TVSquad

I agree with Joel: Letterman should stop talking about his scandal (I also have a problem with the way he keeps referring to it as "I had sex with women who work here" and not just "I had affairs" or "I had relations with"). Last night, Craig Ferguson knew he had to address the issue somehow, and here's how he did it.

Today marks the 60th birthday of NBC's Sunday morning news program, Meet The Press. It's the longest running TV show in history.*

It's funny because when Meet The Press started, there weren't that many TV news shows on the air. Now one could argue that there are too many. Meet The Press isn't really that special anymore. Past hosts have included Lawrence Spivak (who also created and produced the show), Ned Brooks, Bill Monroe, Marvin Kalb, Roger Mudd, Chris Wallace, Garrick Utley, and current host Tim Russert. Some people have said that the show isn't the same anymore because Russert has on guests like Stephen Colbert. I think that's ridiculous, because they've had comics on before. Though I do think the way that Russert conducted most of the interview, faux serious and trying to be jokey too, was odd.

* Longest running show period? Guiding Light, which debuted on radio in 1937 and then switched to TV in 1952.

(S01E23) At the beginning of the episode, Justin says, "Life is what happens in between big sets." He is talking about surfing, and also the past year and everything that has happened. I'm still trying to figure out whether or not that is true, profound, or whether, as Justin said, it just sounded poetic in his head. And I think I'm going to have to go with poetic in Justin's head. Just like I think this episode was probably so much better in the writers' heads. I have to admit, I am a little disappointed. I am struggling with a huge bias here though: I HATE slapstick. Hate it. And so whenever this show employs it, I just kind of shut down and zone out. Last week was a brilliant, beautiful episode, and I wish they had just stopped with that. In fact, in my mind, last week's episode is just going to be the season finale, and we'll just pretend this one didn't happen, shall we?

(S01E18) This episode was a lot more light-hearted than last week's show, and I have to admit, I am kind of a sucker for the drama. But there was a lot to like in this episode too. Like Sarah, for once. Sarah let her hair down, got drunk on ar-ti-ritas, and got to have some fun, which went a long way in undoing her strident bitchiness that threatens to drown the character in dislike-ability.

But, oh, ick ick ick! Oh god, please don't make Robert McCallister a saint or anymore of a good guy. The fact that he let people think he was a hero when he was scared under heavy fire and didn't really want to evacuate those people just humanizes him a bit. How can anybody be that good looking and that wonderful? It's too much really.

(S03E17) And, they're back! Is it just me, or did that feel like a particularly long hiatus? At any rate, I am happy that they're back. And finally, finally, they are giving Gaby an interesting storyline, with a worthy partner. Phew. So, let's talk about Gaby first.

I didn't know what to think about her new, older, cocky boyfriend at first. Actor John Slattery, who plays Victor, also played a politician on Sex and the City. That character dated Carrie until he proposed something to her that she found offensive, so he wasn't around for more than a couple of episodes. But he seems to have the sleazy politician role down.

Bill Maher appeared at the TCA to tease the upcoming fifth season of Real Time with Bill Maher (that's already four Bill Maher mentions between the headline and this -- I hope the check's in the mail). He let us know that he wishes (hopes?) that he could get Bill or Hillary Clinton as a guest, and that they have trouble getting a lot of conservatives to appear because, "most of them are in bed by 8PM on a Friday night, getting ready for church."

Real With Bill Maher (*cha-ching*) premieres on February 16th.

Quotes from Bill:

• "Truth is like sex. It's best when it's a little painful."
• "HBO pays me the same whether I listen to the guests or not. It's all: bullshit, bullshit, bullshit -- my line."
• "Fox News hates us, for good reason, I make fun of them a lot ... and for good reason, they suck."

Here's an odd thought: Larry King celebrates 50 years in the news biz this year, the same year Katie Couric celebrates her 50th birthday.

King and CNN will mark the anniversary with a 3 disc DVD set (I'm talking about King's 50th anniversary, not Couric's birthday - no idea is CBS will release something for her) of his Larry King Live stuff. The set will be released on April 17, and each disc will focus on a different theme. Disc one will be "Hollywood Film Stars and Legends," Disc two will be "Presidents and First Ladies, News and Scandals," and Disc 3 will be "Stars and Broadcast Icons, Comedians and Unforgettable Moments."

I hope that these are complete interviews and not just edited "greatest hits" package. King fans will want to see the entire interview with each person, even the phone calls he takes from viewers in the second half of the show.

I'm not the world's biggest fan of Larry King - I think he's become increasingly unprepared for his guests and the show's obsession with murder cases borders on nauseating - but I'd rather see him in that chair until he's 100 years old than have Nancy Grace take over the slot.

That's the buzz in the industry right now, that Grace, who has an incredibly popular show on CNN's Headline News right now (you should all be ashamed of yourselves) will someday replace King, who is reported to be on his way out because he's too frail to work that much anymore. CNN head Jon Klein denies all of this, of course, but CNN has made a lot of changes in the past couple of years, some shocking and irritating to viewers. And King can't stay there forever.

So who would you like to see in that slot if King retires?