|  Thursday,
July 2, 2009
Neil
Patrick Harris' Emmy deal is done
He'll host the 61st annual ceremony on CBS on Sept. 20.
Washington
"Real World"-ers arrive to chants of "GO HOME!"
Check out the new cast with cameras in tow.
"The
Simpsons" to repeat Michael Jackson's 1991 episode on Sunday
"Stark Raving Dad" was the cartoon's 3rd season premiere.
Simon
Cowell: Susan Boyle sounds "fantastic" on her 1st recording
Says Simon: "I've cut one track with her and she sounds fantastic
on record."
Gary
Coleman's wife arrested on suspicion of domestic violence
Shannon Price, 23, allegedly locked Coleman out of the house during an
argument while yelling obscenities at him.
David
Hasselhoff hangs with pigs for his UK reality show
But the "Baywatch" alum angered local lifeguards when he canceled
a shoot at the last minute.
Katie
Holmes will appear on "SYTYCD" July 23 for the show's 100th
episode
Her appearance will celebrate Judy Garland and the new Dizzy Feet Foundation,
which Holmes, Nigel Lythgoe and "Dancing with the Stars" judge
CArrie Ann Inaba founded to give dance scholarships to underprivileged
kids. (Watch
the video)
Billy
Mays' infomercials will continue to air
 After a one-week hiatus
to mourn his passing, Mays' infomercials will return to TV next week after
the company behind them consulted with his family and longtime partner
Anthony Sullivan. "Will the consumer keep buying the products? No
one really knows, because this is brand-new territory for everyone,"
says Bill McAlister, who runs Media Enterprises, which puts out Media
Putty. "I believe Billy is so big and so loved, his brand will go
on. But none of us realized, until we got on the telephone, how much he
affected our industry. … Ninety percent of my (sales) volume relates
to Billy's pitches."
 Discovery
will pay tribute July 9 // New
Playboy has an eerie Billy Mays profile
Top
5 creepy moments from last night's "Pitchmen" finale
TNT
ad campaign brings Los Angeles to New York City
"Now entering Underground L.A.," reads a giant poster in Grand
Central station promoting the crime drama "Dark Blue." Meanwhile,
the shuttle bus outside Grand Central has been wrapped in the L.A. skyline.
Jay
Leno wins the rights to TheJayLenoShow.com
The U.N.'s World Intellectual Property Organization ruled that the Texan
who purchased the domain name must transfer it to "The Jay Leno Show"
host.
Sanjaya's
"Crying Girl" auditions, gets rejected by "Idol"
Ashley Ferl, who gained international fame two years ago when she broke
out in tears over Sanjaya's "You Really Got Me," turned
16 this year, making her old enough to audition and get the "Idol"
boot.
Who
should play Al Franken on "SNL"?
The future Minnesota senator isn't sure -- either Fred Armisen or Alec
Baldwin.
Michael
Emerson predicts "Lost" will go out with an unhappy ending
"I would put money on major characters being killed," he tells
EW. "I believe it will be a sad ending to the show -- or at least
bittersweet." (scroll to last question)
Why
Neil Patrick Harris is a mind-blowing choice for Emmy host
The "How I Met Your Mother" star is perfect for the job, which
is why it's shocking that the TV Academy has apparently agreed to have
him host.
Kristen
Bell doubts a "Veronica Mars" movie will ever be made
She says there is no enthusiasm at Warner Bros. to turn the TV show into
a feature film.
U.S.
Customs seizes Homer Simpson-shaped ecstasy
A woman who tried to cross the border from Canada had thousands of tablets
of ecstasy shaped like Homer's
head.
Ex-husband
fears for "Real Housewives" star Danielle Staub's life
"She helped put a couple of big-time Colombian coke dealers in jail,"
says ex-husband Kevin Maher. "These are dangerous men who never forget...and
they could be back out on the street now. It's mind-boggling to me that
she’d put herself at risk!"
"The
Bachelor" Jason Mesnick plans to marry Molly -- someday
Melissa Rycroft's bosses invited Jason and Molly this morning on "GMA,"
where the couple said their relationship was going great.
"Nightline"
was No. 1 in late-night last week
The ABC News show beat Conan and Letterman thanks to Obama and Michael
Jackson.
Karl
Malden's face: An appreciation
 The actor, who died at
age 97, had a face full of character, says A.O. Scott. He explains: "The
jutting chin and oft-broken nose curve toward each other as though affixed
to a Punch-and-Judy puppet, but Karl Malden's face was not made for comedy.
Like his voice, pitched between a honk and a growl, it was an instrument
full of gravity and dignity, capable of showing strong measures of menace,
passion and hurt."
ODDS &
ENDS
Check out the 4th
of July weekend TV marathons
"Wire's"
Dominic West reads Jane Austen for new coffee ads (watch
it)
Will "Nurse Jackie"
inspire more half-hour
dramas?
Did Fox leak "The
Cleveland Show" on BitTorrent?
"Bachelorette's"
Jake is sure Wes lied: "God can strike me down ... right now"
"Vampire Diaries"
producer says: "The vampire is the
new James Dean"
Sci Fi Channel chief:
SyFy
name-change won't matter in a few years
Leighton
Meester is NOT engaged
Check out Jon
Gosselin's Match.com "profile" // Kate's
clothing line is on hold
NYC has run out of money
for its TV
tax credits
"Got
Talent's" Chicken farmer had never performed in public before
Dear TNT: Get rid of those
annoying
promos at the bottom of the screen!
Can a dancing
dog win "America's Got Talent"?
John Stossel isn't happy
that he was bumped
for Michael Jackson
Is "Lost"
on Blu-ray worth repurchasing?
We're going to see a lot
more Sloan
on "Entourage" this season
How is Ellen
Pompeo keeping physically fit during her pregnancy?
After falling out with
Whitney, Erin Lucas leaves
"The City"
Simon
Cowell's ex Terri Seymour urges him to quit one of his shows
BBC cancels "Robin
Hood"
Not everybody is happy
to see CBS'
walled-off "Neighborhood"
NFL
commish climbing a volcano with Super Bowl halftime shows on his iPod
Enough with NBC's Wimbledon
tape delays!
"Ruby"
returns -- and it's not all about shedding the pounds
Catching up with "Survivor"
Ethan's cancer treatment
From "Oz" to
"Ninotchka": TCM tonight celebrates the
films of 1939
"Survivor" Mark
Burnett's Walk of Fame star is in front of Supply Sergeant store
"Gavin
and Stacey" star reclaims his identity on Twitter (2nd to last
item) John Barrowman is
hopeful for a "Torchwood"
Season 4 with full episodes
Wednesday,
July 1, 2009
Neil
Patrick Harris in talks to host the Emmys
 The "How
I Met Your Mother" star seems like the
perfect choice to host this year's Emmycast on CBS after drawing rave
reviews for hosting the Tonys last month. If the deal is completed, the
Emmys would mark the 4th awards show hosted by Harris this year, following
the TV Land Awards and the nontelevised Writers Guild Awards. "I
love the hosting thing," Harris said prior to the Tonys. "I've
gotten to do a lot of it this year. I'm enjoying it. I thought I could
do it and execute it well."
Christian
Slater is set to join "The Forgotten"
He's in talks to replace Rupert Penry-Jones in the Jerry Bruckheimer drama
about an ex-cop who goes sleuthing with three pals in search of his kidnapped
11-year-old daughter.
Rocky
Carroll will star on both "NCIS" shows
He'll play the same character on both the original and "NCIS: Los
Angeles."
USA
casts Piper Perabo as a CIA agent
She'll star in the cable spy thriller "Covert Affairs."
"Last
Comic" producers come up with a more "urgent" stand-up
competition
ABC has ordered "The Fast & the Funniest," which will pit
comedians against each other.
Karl
Malden dies at 97
"The Streets of San Francisco" star was also famous on TV for
his ubiquitous American Express traveler's check commercials (Watch
Malden on "Streets") PLUS: TCM
will pay tribute to Malden on July 10.
Jocks,
nerds, cool kids, outsiders: "Big Brother" will be just like
high school
This year's housemates
will compete as members of high school cliques -- popular, athletes, brainiacs
and off beats.
BET
may rescue "The Game"
The canceled CW sitcom may be revived on cable at a much lower cost.
Paula
Abdul will play a Lifetime judge
She'll guest on "Drop Dead Diva" joining a host of other big-name
guest-stars.
"Gossip
Girl" grabs Hilary Duff
The former Disney Channel star will return to TV this fall in a multi-episode
arc as a movie star who enrolls at NYU and becomes roommates with Vanessa.
Duff, whose failed NBC pilot "Barely Legal" freed her up to
do the "Gossip" gig, makes her CW debut on Oct. 5.
"Chicken
Catcher" vies to be the next Susan Boyle
Unemployed farmer Kevin Skinner wowed "America's Got Talent,"
but will he become a viral sensation like Boyle? PLUS: She's
62 -- and she can dance!
Will
Sen. Al Franken return to "SNL" to celebrate "The Al Franken
Decade"?
It's become a tradition at the end of each decade for Franken to come
on "Weekend Update" and proclaim the next decade "The Al
Franken Decade." Franken first started the tradition in 1979, but
will he return to "Saturday Night Live" in December to kick
off the next decade?
ABC
comes up with a "Castle" book
Richard Castle's book, "Heat Wave," will be posted online, chapter
by chapter, over the course of 10 weeks starting Aug. 10. You'll be able
to buy the fictional author's full novel on Sept. 29.
Ricky
Gervais: American TV comedy superior to the Brits
"We've got some poor copies of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' some poor
copies of 'Entourage' and some poor copies of 'Seinfeld,'" he says.
"With a few exceptions the Americans seem to be ahead of the game."
Wes'
alleged "Bachelorette" girlfriend says she's just friend
"I'm absolutely not with Wes," says Laurel, whose name was dropped
on Monday's episode, "nor would I be with Wes if he were going on
a show to be with another girl. That's absolutely crazy."
CBS
unveils 12 of 13 "Big Brother" housemates
This year's batch includes a surfer, a DJ-ing teacher, a Tai Kwon Do champion,
an MMA fighter, a lying journalist, a neuroscientist and one mystery housemate.
(Watch the video)
Where
does "Weeds" get its fake marijuana and cocaine?
Herbal tobacco is used in place of real weed, and it gets the actors "higher
than regular marijuana," says one of the show's producers. For cocaine,
everything from powdered sugar to baking soda to baby laxatives to a vitamin
called inositol are used.
YouTwitFace
becomes a comedy Web site
Conan O'Brien's In
the Year 3000 joke is gaining traction on the Web. A man who purchased
the domain name YouTwitFace.com
months before Conan's "Tonight Show" debuted plans to use the
Conan hoopla to into a comedy blog that mocks social media.
Neil
Patrick Harris is the "Music Meister" for "Batman"
cartoon
He'll appear in the Cartoon Network's "Batman: The Brave and the
Bold" as the "Music Meister," who aims to conquer the world
through song.
Wentworth
Miller resurfaces on "SVU"
The "Prison Break"-er star will guest on the season premiere.
ABC
is "Defying Gravity" with Ron Livingston
The series, which is set to air this summer, revolves around eight astronauts
on a mysterious six-year mission through space.
ODDS &
ENDS
Why Simon
deserves $144M a year // Bruno: "Simon Cowell is my
gay icon"
Happy 65th birthday, Smokey
the Bear!
"Ally
McBeal" finally coming to DVD: Complete series for $130
Check out more of Jay
Leno's 10 o'clock clips
NBC's "The
Wanted" to chase down war criminals
"SpongeBob"
will get tributes from Ricky Gervais, Robin Williams, Will Ferrell
Discovery's
"The
Colony" will send contestants to rebuild after a catastrophe
Breckin Meyer/Zac Efron's
Perez Hilton spoof was really a "Robot
Chicken" promo
Remember when quitting
a reality show actually meant something?
Conan
is working during this week's vacation, filming remotes
Here's a taste of "Project
Runway" on Lifetime
Why TV
critics are needed now more than ever
"She's not human,"
Michelle
Forbes says of her "True Blood" character
Sorry, "NYC
Prep": Your lives are boring compared to "Gossip Girl"
SoapNet renews "Being
Erica," adds "Holidate" and "Bank of Mom and Dad"
"Idol"
Blake Lewis shifts to dance-pop for his 2nd album
Who will get booted from
"Real
World: Cancun"?
"Food
Party" host grew up with Jell-O as the 5th food group
'HawthoRNe's"
Michael
Vartan: "Alias" probably my life's greatest experience
"Friday
Night Lights": Riggins in, Lyla out?
Animal Planet delves into
the "Monsters
Inside Me"
Which
"Supernatural"
character is making a comeback?
It's the final week of
"The Best Damn Sports Show
Period"
PBS' "The Man on
the Radio in the Red Shoes" profiles Garrison
Keillor
Check out the latest "Entourage"
promo
Watch "Kendra's"
wedding video
T.R.
Knight's next gig: A Broadway play
"True
Blood's" Stephen
Moyer & Anna Paquin love to watch boxing together
Tuesday,
June 30, 2009
Sci
Fi reviving "Alien Nation"
Tim Minear of "Angel" and "Firefly" fame has been
charged with creating a fresh take on the 1988 movie that already spawned
a Fox spinoff.
Farrah
Fawcett mourned at funeral
Ryan O'Neal was a pallbearer, while Farrah's "Charlie's Angels"
co-stars and her dad and sons were in attendance for today's service.
Coming
to cable: The Wedding Channel
WE TV is spinning off an entire channel devoted to weddings that will
include such shows as "Bridezillas" and "Amazing Wedding
Cakes."
Hustler
releasing porn movies with nods to classic TV shows
Titles include "Everybody Loves Lucy," which will be released
in both black-and-white and color.
Kris
Allen: Michael Jackson was my inspiration
The "Idol" winner recalls the King of Pop's influence on his
singing career.
MTV
renews "16 and Pregnant"
Plus, Dr. Drew Pinsky plans will host a the show's Season 1 finale special.
ABC
denies Susan Boyle is coming to "Ugly Betty"
The "Britain's Got Talent" star won't be playing herself.
Watch
"Real Housewife" Danielle Staub on "All My Children"
She had just two lines in a small 2001 role.
Liza
Minnelli & Delta Burke to play "Drop Dead Diva" sisters
They'll guest on the Lifetime series in September.
Simon
Cowell to earn $144M a year for "Idol"? No way!
 A report that Cowell
could get an "Idol" raise of three to four times his current
salary -- to $100 million or $144 million a year -- sounds too fishy,
says Verne Gay. "There is NO WAY Fox is going to pay him $144 M a
year. Impossible," he says. "That would exceed the profit of
the entire Fox network, in all probability, and wipe out whatever's left
too. It would be the highest services contract fee in TV history, by a
vast margin. It would be suicidal - for Fox and for the entire TV industry."
How
Michael Jackson redefined the Super Bowl
Jackson should be called the "King of Pigskin" for his 1993
Super Bowl performance, says Richard Sandomir. "His three-song
medley at halftime of Dallas's 52-17 trouncing of Buffalo in 1993 signified
a tectonic shift for the N.F.L," Sandomir explains. "For years,
the league had packed its halftimes with a roster of the unhip: Up With
People, Pete Fountain, Carol Channing, marching bands, the Rockettes,
Elvis Presto and Disney characters. Jackson produced a stunning first:
raising NBC's halftime rating higher than the Super Bowl action before
it."
Katie
Couric to host Jackson special tonight // Which
Jackson specials are left?
Discovery
hasn't decided "Pitchmen's" fate in wake of Billy Mays' death
The infomercial reality show was a strong performer for Discovery Channel,
drawing 1.45 million viewers. PLUS: Mays'
infomercials pulled until next week.
Jeff
Goldblum admits he's dead
Even an in-person appearance on Stephen Colbert last night did little
to prove that he is very much alive.
Denis
Leary is resisting a "Rescue Me" movie -- unless it has zombie
firefighters
"I'm not into that," Leary says of making a film. "I don't
want to see a 'Sopranos' movie. This is just me. I like to think the end
is where it was on TV as opposed to becoming a movie. I said, 'What if
we did a movie and they're not firefighters. It's a zombie movie.' And
they were like, 'What?' I went, 'It could work like 'Shaun of the Dead'
in a firehouse.'"
Showtime
makes "Brotherhood's" cancelation official
The Season 3 DVD set has been dubbed "Brotherhood - The Final Season."
"Saved
by the Bell" magician was helping Michael Jackson
Ed Alonzo, who was Max from The Max, had been commissioned to work on
Jackson's 50-show run in London.
FX
announces return dates
"Sons of Anarchy" is back Sept. 8, "Nip/Tuck" begins
its second-to-last season in October, "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia"
kicks off on Sept. 17 and "Damages" is expected to return in
January.
"Survivor"
Bob Crowley forbidden from writing about "Gabon" in his new
book
The "Survivor"-winning bow-tied physics teacher is releasing
his autobiography, "Making Waves: The Stories of Maine's Bob Crowley."
"We had some stuff about the show in there originally, but we sent
it to ('Survivor' producers) and they penciled everything out," says
Crowley. "When I went on the show, I signed something that said I
couldn't write about it for three years."
"Bachelorette"
Jillian insists: "I AM a smart girl"
Jillian knows everything thinks she's a fool for keeping Wes. "I
totally understand where you're coming from though and I know how frustrating
it is when you wish I could have seen what you're seeing now (I feel your
pain!)" But, she says, the final result is all that matters.
Chris
Harrison: Wes sounded like Bill Clinton // Wes
left a trail of slime
ODDS &
ENDS
"Hung"
has a huge premiere after the highest-rated "True Blood"
episode yet
Does Billy Mays' death
diminish the rule of celebrities
dying in threes?
Why "Ed"
and "L.A. Law" aren't coming to DVD anytime soon
BET
Awards sees a Michael Jackson boost, but was it distasteful?
How do reality
TV insurers deal with shows like "Jon & Kate"?
Report: Us Weekly knocks
$120,000
"Kendra" photos off cover for MJ
"Idol's"
Ace Young gets engaged to his 20-year-old "Grease" co-star
Costa Rican locals couldn't
care less about "I'm
a Celebrity"
Watch Conan
O'Brien run through Wrigley Field during a Cubs game
Do your children love
watching old
obscure TV shows?
Tyler Perry's "House
of Payne" may get spun off
Michael Jackson elevates
"Nightline's"
ratings above Conan and Letterman
Patrick
Dempsey is releasing a 2nd fragrance
CBS' walled-off "There
Goes the Neighborhood" debuts Aug. 9
Melissa
Rycroft announces her engagement on "GMA"
Check out the "Gossip
Girl" stars back at work // Nate
has new hairdo
"Music feeds my soul,"
says "Gossip Girl" rocker Taylor
Momsen
"Chuck"
throws out the first pitch at Dodger game
Before she died, Farrah
Fawcett reunited with Lee Majors // Farrah's
funeral today
"The
Middleman" stars to perform a reading of the final episode at
Comic-Con
For the 1st time, "Antiques
Roadshow" appraises a $1 million antique
How Parker
Lewis & Bud Bundy became best friends and partners
"Parker
Lewis Can't Lose" finally comes to DVD
"Nova" examines
people with "Musicophilia"
in "Musical Minds"
Monday,
June 29, 2009
Fox
nabs "Earl's" creator
Greg Garcia, who compared the cancelation of "My Name is Earl"
to
"being thrown off the Titanic," is at work on a Fox sitcom
about a 25-year-old guy who has to raise an infant with his family. "It's
kind of in the world that 'Earl' inhabited," says Garcia. "The
same type of people. And with 'Yes, Dear,' I enjoyed writing about families
and raising children. So I came up with this idea, which in a way combines
those two things."
Chris
Kattan joins ABC's "The Middle"
It's the first post-"SNL" comedy for Kattan, who will play a
good friend of Patricia Heaton's.
It's
true: Melissa Rycroft engaged
"The Bachelor" babe has been dating insurance agent Tye Strickland
for two years.
Susan
Boyle to "Ugly Betty"?
The "Britain's Got Talent" star has reportedly agreed to make
a cameo on "Betty," playing herself.
"Jon
& Kate" shut their mouths
The couple will not speak to the media "during this very difficult
time," TLC announced.
"SVU"
keeping Christopher Meloni & Mariska Hargitay, adds Christine Lahti
The "Law & Order" stars have both sealed deals to stick
around for two years, while Lahti will guest on the first four episodes.
Drea
de Matteo joining "Desperate Housewives"
The "Sopranos" star will play the matriarch of a new Italian
family that moves to Wisteria Lane.
CBS
unveils the "Big Brother" house
Check out 40 pics from Season 11.
Christian
publisher postponing Kate Gosselin's book
"Love is in the Mix: Making Meals into Memories" was supposed
to be released in November, but plans have been changed because the book
touts the Gosselins as "one of America's most close-knit families."
Michael
Jackson: 1 more music video left?
The "Dome Project" reportedly wrapped filming two weeks before
the King of Pop died.
Supreme
Court OKs cheaper DVRs that stores your shows remotely
Hollywood had sued to stop Cablevision from releasing a DVR that stores
programs in a central location, instead of a box in your home.
Billy
Mays died of heart failure, autopsy reveals
The medical examiner today
said there was no evidence of head trauma, as was initially speculated
after Mays bumped his head when his plane landed on Saturday and the tires
went out. The autopsy showed that the TV pitchman had hardening of the
arteries. The medical examiner also said that Mays didn't know about his
heart disease since he wasn't taking any medication for it.
Listen
to the 911 call // Discovery
plans "Pitchmen" marathon Wednesday
Billy
Mays: An appreciation // Read
Discovery's reaction
Janet
Jackson honors Michael at BET Awards
"I would just like to say that to you, Michael is an icon,"
said Janet. "To us, Michael is family, and he will forever live in
all of our hearts." After her speech, Jamie Foxx, Stevie Wonder and
Ne-Yo performed the Jackson 5 hit "I'll Be There."
Jackson's
dad under fire for plugging his record label on BET red carpet
Jackson's
final rehearsal might air on TV // Tonight:
Fox repeats "Idol's" MJ show
NBC
tonight will air a 1-hour version of Martin Bashir's "Living with
Michael"
"Dancing"
judge Len Goodman has cancer surgery
Goodman has revealed that he kept secret his prostate cancer that he first
learned about in June. Earlier this month, the 65-year-old had cancer
surgery to remove the cancerous tumor. "I've had the surgery now,"
he says. "Everything's gorgeously good." Goodman said he expects
to be back at work on both "Dancing with the Stars" and its
British counterpart "Strictly Come Dancing."
"Reaper's"
Missy Peregrym joining Canada's "Grey's Anatomy" for cops
"Copper" stars Peregrym as a rookie cop who is anxious about
her new job.
Comic-Con
will welcome a record number of TV panels year
Everything from "Burn Notice" to "The Cleveland Show"
will be welcomed at this year's "TV-Con" taking place later
next month. PLUS: "Glee"
at Comic-con is causing controversy.
"Superstars"
bringing T.O. back
Terrell Owens and his profane partner Joanna Krupa will return this week
to replace another injured "Superstar."
Lea
Thompson hopes for a TV comeback with "Malice"
The "Caroline in the City" star will play a former rock star
who tries to repair her family in this dramedy that has yet to find a
network.
India's
arranged marriages get the reality TV treatment
On shows like "Star Vivaah" ("Star Weddings"), prospective
couples actually get to see what they're in for.
Conan
flips the bird at William Shatner
During a commercial break, Conan responded to Shatner's
middle finger.
Did
Melissa Rycroft get engaged for real?
The former "Bachelor" babe, according to whispers, got popped
the question from new boyfriend Tye Strickland.
VH1
greenlights 3 shows: "Chilli," "Pepa" and "The
Entertainer"
The network has also ordered more "Sobert House" and "Celebrity
Fit Club."
William
Hung promotes "Hung"
You knew it was going to happen...PLUS: Why "Hung"
is set in Detroit.
ODDS &
ENDS
Memoir details Paul
Shaffer's sex with a groupie
Extra
"Lost" episode has been added to next season, bringing the
total to 18
Utah officials warn TV
viewers not to shoot
their old TV sets
Will a "SYTYCD"
Jackson tribute happen? Nigel & Paula are tweeting each other
"Smurfs
3D" movie is coming in December
Check out Anna Sui's "Gossip
Girl" clothing line for Target
Could better health insurance
have saved "Jon
& Kate" from having 8?
Airplane
repo man getting his own reality show, from "Dirty Jobs"
producer
Meet the newest "24"
cast member -- T.J.
Ramini
"Virtuality"
bombs with only 1.8 million viewers
Watch 1997's infamous
Farrah Fawcett Letterman
interview (Watch
Part 2)
"Supernatural"
finds its Lucifer in Jacob from "Lost"
Ranking "The
Bachelorettes": Jillian #4 // Will
Ed return? // Tanner is "King
Dong"
Why make an "Arrested
Development" documentary?
"Arrested Development"
inspires a real-life frozen-banana
stand in Austin
Ellen
Pompeo baby bump watch
AMC unveils new Season
3 "Mad
Men" promos
Why Journey's "Don't
Stop Believin'" is still a TV pop-culture touchstone
"90210"
casts its own JFK. Jr. Trevor Donovan from "Days of our Lives"
"Gossip's" Leighton:
Engaged? // Watch Leighton's
music video "Good Girls Go Bad"
Natalie Cole sang as Ed
McMahon's memorial service
Peter
Horton just knew "The Philanthropist" would be a hit
Record company fires back
at Adam
Lambert
Cast of "Blossom":
Where are they now?
"True Blood's"
Sam
Trammell recalls his Louisiana childhood
Bravo is expected to bring
back NJ
"Real Housewives" for Season 2
Elisabeth
Hasselbeck is launching her own NFL maternity line
Hackers break into Ellen's
Twitpic account
Claim: Whitney's
"City" romance is fake!
"Kendra"
ties the knot with a "tacky" wedding
Mary Murphy's "SYTYCD"
shrieking has got to stop!
How "Entourage"
(probably) comes up with the same-old story ideas
Actor Simon Rex is using
Facebook
to sell his pilot "Rex"
"Ugly Betty's"
Ana
Ortiz welcomes a daughter, Paloma Louise
Katie
Holmes' "SYTYCD" cameo is for charity
"Mental's" Chris
Vance headed to "Burn
Notice"
Justin Kirk loves the
"richer"
"Weeds" stories he's getting in Season 5
HGTV's "Real
Estate Intervention" offers tough love for people in denial
Ellen
Chicago-bound for the 3rd "Bigger, Longer & Wider" variety
show
"Secret
Life of the American Teen" is most reminiscent of MTV's "Undressed"
Check out hundreds of
sci-fi
"Simpsonized" characters
Oxygen's weight-loss reality
show "Dance
Your Ass Off" isn't as
clever as its title
How did "Buffy's"
Amber Benson get into writing comic books, movies, novel?
Jenna
Elfman is now on Twitter
'50s TV star Gale
Storm dies at 87
Sunday,
June 28, 2009
TV
pitchman Billy Mays dies suddenly
The 50-year-old Discovery
Channel "Pitchmen" star had just filmed an OxiClean commercial
Saturday when he hit his head aboard a U.S. Airways flight that landed
with a blown tire. He was feeling fine, until this morning, when his wife
found him unresponsive. The FAA claims the TV pitchman wasn't
wearing a seatbelt when the plane landed. PLUS: Mays
was on Conan this past Tuesday.
Friday,
June 26, 2009
Michael
Jackson was the Jackie Robinson of MTV
 Jackson's "Billie
Jean" video opened the door for black artists at MTV. As David Vigilante
notes, "When MTV launched in 1981, it modeled its playlist on the
popular album-oriented rock radio format of the day, which meant that
music by black artists was effectively excluded from the network. You
might see the occasional Jimi Hendrix clip, but there was no room for
funk, disco, R&B or that new emerging form -- rap. It wasn't long
before the public took note of the glaring absence of African-American
artists." But Jackson changed all that, he says. "Jackson opened
the door with the video for 'Billie Jean,' which was simply too good for
its time to be overlooked."
It
was actually "Thriller" that broke the MTV color barrier
// MJ's
music videos
TMZ
trumps TV // It
was a "Night of Heartbreak" on primetime last night
BET
Awards dedicated to Jackson // MTV's
MJ marathon to end at 8 PM ET today
Jackson
+ HBO = A 1995 recipe for disaster // Emmanuel
Lewis "devastated"
"The
View" was pre-taped, so there was no Jackson discussion on Friday
Nigel
Lythgoe urges Paula Abdul to choreograph a "SYTYCD" Jackson
tribute
TV
Land will air 5-part "The Jacksons: An American Dream" on Sunday
Jackson's
higest-rated TV events: 62 million watched Oprah interview him
Conan
declined to joke about Jackson in his Friday monologue
Farrah
Fawcett beats Michael Jackson
ABC's "Farrah Fawcett: Her Life, Her Loves, Her Legacy" last
night topped all the specials on CBS, ABC and NBC devoted to the King
of Pop.
Here's
a rundown of Farrah & Michael specials
From "Chasing Farrah" to "American Idol."
Michael
Jackson wrote "Do the Bartman" for "The Simpsons"
"I love Bart," the King of Pop once told producer James L. Brooks.
"I want to give Bart a No. 1 single." In fact, "Do the
Bartman" rose to No. 1 in the UK, but not the U.S., while uniting
two cultural icons. PLUS: Watch
Jackson on "The Simpsons."
"EastEnders"
tonight will become the 1st scripted show to address MJ's death
The British soap opera shot an extra scene just hours after his death
was announced.
Jimmy
Kimmel was the only late-night host to mention Jackson's death
Sure, the news was too late for the East Coast talk shows. But Jackson's
death was revealed several hours before Conan O'Brien and Craig Ferguson
began taping. UPDATE: Ferguson
pre-taped Thursday's show so he could travel to Kosovo and Germany
for the USO.
"Big
Brother UK" debates whether to tell housemates about Michael Jackson
"I'm not sure they should be told," says Davina McCall, the
show's host. "No contact with the outside world... it's a tricky
one." She points out that "Big Brother UK" this year has
an Iranian housemate,
and shouldn't he be told about what's going on in Iran, too? "Where
do they draw the line?" she asks.
Oprah
staffers could pay a hefty tax bill for their free 10-day cruise
Oprah reportedly spent $9.2 million to take her staff on a luxury cruise
through Spain, Italy, Turkey and Greece. But the "gift" might
prove to be expensive.
Was
Ed McMahon's Hollywood Walk of Fame star vandalized?
It was covered in black paint or tar Wednesday night.
Nielsen:
"Teens are NOT abandoning TV for new media"
Contrary to what has been often report, teens "watch more TV than
ever, up 6% over the past five years in the U.S.," according to a
new Nielsen study.
Academics
debate "Jon & Kate"
Why the TLC show won't go away anytime soon.
Media
analysts are sticking with Conan, despite his uncomfortableness
 "The people I talk
to don't like the new Conan," says TV professor Robert Thompson.
"This show isn't nearly as interesting as his other show used to
be." As Kevin Downey, Conan "looks to be stuck between his old
persona and his first efforts at a new, more mainstream persona, and he's
clearly uncomfortable." The problem, he says, is that Conan's idiosyncratic
style that puts viewers’ attention squarely on him, which makes
matters worse.
Conan
is going on vacation next week, after just 4 weeks of shows
Watch
Max Weinberg go to the airport -- while drumming -- for 6-week break
Bruno
gives Conan a lap dance Part 1 and Part
2
When
Stephen Moyer romanced Rashida Jones
The 2004 British series "NY-LON"
followed a cross-pond relationship between a London man and a New York
woman, featuring the "True Blood" vamp and the "Parks and
Recreation" star. CBS remade "NY-LON" last year with
Elisha Cuthbert, but the network opted not to pick up the pilot.
HBO
hopes "Hung" becomes a massive hit
 "Hung," which premieres
Sunday, is the first show championed by HBO's new entertainment chief
Sue Nagle. And HBO is hoping it becomes the next "Sopranos,"
a breakout hit that everybody will be talking about. "HBO is banking
on this show to become a breakout hit," explains the NY Times. "Not
just a niche-market gem like 'Flight of the Conchords' or a critical (but
ratings-challenged) darling like 'In Treatment,' but something that speaks
to the national mood, a 'Sex and the City' for both sexes that would cement
the reputation of a relatively new management team at the cable channel."
It's
a timid sitcom criminally short on jokes // It's
funny and sweet, with depth
"Virtuality"
is a 2-hour teaser that, with no answers, is a waste of time
Ron Moore's "Battlestar Galactica" follow-up, a pilot disguised
as a TV movie, will leave viewers frustrated with its "hair-pulling
inconclusive ending," says Heather Havrilesky. She adds: "We're
presented with stories and characters that are quite clearly meant to
be explored over the course of a season, which makes the whole thing feel,
very palpably, like an utter waste of time. Essentially, 'Virtuality'
is a two-hour-long teaser, an extended trip to a really excellent strip
bar that ends with a cold shower. Unless you're a masochist, the flash
of credits will make your heart sink."
Fox
hasn't decided "Virtuality's" future, so why watch? // Ron
Moore explains
Punchless
drama with meandering narrative // A
cruise to nowhere
"Virtuality"
producers already have a whole season conceived
ODDS &
ENDS
William
Shatner fills in for Kelly Ripa, co-hosts with Regis
Also getting a rule change:
Oscar's
original song category
Twitter verifies Kyra
Sedgwick's account
No, Adam
Lambert won't appear on "Glee"
Ryan Seacrest asks Kris
Allen about
Adam's crush // Kris
is on Twitter
"I'm
a Celeb" stars hope to capitalize on their newfound "fame"
Nigel Lythgoe pays "SYTYCD"
tribute to Jackson, McMahon and Farrah
Mr.
Eko wants back on "Lost" // Check out the Ben
Linus bobblehead
Which popular
TV shows have you never watched?
Johnny Depp + Megan Foxx
= Letterman's
sexiest show ever?
Jimmy
Fallon beat Tiger Woods in Woods' Wii game // Watch their
"Late" battle
"VH1 Storytellers"
celebrates 40
years of ZZ Top
"Nurse
Jackie" rallies for healthcare
Rejected "Bachelorette"
foot fetishist claims "it's not really a fetish"
Why ABC Family's "10
Things I Hate About You" remake is a bad idea
Twitter Malware attackers
use Leigton Meester's "Gossip
Girl" sex tape as bait
Coming soon: Heidi
Klum, the barbie doll
Check out more pics of
the "Dexter"
action figure
Emeril
Lagasse teaches soldiers how to make healthy meals
Which is the best Web
clip show?
"Doctor
Who" returns -- Russell
T. Davies talks "Who" and "Torchwood"
Manny Ramirez's new team
shares its name with "Simpsons'"
baseball team
NJ "Real Housewife"
Dina
appeared on VH1's "My Big Fat Fabulous Wedding"
Danielle
made an "All My Children" cameo in 2001 opposite Josh Duhamel
Tears, harsh words at
"Real
Housewives" reunion // "Cops"
book is back in print
Thursday,
June 25, 2009
Michael
Jackson was the 1st pop star with a TV-shaped career
 From Jackson's first
appearance on TV in 1969 through the present day, Robert Lloyds says,
"Michael Jackson was the first great pop star whose career was shaped
by television -- not merely showcased by it, like those of Elvis Presley
and the Beatles, but inseparable from the medium. He was indebted to it
and influenced it in turn. Across his four-decade career, he was often
someone to listen to, but he was always -- for better and sometimes for
worse -- something to see."
Remembering
Jackson on TV: From "We are the World" to E!'s reenactments
"Nightline's"
Martin Bashir reflects on his Jackson interviews
VH1
Classic to air non-stop Jackson videos Friday through Sunday
Noah
Wyle agrees to take Spielberg's alien-fighting TNT role
The former "ER" star will reunite with Steven Spielberg in TNT's
untitled alien-invasion pilot.
CBS
unleashes "Project LENO"
That's the name of a new "tool kit" -- which stands for "Late
prime Enhanced News Opportunity" -- that is aimed at combating "The
Jay Leno Show."
U.S.
Postal Service stamps to honor "Early TV Memories"
Rod Serling, "I Love Lucy," Alfred Hitchcock, Howdy Doody and
"The Honeymooners" are among those getting their own stamps.
"Gossip
Girl" grabs ex-"Privileged" star Joanna Garcia
She'll guest as Nate Archibald's new girlfriend.
Max
Weinberg taking a 6-week break from "The Tonight Show"
He's going on a tour of Europe with Bruce Springsteen after tonight's
show, while presumably James
"The Worm" Wormworth -- Max's "Late Night" fill-in
who became a permanent part of the band this month -- will sub on drums.
Jeri
Ryan headed to "Leverage"
As Tara, a "smart-ass, street-wise con woman."
Jeff
Goldblum did not die today
Rumors of his death on a movie setbegan circulating online soon after
Michael Jackson died.
Despite
divorce, Christian publisher will release Kate Gosselin's book
"Love is in the Mix: Making Meals into Memories," by Gosselin
will be released in November.
Adam
Lambert "disappointed" with the unauthorized release of his
new album
The "Idol" runner-up said in a statement: "Like a rough
draft that a writer does before finishing a book, I did not intend my
work on these demos to be heard by the public. I was unaware that anyone
intended to release these recordings until I heard about it in the press,
and I'm very disappointed by this entire situation." PLUS: Watch
the "Idols"
sing "Don't Stop Believin.'"
Michael
Jackson dies: TV networks scramble to pay tribute
 CBS, NBC and ABC
will all pay tribute to the King of Pop, who died
this afternoon of a heart attack at the age of 50. ABC and NBC, both
of which had been planning to celebrate Farrah Fawcett's life at 10 o'clock
with a one-hour special, will expand their coverage with dueling Jackson
specials at 9 o'clock. CBS will air its tribute to Jackson at 10 o'clock
using footage from its coverage of Jackson's concert a few years back.
Jacko's
death forcing MTV to return to its music roots // His
music video legacy
Watch
Michael Jackson and Ed McMahon on "The Jacksons Variety Show"
(1976)
Jackson
was King of TV ads // It's
true: Celebrities die in threes
Watch
The Jackson 5's 1st performance on "American Bandstand"
Jackson's
Walk of Fame star can't be seen thanks to "Bruno"
"Britain's
Got Talent" had Muslim Jackos // "Big
Brother UK" did a "Thriller" task
Watch
Martin Bashir's 2003 documentary "Living with Michael Jackson"
Fox
to re-air "American Idol's" Jackson theme night next week
"True
Blood" vamp calls "Twilight" vamp the P-word
"He's a p***y! He's the Slim-Fast, Diet Coke of vampires," Stephen
Moyer says of Robert Pattinson.
NBC
announces fall premiere dates
"30 Rock" returns Oct. 15, while "The Office" and
the rest of the Thursday lineup (including "Weekend Update")
will premiere Sept. 17. "The Jay Leno Show" kicks off Sept.
14, while "Saturday Night Live" returns for its 35th season
on Sept. 26.
Farrah
Fawcett dies at 62
 The "Charlie's Angels"
star died of cancer this morning at 9:28 a.m. PT. "She's gone. She
now belongs to the ages," said Ryan O'Neal, who added, "I loved
her with all my heart. I will miss her so very, very much. She was in
and out of consciousness. I talked to her all through the night. I told
her how very much I loved her. She's in a better place now." As The
Guardian notes, Farrah was "the
ultimate all-American pin-up of the 1970s. The sadness of her decline
and the good-humored fortitude of her public battle with the illness were
all the more poignant because the US – and fans around the world
who watched her in Charlie's Angels – had fallen in love with the
wholesome, healthy glamour she seemed to embody at the height of her fame.
ABC
to air Farrah special tonight // Farrah
was too weak to marry O'Neal
She
was the poster girl for instant icon // Farrah
was more than a poster
Lee
Majors reacts // "Angels"
speak out // She was a
serious actress -- seriously!
Video:
10 most "Angel"-ic moments // An
ad angel // Farrah's
People covers
Watch
Farrah on "The Dating Game" in 1969 // NBC
to pay tribute tonight
TV
Land to re-air "Chasing Farrah" // Redefined
beauty // Had
a dignified 2nd act
ABC
and NBC fight over Farrah; CBS won't air Farrah tribute
"Simpsons"
and "CSI" command higher ad rates on the Web than on TV
Why the discrepancy? "The reason people are paying such a high premium
for these ads on the Internet is they do have a captive audience,"
says CBS chief researcher David Poltrack. "You know you have eyes
on the screen."
Kate
Walsh's husband wants to grill ABC's president on her "Private"
salary
ABC is trying to stop her hubby Alex Young's request to have ABC entertainment
president Stephen McPherson deposed about Walsh's "Private Practice"
salary and earning potential.
New
Jersey "Real Housewife" Danielle Staub mulling a run for congress
Apparently she isn't deterred by her sex tape and criminal past.
Letterman
beats Conan in weekly viewers, but Conan is still No. 1 with the young
It was the first time since 2005 that Dave averaged more viewers than
"The Tonight Show," yet Conan was dominant in every age category
below 55. PLUS: Conan has the lowest
"Tonight Show" ratings since 1993.
Late-night
hosts have field day with disgraced Guv Mark Sanford
"If you're a guy who hosts a late-night talk show, even a crap one,
it's one of these days where you go 'ah,'" said Craig Ferguson. David
Letterman joked: "I have to be careful here, I haven't had much luck
with jokes about governors."
Intel
sponsors Conan 2 years after he mocked the company
"The Tonight Show" host will revisit Intel on Thursday, two
years after spoofing the company (Watch
Part 1 and Part
2) during his weeklong visit to San Francisco in May 2007. Intel said
in a statement, "this partnership leverages O'Brien's unique ability
to humorously convey to his viewers Intel’s unique personality,
cutting-edge technology and futuristic innovations."
Oscars
insist the Best Picture nomination change wasn't about the ratings
But despite what the motion picture academy says, the plummeting ratings
of the Oscarcast must have raised concerns. As the LA Times points out,
"The economics are simple: Without a large TV audience, ABC would
be unable to continue demanding lofty prices for commercial time during
the show. Those commercial rates in turn affect the licensing fee the
network pays the academy, its principal source of income."
"Idol"
stars interview each other
Scroll down to see Kris interview Adam, Adam interview Kris, Anoop interview
Matt, Megan interview Lil Rounds....
School
banning students from appearing on "NYC Prep"?
The Dwight School, which boasts "NYC Prep" stars P.C. and Jessie,
warned the student body that there will be a "there is 'zero tolerance'
for students who find themselves in a similar situation and violate the
spirit of this rule." PLUS: 1.24
million watched "NYC Prep" premiere.
"X
Factor" contestant threatens suicide after getting rejected
The Simon Cowell show now has a doctor on standby, who assisted in making
sure the reject was OK.
Perez
Hilton reaches out to Isaiah Washington
The fired "Grey's Anatomy" star -- who became infamous for using
an anti-gay slur -- is now a staunch
gay marriage supporter who is apparently helping Perez Hilton. "I
have reached out to Isaiah Washington, someone I incorrectly labeled a
homophobe in the past, despite his own public statements that he was not,"
says Hilton.
Reality
TV casting directors keep an eye out for "pushovers" and the
"devil"
Devilish contestants are more likely to stir up trouble, while pushovers
are prone to having a meltdown.
"Fresh
Prince's" Ashley Banks sues over Web TV show
Tatyana Ali claims she was screwed out of $45,000 for a Web series she
invested in called "Buppies."
Court
could put a halt to "Jon & Kate Plus 8"
 A family attorney
in the county where the Gosselins filed their divorce papers says the
court could pull the plug on the show. The question for the court, she
says, could be whether it's "in the best interest of these children
to have their lives on TV as children of divorce — is that way too
much emotional baggage for any minor to have in their lives as children
of divorced parents on TV? I think so."
"J&K"
used a different county to have sealed records // Kate
goes out in a bikini
ODDS &
ENDS
Is a "Smallville"
TV movie in the works, titled "Metropolis"?
A whopping 1 million "True
Blood" DVDs have been sold
What is Jeff
Goldblum doing on "Law & Order: CI"?
Joy
Behar breaks off her engagement: "I got cold feet again"
Duran Duran's John Taylor
cameos on tonight's "Samantha
Who?"
Why is MTV
so much better outside the United States?
"Law
& Order UK" renewed for Season 2
Lou Diamond Phillips wins
"I'm
a Celeb" // Patti
Blagojevich lost 12 pounds
Will NBC separate Ben
Silverman from NBC Entertainment?
Jimmy
Kimmel deserves some credit for his live ads
Grant Show still won't
return to "Melrose
Place"
Rosie
O'Donnell to host her own Sirius/XM radio show
Scorsese is filming his
Atlantic City HBO
"Boardwalk" in Long Island
"Ugly
Betty" promotes Daniel Eric Gould to series regular
What's the deal with "Real
World" Ayiiia's name? // Why did Derek
go on?
VH1 and History will both
air "Woodstock:
Then and Now" for 40th anniversary
Will the Atlanta "Real
Housewives" spin off its sassy gay hairdresser?
"Fatchelor"
wants a gal with meat on her bones // Watch "More
to Love" auditions
Report: Nick Lachey dumped
Vanessa Minnillo
"Fraggle
Rock" comic book is coming soon
How Hope Davis talked
her way onto "In
Treatment"
"She's
Got The Look" contestant is shocked her meltdown got attention
Joan Rivers praises Ed
McMahon, calls Johnny
Carson "a nasty man"
It was a bufilled
episode of "SYTYCD"
64-year
CBS employee dies months after getting laid off
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