Twenty-eight years later, we have our new Pride flag bearer! (Images via video still)

I had to completely scrap this post because I was writing it while I was watching, starting around 8 p.m., and things started kind of slowly. Then, as I kept thinking the evening was about to wrap up (I hadn't looked ahead at the speakers), more and more stellar names kept arriving.

Not to mention the emotionally resonant moments.

Wait, maybe Chris Messina and Ike Barinholz were NOT the hottest ones on The Mindy Project ... 

I was tickled to see Mindy Kaling as the host. She looked stunning and was just funny enough not to distract from the matter at hand, perhaps most surprisingly when she slipped in a shout-out to Ben Affleck, who is going through a divorce from J.Lo.

@boyculturedotcom Mindy Kaling sweetly shouted out Ben Affleck while acknowledging her home state of Massachusetts on Night 3 of the DNC. #dnc #mindykaling #benaffleck #voteblue #kamalaharris #kamalaharris2024 #harriswalz #boyculture ♬ original sound - Matthew Rettenmund/BoyCulture

Kenan Thompson did a funny skit that brought up Project 2025, an increasingly sore spot for Trump.

I was impressed to see country-first Republicans like Olivia Troye (who left her job with Pence over Trump's anti-American behavior) and Geoff Duncan (former lieutenant governor of Georgia), and one of the first emotional moments was the warm reception shown to Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, a former Capitol cop caught up in January 6.

Hakeem Jeffries, our House minority leader, is able to speak so captivatingly with so little effort, you don't really realize where it's going until you're there. His framing of Trump as an ex-boyfriend who won't stop calling was HILARIOUS, and he knew it.

One of the most anticipated speeches was by former President Bill Clinton. I was taken aback at how old he looked, but don't think for one second he isn't well aware that his wizened appearance wouldn't be noted — he immediately weaponized it by pointing out he is YOUNGER THAN TRUMP. His meandering speech was folksy and lacked the thrilling oration of his former self, and of some others who have been at the DNC this year, but he had a lot of wisdom, and he still has the zingers, including telling everyone to count the I's when Trump speaks. Loved that.

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi did not bring up that she is five years older than Clinton, but she gave a solid speech, as did Gov. Shapiro of Pennsylvania (an almost-veep who I must say did not make me regret the choice of Walz) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, both important players from important swing states.

Appreciation post for the DNC sign language interpreter living her best life during the John Legend and Sheila E performance. 🔥 #DNCConvention2024 #603toDNC #NHPolitics pic.twitter.com/qQA8aexfRH

— Rep. Laura Telerski (@LauraTelerski) August 22, 2024

Things really got going later, with a powerful speech by Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland, who delivered a bone spurs joke and Trump's expense and set up Walz's military service. I saw some whining that John Legend and Sheila E.'s Prince cover wasn't good, but I thought it was great. I liked Legend's voice on a Prince track.

One of the very best speeches of the whole DNC was from Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who joked that we might recognize him from Fox News, where he has been kicking Republican ass a lot lately. He made a polished, nuanced, combative but mostly very uplifting case for turning the page on Trump.

He is so damn good at this, truly, and he was one of the night's LGBTQ+ speakers.

The big deal was Oprah Winfrey, who came off the sidelines to give Kamala a full-throated endorsement via a sincere speech that managed to work in a childless cat lady joke. (I think Oprah prefers dogs.)

Oprah later spoke about the risk she took in being so gung-ho for Kamala Harris (good answer, and she also acknowledges she isn't risking that much):

And of course, the real star of the night was Gov. Tim Walz. You know what was interesting was his speech was actually very concise, while not skimping on feel-good moments. For one thing, when he acknowledged his family and they burst into tears — especially his son Gus — that felt like a convention moment for the ages. But he is such a genuine guy, his words just feel 100% sincere. I'm blown away by what a good choice he was by Kamala. He worked in policy bullets for the undecideds before ending with a Walz family gingerbread fist-pump that I'll never forget.

I think the Democrats have done an excellent job so far, with just one more night to go. I do not see how on earth Kamala gets no big bounce from this, and I don't care of RFK Jr. endorses Trump tomorrow or Friday, I don't see that moving the needle. This, however, should move the needle. Kamala and Tim are the real deal.

Oh, and: