Posted Nov 6th 2009 6:01PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV Royalty, Celebrities, Reality-Free
Dear Oprah:
I saw that cover of the December issue of
O magazine that was revealed today. Congrats to
Ellen DeGeneres. She's been campaigning to get on the cover since last March, and it's good to see her goal become a reality. It proves that even regular folks with a daily daytime talk show and a million Twitter followers can realize their dreams too!
I'm not sure if this is the right venue for this, but I'll just come out and ask: can I be on your cover too? I don't have to be paid for it and you can dress me up any way that you like. I just want the honor of being on the cover with you.
Continue reading Dear Oprah: I'd like to be on the cover of O too
Posted Nov 2nd 2009 8:03PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, TV Royalty, TV on DVD, OpEd, Reality-Free, Jane After Dark
Ah, how good it is to get back to
The Wire. I've been steered off track by other DVDs landing on my doorstep for
Jane After Dark, so season five of
The Wire has been a while coming. One again, the show blows me away with the writing, characters, cinematography and realism. I'm just part-way into season one, but I love all of the references to everything that's happened thus far in the series, and the crew's continued attempts to bring down Marlo's organization. And, apparently, Omar is still in the game ...
Continue reading Jane After Dark: The Wire, season five (part one)
Posted Oct 19th 2009 9:02PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: TV Royalty, OpEd, The Office, Celebrities, Reality-Free, Dollhouse, Glee, Joss Whedon
It's one of those things that you think would be cool if it happened, and then it actually happens. Joss Whedon is reporting that he'll be
directing an upcoming episode of Glee.
We know he has on occasion stepped outside his usual genre of sci-fi and fantasy based on his directorial work on
The Office. We know he's into musical theater based on his creation of the musical episode of
Buffy the Vampire Slayer and
Doctor Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog. Now, he's merging all that he's done before. Or at least he would be if the episode of
Glee ends up involving evil scientists and vampires.
Despite my own history in musical theater, I haven't been watching
Glee. Whedon's involvement in an episode would certainly pique my interest enough to catch it. Perhaps he could get together with his brother Jed and write the music for the episode, as well, turning it into a 42-minute operetta. They've done it before.
Posted Oct 8th 2009 6:12PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, TV Royalty, Programming, TV on DVD, OpEd, Video, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free
As
Bob mentioned in his DVD post this week,
The Mary Tyler Moore Show: The Complete Fifth Season was released in a 3-disc set on Tuesday. I have fond memories of watching this show as a kid, and the clips after the jump confirm once again that it featured one of the best casts in TV history.
Not only was each actor perfect for their role, but their timing and delivery of lines was second to none. I also love all of the 1970s-era props, clothes and decor, because of course, the show was made in the 1970s.
Continue reading The Mary Tyler Moore Show - One of the best in TV history
Posted Oct 4th 2009 2:38PM by Annie Wu
Filed under: TV Royalty, OpEd, Saturday Night Live, Celebrities, Reality-Free
(S35E02) After that Jenny Slate f-bomb nonsense and Megan Fox's not terribly original hot girl material from the
season premiere, it was exciting to see a really solid episode (and a star-studded one, at that). Ryan Reynolds did a fantastic job as host (snaps for his wavering voice during the porcelain fountains sketch and accent in
SYTYCD), though he didn't have any major stand-out roles. Did I miss the memo that Lady Gaga wasn't just musical guest but co-host as well? Such a role is normally left up to Ryan Reynolds' giant biceps.
It's been a while since we've seen such consistently enjoyable writing in an episode. Usually, there's a distinct lull during the course of the 90 minutes, but I didn't feel it this time. Hopefully, this is a good indication of the rest of the season.
Continue reading Saturday Night Live: Ryan Reynolds/Lady Gaga
Posted Sep 29th 2009 11:11AM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, TV Royalty, Programming, OpEd, Entourage, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free, TV Squad Ten, True Blood
HBO has slowly become my favorite network over the past few years. I don't know if it's because the mainstream networks have turned to lots of reality programming or what, but HBO just seems to get better and better. Just about every show on the premium channel is feature film quality (if not better), and I've got some favorites listed below.
I know I'm missing a few biggies, like
Rome,
Deadwood,
Flight of the Conchords, and
Extras, but it's only because I either haven't watched these shows or have only watched a few episodes -- not enough to make an informed opinion. I'm sure they'll make my
Jane After Dark column at some point in the future. So I hope you'll tell me your favorites in the comments below.
Continue reading TV Squad Ten: My favorite HBO shows
Posted Sep 23rd 2009 9:25AM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: TV Royalty, Programming, OpEd, House, Lost, Scrubs, Reality-Free, Fringe
I guess even J.J. Abrams needs to lighten things up now and then. With shows like Fringe, Lost and Alias, and movies like Star Trek, Cloverfield and Mission Impossible III on his impressive resume, maybe he needs a break from the sci-fi / action / drama genres.
Now he's exec producing an untitled, half-hour comedy for Fox. It's written by Mike Markowitz (who's worked on Becker and It's All Relative), but other than that, details are few and far between. The tagline is that it'll be "a comedic medical show." Hmmm, so maybe like Scrubs?
Continue reading J.J. Abrams producing comedy for Fox
Posted Sep 18th 2009 2:02PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: TV Royalty, OpEd, Celebrities, Reality-Free, Dollhouse, Joss Whedon
I was lucky enough to participate in a conference call today with
Dollhouse (and
Buffy and
Angel and
Firefly and
Dr. Horrible) mastermind
Joss Whedon. While he was very good at giving vague answers to questions asked so as not to spoil the storylines for season two of the show, he did drop a few tidbits that certainly make me want to watch.
The most interesting of this is that Amy Acker, who plays Doctor Saunders a.k.a. Whiskey, is only contracted for three episodes this season (apparently she's committed to another show). I found that surprising considering her important role in the apocalyptic future of "
Epitaph One," but I'm sure the writers have figured out a way around it. It was stated that the world of "Epitaph One" will be revisited later in this season.
Continue reading Some Dollhouse tidbits from Joss Whedon
Posted Sep 14th 2009 4:30PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: TV Royalty, OpEd, Celebrities, Reality-Free
The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation is now launching a new website called
EmmyTVLegends.org. It will include interviews with various celebrities who witnessed the rise of television including Milton Berle, Bob Hope and Walter Cronkite. Ironically, this is being done via the Internet. It's a bit like the passing of the torch from one predominant global medium of communication to the next.
Granted, all the videos have been uploaded to YouTube, so it's possible to find them without going through the website. Still, it's nice that the website organizes the interviews for the viewer. I was channeling my mother for a moment while watching some of them and thinking either "he/she looks so young in that interview" or "he/she is dead now".
The site represents a real treasure trove of television stories and history. I've only had a chance to watch a few of them so far. If you're interested in the medium I recommend watching some of them in your free time.
Posted Sep 12th 2009 8:42AM by Joel Keller
Filed under: TV Royalty, Obituaries, Reality-Free
Yesterday brought sad news for anyone who's a comedy writer, aspired to be a comedy writer, or just appreciated a well-turned and funny phrase.
Larry Gelbart passed away; he had been diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. He died at his Los Angeles home yesterday morning at the age of 81.
Gelbart is probably best known for his writing on
M*A*S*H during its early years. The almost lyrical comedic dialogue he gave Hawkeye, Trapper, and the rest of the gang is what drew me to the show, and he influenced almost everyone who worked on the show afterwards, including FOS (Friend of Squad) Ken Levine, who was just "too devestated" to write
a tribute on his blog (expect one on Monday, though).
Continue reading Larry Gelbart dead at 81
Posted Sep 10th 2009 3:02PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: TV Royalty, The Apprentice, Interviews, Celebrities, TCA Press Tour
Joan Rivers was in Pasadena in July to promote her show on TV Land,
How'd You Get So Rich?, but when I spoke to her after her presentation, I was more interested in a couple of issues. First, her longevity in a business that takes even older comedians and tosses them to the side (Cosby, for instance, is more community activist than comedian these days). Second, I wanted to ask her about her experience on
The Apprentice, which included her
feuds with wedding planners, Clint Black, and Annie Duke.
But, Joan being Joan, she also randomly let loose on Brooke Shields, Sarah Palin, and whoever else was in her mind during the ten minutes we spoke.
We start off by talking about longevity. She feels one of the reasons she stays relevant is that she doesn't live in the past. "I don't give a shit about Johnny Carson," she said.
Continue reading Joan Rivers on longevity, Brooke Shields, and not caring about Johnny Carson
Posted Sep 3rd 2009 2:29PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Late Night, TV Royalty, Industry, Music and Variety, Celebrities, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
In the latest issue of Time (hits newsstands tomorrow) the mag's resident critic James Poniewozik has a great article on the upcoming prime-time premiere of The Jay Leno Show. Poniewozik makes the argument (an ubiquitous one at this point) that as a result of Leno's move to 10 p.m., your TV is shrinking.
As he puts it, in a TV viewing world where the attention span of potential eyeballs is so segmented because of cable, DVRs, and Hulu, NBC is throwing all their eggs in one basket with "America's most successful purveyor of vanilla."
However, a lot of people really like vanilla. Good sign? Hard to say.
Highlights and a look the issue's cover after the jump.
Continue reading Jay Leno is the future of TV... even if he fails
Posted Sep 2nd 2009 9:02AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: TV Royalty, OpEd, Celebrities, Reality-Free
Michigan Avenue, also known as the "Magnificent Mile" in Chicago
will be closing down part of the street so Chicago's own Oprah Winfrey can do a live location taping to open her 24th season. It will no doubt be a show so ostentatious and so grand that it could only be Oprah. Naturally, since Oprah is generous to her people, the show and its accompanying performance by the Black Eyed Peas is free and open to the public.
It's hard to believe that Oprah is going into her 24th season. Actually, it's not that hard, as it feels like Oprah has always been around. Oprah is likely such a big part of the economy of Chicago that she probably has the Mayor in twice a week to clean her apartment.
If this is how the Queen of Daytime Television is starting her 24th season, how is she going to top it when she starts her Silver Anniversary season? Will she simply given a thousand bucks to every person in Chicago?
Posted Aug 27th 2009 2:22PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, TV Royalty, Celebrities, Reality-Free
If you're a
Seinfeld fan, that is. If you're not a
Seinfeld fan, please scroll up or down.
This week's
Entertainment Weekly features a new photo of the cast for their
Curb Your Enthusiasm guest appearances with Larry David. The cast will be in several episodes this season, playing themselves. The plot will have David getting them together for the
Seinfeld reunion that fans want to see and we'll get a behind-the-scenes look at the fictional reunion and the fictional making of that reunion, which itself will be a real reunion.
Got that?
Posted Aug 19th 2009 11:03AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: TV Royalty, OpEd, Video, Awards, Reality-Free
BAFTA (The British Academy of Film and Television Arts)
will be honoring Monty Python on the group's 40th anniversary. The surviving members of Monty Python will receive a special award for outstanding contribution to film and television in October. The event will be co-hosted by the Independent Film Channel and take place in New York.
Excuse me. What? An awards event hosted by a British organization for a British group is taking place in New York? Isn't that somewhat counter-intuitive? Unless IFC is picking up the whole check (which is a distinct possibility), this should be moved to London.
Continue reading BAFTA to honor Monty Python
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