The Midnight Ramble: McKay's 'Lakers' on HBO, remembering 'Banshee', and those Blues

Pour a drink, wayward midnight souls who can't sleep

As I nearly forgot to start my son’s bath here on time in south city St. Louis, let’s talk about a few random things on a chilly Monday night.

Chameleon is a word that can be thrown around Hollywood like dice at the casino. Far too often and subject to hazard pay.

It’s not exactly an easy profession, even if there’s a more guaranteed promise of longevity. Chameleon actors aren’t top of the poster types. They’re Jon Hamm without Mad men types. The ones who hide in the background and steal scenes from the lead actor or actress. Case in point: Jason Clarke in Adam McKay’s new HBO series about the “magical” Lakers teams in the early 80’s, Winning Time.

The Australian actor plays Jerry West, head coach of the “shit streak” of an NBA team who found rebirth through the talents of one Earvin “Magic” Johnson. Clarke eats up the role and spits it out with artistic glee. West carried enough anger and angst to pack three World War II movies. He was an MVP talent for a Lakers team that went to the NBA Final six times and lost every time, often to the Boston Celtics.

It was like Lebron James reliving his pre-Heat days in some wild “Groundhog Day” loop. West carried that into his coaching career. Now, let me point out that McKay (whose shit stain of a movie in Don’t Look Up is up for Best Picture this month) has made a show inspired by very real events. It’s a dramatization with some events and people turned around. So, pretty please with sugar on top, take it easy on matching facts to Jerry Buss jacks in this new show.