104 entries from September 2007.Tonight's Premiers: Dexter, Desperate Housewives, more.. Premier week is behind us but there are still new shows yet to do their thing. There are five tonight, four on Monday, two on Tuesday, the almighty Pushing Daisies on Wednesday, and more stuff later in the week. If you haven't checked out Stargate Atlantis yet, you're missing some fantastic science fiction. They had their best season premier thus far and it looks to get better as the week rolls on.Don't forget though, amongst all these new shows, we're rolling into some second episodes here. Heroes baby!Click through to see tonights schedule...... American Dad, Brotherhood, Brothers & Sisters, Desperate Housewives, Dexter, Extreme Makeover BlogRush is BlogGone Regular readers have probably noticed a widget I placed on the sidebar called BlogRush, one that is supposed to show posts from websites like this one that are relevant to what I post about here. I put their widget on my site and send traffic out to other people running the widget, and in exchange, I get traffic from my headlines appearing on other peoples widgets.It's a simple concept and one horribly bungled by a startup that has no clue what it's doing. My BlogRush "dashboard" where I can track how many impressions I've given the widget hasn't been functional in over a week. Their excuse is they are making a new, better dashboard, and somehow this means that the... BlogRush Stargate Atlantis Season 4 Drifts Home Tonight It doesn't seem like three months has passed since the season 3 finale of Stargate Atlantis, if anything it feels like half a year. Although the dynamic due of SG-1 and Atlantis won't be gracing the airwaves anymore (for those unaware, SG-1 was sadly canceled after 10 seasons) the junior series is still getting its game on, and tonight is the night my friends.Firstly, Atlantis is moving back to its original time slot from before Battlestar Galactica started sucking up all the available money (first it cost us SG-1, now word is they are going to split it into 2, 10 episode seasons because of the enormous cost.)I love BSG but if it really is costing that much, somebody isn't... Amanda Tapping, David Hewlett, Scifi Channel, Stargate Atlantis Theater Watch: September 28, 2007 Seven new flicks debuting this weekend although only three are getting a wide release. I'm not terribly familiar with two of them, those being Feast of Love (MGM) opening in 1200 theaters - I've never heard of it. The great and all-knowing (and sometimes deceitful and evil) Wikipedia says of the film, "A meditation on love and its various incarnations, set within a community of friends in Oregon. and is described as an exploration of the magical, mysterious and sometimes painful incarnations of love."In other words this is the kind of movie that actors love, because it's "artsy", but nobody will go to see. I probably wouldn't waste my time with it until it comes out on DVD, it's not... Feast of Love, The Darjeeling Limited, The Game Plan, The Kingdom Tonight's Premiers: Stargate Atlantis, Moonlight, Numb3rs, Ghost Wisperer, Las Vegas Oh thank God, this is the last day of premier week since there's nothing new on Saturday and technically Sunday is the beginning of the week. There's just one new show but five returning (or more if I tracked all of cable) this evening. I'm tired of making up stuff to say in these intros so...here, enjoy it and shut up.8PM EDTGhost Whisperer (CBS)9PMMoonlight (CBS)Las Vegas (NBC)10PMNumb3rs (CBS)Stargate Atlantis (Scifi)Blah blah, enjoy, blah blah.... Ghost Wisperer, Las Vegas, Moonlight, Numb3rs, Stargate Atlantis Halo 3 Sales Numbers Pathetically Overblown Halo 3 sales numbers teach us that comparing games and movies is fundamentally flawed, and that even so, games have a long way to go regardless. Halo 3 Tonight's Premiers: My Name Is Earl, CSI, Grey's Anatomy, The Office, (MORE) Another night of premier week went by and was cause for celebration for NBC, even though they didn't have the top show for the might (more reality puke took the top spot) they had their highest rated show for Wednesday prime time since the late (very late) 90's when The West Wing was laying waste to the competition.I am of course talking about Bionic Woman, which scored about 13.6 million viewers for the 9pm hour, just down from Grey's Anatomy spinoff Private Practice (14.4). They say that Bionic Woman actually scored better in the demo, something notable because a low rated show that scores better in the demo can stay on the air while decently rated shows with crappy demo... Big Shots, CSI, E.R., Grey's Anatomy, My Name Is Earl, Smallville, The Office, Ugly Betty, Without a Trace Transformers 2 Gets a Tentative Release Date Despite what everyone expects to be a writers strike sometime in between October and the summer of next year, Paramount and DreamWorks SKG has set a tentative release date for a sequel to this summers mindless Michael Bay hit Transformers. That date, according to Variety, is June 29th, 2008.You can read about it at their site, but most of the article is about DreamWorks' recent unpleasantness with corporate parent Paramount, one that could end up seeing Steven Spielberg leave the indy production company that he helped found with partners David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg (hence the SKG), three of the most powerful players in Hollywood. As Variety says, that late of a date is no guarantee that a protracted strike... DreamWorks, Michael Bay, Transformers Battlestar Galactica, Bionic Woman, now a Knight Rider remake? Just when you thought the creative brain-drought in studio executive land had pushed things just about as far as they could possibly go without driving people away from their television sets permanently in despair, the slow downward spiral continues with the sad news that NBC is going to bring back Knight Rider. I'm not kidding, and I'm not amused. The show was fine for the era when it aired, and you there's no arguing that Ron Moore's version of Battlestar Galactica isn't a compelling one that is superior to the original in almost every way (except destroying a couple of decades of inroads made by minorities and women in television anyway.)But this is really just going too far. There is... Knight Rider, NBC Quick Links: September 26th, 2007 A big name director is going to the big house, a has-been series is getting a feature sequel, and of course, there are always lawsuits flying around and if you aren't careful, you may just catch one in the face. This is quick links.John McTiernan is going to prison after lying to the feds.Joe Flanigan (Stargate Atlantis) is being sued by his agency for not paying his agency.Elton John thinks child porn makes for cool art.A sequel to the X-Files feature film is lensing in December, according to former series star David Duchovny.Loose lips sink block busters..or people need to learn how to not over react to simple situations.... Elton John, Indiana Jones, Joe Flanigan, John McTiernan Peter Jackson NOT Awarded $125K by Judge I don't mean to step on any toes here but I believe there are few sins worse when reporting news than to report misinformation as truth. On Cinemablend, they reported as did a number of sites on the not-so-important news that a federal judge fined New Line about $125K for not coughing up a number of documents (several boxes worth) he had ordered them to provide during the discovery phase of Peter Jackson's lawsuit against them.This all has to do with profit sharing and how Jackson thinks he is being cheated by New Line in regards to profits from the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The problem is that Cineablend reported that the money was awarded to Jackson, which is... New Line, Peter Jackson Jack Bauer is Drunk..Again It seems that Kiefer Sutherland was arrested last night after failing a field sobriety test. Given the character Sutherland has been portraying over the past seven years on 24, there isn't much point in talking about actors and actresses setting bad examples for young adults and kids by doing incredibly stupid and irresponsible things like driving while drunk.The things Jack Bauer does make this a pretty tame deal.So instead, I'm just going show you this video of Kiefer Sutherland jumping into a Christmas tree. Click through to watch.... Kiefer Sutherland Fox Kills Another If you've ever wanted to know the quickest way to murder a television show, all you ever need do is ask an executive at Fox - those guys are the best. Anchorwoman for example only aired a single episode before getting the axe. Music/reality program Nashville only made it as far as two before being put on hiatus. For those who are not aware, very few shows come back successfully from hiatus.The reality sudser, which showcased aspiring country singers as they navigated life in Music City, has been pulled from the schedule -- but will return sometime in October, the net said.They are sliding reruns of K-Ville into Nashville's slot for the time being, which is kind of nice since... Fox, Nashville Heroes Barely Increases Ratings in Second Season Premier My curiosity as to what kind of ratings Heroes would return with has been met with a lot of disappointment. It didn't even win the evening, and you know what? It wasn't even close. ABC killed everything else with a 20 share for reality vomit Dancing with the Stars on Monday night, compared to a 12 for Heroes. It bothers me when Christian conservatives whine about too much violence and sex ruining television, when it's really reality that's turning the boob tube into brain rot. Are people so devoid of imagination that they'd rather watch has-been actors try to dance than explore the boundaries of fiction and the human spirit?House did what House normally does, with about a 20 on... Dancing with the Stars, Heroes, House, Ratings A Feature on Eli Roth, Torture Porn, and Boobs! It's pretty obvious that Deadline Hollywood blogger Nikki Finke doesn't much care for Eli Roth or his work. Is he just a misunderstood genius fighting against a system that rewards creative drought, or is he just a dense and twisted 'tard? Well, since Nikki prefaces Eli's name with "disgusting" every time she writes about him, we know exactly where she stands, and these days I'd tend to agree, though I don't hold it against the guy.If he wants to write and direct really sick movies and has the wherewithal to get them made, I say give him an award..right after I clean the puke off my shoes.That doesn't mean I'll go out of my way to see his films, at... Eli Roth, Feature, Nikki Finke Tonight's Premiers: Bionic Woman, Criminal Minds, Life, Private Practice, CSI: NY, Dirty Sexy Money, Ghost Hunters We'll be half way through premier week after tonight with about 15 behind us, 7 more tonight, and 20 to go. That's not the end of the fall premiers though, only those that debut during premier week. There are still some stragglers left to get their game on, and I'll keep posting reminders until Lost and Jericho hit the air sometime in early 2008.I already have stuff sitting on my DVR to watch: K-Ville, Prison Break, House, Torchwood (x2), a FIFA World Cup match, Bones, and a couple of Angel repeats from the beginning of season 5. Ugh..Here's what's on tonight for you undeserving lap dogs.... Bionic Woman, Criminal Minds, CSI: NY, Dirty Sexy Money, Ghost Hunters, Life, Private Practice Kari Wuhrer on Stargate Atlantis? Ugh! Relating to you about the news that Kari Wuhrer is making a guest appearance on Stargate Atlantis, I have to say I'm not very happy about it.I love Stargate Atlantis, and I happen to think Kari Wuhrer is a beautiful woman, but she simply is not a good actress. I could hardly object to seeing her face on the TV under most circumstances, but this is one that I will genuinely protest. The cast at large of SGA isn't terribly deep, but there are a few nuggets if you dig around and the rest are competent enough to not distract from the story - but Kari will do that.Not just because of her good looks, but because she is a... Kari Wuhrer, Stargate Atlantis Network Television Needs 'Reaper' The series that had its pilot directed by the always awesome Kevin Smith will make its debut tonight on The CW in about one hour. I plan to catch it Thursday night so that I can watch House this evening, but that isn't to say I'm not looking forward to it. A lot of people are looking forward to it, so much so that some pundits are quietly wondering if series like Reaper could add to the success of America's Next Top Model, and bring The CW into true competition with the big four networks.Says BuddyTV: "Reaper is a sci-fi comedy that may remind viewers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, while Gossip Girl is a Josh Schwartz produced teen drama... Kevin Smith, Reaper, The CW Tonight's Premiers: House, Reaper, NCIS, Boston Legal, (MORE!) Not a LOT more, of course, but still, there's more than the title would lead you to believe. Or perhaps not, since I did say there was more..so yeah, never mind you ungrateful bastards. You don't want humor, or sexy, you just want the numbers, right? FINE, I'M GOING HOME.8PM (EDT)Bones (Fox)NCIS (CBS)9PMHouse (Fox)Reaper (The CW)9:30PMBoston Legal (ABC) [This one is an hour and a half long folks - Ed.]10PMLaw & Order: SVU (NBC)Cane (CBS)Could of notes, as I said the Boston Legal premier is an hour and a half long starting at half past the hour. It comes on right after a reality show so if you use a DVR, make sure your recording runs long. Reaper is the... Bones, Boston Legal, Cane, House, Law & Order, NCIS, Reaper Site Maintenance I'm putting into production a new visual theme I've been working on, based on the old one, but hopefully more appealing to the eye and easier to navigate. While I do this, some parts of the page may appear...strange. I can't just implement the whole thing at once, I have to do the page header, the side bar, the main content area, and the footer all separately.My apologies, but it should go quickly and it'll look better after.... Site Watch the Heroes Season 2 Premier 'Four Months Later' Streaming Now Heroes season 2 streaming on NBC and Hulu.com. Four Months Later, Heroes, Streaming Video Heroes: Four Months Later Thus begins volume two of Heroes, and along with a couple of million of other bloggers, I'll lay out my thoughts on where we've found ourselves - very much far from home. If you haven't seen this yet, don't click through. I had a few gripes and not a great deal of praise, but there is only so much you can accomplish in a one-hour season premier (maybe other shows should learn from 24 about two-hour premiers) and the build-up to all of this surely exceeded anything the producers of the show are capable of.That's not to say that it wasn't good, just that with all the hype and high expectations, whether we admit it or not, we expected the... Heroes Heroes Spinoff 'Origins' May Suck Am I insane? A Heroes hater from the beginning? Hardly, I love the show as much as anyone though I was extremely cautious about the first half the season which had problems paying things off without pushing coherent arcs forward. They got their game together and it all turned out great, and I'm looking forward to the second season premier tonight just like you are.Origins, the coming limited-edition spin-off sounded pretty cool at first, and when Kevin Smith signed on to write and direct an episode, I was thrilled.We all were.But things are getting just a little more crowded and it's causing a bit of concern and Media Pundit central. Here is a list of who we know is... Eli Roth, Heroes, John August, Kevin Smith, Michael Dougherty Tonight's Premiers: Heroes, CSI: Miami, Journeyman, (LOTS MORE..) Premier week officially gets underway this evening with ten season premiers that include a number of new series all vying for your attention in a three hour block. Oh, how fun! I'm trying something new today by publishing the calendar I use to keep track of all of this stuff. Unfortunately it won't fit in my sidebar, but it will fit nicely within this post. Maybe when the new site design goes live (hopefully this week) I can adjust things so this calendar will be visible on every page.You can click on *some* of items and get a *little* bit of extra information such as the network each show is, but not a lot more than that. These are premiers... Chuck, CSI: Miami, Dancing with the Stars, Heroes, How I Met Your Mother, Journeyman, Rules of Engagement, The Bachelor, The Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men Nothing New Has Happened in the Last 1.5 Seconds There is so little of value going on today that I briefly ran my brain through a blender and then drank it to see what it tastes like. That isn't to say there aren't a lot of news items, just that they are all the same crap over and over again that nobody really cares about and if you were forced to read through it all like I just did, you'd probably drown yourself.Do you care that Resident Evil 3 is out in the theaters this weekend? If so then you'll probably go see it, rather than sitting around all day watching a bunch of new trailers and clips, yeah? So there goes about 15% of the total news today,... Eastern Promises, Hayden Panettiere, Maureen McCormick, Resident Evil 3, Steven Speilberg Theater Watch: 2007-09-21 There are three big debuts plus one high-quality expansion this weekend if you're looking to get out of the house and be seriously gouged by greedy theater chains, annoyed by inconsiderate compatriots and their evil cell phones which human beings cannot biologically survive without having turned on at all times. For the record, I've never owned one in my life, and I'm doing just fine. The only two times I've had a car break down, I simply walked to a pay phone. I crashed once, and walked across the road and humbly asked if I could enter another persons home to use their phone. My car, ass-end up in the air, sitting in a ditch, was a pretty good indication... Eastern Promises, Good Luck Chuck, Resident Evil 3, Sydney White, Theater Watch *7* New Clips from Heroes Season 2 Collider.com has seven new clips from the second season premier of Heroes available for public consumption. I couldn't find anyplace that allows these videos to be "embedded" so you'll have to head on over to their fantastic site to get a quick sneak peek at what Tim Kring and company have in store for us.Don't forget that the season premier is this coming Monday at 9PM EDT. That's the 24th. Are you ready? I'm ready, and if case you're wondering, here is what I did to get ready for premier week so that I wasn't left in the dark. (Hint: anybody need some blank DVDs?)... Heroes, Streaming Video '24' Season 7 Spoilers Released by Fox Rumors have been going around the past week or so that someone from the good old days of 24 will be making an appearance in the opener of season 7, and these have now been confirmed by a Fox press release. Since there is no fool-proof way to hide spoilers from those that don't like 'em, I'll spare your contempt and refer you to the press release itself.The picture on the right might give you a slight clue as to how "old" this character is, and that's all you're getting I'm afraid.The Media Pundit is pleased.... 24, Fox Kelsey Grammar is Back If you've been living under a rock for the past month, then you may not know that Kelsey Grammar is back doing sitcoms, this one happens to be for Fox on a short called Back to You with Patricia Heaton. This is essentially a news-anchor comedy rather than a radio-host comedy, not exactly forging new territory here, but the fact is Kelsey Grammer is what you'd call in the movie business a person who can "open" a show. If he's there, people will tune in, and tune in they did last evening as Back to You scored a 10 share to win the night against 9 for CBS' embattled Kid Nation (an exceptional number of advertisers backed out after a... Back to You, Kid Nation, Kitchen Nightmares Star Wars TV Show Might Land on Cable I find it hard to believe that the big four networks wouldn't fight to the death in order to secure the broadcast rights to any Star Wars TV series (even if it's traditionally animated) but anything seems possible in the world of George Lucas. Asked by TV Guide where he invisions his new money bonanza landing, he was fairly indifferent. Yeah, I'd be indifferent too if I was going to reap all the profits from both the first-run, syndication, and DVD sales.Well, it's one of those things. Television is sort of bifurcated up into small niches and unless you fit in one of those niches, no one knows what to do with you. And, of course, I'm always outside the... George Lucas, Star Wars The Scum Report: 2007-09-20 Even if there is nothing else trashy to report today, this event along is worth sifting through the puke-fulled gutter that is the Hollywood starlets private life. Especially when things get testy.Hayden Panettiere Will Fucking Kill YouDrop the part that involves me dying and I'd say we've got a date sweetie, but you've really got to consider some anger management classes. I know, you're rich now, and special, everybody loves you and nobody can tell you no. What is it with all this hate on reporters and photographers though? They are just trying to do their jobs and feed their family with their $15 million-per-year paychecks and have really expensive car payments (on 10 different cars and three homes) just... Hayden Panettiere, The Scum Report Threat of Strike Claims Another Victim Though Disney is making non-nonsensical excuses for putting the brakes on the third installment of The Chronicles of Narnia, the truth is evident in the fact that this is not the first film that has been shelved until after industry writers come to terms with the studios for a new contract. Filming had been scheduled to begin in January of 2008, which would have placed production right in the middle of a possible combined WGA and SAG strike. SAG's contract expires in either June or July of 2008, and Disney has pushed back filming until at least that late into the year, possibly later.The companies blamed the delay on "the challenging schedules for our young actors."Director Michael Bay and another... Chronicles of Narnia, Disney, Michael Bay, Transformers Pathetic Beginning for 'Kid Nation' I forgot to record it (gee imagine that!) but Variety probably did the best writeup you can expect over this child exploitation reality series from Fox-wannabe CBS. I'm not even going to paraphrase here, just read this.For starters, producer Tom Forman owes an apology to "Survivor's" Mark Burnett, inasmuch as this effort dips repeatedly into the reality TV patriarch's bag of tricks, from the trumped-up challenge to the pounding music.In that regard, the manipulation here is so overt as to be almost laughable. When a kid gets a leg cramp and others help him, the music swells the way it did whenever Martin Sheen delivered one of those stirring speeches on "The West Wing." And when a girl wins the... CBS, Kid Nation, Reality Studios Running Scared Over Writer's Strike A lot has been made over how inept the Writers Guild of America leadership is in union affairs, meaning that they act too much like they real Hollywood personalities than they do real union leaders. The attempt to organize reality editors in what can only be described as throwing the pin instead of the grenade only served to solidify complaints that while the current leadership is itching for a fight, they've never actually been in one, much less won a fight in their entire lives.With a strike almost guaranteed this fall, or sometime before the Screen Actors Guild and Directors Guild of America contracts expire next year, many of us are left wondering if we're better off not going down... AMPTP, Labor, WGA Are You Ready for BritneyTV? According to Variety's Liz Smith, NBC is floating the possibility of pairing Matthew Perry with Britney Spears for a new comedy where Perry's character hires a woman to pretend to be his wife in order to make himself look better in his professional career. While Liz questions whether or not Spears is "marketable as a sitcom star", I'm wondering why she and NBC aren't asking the Lindsay Lonhan question: is she physically capable of even showing up on a set on time on a daily basis, working ten times the number of hours she used to spend singing (and that was three years ago) while sober and drug free?That's one hell of a risk, to float a series on the... Britney Spears, Comedy, Matthew Perry, NBC 5 Things I Did to Prepare for the Fall TV Season Not much news today and I've been thinking about doing this little filler post, because hey, maybe it might interest somebody other than myself. What did you do to get ready for the fall TV season? Probably not enough! I was caught off guard with the insanely good Heroes the first time around and as a result, I only had the last half of the season saved on my DVR. Since you can record stuff off TV and save it on video tape (legally, you just can't give it to anybody or sell those tapes) it goes without saying that capturing stuff with a DVR and then burning it to DVD is perfectly legit - if it's only for personal... DVR, Feature Tonight's Season Premiers: Kid Nation, Kitchen Nightmares, Back to You, 'Till Death, Gossip Girl, America's Next Top Model While there was only a single premier on last night (Beauty and the Geek) on The CW, there are a hefty six making their debut this evening. Unfortunately, four of them air at 8PM EDT while the other two are on at 9. This time of the year is all about making choices, choices that can make or break a new or returning series.This is the last big batch of premiers before we hit premier week itself (23rd-28th) where you've got 40 programs coming back into your living room. With most of this stuff airing between the hours of 7PM and 10, you're guaranteed to miss at least 2/3rd's of this stuff, and there's probably close to 20 more coming... Back to You, Gossip Girl, Kid Nation, Kitchen Nightmares, Till Death, America The Scum Report: 2007-09-19 These things are getting to be my very favorite part of the day, and in Hollywood, there is no shortage of scum to report on.Snipes Falls Off The Money TrainWes Snipes is going to be tried for tax evasion in Florida that could see him behind bars for up to 16 years. It's bad enough when extremely wealthy people refuse to pay their fair share to the government when they above all others could afford to do so 100 times over and not even notice a balance difference in their off-shore bank accounts, but to then go and stiff your own agency that got you all that money in the first place takes some real balls.Snipes refused to defend himself... The Scum Report, Vanessa Hudgens, Wesley Snipes Jericho Season 2 Preview from IGN IGN continues to talk with the producers of Jericho and visit the set in the final days and weeks of production on the new limited-run of seven episodes that CBS ordered after a fan revolt, following the cancellation of the series earlier this year. Though little has been revealed up until this point, we do know that the United States military that was briefly seen in the season finale will play a permanent role in the new episodes as a stabilizing force between Jericho and New Bern, though not necessarily making the town and its situation stable all around.Though the first new episode will pick up where the last one left off to give us an idea of how that... CBS, Jericho Hereos Season 2 Teaser - NEW With the season two premier of Heroes less than a week away, NBC has released another trailer/teaser which is available on YouTube, and embedded below so you can play it right from this page. As a side note, the branching off of rights to the TV series has begun, with a novel based on the character Hiro played by Masi Oka having been commissioned. The title of the book is "Heroes: Saving Charlie", which you can read about in NBC's press release.Charlie, in case you were wondering, is the female waitress Hiro encountered in Texas in the first half of the season. The book should be completely canon with the series and available sometime in December.... Heroes Shorter and Shorter TV Shows Getting Attention A one-hour show isn't an hour long if you count only the fictionalized content and ignore the commercials. We stopped counting the credits after they started crushing them down to half their normal height (this happening well after they scrolled them so fast that they couldn't be read anyway) so they could show advertisements for the channels other programming.But we didn't complain.... New Orleans Cop Drama 'K-Ville' Has Solid Debut There's little doubt in my mind that numbers like this won't last, not because K-Ville is a bad show (I have it saved but not watched yet), no, the reason is much more unfortunate for Fox. You can improve on a bad show, but you can't change your fate when getting squished by a tank. Heroes is set to return next week for its second season and airs directly opposite of K-Ville, and it doesn't take a guru to know that K-Ville is going to get K-illed by NBC's smash hit.According to preliminary nationals from Nielsen, "K-Ville" averaged a 3.4 rating/8 share in adults 18-49 and about 9 million viewers overall during the 9 o'clock hour, winning in demos opposite... K-Ville, Prison Break, Ratings The Scum Report: September 18th, 2007 Gimme the bacon, hold the O.J.Thank god for O.J. Simpson, because the powers that be were threatening to smite me if I didn't rename this series to "The Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan report." Simpson, as you've undoubtedly heard, was involved in an alleged armed robbery involving what he claims was stolen sports memorabilia that belonged to him. His original accuser recanted, refused to press charges, and now claims he is on O.J.'s side.In an obvious attempt to "look tough on crime" after Paris Hilton and Nichole Richie served less than one full month in jail for crimes other people would be serving half a year for, California police are going after Simpson with everything they've got. The family of... Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Britney Spears, CBS, Kid Nation, Lindsay Lohan, Mary-Louise Parker, OJ Simpson Emmy Telecast Ratings Crash, Burn on Fox Could it be that people that watch awards shows know better than to reward Fox by spending an evening watching the sensationalist, exploitative, censoring crap they put on the air every day? Could it be that Fox isn't the master of live telecasts we all thought that they were? Or maybe people are just sick of watching the Emmys?Does it even matter? Fox's first and coveted telecast of the Emmy Awards on Sunday night lost over 3 million viewers from NBC's last broadcast, and was down 5.6 million from CBS the year before that. Variety has the dirt on Fox's epic failure, and dirt it is, all over the networks face. How embarrassing must it be to put on American... Emmy Awards, Fox, Ratings Did Tarantino Turn Down 'Heroes' Directing Gig? Hard to say, even though stories have started popping up across the Internets claiming that not only did Tarantino turn down an offer to direct, he used some salty language in questioning just what the hell this "Heroes" thing even was. Cue the speculation as to whether or not he was just kidding, or seriously didn't know what the show was. Obviously with Kevin Smith coming on board to direct and write (the latter of the two being far more important in television) an episode of Heroes: Origin, which he is working on *right now*, you'd expect Tim Kring and company to put out feelers to see if they could line up an all-star guest directing cast for Origin, given... Heroes, Quentin Tarantino Tonight's Season Premiers: Beauty and the Geek Last night saw one network drama and one network reality show return to the airwaves with Fox's Prison Break and NBC's Dreal or no Deal doing their thing. Fox also debuted new drama K-Ville, a cop drama set in post-Katrina New Orleans in the 9PM slot. I have that on my DVR, I just need to scope it out sometime tonight or tomorrow. Since K-Ville will be going up against Heroes, I rescheduled it to record on my national Fox west-coast feed. If I had to make a choice, there's no choice at all - Heroes wins.There's only one premier tonight, that being Beauty and the Geek on The CW at 9PM EDT. Tomorrow night is easily the busiest of... Beauty and the Geek Angel Season 6 Joss Whedon's Angel will never seen a sixth season on television, but as he is doing with Buffy The Vampire Slayer, he is continuing the story in the form of a comic. AICN got a hold of and has published the first six pages that comes immediately after the last shot from the TNT series, with the remaining characters (the ones that are still alive, and of course the two that technically aren't) about to face down all manner of evil brought down on them by Wolfram & Hart's "senior partners."The images are small and the text is difficult to read, which I'm not sure wasn't done on purpose. I'll say this that even though I'm not a fan of... Angel, Comics, Joss Whedon 5 Best Picks for Returning Fall Shows Here are my top 5 picks for returning fall shows that must be seen. #1 HeroesThough I doubt the second season premier will see the kinds of numbers that Lost did, the sophomore kickoff should be one well worth checking out even if you're not a fan of the show. If you haven't seen it before, that is even more incentive to check this one out. The cast has expanded, the DVD box set is out, volume one is in the books we're just five days and change away from kicking off premier week with a bang. I am most looking forward to this, even more than some of the new fall shows.Heroes premiers September 24th at 9PM EDT on... Friday Night Lights, Heroes, House, Lost, Stargate Atlantis MTV Faked The Moon Landing You've heard that conspiracy before, that the moon landings were faked by NASA (even with incontrovertible proof in the form of Moon rocks) and given that MTV's logo used to be an American flag on the moon and an astronaut's boot leaving a footprint (am I remembering that right, or tripping?) it seems only fitting that MTV has landed in a controversy of its own making in "faking" things.According to Matt Mitovich (via the NY Post) MTV pre-recorded every performance for the VMA's other than the one in which Britney Spears participated in - the one that could have most benefited from an advanced copy. There isn't much more to this story so I'll leave it at saying MTV just... MTV, VIdeo Music Awards Fox's 'Nashville' May be Second Fall Casualty Fox's new reality show (they call it an unscripted drama for some unfathomable reason) tanked so hard Friday night that Fox came in very last place overall, even being beaten by the UPN/The WB netlet combo The CW. Given the short fuse that Fox executives continue to exhibit (Anchorwoman was canceled after just a single episode had aired) it isn't likely that Nashville will last much longer.It may not even make it long enough to see premier week. Frankly, though I sympathize with the people working on that show, failures like these first two reality shows are precisely what Fox deserves after dumping two fantastic (and real) dramas from Tim Minear (Firefly, Drive.) When retarded actions result in pain, perhaps... Fox, Nashville, Reality Brad Pitt is a Wuss I'm a fan of the guy as an actor, but as a manly man? What a wuss.Actor Brad Pitt feels vulnerable after he was "attacked" by a crazed fan at the Venice Film Festival earlier this month. The Babel star was visibly shaken after the scare, which saw an overzealous female fan pushing past bodyguards to throw her arms round the Hollywood hunk.I like how the fan is defamed, and I'm laughing at how they are trying to dramatize this. The woman pushed her way past his body guards (perhaps some new body guards are in order?) and hugged him. Ohh, so scary! He may just be scarred for life.... Brad Pitt Tonights Season Premiers: Prison Break, Deal or No Deal, K-Ville Although premier week doesn't kick off until the 24th (next week) there are still a number of shows that return to the airwaves a little bit early. Here is the list of the ones making their bow tonight, and tomorrows line-up as well.Which of these four are you most looking forward to? It's the third season of Fox's Prison Break for me, but that won't last long if it sucks as bad as it did last year. Note that K-Ville will be going head-to-head with Heroes, beginning next week.Deal or No Deal - NBC @ 8PM EDTPrison Break - FOX @ 8PM EDTK-Ville - FOX @ 9PM EDTBeauty and the Geek - The CW @ 9PM EDT (Tomorrow!)... Deal or no Deal, K-Ville, Prison Break Box Office Booty: 2007-09-17 Here's a funny thing, if the number of people that watched the Emmys had also all gone to see the same new film that opened this weekend, it would have been the biggest one-day opener ever. Unfortunately for those contestants, that didn't happen. Jodi Foster's new flick The Brave One proved that Foster can still open a movie. With little interest, she managed to claw to the top of the weak weekend pulling in $14 million. Lions Gate's holdover 3:10 to Yuma virtually tied with newcomer Mr. Woodcock for $9.15 and $9.10 million respectively.Dragon Wars came in fourth with $5.3 million.... Box Office Neo-Con Fox Shows True Colors Nobody wants politics to come into play at the Emmys, but if someone has something they want to say that is legal to say on television, than any act of censorship by the networks is precisely that - censorship. What Fox did last night was inject News Corp's and Rupert Murdoch's personal political ideology into an awards show, which is beyond disgusting. What is even worse is that while a number of outlets talked about the censorship, few of them have called on Fox to apologize to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Sally Field, or the public.What you think of her comments couldn't be more irrelevant, you don't censor winners for political considerations. Not in America, not if... Censorship, Emmy Awards, Fox 2007 Emmy Award Winners I'll do more on this tomorrow, but here is what I've got for the more significant categories, and a few notes on the broadcast. First and foremost, Fox cut off Sally Field's microphone during her acceptance speech for Lead Actress in a drama (Brothers & Sisters), which is bad enough, but they also cut to a camera view of a giant globe and the audience, cutting her out of the frame completely. This was unprofessional, reprehensible censorship by a neo-con friendly network that thinks it's okay to censor differing viewpoints.I hated that Fox got the gig in the first place but had no intention of letting politics sneak into my mind at any time, but News Corp. and Rupert Murdoch's... Emmy Awards Emmy Awards Tonight Just a quick and late reminder that the Emmy Awards are on tonight at 8PM EDT on Fox. I know a number of sites are going to live-blog the event, but you won't catch that stuff here. If you want to know who is winning what, live, then watch the show. I'll post winners for the big categories after, and I'm pulling for Heroes to win Best Drama. 24 had its day and nothing else this year can compare - not even Battlestar Galactica.Good luck to everyone and every show nominated, and if I see Britney Spears pop up at some point as rumor has it Fox has invited her to apologize for her act at the VMA's, I'm turning... Emmy Awards, Fox Theater Watch: 2007-09-14 With my 'net connection on the fritz and the rain likely to keep it that way into Saturday, I've got to be brief about this. There are only three major entrants into theaters this weekend and none of them figure to overflow the bank vaults. The Brave One is a new Jodi Foster flick that I've heard good things about, but has shown fairly anemic and uninteresting trailers thus far, certainly not enough to get up my interest and probably not very many other people's either. Besides the Warner Brothers pic opening in 2755 theaters, your other two choices consist of Dragon Wars from Freestyle Releasing in 2275 theaters, and Mr. Woodcock from New Line in 2231 theaters.If you can... Theater Watch Cinematical's Patrick Walsh Debuts New Screenwriting Column There's a new weekly feature column on cinematical.com called "The Write Stuff" that purports to be "focusing on the art of screenwriting." I'm looking forward to this because in my opinion, there aren't enough popular resources on the 'net dedicated to teaching people about screenwriting. Anyone can buy one of the many screenwriting bibles and learn the craft, though not necessarily talent for how best to abuse it, but the art side of things is a much more touchy subject.I'm not personally familiar with Patrick Walsh and so this may turn out to be an exercise in futility, he may know what he's talking about but not able to present it in a clear and entertaining way. He may not... Cinematical, Media, Screenwriting, Writing Misconceptions and Misinformation About "The Strike" on The Movie Blog John Campea, the guy behind The Movie Blog made a pass at trying to boil down the potential coming writer's strike for his readers and the public in general, and got practically everything wrong in the process. His post, "Understanding The Coming Hollywood Strike" blows it from start to finish, and rather than write my own explanation of the issues and the background that led up to current fight over residuals, I'll give it all context by printing his take, and then correcting it from top to bottom with reality.I bare no ill will towards John or his site, but this kind of misinformation can't be allowed to sit out there unchallenged.... AMPTP, DGA, Feature, Labor, SAG, Writers Guild Britney Spears; Best Dramas of All Time; TV Download Prices; Tim Kring Interview, More.. I'm doing abbreviated posting today because of the heavy rain, my Internet connection is only working for the second time today. No telling how long it'll stay that way with rain in the forecast for the rest of the evening and night, so here area couple of condensed posts. My apologies, so on with the show..Hollywood.com, my primary source for the scum report, says that Britney Spears was abusing anti-depressants minutes before going on-stage at MTV's VMA awards a few nights ago, this along with being intoxicated and having ditched dance practice certainly explains her odd behavior and demeanor during the show. This isn't surprising, but what this girl has done to her life is worth of popping an anti-depressant... Britney Spears, Digital Downloads, Heroes, Masi Oka, Tim Kring Mary-Kate Thinks Acting is Hard Work The Olsen twins represent the old guard of child actors that were never really serious about the sand box they were playing in. Some people are, and grow into troubled youths who often stumble through either drug, or alcohol addiction on their way to fame. Often times both.Many make it through just fine and go on to have decent careers in film and on television, both for Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, things just weren't meant to be. Now after a multitude of bumbled attempts at real acting, the twin starlets have come to the conclusion that was mostly forgone the minute Full House went off the air a decade ago.''If you look at our career,'' says Olsen, as if sister... Interview, Mary-Kate Olsen 'IT Crowd' May be in Trouble Sometimes it's hard to tell if the broadcast networks are fighting each other over who can provide the best entertainment on television, or trying to find out who can cancel a new show the fastest. Right now this years record belongs to Fox, which dropped Anchorwoman after airing just a single episode. NBC, according to the Hollywood Reporter, is having second thoughts about putting IT Crowd into production, after it announced the show during the spring upfronts.The hybrid multi-/single-camera "IT," from Universal Media Studios and "American Idol" producer FremantleMedia North America, is an ensemble comedy set in an IT department that stars Joel McHale and Rocky Carroll. Despite being based on a British format, which is the forte of new... Comedy, IT Crowd, NBC CBS Has Message for 'Jericho' Fans Save the show, buy the DVD, save it again.It could just be marketing, but there is an implicit threat in this message that is well worth heeding if you're a Jericho fan. If you enjoyed the first season, buying it on DVD will go a long way towards making CBS more interested in producing more Jericho. CBS is the only entity behind Jericho right now, where the network arm airs it, and the studio arm produces it. Normally the studio that produces a show isn't the one that airs in, and in many cases, competing studios and networks will work together to bring a show to air.In those cases, the network couldn't care less about what you do with the... CBS, DVD, Jericho Most People Want 'Survivor' Canceled, Poll Says There are two things I really love in life, one is beating people over the head with the obvious. The other is savoring the destruction of all prime-time network reality exploit-vision. According to an AP article I read yesterday, I now have the opportunity to do both, pass recent public polling has determined that Survivor must die, and "TV is getting worse." Well, my first thought is that anyone who thinks that probably doesn't want and enjoy television much in the first place, because television is getting better every year. Even when some of the best fiction ever made gets six episodes then buried by greedy, paranoid, short tempered networks (Firefly [13], Studio 60 [24], Drive [4], Jericho [24]) we've... Feature Jericho Season 2 Spoilers CBS invited a number of media outlets to tour the set where Jericho is currently shooting seven new episodes for a faux second season, a backtrack by the network after it canceled the intriguing drama after the first season suffered a continual ratings decline despite reviews that pointed out an upswing in quality as it neared the season finale.The show was set in Jericho, Kansas, immediately before and after a nuclear weapon was detonated in near-by Denver. As the first season progressed, viewers learned that a large portion of the United States had been devastated by identical bombs. As the finale neared, Jericho was on the verge of going to war with a neighboring town over resources such as food.What... CBS, Jericho Ellen Degeneres Out, Jon Stewart Back in for the Oscars The news has been out since last night, that Ellen Degeneres was not being invited back to host the Academy Awards this year. She wasn't very good, in my opinion, in fact I thought she was awfully distracting throughout the entire show, and all it did was make me mad that Stewart didn't get a chance to develop his own gig with the biggest awards show of the year. It was a surprise then, that Stewart has been invited back for this years show.Producer Gil Cates announced that Stewart, who emceed in 2006, will make his second turn as host for the 80th Academy Awards, broadcast Feb. 24, 2008, from the Kodak Theatre and televised on ABC."I'm thrilled to be... ABC, Academy Awards, Jon Stewart, Oscars Polanski Abandons 'Pompeii' Wanted fugitive Roman Polanski has apparently abandoned would-be epic Pompeii over fears of a collective strike by the Writers Guild of America, and the Screen Actors Guild in 2008. According to Variety, Polanski's renegging has placed the project's chances of getting made deep in jeopardy.The decision to put "Pompeii" on ice was taken "in the past 48 hours," the producer asserted. "We've been meeting agents and they've all said they can't commit beyond June 30, 2008 because of the strike. Unfortunately, we are scheduled to shoot in Southern Italy in August 2008."Pathe and RAI Cinema both confirmed Tuesday that they were exiting the project. A RAI Cinema rep said: "The contract we had for Pompeii is no longer valid, as... Labor, Pompeii, Roman Polanski MTV Interviews M. Night Shyamalan over 'Avatar: The Last Airbender" MTV has a video interview with M. Night Shyamalan about his new film Avatar: The Last Airbender, of which I know next to nothing about. The source material is animated, I know that much, and very far from the kind of films we've seen Shyamalan make in the past. I know a couple of people who are really excited about this, but I'm waiting for what comes after this: The Happening (a.k.a. The Green Effect.) That one is your atypical Shyalaman flick that is filming this year and set for release in 2008. Avatar (not to be confused with James Cameron's Avatar (2009)) is also due out in 2008.I haven't seen the video, but if the show and film interest... Avatar The Last Airbender, M. Night Shyamalan The Scum Report: September 12th, 2007 I get the feeling that there won't ever be a scum report without Lindsay Lohan news, and that isn't to say that dear heart is scum, only that the girl is living in a gutter (the most expensive and luxurious gutter we can imagine, I'm sure) and when you get 90% of your play in tabloids rather than industry trades, well, you do the math. Lindsay won't be taking to the stage alone, however, not when Britney Spears is lurking in the shadows.... Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, The Scum Report Potential Writers Strike Puts 'Transformers 2' on Hold There have been stories going around the industry over the past couple of months that film and television production has accelerated to a pace that hasn't been seen in almost ten years. Spec script sales are up, more films are being shot now than in a long time, and television series are having their new season production dates bumped up, all in an effort to get as much material shot before mid-2008 as possible. Although the Writers Guild of America is already negotiating a new contract with the studios, nobody expects anything to be signed until the Screen Writers Guild contract comes up next year, giving the two guilds the opportunity to strike in unison, effectively shutting down Hollywood.... Hollywood, Labor, Transformers, WGA Canadian Subsidues a Real Problem for U.S. Productions I'm not going to argue this in depth, but I'd like to address a post on The Movie Blog about Canadian subsidies for American productions, and how they effect American jobs. The issue originated on Cinemablend, and completely misses the point. The truth is that Canada has legal policies in place that require Canadians to be actively employed by foreign productions in order to qualify for subsidies. Canada is not the only country that offers subsidies, but they up until recently have been the most convenient.These subsides do hurt the American economy, and despite claims by John Campea that "legal analysts have already dismissed" accusations that these subsidies violate trade agreements, he commits the vital sin he accuses Warner Brothers... Piracy, Warner Brothers South Park Wins Creative Emmy I still have the episode that skewered Blizzard's World of Warcraft on my DVR. You can't delete content that funny, seriously. I know a number of people that waste money on these games which just made it all the more hilarious. But when is South Park not hilarious?Work hard, earn your due: South Park has scored a Creative Emmy (not awarded by industry vote) for bending Warcraft players over the couch a time or two.South Park episode "Make Love, Not Warcraft," which famously skewered MMORPG World of Warcraft and its many subscribers late last year, was awarded the 2007 Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program at the 59th Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Saturday. Executive Producers Matt Stone and Trey Parker,... Emmy Awards, South Park 3:10 to Yuma (2007) -vs- Unforgiven (1992) I try to read Bryce Zabel's blog regularly, as I do the blogs of many professional writers. I like to learn, and they've usually got something interesting to say. Bryce used to do something on his blog called Movie Smackdown! where he'd pit two films of a similar genre against each other, picking them apart, and declaring a winner. I didn't realize until recently that he moved these from his blog over to a dedicated site with a staff of writers, and I've decided to link to them as they come out since they fit our theme and certainly deserve some attention for the original work.As the title says, one of the two recent Smackdowns pits Clint Eastwood's fantastic western... 3:10 to Yuma, Movie Smackdown, Unforgiven 'Biggest Loser' Season 4 Debuts Tonight The title says it all, and although the new fall season doesn't get under way until the week of August 23rd, some of the new season are gradually trickling onto the airwaves. Tonight on NBC, Biggest Loser returns for season 4 "in the middle of the desert" with a secret black team (not very secret if it's in the description) trained by Jillian Michaels (who?)Yeah, so anyway of this reality swag is your thing, hit NBC at 8PM (EDT) for the two hour fourth season premier tonight.... Biggest Loser Prices Revealed in NBC/Apple Spat over iTunes As has been speculated about over the past couple of weeks, the spat between NBC Universal and Apple over prices for TV shows on iTunes revolved around Apple wanting to sell them for less, and NBC wanting to sell them for more. A lot more in fact. According to this piece at IGN, Apple wants to start selling individual episodes for TV shows at the same price they currently sell individual songs for: 99 cents each. NBC on the other hand wants to hike the price from the current $1.99 to a laughable $4.99 - making the price for a full season of a given show an outrageous $119.76.What's hard to believe is how NBC can expect to charge consumers... Apple, Digital Downloads, iTunes, NBC NBC Joins Quiz-Show Circus I'm not sure if this is cute, or just pathetic. When I wrote yesterday about ABC and CBS hashing it out with dueling quiz shows, and how I thought they were put into play simply to compete with Smarter than a Fifth Grader in a game of copy-cat, I didn't stop to think about whether or not NBC would but pathetic enough to get in on the act. Turns out they are.NBC is taking a shot on "The Interrogator," a new quizzer from "The Biggest Loser" exec producer J.D. Roth.Skein pits five contestants against one another in a game that involves deception and bluffing in the pursuit of a large sum of cash. By answering questions, players get the chance... NBC, Reality, The Interrogator TV Squad's Adam Finley Passes Away I'm sorry to report that TV Squad writer Adam Finley died in a bicycle accident last week. Apparently Finley was hit by a bus and suffered fatal injuries from the accident. I don't know a thing about the man and had never even heard his name until early this morning, while I was catching up on some news. I first read about it on Wil Wheaton's blog (Wil writes for TV Squad occasionally) where he wrote about Adam's passing. Had it not been for that post, I'd have never known.Adam's friends and colleagues have collected their favorite stories of his and posted them on the website. As I said, I didn't know him at all so I don't have very... Adam Finley, TV Squad NBC's 'Bionic Woman' Gets Reinforcements We heard news just a few days ago that NBC was dumping Glenn Morgan from Bionic Woman over "creative differences", and now Matt Ausiello from TV Guide reports that Friday Night Lights exec-producer Jason Katims has been recruited as a creative consultant. A lot of people seem to love FNL even though it doesn't show in the ratings, and Ausiello had this to say about the time that Katims will be now splitting between the two shows: "I think I speak for FNL fans when I say our brilliant little show better not suffer as a result."... Bionic Woman, Friday Night Lights Barry Sonnenfeld Got Sent to His Room It's kind of old by now, but I thought it was worth mentioning that ABC was so upset with feature director Sonnenfeld for going over budget with the second episode of Pushing Daises that he's been forbidden from directing any further episodes for the time being. It seems a little strange for a network to go to those kinds of extremes since practically every show has episodes that go over budget. In fact, if I'm not mistaken (and any people who know, feel free to correct me in the comments) this is the primary cause of clip shows - episodes that take place almost entirely on pre-existing sets with little action or special effects.Every show has got at least one... Barry Sonnenfeld, Pushing Daises Second Fall Casualty: Kid Nation? I wouldn't bet against it unless you're looking to short the market on this one. Nikki Finke wrote on her site that advertisers are deserting CBS' controversial reality show Kid Nation that places kids - not teenagers but actual kids - in charge of running their own town with little to no adult supervision. The only thing I can't seem to figure out is who is real bad guy here, CBS for exploiting children for entertainment dollars, or the kids parents for involving them in this crap in the first place.Have you heard that Fox launched into copy-cat mode with a show where kids are tasked with creating their own armies and developing war plans? You know, gangs basically. I... CBS, Kid Nation Box Office Booty: 2007-09-10 Crapped on, kicked, shot, possibly thrown off a moving train, herelded as the first obvious Oscar contender, laughed at, and destined for the bargain bin. I'm talking about Ross Crowe and Christian Bale in 3:10 to Yuma, in case you couldn't tell. Or maybe it was Shoot 'Em Up with Clive Owen vying for the body count weekend record? Perhaps it was both.Neither film did well in the theater this past weekend despite the threesome of wanted stars. Shoot 'Em Up couldn't even beat The Bourne Ultimatum which hung into fifth place despite being in the theaters for the past six weeks. Yuma did manage to take the top spot from Rob Zombie's Halloween remake, which has actually been doing... 3:10 to Yuma, Box Office, Shoot 'Em Up ABC, CBS Duke it out with Dueling Quiz Shows A couple of news items this morning that wouldn't warrant much attention on their own caught my eye because they are essentially the same announcement for a new reality quiz show, but for two different networks. Are you Smarter Than.. has done very well for itself thus far as surely as the sun sets and rises, the other networks immediately set the next wave of quiz shows into motion in an act of complete depravity of creativity.For ABC that little quip stings twice as bad, since their pickup (amusingly called Duel) is a format brought over from France of all places. Seriously, these pathetic saps are so "desperate" for a new idea they can use to whack-a-mole the other networks... ABC, CBS, Duel, Power of 10, Reality MTV Video Music Awards I have so little interest in music videos and the current crop of "super star" singers that I managed to completely forget the VMA's were on this weekend. I'll watch the Oscars and the Emmys (coming up on the 16th) because those are real award shows. But this? A cable channel giving out awards? How cheap must that feel?If any of you actually did watch, feel free to write something in the comments and I might promote it up here (with credit of course) if there's something worth writing about. If you want to read all about that, feel free, there's plenty of crap about it on the 'net.Take a look at the top winners (via Variety) and tell me... MTV, Music, VMA Comment Spam A reader (and a friend) of mine complained that the CAPTCHA provider built into Movable Type was junk, and that it took him three tries to get it right. I turned it off in response but started getting spam this evening, so it's back on. I don't want comments to sit in a queue all day until I get to them, so for now, hand moderation is out of the question.Sorry if the CAPTCHA is hard to solve, but I guess that is kind of the point. It's either that, or turn on mandatory registration to leave comments, something I'd rather not do just yet. If you like what you read here, please leave a comment if you have any... Site Patrick Ross Spreading FUD on Copyright For those who aren't aware, the Computer and Communications Industry Association petitioned the Federal Trade Commission to look into what they believe are deceptive statements made during or after televised sporting events. We've all heard them before, and I've reprinted the one that the NFL uses which was included in the CCIA's complaint (PDF)."This telecast is copyrighted by the NFL for the private use of our audience. Any other use of this telecast or any pictures, descriptions, or accounts of the game without the NFL's consent is prohibited.People who understand copyright law know that this statement is made for the legal benefit of the copyright owner, which they can use as evidence of willful infringement in court, a legal distinction... Copyright, Feature, NFL The Scum Report: September 7th, 2007 It's good to have a regular or semi-regular series of articles, I'm told. Brings people back for something they like, if they like it at all. I try to do a post every Friday and Monday that report films are opening in the theaters that weekend, and the results of said opening. Those are called Theater Watch and Box Office Booty, in case you're interested.I don't like reading tabloid news about celebrities being irresponsible and loathsome retards, and I like the idea of writing about them even less, which is why I'm going to read about them and write about them. Nothing regular, but not so irregular that you can't get a fix off it. Not interested? Don't read my... Feature, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, The Scum Report, Vanessa Hudgens NBC Dumps Morgan from 'Bionic Woman' First, let me openly wonder why I've never heard of or seen Michelle Ryan before. Wow. What a dame, eh? Anyway, news came down yesterday evening that NBC is dumping exec-producer Glen Morgan from Bionic Woman. I'm instantly on Morgan's side since I am/was a huge fan of Space: Above And Beyond, which he did with fellow X-Files cohort James Wong. That show was some damn excellent science fiction, and Fox murdered it just like it murdered Firefly.This show was essentially what Ron Moore's Battlestar Galactica is today, only they did 12 years ago. That's actually ironic since BSG exec-producer David Eick is serving as the showrunner for Bionic Woman right now. But if The X-Files debuted on Fox today,... Bionic Woman, Glen Morgan, NBC 20/20 Investigates NBC's 'To Catch a Predator' Tonight Just a quick reminder unless you haven't heard about this - ABC's 20/20 did a piece on NBC's 'To Catch a Predator' series, focusing on an assistant district attorney who killed himself as a result of their show. ABC is debuting the new season with this episode this evening at 10PM (obviously on ABC.) It won't be the only story, sadly, only a single segment. Hopefully it will be worth missing some baseball over. I mean obviously the story is, but will the segment be something special, or just an opportunity to knock NBC and Dateline, both of whom deserve a good knocking for this avoidable tragedy?10PM tonight, I suggest you tune in.... 20/20, ABC, Dateline, NBC, To Catch a Predator Price Cuts Coming for iTunes TV Shows, or Gouging From NBC? That'd be nice, but I kind of doubt it. Even though it makes total sense from a consumer perspective, and not just because we're talking about getting something for less money here. The fact that these shows are wrapped in DRM, in my opinion, cuts their value about about 2/3rd's, meaning they shouldn't cost more than 66 cents. Since they aren't the same resolution and bitrate of a DVD, that cuts their value by another third, down to 44 cents. Will they ever reach that price? Not on your life.But is there room to move? Perhaps. Or maybe we're just being played.... iTunes, NBC, Streaming Video Theater Watch: 2007-09-07 Labor Day is behind us, and it was a particularly good one for Hollywood as it set a new box office record (due in large party to Rob Zombie's remake of Halloween.) It doesn't feel like we're getting any closer to fall, but if you go by the studio's accounting books, we're already there. The summer box office has come and gone, setting a record $4 billion in booty. That won't set well with the Writers Guild since the studios have been claiming starvation at the talks, but that's another story.So what's good to watch today or later this weekend? You're best bet is 3:10 to Yuma, a flick from Lionsgate with Russel Crowe and Christian Bale that I've heard... 3:10 to Yuma, Shoot 'Em Up, Theater Watch 'Californication' Renewed David Duchovny's new series on Showtime has been renewed for a second season, according to early-morning news from Variety. I've seen a lot of criticism of this series from professional writers, especially right after it debuted, but apparently it has been playing better with regular viewers than it has with Hollywood scribes.After a strong debut last month, "Californication" has impressed Showtime execs by adding viewers. Its last three Monday premiere telecasts have averaged 18% more viewers than the show's Aug. 13 debut, scoring Showtime's best ratings for a new series since 2004.As Variety says, Showtime has to be really pleased with this. While 2 million viewers may not sound like very much, apparently it's pretty good for pay-cable, and is... Californication, David Duchovny, Showtime Justice Department Fights Net-Neutrality Ever since Republicans took control of the White House and Congress, the United States has systematically fallen behind the world in broadband availability. We used to be first, now we're twelfth and falling fast. That's not a coincidence either. The result of deregulation is always the same: less competition and less incentive to compete. This is based on a very simple principle, that when companies are forced to compete, they lose, and consumers win. When there is no competition, companies win, and consumers lose.It's not a contest, we're talking about practical gains here. If you've got two companies that figure compete ting against each other would cost them more money than anything they might gain, they'll sit back and informally... FCC, Net Neutrality Jericho on DVD, Turteltaub on Jericho While skimming through some older news, I found a couple of stories related to Jericho on IGN and BuddyTV. The latter talks about the impending release of Jericho season 1 on DVD on October 2nd, and a charity website where you can donate funds that will be used to buy the box sets when they come out, which will then be sent to military service members overseas. I have absolutely zero information on that site, which you can get linkage to from BuddyTV, so donate money at your own risk.I mean, it's a great thing to do in theory, but not everything on the Internet is legitimate. There are lots of scams out there taking advantage of people, and all... CBS, Jericho, John Turteltaub Rumor: Battlestar Galactica Not Ending Till '09 No, we're not talking about an extension for more episodes or more seasons. According to SyFy Portal, the retards at the SciFi channel are actually planning to split the fourth and final season into two parts, across two different years. The first half of season four will debut in February of 2008, airing half its episodes, then break until February of 2009, during which it will finish off the remaining series.If there is anyone left to watch them, that is.I love BSG, and am extremely unhappy that it is only going four years then giving up. I wanted desperately to write for that show and greatly admire those who currently do. I've enjoyed almost the entire series, though I think... Battlestar Galactica, Scifi Channel Will Kevin Smith's 'Red State' Even Get Made? A fine question and one I figured not to be asking. Seriously, it's a Kevin Smith horror movie. How the hell do you pass that up? It's not like we're talking about a $200 million Brett Ratner adventure here, even if it's $20-40, that's a fine investment in something people are going to love. Well, maybe not this one, but people will buy it anyway because Smith has that kind of rep.While I was playing catchup this morning - I disappeared off the 'net right around the time it was announced that Smith was going to be directing an episode of Battlestar Galactica's final season - I found out that it's not going to happen. Rather than read other peoples... Battlestar Galactica, Kevin Smith, Red State NBC Screws up with Amazon Unbox Deal With the DVD release of the first season of Heroes recently, I took the opportunity to link up to the Unbox page for the hit series. That's Amazon.com's video download service, like iTunes, but no where near as popular. I took some time to look into Amazon Unbox to see if it was a service worth using, and it was pretty obvious that the answer was no. With NBC's recent decision to stop selling their shows on iTunes in favor of Unbox, I'll quickly illustrate my reasons why.... Apple, DRM, Feature, Heroes, NBC Record Summer Box Office Screws Studios How so, you ask? The studios (via the Association of Motion Picture and Television Producers - AMPTP) are currently holding contract negotiations with industries most unhappy labor union, the Writers Guild of America. The WGA feels like it hasn't made any significant gains during the previous negotiations three years ago, and are dead-set on not letting the studios screw them over with digital-medial residuals the same way they've been cornholed with DVD residuals.Hollywood studios have been telling Wall street that they're making money hand-over-fist, only to turn around and claim to the guilds' face that they are going bankrupt by record failures at the box office and skyrocketing costs. Or so WGA has been saying since the negotiations official began... AMPTP, DGA, Hollywood, Labor, SAG, WGA AP Rakes 'Shoot 'Em Up' Over the Coals Video game adaptations haven't had the success that comics have had over the past few..well, pretty much ever. Are all the talented people busy strip mining the comics for free and easy rides? Are games not getting any respect? Do they all just suck and not warrant spending a lot of time on?Doom was okay, but predictable, and it ventured from the game more than I'd have liked. Resident Evil did well and has spawned two sequels, each of which has gotten progressively more lame than the previous. That "franchise" resembles the game about as much as my ass does.The only real two questions anyone has about game adaptations is whether or not Halo under the thumb of Peter Jackson... Clive Owen, Monica Bellucci, Shoot 'Em Up Ryan Phillippe, a Vikiing? Huh? According to the Hollywood Reporter, Ryan Phillippe has signed on for Last Battle Dreamer to play a Viking in "a love story written in fire and blood." Okay, I've seen Phillippe in a few flicks, one of them happens to be one of my favorite B-movies of all time, Lifeform.. He sucked in that movie, but only as much as everyone else did. It was low budget corn with bad dialog, unimaginative directing, and a wonderful premise with enough real science thrown in to classify as one of the truest science fiction films in the last fifteen years.And Phillipe was a total puss in this movie.It may not have been good, but it was fun. Did I mention that Ryan... Last Battle Dreamer, Ryan Phillippe Are Paparazzi Really That Bad? I'm sure most people who care about this stuff already know that Jude Law was arrested in Britain after a scuffle with a photographer on Tuesday, and I'm sitting here wondering if it was worth the troubles he's brought down on himself. Sure, he won't be going to jail for such a minor incident, and any fine will be a drop in the bucket for rich people like him, yet he was arrested in his home, did have to get booked and go through the system to a degree. Even if it was only a brief processing, you've got a person who feels like they have nearly unlimited power to do what they want (and mostly they do) pushed around... Jude Law, Paparazzi Box Office Booty: 2007-09-04 It's finally September and I've fallen behind. Sorry about that, but it's a growing process. There were no big surprises this past weekend at the box office: Rob Zombie's unnecessary remake of Halloween grossed $26.4 million on a budget of about $20m. They'll easily make back their budget, which if case you didn't know, was entirely the point. Nobody has been clamoring for a remake of Halloween and it didn't make enough to show up on the radar as a hit, so this was nothing but a vanity project for Zombie.Must be nice, being rich and famous. You get to do anything you want, including remake perfectly good movies for no good reason, just because you want to.Here's the top... Box Office, Halloween Fox Sets New Bar for Exploitative Entertainment Who was it, CBS, that is taking a lot of criticism for letting a bunch of children run a town on their own? Really just a terrible idea even just from an entertainment perspective, but so irresponsible as well, I just can't believe CBS feels that desperate. I'd probably place that show on the same level as NBC's entrapment special Predator series, and Fox's new show really goes to great lengths to discover just how low they'll go to exploit human beings for their own bottom line.Net has pacted with producer Scott Satin ("Who Wants to Be a Superhero?") for the tentatively titled "Smile! You're Under Arrest." Basic premise of the comedic project: Unaware criminal suspects with outstanding warrants are... Fox, Reality, Smile You're Under Arrest Starz Expands to Original Sitcoms We're talking about Starz Entertainment here, the company that has nearly a dozen pay-movie channels (at least on DirecTV) and runs a constant stream of commercial free films all hours of the day and night. Most of them are old, a lot of them are bad, but there's always a constant stream of flicks to watch if you ever get bored. So I'm a bit surprised and actually pleased to hear that they're getting into the production business by setting up two original comedies for January, according to Variety, taking shots at Hollywood in style."Hollywood Residential," about an accident-prone celebrity-home-makeover show, and "Head Case," about a Beverly Hills psychotherapist who ministers to mixed-up celebrities. According to the trade paper, they... Comedy, Starz A Note of Interest With the six-day downtime I took the opportunity to design a new template for this blog. I didn't know how long it would take, and suffice to say it's not a quick or easy process for someone who isn't a professional web designer. It caught my interest and I've ended up neglecting this site because of it, but trust me, it'll be much more shiny when it's finished.I'm getting back to the posts as of right now, and I'll try to keep up.... Site |
