TVSquad

When I was a kid, maybe around 10 or 11 years old, a friend and I brought some "near beer" with us during a trip to the Museum of Science in Boston. We were so proud of that feat, even if the drink itself was rather lame.

I thought of that after watching this video clip (after the jump) from Kid Nation, which premiere's tonight at 8 on CBS. I don't know if this is from tonight's episode or a later one, but it shows the kids all gathering at the town saloon and sucking down drinks after a hard week's work. Now, I'm assuming that it's just soda and not alcohol they happened to find in the town, but let me ask all of the kids who are reading this: is it cool nowadays to gulp down down soda like this and pretend you're "getting drunk?" Eleven year-olds getting sloshed and learning how to hang out at some cheap bar - it's so adorable! It's like Charles Bukowski - The Early Years.

And for the record, when I was a kid, we called it "tonic," not soda.

(S02E20)

This is an early review.

This two-parter really made me hate Clay Puppington, and I don't think I can say that about any other cartoon character. Hell, Cartman from South Park has done tons of horrible things, even indirectly killed people, but watching Clay treat Orel so poorly and so dismissively made me want to break off his frail, wire-supported arms.

I agree with Bob, Mad Men, a new series coming to AMC, looks quite interesting. It focuses on people working in the ad industry in the '60s, back when smoking and drinking didn't have the stigma it does now. Did you know even babies smoked in 1965? Well, they did, and they loved it.

Unfortunately, the '60s vibe of Mad Men seems to be clashing with new attitudes toward alcohol sponsorship on commercial TV. Commercial Alert has filed a complaint with the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, claiming that Jack Daniel's sponsorship of the series violates the marketing code that alcohol consumption can not be shown in association with irresponsible behavior and lewd sexual situations, even though that's essentially the whole point of consuming alcohol in the real world.

I wrote that last sentence as a joke, but still, Mad Men is clearly going for a gritty, realistic vibe, and ample consumption of Jack Daniel's probably fits right in.

After avoiding jail time for a drunk driving arrest back in November, actor Tracy Morgan (30 Rock) is apparently having a bit o' trouble. The actor/comedian allegedly engaged in a bit of bad touching at a Southern Florida radio station on Friday.

Radio host Yuleika De Castro (who goes by the radio name "Sandy Domingo") claims Morgan smelled of alcohol and kissed the back of her head and touched her shoulders and arms.

Wait, he smelled of alcohol? I thought he had to wear an ankle bracelet that could detect alcohol in his system? Perhaps he hasn't been fitted for the bracelet yet? Or maybe he's trying out a new cologne that smells like Pabst?

Morgan's local comedy club dates in the area were canceled, though it's not known if the cancellations had any connections to the incident at the radio station.

If you were to list all of the celebs that I thought would be arresteded for driving while under the influence of alcohol, I wouldn't think Ty Pennington would be on the list. Of course, that's a silly assumption, since anyone can drink and drive, but I guess I think of the Paris Hiltons and David Hasselhoffs of the world first. And unknown reality stars.

The Extreme Makeover host was arrested over the weekend and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, and possibly drugs too. Pennington released a statement saying that he "made an error in judgement" and "I want to apologize to ABC and my fans..." Translation: "I've done this before and it sucks that I got caught" and "damn, I hope this doesn't screw up my ABC gig!"

Hopefully he doesn't build those houses in the same condition.

Danny DeVito has found a way to capitalize on his headline-grabbing appearance on The View last year. Remember the video? DeVito was pretty obviously drunk while on the morning gabfest, and admitted that he was still pretty tipsy from a wild night with George Clooney. Specifically, DeVito said he was drunk on limoncellos, shots of a sweet, lemon liqueur.

Now DeVito has decided to sell his own line of limoncello, called Danny DeVito's Premium Limoncello, which he launched at a wine festival in Florida yesterday. According to Wikipedia, limoncello is pretty easy to make as it's just sugar, water, lemon rinds and alcohol. Danny's is 60-proof, which means nothing to me since I don't know anything about alcohol.

I always like when a celebrity can make a joke of themselves, but this drunken incident on The View didn't really seem like that big of a deal. Or, has my memory just faded because all sorts of other horrible things have come from The View since then?

Check out the jingle. It's hilarious!

What is it with 30 Rock stars, anyway? Tracy Morgan and drinking, Alec Baldwin and crazy phone calls. Are we going to hear soon that Tina Fey beat up an old lady for her shoes?

Morgan reached a deal with authorities regarding his drunk driving arrest back in November, which violated his probation (he was arrested before). He won't go to jail, but he will have to wear a SCRAM, which apparently stands for Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitoring. It's an ankle bracelet that detects alcohol vapors coming through the skin. Yeesh. What happens if you spill rubbing alcohol on it, or eat rum cake?

He'll be tested every half hour for 90 days (!) I wonder if there were any rural jurors who decided his fate or just a judge?

If you've been wondering where Pat O'Brien was the first few days of this month on The Insider (luckily I don't have to worry about such things anymore as I've stopped watching the show), the host fell and hit his head. He had to get stitches and was out for three episodes of the show. He hasn't said much about the accident, except that he fell and got hurt, and no one at Paramount is saying anything either.

This is the part of the post where I would normally talk about his past drug use and bizarre voicemails and drinking, but all that probably had nothing to do with this accident so I won't even mention it.

O'Brien is back on the show, reporting on Anna Nicole Smith's death.

[via TV Tattle]

On February 6 at 9 p.m., the National Geographic Channel will air Moonshine, a one-hour documentary about the history of moonshine and how the outlawed liquor led to one of the most popular sports franchises of all time, NASCAR.

The special will feature the last interview ever conducted with racing legend and NASCAR announcer Benny Parsons, who passed away last month. Also featured in the documentary is Junior Johnson, who almost faced jail time for transporting moonshine when he was younger.

When prohibition struck in the '20s, skilled drivers were recruited to transport moonshine, a corn-based concoction introduced to the South by Scots-Irish immigrants. What was once a way to evade the law soon evolved into the sport of stock car racing, and later into the phenomenon known as NASCAR. Let that be a lesson to anyone currently breaking the law: your unlawful exploits just might be the next big thing in sports.

You can watch a preview clip of Moonshine here.

Prison Break actor Lane Garrison will likely be charged with felony vehicular manslaughter for an accident that killed a 17-year old girl last month. Beverly Hills police say that Garrison was high on cocaine and drunk when he slammed his SUV into a tree, killing his teen-age passenger. Two other 15-year old girls in the car were injured. Police say Garrison's blood-alcohol level that night was .20 percent, more than twice the legal limit, and they found a number of empty alcohol containers in his SUV.

Garrison, 26, played "Tweener" on Prison Break, but his character was killed off earlier this season. If convicted, he could face up to ten years in actual prison.

Is Diane Sawyer the worst interviewer or what?

Here's part one of her interview this morning with Mel Gibson on Good Morning, America. She seems to ask all the right questions, but in the end, not really. She just barrels through the questions, in that "this is a celebrity, let's be more touchy-feeling with him instead of investigative-reporter-ish with him" sort of way. You can see why Gibson chose her. She has that air of respectability, but in reality she's slow pitch softball ("Where does this anger come from?"). Maybe we should hold judgement until the second half of the interview airs tomorrow, but this clip just looks like a Daily Show parody than a real interview. The interruptions are annoying (why so many voiceovers?).

It's worth it though to hear Gibson talk about choking his toaster. And, no, that's not a euphemism for anything dirty. (Video after the jump.)

Good Morning America's Diane Sawyer will speak with Mel Gibson on October 12 and 13.

She actually set up the interview a few months ago, because it is supposed to be about his new movie Apocalypto. But you just know that Sawyer is going to ask him about a certain incident involving a California highway, some alcohol, and some cops. Or maybe not, since Sawyer has been a terrible journalist ever since...well, ever since I can remember. So maybe she'll ask him what he thinks of puppies, and nod in that understanding head nod journalists do so well, and not really grill him as to why drinking too much alcohol makes you say hateful things.

Seriously, what would you ask Mel Gibson if you could sit down with him for an hour or so?

[via TV Newser]

(S01E03) I don't think there was ever a bad episode of Strangers with Candy, but if someone were to put a gun to my head and force me to name my least favorite episode, it would probably be this one. I think my main problem with it was actor Jacob Pitts, who plays "Craig Snow" in this episode. While I'm sure Pitts is a fine actor in his own right, he didn't seem to jibe with the cast the way their other guest stars tend to do. Strangers exists in its own weird universe, and one of the great things about the series is that everyone who is in it, whether it be the main characters or side characters, understands the pacing and rhythm, and their performances are pitch perfect. However, like any great jazz combo, you toss in one mediocre trombone player and everything starts to seem a little off.

(S01E09)

Dad: You need to start behaving like more of an adult around here.

Orel: But dad, I'm only twelve.

Dad: That's no excuse. Why your own personal hero, Jesus, was very mature at your age.

Orel: He was?

Dad: Of course. At twelve he was already busy proving the Jews wrong.

The family of Chris Farley has given approval for his image to be used on outdoor advertisements for alcohol and drug treament from Hythiam Inc. The ads will feature a photo of Farley and the text, "It Wasn't His Fault." Chris Farley died eight years ago from an overdose of morphine and cocaine, at the age of 33.

The first billboard will appear on Monday near the Chateau Marmont, the hotel on Sunset Boulevard where fellow SNL alum John Belushi died of a drug overdose in 1982. Several other billboards will appear in the Los Angeles area. Executives for Hythiam Inc. say they are in negotiations with the estates of other dead celebrities to use their images for the same campaign.