BabyMama-related stories
Posted Oct 31st 2008 11:01AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Casting, Reality-Free
I like
Bradley Whitford. Chances are you like Bradley Whitford, too. Who doesn't like Bradley Whitford? So, the news today that the Emmy winning star, an NBC favorite from
The West Wing -- and to a lesser-extent
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (although I think he was the best thing on that program) -- is back at work for the network is a good thing.
Whitford will produce and star in Off Duty, a buddy comedy series opposite Romany Malco.
It'll be a single-camera style comedy, telling the story of a veteran, once legendary police detective who has fallen on hard times. He's then paired up with a younger up-and-comer, a straight shooter, played by Malco.
This sounds like a somewhat familiar formula, so what will make or break this project is the chemistry and comic fireworks between the principals.
Continue reading Bradley Whitford back to NBC for buddy sitcom
Posted Sep 4th 2008 2:01PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Daytime, Reality-Free
When I heard about the pregnancy, I was shocked. It was so unexpected, such a surprise, a complete unplanned occurrence that had me scratching my head and wondering what was going on. No, I'm not talking about the revelation that John McCain's choice for vice president, Governor Sarah Palin's unmarried teenaged daughter is pregnant.
I'm talking about
Guiding Light's Reva Shayne's stunning discovery that she's having a baby well into her 40's and after a near-fatal bout with breast cancer.
Seriously, I was floored by that turn in the storyline. The writers had me and every other viewer fearful that Reva's breast cancer had returned. On the brink of her marrying Jeffrey, Reva learned that the drugs she'd been taking had actually acted like fertility pills and, bada-bing, bada-boom, Reva's having a baby.
Continue reading TV Squad Soap Report: Baby mama fever
Posted Aug 3rd 2008 3:05PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Celebrities, Awards, Reality-Free
He's no Johnny Carson or Bob Hope or Billy Crystal, but pop star and former boy band fave
Justin Timberlake could be the next star to host the Academy Awards. The Oscars are still months away, but the Academy is already contemplating a way to make the show more Nielsen worthy.
Last February's show, hosted by
The Daily Show's Jon Stewart (he also hosted in 2006), celebrated the 80th anniversary of the Oscars but was a ratings dud. It was the worst Oscars ever, in terms of Nielsen ratings, even though it had a 21.9 rating and 33 share.
Many people blame those dismal numbers on a disinterest among viewers in the films that were in contention last year, including heavy dramas
No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood, Michael Clayton, which seemed to have little appeal to mass audiences.
Continue reading Is Justin Timberlake the right star to host the Oscars?
Posted Apr 29th 2008 12:25PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: OpEd, Saturday Night Live, Watercooler Talk, Celebrities, 30 Rock, Reality-Free
I'm not here to argue for or against the comedic talents of
current box-office champs Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. No, what I'm here to ask is: why do people dislike them so much? I'm not talking about people who just say that the two of them aren't funny; I'm talking about people who think that the two of them were the worst thing to happen to
SNL, the comedy genre, and the entertainment world in general.
Case in point: this
somewhat obtuse essay praising Poehler on Slate.com. In the process of reviewing Poehler's cartoon,
The Mighty B!, writer Troy Patterson goes through some verbal gymnastics, like calling the ASSSCAT show she puts on at the UCB Theater "a Dadaist party trick," among other head-scratching terms. But what's interesting is
the virulent reaction his review gets in the comments section.
Continue reading What's with the Fey and Poehler hate?
Posted Apr 25th 2008 1:02PM by Richard Keller
Filed under: Programming, Animation, Celebrities, Children, Reality-Free
While Amy Poehler has had steady work both on and off the stage of Saturday Night Live over the last few years it looks like she may be moving up to "big time" status along with former SNL cast mate Tina Fey. And, it might all begin this weekend. Not only is she starring with Fey in the movie Baby Mama, which is being released today (and is expected to be the box office champ, despite mixed reviews), Poehler also has a new cartoon premiering on Nickelodeon.
The Mighty B, which premieres Saturday at 10:30 AM, features Amy as the voice of Bessie Higgenbottom. Bessie is world's most ambitious Honeybee scout in the known universe. She wears her uniform all of the time, leads her troop with a military-like zeal, and has the most badges than any other Honeybee in history. But, she wants to earn all of the Honeybee badges, and she's determined to earn them. Sometimes she imagines herself as the superheroine The Mighty B, to help her through the tasks that will earn her another badge.
Continue reading A big weekend for Amy Poehler
Posted Apr 25th 2008 9:04AM by Joel Keller
Filed under: TV on the Bigscreen, OpEd, Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock, Reality-Free
I've always been amazed at how analysts can project who's won the box office for the weekend before that weekend even ends. But I've never seen a box office champ predicted before the movie is even released. Apparently, though, that seems to be the case with the new movie from two of the funniest women on TV.
According to
The Hollywood Reporter, the movie
Baby Mama, which stars
SNL's Amy Poehler and
30 Rock's Tina Fey,
will likely win the box office race this weekend. The film, which is being released today, has been garnering a lot of pre-release interest among 12-to-16 year-old girls, according to tracking surveys taken over the last few weeks. Huh? Didn't know stories about surrogacy were big with teenage girls. Is there something someone isn't telling me?
Continue reading Fey, Poehler expected to be box office champs
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