, the show instituted a “Star Wheel” so other panelists might have a chance to play as well. Richard was charming and funny and he would go on to be an iconic host of Family Feud.
#4. 
#2. 
This video was eerie and heartbreaking as Reynolds, who was at first clearly in shock, narrated the event as her boyfriend died in the seat beside her. She said that the officer had told them to put their hands in the air, that he had asked for license and registration and that the officer shot Castile as he reached for his license from his wallet. According to Reynolds, Castile had told the officer that he had a hand gun, and she had said that he had a license to carry.
