TVSquad

HBO has picked up four new shows, one of which could be the smartest and most compelling thing in the history of the universe, as long as the hype doesn't kill it.

David Simon, the creator of The Wire, has received a nine-episode greenlight for his new show Treme, a character drama that looks at the lives of New Orleans musicians in the post-Katrina reconstruction.

Simon brought the show to life with Eric Overmeyer, both of whom worked together on Homicide: Life on the Street. It will also star former Wire stars Wendell Pierce and Clarke Peters as well as Steve Zahn, Khandi Alexander, Melissa Leo, Kim Dickens and Rob Brown.

The fifth edition of Top Chef came to a conclusion last night. I'd like to say it was one of the all-time best seasons, that I was on the edge of my seat with excitement, that I was really rooting for one competitor more than another... I'd like to say that, but I can't. All in all, Top Chef New York, which became Top Chef New Orleans in the last few episodes, was kind of a dud.

Before I talk about the winner and what happened specifically in the finale, I have to ask why Top Chef failed to really make use of the location this time around? New York is all about food and great restaurants and amazing chefs, but I can't think of one episode that really used the city in a creative way. Where was the Little Italy challenge? What about a trip to Chinatown for wild ingredients? Gail Simmons' bridal shower could have taken place anywhere. The Super Bowl challenge was generic. And when it was time for the finale, TC went to the Big Easy. Is that any way to honor the Big Apple?

Director Spike Lee has won a George Polk award for his documentary about the effects of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans. Called When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts, the doc chronicled the natural disaster and the disastrous way the federal government responded to the humanitarian crisis. The awards are considered among the highest honors in American journalism, along with the Peabody.

Lee's documentary was four hours long and initially premiered to a New Orleans crowd before airing on HBO last August. The program was filled with news photos and video footage, and all sorts of interviews from celebrities and regular folk who recount their experience in the aftermath of Katrina. Ultimately, the federal government and the Army Corps of Engineers are blamed for the sub-par levees and the response to the disaster.

Fox gave the green light to a pilot about cops living and working in post-Katrina New Orleans. It's one of four Katrina-related projects that were being pitched to networks for the next television season, but it's the only one that is moving forward. K-Ville is an hour-long drama that tells the stories of the police officers who stayed behind when the hurricane hit.

Other New Orleans-themed shows include two more cop shows based in the city that ABC passed on, and one called NoLa that NBC passed on even with the possibility that Spike Lee would direct the pilot. It's surprising, really, that K-Ville made the cut because the crisis in New Orleans continues. If nothing else, maybe it will renew the public's interest in that very damaged city.

[Via TV Tattle]

Comic Relief launched 20 years ago to raise awareness and funds for the homeless. It went off the air eight years ago but, according to The Hollywood Reporter, it is making a comeback this year to benefit the still-suffering victims of Hurricane Katrina. Traditional Comic Relief headliners Robin Williams, Whoopi Goldberg and Billy Crystal plan to lighten the mood during a benefit performance that will broadcast simultaneously on TBS, HBO and AOL on November 18th. Previous performances raised $50 million for the homeless cause. This time, the benefactors of the fundraising will be children and animals.

Last night, Karina told you about Anderson Cooper confronting Senator Mary Landrieu about relief efforts in the devastated areas of Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, and now here's the video and transcript.

[via TV Newser]

I'm watching Anderson Cooper lose it right now. He just went bananas on Mary L. Landrieu, the Senator from Louisiana - she was talking a lot of wishy-washy policy and Andy just totally faced her by telling a story about watching rats eating a woman's corpse in the middle of the street. And Anderson's not even in New Orleans, but in Waveland, a ravaged area of Mississippi. After returning from commercial break, he had to take a second on camera to compose himself, and then choked back tears throughout a long interview with a couple who had just found their baby after being forced to leave her in a hospital four days before. "Reporters are suppossed to remain distanced," Cooper said. "There's just no distance in Waveland anymore." In general, it seems like the anchors on CNN are starting to get not only emotional, but angry. Earlier today, both Kyra Phillips and Aaron Brown were openly, aggressively critiquing the Bush administration's handling of the situation. It always feels good to see anchors break out of their shells in times of crisis, and admit to being real human beings with passions and opinions. This kind of anger on CNN is almost as shocking as the images that are spawning it.

R&B music legend Fats Domino has been reported missing among the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. His agent, Al Embry, has been trying to locate him since Sunday night, when he talked to him on the phone.

His niece has even posted something on Craigslist asking for the public's help in locating Domino.

The Simpsons voice legend calls New Orleans "my residence [and] my favorite city," and has several friends there, so he is blogging all this week about Hurricane Katrina and (especially) the media coverage of it for The Huffington Post. Some interesting reading.