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"I was in an airport [last Wednesday] when that whole Paris Hilton interview was going down. I was watching 'The Situation Room' and they were talking about this interview that hadn't happened yet and then counting down to it. I'll never watch CNN again.

"I mean it. I think something's happened to news and entertainment. News has become entertainment. They don't give you what you need, they give you what you want. And entertainment has taken a turn, too. People aren't much interested in virtuosity. They just want to feel better when they watch something and that changes it all. So I don't know, maybe that's why Broadway was so great and I'm going to Vegas."

-- Tony Danza, Fourth of July emcee, King of Danzitions and former talk show host opining to the Washington Post about the newsmedia's excesses.

It's always hard to say goodbye to an old friend, but this week we bid adieu to our "What Was Andy Thinking?" feature. Despite some good early reviews, we felt it was getting a little stale, and we were also having trouble tracking down our source material – no one kept detailed records of Rooney's commentary topics before 1991. But that doesn't mean we can't have a little fun on the way out. Below you'll find a listing of Andy Rooney commentary topics from 2001, the year of George W. Bush's inauguration, the G8 protests in Genoa, Italy, and, of course, the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Andy, per usual, took on some topics that made headlines and some that didn't. In the latter category are commentaries on airline passengers' rights, different styles of hats, and how bathtubs are a waste of money. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/07/01: "America Is Great" - 10 good things about America

01/14/01: "Handy Andy" - a viewer sends Andy a copy of Handy Andy, a book written another Andy Rooney which was published in 1842

01/21/01: "Selecting A Cabinet" - what Andy's choices would be

02/04/01: "God Bless America" - how politicians end their speeches

02/11/01: “Inflated Prices” - prices keep going up

02/18/01: “Don’t Retire” - Andy’s thoughts on college vacations, the lack of good teachers and retirement

02/25/01: “Andy’s Solution” - finding new uses for the U.S. military’s outdated tanks

03/04/01: “President Bush’s Speech” - Andy’s reaction to George W. Bush’s first speech to Congress

03/11/01: “The News” - stories in the news: espionage by the U.S.; Richard Cheney’s health; weather reporting

03/18/01: “Drink Up” - the popularity of soft drinks

03/25/01: “Dirty Words” - Andy complains of gratuitously dirty language in movies and television

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Haters, rejoice: Our "What Was Andy Thinking?" feature is just one week away from its swan song. We're preparing a lengthy, heartfelt retrospective,* but in the meantime, please enjoy this latest installment in the series, in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around, the year is 2004, the year of President George W. Bush's reelection, the Madrid and Chechen terrorist attacks, the Asian tsunami, Massachusetts legalizing same-sex marriage, and "The Passion of the Christ." Andy, per usual, took on some topics that made headlines and some that didn't. In the latter category are commentaries on smart cars, kitchen gadgets, and things Andy doesn’t want for Christmas. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

*not actually true.

01/04/04: “Window Dressing At It’s Best” - mannequins in store windows

01/11/04: “Andy On Post-Holiday Cleaning” - Andy cleaned out his closet

01/25/04: “Ground Control To Mr. Bush” - Andy is ambivalent about President Bush’s proposed manned expeditions to the moon and then Mars

02/08/04: “Showtime At The Super Bowl” - Andy talks about the half time show

02/15/04: “Is It Really A Deal?” - misleading ads

02/22/04: “As God Told Me...” - the movie “The Passion Of The Christ”

02/29/04: “Those Maddening Movie Ads” - ads that run before a movie begins

03/07/04: “The True Things In Life” - Andy lists some

03/14/04: “The `Passion’ Over Rooney” - Andy reads some of the record-breaking responses to his 02/22/04 commentary

03/21/04: “Want To Marry? Take A Test” - it’s too easy to get a marriage license

03/28/04: “Charity Asks. Should You Give?” - legitimate charities asking for donation

04/04/04: “The Big Book Business” - not every author gets rich from the sale of his book

04/11/04: “The Joy Of Kitchen Tools” - kitchen gadgets that Andy owns but never uses

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Here's the latest installment in our continuing series, "What Was Andy Thinking?," in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around, the year is 1999, the year of the Columbine High School massacre, Dr. Jack Kevorkian's conviction of second-degree murder, the death of John F. Kennedy Jr., and the release of Napster. Andy, per usual, took on some topics that made headlines and some that didn't. In the latter category are commentaries on women in traditionally male professions, car bumpers (which he said were worse than ever), and what people were doing that might bring about the end of the world. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/03/99: "Don't Disappoint Andy" - famous people making commercials

01/10/99: "Good News" - positive things during 1998

01/17/99: "Andy Answers His Mail" - Andy responds on the air

01/24/99: "Labels" - ingredients in food

01/31/99: "Colds" - cold remedies

02/07/99: "America" - what is wrong with the U.S.

02/14/99: "Our Budget Surplus" - how Congress will handle the surplus

02/21/99: "The Airlines" - why people are unhappy with the airlines

02/28/99: "Andy Interviews Monica" - what might have happened if Andy interviewed Monica Lewinsky

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Here's the latest installment in our continuing series, "What Was Andy Thinking?," in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around, the year is 1998, the year of the House impeachment of Bill Clinton, FDA approval of Viagra, the U.S. embassy bombings, the founding of Google, and the murder of Matthew Shepard. Andy, per usual, took on some topics that made headlines and some that didn't. In the latter category are commentaries on how to handle sales calls, the mannerisms of television news correspondents, and having Jr. attached to a man's name. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/04/98: "Reference Books" - statistics on various states

01/11/98: "TV in the News" - the age of the "60 Minutes" audience; David Brinkley is doing commercials

01/18/98: "Differences" - individual preferences

02/01/98: "Clinton" - the current White House sex scandal

02/08/98: "My Opinion" - what Andy thinks about events in the news

02/15/98: "Valentine's Day" - greeting card messages

02/22/98: "Big Vans" - Andy drives a van

03/01/98: "Olympics" - Andy critiques the Olympics

03/08/98: "Fred W. Friendly" - death of Fred W. Friendly

03/22/98: "Kathleen Willey" - Andy talks about last week's interview with Kathleen Willey

03/29/98: "My Saturday Morning" - labels you find in the supermarket

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Here's the latest installment in our continuing series, "What Was Andy Thinking?," in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around, the year is 1995, the year of the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, the passing of most of the Contract With America, the O.J. acquittal, and the Million Man March. Andy, per usual, took on some topics that made headlines and some that didn't. In the latter category are commentaries on able-bodied drivers using parking spaces set aside for the handicapped, bank machines not giving you money in the denominations you want, and products labeled "lemon" that don't actually contain any lemon. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/01/95: "Democrats vs. Republicans" - analyzing the differences between the two major parties

01/08/95: "Cold Remedies" - what people take for colds

01/15/95: "Birthdays" - how Andy feels about getting older

01/22/95: "Forgotten Fans of Football" - what football fans really want

02/05/95: "Postal Rates" - the price of stamps has gone up

02/12/95: "The Jury System" - what's wrong with our jury system

02/19/95: "Disclaimers" - reading the small print in ads

02/26/95: "Capital Punishment" - the death penalty is uncivilized

03/05/95: "Money and Talk Shows" - why can't bank machines give you money in the denominations you want; topics on talk shows

03/12/95: "Old Farmer's Almanac" - weather predictions

03/19/95: "Sincerely" - using words like "dear" and "sincerely" when writing to strangers

03/26/95: "Academy Awards" - what Andy thinks about the Oscars

04/02/95: "Diaries" - organizing information for a tax return

04/09/95: "Barns" - barns are disappearing

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Here's the latest installment in our continuing series, "What Was Andy Thinking?," in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around, the year is 2002, which gave us the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone's death, and the Moscow theatre hostage crisis. Andy, per usual, took on some topics that made headlines and some that didn't -- until he took them on, anyway. In the latter category are commentaries on what the human race should invent, what happens when you call your doctor’s office, and, somewhat controversially, female football reporters. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/06/02: “The College Year” - the little time college students spend in class

01/13/02: “Being A Good Sport” - money an athlete is making

01/20/02: “What’s In A Word” - the use of derogatory racial slang terms

01/27/02: “Enron” - we need more government not less

02/03/02: “Planning” - what to do first when you get to the office (OAD: 06/03/01)

02/10/02: “Flying” - airline security

02/17/02: “Olympics” - Americans behaving as though no other country is as good as the U.S.

02/24/02: “Annoying Mail” - the wording on envelopes

03/03/02: “How’s My Hair?” - hair makes a big difference in a person’s appearance

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Here's the latest installment in our continuing series, "What Was Andy Thinking?," in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around the year is 1996, which gave us Bill Clinton's reelection, Dolly the cloned sheep, The Centennial Olympic Park bombing, the murders of Tupac Shakur and JonBenét Ramsey, and the opening of the musical "Rent." Andy took on some topics that made headlines, and some that didn't. In the latter category are commentaries on women who cut grass, in-line skating, the length of movie credits, and how much his personal possessions would go for at auction. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/07/96: "Holidays" - there are too many holidays

01/14/96: "Politicians And Their Props" - items politicians use to illustrate a point

01/21/96: "First Lady" - Hillary Rodham Clinton

01/28/96: "A Night on the Town" - eating in restaurants

02/04/96: "Junior" - having Jr. attached to a man's name

02/11/96: "Tall" - what it's like to be very tall

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Here's the latest installment in our continuing series, "What Was Andy Thinking?," in which we bring you a year's worth of Andy Rooney commentary topics. This time around the year is 1993, which gave us plenty of bad news: The Branch Davidian stand-off, the World Trade Center bombing, and the Savings and Loan scandal. Andy took on some such topics, as well as others that didn't make headlines, such as people who say "thank you" in an insincere way, the popularity of bodybuilders, and how people are getting less in their packages of paper products. The full list of commentary topics is below. (OAD means original air date.)

01/03/93: "Road Signs" - confusing road signs on highways

01/10/93: "Christmas Presents" - Andy's Christmas presents

01/17/93: "Matisse" - Matisse exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City

01/24/93: "The Clinton Inauguration" - comments on the Presidential Inauguration

02/07/93: "School Books" - oversimplified school text books

02/14/93: "David Letterman" - making room for the David Letterman Show

02/21/93: "Clinton's Plan" - why do politicians tell lies in order to be elected?

02/28/93: "Boat Show - 1993" - the New York boat show

03/07/93: "Hillary Rodham Clinton" - the first lady's use of first and maiden names; politicians' nicknames

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Here's the fourth entry in our weekly feature, "What Was Andy Thinking?" As promised, we're going in no particular order, and this time around we thought we'd hit the recent past: 2003. Below you'll find Andy Rooney's commentary topics from the year the Iraq war began, the Human Genome Project was completed, and Martha Stewart was indicted. Enjoy. (OAD means original air date.)

01/05/03: “Michael Who?” - Andy takes pride in not recognizing pop icons

01/12/03: “Letters, Lots and Lots Of Letters” - which letters Andy reads and which he disregards

02/02/03: “A Death In The Family” - the Columbia tragedy

02/09/03: “Try Tuning This Out” - Andy looks at a Madison Avenue idea to make commercials part of TV programs

02/23/03: “Journey To The Center Of The Earth” - we humans should explore our own planet a bit more

03/02/03: “Fashion Sense?” - Andy reads a fashion magazine

03/09/03: “A Pound Of Coffee?” - Andy revisits the topic of how much coffee is really in a 1-lb. can

03/16/03: “The Dumbest President” - Americans are vicious about hating a president they didn’t vote for

03/23/03: “Explosive Progress” - the many ingenious devices people have invented to kill each other

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