Star Search-related stories
Posted Nov 16th 2009 5:27PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Celebrities, Obituaries, Reality-Free
Wow, it's one thing to write about the death of someone like
Edward Woodward, someone who was older and not in good health, but it's another thing to write about the death of someone only 52.
Ken Ober, who hosted the classic (well, in my mind it's a classic) MTV game show
Remote Control in the late 80s, died yesterday of unknown causes.
If you've never seen
Remote Control, it was a wacky pop culture trivia game show that supposedly was filmed in Ober's basement. Besides being a really fun game show (especially for someone raised on television), it costarred a lot of people who later became household names, such as Adam Sandler, Denis Leary, and Colin Quinn.
Continue reading Remote Control host Ken Ober dead at 52
Posted Sep 2nd 2009 8:33AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, American Idol, Celebrities, Talk Show, Judges, Reality-Free
Paula Abdul needs some career advice. In the wake of her departure from
American Idol, the sometime choreographer/occasional singer and QVC pitch woman has been rumored to be doing all kinds of TV projects. Most have turned out to be rumors and nothing more, but in an interview with
TV Guide, Paula said there is a TV dream she covets.
Paula Abdul would like to host a TV talk show.
I can't imagine a worse TV vehicle for Paula, especially the kind of talk show she envisions. She said, "It would be a lot of fun variety with a ton of unexpected stuff and tributes to everyday people getting their big chance."
That sounds perfectly cloying, especially if you assume that Paula will be pretty much herself, pretty much like she was on
American Idol, which was uncritical, sweet, gentle and pleasantly unfocused.
Continue reading Could Paula Abdul thrive as a talk show host?
Posted Jun 23rd 2009 9:22AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV Royalty, Celebrities, Obituaries, Reality-Free
Longtime Johnny Carson announcer and sidekick
Ed McMahon has passed away at age 86.
This probably isn't a surprise to most people, since McMahon has been in poor health for a number of years and also injured his neck severely in a fall in his home in 2007.
McMahon is best known, of course, for being the announcer and couch mate for Carson on
The Tonight Show for 30 years. McMahon also hosted the original version of
Star Search for many years, co-hosted
Bloopers and Practical Jokes with Dick Clark, and was a staple of the annual
Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon every September. Besides appearing in a number of TV shows and movies, he was also a spokesman for American Family Publishers (though, oddly, every single joke about these commercials with the giant checks and McMahon mentions Publisher's Clearing House for some reason).
McMahon died at Ronald Reagan/UCLA Medical Center in L.A.
Posted Mar 24th 2009 11:00AM by Eliot Glazer
Filed under: OpEd, American Idol, Video, Cable/Satellite, Music and Variety
Nothing breeds talent quite like cable access television.
Starting in 1979, Brooklyn resident Frank Masi created and hosted a program on local New York television called
Stairway To Stardom. Filmed in what appeared to be a freshly carpeted Staten Island basement,
Stairway was an especially early, low-budget predecessor to
Star Search and
American Idol, but sprinkled with the key element of hometown appeal.
Continue reading Stairway to Stardom, or what American Idol filmed in a Staten Island basement 25 years ago would look like - VIDEO
Posted Mar 10th 2009 1:04PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Late Night, Reality-Free
We reported
Ed McMahon's "very serious" medical condition a few weeks ago, and it tugged at the strings of our very weak and sodium clogged hearts.
He's a TV legend, so much so that even people who didn't grow up watching
The Tonight Show at least know of him and his work. It's been even harder to duplicate. Hank Kingsley was right. Sidekickology is a "dying art."
But a few little factoids popped up around the Internet surrounding McMahon's hospitalization, and it made the news even more tragic and depressing.
Continue reading More sad news on Ed McMahon
Posted Jul 9th 2008 6:00PM by Richard Keller
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, American Idol, The Apprentice, Video, America's Next Top Model, Project Runway, Hell's Kitchen
Television and the talent show have been partners since the very first days of the industry. Taking the best (and sometimes worst) performers and putting them in front of the camera, these shows introduced viewers to personalities that either faded into the background or became household names. Usually, these personalities had a talent that would entertain the public -- singing, dancing, telling jokes -- that they would use once they left the talent show stage to increase their fame.
It continued in this fashion throughout the decades. Until, of course, the 21st Century and the Reality Revolution. While standard, yet bigger and bolder, talent shows continued, network programmers began to realize that there were more talented people than just performers. There were models, clothing designers, chefs, hair stylists, and businesspeople out there ready to show their stuff and make it big. So, they turned some of their attention away from singers and dancers and focused on the others. The result? A schedule full of top models, top chefs, top businesspeople, and top inventors.
In other words, the talent show had returned to television in a big way.
Continue reading A history of reality television (part four): Show me your talents - VIDEOS
Posted Jul 4th 2008 3:09PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Video, Celebrities, So You Think You Can Dance
I know fans of
So You Think You Can Dance have noticed that one of the best choreographers from show is absent this season. We know why
Shane Sparks isn't on the program this summer, but what about Wade Robson? Many fans of the show agree that he has put together some of fiercest couple routines and group performances that
So You Think You Can Dance has ever seen.
Unfortunately, I don't know where Wade Robson is. Believe me, if I find out if he's coming back to Fox's hit show, you TV Squad readers will be the first to know. I thought in the meantime we could enjoy some of his other work, including his performance on
Star Search as a little boy. It's adorable.
Continue reading Wade Robson on Star Search - VIDEOS
Posted Jun 21st 2008 3:23PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Celebrities, Reality-Free
Somebody give Ed McMahon a job, please! There are more stories emerging about the
famous TV sidekick's financial woes, and it's just sad that he's in such dire straits.
Granted, he's not alone in these tough times -- and, yes, he has had millions in his time -- but the revelations that the former
Tonight Show star and
Star Search host is in money trouble strikes me as really unfortunate. And apparently that
help from Jay Leno is slow in materializing. Why isn't Publisher's Clearinghouse giving him a gig?
The latest news is that
Citibank is suing McMahon for $200,000, a loan they extended to Ed. In a lawsuit filed in L.A. Superior court on June 9, the bank is seeking $179,687 in damages, plus legal fees. This is on top of the potential foreclosure on his Beverly Hills home.
Continue reading More financial woes for Ed McMahon
Posted Jun 13th 2008 5:24PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Celebrities, Episode Reviews
(S04E01) Kathy Griffin is back, or as I choose to call her now Emmy Girl. Yes, the Emmy is on full display. In your face, everyone, Kathy's got an Emmy!
Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List won the Emmy last year and if this first episode is a sample of what season four has in store, that Emmy is going to get a companion. This show is riotous. And irreverent and a perfect blend of comedy and celebrity reality which is really unreality because how many of us interact with Anderson Cooper and Michael Moore?
Kathy Griffin has found the perfect genre for her particular brand of comedy. A sitcom wouldn't capture her true character, strict stand-up is not her best venue (although she's gotten very good at it), and a talk show would force her to chat with others and appear interested. The
My Life on the D-List format works for her and she's found a way to incorporate stand up, situation comedy and guests into a reality hour that highlights her being funny. She has supporting players -- Team Griffin, Jessica, Tiffany, Tom and Kathy's adorable mom, Maggie -- as her comic foils and partners in crime.
Continue reading Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List - Season Four Premiere
Posted Apr 22nd 2008 11:23AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: American Idol, Contestants, News and Gossip, Celebrity Commentary
Is Jeff Archuleta, father to
American Idol wunderkind David, a supporting father figure or the "stage dad" from hell. There have been quite a few reports simmering all season that he's been very heavy-handed in steering his son's fate on the show, from dictating song choices to bringing the young crooner to tears backstage. Reports are that Jeff was banned from the backstage area during David's
Star Search tenure for attempting to "psych out" the other contestants.
Now, former
Star Seach judge Naomi Judd is coming out backing up the claims that at least on that show,
Jeff Archuleta was a horrible "stage dad," who at one point had to be put in the security guard's box to stop him. The last report to come out about Papa Archuleta's antics came during a recording session of "We Can Work It Out," the Beatles song that David infamously flubbed the lyrics to during the live performance. Supposedly, Jeff wasn't pleased with David's performance and brought him to tears with his criticisms. Maybe that means the
Idol staffers have managed to shush him.
Continue reading Archuleta dad mired in accusations of being horrible stage parent
Posted Apr 27th 2007 11:02AM by Liz Finn-Arnold
Filed under: American Idol, Judges, Contestants, News and Gossip
Weeks ago, Simon declared that
he'd quit if Sanjaya won
American Idol. But now that Sanjaya is gone, it looks like even Simon has a soft spot for this season's most controversial contestant.
Simon reportedly said, "I do miss Sanjaya in a way. Even though I had problems with his vocals, I always looked forward to him coming on each week. I never knew what he'd wear or what he'd do."
I have to agree with Simon. I never cared for the kid's singing. But he did give us "something to talk about." And without controversy, isn't
Idol just
Star Search with phenomenal ratings?
Continue reading Does Simon miss Sanjaya?
Posted Mar 28th 2006 9:31AM by Anna Johns
Filed under: NBC, Talent, Music and Variety
NBC announced a
casting call for the grammatically stunning
America's Got Talent, the latest in Simon Cowell's plan for world
domination (is he more over-exposed than Ryan Seacrest or what?). Judging from the vague information provided in the
press release, the talent competition may very well
be a rip-off of
Star Search. People in various age groups and talent categories will compete for fame and
fortune. It will air this summer on NBC.
Casting begins on April 6 in Los Angeles. Producers are looking for
singers, dancers, comedians, and unique stage acts (Letterman's 'Grinder Girl' comes to mind).
Click here for casting call dates and locations.
TV Squad Ten: Top Ten ESPN shows from worst to first
Andy Richter: The TV Squad Interview
Have any questions for Vik Sahay of Chuck? Ask them here!
