• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, September 7, 2010

The U.S. Tennis Open in 3D? I'm voting for U.S. golf in 3D TV myself. 

The current U.S. Open adds to the list of action sports looking for the zoom and punch of those more-encompassing TV images -- the World Cup, Nascar, X-Games, the French Open (tennis), and the Winter Olympics.

Ask yourself this question: what sports should be in demand for 3Dm TV? Probably the big three -- football, basketball, and baseball -- to be sure. But what about golf, poker, curling, darts, and three-legged races?  

Effects-laden movies and television shows seem perfect in 3D, which remains a crazily revenue-enhancing tool for movie studios, theater owners, and movie technology companies.

Knock yourself out with "Transformers 3" in 3D, "Iron Man 5" in 3D and all the rest. Rom-coms? You can have Katherine Heigl zooming by your left ear on her way to another tentative relationship, I'm guessing.

But how much does one need to be in the "game" -- without actually being in the game? At some point, it's better to vote for reality, playing an actual basketball, baseball, or football game, and keeping some entertainment stuff at a distance.

I'm not against gimmicks -- but like with anything else, you need to use them wisely. Perhaps the next wave of eyeglass-less 3D TV will be better. I'm actually voting for 4D  -- that's probably when emotional details land in your brain whether you want them there or not. (Hello, TV marketers!)

The frantic push for 3D seems too desperate. I can't look.

In a related story, there's a report circulating that TV producers want to "de-glam" Wendy Williams on her eponymous syndication talk show, with less in-your-face hair and makeup, in order to appeal to middle America.

Must be a trend for low-profile TV coming our way.