TVSquad

When I was talking to Carter Bays and Craig Thomas at CBS' TCA party, they told me about how another reporter mentioned that Chuck Lorre, creator of Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory, is also known for writing and performing the theme song for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon. None of us could believe it, and we were intent on spreading this little rumor to whoever we could find. But, in my role as "tenacious entertainment reporter," I wanted to find out from the man himself. So when I spotted Lorre later on in the evening, I made a beeline for him and asked him. When he confirmed the rumor, I whipped out my voice recorder, dumbfounded at the news.

"I was a musician for 17 years before I got into television," said Lorre. "I was just a working musician, and I was trying to get a break as a songwriter. And back in the '80s I got a shot to write the music for this six episode trial run of this weird little animated thing, based on a garage comic. You know, a black-and-white little comic book. And we said 'Absolutely! We'd love to! We'll take any shot.' "

Okay, show of hands. How many of you are going to the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con to see all of the panels being held by the many television studios and shows? Uh-huh, a good amount. Now, how many of you are going to be perusing the booths and dealers down at the exhibit hall? Ahhh, not so fast!

If you're a fan of all things television and you think you'll have some time to see what else is going on during this, the world's largest science fiction and comic book convention, you may want to re-think your plans. This isn't your grandfather's, father's, or even older brother's comic book convention.

Starting last year this convention has become the biggest television event between the TCA's the week before (which we are covering, by the way) and the Emmy's at the end of the summer. This year is no exception as the days are packed with shows varying from Stargate Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica to Big Bang Theory and Bones.

If you're a fan of The Big Bang Theory, you've probably wondered at some point where they get all the fun nerdy t-shirts that the character of Sheldon wears on the show. Well, I'm sure most of you, being internet-savvy and resourceful, have probably Googled each and every shirt and already have a spreadsheet up on Google Docs that is cross-referenced by episode and topic. But what about the lazy among us, who'd rather eat glass than stare at a spreadsheet all day?

SheldonShirts.com comes to the rescue. It shows screen shots of every shirt Sheldon wears in each episode and where you can get that particular shirt. It also shows where you can get the shirts that the other main character, Leonard, wears, as well as the the belt buckles worn by their perverted buddy Howard. They also make some suggestions for shirts the nerd heroes should wear in the future, as well as provide links to some other stuff that was shown on the program. It's a good way to waste a couple of hours, whether you're a nerd, a geek, or neither. It's especially good for those who are need to find their favorite geek or nerd a birthday present. To those people, you're welcome in advance.

[via Pop Candy]

Attention How I Met Your Mother fans! There's a 99% chance that the show is returning for a fourth season. CBS still hasn't given the Monday night laugher an official pick up -- which they did for the freshman sitcom The Big Bang Theory way back on February 15th -- ticking off many a comedy fan (including yours truly). Nothing against Big Bang; I love the show. But was it more deserving of an early pick up than Mother? Not to me.

Anyway, I had the chance to interview How I Met Your Mother's Josh Radnor yesterday and the actor told me that the cast is definitely working on the assumption that they will be back next fall. When I asked him directly if the show will be renewed by CBS, he laughed and said, "I'm not worried, but who knows. It's television and stranger things have happened. We're doing better than we've ever done, although I kind of go to sleep when I read those Nielsen reports. I would think we are coming back. Yes, we are."

That was enough for Josh, but I needed more assurances. Call me needy. I pressed for evidence that Lily, Marshall, Robin, Barney and Ted are all going to be hanging out at McLaren's with me next fall, like usual. "I'll just say this, we are filming a cliffhanger. It's not like we wrap up the series."

Interesting news out of CBS this morning. On the heels of renewing The Big Bang Theory last week, the network has now announced that when Bang returns with new episodes on March 17, it will be leading off the night. How I Met Your Mother, in its third year, is also returning with new shows that night, but will be taking over Bang's 8:30 slot. On a side note, The New Adventures of Old Christine will be replaced by new episodes of Rules of Engagement on Monday, April 14.

Fans of the Tiffany network can do the happy dance. CBS has renewed 11 scripted shows for the 2008-2009 TV season. The lucky 11 are: CSI; CSI: Miami; CSI: New York; NCIS; Criminal Minds; Cold Case; Without a Trace; Ghost Whisperer; Numb3rs; Two and a Half Men; and The Big Bang Theory.

There are not a lot of surprises in this bunch, although it's great news that The Big Bang Theory, CBS's rookie Monday-night sitcom from Chuck Lorre's stable, made the cut. Still in limbo, however, are three other Monday-night comedies from the network: How I Met Your Mother, Rules of Engagement, and The New Adventures of Old Christine. The story speculates that Mother will get the greenlight for a fourth season soon, but Rules and Christine seem to be in competition for the 9:30-10:00 half-hour slot.

In an age where Josh Schwartz, Joss Whedon, J.J. Abrams, and Judd Apatow are writing true-to-life examples of what being a nerd or a geek is like, you'd think that the whiny, sniveling, tape-on-the-glasses, Urkel version of geekdom would be out of favor in TV land.

Big Bang Theory, which premieres Monday at 8:30 PM ET on CBS, proves otherwise. And, while it's not a complete disaster, it's too weighed down by its geek stereotypes to work on a weekly basis.