TVSquad

Have you ever wanted to audition for a reality television show, but didn't have enough sick leave to fake an illness for your boss or the patience to wait in lines that would rival the bread lines in Cold War Russia?

Mark Burnett has struck a deal that will let people produce their own audition tapes.

Burnett signed a deal with Studio One Media to supply high traffic areas with self-serve kiosks that let people put together their own tapes for a measly twenty bucks. They can also provide a web-based service that lets contestants upload their own videos.

Here's an interesting fact about William Shatner, who celebrated his 76th birthday last week: Boston Legal is not his first legal drama. Back in the early 1960's Shatner had an recurring role on The Defenders as Assistant District Attorney Earl Rhodes. And before that, 1957 to be exact, he appeared in an episode of the anthology series Studio One titled "The Defenders".

Why am I mentioning all of this? Well, the producers of Boston Legal are planning to use footage from Shatner's Studio One appearance in the April 3rd episode. According to a piece at contactmusic Shatner's character, Denny Crane, will be taken hostage by a man who holds a grudge against him stemming from a 50-year-old court case. That means that the 76-year-old Shatner will be paired with the 26-year-old Shatner throughout the show.

By the way, the episode of Studio One that will be used also featured a young Steve McQueen (credited as Steven McQueen), who was an unknown at the time. It hasn't been determined if footage featuring McQueen will be shown during this episode of Legal.