Has it really been three months already? Is it already time to get ready for fall?

Heath Ledger’s performance in “The Dark Knight” is earning Oscar talk.

If that’s the case, then it seems like a good time to take stock and pick out a few favorites from summer 2008:

Movie: “The Dark Knight.” What can I say? It lived up to the hype. Director and co-writer Christopher Nolan — helped immeasurably by performances from Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman and several others – gave a nifty comic book movie several deeper and darker layers. Expect to see several nominations come Oscar time.

CD: “Pacific Ocean Blue,” Dennis Wilson (Legacy). Brian Wilson wasn’t the only Beach Boy capable of genius. Brother Dennis’ 1977 album, given the special anniversary treatment that includes a number of cuts from the unfinished follow-up “Bambu,” emerges as a gorgeous, fragile testament to the late drummer. Dennis Wilson had written some terrific songs for the late-‘60s/early ‘70s Beach Boys — “Little Bird,” “Forever” — but few would have thought he’d have something like “Pacific Ocean Blue” in him.

Also: “The Hard Way,” James Hunter (Hear Music). The British retro-soul guitarist does it again with 12 songs Jackie Wilson or Sam Cooke would have been proud to cover — and guitar-playing that brings it on home. (If Hunter ever visits your town, see him. The man is a wizard.)

DVD: “All You Need Is Love” (Zeit). British documentarian Tony Palmer’s 1976-80 history of popular music is now (finally!) available on a 5-DVD set. Palmer took on an ambitious task, suggested by John Lennon, to chronicle popular music from its roots in field hollers and music halls, showing how Rudy Vallee was connected to Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley and David Bowie. Unfortunately for Palmer, his filming ended just as punk was coming alive, but what remains is still an incredible wealth of material, with interviews and performances from the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Jerry Lee Lewis and the Who. If, in hindsight, the filmmaker occasionally missed out … well, hindsight is 20/20.

TV: The Olympics. One exciting moment after another.

Books: As always, I’ve spent the summer desperately trying to get books out of my ever-growing To Be Read pile and actually reading them, so very few are recent releases. (Jeremy Larner’s 1970 chronicle of the Eugene McCarthy campaign, “Nobody Knows,” and Neal Gabler’s 1994 Walter Winchell biography have been the best books I’ve read lately, with Larner’s one of the best of my year.) Indeed, I believe I’ve simply put recent releases in, well, the To Be Read pile. But I will get to “Traffic” and “The Story of Edgar Sawtelle” soon. In the meantime, Mark Twain awaits.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

Once it was the president. Then it was Walter Cronkite.

Jon Stewart and “The Daily Show” have been praised for its distinctive coverage of the news.

Now, The New York Times — in a nice article by Michiko Kakutani — suggests that “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart may be the latest man for the moniker “most trusted man in America.” The piece notes that Stewart tied for fourth in a 2007 survey to name the country’s favorite journalist; Katie Couric led the list, which you can see here (scroll down).

Stewart, of course, will have none of it.

He’s long described his style as “throwing spitballs” from the back of the room, and that “The Daily Show” is entertainment, not news. “Hopefully the process is to spot things that would be grist for the funny mill,” he says of the “Daily” staff’s daily writing sessions.

Still, “trusted” isn’t a bad title for the former William & Mary psych major — one who knows his comedy, too. Asked about his deadpan look after some particularly absurd video has gone by, he says, “There’s only so many ways you can stare incredulously at the camera and tilt an eyebrow, but that’s your old standby: What would Buster Keaton do?”

Read the piece here. And if you don’t have access to Comedy Central, you can watch “The Daily Show’s” “Global Edition” on CNN International.

Trust us.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

P.T. Barnum would be proud.

The legendary 19th-century promotional genius, who once passed off an elderly black woman as George Washington’s 161-year-old former nurse and a monkey-fish construction as “the Feejee Mermaid,” would have loved the Montauk Monster.

A couple weeks ago, a mysterious creature apparently washed up on the eastern shores of Long Island, New York. Quickly given its monstrous moniker, the New York press, led by the Gawker Web site — which meant, by extension, the national media — tried to figure out what it was. Was it a semi-aquatic rodent? Something from the nearby Plum Island Animal Disease Center? A representative of the devil?

Now the Web site Slashfilm may have the answer. The site, using research from Montauk-Monster.com, speculates that the creature might simply be a prop for a movie called “Splinterheads” starring Lea Thompson (“Back to the Future”) and Christopher McDonald (who was so good as Jack Barry in “Quiz Show”) — though, as Slashfilm observes, it’s odd that the filmmakers haven’t tried to make more of the buzz surrounding the Monster. Of course, it took months before a headset company admitted to the cell phone-popcorn viral videos.

With all these Internet tubes around, there are going to be more and more of these things. What Barnum could have done with the Web, we can only wonder.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

The Olympics have already produced some amazing images — and last night might have been the finest yet.

Jason Lezak’s incredible finish in the 4 x 100 freestyle relay swimming event, which enabled Michael Phelps to continue his quest for a record amount of Olympic gold, was phenomenal. Lezak, swimming the final lap for the U.S. team, finished the race a slim eight-hundredths of a second ahead of Alain Bernard and the French team. The U.S. quartet — Lezak, Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale and Cullen Jones — set a new world record in the process.

But, for us, that spectacular finish wasn’t the image that lingered. It was Phelps’ victory dance, arms thrust in the air, showing his chiseled body to perfection. Instead of wondering just how Lezak saved the day, many women (us, for example) were left wondering just how Phelps could have molded himself into such an incredible physical specimen in his skintight Speedo.

And we realized how young the athletes are, and how old we have become.

Now, is it so terrible to admire the athletes for their bodies as well as for their skills? After all, our partner publication, Sports Illustrated, has showcased female athletes in swimsuits for years — even if the swimsuit isn’t their usual uniform (or, for that matter, isn’t made for swimming).

And yet … can you feel exhilarated and dirty at the same time? Exactly how old is too old to appreciate the physical gifts that athletes have been blessed with?

– Audrey Irvine and Jo Parker, CNN

Of course all the Isaac Hayes obituaries are leading with “Theme from ‘Shaft,’ ” the No. 1 song that won Hayes an Oscar and Grammy and became his most famous hit.

Isaac Hayes was an accomplished writer, producer and singer.

And then they mention his performance as Chef in “South Park,” which earned Hayes a whole new generation of fans (many of whom can recite the lyrics to “Chocolate Salty Balls” from memory).

But let’s not forget about Hayes’ other contributions: writer, producer, and — yes — fashion plate.

Through his involvement with Stax Records, the Memphis label that was home to Sam and Dave, Otis Redding, Carla Thomas and Booker T. and the MGs, Hayes — with partner David Porter — created some of the most indelible soul classics: “Soul Man,” “Hold On, I’m Comin’ ” (which, legend has it, was inspired by a bathroom break), “I Thank You.”

He then expanded the genre with his 1969 album “Hot Buttered Soul,” which consisted of four songs — one of them a monumental 18-minute version of Jimmy Webb’s “By the Time I Get to Phoenix.” “With the release of this album, Motown suddenly seemed manufactured and James Brown a bit too theatrical,” writes Allmusic.com’s Jason Birchmeier.

And the Hayes look? Unforgettable: proudly bald, heavily jeweled, wearing flowing outfits befitting an African king. “It was almost as if he was made to be a musical god,” writes The Associated Press’ Nekesa Mumbi Moody.

We can dig it.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

Atlanta Braves announcer Skip Caray did not suffer fools gladly, though he had to deal with plenty of them.

There was the postgame caller who couldn’t understand how a player could receive an RBI for a solo home run. After a few attempted explanations, an exasperated Skip finally said, “I’ve told you thrice, sir,” and abruptly hung up.

There were the idiocies of the late-‘80s Braves, such as an attempt to play one-season wonder Omar Moreno long after his one good season, or the eruptions of gopher balls given up by the patchwork pitching staff. Skip never sugarcoated the dismal play.

And then there was the usual foolishness involved in broadcasting sports events, the side details and odd plays of Braves baseball and Atlanta Hawks basketball and even the strange sport of motoball (essentially soccer on motorcycles) at the 1986 Ted Turner-created Goodwill Games. Skip — he was always “Skip” — called it as he saw it.

We loved him for it. (iReport: Send us your memories of Skip Caray)

Skip Caray died Sunday. He was 68.

There’s something about a longtime local sports announcer — particularly one who works radio, particularly one who works baseball’s lazy summer nights and Sunday afternoons — that gets into the soul of his listener. He talks directly to you, even when you can hear that voice out of every car radio and apartment window in town. The Dodgers’ Vin Scully, the Cardinals’ Jack Buck, the Tigers’ Ernie Harwell, Bob Prince and Red Barber and Skip’s dad Harry Caray — it’s a rare breed.

The best of today’s announcers — the Giants’ Jon Miller and the Dodgers’ Charley Steiner and the Indians’ Tom Hamilton — have that same character, describing the game as if it and you are the only things that matter.

For Braves fans, it was Skip (and I mean no disrespect to Joe Simpson, Pete Van Wieren and Ernie Johnson). It was Skip who had the last word on Sid Bream’s pennant-winning slide in the 1992 National League playoffs. It was Skip who told Atlanta fans the 1995 team had just won the World Series. It was Skip who announced the hometowns of foul ball-catching fans, Skip who encouraged listeners to walk their dogs if the home team was being crushed, Skip who reveled in the occasional off-color joke.

He sounded like broadcasting baseball games was the best job in the world, and he was having the time of his life doing it. Because of his enthusiasm, so did his listeners.

Thanks, Skip.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

Did Gretchen Wilson rip off the Black Crowes?

CMT reports that attorneys for the Robinson brothers’ band are coming after the “Redneck Woman” singer for copyright infringement. The Crowes’ point (or that of their attorneys): the Wilson song “Work Hard, Play Harder,” used in a promo for TNT’s “Saving Grace,” has some strong similarities to the Crowes’ “Jealous Again.” (TNT, it should be noted, is a unit of Time Warner, as is CNN.)

Wilson’s label, Sony, had no comment to CNN on behalf of Wilson, but Pete Angelus, longtime manager of The Black Crowes, had this to say: “We find the musical verses of Wilson’s song to be such an obvious example of copyright infringement that I expect all parties to reach a relatively quick resolution to avoid litigation.”

What do you think? Here are links to Wilson’s song and the Crowes’ 1990 tune.

– Jennifer Wolfe, CNN Entertainment Supervising Producer

Among the victims of June’s disastrous floods was the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, central library. The main branch was mere blocks from the overflowing Cedar River, and library officials still have no idea how many volumes were lost.

For now, the library is operating out of its West Side branch in the area’s Westdale Mall. But it will be looking to rebuild.

You can help.

The library is accepting monetary donations through its Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation. The address is 500 First Street SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401.

If you’d prefer to donate books, other parts of the library system are accepting them. You can donate new or used books to the libraries in Marion, Iowa (1095 Sixth Avenue, Marion, IA 52302), and Hiawatha, Iowa (150 W. Willman Street, Hiawatha, IA 52233). The Marion and Hiawatha libraries are part of the area’s Metro Library Network.

More information can be found here.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

The New York Times’ Frank Rich had an interesting column yesterday about the film “Wall-E” and its depiction, in Rich’s words, of “a world in peril.”

Wall-E ponders humanity’s debris in “Wall-E.”

Indeed, the settings of “Wall-E” are pretty bleak. The movie spends a good part of its first half in a dried-up, dusty, brown world of the future, where the title robot compacts the trash he finds and stacks it into giant towers. The highways have fallen apart, the skyscrapers are empty, and about the only bright color is provided by the scenes from “Hello, Dolly!” that Wall-E watches religiously.

And even though the movie’s other world -– that of the spaceship Axiom, which contains the mass of overweight humanity –- is brightly lit, it’s not exactly the most promising place. Humans zone out to endless TV programs, carried in floating chairs so they never have to walk. About the only excitement is provided by the messages from the ruling corporation, the ubiquitous Buy N Large, urging people to shop — or, simply, do nothing and enjoy their comfortable lives.

(I’m reminded of Ned Beatty’s speech from “Network”: “And our children will live, Mr. Beale, to see that perfect world in which there’s no war or famine, oppression or brutality … all necessities provided, all anxieties tranquilized, all boredom amused.”)

Yes, there’s a wonderful love story, some Chaplinesque slapstick and an upbeat ending. But still, even putting aside Rich’s political points — that’s a topic for the CNN Ticker — much of “Wall-E” is sobering stuff for an adult, never mind a child. (CNN.com Tech Producer Brandon Griggs has a similar take.)

Which gets me wondering. How are children reacting? I don’t have any children, but the ones I saw at my local theater appeared to be having a good time. However, I wonder what questions they asked when they got home — and if the more downbeat portions of the movie lingered on after the love story and humor wore off. (They certainly did for my wife and me.)

So for all the parents and grandparents out there: What are your children saying about “Wall-E”? What do you tell them? And would you encourage others to go?

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

UPDATE, 7/8 11:20 a.m.: We’ve been deluged with comments, so apologies to all those who haven’t gotten theirs posted. I’m working on it — but rest assured, you’ve been heard (or read).

In a 500-channel universe, there truly is a channel for everything.

Looking for old movies? Turner Classic Movies and American Movie Classics — not to mention the various Encore channels. Trying to build something? You may find an answer on the Do-It-Yourself Network. There’s golf on the Golf Channel, animals on Animal Planet and history on what’s now simply called History.

And now there’s a channel for long-ignored old TV shows.

Sure, TV Land offers plenty of old shows, the likes of “Bonanza” and “Little House on the Prairie” along with old standbys such as “I Love Lucy,” “The Andy Griffith Show” and “All in the Family.” But what about “Rawhide”? “Mission: Impossible”? “It Takes a Thief”? “Cannon” (A Quinn Martin Production)?

Late last year, I was visiting my brother in Chicago. He was showing off his new HDTV and pulled in this odd channel that had all of these shows (along with others, like “Bonanza,” that also air on TV Land). Turns out it was RTN, a broadcast channel that’s been airing on local stations’ secondary digital feeds. RTN is part of the digital cable lineup in Atlanta, and I would imagine that’s true in many other cities.

RTN’s lineup reminds me of what you’d find on an old UHF independent channel 25 or 30 years ago: the entertaining cast-offs that the wealthier local affiliates had let go in favor of more recent syndicated successes. (Given the rise of cable, “UHF” has little significance anymore … unless you’re still trying to manipulate your rabbit ears.) UHF stations needed cheap programming and lots of it, and that meant running oft-seen reruns in bulk.

With RTN picking up those ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s series, it seems that the next step will be running ratings failures. (Trio gave it a shot with “Brilliant But Cancelled,” but the cable network went under. “Brilliant But Cancelled” continues as a blog.) Will someone air “When Things Were Rotten”? “United States”? The second episode of “You’re in the Picture,” in which Jackie Gleason spent the entire half-hour apologizing for the FIRST episode? (Some of this sort of thing is available from the Museum of Broadcast Communications — check it out.)

Eventually, all this material will end up on a Hulu-type site and then we can surf to our heart’s content. (Hey, Hulu already has “I Spy”!) In the meantime, you’ll have to excuse me. I think “Love, American Style” is on.

– Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer

(Addendum, 2:30 p.m.: I notice some shows people are mentioning are available on TV Land, RTN or online services such as Hulu. Be sure to check out their Web sites — you may find what you’re looking for. And if you don’t, send them e-mails. Who knows? That “Montefuscos” marathon may be on the way.)