Fantasia-related stories
Posted Apr 27th 2009 4:27PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, American Idol, Contestants, Predictions and Trends
You can say Adam Lambert is the breakout star of
American Idol this season, and you'd almost be right. But he's not. He's too over-the-top most of the time (keep your tongue in your mouth!) and though he's come closest, he still hasn't had that "moment" Simon is waiting for. In fact, none of them have. This is about as bland a "Final Five" as we've ever seen.
After all these weeks, there should have been a performance from almost everyone that forced me to back up the DVR and experience it at least once more. It hasn't happened.
Continue reading Where's the breakout star on American Idol?
Posted Apr 16th 2009 3:05PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Pickups and Renewals, Casting
Does Gary Coleman have a reality show yet? At this point, it seems that everyone and their brother is getting a reality show. You knew the end was nigh when Kim Kardashian's entire family got a reality show. That's a family getting a show based on a big ass. And I mean that in more ways than one. Keshia Knight Pulliam, who's famous for being a cute little girl on
The Cosby Show twenty years ago is getting her chance to shine. Now 30,
Pulliam is set to "star" in a reality show for Oxygen about her fun, young life with her live-in boyfriend. Yawn, man I think I fell asleep typing that.
But that's not all!
Fantasia Barrino is getting her own reality show on VH1 and it doesn't have anything to do with skanks or dating! Fantasia won
American Idol way back in Season 3, had her own Lifetime movie and a successful book and musical accolades to spare. But she's been more out of the public limelight in recent years while she performed on Broadway in
The Color Purple. But still, I think Taylor Hicks needs a reality show more than Fantasia.
Continue reading Fantasia and Rudy Huxtable getting reality shows ... Who's next?!
Posted Sep 4th 2008 8:38AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV Royalty, Video, Celebrities, Obituaries, Reality-Free
We have a
TV Royalty category here at TV Squad, and if there's anyone who worked in television and deserved the honor it's Bill Melendez.
Melendez was an animator for Walt Disney Studios in the 1930 and 40s, working on such classic movies as
Fantasia and
Pinocchio and Mickey Mouse shorts, then went on to make
tons of movies, cartoons and commercials (he worked on many Bugs Bunny shorts and other famous cartoons) for well-known companies such as United Productions of America (where he was an animator on
Gerald McBoing McBoing) and Playhouse Pictures. He then met Charles Schulz in 1959 and went on to animate (and often direct and produce) most of the Peanuts TV specials, including
A Charlie Brown Christmas,
A Boy Named Charlie Brown,
It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and many, many others. Many people don't know this but he was also the voice of both Snoopy and Woodstock (they didn't talk, of course, but he did all of the howls and other noises). He worked on TV versions of
Cathy and
Garfield too.
Continue reading Bill Melendez, animator and voice of Snoopy, dead at 91 - VIDEO
Posted May 9th 2008 10:03AM by Debra McDuffee
Filed under: OpEd, American Idol, Contestants, Alumni, TV Squad Lists
Watching
American Idol this season, I've come to the not-so-astute realization that we can't all like everyone who makes it to the top ten each season. There are different musical styles, personalities and, let's face it, some pretty crappy singers who make it through.
So I've begun to fantasize about an all-star
AI top ten. Imagine if everyone that you really liked from the top ten of all the past seasons of
AI were in the top ten together. I know the top ten can't be all the handsome rocker men I so adore, but it can be a good mix of good music, memorable personalities, and lasting talent.
If memory serves me correctly (and we all know it probably doesn't), these are the contestants that I'd pick, in no particular order:
1. Brooke White, season seven, fifth placeNo, I'm not a sucker for a crier. I simply love her singer/songwriter style, something we really haven't ever seen in
Idol and something I hope we see more of. When
AI started, it was the boy-band voice, then it moved to the rockers; hopefully Brooke has started a new force of no-nonsense talent coming through.
Continue reading American Idol: My fantasy top ten
Posted Apr 10th 2008 11:20AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: American Idol, Alumni, News and Gossip
How much cooler would it be to send your stalker letter to Kelly Clarkson with a Kelly Clarkson stamp? As Ryan Seacrest announced on last night's
American Idol "Idol Gives Back" special, PhotoStamps has inked a deal with the show to produce commemorative stamps featuring the likenesses of each of the
Idol winners so far, including this year's winner. In fact,
Kelly Clarkson's PhotoStamp is already available, with subsequent stamps released each Tuesday.
So if you're planning to kidnap one of Kelly's hats and send her a ransom note with cut-out letters from various newspaper articles about her, demanding that she go out on a date with you if she ever wants to see it again, go that extra mile and show her you really care in that extra-special creepy way by using a Kelly Clarkson PhotoStamp! Remember, net proceeds from the sales of these stamps go to charity. And while you may be crazy, that doesn't mean you don't care!
Posted Jun 20th 2007 11:18AM by Liz Finn-Arnold
Filed under: American Idol, News and Gossip
Several
American Idol alumni, such as
Fantasia and
Diana DeGarmo, have taken their musical talents to the Broadway stage. But now, Idolmania has actually inspired an original Off-Broadway show called
Idol: The Musical. The story revolves around a group of outcasts that idolizes
Clay Aiken.
According to press notes, the show is described as "a satirical musical comedy that focuses on the outrageous and delusional fan base of the hit television show."
Continue reading American Idol and Clay Aiken inspire new musical
Posted Nov 14th 2006 6:35PM by Julia Ward
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, FOX, American Idol, Celebrities
American Idol champ Fantasia Barrino is
bringing out the big guns for her second album. The R&B vocalist's second outing will drop on December 12th, and this time she's bringing Missy Elliott, Outkast's Big Boi, Babyface and Swiss Beatz with her. The only big name producers she hasn't snagged are Timbaland, Kanye and The Neptunes, but give Miss Thing time.
Fantasia seems to be pulling a Mary J. Blige on her second release - beefing up the hip-hop element and telling fans, "I've let go of things from the past and I'm having a good time. Now I'm on a whole different level." No more drama for Ms. Barrino, and man, did she know from drama. The High Point, NC native is a single mother who struggled with literacy problems and had her rags to riches stories made into a
Lifetime original movie directed by Debbie "Fame" Allen.
Continue reading Fantasia scores big name producers for second album
Posted Aug 12th 2006 11:40AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV Royalty, Talent, Industry, Programming, Celebrities
On the cover: 24's Kiefer Sutherland talks about the new season of the show. - A parent's guide to the new fall season.
- Matt Roush says the second season of Weeds looks as good as the first.
- An interview with Deadwood's Calamity Jane.
- J.J. Abrams talks about the new Star Trek, The Twilight Zone, The Prisoner, and Lost, of course.
- In the print edition: Stargate SG-1 does The Wizard of Oz; a Q and A with Fantasia about her Lifetime movie; and an interview with Kellie Martin about her Hallmark Channel mystery movie series.
Posted Jun 22nd 2006 6:59AM by Adam Finley
Filed under: FOX, OpEd, The Simpsons, Animation, Retro Squad
(S06E04)
Homer: But Marge, I was a political prisoner.
Marge: How were you a political prisoner?
Homer: I kicked a giant mouse in the butt. Do I have to draw you a diagram?
Continue reading The Simpsons: Itchy and Scratchy Land
Posted May 18th 2006 7:42AM by Lacy Hall
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, FOX, OpEd, American Idol, Music and Variety
I'll confess to this -- I did cry after watching Elliott's homecoming footage. I'm not the type of person who typically cries at a reality show montage, especially for one involving an Amish leprechaun (as one reader expertly described him.) But I'll fess up to crying tonight. I sniffled and thought, "man, it's going to be sad when he gets eliminated tonight." But then I shrugged my shoulders and remembered ... I don't like Elliott. Never have. But my tears were real, and not faux like Ryan's sexuality or Paula's boobs. I am slightly embarrassed that I broke down so easily. But hey, you gotta admit that seeing his mom choke up during Elliott's parade was a tear jerking Music/Variety/Game Show moment.
It was a good send off for a kid that nobody really thought would make it this far. (Oh, except Paula, of course.)
Continue reading American Idol: Paula's runny mascara
Posted Feb 1st 2006 11:17AM by Lacy Hall
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, FOX, OpEd, American Idol, Music and Variety
I had a feeling the Vegas auditions were gonna to suck. Any town that proclaims itself as a Mecca of talent
is seldom that. Only 11contestants from Vegas are moving on to Hollywood, but one of them is actually named Mecca.
She's a tiny girl with a big voice, but she has horrible tastes in wardrobe. I wasn't against her newspaper boy
look, but I think it's a shame to hide such a cute little face under the biggest Sanford & Son hat ever
made. Strange wardrobe choices from a girl who is also a belly dancer. I guess she wanted to cover-up for the
Idol auditions, so Simon would pay more attention to her voice and less to her abs. Good thinking.
But
for every Mecca there was also an Alexia.
Continue reading American Idol: Vegas Auditions
Posted Jan 19th 2006 9:22AM by Lacy Hall
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, FOX, OpEd, American Idol, Music and Variety
I liked Bo and Constantine. They brought a rock element to
American Idol, and I dug
it. Little did I know that their success would bring an onslaught of rock n' rollers/out of controllers
auditioning for
AI. Awesome. Now, instead of simply listening to wannabes slaughter great pop songs,
we're also treated to the torture of rock hits as well. I use to like Bo and Constantine. I now love
them. It's because of them that I got to see a punk kid breakdance tonight...and I think he meant it. Plus, we got the
satisfaction of seeing Seacrest flash the rock sign. But instead of flashing devil horns, he actually said 'I love you'
in sign language. Amateur mistake, but appreciated nevertheless.
Continue reading American Idol: Denver Auditions
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