Alan Alda returns as Jack Donaghy's dad tonight on 30 Rock for the show's season finale, "Kidney Now." The plot finds Jack trying to put together a benefit concert for Alda, who is in need of a kidney. That, of course, means the ep will be loaded with appearances by famous musicians.
Guest stars include Elvis Costello, Mary J. Blige, Sheryl Crow, Maroon 5's Adam Levine and Clay Aiken. The clip below reveals some shocking truths about some of these famous crooners, including Aiken's relation to NBC page Kenneth Parcell.
TinaFey-related stories
Musical guest stars galore on 30 Rock finale
Continue reading Musical guest stars galore on 30 Rock finale
Why isn't Jan Hooks famous?
Radner. Louis-Dreyfus. Poehler. Fey. Shannon.
Suffice it to say, the number of women who became famous on Saturday Night Live before graduating to solo success is few and far between. Sure, Gilda Radner can be considered a pioneer in the art of sketch comedy. And Julia Louis-Dreyfus undoubtedly honed her comedic skills before becoming a sitcom icon on Seinfeld. And, yes, Tina Fey can easily be considered a heroine to comedy nerds everywhere who have witnessed her climb from Weekend Update anchor to Mean Girls scribe to single-handedly decimating the vice presidential chances of one certain gun-wieldin', six-pack-totin' Alaskan governor.
But, sadly, the number of men who left Studio 8 for the superstardom of Planet Hollywood (not the theme restaurant) easily outnumbers the ladies. For every Amy Poehler, there's a Will Ferrell. And a Bill Murray. And a Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy and Adam Sandler (although, to be fair, there's also aDavid Gary Kroeger, A. Whitney Brown, and Charles Rocket for every Melanie Hutsell, too). (And for the record, no, you shouldn't recognize those names.)
Suffice it to say, the number of women who became famous on Saturday Night Live before graduating to solo success is few and far between. Sure, Gilda Radner can be considered a pioneer in the art of sketch comedy. And Julia Louis-Dreyfus undoubtedly honed her comedic skills before becoming a sitcom icon on Seinfeld. And, yes, Tina Fey can easily be considered a heroine to comedy nerds everywhere who have witnessed her climb from Weekend Update anchor to Mean Girls scribe to single-handedly decimating the vice presidential chances of one certain gun-wieldin', six-pack-totin' Alaskan governor. But, sadly, the number of men who left Studio 8 for the superstardom of Planet Hollywood (not the theme restaurant) easily outnumbers the ladies. For every Amy Poehler, there's a Will Ferrell. And a Bill Murray. And a Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy and Adam Sandler (although, to be fair, there's also a
Continue reading Why isn't Jan Hooks famous?
30 Rock: Mama Mia
(S03E21) "Liz Lemmon, I may hug people too hard and get lost at malls, but I'm not an idiot" - Tracy Jordan
Maybe Jack Donaghy is right. More family does mean more aggravation. The search for Jack's real dad yielded a plot based on Mama Mia (apparently, I've never seen it, and I'm pretty sure I'll die that way) and an appearance by TV's most recognizable liberal – Alan Alda.
Don't get me wrong. I love Alan Alda. I was looking forward to seeing him on the show. He was great. But imagine ultra-conservative Jack's heartache when he found out that Hawkeye Pierce was his dad. The look on Jack's face when Alda stormed out of his office and cursed in Yiddish said it all. And I'm pretty sure Jack never imagined himself living out the plot of an Abba musical. Liz Lemon seemed pretty excited about it, though.
Continue reading 30 Rock: Mama Mia
NBC thought you said you wanted more Weekend Update
It looks like NBC is going to expand Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" segment with more half-hour specials, most likely on Thursday nights. Judging by the success of SNL and its Thursday night election specials during the campaign season, this move isn't too surprising. Plus, this is a progressive step in reaching the network's ultimate goal, which seems to be filling the airwaves with as many former SNL employees as possible. Actually, the next season of Celebrity Apprentice is probably just going to be all the early-90s players that aren't doing movies right now. And Rob Schneider. That guy isn't doing anything.
Continue reading NBC thought you said you wanted more Weekend Update
Why the frak was Salma Hayek wearing a Battlestar Galactica T-shirt on 30 Rock?
I want answers, people.
Last night we found out that Elisa, Salma Hayek's character on 30 Rock, was hiding a dark secret.
That secret (which I won't reveal) was weird and unexpected. But seeing Salma wearing a "What the Frak?!" T-shirt – complete with the Battlestar Galactica logo on the back, I might add – on the show was even weirder and more unexpected.
It was also way cool, and probably the most random moment in an episode full of random moments (like that Brian Williams cameo). I loved it. It made me kooko for Choco Puffs. But can someone explain it to me?
Continue reading Why the frak was Salma Hayek wearing a Battlestar Galactica T-shirt on 30 Rock?
Saturday Night Live: Tracy Morgan/Kelly Clarkson - VIDEOS
(S34E19) It's a great, big homecoming party for Tracy Morgan and he brought enough jaunty delivery for us all. I'll admit, if anyone else were to try and pull off this type of delivery, I'd be pretty annoyed. However, it's Tracy Morgan and he's got this choppy, unrealistic speech down to an art. It has become him, I guess. This episode had a few strong moments here and there, but overall, it was an "all right" episode. At least we got to revisit some old favorites from Tracy Morgan's featured player days.
Now, check out some video highlights from the evening. Also, note to self: I will stop typing "Tracy Jordan", I will stop typing "Tracy Jordan"...
Continue reading Saturday Night Live: Tracy Morgan/Kelly Clarkson - VIDEOS
Will Ferrell's Broadway Bush - VIDEO
Who knew this was George W. Bush in reflection week? I must have missed the memo. But when I tuned in to watch the HBO debut of Will Ferrell: You're Welcome, America, his take on President Bush since the end of this presidency, I couldn't help but recall that just a couple of days ago on Hard Ball, MSNBC's Chris Matthews was going at Bush's former press secretary Ari Fleischer hammer and tongs as Fleischer defended his old boss. Don't these post-mortems usually take a few years to take place? But this post isn't about politics. It's about Will Ferrell, and my thoughts are mainly about Ferrell's show, which has a certain raunchy charm, which apparently offended quite a few people when it played on Broadway. All the raunch is still in place in the HBO version, so if you're curious about Bush's little George (allegedly), check it out.
Continue reading Will Ferrell's Broadway Bush - VIDEO
TV Squad Ten: Girl Crushes
There's a reason why when you watch The Mentalist, there are always subtle close ups of Simon Baker's eyes or of his mouth when he's talking. The producers know he's hot and they know women are watching. Between him, the cast of Friday Night Lights, and a whole other list of DILF's, there's a lot of male eye-candy on TV right now. But what about the women? Of course television is filled with hot chicks, but who do other women like to watch? There are certain female characters who, when you watch them, you just want to hang out with. Either you think she'd be a good friend, or exciting to have around, or maybe you just kind of want to be her. This, my friends, is a Girl Crush. Here is my list of Top Ten TV Girl Crushes.
Continue reading TV Squad Ten: Girl Crushes
The Roots are ready to rock, rap, jazz and even disco the set of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
The Roots are taking their new gig as the official house band for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon very seriously, even if their initial chances of scoring such a gig seemed like nothing more than a joke by a couple of the show's overworked staffers.
"We were the musical supervisors for [Chappelle's Show] season two and three ... and Dave's partner Neal Brennan was brought over as a consultant, and he sort of jokingly recommended The Roots as a house band," said Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson in a conference call last Tuesday with Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter. "I guess the joke was sort of like, you know, I dare you to ask them, even though they're too busy to take it."
Six spinoffs you'll probably never see ... but sure would be fun
The new fall pilots don't excite me very much, what with all of the cops, doctors and lawyers. But I know networks, and original ideas aren't exactly the "in" thing.
So, why can't we design some spin-offs? You know, the networks might go for some ideas based on hit shows, and we can make them a little bit unique, right? Let's add in some elements that excite us to some familiar characters and see if we can't create some new spin-off pilots better than the actual ones.
Continue reading Six spinoffs you'll probably never see ... but sure would be fun
TV Squad Ten: Stars who should have been roasted Instead of Larry the Cable Guy
Ah, the celebrity roast. Comedy Central resurrected the tried and true comedian ass-kiss off with hilarious specials featuring Denis Leary, Flavor Flav, Bob Saget and William #*$&$ing Shatner. Then came the capper: a roast of music legend Willie Nelson. It was a shift in evolution so great, it could have made Charles Darwin buy into the theory of intelligent design. Then the network caused a global groan so loud that it shifted the tectonic plates when they announced that Nelson had to cancel and they would replace him with Larry the Cable Guy.
It's such an obvious and safe choice that might be a good recipe for ratings, but it's a sure fire recipe for boring. Here are the iconic stars who would have made much better kindling for a white hot comedy roast.
Continue reading TV Squad Ten: Stars who should have been roasted Instead of Larry the Cable Guy
Loose lips? Swiveling hips? Donny's Dancing with the Stars
There seems to be an epidemic of blabbermouthing going around these days. First, Vice President Joe Biden's wife Jill lets it slip on Oprah that Joe had his choice of VP or Secretary of State (snap Hillary!), then Steve Martin reveals that he and Tina Fey will be presenting together at the Oscars (so much for secret presenters), now Donny's let the cat out of the bag. While taping The Bonnie Hunt Show, Donny Osmond announced that he's doing Dancing With the Stars, the new edition that commences in March.
Oops! See, it wasn't Donny's job to make the announcement. He was supposed to let ABC decide the right time to reveal the lineup of celebrity dancers, although whether they can dance before the show begins is debatable.
Continue reading Loose lips? Swiveling hips? Donny's Dancing with the Stars
30 Rock and The Office will be back next year
Good news for fans of Thursday night comedy: NBC has renewed both 30 Rock and The Office. The Biggest Loser has also been renewed (and Heroes is noted as 'very secure'), but the final verdict has not been reached for the low-rated Lipstick Jungle, Kath & Kim and Knight Rider. In other news, the sky is blue.Seriously, this should come as no surprise to anybody who watches either show, as they are both brilliant. NBC seems to be trying to make Thursday nights into "Must See TV" again. As someone who enjoys The Office and is pretty much addicted to 30 Rock, I think they're succeeding.
At this stage, it is only known that the series is renewed, and not whether or not the shows will stay in their current time slots. I cover Smallville on Thursday nights. If they move either series to the 8 PM hour on Thursday, then I have to make sure my video recorders are properly working.
So about those internet commenters Tina Fey mentioned... - VIDEO
The Golden Globes has always been my favorite awards show. the stripped-down presentation and the giant bottles of champagne on the tables make for a decidedly non-tedious and drunken affair. Plus, the Hollywood Foreign Press can only be taken so seriously, which makes for some delightful acceptance speeches. My favorite from last night was probably Tina Fey's speech for her Best Actress in a Comedy win. It was short, sweet, to the point, and most importantly, it was funny. When Fey called out the internet commenters who have given her grief over the past year, I, like most people assumed she was making up screennames for effect. Well, it turns out that "Dianefan" and "BabsonLacrosse" are actually real people who had not-too-nice things to say about the erstwhile 30 Rock star and Sarah Palin impersonator.
Continue reading So about those internet commenters Tina Fey mentioned... - VIDEO
Jeannie Darcy: SNL's most underrated character? - VIDEO
It seems that there has never been a period of time when critics (and the masses) didn't chide Saturday Night Live, claiming the show to be in a "creative slump," or even going as far as calling it - get this - "Saturday Night Dead."But for stalwart fans like myself who tend to consider every nuance and minor detail of the show's sketches, the sentiment is either only partially true or not true at all. Sure, the show saw a spike in viewership thanks to Tina Fey's Sarah Palin impression, leading critics to praise SNL's "creative resurgence." But the buzz was just as strong when Will Ferrell played George W. Bush nine years ago. (And, furthermore, it wasn't as if the show didn't have its culturally resonant hits in recent years, not limited to Maya Rudolph's Donatella Versace impression or Andy Samberg's fusion of Internet humor into the mix).
So to those who say SNL is back, I say, have you ever seen Molly Shannon's Jeannie Darcy? Because it is, by far, one of the most brilliantly executed, underrated characters to ever appear on the show. (Or maybe I just have a thing for mullets and bolo ties. Same difference.) See what I mean in the video after the jump.
Continue reading Jeannie Darcy: SNL's most underrated character? - VIDEO
Seven greatest hand cannons in TV history
TV Squad previews NBC's new shows (part 1)
TV 101: How ESPN controls the world and what the other networks can learn from it
