TVSquad

What now for Paula Abdul? You have to wonder. The singer/dancer/choreographer has really been in her element -- if that's the right word -- as the sympathetic American Idol judge. Since Paula Abdul tweeted last night that she will not be returning to American Idol, you have to wonder if she's going to disappear into oblivion or find a new career to glom onto at this point in her life?

Oh yes, she still has her jewelry, so she'll be on the air on HSN. But you know that Bravo isn't welcoming her back for more of the reality train wreck that was Hey, Paula.

After being arrested in Las Vegas last weekend, accused of assaulting his girlfriend, HBO chairman and CEO has decided to step down from his position.

Of course, that's what Time Warner, HBO's (and our) parent company, said in a statement. But according to a statement from Albrecht, the resignation was tendered at the request of his TW bosses. Right after the incident happened, Albrecht was supposed to take a leave of absence so he can continue alcohol treatments and work with AA that he had discontinued, but other incidents involving assaults against women were revealed, prompting TW to ask for the executive's resignation.

The network's COO, Bill Nelson, will assume Albrecht's duties on an interim basis until a successor is found. Albrecht had been with the network since 1985.

(S03E12) WOW! WOW! WOW!

What an episode! What an absolutely brilliant episode! I cannot remember ever guffawing over every single line in a single sitcom episode as I did watching this one. If the performances in this particular one don't garner the actors in this show a plethora of Emmys, there ought to be an investigation.

I believe this was Steve Carell's single best performance so far as Michael Scott. He displayed the full range of his personality--jokester, arrogant jerk, charming salesman, sensitive soul, and added a new one--anger. The look on his face when he learned of Dwight's clandestine visit to the New York office could have cut through steel.

The Apiary, a blog about the New York comedy scene, is reporting that Ben Karlin (pictured), executive producer of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, has announced his resignation. Karlin, along with Jon Stewart, has been a driving creative force behind TDS (and later, Colbert) for many years, so his alleged departure is a significant change. (UPDATE: Comedy Central confirmed the change to Broadcasting & Cable magazine)

If he leaves, head writer David Javerbaum is set to take his place. Rachel Sklar over at Huffington Post's Eat The Press reports that Javerbaum himself was set to leave the show to pursue a career writing lyrics for Broadway musicals. No word from either source on a) why Karlin is leaving and b) who will replace Javerbaum as head writer. ETP does go on to mention that TDS has hired some new producers, including Daniel Sterling, a former writer and producer for Kitchen Confidential and King of the Hill.

(By the way, on the rare occasion I write something over at Huffington, Rachel edits my stuff. Just wanted to give you full disclosure.)

You know, it's funny what blogging about TV does to a person. Now that I've been doing this for so long I typically find out about inconsequential stuff having to do with the television industry before I learn about important things that might actually affect my life. Sometimes, though, those worlds can collide.

Citing a complete lack of journalistic standards, a blogger for the Comedy Central Insider mentioned last night that a friend of his who worked in the White House told him Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld would be stepping down. It wasn't until early this afternoon that Rumsfeld made the official announcement and the major media sources began to report on it.

Before anyone says anything, yes, I understand this was something that just happened to fall into CC Insider's blog-lap, and that "this guy I know said this might happen" isn't exactly a sound journalistic source. I just found it amusing that people surfing for Drawn Together clips and pictures of Amy Sedaris were the first ones to hear about the alleged resignation.

(S01E16) It has come down to this. Number 6's captors have failed in every attempt to get him to tell them why he resigned. Since this is the second to last episode in the series, something has to give.

It doesn't take long to realize that this episode is going to be an interesting one because Leo McKern returns as Number 2. In my opinion, he is the best Number 2 because he just seems so comfortable in the role. As he returns, we can see that he is not happy to be there. It appears that he has been brought back to ascertain Number 6's reason for his resignation. Upon looking at Number 6's actions on the video screen, he asks angrily, "Why do you care?"

(S01E06) Despite their best efforts so far, the powers-that-be at the Village can't seem to break Number 6 and ascertain the reason as to why he resigned from being a spy. In this instance, the new Number 2 gets a call from (presumably) Number 1 who implores him to get information from Number 6. We see a clearly agitated Number 2 acknowledge to his boss that he "is not indispensable", so it would be safe to assume that more drastic measures will be taken to get Number 6 to talk.

We are then introduced to Number 14, an attractive female doctor who has developed a means to get Number 6 to talk via the combination of mind-altering drugs and dream analysis. In other words, Number 6 is knocked out and then placed on a table with electrodes hooked up to his head and the doctor administers a shot whereby we see his dreams on a television screen. Number 2 hopes that he can get the answer he is looking for so he can get Number 1 off his back.

Do not adjust your web browser. You are now entering the Retro Squad, where we are reviewing past episodes of your favorite shows, in order, every week.

(S01E01) "I am not a number. I am a free man!"

You can't get much more "retro" than The Prisoner, which first appeared on British television in the fall of 1967 and then in the U.S. about a year later. It starred Patrick McGoohan, who also served as the 17-episode show's executive producer. (You may remember him as the warden of Alcatraz in Escape from Alcatraz starring Clint Eastwood.)

When you watch this show, it seems other-worldly. Granted, it's nearly 40 years old, but it also was ahead of it's time, especially in the blending of technology into the stories. (Dig those cool cordless phones!) It also has influenced many television shows and movies (just do a Google search and you'll see what I mean). It's very difficult to talk about a show you've seen many times and have enjoyed for just as long without giving away too much, but let me set you up with the basic premise and take off from there.