The Price of Striking Writers
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Comedy, Daytime, Drama, Late Night, Mini Series, Prime Time, News,
The writer’s strike is still going strong, though new negotiations are scheduled to begin next week. That’s a really good thing, too, considering how expensive all these picket lines are getting. If the strike continues into next month, it’s projected that LA will lose $20 million – per day. It won’t just affect our TV watching and give a real boost to reality shows, it will actually hurt the economy of the entertainment-based city.
For those who forgot, the disputing writer’s guild wants to split more revenue with the Alliance of Producers, who don’t want to give it up. That’s what’s been keeping the picket lines going. The last strike, by the way, lasted 22 weeks and cost right around $500 million, all told.
LA Times
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American Idol’s Jordin Sparks Releases Debut Album
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Music, Prime Time, Reality, FOX, American Idol, Gossip,
Jordin Sparks, the youngest American Idol winner to claim the crown, has just released her first album. The production is a result of her last-season victory…but is Jordin now last season, as well?
The seventeen-year-old included lightweight, loving little ditties on her album which enhance her wholesome image (part of the reasons fans fell in love with her), but there are some different sounds included as well. “Young and in Love” is a bit of a deviation for Sparks, though most of the other songs remain just as tame as fans want them to be. All in all, no big surprises for Sparks’ debut album, which may or may not be a good thing.
Without a few raunchy, rollicking tracks, does Sparks have a shot at Kelly Clarkson-esque success? There’s got to be a pill somewhere in all that jam, and the new Sparks album just doesn’t seem to have it.
MSNBC
TV on DVD: November 20, 2007
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Comedy, Drama, Music, Reality, Talk Shows, Bravo, Cable, CBS, MTV, Showtime, DVD,
Here are some of the TV on DVD options you can find on the shelves today. There are several complete collections now available just in time for the holiday season.
- Chappelle’s Show (Complete Series)
- Charles in Charge (Season 2)
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (Season 7)
- Dr. Katz Professional Therapist (Complete Series)
- Gene Simmons Family Jewels (Season 2)
- Inside the Actors Studio: Johnny Depp
- Love American Style (Season 1, Vol. 1)
- Mission Impossible (Season 3)
- Nirvana: Unplugged in New York
- Queer as Folk (Complete Series)
- The Universe (Season 1)
- The Wild Wild West (Season 3)
Wednesday Ratings: ‘Bionic Woman’ Hits New Low
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Comedy, Drama, Kids, Prime Time, Reality, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, The CW, America’s Next Top Model, Ratings,
CBS pulled off a major coup last night and stole a demo victory from Private Practice. The Eye network also had the largest audience overall.
8pm
- Pushing Daisies (3.1/9 in 18-49 demo) delighted 8.9 million fans.
- Kid Nation (2.4/7) came in second with 7.5 million.
- Back to You (7.3 million, 2.5/7) and ‘Til Death (7.4 million, 2.7/7) were both up about 900,000.
- Phenomenon (6.2 million, 2.0/6) was even with last week.
- America’s Next Top Model (5.3 million, 2.6/7) was up nearly 300,000.
9pm
- Criminal Minds (15.7 million, 4.3/11 in 18-49) had the night’s largest demos and audience.
- Private Practice (11.4 million, 4.2/10) was up about 220,000.
- Kitchen Nightmares (3.2/8) soared to 7 million viewers.
- Bionic Woman (6.3 million, 2.5/6) had its worst demo performance to date.
- Gossip Girl (2.9 million, 1.4/4) bumped up over 400,000 from last week.
10pm
- CSI: NY (13 million, 3.8/10 in 18-49 demo) easily took the hour in both categories.
- Dirty Sexy Money (8.1 million, 2.9/8) dropped about 180,000 viewers.
- Life (6.9 million, 2.5/7) raked in another 530,000.
Tuesday Ratings: FOX Lineup Remains Strong
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Comedy, Daytime, Prime Time, Reality, Sci-Fi/Horror, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, The CW, Dancing With The Stars, House, Ratings,
Although slightly down from last week, FOX’s schedule still garnered the best viewers and demos.
8pm
- NCIS (17.4 million, 3.7/10 in 18-49 demo) was slightly down from last week’s record high.
- Bones (9.1 million, 3.4/9) was down about 500,000.
- The Biggest Loser (8.2 million, 3.4/9) saw a slight bump up.
- Cavemen (4.6 million, 1.6/5) and Carpoolers (5.1 million, 1.9/5) were both down a tad.
- Beauty & The Geek (2.43 million, 1.2/3) was about even.
9pm
- About 17.5 million fans saw Cameron Mathison eliminated from Dancing With The Stars (4.1/10 in 18-49).
- House (16.9 million, 7.0/17) dominated the evening’s demos.
- The Unit (11.03 million, 2.9/7) remained steady from last week.
- Reaper (2.4 million, 1.2/3) saw a slight demo increase.
10pm
- Approximately 12.5 million worried about Stabler’s health on Law and Order: SVU (4.4/12 in 18-49).
- Boston Legal (11.8 million, 2.9/8) was up about 800,000.
- Cane (7.3 million, 1.8/5) lost about 1/2 million.
Hollywood Reporter
New ‘Iron Chef’ Joins Cooking Ranks
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Food & Home, Prime Time, Reality, Cable, Gossip,
It all started with an article in the New York Post. First, they reported that Iron Chef and Food Network darling Mario Batali (of Molto Mario fame) was being kicked off the network, stripped of his Iron Chef rank and forced to watch as none of his shows were renewed for another season. Next, they reported that Batali would still be seen on the network from time to time, perhaps. Now, Batali has teamed with none other than Gwyneth Paltrow (how did that happen?) to host a new cooking show for American Public TV.
Batali’s departure left a hole in Food Network’s Iron Chef America, sparking an eight-episode search for the Next Iron Chef. Sunday night, under the watchful eye of the remaining Iron Chefs (Bobby Flay, Cat Cora and Masaharu Morimoto – my favorite) and the chairman, chefs John Besh and Michael Symon competed under the klieg lights of Kitchen Stadium. The mission? Make five course in 60 minutes. The secret ingredient? Swordfish.
Click to continue reading New ‘Iron Chef’ Joins Cooking Ranks
Broadcasting & Cable
The Amazing Race: Season 12: “I’ve Become the Archie Bunker of the Home”
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Prime Time, Reality, CBS, Amazing Race, The,
In the middle of the night, the ten remaining teams took off from their last rest stop in Ireland and headed toward the local airport. Next stop: Amsterdam.
Azaria and Hendekea started the departures followed by Kynt/Vxyin then Jason/Lorena. Ronald and Christina, the 7th team to leave, got off to a delayed start when Christina forgot her fanny pack inside the hotel. Although they did finally get on the road, the father/daughter team later returned to the hotel so they could research flights via computer. Thankfully Kate and Pat – who waited alongside Ronald – were not as impatient with Christina as her father was.
Meanwhile Nicolas and Donald, the 5th team to depart, were unfortunately sidelined with a flat tire soon after their departure. Despite their quick recovery, the grandfather/grandson were one of the last duos to make it to the ticket counters. Luckily, every single team – except for Marinna and Julia – were able to get on the first plane into Dublin. The sister team narrowly missed the flight’s departure because they had taken a long route to the airport.
Click to continue reading The Amazing Race: Season 12: “I’ve Become the Archie Bunker of the Home”
The Amazing Race
This Week on TV (11/12-11/18)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Animation, Award Shows, Comedy, Drama, Music, Prime Time, Reality, Sci-Fi/Horror, ABC, Bravo, CBS, FOX, NBC, The CW, House, Prison Break, The Bachelor, The Office,
MONDAY (11/12)
- Prison Break (FOX, 8pm): ‘Lechero reveals a secret buried beneath Sona.’ He’s been linked to the Lost hatch this whole time. (NOTE: This will be the last new Prison episode until Jan. 14th.)
- Heroes (NBC, 9pm): ‘The calendar turns back four months.’ Does this mean the writers still have a chance to redo this whole season?
- Two and a Half Men (CBS, 9pm): ‘Charlie finds success as a children’s singing star.’ He becomes The Wiggles’ new green-shirted guy.
- The Bachelor: The Women Tell All (ABC, 10pm): This is their opportunity to make up for any embarrassing moments they didn’t have a chance to create.
Click to continue reading This Week on TV (11/12-11/18)
Alternatives For Late Night TV
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Late Night, Reality, Talk Shows, Cable, FX, MTV, Editorial,
It’s only been a full work week since Hollywood’s writers went on strike, and already it seems the days of great late night talk programs are long gone. The last time the writer’s guild went on strike, it lasted an agonizingly long 22 weeks. Without Colbert, Stewart, Letterman and Leno, how is American supposed to get its satirical, tongue-in-cheek twists on current events?
With a shortage of new scripts and a hiatus of many major shows, more Americans are now channel-surfing to find an entertainment fix. What they’ll find is a mishmash of reality TV - those wonderfully unscripted programs that are always there in the event of a script shortage. Channels like Travel, Discovery, Animal Planet and the Food Network are largely unaffected by the strike, though how MTV (and channels like it) will continue with their staged reality programs is anyone’s guess.
Instead of watching repeats on network TV, turn to these cable channels as the midnight hour approaches. Animal Planet, the Discovery Channel, E!, FX, The History Channel, and VH1 are among those still offering brand-new episodes. It’s better than re-runs.
MSNBC
A&E Showcases Celebrity Junk
Posted by Wendy Michaels Categories: Reality, Cable, Internet,
Finally… there’s a show that promises to showcase celebrity junk! Where do I sign up? When it comes to celebrities, I must know everything—so why not see their junk too? A&E is the network to pull it off, with their upcoming series Celebrity Garage Sale, created and hosted by Illeana Douglas. Do celebs really have garage sales? Well, I can recall Whitney Houston sold a bunch of her junk and didn’t Tori Spelling too? Douglas will uncover the best celeb garage sales in this unscripted pilot—well, at least her celeb friends anyway, which in the pilot is Tom Arnold. Eh, maybe not such an interesting star for the pilot episode, but the proceeds of the garage sale (and in his case he raised $5,000) goes to charity. According to Douglas, “I’ve always been a garage sale fanatic, but the fun of a celebrity garage sale is that their throwaways become someone else’s collectables—like an Antiques Roadshow to the stars.” I’ve always thought Illeana Douglas was okay, but her short web series Illeanarama was a riot. I think she’s got the right amount of spunk to pull off Celebrity Garage Sale. She has most recently been seen in Ugly Betty.
The Hollywood Reporter
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