jury-related stories
Posted Dec 15th 2008 3:24AM by Jackie Schnoop
Filed under: OpEd, Survivor, Episode Reviews
(S17E14) Way to go, CBS. Give us an overly long three-hour season finale and reunion show of
Survivor, and let football delay its start for a half-hour on the East Coast. Just once couldn't they have shortened
60 Minutes? Yeah, I'm cranky. I watched the show as it aired and now it's way late as I get it written up. CBS could console me by inviting me to the next finale, which should be held in NYC. Do you hear me, CBS? My crankiness aside, tonight's show was both surprising and refreshing, with a few odd quirks along the way. Read on!
Continue reading Survivor: Say Goodbye to Gabon (season finale)
Posted May 12th 2008 1:08AM by Jackie Schnoop
Filed under: OpEd, Survivor, Episode Reviews
(S16E14) "May the best woman win." - AmandaWell, this surely was a season of blindsides on
Survivor Micronesia, wasn't it? Down to the finale, it just went on and on. After the excitement we had all season due to the strategical game play, I felt tonight's finale was a bit lackluster and full of filler. No, I'm not fussing just because my favorite didn't win. Heck, if that were the case, I would have been gone when Yau-Man hit the dust! Read on past the jump for my full review of the finale.
Continue reading Survivor Micronesia: Stir the Pot (season finale)
Posted Nov 15th 2007 11:51PM by Jackie Schnoop
Filed under: OpEd, Survivor, Episode Reviews
(S15E09) Whatever you do, don't eat the apple. Eat the fried chicken, the mashed potatoes, the cheeseburgers, and the fries. You can even quaff the beer. But you know what happens when you eat the apple.
As expected, the biblical words of wisdom came from James. But to whom was he referring? A lot must be happening behind the scenes with the quasi-couplings going on. Must we be like the Letterman question?
"Was there any hanky-panky going on?"
Continue reading Survivor China: Just Don't Eat the Apple
Posted Apr 7th 2007 1:06PM by Julia Ward
Filed under: Industry, Programming, OpEd, The Daily Show, Celebrities
It's pilot season in Los Angeles, which means it's time for underemployed writers to slip on their parkas and head into sub-Artic studios to attend the tapings of television shows that may never see the light of day.
The novelty of attending a pilot taping wears off pretty quickly. If you've ever attended the taping of any television show, you know that there is a copious amount of waiting involved. Sitting and waiting and freezing. Picking out which audience members were bussed in versus which ones actually know what show they're attending can only occupy you for so long.
Continue reading The Root of All Evil - the pilot taping
Posted Jun 14th 2006 9:59PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Lost, Celebrities
The man accused of robbing Josh Holloway and his wife at their Oahu home could be going to jail for a long time. A jury indicted Ruben E. Royce, 21, with 30 felony counts for a crime spree
back in October that included holding Holloway and his wife at gunpoint while he robbed their home. The robber stole money, credit cards, and Holloway's Mercedes (which he ditched a short time later). Royce was arrested less than a week after the incident, following a stand-off near an elementary school that ended with the police shooting Royce with pepper spray and rubber bullets. Royce is also accused of breaking into an apartment near the University of Hawaii where, when tenants blocked the door, he shot into the apartment to get inside. Yikes! That's one bad dude.
Posted Feb 4th 2006 7:17PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Celebrities
Not surprisingly,
the former
Baretta star has filed for bankruptcy. Robert Blake owes his wife's children $30 million, because,
a little over two months ago, a civil court jury found he "intentionally caused" her death. However, he was
acquitted of killing his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, by a criminal jury in March.
In his bankruptcy filing,
Blake lists his debts as the $30 million judgment, $1.3 million in federal taxes, and $300,000 in state taxes. Last
year, he paid his attorney $250,000 in legal fees- a price tag the attorney says he put a cap on. Blake's only assets
are $100,000 and $500,000. He's currently sharing an apartment in San Fernando Valley with his publicist. One of his
adult daughters has adopted the 5-year-old daughter he had with Bakley.
Posted Jan 25th 2006 5:39PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Survivor, Celebrities
Not only was Richard Hatch found guilty of not paying taxes on his $1 million prize for winning
Survivor, he
was handcuffed and taken into custody because a judge decided he's a flight risk. Today a Rhode Island jury also found
him guilty of not paying taxes on $327,000 he earned co-hosting a Boston radio show (dude, I want that gig!) and
$28,000 he made by renting out his property. He was acquitted on mail fraud charges relating to a charity he operates.
Hatch could spend up to 13 years in prison and pay a fine of up to $600,000. His sentencing is April 28.
This is no surprise, considering his lawyer's "defense". In closing arguments, Hatch's own lawyer called
his client the "world's worst bookkeeper" and said that Hatch never meant to do anything wrong. I'd say Hatch
hired the "world's worst lawyer". Is there a mug for that?
Posted Jan 11th 2006 9:52AM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Talent, Survivor
The very first winner of
Survivor could be headed for prison. Richard Hatch is accused of not paying income
tax on his $1 million prize and on other income. Hatch is also accused of spending money on himself that had been
earmarked for a charity that he helped create. Charges include tax evasion, filing a false tax return, wire fraud, bank
fraud and mail fraud.
Hatch and his youthful-looking
boytoy attorney appeared in court on
Tuesday as the task of jury selection began. Media reports say, when potential jurors entered the courtroom, a lot of
them appeared to recognize Hatch and whispered to each other. I think I know what they were saying: "I've seen
that man naked."
Jury selection continues today, then opening arguments should begin on Thursday. The
trial is expected to last up to three weeks.
Posted Jun 19th 2005 5:06PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: CBS, Industry, Ma and Pa America
Ed Treleven writes in the Wisconsin State Journal about a new trend among jurors who seem to have trouble differentiating between television and real life. It seems that the popularity of shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation; CSI: Miami; CSI: NY; and CSI: Plus Calcium have resulted in more juries demanding forensic evidence, something that has prosecutors mildly concerned. The general consensus so far, however, is that CSI and its various offshoots have yet to cripple the American court system.
The only "danger" I see in CSI is that it seems to do for forensics what Indiana Jones did for archeology, which is to make a redundant and arduous job look thrilling and exciting. That's just blatant false advertising, especially when everyone knows the most exciting, action-packed job ever is "beaver orthodontist." Why haven't they made a show about that?
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