Posts with tag showtime
Posted May 12th 2008 1:04PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: Interviews, Celebrities, Reality-Free
Penn Jillette has always been outspoken. He and his silent partner in magic, Teller, have more than three decades showing audiences the secrets behind their most spectacular tricks. And on
Penn & Teller: Bullshit!, which is about to enter its sixth season on Showtime, the pair debunk commonly-held beliefs about everything from the Bible and people who claim to speak to the dead to gun control and what the 9/11 conspiracy movement.
But those two platforms aren't enough for Penn. Up until recently, he hosted a syndicated talk radio show, which he gave up in part to concentrate on his stint on
Dancing with the Stars this season. But he hasn't stayed silent; in January, Jillette started posting a series of short videos called
Penn Says, which can be seen on the C Spot portion of Crackle, a Sony Entertainment website that has a number of exclusive video series. In these shorts, Penn turns on the camera and speaks extemporaneously about a topic that comes to mind, from Thomas Jefferson to the shelf life of calling Hillary Clinton a "bitch."
I spoke to Penn about
Penn Says, the Hillary joke,
Bullshit! and what he got out of being on
Dancing with the Stars. The interview is after the jump.
Continue reading Penn Jillette: The TV Squad Interview - VIDEO
Posted May 10th 2008 1:03PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Programming, Pickups and Renewals, Weeds, Reality-Free
The
New York Post has gotten some dirt on
big changes for the next season of Weeds. Season four is going to have some major overhauls.
The show is about a suburban housewife played by Mary-Louise Parker who has to sell marijuana in order to make ends meet after her husband unexpectedly passes away. It's known for having the song "Little Boxes" played in the intro.
Except that it won't anymore. Gone will be the intro song and the location of the show will change to a rundown seaside California town near the Mexican border. This should come as no surprise to regular viewers since the fictional community they lived in burned down at the end of season three.
Continue reading Big changes afoot on Weeds
Posted May 3rd 2008 9:06AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
Do you love Tracey Ullman? Yeah, who doesn't? The lady's a riot. Showtime is so enamored of the Brit-com-queen that they've ordered a second season -- seven fresh episodes -- of
Tracey Ullman's State of the Union. The network has also lined up another English artist for 2009. Comedy star Marc Wootton is locked in for six episodes.
"I won't hold it against them that both are from the U.K.," laughed Showtime prez Robert Greenblatt. "Tracey Ullman is the veteran genius who continues to impress us with her versatility, while Marc Wootton is the up-and-comer who will surprise our audience with his own unique voice. This is an embarrassment of riches for us in the comedy department."
Continue reading Showtime likes the laughs, renews Tracey Ullman
Posted Apr 27th 2008 10:05PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S02E05) This was by far the heaviest episode of
The Tudors I've seen. I'll get to my review of the heavier parts later. First, however, I think I'll begin with some of the lighter parts of the episode, all of which were provided by the Pope. I know I've said it before but Peter O'Toole is an invaluable addition to this show. All of his scenes were impeccable tonight (not really anything different from any other night). I think by far his best scene was after Michelangelo threw a tantrum and used foul language when one of his apprentices didn't paint Moses right. Also great but a little haunting was the pope's mention of Cardinal Fisher's martyrdom. He had this eerie expression on his face while he "lamented" that he would not be able to die for Christ like Fisher.
Read on after the jump for my full review of
The Tudors...
Continue reading The Tudors: Episode 2-5
Posted Apr 23rd 2008 5:41PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Psych, Casting, Reality-Free
This sounds like good casting to me.
Cybill Shepherd is joining Psych for a mini-arc as Shawn's mom. The actress, best known on TV from her hit series
Moonlighting (remember, her and Bruce Willis?), has recently been on Showtime's
The L Word. Cybill's not a great dramatic actress, but she is pretty funny and should fit in perfectly with the goofy, good-natured fun on
Psych.
When
Psych comes back to USA Network on July 18 with new shows, her episodes (at least two) will be broadcast. She's playing Madeleine, Henry's ex-wife and Shawn's mama. So far in the series, Maddie (like Maddie Hayes in
Moonlighting perhaps?), has not been shown in the scenes depicting Shawn -- and Gus's -- childhood. Corbin Bernsen, who plays Henry, has worn a hairpiece for the retro scenes and goes bald for the present day scenes. We'll see whether Cybill's in both scenes or not...
According to the show, when Madeleine appears in Santa Barbara, she's coming from Europe and wants to visit her sonny boy. The visit, so we're told, dredges up some old memories. And since this is a crime/caper/mystery show, perhaps Maddie's bound to get involved in one of Shawn's cases.
Posted Apr 21st 2008 5:38PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, Cable/Satellite, Dexter, Weeds, Reality-Free
Paramount, Lionsgate and MGM are launching a new premium cable channel next year that will likely strip Showtime of much of its theatrical movie content. Showtime was originally a sister company to Paramount until 2006 when Viacom president and CEO Les Moonves split the two companies into separate entities.
One of the reasons cited for this move was by the Showtime's vice president of corporate public relations Stu Zakim. He stated that the network no longer wanted to pay "outrageous license fees" for theatrical content.
This is actually a natural progression for the bigger name cable channels. As they develop more original content, they no longer need to rely on the movie studios to provide content for them. This is a far cry from the early days of cable television when HBO and Showtime were known as the channels from which you could watch R-rated movies in the comfort of your own home.
Posted Apr 20th 2008 10:04PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S02E04) The 16th century soap opera continues... George Boleyn is having an affair with Mark Smeaton. Anne's pregnant again. Henry's on mistress number two to keep him company while the bun is in the oven. Henry passed a bill making him supreme ruler of everything. Lady Mary lost her title to a little baby named Elizabeth.Trouble is brewing overseas with the French king not recognized Anne as queen and the Spanish emperor planning Anne's assassination. Now, all we need is for someone to come back from the dead or have a sex change.
I can barely keep up with The Tudors. How about you? Let's talk about it after the jump...
Continue reading The Tudors: Episode 2-4
Posted Apr 15th 2008 11:44AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Casting, Weeds, Reality-Free
One of the funniest guys in show business is coming to TV; and not just voices like he's done on
The Simpsons. E! News has reported that
Albert Brooks will appear in four episodes of Weeds for in the upcoming season. The Showtime comedy
returns with new episodes beginning June 16.
Albert Brooks -- whose real name is Albert Einstein (and his brother is comic Bob Einstein, aka Super Dave Osborne) -- has been making people laugh for nearly four decades. I distinctly remember his bits on
Love, American Style and his hilarious films on
Saturday Night Live circa 1975.
Continue reading Funnyman Albert Brooks cast on Weeds
Posted Apr 14th 2008 6:19PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: Programming, Weeds, Reality-Free
I haven't seen too much about this but Showtime recently updated their site. So I figure it's worth mentioning when you consider the cult following this comedy has developed. Showtime has slated the season four premiere of Weeds for Monday, June 16th. If that seems like a tight schedule, well... it is. Especially considering that they're starting from scratch following the WGA Strike and that production resumes this week.
There are some changes to note though...
Continue reading Weeds returns on June 16th
Posted Apr 13th 2008 10:05PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S02E03) And to the right, my dear readers, is the main reason I watch
The Tudors. Let's face it, if they hired an actor who actually resembled King Henry VIII, I don't think this show would be quite as popular. But shameless appreciation of Jonathon Rhys Meyer's hotness aside, I
kind of like the show too. *wink*
Tonight's episode had some big plot progressions but in between was a lot of the same old stuff they've been using since the very beginning of the series. There was more Team Katharine (led by the Duke of Suffolk and loyal Catholic Thomas More) versus Team Anne (led by her family...oh, and the king). For a discussion of what happened tonight, read on after the jump.
Continue reading The Tudors: Episode 2-3
Posted Apr 6th 2008 10:05PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S02E02) This week we see just how much Anne has beguiled Henry (some might even say, bewitched?). The gifts, the trip to France, the title--all tokens of his love and all signs of how narrow-minded he is about her. I think the gifts, while very special and expensive, are nothing compared to the trip to Calais and Henry's elevating Anne to Marquess of Pembroke. Those two things show, more than anything else, that Henry is indeed serious about divorcing Queen Katharine and marrying Anne Boleyn.
Continue reading The Tudors: Episode 2-2
Posted Apr 3rd 2008 10:41AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Cable/Satellite, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
Whenever I think of Robert Wuhl, I'm reminded of that scene in
Bull Durham where he's playing a coach meeting on the mound with the pitcher and the catcher -- Tim Robbins and Kevin Costner -- and they're arguing about what's an appropriate wedding gift. It's an inane, silly, funny moment, topped by Wuhl's suggestion that candlesticks always make a nice gift.
It's also nice to report that
Robert Wuhl has agreed to remain with HBO. It's been his comic home for 12 years, including
Arli$$ which ran for season seasons and poked fun at the world of professional sports. The show wasn't a water-cooler comedy like
Entourage or
Curb Your Enthusiasm, but it was consistently funny and I enjoyed it.
Continue reading Robert Wuhl re-signs with HBO
Posted Mar 30th 2008 10:05PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews
(
S02E01)
The Tudors is back. And in true Tudor style, it's back with a vengeance. Last year in the season finale we left Henry on the brink of a climax. And I would say no pun intended, but if you saw the season finale, you know that pun was
definitely intended.
A lot was set in motion with the premiere of
The Tudors. The ambitious Boleyns will rise even higher in the king's esteem this season. However, if you know your history, you'll know that we will watch their bloody fall from grace too. Henry and Anne's fiery relationship will deteriorate. And influence of Protestantism will continue to surge, while Catholicism in Britain will collapse almost entirely.
Continue reading The Tudors: Episode 2-1 (season premiere)
Posted Mar 24th 2008 10:06AM by Keith McDuffee
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, TV on DVD, Contests and Giveaways
This time we've got three copies of
The L Word - Season Four on DVD for three lucky, random commenters. The DVD is available in stores now.
To enter, simply leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Friday, March 28 simply telling us why you'd like to own this DVD set. As always, we'll randomly choose three winners amongst the eligible entries. Some other details:
- To enter, leave a confirmed comment below stating why you'd like to own The L Word - The Complete 4th Season on DVD.
- The comment must be left before March 28, 2008 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
- You may enter only once.
- Three winners will be selected in a random drawing.
- Three winners will receive a copy of The L Word - The Complete 4th Season on DVD (valued at $54.99).
Click
here for complete Official Rules.
Posted Mar 22nd 2008 1:11PM by Kristin Sample
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Programming, OpEd, Early Looks
If you are excited for season 2 of
The Tudors on Showtime but can't wait until it airs on Sunday March 30th, check this out. Showtime is making the season premiere available to fans online now. Just
click here and enter the password: Royal.
For an early look at the show, read on past the jump...
Continue reading The Tudors season two -- An early look
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